[Moto] BIKE OF THE DAY: RICKMAN-BULTACO METISSE

[#Wittels-]

Fruit of the union with the British brand Rickman, this motorcycle was the precedent of the successful Pursang

 

In the automotive industry, collaborations between companies have always been so much the order of the day that they even receive their own name. Joint project. In this way, at least two independent brands join forces to create a single model that will be marketed in unison by all the participants in the consortium. We know this quite well from the world of vans and other light industrial vehicles, although in motorcycling it has come to occur even in niches as specific as the Cross. In fact, regarding the Catalan company Bultaco we have a very clear example when we talk about the Rickman-Bultaco Metisse. But let's go by parts.

Regarding the genesis and history of Bultaco, we can add little more to everything that has already been commented on previously. However, there probably won't be a few fans scratching their memory to find out where that Rickman thing came from. The other half participated in the development of the Metisse, much more unknown in regard to the history of sports motorcycling in the Iberian Peninsula. Well, it is a company founded in 1960 by British brothers Don and Derek Rickman. Consummate specialists in Motocross tests, being so delighted with the Bultaco models that they even became friends with Xavier Bultó, becoming the importers of the brand in the United Kingdom.

Thus, the alliance reached such a point that by 1964 Rickman offered Bultaco its experience in chassis construction material – they marketed their own creations using engines manufactured by third parties – in order to remedy the problems presented in some Sherpa N and S. Related to the fracture of the frames when facing extreme conditions full of jumps and impacts. In this way, the English company would design a new chassis prepared for the development of the most intense Motocross, on which a mechanism signed by Bultaco would be mounted. Of course, in all of this, a hypothetical lack of technological expertise in Bultaco was not as conditioning as the difficulty that Spain had, until the end of the sixties, when it came to accessing good steel in international markets.

 

While Bultaco provided the mechanics, the Rickman brothers designed and manufactured a really resistant steel chassis. Yes, up to a point
Rickman-Bultaco Metisse, the first step for the Pursang
Beyond the matter of the chassis, the truth is that in the history that entered the destinies of Rickman and Bultaco for a time, there was an important mechanical revelation. A revelation regarding two-stroke engines. And it is that the British pilots were accustomed to the four-stroke mechanics so lavish in the Cross motorcycles manufactured in their country.

However, when Don and Derek Rickman tested the two-stroke engines manufactured by Bultaco during a test to which they were invited by Bultó himself, all that began to change. To begin with, not only the lower weight of these caught their attention. Without also its greater power and nerve. Thus, it was logical to think that, with a good chassis, these engines would be protagonists in the recurrent Motocross events held in the Anglo-Saxon world.

Interests crossed in which the Rickman-Bultaco Metisse was born in 1964, being the necessary prologue for the appearance three years later of the Bultaco Pursang. This was already done completely alone for Bultó's company. A motorcycle that was a complete success for Bultaco, making up for how things had gone with the Rickman-Bultaco Metisse. Yes, let's see. Regarding the manufactured units – it was assembled both in the United Kingdom and in Spain – it is speculated with various figures that always orbit the centenary.

 

The end of the model was preceded by serious disagreements not only in design, but also in marketing and exports to the United States.
In this sense, the scarce commercialization of the Rickman-Bultaco Metisse makes sense given that it is a very specialized model. In fact, we can speak of a mount by and for races of a certain level. In the mechanical section, Bultaco relied on a single-cylinder two-stroke with a quarter of a liter and about 20CV as it was already doing with some variants of the mythical Sherpa T born in 1964. Thanks to this, we are talking about a very effective Motocross mount. However, when Spain was able to access various types of steel under better conditions, Bultaco had already accumulated significant technical experience. If you add to these two favorable conditions the existence of growing disagreements with Rickman both in terms of design and marketing, the result is that by 1967 the Metisse disappeared, replaced by the Pursang. And it is true that in business, companies can be problematic.

 

Link: https://motos.espirituracer.com/motodeldia/moto-del-dia-rickman-bultaco-metisse/