Armored bicycle/motorcycle - help wanted

[Mancha]

Hi All,

I have been desiring on and off to make something like the following:



I have seen it variously called an "armored bicycle" and an "armored motorcycle".  I have seen only the one image, although in different permutations.  I wonder if anyone has come across other views of it?

I have some questions that perhaps someone might answer.

First, do you think it's a bicycle or a motorcycle?  I would guess a motorcycle, because it's hard to imagine a bicyclist moving around all that armor.

Second, do you think the rearmost panel is actually a rear door, open?

Third, do you think a rider would be completely surrounded by armor, or might his upper torso stick out of an upper hatch?  (Notice that there doesn't seem to be a forward-facing window.)

Fourth, what would you guess the bike/motorcycle inside would look like?  It seems like it couldn't be a regular-configured bike/motorcycle unless the rider's head & shoulders stick out the top.  But I'd also be surprised if they'd devised the kind of bike that one sort of lays down on.

Any pictures, information, or even guesses would be appreciated.

                   

[Westfalia Chris]

I have never seen that one before, so I'll have to resort to educated guesses.

I'd suspect this is a motor tricycle rather than a "traditional" motorcycle. Not only does it look rather stable in the pic, any armour that is to have any protective value would probably unbalance a normal motorcycle unduly. Another possibility could be the use of supporting wheels rather than a tricycle arrangement. Similar to the Simms Motor Scout, but not a quadricycle, obviously.



Another option could be using the drive train of a motorcycle to allow for a lower driver position (as with the RR 1914 where the driver sat on the floor, IIRC). But that would probably beat any advantage gained from using (existing) motorcycles for the conversion.

You cannot judge it by the pic alone, but I'd go with your interpretation that it is open-topped. In that case, it could very well be a regular motorcycle (with the supporting wheels) that is linked into a supporting frame that holds the armour plates. Presumably, any fixed armament would be mounted on a solenoid or other mounting and protected by the armoured funnel in the front. Furthermore, it would probably be a scout; based on the assumption that this is a French design (by the officers' uniforms in the pic) it would be limited to roads, and a fully enclosed body would probably be too restrictive in terms of vision.

EDIT: I just found a reference which would probably match the pic:

At least one British motorcycle combination of 1914 was armoured, its make is not known. A photograph exists of bewhiskered and rather well fed French officers examining the vehicle and doubtless expressing some satisfaction that they would not be asked to ride in or on the dammed contraption. They make it difficult to see the details of the machine but it is obvious that the armour plate would only have protected the lower regions of its crew. The position of the gun suggests that this was intended to be fired from the moving vehicle.

From: http://www.patriotfiles.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-110032.html

Based on this, the front would be slightly skewed to the left, and the gun operated by the passenger in the sidecar.

[Mancha]

Based on this, the front would be slightly skewed to the left, and the gun operated by the passenger in the sidecar.

Ah, very interesting and helpful.  Thank you.  So essentially a motorcycle with sidecar, a bunch of armor, and an open top.

[Westfalia Chris]

Ah, very interesting and helpful.  Thank you.  So essentially a motorcycle with sidecar, a bunch of armor, and an open top.

I'd assume so. This is, however, based on the above reference, and I have no way of corroborating it. On the other hand, the front DOES look a bit skewed in the image (i.e. the right cheek plate has a stronger skew than the left one), and the gun funnel looks to be a bit off-centre to the right, which would support the hypothesis.

Finally, it seems sensible to use a motorcycle combination, as those would have been readily available (more than tricycles, now that I think of it).

[ariellevy1]

that's something very different I have never seen something like this it is quite ancient.This bicycle is of which year?