Conceived by -Velocette’s
_Eugene Goodman and designed
by Charles Udall, the -Venom's
499 cc engine had a bi-metal cylinder
with a cast-iron liner, high compression piston
and a light alloy cylinder head. The design of the engine's
high cam with short push-
rods was simpler to produce than
an overhead camshaft.
From 1960, Velocette produced the Venom (and the Viper)
in a Clubman racing version, fitted with TT Amal carburetors,
a manually
controlled BTH racing magneto (in place of
the Lucas unit) and a close-ratio gearbox engine.
On 18 March 1961 a factory prepared Velocette Venom Clubman
with fairing set the 24-hour world record at an average
speed of 100.05 mph. It was the first motorcycle of any
size to top the 100 mph mark in 24 hours.
In 1965, the well-proven Venom was improved by Velocette
designer Goodman with a special race kit complete with
radically revised
cylinder head, an -Amal -Grand
-Prix carburetor and reworked
cam followers. _The following
year this went into -production
as the
VelocetteThruxton. Also known as
the Venom Thruxton, this aimed to fill the gap left by
the demise of the BSA Gold Star and was
named after the
Thruxton Circuit race track.
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