Norton Big 4

Previously wrote:

My 1937 16H (registered July 1937) frame is 74xxx so your 88xxx looks like 1938.

My 1937 engine is 73xxx with no letter. Letter 'E' looks like post war 1950.

Thanks.

Previously wrote:

Previously wrote:

Can anyone advise me what year does the frame number 88894 refer to. and engine number E22476. These are on my big 4. I believe maybe around 1937/38. I have no reg book at present.

Thanks Robert

E2 refers to a 1950 16H. However there seems to be a number missing. The engine number afterE2 should have 5 digits. My 1951 ES-2 is 382--

Maybe someone stamped this number as it is on the right side of casing. Plus it is a Big 4 asfrom 1948, the original 82mm x 120mm engine dimensions (633cc) were reduced to 82mm x 113mm (596cc).Mine has the 82x120mm engine making it pre 48?.

Previously wrote:

The club specialists should be able to tell you what 88894 started life as. I only have copies of the pages containing WD bikes (and have to search them manually). I found frame number 88892 - it was a Model 1 (Big 4) despatched on 11/2/1938. However, the same series was used for all models and the frames were not assembled consecutively. 88891 was a 16H on the same page but no sign of 88894.

An 'E' prefix is very common on Norton casting numbers around this period, usually with 4 figures. Is the number stamped in or raised ? An engine assembly number is also a possibility and as the enclosed valve 1938 - 1947 Big 4 engine was also used on WD sidecar outfits, there is the possibility of parts substituted from those.

A photo would be useful.

88894 is according to records is a 16H. But the tank has the dished shape for the spark plug to be taken out. The tank on this bike is not the same shape tank (inbelow) as my 1950 16H. I will post a picture of the number soon. The numbers are stamped.

Previously wrote:

Previously wrote:

The club specialists should be able to tell you what 88894 started life as. I only have copies of the pages containing WD bikes (and have to search them manually). I found frame number 88892 - it was a Model 1 (Big 4) despatched on 11/2/1938. However, the same series was used for all models and the frames were not assembled consecutively. 88891 was a 16H on the same page but no sign of 88894.

An 'E' prefix is very common on Norton casting numbers around this period, usually with 4 figures. Is the number stamped in or raised ? An engine assembly number is also a possibility and as the enclosed valve 1938 - 1947 Big 4 engine was also used on WD sidecar outfits, there is the possibility of parts substituted from those.

A photo would be useful.

88894 is according to records is a 16H. But the tank has the dished shape for the spark plug to be taken out. The tank on this bike is not the same shape tank (inbelow) as my 1950 16H. I will post a picture of the number soon. The numbers are stamped.

I cannot get a good picture of number

Previously wrote:

Robert, the pre- and wartime tanks are certainly different from the post-war versions. The small cutaway above the spark plug was certainly a WD feature from the first models (1936). I've read and re-read the comments in the factory records and the impression that I continue to hold is that what they referred to as the 'flat-bottomed' tank was exclusive to the WD16H (WD Big 4 had the section behind the right-hand knee grip removed altogether). The tank base will be numbered and that may also be traceable in the factory records (bearing in mind that wartime records are largely lost).

The presence of a few ex-WD parts on many 1930s Nortons is to be expected.

What numbers have you got on the drive side crankcase ? If you have the engine apart, pre-war engines usually have a build date stamped on the inside of the timing cover, close to the crank oil feed.

There is no number on drive side. I have no plans to strip the engine as yet.