No engine numbers???

[jachenbach]

Picked up a bunch of A10 stuff today, including what I'm certain is a Spitfire Scrambler frame, forks, seat, etc. What's got me puzzled is that I got 2 engines, the one that was in the bike when the previous owner bought it, and one from another bike that he picked up years ago. Funny thing is, neither engine has ever been stamped with serial numbers! I'm wondering if replacement cases were normally shipped without numbers, and were then to be stamped by the dealers when they were installed. In this part of the country, I'm guessing the bike was probably raced, so maybe the cases were bought and the engine built by the owner, who just didn't care? I've got documentation from the Science Library Museum in London, which states what the engine numbers should be. I intend to do a complete teardown of the engine and make sure it has all the proper parts for a '62 Spitfire Scrambler. Wondering if I should have the cases stamped with the correct numbers afterward. What do y'all think?

[trevinoz]

I would do just that but I wouldn't tell anyone! 

Trev.

[Briz]

Yeah, they did used to sell new cases unstamped. And the factory stamping was a bit amateurish, so yeah, go ahead. Just dont tell anyone.
The factory numbers were 1/4" high.
Of course, there are other reasons why numbers might be absent.... Not that uncommon either. Ancient history now of course.

The London Science Museum has such info??????

[morris]

Coincidentally, I read this article today about a Brough engine bought at an auction.
It also didn't have an engine number but had an interesting history;
http://thevintagent.blogspot.co.uk/

[jachenbach]

The header on the letter I got with the bike says "The National Museum of Science and Industry, Science Museum Library". It's dated March 1989. Location is South Kensington, London. It lists frame number, engine number, importer, dispatch date and is signed by Robert Sharp, Pictorial and Archives Collection.

[Topdad]

Hi and a belated welcome ! Seem to remember that the VMCC in england were given despatch books or copies from a museum  that didn't wish to keep them due to space etc . It may well have been the one stated but can't recall .You can also get more info from the BSAOC they have a website and will help with BSA records also I can confirm engine cases were supplied "sans" number from the factory ,our dealership parts dept had a set of punches to stamp required numbers on but noone seemed that bothered ,all a bit sus looking at it fom a modern perspective but true, best of luck BobH.

[jachenbach]

It would seem from the replies that unstamped cases are neither unusual, nor a problem, so I think I'll just leave them as is. I have no wish to mislead anyone as to what I've got, just don't want trouble with Johnnie Law when he's writing my speeding tickets.

[muskrat]

Down here a bike is registered by it's frame # or vin. But if Mr Plod pulled it up and saw no engine # you might be there a while.
I knew a bloke that had 6 bikes all with the same #'s. Said he could only ride one at a time.
Cheers.

Oh no my smiley's have gone.

[Brian]

What, the same numbers on multiple bikes, thats terrible.

[BSA_54A10]

I kn ow  bloke who ran a courier dusiness with a lot of bikes and he would oft swap an engine from one frame to another and use the secong mismatched set as back up.
Nloody RTA always geting these numbers backwards !!!!!!!!!

[WozzA]

What, the same numbers on multiple bikes, thats terrible.

& swapping Rego plates from bike to bike is just as bad ...