The Matchless G80 is a 500 cc single-cylinder British motorcycle built by Associated Motor Cycles between 1946 and 1966. Its closest relative was the AJS Model 18, often distinguished only by its badges, and the model ran through rigid, swinging-arm, scrambler and 600 cc Typhoon forms before a short-lived 1980s revival.
Matchless G80 at a glance
| Maker | Associated Motor Cycles (Matchless), Plumstead, London |
|---|---|
| Production | 1946–1966 |
| Engine | 500 cc single |
| AJS equivalent | Model 18 |
| Rear suspension | swinging arm from 1949 (G80S) |
| Compression | 5.9:1 at launch, 7.3:1 from 1956 |
| G80CS | 1951–1966, long stroke then short stroke |
| Typhoon 600 | 1959–1962, about 225–300 built |
| Revived model | 1987–1990 with a Rotax engine |
| Price of the 1987 G80 | £2,700 |
Based on one source: the English Wikipedia article on the Matchless G80.
History of the Matchless G80
A post-war single
The Matchless G80 was built from 1946, and the earliest examples are sometimes called G80L, the L standing for Teledraulic forks rather than the old girder type. The road bikes of the AJS and Matchless ranges were very similar, often with only the badges distinguishing one marque from the other. One easy way to tell them apart under the tank: the AJS magneto sat in front of the cylinder and the Matchless one behind.
Frame and engine
In 1949 the G80 gained a spring frame with swinging-arm rear suspension and became the G80S; wheel travel was limited but it was a vast improvement on the bouncy rigid rear end. Vertical shock absorbers arrived the same year: the leak-prone Candlestick units held only 50 cc of SAE 20 oil and were replaced by Jampots in 1951 and Girlings in 1956. AMC moved from Burman gearboxes to its own in 1957, and an alloy primary chaincase cover became available in 1958. The engine was launched with a 5.9:1 compression ratio because post-war British fuel was poor; hairpin valve springs returned in 1949, an alloy cylinder head came in 1951 and compression rose to 7.3:1 in 1956. Low compression made the bike easy to kick-start and flexible — it could trundle along below 20 mph in top gear — and gave good fuel economy.
CS, Typhoon and revival
The competition G80CS came in long-stroke form from 1951 to 1955 and then as a short-stroke model through 1966, with an 86 mm bore from 1956 (early examples had 82.5 mm); C stood for Competition and S for Suspension. From 1959 to 1962 Matchless also built the 600 cc Typhoon, engine code TCS, with an 89 mm bore and a 96 mm stroke. Only about 225 to 300 were made, almost all sold in the United States; the rarest is the single-down-tube 1959 G80TCS and its AJS 18TCS sister. In 1987 Les Harris revived the name with a new G80 using a 500 cc Rotax engine, Paioli suspension, Dellorto carburettor, Lafranconi silencers and Brembo brakes, with the frame doubling as the oil tank. At £2,700 it cost £500 more than a comparable Yamaha and production ended by 1990.
Design and features
- Flexible single: the low 5.9:1 compression of the early engine made it easy to start and happy to pull from walking pace in top gear.
- Modernised chassis: swinging-arm rear suspension in 1949, then Candlestick, Jampot and Girling shock absorbers in turn.
- G80CS scrambler: a competition version offered in long-stroke and later short-stroke form.
- Typhoon: a 600 cc version of 1959–1962, of which only a few hundred were built.
- 1987 revival: Les Harris’ Rotax-engined G80, with Italian suspension and brakes.
Matchless G80 versions
- G80: the original rigid-framed 500 of 1946.
- G80S: the swinging-arm version from 1949.
- G80CS: competition scrambler, long stroke 1951–1955 and short stroke 1956–1966.
- G80TCS Typhoon: the 600 cc model of 1959–1962.
- Les Harris G80: the 1987–1990 revival with a Rotax engine.
The G80 followed the wartime G3/L and shared its engine family with the twin-cylinder G9. More Matchless motorcycles are in the Matchless collection.
Video: Matchless G80 bobber 1954
Video on YouTube.
Sources
- Matchless G80, English Wikipedia: development, engine, model variations
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