1962 BSA A50 Royal Star

By Clement Salvadori
Published on June 28, 2011
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The 1962 BSA A50 Royal Star.
The 1962 BSA A50 Royal Star.
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BSA's unit twin was called the
BSA's unit twin was called the "Power Egg" because of the shape of its streamlined engine cases.
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BSA's unit twin was called the
BSA's unit twin was called the "Power Egg" because of the shape of its streamlined engine cases.
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Enclosed drive chain not only keeps things clean, but also extends chain life.
Enclosed drive chain not only keeps things clean, but also extends chain life.
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The 1962 BSA A50 Royal Star.
The 1962 BSA A50 Royal Star.
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A rare 1965 BSA A50C Cyclone Road. Twin carbs and higher compression gave it a 10 horsepower advantage over the standard BSA A50.
A rare 1965 BSA A50C Cyclone Road. Twin carbs and higher compression gave it a 10 horsepower advantage over the standard BSA A50.
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The 1962 BSA A50 Royal Star.
The 1962 BSA A50 Royal Star.
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Lucky owner Eric Foor with his low-mileage and very original 1962 BSA A50.
Lucky owner Eric Foor with his low-mileage and very original 1962 BSA A50.

1962 BSA A50 Royal Star
Claimed power:
28.5hp @ 6,000rpm
Top speed: 90mph (est.)
Engine: 499cc OHV air-cooled parallel twin
Weight (dry): 385lb (175kg)
Price then: $775 (est.)
Price now:$4,000-$6,000

In the late 1950s BSA was in a bit of a pickle. The Brits, still convinced their motorcycles were the world leaders, believed gentle improvements would keep them in the lead until the cows came home. Pushrod vertical twins, around for a quarter of a century already, would be the king of the hill for the foreseeable future.

Yet motorcycles were being hyped as ever bigger and faster, especially in the U.S. And while BSA had plenty of competition success to crow about, with wins at Daytona and Catalina Island, to name just a few, it was losing ground to higher performance, more modern twins from Triumph and Norton. Power was king, yet many of BSA’s conservative marketing types thought surely there were still sensible lads who would appreciate the reliable, easy to start, half-liter plodder. Good for commuting, maybe a trip to the continent, perhaps some low-speed sport on the week’s end. What to do? In the end, they tried to satisfy both, and this led to the development of the BSA A50 Royal Star.

New beginnings

The big news from BSA came in 1962, with the arrival of new unit-construction engines, available in the 500cc BSA A50 or the bored-out 650cc BSA A65. In England these were known as Star models, whereas in the U.S. they were called Royal Star. Curious that, since we Americans had fought a bloody revolutionary war to get rid of the monarchy, and now we appeared captivated by anything that smacked of royalty.

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