Author Topic: EW350 Knee Grips  (Read 2913 times)

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Offline Michel H

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EW350 Knee Grips
« on: 18 Jan 2020 at 12:31 »
Hello,
Did someone ever make replicas of the Knee Grips for all EW Models ?
If yes, can you provide contact details ?
Thank you.
Michel.
Michel

Offline EW-Ron

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Re: EW350 Knee Grips
« Reply #1 on: 19 Jan 2020 at 03:47 »
Knee grips on a EW  ?
I don't think I've seen that, can anyone elaborate ?

You see lots of EW's around, unrestored and restored to varying degrees,
and not a kneepad among them ?
https://online.handh.co.uk/images/lot/4579/45793_0.jpg


Certainly 1930s etc models had such things.

Offline Michel H

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Re: EW350 Knee Grips
« Reply #2 on: 19 Jan 2020 at 06:40 »
Here the knee grips from Douglas.
Michel

Offline cardan

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Re: EW350 Knee Grips
« Reply #3 on: 19 Jan 2020 at 07:42 »
Hi Michel,

They are very nice knee grips - I can see the Douglas man with DOUGLAS written across the top.

I've never seen anything like them, but it would be fun to find an original pair. Knee grips were becoming popular during the 1920s, but before they were fitted as standard equipment there was a range of "proprietary" after-market grips from companies like Sorbo and John Bull. Early ones were leather and laced around the petrol tank. I have seen various repro versions of these, but they are probably more racing than EW. I have seen others that used woven cotton straps that buckled the grips around the tank. I think i might have a pair of these in the shed - I will look. The best-known were John Bull, and these were sold with mounts to be soldered onto the tank, then a steel plate screwed to the mount and supported the rubber grips. There are repros of the rubber for these, but you may have to find/make the mount and plate.

But none are as cute as the real thing! Good luck.

Leon

Offline cardan

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Re: EW350 Knee Grips
« Reply #4 on: 19 Jan 2020 at 08:03 »
Relics from the shed. All are rock-hard! All after-market kneee grips from the 1920s.

Leon

Offline cardan

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Re: EW350 Knee Grips
« Reply #5 on: 19 Jan 2020 at 08:17 »
Oh this is so exciting! I suppose the rubbers on the EW knee grips were the same as those used on the RA? The grips were mounted directly on the tank in the RA.

Leon

Offline Michel H

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Re: EW350 Knee Grips
« Reply #6 on: 19 Jan 2020 at 08:44 »
An other exemple from the Philippe's EW350 (in Paris).
Michel

Offline Doug

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Re: EW350 Knee Grips
« Reply #7 on: 19 Jan 2020 at 15:47 »
Michel,

Short answer: Not available.

Long answer, read on:

The 'square' Douglas kneegrips were an option on the 350cc and 600EW, but likely could be had with any of the other models. Yes, the same 'grip has been seen on the RA model. They applied for a British patent covering the frame mounted bracket on September 23, 1926 (GB273,937).



They also applied for Registered Design protection on the bracket. As typical practice of the time, they crossed out on the photograph the portions of the image that did not apply to the registration. 



However, in a close up view (photo of a photo!), one can see that wee-Jamie is of uniform thickness with some level of incised detail. That is, not a full bass-relief carving.



I did get a photo of a survivor c1988 that showed a hint of the detail on wee-Jamie.



Facial details, vest, sporran, and socks can just be seen. Unfortunately this was the best view that could be had at the time as the photographer's better camera and equipment were destroyed in accidental house fire! Pestering for a redo did not seem tactful at the time. The plan had been to make a pattern and mold new kneegips.

A fossilized example was borrowed and that yielded the basic design of the structure and shape; some estimation for shrinkage and distortion required.





But as far as detail went, only the diamond pattern in the socks could be discerned.

Fast forward to 2010 and another opportunity came up for images of the kneegrip last photographed in 1988. In the intervening twenty-two years, any residual detail had weathered away. Only the diamond pattern on the socks was still apparent. It must have been the detail carved the deepest.



To that end I had an artist friend (that owed me for a welding favor!) prepare a few concept sketches of varying levels of detail for wee-Jamie, but I never settled on one design nor found the time to tackle the project properly.

-Doug


Offline cardan

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Re: EW350 Knee Grips
« Reply #8 on: 20 Jan 2020 at 01:14 »
Thanks Doug - fascinating as usual.

Interesting to see that the square Douglas rubbers were made by John Bull. Although the RA and EW mountings systems are specific to Douglas, other manufacturers fitted similar JB rubbers, and they were sold as accessories to be fitted to an existing bike.

As mentioned above, there were two options for retrofitting your bike with knee pads. In all cases the rubbers fitted over steel plates - the originals I have seen are stamped with JB info, and mostly painted RED. Only occasionally black.

The plates came with the mountings (see attached) that were soldered to the side of the tank. The four countersunk holes are for ease of soldering, while the centre hole is usually tapped 1/4-20 for a screw or stud. A proper JB spacer (or a pile of washers) is used to get the correct spacing between the tank and the mounting plate.

If you didn't want to ruin the enamel on the tank by soldering, you could use the cotton straps. In this case, the grips have a slot (or two slots, for the larger "George Dance" seen in may earlier post) and the strap goes into one slot, between the plate and the rubber, and out the other slot, so that both the rubber and the plate are strapped to the sides of the tank.

All part of the fun.

Cheers

Leon

Offline EW-Ron

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Re: EW350 Knee Grips
« Reply #9 on: 20 Jan 2020 at 02:01 »
Ferreting around in my (digital) photo collection, I found this.

A most illuminating discussion....



Note footpegs, not footboards. What gives ?

Offline cardan

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Re: EW350 Knee Grips
« Reply #10 on: 20 Jan 2020 at 02:22 »
Nice. The image appears in the 1928 catalogue as the "Side Valve Sports Model C. 28", fitted with a "specially tuned engine", steering damper, twist grip throttle ... and "Douglas patent adjustable [knee] grips, arranged to sit close to tank sides"!

(The A28 was the cheap-and-cheerful under 200lb model - with footrests to save weight - and the B28 was standard model, with foot boards.)

Leon