The commercial designation for the entire range was Velocette.
With a catalogue of models that shared the characteristic of being relatively costly, in 1933 – in an effort to reduce complexity and costs – the MOV series Velocette was launched, fitted with a 250cc OHV engine. Thanks to its more affordable price and evident quality, it was an immediate sales success. When the Ministry of Defence launched a tender for the acquisition of a lightweight motorcycle for military use, a 350cc version of the MOV formed the basis for the proposal to produce a militarised model.
Production of Velocette’s military models, officially known as the MAC (WD) – for War Department – and featuring a serial number prefix beginning with MDD, began in June 1940. Unofficially, these motorcycles became known as Velocette MDD due to the engine and frame numbers running in a sequence from MDD1101 to MDD12201.
The original order also included a number of units destined for the French Army, and a few were delivered prior to the 1940 Armistice. However, the full order could not be completed, and around one hundred of these French MAC MD Velocettes were handed over to the British Army alongside those built directly for British military use. Most military Velocettes served on the so-called Home Front in the United Kingdom, both in dispatch duties and in support of various military units, although several examples were sent to the Soviet Union.
As was customary with WD models, the Velocette MAC featured a blackout headlamp cover in accordance with air raid regulations, leaving only a small slit for light emission. Chrome fittings from the civilian model were omitted, and the original rubber handlebar grips were replaced with canvas from 1941 onwards, after the Japanese invasion of Malaya disrupted the supply of rubber to the United Kingdom.
After the war, many Velocette MAC (WD) units were returned to the factory to be converted into civilian models and subsequently resold. However, most of the military models would end up being sold directly on the civilian market, at low prices and without any modification.