There are racing motorcycles, and then there are motorcycles built with only one purpose in mind – to win. This ex-Tommy Spann AJS G10 is one bike that falls in the latter classification.
Words and Photos: Andreas Raab + Rich Orriss
Conceived during the halcyon years of AJS competition success, the G10 represents the Wolverhampton firm at the absolute height of its overhead-valve racing development; a hand-built works machine that was constructed in an era when records were there to be broken and the Isle of Man remained the ultimate benchmark.
This Tommy Spann Special is an honest factory racer with competition history; from its rare TT racing components and experimental factory details, through to its direct links with works rider Tommy Spann and the better years of AJS competition, this is a machine that tells one epic story.
The G10 is owned by Andreas Raab and here is his documentation of this historical machine.
Historical Context and Motivation
The AJS G10 dates to an era in which the A.J. Stevens & Co. brand dominated international motorcycle racing. From Eric Williams’ success in 1914 through to Howard R. Davies’ historic Senior TT victory in 1921 aboard a 350cc machine, the Wolverhampton firm built its reputation on persistent development. The G10 represented the final and most powerful stage of the AJS overhead-valve racing era.
For Andreas, the fascination with this period started more than 20 years back with the acquisition of a 1925 OHV model – one of the fastest flat-tank machines of its day and a machine that set record after record. And with that, the combination of his interest in AJS and a need-for-speed took Andreas into another chapter.
Who was Tommy Spann?
Tommy Spann himself was an important figure within the AJS works team during one of the marque’s golden eras. Tommy raced throughout the 1920s and 1930s – first as a works rider with Sunbeam, before he walked across the road in Wolverhampton to AJS. Tommy was a racer at heart, and competed in the top events including the Isle of Man TT. In 1928 he came a respectable 13th in the Senior event. Contemporary race reports from the Dutch TT document him defeating Graham Walker while recording the fastest lap at an average speed of 76 mph.
There is also an extraordinary historical footnote connected to the rider. When Tommy married Millie Stevens – daughter of AJS co-founder George Stevens – in 1930, a young Murray Walker served as pageboy at the wedding.
The Discovery of the G10
This Tommy Spann Special surfaced in the 2020 Bonhams Winter Auction. It had been discovered by the previous owners when they purchased a farm in 2016; the AJS was sat in a barn in a dismantled state and had been loosely reassembled. It was an opportunity that was not to be missed, and the G10 found its way to Andreas who would embark on an adventure to put its wheels back on the road.
Image Credit: Bonhams Motorcycle Department
The Restoration
The motorcycle was heavily abandoned and difficult to assess, but beneath the dust the unmistakable factory racing DNA was still visible. The mechanical restoration was fundamentally carried out by Raimond, whose time and dedication made the project possible.
The chassis had suffered badly over the years. The top frame tube near the saddle had once been crudely cut and welded back together, while the rear section was badly deformed. The frame was painstakingly straightened and restored to its original 1926 geometry.
Interestingly, the engine internals told a very different story. Inside, the motor was almost pristine, showing remarkably little wear. The main issue centred around a loose big-end crankpin, which had damaged the right-hand flywheel. The repair required oversize machining and the manufacture of a custom crankpin. Incorrect rocker gear fitted in the past had also worn the exhaust valve guide, leading to the installation of original G10 rocker plates to restore the correct factory geometry.
Factory Racing Details
The G10 was never a standard production machine. It was a pure factory racer, and only three surviving examples are believed to exist today. By comparing this machine alongside another G10 and a later 1927 H10 works model, numerous unique factory features could be identified.
The cylinder head is a bespoke factory racing OHV design, identical in construction to the head used on a 1926 350cc works racer. The crankcases carry no conventional production serial number, instead displaying a large cast “G10” marking and the number “8”, which also appears on the lightweight works crankshaft. The flywheels themselves were heavily lightened and balanced with lead inserts in the rims.
One of the most remarkable discoveries was hidden inside the cylinder. A deep dent from a historic connecting rod failure remains visible, yet the cast iron never cracked. Instead, it merely deformed, suggesting the use of an unusually advanced and ductile alloy from the AJS race department.
The engine also features external tie-rods designed to increase cylinder head clamping force. These rods anchor directly into the crankcases using pilasters derived from AJS overhead-camshaft racing models, an unusual works modification preserved exactly as found.
