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Messages - 33d6

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991
Identify these bikes! / Re: What bike? Pic dated 1938
« on: August 14, 2009, 02:39:50 AM »
Those are very interesting photos if only that they show the British industry sold their products under different names in different countries.
Mr F E Baker was involved in the motorcycle trade way back before the First World War. He made a well known brand of  proprietary engine, the Precision which rivalled J.A.P. in its day but never quite got back to its former position after the war. In 1928 he he came back with the Baker range of Villiers engined bikes. These lasted until the early thirties when his firm was bought by James who used many of his ideas in the manufacture of their bikes.
The Villiers engine used in your grandfathers bike was introduced in 1936, years after James had bought Baker so it is really a James but rebadged as a Baker for some commercial reason now lost in time.
As you say, the capacity could be either 98 or 125 cc. There were certain taxation advantages in some European countries reducing the capacity to 98cc, so this engine was made in both capacities although you can't tell one from t'other from the outside.
They are lovely family photos and as owner of a 1951 James I find them a tiny but fascinating piece of history, showing how the british motorcycle industry operated back in the 1930's.
Thanks for letting us see them.

992
Identify these bikes! / Re: AJS need help to identify....
« on: March 28, 2009, 07:28:06 PM »
Looks late 20's from the photo but AJS are very easy to identify precisely from the engine and frame numbers.
AJS were also one of the very few factories to give both the frame and the engine the same matching numbers so you can both identify the year and check up on whether the engine is the original one for the bike by seeing if the numbers match.
Of greater value and in far greater demand than the cheapo MZ you are also interested in.
Cheers,

993
Certainly looks to be 600cc VB Ariel but a photo up the right way and showing it all would help.
You can further help by measuring the bore and telling us what it measures plus tell us how many head studs it has. If I remember my VB Ariels correctly they increased the number of head studs when they upgraded to an alloy head in the 50's so we can give you a better date if we know how many stud holes it has.
Cheers.

994
Identify these bikes! / Re: Pre-war Excelsior, but what model?
« on: April 27, 2009, 06:48:30 AM »
Hi again,
I didn't say the frame was 1930, I said Excelsior used the A prefix on their frame numbers in 1931.
You cannot have a 1930 350ohv Excelsior. They didn't list any 350ohv models for 1930.
Excelsior listed two 350ohv models for 1931. The model A10 Special Sports and the model A11 Sport. It is either one of those. Buy a copy of the 1931 catalogue and you can see what they look like.
Cheers,

995
Identify these bikes! / Re: Pre-war Excelsior, but what model?
« on: April 25, 2009, 11:58:55 AM »
Could you have misread the frame prefix? If you look again could it be A11, not AW?
Excelsior started to use a year prefix on their frame numbers in 1931. A for 1931, B for 1932, C for 1933 and so on. Anything having A as the first letter of the frame prefix would be from 1931.
Excelsior listed a 350cc OHV Sports Model No A11 on page 12 of their 1931 catalogue and your bike has an identical specification.
If the frame number starts A11 it would confirm it.
As for information, the VMCC Library is the obvious place, they will have everything you need. Just remember this is an assembled bike, you may have to obtain information seperately for the JAP engine, the Albion gearbox and Druid forks.
Lovely bike, remember that Excelsior won the 1929 Lightweight TT. This is a 350ohv version of the same bike. The prewar Excelsior is a very desirable bike.
Cheers,

996
Identify these bikes! / Re: Can anyone identify this bike...
« on: October 05, 2008, 04:12:48 AM »
Can we have the frame number as well please.
Cheers,

997
Identify these bikes! / Re: Can anyone identify this bike...
« on: October 04, 2008, 09:34:26 AM »
As far as I remember Bayliss & Thomas made cars under their own name but their bikes were always sold as Excelsiors. This bike dates from around the mid 20's when the Excelsior brand had been around for many years.
Looks like it would make a pleasant vintage machine. Light and handy.
Cheers,

998
Identify these bikes! / Re: im new and need help :)
« on: March 12, 2009, 09:27:31 PM »
Vintage AJS are very easy to identify because first the number on both engine and frame were identical and secondly they identified the year by a letter prefix. As in your example, the letter M for 1929.
One quick look shows whether a bike is all original or not plus what year it is.
They were a manufacturer who really made it easy for people like us to identify them years and years later plus they made highly desirable bikes anyway.
Its very easy to get copies of the original sales catalogues from the VMCC Library for comparison purposes but understand that factories back then would happily alter things to suit a buyer if it meant a sale and they also had a habit of changing things for overseas markets so you do get unique variations from bike to bike that are very hard to identify as original or not.
Lovely bike.

