Page 26 - LHR Sept 25.

Motorcycles have always been more than some critics dismissed it as outdated
just transport. For some, they are machines compared to overhead-valve designs, its
of freedom; for others, they are tools of war, virtues became obvious: it was simple,
steeped in duty and service. The BSA M20, robust, easy to maintain, and almost
with its long-stroke thump and cast-iron unbreakable in the field.
ruggedness, belongs to the latter category. The 1940 production models were stripped
Conceived as a military side-valve in the of civilian frills. Finished in khaki drab or
late 1930s, it became one of the most matt olive paint, they had pannier racks,
enduring motorcycles of the Second World blackout lighting, and heavy-duty
War, pressed into service across deserts, mudguards. Power came from a 496cc
mountains, and European roads.
single that produced around 13 horsepower
For Peter Hall, a member of the at 4,200 rpm, good for a steady 50 mph on a
Territorial Army in the late 1970s, the straight road. More importantly, the
M20 was not simply a relic of war. It was a machine could take abuse. It tolerated bad
tangible link between his own military fuel, rough maintenance, and the hard
experience and the generations that had knocks of military life.
ridden into history before him. His story By the end of the Second World War, more
intertwines with the M20's, illustrating how than 125,000 M20s had been built, making
machines can bridge decades of service,
it one of the most numerous Allied
memory, and identity. motorcycles. They served as dispatch
The Machine: The 1940 BSA M20 bikes, convoy escorts, training machines,
and even reconnaissance tools in
Origins of the M20
campaigns from Dunkirk to Burma.
When the War Office began seeking
reliable motorcycles in the late 1930s, BSA The Rider's Experience
put forward a 500cc single-cylinder, side- The M20 was not a glamorous machine. It
valve machine known as the M20. Though was heavy, underpowered compared to ci

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LHR Motorcycle Magazine September 2025