Cotton 39 Standard 350cc JAP

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The Cotton motorcycle was designed by F Willoughby Cotton and commenced production in 1920.

Right from the outset, the products of the Cotton factory were renowned for their good road holding and their sturdy triangulated frames. Fortunately Mr Cotton was also a lawyer and was able to successfully defend against attempts to poach his design during the early 1920's.

From their Quay Street factory in Gloucester, Cotton produced a range of machines to cater for all tastes using proprietary engines from Blackburne, JAP, Villiers, and Rudge to suit all needs from basic transport to TT racing. A range of sporting machines in engine sizes from 173cc to 597cc in two stroke, four stroke, side valve and OHV designs were also offered.

In 1923 the Junior TT was won by Stanley Woods, and the factory models gained two second places in 1924 and 1925 before getting a clean sweep of the podium in 1926, Cotton machines coming 1st, 2nd and 3rd. Building on this success, sales were good until the Depression hit home in 1930. With hard times ahead, Cotton concentrated less on the more exotic, expensive machines, instead expanding their range of more utilitarian offerings with smaller engines while the factory weathered the storm.

Times improved and towards the end of the 1930s again the JAP OHV sporting machine was the flagship machine until WW2 again interrupted proceedings. Post-war the Cotton factory again started producing small Villiers engine road and competition machines from the Quay Street factory, and later from a smaller factory in Stratford Road.

When the Villiers factory stopped production of motorcycle engines in 1967, the Cotton owners looked for an alternative, for a short while soldiering on using an Italian Minarelli engine and a DMW engine before selling up in 1978. The new owners moved the operation to Bolton to produce Rotax-engined competition machines.

First registered on 2nd October 1939, the machine on offer today is a Cotton 39 Standard 350cc JAP, distinguished by its hand-change gearbox from the Deluxe version which had a foot-change gearbox and deeper valance mudguards. Normally fitted with a Burman gearbox, this one comes with a superior Sturmey Archer unit which may have been a later mod for sporting purposes ,or possibly a factory fitment as the machines could be ordered in varying specification to suit the purpose of the owner.

Last MOTd in 2001, it has been unused in recent years and a certain amount of checking over is advised before use. This machine comes with current V5 for its registration FYN427 and is one of the last sporting 350cc OHV JAP-engined Cottons produced before war broke out and the factory concentrated on more mundane machinery post-war.