Anyone know "Alexanders" Motorcycles in Edinburgh circa 1952/53

john998

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VOC Member
Alexanders

One of the Scottish Vincent legends concerns an Edinburgh bookie.
The story goes that his chauffeur had to follow him in the limo, so if it rained the minion had to bring the bike back, whiles the bookie kept dry in the car.
The main claim to fame of the Craiglockhart area of Edinburgh was the the first world war Hospital for officers with shell shock, the most famous been the poets Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen. John.
 

BlackLightning998

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Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori (or something close to that I recall)

Forgive me the spelling but by 6th year studies school project was on the WWI poets - chilling stuff when you see what they went through.

I'll keep doing the trawl and see what I can come up with - I'd love a photo of the shop front if I can find one.

Stuart
 

Tom Gaynor

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Alexanders

There was an Alexanders in Edinburgh, on the east side of Lothian Road between Kings Stables Road and the Usher Hall. It was where my Shadow originally came from. I have a feeling Alexanders closed mid-sixties: showrooms selling new bikes weren't places I needed to visit. It had four or five full length display windows.
The first owner of my Shadow (registered 3rd April 1951) was a bookie, Peter Charles MacLauchlan by name (now where have i heard that name recently?), and his address in the logbook was "Craiglockart House, Edinburgh". I believe it is now part of the University Medical Faculty. It is still there: I looked it up on Google Earth.
Whether Bentley story is true or not it is certainly widely known. I was sold the bike as "The Bookie's Shadow" and several VOC Scottish section members have told me the same story. The next entry in the logbook is 26th December 1957 so presumably PCM was a two-Vincent man.
 

Tom Gaynor

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Craiglockhart House

Craiglockhart House is at 55 55 24.4 N, 3 13 40.3 W and is clearly visible in Google Earth. I image that MacLauchlan rented an apartment or an annexe on the grounds since the place is huge. No Vincents, under tarpaulins leaning against walls, are visible.......
Alexanders was about 50 yards south of 55 56 54.3, 3 12 21.9 beyond the building that projects into the (Lothian) road. There's a side road coming from the west directly opposite which wasn't there "when I was a boy".
Again Google has a clear image.
 

Trevor Rowlands

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.

No that would be his second shadow,I have his original first one HSC 159 that went bang rather spectaculary in 66 and was then robbed and plundered for bits over the next 40yrs.Rab used to work for the Glasgow bus corporation and I still have ticket machine boxes with odd bits in.I tried an advert in mph a while back to see if anybody had an early pictures of him as he was quiet a lad in his days and one of the founder members of the Scottish section.If you have a picture of him could you send me it as a couple of his old mates have very few photo,s of him as his family (if you can call the pair of Dunoon bookends that slung everthing of his oot)

Regards

El Capitano.
I have a couple of photos of Rab will post them to you ,Trev
 

captain vincent

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Non-VOC Member
Cheers Trevor!

By chance I was talking to Harry Wallace last night,who remembers drooling through the window on his £2 per week at a new shadow in the shop on his travels up north in the RAF I think on his es2 Norton,small world indeed!.

El capitano.
 

captain vincent

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Non-VOC Member
:eek::D:D
don't furget the dug wae the flee circus on it's heed

That dug never did like me since I had a cup of tea out of his cup!.
Since Rab was section secretary at the time did that make the dugs flea circus honorary branch members by association.? The last time Harry, Donald & I saw him was when we went across to fire up his shadow in the depths of winter in a very damp and cold shed,when Harry cleared it,s throat and the resulting backfire nearly blew the shed doors awf and the paper boy fell off his bike halfway down the street thinking he had a blow out on his bike!.I will never forget that cheesy grin blipping the throttle in his shed watching all that damp stoor rise off the black beast!

Regards

El Capitano.
 

BlackLightning998

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VOC Member
Much appreciated - many thanks indeed and fingers crossed

Vic,

That would be great - fingers crossed.

I'll happily pay the cost of copying pictures or whatever - really appreciate the help. Even just additional bits of the story would be helpful as a number of people have PM'd me with little bits of history which I am now able to piece together. It appears the first owner of my bike was known in and around Edinburgh and owned more than one Vincent - it would appear that he may even have owned more that one brand new at the same time.

Look forward to hearing from you.

Cheers and thanks again.

Stuart
 
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