Square Four Logo

[andrew.johnston]

Here's a silly one - should the words "Square Four" embossed on the timing cover of my MkII be left bare (i.e.aluminium coloured) or painted in the burgundy of the rest of the bike?

[nevhunter]

I think I've seen black on a NEW twin timing cover I managed to obtain many years ago. It definitely had not been repolished (you can tell the original) and still had preservative on it. Nev

[paul.jameson]

My advice would be to leave it aluminium coloured.

It is (just about) possible that I have found red paint in the RH 350 of a prewar timing cover but I could never be certain whether a) it was paint and b) if it was original. I think that in the 50 years I have now been involved in Ariels I would have seen the logos painted in timing covers if it ever happened.

[Roger Gwynn]

I agree with Paul, well I usually do, I have seen a few with paint in the recess but too few to be likely to be original.

[nevhunter]

The best "LOOK" (in my opinion) is have the cast recess absolutely clean (wire brush it) and polish the originally polished areas carefully. Start with very fine wet and dry if needed. Nev

[david.anderson]

I have a collection of single timing covers. That includes RH500 VG500 VH VG VB and NH. They all have at least some trace of red (all original early red hunter colour red). I always thought that it was strange that models such as the VG which came to Australia in export green would have the timing cover in red hunter red. However it is significant that they were all in red and I doubt any are owner mods. My original 49VH, which was my 91 year old fathers, is of course also in red and was never painted by him.
Likewise every “Square Four” engraved timing cover that I have or have checked has some red).
David

[Roger Gwynn]

It is possible that bikes that went to Australia had the logo painted, if asked for by the importer, there are numerous instances of special requests by certain importers but I do not recolect ever seeing this remarked on in the despatch books. It may have been carried out by one or several dealers or it may have been fashionable in your neck of the woods. It is certainly odd that deluxe models would be painted in red.

[Simon.Gardiner]

Illustrations in '54 and '55 sales catalogues seem to show no colour, across the range.
Illustrations in '56 and '57 catalogues show very definite red!

SG

[paul.jameson]

So we may have a discrepancy between UK machines and those in Australia. Machines destined for Australia usually went to export agents TKM - Tozer, Kemsley and Milburn in London. Maybe they kept a tin of Red Hunter red available. Like David and Roger, I do not understand why the timing covers would not have been painted green for de luxe models, or possibly black.

Can anyone, elsewhere in the world add to the information? New Zealand bikes went through TKM as well as Australian ones.

[david.anderson]

Hopefully I have not hijacked the original thread too much but what about the “ARIEL” casting in the single crankcase. Almost always some red in the recess around the word “ARIEL”.
David