1949 Vellocet 350 help please guys!

[luke976]

Hi guys,

First of all hello to everyone on the forum.

I'm after some advice please. A few weeks back one of my father's friends sadly passed away. He had a 1949 Vellocet 350 which his wife has decided to give to my father. However the bike is in a very sorry state. It has not been ridden since the mid 60's and has been stored outdoors eversince. So you can imagine the condition of it!?

My question is given the condition it is in is it worth a restoration? It will be quite a task to return it to roadworthy condition!

If not he may break it. If it really is beyond reapir I think the number plate may be of some value to someone. But this is where we have another problem. My dad has no documentation for the bike. Any ideas on how to go about getting a V5 for it? Either way he will need the log book. Any help you could give will be greatly received!

Thank you all,

Luke.

[Rex]

First question is, as always, where in the world are you? Your location affects the resto costs, price of parts and resale value. Assuming you're in the UK (the V5 mention) you will always find a buyer for a nice old Velo, but bear in mind that you won't be selling  the plate without an MOT, and you won't get that without a running bike.If you go through the (re)reg process from the DVLA you will get a V5C stamped "non-transferable number" so any thought of selling the plate is a bit of a non-starter.
Any chance of some pics?

[Goldy]

Is it worth restoring, well that has to be an opinion, and in my opinion any old bike is worth restoring. People take on bikes found in hedges and ditches and restore them to new condition. My present restoration started of as only half a bike, so I have had to source parts for a start. If you want to do it to make money, then forget it as it has to be a labour of love. As for the registration, if you know what it was it may be possible to claim it, if it's not been sold by the dvla, otherwise you apply for an age related number, but the machine has to be in running order. To obtain an age related number you will require a dating certificate which can be supplied by owners clubs or a chap name Mike Worthington Williams, who charges £30. All the best with it.

[BSAfrica]

As Luke mentioned, any old bike can be restored, took on this Ariel, now in year 3 and making progress, nearly there.

[BSAfrica]

The start of the above mentioned Ariel project, and the only reason I took it on is because I hate to see old motorcycles going to the melting pots.   

[rosko]

you will always find a buyer for a 350 Velo of that age.
If you are in UK ebay will get you as good a price as anywhere.

the Velo club can help recover the reg no.


but........
number plate selling is a racket all the buyers are agents, all sale on commisssion, they will give you a price, then advertise it; it may be years before that number finds a buyer, then they will come back to you with a price nowhere near the one they first quoted, then its less this bit and that bit.

you get no cash till its sold, if ever.

[bikerbob]

Hi there. Please do not break the bike up for parts, if you cannot restore it just sell it on as a restoration project you do not need a V5c for to do that all you need to do is give the buyer a signed and dated receipt. If you are going to restore it going on the stated condition you will need to decided what you can do yourself and what you will have to contract out this will determine the costs. I will give you an example I have just restored a BSA A65 to do the wheels cost me in excess of £400 just for parts that was new rims, spokes, nipples, tyres and tubes, I restored the hubs myself using the existing bearings I did have to buy new brake shoes these cost an extra £20 I also rebuilt the wheels myself. Now if you had to get someone to do all  that for you the bill will be in excess of £600. Now that is just the wheels what about the engine gearbox electrics suspension and all the tinware including a new exhaust system.  Assuming you did take on the restoration to get an age related plate the bike has to be roadworthy and have an MOT plus insurance  and dating certificate after filling in the correct form which you can get from the local DVLA office they will also want to inspect the finished bike before giving you a V5c and tax disc.  Now if you wanted to reclaim the original registration that is more complicated it is no good having the original number plates with the registration number clearly visible you have to have some original paperwork linking the bike to the number ie. original log book an old MOT or tax disc that shows the registration number how ever from the original number you will be able to find out who the original registration authority was now some local authorities kept the records and some did not. If the local authority that did the registration has kept the records then the Dvla will accept a copy of that. Then you have to fill in the correct forms get a dating certificate plus photographs and send everything off to the DVLA in Swansea who if they are satisfied will give you a V5c with the original registration you would be best enlisting the help of the Velocette owners club if you decide to go down this route.
Also something that you may want to bear in mind as from November this year vehicles registered before 1960 will not require an MOT they will become voluntary. Also due to the cuts the Government is proposing close all local DVLA offices this is now going through the consultation phase.

[wetdog]

1949 velocette , nice bike , the number maybe issued on a non transferable baisis ( most likley id say ) so no value there , but any velo in any condition seams to fetch good money on ebay , i think some that buy them do not know just how much it costs to restore a bike nowadays and thats if you can do some of the work yourself .

[Mike Williams]

I'm sure an advert in Fishtail, the Velocette Owners Club journal, would produce some interest. There is a lot of interest in Velos and they command relatively high prices. Have a look at the crankcase on the left side of the bike, just below the cylinder barrel. There should be some letters and numbers, which should begin MAC.

The MAC ran for ages in several guises, first as a rigid / girder fork job, then a rigid with teles, then the swinging arm version was introduced. I'm sure you'll find a buyer.

Regards
Mike