Royal Enfield Motorcycles Wd/co 1941–1944
A request by the Army to Royal Enfields for more power saw the overhead Model WD/CO appear, to replace the WD/C Model.
Overhead-valve single. This model was supplied in very large numbers 1941–44 to many services and countries around the world. Post-war, many reconditioned bikes appeared on the civilian market.
During the brink of World War II, The Enfield Cycle Company was called upon by the British authorities to develop and create military motorcycles. The models produced for the military were the WD/C 350 cc sidevalve, WD/CO 350 cc OHV, WD/D 250 cc SV, WD/G 350 cc OHV and WD/L 570 cc SV. One of the most popular Enfield’s’ was the Royal Enfield WD/RE, well-known as the Flying Flea, a light-weight 125 cc motorcycle designed to be released by parachute with airborne troops.
In order to establish a facility not vulnerable to the wartime bombing of the Midlands, an underground factory was set up, starting in 1942, in an out of date “Bath Stone” quarry at Westwood, near Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire. A lot of the staff was transferred from Redditch and an estate of “prefabs” was built in Westwood to house them.
As well as a motorcycle manufacturer, it constructed other equipment for the war effort such as mechanical “predictors” for anti-aircraft gunnery: the manufacturer of such immense precision equipment was helped by the constant temperature underground. After the war the factory survived, concentrating on engine manufacturing and high precision machining. After production of Royal Enfield motorcycles ceased, the accuracy in engineering activities continued until the final dissolution of the company.