vincent hrd rapide 1949 electrics diagram

Dave Berghoefer, a vintage auto restorer and consultant in Amelia Island, Florida recommissioned and serviced this motorcycle for the present owner, and comments that it was professionally restored, without resorting to over-restoration, and is in excellent mechanical condition. The Rapide has been carefully preserved and was a very original machine before its rebuild. This 1949 Vincent-HRD Series C Rapide is exactly the machine a prospective rider might hope for a well-sorted older restoration. The Rapide was designed by Philip Vincent and Phil Irving as a modern, fast touring machine, with excellent road holding and a motor which will sustain 70 MPH cruising indefinitely. The good news for prospective riders-as opposed to trophy-hunters-of Vincents is a good Rapide has everything one might want from a Shadow, at a fraction of the cost generated by that legendary, spooky name. Today, any real performance advantage is nil, or at least, depends far more on the condition of the machine in question, and whatever tuning parts may have been installed. Over time, and the wear of years and miles, the advantage of an extra-careful motor assembly for the Shadow was neutralized, and many Rapide owners found they could outrun the theoretically faster dark brethren.

It’s well known today that the Shadow was essentially a selectively assembled Rapide, with a few minor parts changes, which any Rapide owner could match with ease. What’s in a name? Shakespeare knew, and so did Philip Vincent when upgrading the specification of his already fastest-in-the-world Rapide model, Vincent dug deep into our subconscious to reveal the Black Shadow in 1949.

Vincent hrd rapide 1949 electrics diagram