Property of a deceased's estate
1962 BSA 646cc Rocket Gold Star
Registration no. 853 RYB
Frame no. GA10 529
Engine no. DA10R 7760

Widely recognised as one of the most desirable of all factory built 'café racers', the Rocket Gold Star arrived in 1962 along with the first of BSA's new unitary construction range. A combination of - mainly - Gold Star cycle parts and the A10 Super Rocket twin-cylinder engine, the newcomer represented the last of the old 'pre-unit' line rather than a new departure and thus was destined for a relatively short life. For some reason best known to BSA the RGS frame was unique, although not that different from the production A7/A10 item, as was the wider dual seat. The model was offered in a number of different forms and with a host of options relating to controls and equipment. Around 1,800 were made over a two-year period and today genuine examples are highly sought after.

The well documented matching-numbers example offered here comes with a Gold Star Owners Club dating letter stating that it was despatched to Gaze Brothers of Lymington, Hants on 19th July 1962 then transferred to six days later to J Difazio of Frome, Somerset. The Somerset registered machine also comes with a copy of Difazio's sales ledger showing that it was sold to one D Pearson of Bishopsworth. The buyer was later identified as Derek Pearson, who owned it for two years with no problems.

'853 RYB' was delivered in touring trim with Siamesed exhaust pipes and chromed fork stanchions. Also in the file is an old-style continuation logbook (issued 1966) and a list of subsequent private owners, nine prior to the deceased. The latter acquired the BSA in July 2011 from Dr Phillip Acott of Tinkers Bridge, Milton Keynes, who had bought it from Robertsbridge Classic Motorcycles of East Sussex in June 2002 (purchase receipts on file). Restored and described as in generally excellent condition, this most desirable of post-war BSAs is offered with the aforementioned documentation, assorted correspondence, sundry invoices, eight MoT certificates (most recent expired August 2013), some old tax discs, old/current Swansea V5/V5C and copies of previous registration documents.