LIVING with LEGENDS
'Don’t trudge it, Rudge it!’ entreated the adverts from the Rudge-Whitworth Company, complete with ‘amusing’ cartoon character Johnny Rudge. Founded in 1894 when Whitworth Cycles acquired Rudge, motorcycle production began in 1911 alongside the core bicycle business. Rudge quickly established themselves in the sporting arena, breaking the 500cc record at Brooklands and going on to record their first success in the senior TT of 1914 at an average speed of nearly 50mph.
One of the smaller companies which did not attempt to appease mass market tastes, Rudge’s diminutive size allowed them certain freedoms within the marketplace. Their first important model, 1912’s Multi, employed a novel pulley system to tension the final drive belt, effectively offering the rider 21 ratios from which to choose. Such innovation suggested continued suitability for racing. The firm borrowed aviation’s extensive use of four-valve technology and looked to Ricardo’s pioneering work on the Triumph R, developing a similar engine themselves as early as 1923.
Four smaller valves allowed the fitment of a central spark plug, giving a better burn in the combustion chamber. Lighter valve gear also permits higher revs
