The motorcycle brand of the Stevens brothers from Wolverhampton had sporting genes from the start
Soon after Albert John (whose initials were at the beginning of the motorcycle brand with the surname "Stevens") with his brothers George, Harry, Jack and Joe founded 1909 AJS the first AJS was used as a competition machine. And already in 1911 the brand gained points during the Junior Tourist trophy on the Isle of Man. AJS scored there in the 300 class where the brand appeared at the start with their first own side valve. And in 1913, AJS driver WM Heaton finished tenth in Man. A year later, after the permitted engine capacity had reached 350 cc, things went much better. Then Cyril Williams won the Junior TT on his AJS. That was very remarkable because that strong example had never before been achieved with a single-cylinder. The successful 350 cc single-cylinder side valves became a healthy basis for AJS to build on and then to manufacture head valve motors and blocks with overhead camshafts. Another leg of the company came in the form of the large V-twins made from 1912, which were seen as particularly suitable for sidecar use.
AJS also remained fully involved in the sporting field. Not only in his early days, but also between the two world wars and afterwards.
The Porcupine (1945) became mythical, the Boyracers (from 1948) later became legendary.
But as early as the twenties, the company, which had already fought together 1929 world records in 117, very seriously competed with top brands such as Norton, Rudge, Sunbeam and Velocette. It was the time when English riders on English motorcycles made it clear and clear that Brittiania did not only rule the seas of the world. Until after the Second World War, foreign competitors such as Moto Guzzi, Benelli, Gilera, BMW, DKW, Puch and Motosacoche were in fact no more than lice in the fur of British motor makers and their successes.
In the 1920s it was mainly the AJS Big Ports with their exuberantly dimensioned exhaust pipes that set the tone. And at a time when the competition experiences were still being incorporated into normal production in the short term, the buyers also benefited from those successes. From 1923 onwards, AJS supplied a TT head valve model as a serial product.
That machine weighed only 85 kilos and was equipped with a three-speed gearbox. The engine had a top speed of 120 kilometers per hour, which at the time was sensationally fast for an engine that could be purchased by anyone with enough pounds in the cut. The strategy, however, was that every sporting person should have a touring model in the same cylinder capacity in the catalog - or the showroom - so a side valve. For the heavy work there were also the 800 cc side-valve V-twins.
A message from RoadRunner: "I have an AJS"
And then Hans Juyn from RoadRunner whatted engines from Velp: “Come and see. I have a ZGAN AJS! ”Then you think of an old collector who has exchanged his pride for something modern with a start button because of knee problems. But the AJS in Velp turned out to be yet another example of the game in the NameGame. This AJS is just as Chinese as Benelli.
But British motorcyclists can usually put things into perspective
they often see the humor in things. And then such a neat AJS can of course be great for shopping, a short drive around the church or to tie the back of the camper. But names? Brands? They don't really say much anymore.