Norman Cycles was a British

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 ...

, autocycle,

moped A moped ( ) is a type of small motorcycle, generally having a less stringent licensing requirement than full motorcycles or automobiles. Historically, the term exclusively meant a similar vehicle with both bicycle pedals and a motorcycle eng ...

, and

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 ...

manufacturer in

Ashford, Kent Ashford is a town in the Borough of Ashford, Ashford district, in the county of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Great Stour at the southern or Escarpment, scarp edge of the North Downs, about by road southeast of centr ...

, England. The company and its products are remembered today by the Norman Cycles Club at

Willesborough Windmill New Mill is a Grade II* listed smock mill in Hythe Road, Willesborough, Ashford, Kent. It stands just west of junction 10 of the M20 motorway. It was built in 1869 and is now a museum open to the public. History ''New Mill'' was built in 1869 ...

, in

Willesborough Willesborough is a residential suburb, on the eastern side of Ashford, in the county of Kent, England. The area The South Willesborough Dykes area, on the west bank of the River East Stour, is an area of sheep fields drained by dykes. The are ...

, Ashford. The Norman museum is in the Windmill's barn and displays some of the company's mopeds and bicycles.

History

The company was founded shortly after

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

as the Kent Plating & Enamelling Co by brothers Charles and Fred Norman, making frames in a garden shed off Jemmett Road, Ashford. In the 1920s they moved to larger premises in Victoria Road, Ashford, and progressed to producing cycles. In 1935, they had a factory built in Beaver Road, Ashford, and the company was renamed Norman Cycles Limited. In 1938, it produced an autocycle (a heavier-duty bicycle with a small engine - later commonly known as a moped). In addition to cycles the company went on to produce mopeds and light motorbikes (with motors supplied by manufacturers including Villiers and British Anzani;

Sachs Sachs is a German surname, meaning "man from Saxony". Sachs is a common surname among Ashkenazi Jews from Saxony, in the United States sometimes adopted in the variant Zaks, supposedly in reference to the Hebrew phrase ''Zera Kodesh Shemo'' (ZaKS), ...

engines were used for the Norman Nippy moped). The company produced many thousands of cycles and motorbikes. Weekly production was said to peak at 5,000 bikes, 600 mopeds and 120 motorbikes. It exported to Commonwealth countries using the Rambler trademark. The company had sporting success. By 1950, Norman Cycles had been acquired by

Tube Investments TI Group plc (formerly "Tube Investments") was a holding company for specialised engineering companies. It was based in Abingdon, Oxfordshire and was listed on the London Stock Exchange, at one point being a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. ...

, which used the

Raleigh Raleigh ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, second-most populous city in the state (after Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte) ...

name for cycles. The Ashford factory closed in 1961. Although products bearing the Norman name continued to be made (

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

for cycles and

Smethwick Smethwick () is an industrial town in the Sandwell district, in the county of the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It lies west of Birmingham city centre. Historically it was in Staffordshire and then Worcestershire before bei ...

for mopeds and motorbikes), the heyday had passed and the name ceased in sales literature after 1963. In tribute, a road close to the site of the 1935 factory is named Norman Road. Norman Cycles does not have any connection to

Norman Engineering Co The Norman Engineering Company (1919–1968) was a British manufacturer of lightweight air-cooled four-stroke industrial engines of 1 to 6 hp, based at premises in London, Leamington Spa, Warwick and Uxbridge. Other products included motor ...

of Leamington Spa and Warwick, makers of industrial engines.

Bicycles

*Norman Imp *Norman Continental *Norman Invader *Norman Atalanta *Norman Conquest *Norman Attacker *Norman Beaver *Norman Light Roadster *Norman Sabre *Norman Safety Cycle *Norman Tricycle 2P *Norman Rapide

Autocycles

*Norman Motobyk Tricycle

Mopeds

*Norman Nippy - most had Villiers engines; the Mark IV had a Villiers 3K (49cc) single-cylinder engine, leading-link front fork and swinging-arm rear suspension *Norman Lido

Motorcycles

*Norman B1 *Norman B1 Sports *Norman B2 *Norman B2C (Trials) *Norman B3 Roadster *Norman B3 Sports *Norman B4 Roadster *Norman B4 Sports *Norman TS

References

External links

Norman Motorcycles & Cycles Club
normanmotorcycles.org.uk
Norman Model List
archived from www.norman-cycles.bravehost.com

{{coord , 51, 8, 9, N, 0, 52, 4, E, type:landmark_region:GB-KEN, display=title Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of England Defunct cycle manufacturers of the United Kingdom Moped manufacturers Defunct motorcycle manufacturers of the United Kingdom History of Ashford, Kent Defunct companies based in Kent