history
Vincent HRD has quite an interesting history because it all started when Howard Raymond Davies, a British pilot, was captured by the German army and kept in prison for several years. During this period, Davies started thinking and designing a motorcycle that would integrate all the features he wanted, a bike which had to be build a few years later when he went of out jail. Together with his partner E.J. Massey, Davies built the first HRD motorcycle which won the Isle of Man TT in 1925, the same year when he set a new world record, reaching a top speed of 66 mph.
Although it all looked to go pretty well for HRD, the owners discontinued the project and no other improvements were made. Because of that, Philip Vincent, a Cambridge University student, acquired the trademark and a few parts supposed to be used on the HRD bike with no less than 500 pounds. From now on, the newly-founded company had a name, Vincent HRD Co. Ltd. and a logo – the name Vincent was written above the HRD initials.
Until 1934, Vincent HRD was pretty focused on building motorcycles, no less than 7 models being already launched. However, most of them were using a 499cc engine, Philip Vincent being especially interested in the design of the bikes.
In 1949, the logo of the company was entirely changed, the HRD letter being removed from it as most people thought that it was actually Harley Davidson, a motorcycle company which became more and more popular on the American motorcycle market.
It's interesting to note that Vincent is one of the companies which started the production of motorcycles just after the World War II ended, rolling out bikes especially addressed to the citizens of the country and not only to the army. The Series B Rapide was a 998cc V-Twin motorcycle was pretty much a new bike, only a few parts reminding of the previous models.
The company was continuously growing up, opening several new dealerships in the next few years. For instance, the first one was opened in Philadelphia, followed by Florida, New Jersey and Michigan.
As the time passed by, Vincent HRD came out with numerous unique features, including the handlebar mounted brake adjuster and multiple design elements. However, after 1950 the company started experiencing financial problems and in 1955, Phil Vincent announced at a Owner's Club that the company will no longer produce motorcycle.
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