I have a copy of S-1048 (15,000 machines), the 1940 list, C-10677 & C-14052 (509 machines)the 1946 book, and Henk has a war time one scanned on his CD.
How many of these parts books are there?
What are they?
How do I know what to restore to?
What is the correlation of frame number & engine number to the contract?
My frame number is: WM20.94555 Engine Number WM20 103726 RW (What does RW mean?)
Oh dear Robb, it looks like continued exposure to this site has lead to you contracting "a need to know more" which as we all know is the first sympton of the "RC" disease.
It's beleaved that there was originally a spare parts list for each contract, sometimes only the cover was different and parts could be altered before a contract was completed which leads to some saying they are of limited use, but I like them. Quite a few are available from Rob van Meel and other sources, some, especially some early ones are missing/lost.
I got it bad, whatever RC disease is! I am an unemployed aerospace engineer (that alone is suspect), and I'm doing my bike again, but this time properly.
How do I get ahold of Rob van Meel? I'm happy with copies.
Prices are in Euro and excl. P&P.
After having used these prices ever since the introduction of the Euro in 2002, this summer will see new prices, on average 10% higher as I will need to compensate for the increase of my costs over these nine years.
For all their size and production volume, BSA parts books are rather oddly not as common as other makes...
There appears little rationale behind the production of parts lists....some very small contracts benefit from lists specific for the contract yet other, larger contracts seem mysteriously absent......
As Rob mentions, they are a reasonable guide to what was or was not fitted at the factory, but you need to read them in conjunction with period photos showing bikes from that particular contract, preferably factory or ordnance depot shots, for better accuracy......
And compared to other makes, BSA parts list and Workshop manuals are utter shite when you come down to the nitty gritty detail....:o(
"RW"....maybe "Repair Workshops" or "Refurbished or Reconditioned W (D)" ???