Property of a deceased's estate,c.1925 AJS 799cc Model E2 Passenger Combination

Registration no. FN 6777 Frame no. 44022 Engine no. 44022

• Matching frame, engine, and gearbox numbers
• Appears highly original
• An earlier restoration

Formerly suppliers of proprietary engines, the Stevens brothers of Wolverhampton diversified into manufacturing complete motorcycles, setting up A J Stevens & Co in 1909. The brothers' first machine was a 292cc (2½hp) single equipped with either direct belt drive (Model A) or a two-speed countershaft gearbox with all-chain drive (Model B), this latter combination being advanced in its day, especially for a lightweight. A 5hp v-twin - the Model D - joined the range in 1912. Intended for sidecar work, the Model D was powered by a 631cc sidevalve engine and came with a 'beefed-up' version of the two-speed gearbox. The Model D's engine was enlarged to 696cc (6hp) for 1913, while a three-speed gearbox and internal expanding rear brake were additional improvements. A new, smaller 'Double-Purpose' v-twin - the 550cc Model A - arrived in November 1914, at which time the Model D was re¬designed along 'A' lines and further enlarged to 748cc. Endowed with an effortlessly flexible motor and built to A J Stevens' traditionally high standards, the v-twin 'A-J' was one of the most effective and popular sidecar tugs of its day. The model remained a fixture of the range into the early 1930s, latterly with a 998cc engine.

Manufactured circa 1925, this E2 example has the 799cc (7hp) engine first introduced for the 1921 season. It should be noted that AJS changed their model nomenclature in 1925, adopting an alphabetical system starting with 'E'; thus the Model D 'Passenger Combination' became the E1 (magdyno) and E2 (magneto) for that year. The 799cc twin was last listed in 1928 as the K1/K2, the letters 'F' and 'I' having being missed out.

An earlier restoration, 'FN 6777' carries an AA members' badge and a tax disc that expired in December 1932. The machine is offered with an old-style RF60 logbook, an expired MoT (1981), and an old-style V5 incorrectly recording the make as 'AJSEC'. It should be noted that the registration number appears to have lapsed and does not feature in the HPI register or DVLA records.