Bonhams Selling Moby Dick, The Fastest Motorcycle of the 1920s

The forthcoming Bonhams auction at the Motorcycle Show in Staffordshire on October 16th is to witness the sale of a 1929 Brough Superior SS100 known as Moby Dick, the fastest motorcycle of the 1920s, which has attracted a pre-sale estimate of £240,000 - £280,000.

Hailed in its day as 'the fastest privately owned machine in the world suitable for road use', this motorcycle is expected to prove very popular with bidders.

Tested by Motor Cycling magazine in 1931, 'Moby Dick' achieved a top speed of 106mph, a staggering achievement at a time when very few road vehicles of any sort were capable of reaching three-figure speeds.

Further tuning of the modified 1,142cc v-twin engine later raised that figure to 115mph in top (third) gear, with 109mph achievable in second. Sold but later repurchased by the vendor's family, Moby Dick was restored in 1998.

A 1924 Brough Superior 980cc SS80 is also to be featured in the sale, estimated to sell for £75,000-95,000. Another prominent Brough Superior on offer is the 1933 '11-50' that took the 'best original in show' award at the BSOC Rally in 2004 (£32,000-38,000).

"The second Bonhams Stafford sale of 2011 will offer one of our most eclectic selection of significant collectors' motorcycles ever, with everything from one of the earliest Brough Superior SS80s to a concours condition Kawasaki Z1, and aims to build on the incredible success of our April auction and its £2 million result. With in excess of 200 machines we aim to have something for everyone," said Ben Walker, Head of Motorcycles at Bonhams.