BSA Motorcycles A65 Spitfire Mark Ii 1966
The A65 Spitfire was unveiled at the 1965 Brighton Motorcycle Show and went into production in 1966.
It incorporated some of the high-performance modifications that had been made to the original A65 Star of 1962 and its subsequent upgrades as the A65 Rocket and Lightning models in the UK and the Thunderbolt and Lightning Rocket models designed for the US market.
It had a compression ratio of 10:1 and was equipped with Amal GP carburettors with velocity stacks. The front forks featured two-way damping, a 190mm front brake improved braking and alloy rims helped reduce its weight. A top speed of 120mph (193kph) was claimed following a two-way test average of 119.2mph (191.8kph) and a one-way best of 123mph (198kph). However, the GP carburettors made it difficult to start when hot and many owners fitted Amal Concentrics with round air filters, prompting the factory to follow suit in 1967. A selection of factory accessories including a larger fuel tank, a single seat, clip-on bars and a full fairing were available so that it could be set up for road race competition.
The first A65S Spitfire of 1966 was confusingly designated Mark II and had a number of new features including two-way damped front forks, Girling shocks and a brace between the downswept exhaust pipes. A 190mm front drum brake improved braking and lightweight alloy rims reduced the weight to 174 kg.
The bike was supplied as a sports-tourer with raised handlebar, forward-mounted rider footrests, a large dual seat with race-styled hump, and the glass-fibre fuel tank and side panels covering the oil tank/tool compartment and battery[1] were finished in Peony Red. The UK Spitfire had a conventional four gallon tank, with a large five gallon option from 1967.
A selection of factory extras were available to enable the model to enter Production Races, including a fairing and single racing seat.
Two large-bore Amal GP carburetors with velocity stacks improved acceleration but made the Spitfire hard to kick start when the engine was hot, so owners chose to replace them with Amal concentric carburetors with more conventional round air filters and this became the factory supplied specification in 1967.[citation needed] Keen to boost sales in the US market BSA produced a Spitfire with a two gallon fuel tank following the trend set by the Harley Davidson Sportster.
This 1966 Mark II (there was no Mark I) example was fully restored by Dales Cycle Shop immediately prior to its acquisition for the NZ Classic Motorcycles collection from a private vendor in Minnesota via a US auction house in January, 2009.