Private company

Beardmore Precision Motorcycles

Logo: Auge=mit, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons3

UK motorcycle manufacturer based in Birmingham1

Beardmore Precision Motorcycles was a British motorcycle manufacturer formed in 1919 when the engine manufacturer F. E. Baker Ltd, who produced motorcycle and cyclecar engines under the 'Precision' trademark before World War I, entered into an arrangement with the large shipbuilding and engineering company William Beardmore and Company.2 It ceased to exist in 1930.1 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 20, 2026.

Overview

1914Founded1
  • Industryautomotive industry1
  • HeadquartersBirmingham1
1925 Beardmore Precision
Photo: 1925 Beardmore Precision, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons5

Beardmore Precision Motorcycles was a British motorcycle manufacturer formed in 1919 when the engine manufacturer F. E. Baker Ltd, who produced motorcycle and cyclecar engines under the 'Precision' trademark before World War I, entered into an arrangement with the large shipbuilding and engineering company William Beardmore and Company.2

Corporate structure

Beardmore Precision Motorcycles is part of a group headed by William Beardmore and Company. 3 entities, 1 country on record. Switch between the flow chart and the network, and select any entity to see its details.

Built from subsidiaries, stakes and holdings from Wikidata (CC0); major holders from Schedules 13D and 13G. Each entity in the chart links to its source.

The story

F. E. Baker Ltd had developed a substantial business making motorcycle and cyclecar engines supplied solely to manufacturers of completed vehicles. The engines were predominantly single and V-twin 4-strokes, with air or water cooling, though just before the war they had added a 2-stroke to their engine line-up. They also had a thriving export business, especially to Australia. During World War I production halted, and many of the small producers of motorcycles and cyclecars had ceased to exist, and after the war the company was faced with financing a restart.

In 1919 F. E. Baker Ltd entered into an arrangement with William Beardmore and Company, a large Scottish engineering and shipbuilding company based in Glasgow and between 1921 and 1924 Beardmore produced motorcycles under the name "Beardmore Precision". The first motorcycle produced was a 350 cc two-stroke featuring leaf-spring suspension front and rear and was followed by a range of motorcycles from 250 cc to 600 cc.

After 1924 Baker regained the rights and set up his own company to continue production with Villiers engines of between 147 and 342 cc in Alvechurch Road, Birmingham. The company was eventually sold to the James Cycle Co in 1930. Frank Baker became a James employee and they used his designs well into the 1930s.

From Wikipedia’s article on Beardmore Precision Motorcycles, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4

Subsidiaries and ownership

Parent company

From Wikidata.1

Acquisitions

  1. Succeeded by James Cycle Co1

Timeline

  1. 1930Dissolved Dissolved1
  2. 1914Founded Founded1