999
Identify these bikes! / Re: british scooter???
« on: January 30, 2009, 03:33:04 AM »
Regardless of which British scooter this turns out to be (and L.A.B is probably right) the fact it has a Villiers engine makes it very easy to sort out.
The basic engine is standard Villiers but usually enclosed in a cowling with  fan cooling seeing it sits under the seat out of sight. Some variants have an electric start, commonly a Siba Dynastart and this about doubles the complication of the very basic Villiers electrical system. (Still idiot simple by todays standards.)
Good news is there is lots of information available, Villiers spares are not a problem and the electrics are very amenable to upgrades using modern solid state components which makes everything very reliable.
Tell us the engine number and we can go further.
Cheers,

1000
Identify these bikes! / Re: norwegian barn dinding+++
« on: January 25, 2009, 06:32:12 AM »
Sorry friend,
S 6406 makes no more sense than B 6406. We are no further forward.
Cheers,

1001
Identify these bikes! / Re: norwegian barn dinding+++
« on: January 20, 2009, 09:57:54 PM »
B6406 is a very strange engine number for any Villiers engine. As M3bobby says, a WD ML engine number starts with AAA but civilian models are different. The number should start with a 3 figure number. for example, 539/****. B6406 sounds more like a casting number than an engine number. Some postwar 9Ds had the engine number stamped on a brass plate near the gear change and this can fall off leaving just the two mounting holes. Is there anything like this?
Cheers,

1002
Identify these bikes! / Re: norwegian barn dinding+++
« on: January 20, 2009, 12:03:28 AM »
Thats a 9D Villiers engine sitting in the frame so it definitely isn't a Royal Enfield Flying Flea.
I strongly suspect the first guess of a James ML is spot on and if you can tell us the frame and engine numbers we can probably tell you whether it is a wartime issue or an immediate postwar civilian model.
Jame made the ML (Military Lightweight) for the armed forces during WWII but kept making it for a few years after the war had finished. They are a popular restoration and a well liked bike.
Cheers,

1003
Identify these bikes! / Re: Help me!What is this?
« on: January 15, 2009, 12:54:51 AM »
I knew I had some info on Sturmey Archer engines somewhere and it has taken me a while to put my hands on it.
Each letter tells a story and identifies what manufacturer the engine was made for.
Your engine number is DPRO CE203.
The code is as follows,
First letter, identifies engine type & capacity. D = 496cc, b&s 79x101(inside flywheel).
Second letter, P=Pushrod (ohv)
Third letter R = rear mounted magneto
Fourth letter identifies lubrication type. O= Dry sump with internal double acting pump

In 1931 Sturmey Archer introduced a letter code to identify the user of the engine. CE = Coventry Eagle

Finally, Sturmey Archer started their engine numbers at 101 so by my reckoning this engine would appear to be a 1931 500ohv engine supplied to Coventry Eagle. I think you have a Coventry Eagle.
So far I have found that Sturmey Archer sold engines to Dunelt, Coventry Eagle, Cotton, Rex Acme anf Ransome Sims & Jeffries for lawn mowers!
Cheers,

1004
Identify these bikes! / Re: Help me!What is this?
« on: December 05, 2008, 02:28:39 AM »
Dunelt were a major user of Sturmey Archer engines in the late 20's early 30's. I suspect you may have a Dunelt.

1005
Identify these bikes! / Re: identification
« on: January 12, 2009, 07:55:10 AM »
Hi Don,
Pity you can't put any more pictures up.It looks to be an interesting bike.
I suspect your hand change is an early 30's footchange box as it appears to have an early positive stop arrangement built in to it. This sort of arrangement appeared on Sturmey Archer and other makes in the early 30's until the makers cleaned up their boxes and concealed the positive stop in a much neater fashion.
What I can see of the frame appears interesting as it seemss to be an all welded/brazed frame without the use of the usual cast lugs. About the only prewar bike I know of that did this was the SOS.
All in all it looks like it could be something really good. Can we have more photos please?
Cheers, Bob

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