A. H. Haden
New Comet were motorcycles designed and produced from 1905 to 1931, by Alfred Hamlet Haden of Princip Street, Birmingham.
1905-1909 The machine started out as a primitive, but soon singles and V-twins were offered, fitted with various engines including Zedel and Peugeot.
1910 Sarolea and JAP were used, along with the Peugeot V-twin.
1911 Precision singles were added to the range.
1912 All the engines were by Precision. Models included a lightweight and a Colonial which were also sold as the Comet-Precision.
1913-1917 For a list of the models and prices of motorcycles see the 1917 Red Book
1913 There was also a model with a JAP V-twin, and late that year Haden took over the Regal-Green business and began to use the water-cooled Green engines along with the others.
1914-1916 A 219cc two-stroke joined the range in 1914. It had direct-belt drive or a chain-driven two-speed gearbox and Druid forks. There was also a 349cc version.
Post-war. Machines listed included a 292cc two-stroke and a 499cc four-stroke.
1920 They cut back to two-strokes only.
1921-1923 Two or three versions of the 292cc model were listed for each year.
1924 A version with a 147cc Aza engine was added.
1925 More versions of that model were listed.
1926-1927 Only one version of the 147cc was listed.
1928 There was just a 172cc Super Sports model with three speeds and all-chain drive.
1929 There was a break.
1930 The 172cc machine returned.
1931 They produced the 196cc Super Sports, but it was the last year of motorcycle manufacture.
Haden were motorcycles produced from 1920 to 1923 by A. H. Haden of Princip Street, Birmingham.
This motorcycle was constructed on conventional lines by A. H. Haden who was also responsible for the New Comet machines. The Haden was fitted with a 349cc Precision two-stroke engine with either two-speed chain-cum-belt or single-speed direct-belt transmission. It could also be fitted with any carburettor that the purchaser specified.
The single-speed had been dropped by 1922, the carburettor had become an Amac with no options and the gearbox was specified as an Albion.
These motorcycles were not built in quantity.
- Note: Although the company no longer produced motorcycles, they continued to supply components to the trade.
Comet-Precision was a motorcycle produced in 1912.
It was the name under which two New Comet models were sold. One was a lightweight and the other was a Colonial version of a standard machine. The marque was only used for one season.
See Also
Sources of Information
- The British Motorcycle Directory - Over 1,100 Marques from 1888 - by Roy Bacon and Ken Hallworth. Pub: The Crowood Press 2004 ISBN 1 86126 674 X
- The Encyclopedia of the Motorcycle by Peter Henshaw. Published 2007. ISBN 978 1 8401 3967 9