Stevens had a reputation for quality engineering before the company built its first motorcycle in 1897, using a Mitchell single-cylinder four-stroke imported from the US.

A new company, A J Stevens & Co (AJS), was founded, with premises in Retreat Street, Wolverhampton, to manufacture motorcycles and the first model appeared at the Motor Cycle Show in 1910.

Cyril Williams won the first post war 1920 Isle of Man TT Junior race on his 350, even though he had to push the motorcycle home for almost four miles (mostly downhill) after a breakdown.

The OHV 350 would be the mainstay of the company's racing efforts until 1927 and in production form (first offered to the public in 1923), was also AJS's most popular sports motorcycle throughout the 1920s.

Several of these were intended to pull one of the 12 AJS sidecars also on offer, including sports, touring and commercial models.

The film starred George Formby as an aspiring racer who travels to the Isle of Man with his modified and streamlined 1928 "Rainbow" motorcycle, which he has christened a Shuttleworth Snap, in order to compete at the races.

Although best known for their motorcycles the company made a few experimental cars with Meadows engines in 1923 but decided not to go into full production.

[3] AJS returned to car making in 1929 with the Nine powered by a 1018 cc side-valve Coventry-Climax engine producing 24 bhp (18 kW) and driving through a three-speed gearbox.

After BSA failed to obtain control, the motorcycle assets were bought by the Collier brothers London company Matchless and the car manufacturer Crossley Motors.

Crossley incorporated some improvements such as a four-speed gearbox and using parts acquired from AJS built about 300 cars between December 1931 and May 1932.

A 1½-litre model was planned, but failed to materialize except to appear on the Willys-Overland-Crossley stand at the 1932 London Motor Show.

In 1938, AJS became part of a group called Associated Motorcycles, formed by the Colliers as a management company for its various interests.

The site of the Wolverhampton factory, now a supermarket, is marked by a sculpture, The Lone Rider, designed by Steve Field and carved by Robert Bowers, assisted by Michael Scheuermann.

AJS designer Harry Stevens was a keen amateur 'ham' radio operator since before World War I.

The first radios made by AJS Wireless and Scientific Instruments were launched in 1923, all high quality models aimed at the top end of the market.

Initial sales were good and by 1925, there were 10 models ranging from under £14 in a simple wooden case to over £50 with a finely veneered console cabinet.

However, radio technology had advanced rapidly and AJS was forced to offer new designs in order to compete.

In 1935, at the Olympia Show, an air-cooled SOHC AJS 50° V4 was shown, a fully equipped road going version, which did not make it into production.

In 1936 Harold Daniell rode a supercharged race version in the Isle of Man Senior TT, but despite its high top speed, it lacked acceleration.

For 1954 Jack Williams, the works team manager, developed the bike further, lowering the engine in the frame, and making some tuning changes that gave 40 bhp (30 kW) @ 7800 rpm.

[17] AMC withdrew from the world of works and one-off road racing at the end of the 1954, with the death of Ike Hatch, and in the face of fierce competition from the other European bikes.

With the G15 line, AMC had built on the merits of the G12 but there were numerous changes to frame, forks, swinging arm, primary chaincase, transmission, cycle parts and lubrication system.

It is believed that production of the G15 series was halted late in 1968 (model year 1969) with unsold samples on offer through 1969.

Several pre production AJS 250 Racers were built and raced but the project came to halt in 1967 after an unsuccessful second TT attempt.

Four bikes were built at Marston Road,[citation needed] all equipped with spark arrestors on the end of the tailpipe and with a rudimentary lighting system.

The four bikes were taken on by members of the Royal Air Force motor Sports Association and entered in the 1968 International Six-Days Trial.

By 1974, Norton Villiers was having financial trouble, and the rights to manufacture the Stormer under the AJS banner were purchased.

The Starmaker/Stormer four-speed engine was becoming outdated and could not compete with the new arrivals from manufacturers such as Husqvarna, CZ and later, scrambles bikes from Maico, Suzuki, Honda, Kawasaki and Yamaha.

These are first imported from China then distributed through their UK dealer network and exported to Germany, Portugal, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Japan and S.