Hi Stan,
Hmm. I'd be a bit wide-eyed if anyone could tell me catagorically that the pre-war tanks were gold leafed or paint lined. Who has a guaranteed untouched pre-war tank any more with cast Iron providence?
Period photos are hard to come by that show any detail of the line on the top of the tank as most photos are broadsides. So it's exact position is open to some debate. I could envisage the gold line covering the join twixt paint and stainless, but I certainly don't have any hard evidence and many tanks are not done exactly this way.
I have only ever seen a couple of photos of a Comet completely untouched since 1939, but sadly the paint and line details are long gone.
The BBF Co. in Coventry [who still seem to exist] made the tanks for Vincent HRD and I wonder if they came fully finished and lined? Or maybe just lined out at Stevenage? A soldered tank would be ticklish to stove enamel I would think.
I wouldn't mind betting they had to set up from scratch again after the war as Coventry took a real beating from Bombing. The post-war tanks came from Homers, I think.
So, sorry Stan, I'm no practical help! At the end of the day, if it's lined out nicely with leaf or paint, who is out there to argue it's wrong, except the lucky bloke with some exceptional period photos or an unmolested bike
Cheers,
Delboy.
Hi folks,
a couple of snippets.
I notice in PEI's autobiography he talks of Bill Clarke "returning with some black and gold 'T' model tanks". It seems like the early 30's he is referring to, so maybe 'T' means saddle tanks? -Or just a typo?
They obviously could get them fully finished from BBF if they wanted.
A bit later in the text he says of tanks, "one plain steel enamelled Black and one with Vincent's new idea of s/s side panels".
Maybe these were the first ones of the type of tank that were fitted to A's [and model J's and other models before?]
Now, more interesting, I have been shown again a photo of the untouched since covered up in 1939 Comet.
On the left side of the maroon panel atop the tank, there is definitely a remnant of a gold pinstripe. [possibly 1/8"] This is on the INSIDE of the tank top beading, or the filler cap side, if you like. In fact approximately 1/2" in from the edge of the raised bead and following it [presumably?] from front to back, on the maroon top panel proper.
You can only speculate if this was possibly added by the owner in the two years before WW2?
Seems a tad unlikely, but we can't be sure.
Any evidence of a gold line on the outside of the beading where the Maroon finishes [that we are used to seeing] is long gone.
Maybe, just maybe, they had two gold lines originally?
I await the flood of Pre-war photos to confirm or deny one way or 'tother.
Back to counting rivets.
Delboy.