1951 Ariel 4G Square Four.

cbranni
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1951 Ariel 4G Square Four.

Post by cbranni »

Hello Everyone,

In May of this year I spotted a Sq 4 for sale on ebay, I have always been keen on owning one of these machines, when I was a child back in the 50's the local cobbler rode a Sq 4 with a sidecar and to an eight year old it was a massive outfit, I was in awe as my father rode a Norman.

The advert read if I remember rightly............Ariel Sq 4 imported from the States, now with new V5c, seized, needing work, I have read about Sq 4 engines and how much work and cost they can be so I thought hard over many days as the bidding increased. Looking at it the tank is wrong but everything else was there and in good condition as far as I could tell, one other thing missing was rear number plate and lamp. Okay with the end of auction looming a decision was made and with five seconds to go I placed my bid and low and behold I won the auction and I will be quite open I won with a bid of £5200, I then spent days worrying over it, have I done a stupid thing well only time will tell.
I picked the bike up a few days later from a farm Devon (I am in Swansea) we loaded it into the van and found it wasn't seized, well the engine wasn't, the clutch was seized and the gearbox was stuck in gear and this is what I bought.........................

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At the time of purchase I was busy working on a BSA M21 so the Ariel had to wait it's turn, I used this time to source a tank I found a guy in India selling Ariel tanks the nearest I could get to a MK1 tank (oil pressure gauge and filler cap) was one for a Huntmaster and he was selling one for £200 so I bought it, quick fit and check when it arrived proved all the holes were about right but the over all height of the tank made fitting difficult so it would have to cut and shut to suit, it seemed well made.
The BSA was finished end of July and work commenced on the Ariel first of August full engine strip, oil ways cleaned, valve seats ground. bores and pistons were in good condition, big and small ends good all within tolerance, what we did find head gasket blown between three and four and timing side bushes were breaking down so needed replacing.
I must add that my hobby is shared with a lifelong friend of mine Leon, who is dab hand at paint, welding and fabricating, my skills are as a toolmaker (ex Bowden Cables) so we can cover most things.
With engine and gearbox rebuilt, new exhausts, new rims and spokes, re-wired, few bits re-chromed and lots of paint this is what it turned out like....................

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I have had a lot of help from Paul Jameson who guided me through various tasks during the rebuild and kept me sane. It turns out this bike was built in late fifty one and part of a three bike shipment to Japan in fifty two, it has matching frame and engine numbers and the millage on the speedo is thirty thousand which feels about right to me, pistons are on plus twenty and have done little millage.
I have spent £3000 on the rebuild and am very pleased with how it looks, I have run it up to temp and re torqued twice now but now it needs to cover a few miles ready for the next torque down but that won't be until next spring, I live on a farm track and winter time it is a quagmire, a mixture of cow manure and mud.

Thank you for reading, I did go on a bit, and please comment, good or bad.

Kind regards Colin
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chris.shearwood
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Re: 1951 Ariel 4G Square Four.

Post by chris.shearwood »

Colin,
Well done! I'm very impressed with the job you have done in such little time and for so little money. You put me to shame on both counts.
Regards, Chris
1946 4G and 1951 VH
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simon.holyfield
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Re: 1951 Ariel 4G Square Four.

Post by simon.holyfield »

I'm very impressed! So quick, and for so little money. Hard to believe that tank is not a genuine 4G tank.

Well done. Does it ride well?
cheers

Simes

'51 Square Four,
'58 Huntmaster,
'42 W/NG,
'30 Model A
https://ariel-square-four.blogspot.com
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SEDoan
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Re: 1951 Ariel 4G Square Four.

Post by SEDoan »

Looks great. Also impressed with the speed and reasonable cost. You must have valuable skills!
1937 Guzzi GTV, 1939 VH bitsa, 1947 VH, 1981 Guzzi Monza, 1983 Guzzi Lemans
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Re: 1951 Ariel 4G Square Four.

Post by Mick D »

Hi Colin

That's a really impressive job you've done there, I'm envious of your skills, (and of your Leon ;) ).

Regards Mick
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Vincent.vanGinneke
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Re: 1951 Ariel 4G Square Four.

Post by Vincent.vanGinneke »

In one word : Stunning !

Or maybe two: Absolutely Stunning !
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Re: 1951 Ariel 4G Square Four.

Post by Paul_Linden »

That’s an incredible transformation, well done! Let’s hope there is some good weather soon and you can take it out for a long ride.
Square 4 mk1, Square 4 mk2, BSA C12.
cbranni
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Re: 1951 Ariel 4G Square Four.

Post by cbranni »

Thank you all for the very kind words they are very much appreciated, I must admit that both Leon and I felt this machine deserved the very best of our skills so the bar was set very high and we are both are very proud of what we achieved and I can't wait till next spring to get this bike out on the road.
Regarding the cost of the rebuild it should be £3400, I forgot to add the chrome plating cost, I have my own garden shed machine shop and below is some of the parts I have made, savings made by making my own is over £1200.

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Of course the huge saving is on paint, there is another small garden shed for spraying, I am not allowed in there.

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When I first started the engine I did the torque settings twice and later I found an oil leak at the head gasket, not happy I took the head off and found the oil was running down the head sleeve nuts in the rocker box then creeping out from under the gasket. I rebuilt the engine using the original steel studs and nuts, they were in good condition but as steel the torque values were low (2, 4 and 6 ft/lbs) so I changed the steel fixings for stainless which allowed me to use the higher torque values (6, 8 and 10), I have run the engine again and have no oil leaks but have to wait and see.

Sorry for rabbiting on again.

Kind regards Colin
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Re: 1951 Ariel 4G Square Four.

Post by simon.holyfield »

Did you find much in the sludge traps? And how did you make the Anstey shrouds?
cheers

Simes

'51 Square Four,
'58 Huntmaster,
'42 W/NG,
'30 Model A
https://ariel-square-four.blogspot.com
cbranni
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Re: 1951 Ariel 4G Square Four.

Post by cbranni »

Hello Simon,

I found very little in the sludge traps this I believe was down to the engine being re-bored in the States a few thousand miles before I bought it so the sludge traps could have been cleaned then, it was also fitted with plus twenty Mk 2 pistons so my C/R is around 7 : 1,
I will be keeping an eye on that, compression test showed 125psi on all cylinders, I also fitted an inline oil filter to keep the oil clean.

To make the shrouds I bought a one metre length of 55mm dia 304 stainless tube off ebay for £26 incl postage, the original shroud was 55.7mm dia and the one I bought was 55.3mm no big difference.

1. Cut the tube to length its about 190mm.
2. As the tube is unpolished it was put up in the lathe and polished using ever finer emery cloth and then polished with soap and mop.
3. Turn up a wooden mandrel to fit inside the tube so it can be clamped in the vice of the miller.
4. Set it up in vice and using DRO cut out the required shape using small slot drill (4mm). you can of course mark it out and cut to the lines and if you have no milling machine you can easily cut it out with hacksaw and file to size.

Took me less then an hour to make the two at a material cost of £10, can I just add that your website was my go to for anything I wasn't sure about, what you have done there must have help a lot of people so thank you.

Kind regards Colin
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