Transmission, Wheels and Brakes
When acquired, the motorcycle carried an incorrect Rudge gearbox. This was replaced with a genuine 500cc AJS racing gearbox which carried the rare “DT” stamp, indicating 1928 dirt-track factory origins. The gearbox was matched with a racing clutch basket and TT aluminium clutch assembly.
The rear wheel retains its original TT hub, complete with aluminium brake drum and distinctive high-profile sprocket. This gearing pattern had previously only been identified on George Rowley’s 1928 works machine. Remarkably, the original riveted sprocket shows virtually no wear.
At the front sits an expensive Webb brake assembly, more commonly associated with purpose-built racing machines and luxury marques such as Brough Superior. The brake drum had been modified in period for right-hand installation, but was carefully returned to the original left-side AJS factory configuration.
The TT Girder Fork
Perhaps the most fascinating surviving component is the original factory TT racing girder fork. Similar forks appeared on documented works AJS machines during 1928 and 1929, although this example appears slightly earlier in form and may represent a prototype or transitional design.
Despite its aged appearance and heavy patina, the fork was mechanically excellent inside, with well-greased bearings showing almost no wear. The only heavily corroded component was the main spring, although it still retained full tension. The fork even retained castellated nuts matching those visible in period photographs.
The handlebars revealed equally unusual period modifications. The originals had been shortened and adapted using clamps and extensions, while still retaining their original die-cast zinc bar-end plugs. Because of the unique upper headstock design, the bars could not be restored using standard mounting arrangements. Instead, they were sympathetically rebuilt to preserve the motorcycle’s historic integrity while remaining functional.
Fuel, Carburation and Ignition
The fuel tank fitted at the time of purchase belonged to a later period, so a correct 1926 TT-style tank was reproduced and carefully finished with an aged patina to match the rest of the machine’s oily-rag appearance.
Fuel is supplied through a modified Binks G8 carburettor, enlarged long ago from 25.4 mm to 27.5 mm. While factory works racers typically used ultra-rare double-float TT Binks carburettors, this modified example remains an authentic period tuning feature in its own right.
The original corroded 1927 Lucas racing magneto was replaced with an identical fully rebuilt unit.
Tommy Spann and the Motorcycle’s Provenance
The most important document confirming the motorcycle’s identity is its original 1936 registration book, which officially records the machine as a “Tommy Spann Special” racing model. The engine number, “T.S.S. No 2”, appears to have been hand-stamped into the crankcases, supporting the theory that factory racing engines originally left the competition department without formal serial numbers before later registration for road use.
Back on the Banking
The 1920s was a positive era for AJS with 117 world records in 1929 alone. Those records included speeds of more than 117 mph at Montlhéry, making it a fitting ambition to eventually return this ex-Tommy Spann G10 to the same historic banked circuit.
After the restoration was completed, the motorcycle returned to Montlhéry in 2024 for its first serious outing. A clutch problem curtailed the initial test after only half a lap on the banking, but following further workshop refinement the machine now stands in fully operational condition once more.
More recently, Raimond demonstrated the ex-Tommy Spann machine at the Darmstadt velodrome in 2025, returning deeply impressed by the handling of this remarkable survivor from AJS’s racing past.
Did you know?
The Warwickshire Connection:
The log book carries the official stamp of the Warwickshire County Council (Market Place, Warwick). A long-term owner, Peter David Lishman, kept the bike in your weekend turf for nearly 20 years (1956–1974), moving between Knowle (Solihull), Hatton, and Wilmcote (Stratford-upon-Avon). You are literally riding on the G10’s home turf this weekend!
The Murray Walker Wedding Story:
Long before he became the legendary, world-famous BBC Formula 1 commentator and the “Voice of Motorsport”, Murray Walker had a direct link to this bike. He was the son of Graham Walker (the Rudge rider Tommy Spann fought that legendary 1.4-second duel against at the 1928 Dutch TT – a race Murray later vividly recounted in his own motorsport chronicles). Even wilder: When Tommy Spann married Millie Stevens (the AJS boss’s daughter) in April 1930, the 6-year-old Murray Walker was officially one of the page boys at their wedding!
an article by The Girder Club
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