FRANCIS-BARNETT AND JAMES TWO- strokes were a cut above the hordes of Villiers-engined motorcycles being built by dozens of British manufacturers in the 1950s and 1960s. Yet today, these purposeful lightweights are often overlooked by those searching for a British classic. AMC, the owner of Matchless AJS and Norton, took over Francis-Barnett in 1947 and James in 1951. The two firms were combined in 1957, with subsequent models mostly being badge engineered with alternative stylings over the same cycle parts. They did have separate factories until Francis-Barnett production moved to the James factory in the early 1960s.
