Ariel Owners Motorcycle Club

Hello All, I am new to this forum.

I have a 1943 W/NG and am planning to restore it. I am interested in the colours scheme as it left factory and any information that might add to its history. frame number xg 37960 engine number BH 28185 my own basic research shows its from 1943, but can anyone give me any more precise information, to explain its journey from England , to Greece. According to the family who owned it it was with the Greek Postal Service after the war.

Could it be a batch of ex ministry bikes bought by the Greeks after the war? Ideas gratefully accepted.

Looking at the info on the Draganfly site the numbers & date indicate it was from a batch of 3,250 sent to the army depot.

I tried to find more info on my 1940 bike but it seems there is little you can trace re their service history or movements during the war.

Jimmyd

Welcome to the forum. Unfortunately there are no military records available that could tell you when the machine actually arrived in Greece. A lot of XWD machines were exported throughout Europe after WW2 so it is likely that it was part of a batch sent to Greece. If it did indeed go to the postal service this may well support it being a Greek government import.

You can get details of the Ariel factory dispatch records, via the Ariel Owners Club, which will tell you when and where it originally went to from the factory, but this is likely to be an UK army depot. It will however tell you if the frame and engine left the factory together.

Re the colour scheme: have a look at my forum postings http://forum.arielownersmcc.com/viewt ... =49&t=9505 Mine is a 1942 so yours would have been the same colour and specification.

There are a number of WNG parts lists and maintenance manuals on the club website, which would be of great use in your restoration, but you need to be a member to access them. I would suggest membership would be worthwhile. membership also allows you to access the club spares scheme.

Regarding spares the main places in the UK (and probably europe) are Draganfly https://www.draganfly.co.uk/ and John Budgen http://www.johnbudgenmotorcycles.co.uk/

If you go to this webpage you can download a book on UK military motorcycles, some good info in it re the WNG
https://pdfslide.us/download/link/sutto ... es-1925-45

Post some photos of what you have. Details of how to post photos here http://forum.arielownersmcc.com/viewt ... f=35&t=193

Cheers
Alan

OR you can become a AOMCC member and use the club to get parts the club spares have lots of parts and a lot cheaper

Thanks for the advice. I started the restoration, sent the wheels off for rebuild, and frame is now painted. Have gone for a lighter desert stone colour ( think Afrika Corps colour) , yes wrong army but it's based on a colour of a mates BSA M20 , have seen some original paint under the tank and it's a definite light khaki colour . The colour Might (will) raise a few eyebrows but I (think) I like it, I gave it a coat of "Normal" military green first just to appease the gods, then layered up the stone colour. Then I decided I didn't like it but later it grew on me.
so then the the Frame needed work,fixed snapped off rear wheel adjuster , various threads to clean up etc. It's funny what you notice when cleaning something off, I noticed letters stamped into the fork components ( "A" ) would this be to help unskilled workers to assemble the forks? Also a 40 on the oil pump There were some numbers stamped into the front of the headstock (looks like an M on its side followed by 450? There is a W on the underside of the frame. Luckily I have an ally who is a long term Ariel owner and we went through all the parts, and it's fairly complete. Blew some cash on Draganflys website, but was surprised how inexpensive parts like bearings and shims are etc. That was all well and good until I ordered a new crankpin Never buy late on a Saturday night.........It should have a strong bottom end though.

I am actually having a great time working on it, and after working on larger vehicles it's refreshing to work on something where parts are available and a wealth of knowledge is there to support, and progress can be seen. Yes I will be joining the owners club looks like it will not be concours , less pristine, and more rutted Greek farm track.....

The frame seems straight, but rear arm section slightly bent in where rear stand pivots mount (adjusted) ...Plus a pair of extra holes In the front engine plates where the civilian owner fitted leg gaurds in 1959 (I have photos). I attach some pics.The colour in the pics looks different in the flesh .

It turns out the additional stamps on the headstock are Greek. The letter "sigma" followed by 450 then a crown stamp.

Looks as if there's a crack there. Nev