It's quite funny that this is being discussed I'm in the progress of putting my front light brackets on now, I know some are more rivet counters then others and dont want to spoil a good post with a diffrant slant.
My Grandad was a dispatch rider in the BEF ,Africa and Dday onwards, when I turned up on my m20 years ago before he passed, he pointed out that the 1st thing that a Donr did was go to the stores and get a pot of paint and paint the shiny bits especial bolts ,nuts and even the levers etc. He said some guys painted the engines also but if a inspection was going to happen you would have to scrape the paint off , nuts and bolts and other bits didn't matter. Having items painted in Africa was a must as something could catch the sun and be seen from miles away , you also had a standing order not to go to fast as it stirred up dust.
So essentially home front yes you could keep factor standard , everything else then think and use common sense .
At the end of the war my grandad got shot a total of 7 times and his ukulele got some extra holes in it along with his bikes and him .
Hi Michiel
your knowledge on early bikes is always great & welcome
I have looked again at the parts lists I have here - 1940 models - Blue cover
15-8994/6 - top bolt - short x 1
15-8993/6 - top bolt - long x 1
15-8994/6 - bottom bolt - short x 2
EA80/6 - Nut - 5/16" cycle x 4
/6 on the book lists finish as Rustproof black
Then on my Provisional Parts list - WD motorcycles
WM20 - 14,000 to WM20 18,000
Contract C5610
15-8994/11 - short bolt - x 4 - same bolt used in all - 15-8993 is deleted !
EA80/11 nut - 5/16" cycle x 4
/11 finish has now changed to Khaki green ( No 3 Gas Proof)
This information is found in the "Sundries" section of both list and supplement list
Another parts list I use is the following as it has illustrations which is unusual for wartime lists - at least in my experience
Lamp brackets, securing bolts and nuts are now located in the Fork section
15-8994 x 3 - no finish indicated
15-8992 x 1 - no finish stated - bolt re-introduced
EA80 x 4 - no finish stated -
For Info
Lamp bracket bolt (19/32"-5/16 cycle 26tpi)
Lamp bracket bolt (21/32"-5/16 cycle 26tpi)