Lot 198: c.1956 Douglas 348cc Dragonfly Frame no. 2238/6 Engine no. 2238/6

Bristol-based Douglas Ltd. entered the market post-war with an evolving range of 350cc flat-twins of, to put it kindly, individual design, for which there were too few customers. Fortunately, the company had made agreements with Piaggio to assemble the hugely successful Vespa scooter and this enabled Douglas to introduce their final design, the ‘Dragonfly’ in 1954. The model’s greatly improved appearance owed much to the faired, nacelle-styled headlamp and effective tidying of the frame, the whole blending well with the ‘Earles’ front forks. The machine should have been a great success. Unfortunately, the ‘Dragonfly’ also sold slowly with production of fewer than two thousand units. DFC 262R is seemingly in good condition, having, it seems, been fully restored in the 1980s. The paintwork is good and the engine turns over smoothly, the whole, apparently, needing only careful re-commissioning. The V5 notes that the Dragonfly has been ‘rebuilt’ and there should, therefore, be the possibility of obtaining a more appropriate number.