Hi,
I am curious as to what info exists on my bike in the key cards or records, Frame number wm20 30187.

Thanks in advance

Hi Goblin, your bike is in the cards, (card no. 468b) postwar reg. no. 10ZC89 (rebuilt) C number C1430187, struck off 10-10-1963 served with the Queens Vic. Rifles Territorial Army

Hope this helps, email me if you want a scan of the card,

Cheers,

Lex

email (option): welbike@welbike.net

Thanks very much for the info. Email sent

So which contract number ect did it leave the factory on and where was is sent to if that record exist?

Cheers

Jez, the contract was C7287, and that contract is from 1940, the bikes delivered into 1941.

Is that in the Ledgers???

So the C number it left the factory with can be calculated, 42000 minus
30187 = 25987 so end of C number range 4358592 minus 25987 = 4332605.

So theoretically your number should be C4332605 what did you come up with??

It is interesting to see that for the rebuild C number, they used the framenumber preceded by 14, is that a common thing?? thought rebuild numbers had blocks of special numbers???

Hope this helps,

Lex

email (option): welbike@welbike.net

When I got it it has and still has C4390666.. I know it belonged to a guy in the vmcc now deceased back in the early 80's .. It may have been his number is guess but who knows .. Thanks very much for the info

Hi,

Here a page from the BSA ledgers with your bike in it. As you can see it left the factory 30-8-1941 and went to the War Office London.

I can't explain why some bikes left the factory on a completely different moment then others with nearly the same frame number but you find that all the time in these ledgers.

Henk.

email (option): ahum@quicknet.nl

Any chance mine is in there Lex? Be great to know if there is an idea of where it was.

contract 11101
c number 4636976
frame wm2053388

Kit

email (option): kit247@hotmail.com

Census No. C4390666 was originally allocated to Norton contract C7353 and applied to WD16H W30640.

Either the use of a Norton number was an attempt to add a touch of much-needed class or perhaps it was a number applied to a machine which the old chap used during his service ?

Henk, the non-consecutive despatch dates are something that apply to most manufacturers and most numbered components. I don't think there is any great mystery. Frames were probably stamped consecutively then sent to the production stores who weren't too worried about working on a 'first in - first out' system. Some frames probably sat at the back for a month or two and were then entered into the consecutive despatch books (thankfully or otherwise it would be a devil of a job to find anything).

I think it was a number that meant something to the "Old Chap"

Some of my relatives have a picture of my Grandfather in Africa during the war on his despatch bike, When they find the pic it will be getting that number I expect.