BSA BIKE
The
final and most exciting of BSA's long line of 'pre-unit' 646cc
parallel twins, which had started with the Golden Flash back in 1949,
came in 1962 with the launch of the mighty Rocket Gold Star. In the
same year that the Birmingham firm introduced its new line of 'unit-
construction' motors, with combined engine and gearbox, the Rocket
Gold Star proved that there was still plenty of life in the old
format.
The
Rocket Goldie was inspired by a one-off special that Gold Star
specialist Eddie Dow of Banbury in Oxfordshire had built for a
customer several years earlier. That bike had simply been a Gold Star
single with a twin-cylinder engine fitted. The production A10 RGS
model incorporated a number of modifications to this basic concept,
but was essentially a blend of the BSA BIKE's Super Rocket engine in a chassis
based on that of the Gold Star.
BSA BIKE Twin-cradle
frame
The
frame was a twin-cradle design very similar to that of the single,
but without the distinctive kink in its lower right loop that was
needed to clear the Goldie's oil pump. The RGS look was very similar
to that of the famed single, with chromed mudguards and a silver tank
with chromed sides, plus the familiar Gold Star tank badge on a red
circular background.
Cynics
claimed the Rocket Gold Star had been created mainly to use up
supplies ol the pre-unit powerplant. which was uprated to power the
new machine. The specification included an aluminium cylinder head
with higher 9:1 compression ratio, hotter cams, plus a race-style
magneto with manual advance-retard adjustment. This combined to
increase peak output slightly to 46bhp at 6250rpm, or 50bhp if the
optional Gold Star-type racing silencer was used.
The
twin's chassis was every bit as purposeful as the engine. The RGS was
available with a variety of options, and was typically fitted not
only with low 'Ace' handlebars, but also Gold Star gaitered forks,
large-capacity aluminium fuel tank, close-ratio gearbox,
siamesed exhaust
system, humped racing seat, alloy wheel rims, big front drum brake in
a full-width hub, plus matching speedometer and rev-counter.
That added
up to a strikingly stylish bike that was every bit as fast as it
looked, and which became highly regarded by the cafe-racer crowd in
particular. Top speed was a genuine 115mph (185km/h) in good
conditions, with 90mph (145km/h) cruising a practical proposition
thanks to the tucked-down riding position. Handling was also good,
though not perfect; one contemporary test reported that the front
wheel tended to wander at very high speed.
In 1963,
Motorcycle
Mechanics magazine tested a production-race
specification Rocket Gold Star which, tuned further with
higher-compression pistons and special valve springs, recorded a top
speed of no less than I23mph (198km/h). But at the end of that year
BSA abandoned production of the model to concentrate on the new
generation of unit- construction motors. The Rocket Gold Star remains
the most sought-after of the firm's pre-unit twins, and will long be
remembered as a memorable way to end the line.
BSA ROCKET GOLD STAR PRICES 2014
MINT $12,000 $35,000 £10,000 £25,000
GOOD N/A
FAIR N/A
PROJECT ?
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