finding year of square four

[RAY SADLER]

just bought through deceased estate square four that has been dismantled and put in shed a long time ago, 90%complete i think!
No docs so trying to age the machine with intention to get v5c camn any members help ?
The reg is FLP 812, VIN AX438 AND ENG NO DE302 ANY HELP APPRECIATED

[paul.wirdnam]

AX and DE together suggest 1939 I think.

[paul.jameson]

You will need to get in touch with Bob Prosser, AOMCC Machine Registrar to get the bike re-registered. It will need to be about 90% re-assembled for that purpose (DVLA rules). I can tell you though, that engine and frame are both 1939 but the bike left the factory as a 600cc machine and has had a replacement 1000cc engine fitted at some stage.

[RAY SADLER]

You will need to get in touch with Bob Prosser, AOMCC Machine Registrar to get the bike re-registered. It will need to be about 90% re-assembled for that purpose (DVLA rules). I can tell you though, that engine and frame are both 1939 but the bike left the factory as a 600cc machine and has had a replacement 1000cc engine fitted at some stage.

thanks for info guys its also got tele forks and plunger rear end would them be correct for a 39

[RAY SADLER]

You will need to get in touch with Bob Prosser, AOMCC Machine Registrar to get the bike re-registered. It will need to be about 90% re-assembled for that purpose (DVLA rules). I can tell you though, that engine and frame are both 1939 but the bike left the factory as a 600cc machine and has had a replacement 1000cc engine fitted at some stage.

thanks for info guys its also got tele forks and plunger rear end would them be correct for a 39

Also if it was reregistered would i loose the original number?

[chris.shearwood]

its also got tele forks and plunger rear end would them be correct for a 39

I'm pretty sure Ariel telescopic forks became available only during the 1946 model year but a plunger rear was available for a 1939 Sq4.

[simon.holyfield]

You will need to get in touch with Bob Prosser, AOMCC Machine Registrar to get the bike re-registered. It will need to be about 90% re-assembled for that purpose (DVLA rules). I can tell you though, that engine and frame are both 1939 but the bike left the factory as a 600cc machine and has had a replacement 1000cc engine fitted at some stage.

thanks for info guys its also got tele forks and plunger rear end would them be correct for a 39

Also if it was reregistered would i loose the original number?

Yes, you probably would. In the UK today, you need a document tying the frame number to the registration number, and that means a V5 or the old buff/green log book. If you are very lucky, your bike might be one of the few dispatched to a county which kept it's registration records, but they are very few of these left I understand.

[paul.jameson]

Because the main difference between pre and post war Ariels was the provision of telescopic forks, pre war bikes were often updated by fitting telescopic forks and front wheel. I have been told that the factory supplied a kit for this purpose but I have never found any concrete evidence of this. But if the bike bent the front forks for some reason and was sent back to Selly Oak for repairs it would come back with telescopic forks. So the chances are that the telescopic forks are part of the history of the bike.

[chris.shearwood]

Even if the tele forks are not "correct" for the year I would not change them for girders if I were you. I find my girder forked Sq4 to be much rougher riding than my bikes with telescopic forks.

[paul.jameson]

I wonder if you are comparing plunger framed Squares Chris when you say you prefer the tele forks? My experience, on rigid framed Squares, is the the girder forked bike handles vastly better than the tele fork version did, although it is a bit harsh on the bumpy bits. I put this down to insufficient grease having yet reached the fork dampers.