The above photo is wrong for me, if the nut came loose and vibrated off the arm is gone, the arm should be on the inside then it can be adjusted, the above picture the lock nut would have to be slackened to remove the wheel, in all the years I've been riding never have I had to slacken a torque arm.
Marcus, my handsome,
it may be "wrong" but clearly from period photos the works fitted them in front and behind the lugs. And there are different lugs, and so we go round in circles.
People are struggling for originality with their A's, and with the greatest respect, that's not top of your list.
If you read the "A" instruction book on removing the rear wheel, it talks of "slipping the arms [torque] off sideways." No mention of rotating the arms.
Possibly they were fully tightened pre-war?
Post-war, the riders handbook does mention swinging the arms down out of the way.
It seems desirable to fit the torque arms in a straight and parallel line with no bending to make them fit either inside or outside the lug wherever they are designed to naturally fall.
If the arms fall inside of the lug, all is serene. On the timing side fit the bolt from the inside and locknut on the outside. On the drive side one can do the same with the special bolt as in my photo.
If the arms fall on the outside [like TT reps Pete? and the untouched 1939 bike] then on the timing side, just reverse and put the bolt in from outside and locknut inside..
The sticky part comes on the primary side of a road going bike. You can't put the special bolt in the other way round! So it's not desirable to fit this arm outside, but I suspect from period photos that it was done by the works.
If you have to fit this arm like this, use a drip of nutlock loctite on the locknut.
Okay fellow nurds. Flogged this one to death!
Cheers,
Delboy.