Alpha was a brand of

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike; uni (if one-wheeled); trike (if three-wheeled); quad (if four-wheeled)) is a lightweight private 1-to-2 passenger personal motor vehicle Steering, steered by a Motorcycle handlebar, handlebar from a saddle-style ...

s and motocarros manufactured in

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

by Nilo Maso Miró between 1924 and 1957.

History

Nilo Masó Miró, a former speed driver, started his motorcycle manufacturing company in 1924 in Barcelona, producing machines powered by 175 and 250 cc two-stroke engines from Villiers and

DKW DKW (''Dampfkraftwagen'', – the same initials later also used for ''Des Knaben Wunsch'', ; ''Das Kleine Wunder'', and ''Deutsche Kinderwagen'', ) was a German car- and motorcycle-marque. DKW was one of the four companies that formed Auto U ...

. Alpha became one of the leading Spanish motorcycle manufacturers of the period before the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

. The marque was known for the pleasing aesthetics of its models. After the war, when the import of foreign parts was severely restricted, and like many other manufacturers, the factory turned to the reconstruction of ex-army machines and the construction of auxiliary motors for

bicycles A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike, push-bike or cycle, is a human-powered or motor-assisted, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, with two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A is called a cyclist, or bicyclist. ...

MV Alpha

Count Agusta had plans to expand the

MV Agusta MV Agusta (, full name: MV AGUSTA Motor S.p.A., original name: Meccanica Verghera Agusta or MV) is an Italian high end motorcycle manufacturer. It was founded by Domenico Agusta, Count Domenico Agusta on 19 January 1945 as one of the branches of ...

brand internationally. In post-Civil War Spain, the

Franco Franco may refer to: Name * Franco (name) * Francisco Franco (1892–1975), Spanish general and dictator of Spain from 1939 to 1975 * Franco Luambo (1938–1989), Congolese musician, the "Grand Maître" * Franco of Cologne (mid to late 13th cent ...

regime banned the import of motorcycles and also forbade foreign nationals from settling in Spain, or stating a business there. Brothers Mario and Natale Corando intended to set up manufacture of MV machines under licence by a local factory, which had licenses and manufacturing permits and therefore have access to raw materials. A deal was struck with Nilo Masó of Alpha. To provide finance, Enrique Favier and Antonio Sommariva joined the venture and MV Alpha was formed in 1948. In the first models went on sale. They were powered by a 125 cc

two-stroke A two-stroke (or two-stroke cycle) engine is a type of internal combustion engine that completes a power cycle with two strokes of the piston, one up and one down, in one revolution of the crankshaft in contrast to a four-stroke engine which re ...

engine and offered as standard, lujo (luxury) and sports models. Power output was 3.2 bhp, and 4.5 bhp for the sports models, giving top speeds of 60 and 70 km/h. A smaller 98 cc model was subsequently produced. Sales were good, but because of the limited facilities of Alpha, production could not be increased. The licence to produce MV motorcycles was transferred to the larger and better equipped Avello factory in the Natahoyo neighbourhood of

Gijón Gijón () or () is a city and municipality in north-western Spain. It is the largest city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality by population in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Asturias. It is located on the coa ...

Asturias Asturias (; ; ) officially the Principality of Asturias, is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in northwest Spain. It is coextensive with the provinces of Spain, province of Asturias and contains some of the territory t ...

in 1951, creating the MV Avello brand.

Demise

The loss of the MV license caused the beginning of the decline of Alpha workshops. In 1953 Alpha collaborated in the construction of the Evycsa motorcycle with four-stroke FITA-AMC engines. Also produced were distribution tricycles (equipped with OSSA and Hispano Villiers engines ) and a 175cc light motorcycle, inspired by the

BSA Bantam The BSA Bantam is a Two-stroke engine, two-stroke unit construction motorcycle that was produced by the Birmingham Small Arms Company (BSA) from 1948 (as a 123 cc) until 1971 (as a 173 cc). Exact production figures are unknown, but it ...

. The factory finally closed in 1957.

Resurrection

The name was resurrected in 2014, with 100% Spanish capital, to produce motorcycles and electric

bicycle A bicycle, also called a pedal cycle, bike, push-bike or cycle, is a human-powered transport, human-powered or motorized bicycle, motor-assisted, bicycle pedal, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, with two bicycle wheel, wheels attached to a ...

s. They planned to produce a

cafe racer A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café (), is an establishment that serves various types of coffee, espresso, latte, americano and cappuccino, among other hot beverages. Many coffeehouses in West Asia offer ''shisha'' (actually called ''nargile ...

derived from the Ducati 800SS styled on the

Bonneville Salt Flats The Bonneville Salt Flats are a densely packed salt pan in Tooele County in northwestern Utah, United States. A remnant of the Pleistocene Lake Bonneville, it is the largest of many salt flats west of the Great Salt Lake. It is public land ma ...

racers. An electric bike similar to the

Bultaco Bultaco was a Spanish manufacturer of two-stroke motorcycles from 1958 to 1983. In May 2014, a new Bultaco was announced. Origins The origin of the Bultaco motorcycle company dates from May 1958. Francesc Xavier Bultó, Francesc "Paco" Bultó ...

Brinco was also planned. The company was located in the

Province of Pontevedra Pontevedra is a province of Spain, located in the southwestern part of the autonomous community of Galicia. It is bordered by the provinces of A Coruña, Lugo, and Ourense, the country of Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean. There is a public insti ...

. In 2017, the company introduced lightweight

carbon fibre Carbon fiber-reinforced polymers (American English), carbon-fibre-reinforced polymers ( Commonwealth English), carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics, carbon-fiber reinforced-thermoplastic (CFRP, CRP, CFRTP), also known as carbon fiber, carbon comp ...

drake discs for bicycles. They were claimed to be the lightest discs available at between 32 and 70 grams dependent of size.

References

Bibliography

* {{MV Agusta MV Agusta Motorcycle manufacturers of Spain Spanish brands Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1924 Vehicle manufacturing companies disestablished in 1957 1957 disestablishments in Spain Spanish companies established in 1924 Motorcycles by brand