W.H. Tildesley Ltd is a drop forging specialist and has been producing components for many of Britain's iconic automotive and motorcycle brands since 1874.

The archive at WHT holds leather-bound forging drawings dating back to 1919 and two of our largest heritage accounts are motorcycle legends A.J. Stevens & Co Ltd (AJS) and Matchless Motorcycles Ltd with almost 500 variants of forged components produced for the brands.

During our research, we found that WHT had produced rocker arms for the 349 c.c O.H.C. single-cylinder engine found in the AJS Matchless 7R motorcycle.

Forged Components Produced For The AJS Matchless 7R

The bike was designed for racing and won victories for both the factory and private riders since its inception in 1948, which gained it the nickname ‘Boy Racer’.

The 7R’s racing prowess first became apparent in 1950, when Les Graham won the Grand Prix of Switzerland – ultimately ending the dominance of Moto Guzzi and Norton.