GPO BSA BANTAM D1

[beardyimpman]

 did these bikes come from the factory  painted red, or were they green and painted  red , thanks

[Mark M]

Made in large numbers to contract so I'd say factory painted.
REgards, Mark

[Rex]

Definitely. In my experience RM vehicle workshops only did minor body repairs and never resprays.
If your Bantam is green under the red then there's every chance it wasn't originally issued to the GPO/RM.

[TGR90B]

Probably confirmed by the fact that they had their own range of frame numbers.

[mini-me]

Sorry to contradict you Rex, but  but the Post office did respray their own vehicles, there used to be a place near Kidbrooke S London that did it and the red spray dust out the vents was noticeable.  I also knew a guy who had worked there, coach painting with a brush at times.

[TGR90B]

If that's the case, I assume they were shipped out of the factory in primer and possibly unassembled. No point in going to the expense of painting them green, knowing the colour would be changed. Also you can't effectively paint an assembled bike.

[Rex]

Sorry to contradict you Rex, but  but the Post office did respray their own vehicles, there used to be a place near Kidbrooke S London that did it and the red spray dust out the vents was noticeable.  I also knew a guy who had worked there, coach painting with a brush at times.

Kidbrooke was one of the (if not the) biggest stand-alone GPO vehicle depots in the country though, and God knows how many vehicles, including artics, passed through there in a year.
Not really the same as the vehicle workshops and depots attached to sorting offices, mail centres etc  all over the country though. As I said, small scale repairs only, and as space was invariably tight there wouldn't have been room for either a spray booth or racks to hang the repainted frames, tanks etc etc from anyway.
As has been said, a fleet purchaser such as the GPO/RM could have any colour they liked.
 They also used to screw BSA (and later other suppliers like Puch, BL, Austin Rover, LD Vans etc) to such a degree that some firms were unwilling to supply them.

[R]

I assume they were shipped out of the factory in primer

Very few (motorcycle) factories actually used primer under the paint, when you study original painted parts.
For many a year, they were enamel dipped, when you see the factory photos.
After undergoing a 'cosletised' process - some form of phosphate derusting.
And then hung to dry, and oven baked - hence 'stoved enamel'.
Apparently a great place to work, in winter.

It would be interesting to know when spraying actually superseded this process ??
Interesting about the PO spraying things red....

[Mark M]

R, Royal Enfield may be an exception here, they definitely undercoated in red oxide. Some small parts seem to have been dipped but certainly mudguards, frames etc were primered. Just yesterday I rubbed down a NOS brake pedal (very rare Meteor Minor item actually, very pleased to have found it) and it has the red primer.
REgards, Mark

[R]

Interesting. If you can easily 'rub it back' then it isn't stoved enamel ?
The NOS bits I have with this finish are still a deep black lustrous finish - complete with traces of the obligatory runs and drips !

Once its been weathered a lot, all bets are off.
Paint/enamel technology has come a long way over the years...

The red plunger Bantam I had was only red, don't recall any primer under any of the numerous scratches and chips it had by then,
it had had a tough time . No idea if it was ex-PostOffice, and as a lad I didn't know to look for such things.
This old spare brake plate on the inside has nothing under the green paint but bare steel - and rust creeping under it !