Vincent Black Prince was termed the motorcycle you either love or hate. "The Motor Cycle" road tested a Black Prince and concluded that it handled as well as the Vincent Black Shadow with improved fuel consumption. Production of the Black Prince began in early 1955. Lucas components replaced the less reliable Miller electrical system, and better ignition – upgraded to coil and distributor – together with Amal Monobloc carburettors improved starting. The rear enclosure, which incorporated the oil tank, was hinged to allow access to the rear wheel and final drive chain. The centre stand was operated by a lever accessible from the
Vincent Black Shadow engine's ports. Early Black Shadows have a third inner valve spring not shared with the Rapide, but this feature was dropped from later bikes. Due to the low-octane 'Pool' petrol that was all that was available in the early post-war years, bikes of the period could have only low compression ratios. Although the prototype Black Shadow was built with a compression ratio lower than the Rapide's nominal 6.8:1, production Shadows have a ratio of 7.3:1 due to having different pistons from the Rapide, although still supplied by Specialloid. The Black Shadows have different carburettors than the Rapides, with Series B