Matchless performance

In the immediate post-Second World War years AMC had arguably the ideal start to their competition range with the WDG3L military model. In common with all other manufacturers in those far off days when raw materials were scarce, AMC produced a competition model that the keen club rider could purchase and use in all sorts of events such as trials, scrambles, hill climbs, grasstracks and whatever else his local club might run.

Though rigid at the rear, the ex-WD machine this competition model was based on was equipped with the company’s excellent Teledraulic front forks. Okay, so the engines might still have been all iron from the crankcases up, but some attempts had been made to ensure they were more suitable for the job they were intending to do.

At this point it is perhaps worth mentioning why certain designs and manufacturing methods were used for so long when the obvious route was to better materials and designs. It isn’t that companies were short of ideas, as most comp departments had pretty