What year is YOUR bike ?

[WozzA]

I was at the Bendigo swap meet on the weekend & talking to another OLD A10 owner,
I was scrounging  through his boxes of bits & pieces & having a good old chat.  

He told me that the EASIEST way to work out what year your bike was made is to look at the DATE STAMP..  ????

WHAT date stamp says me???  I've never seen one...
The one stamped into the cases on the 1st bolt lug above the sump @ the front of the motor says him...  & shows me a date stamped 14. 7. 49 on his cases.

So I checked out IF my motor had one...    Well BUGGER me...   so I thought I'd share this info with you..  

[morris]

Now you got me confused ????
My A 10 is supposed to be 58

[Brian]

I wouldnt read too much into these dates. All A10 engines do have a date stamped in them, sometimes its easily visible but sometimes it can be nearly impossible to find. I have engines with the date in the position shown, one with it just under the dynamo on the right side of the case and my 61' has it inside the case behind the cam wheel. The plunger models generally have it inside the primary alongside the chain tensioner.

The other problem is just why the dates are there and when they where stamped. Most popular explanation is they are date stamped when the engine is completed. A motor may have sat in the works for months before it was actually fitted to a bike however so you cant date a bikes manufacture by this date alone.

Assuming it has not been altered since leaving the factory the engine and frame numbers are the best way to date a machine.

[a10gf]

Looking closely for the 1st time, found 2 dates !? on what seems like matching cases (the 237 pic).

[WozzA]

Yes Brian... I agree that the date the motor was compleated is the most likely explination.
Frame & engine numbers are the correct way to find out what is what.. & when.

I had no idea that the date numbers were even there till told & thought it might be of interest & comment.

[Brian]

Stampings in the crankcases seem to have no system to them at all. If you look carefully you will finds dozens of different letters and symbols all over and in the cases and no two sets of cases seem to be the same. Maybe different shifts and different workers had their own way of doing things, maybe they did it just to confuse future generations ! Who knows ?

Erling I have seen that before, two different numbers in a matched set of cases. Once again who knows, it must have seemed like a good idea to someone.

[metalflake11]

Mine are the same. 565 is stamped on both crank halves above the sump at the front. I was told years ago that matching numbers proved they were machined together?....Dunno! Having read the opening post properly I now find my bike is 14 11 1960. His birthday is ten days before mine.

[A10 JWO]

For £10 the BSA club will tell you when it left the factory and what dealer had the pleasure. Mine was delivered to a dealer in Poole Dorset 23/01/1954. I conclude that is was built around Xmas 1953. Engine number 970. 68,000 miles and still sweet as a nut.
Regards Colin