question 1940 triumph engine, later frame, help with date or commission number, thanks

[speedex47]

the triumph is a 250cc model H2, ENGINE stamped 40 -H2 -26982

 

FRAME is stamped TL 31889

under seat on frame is stamped T.E.C 8-42

 

So i am assuming its a civilian model? although frame is khaki under the black. any ideas maybe war frame with earlier engine.

[johnwardle]

the triumph is a 250cc model H2, ENGINE stamped 40 -H2 -26982

 

FRAME is stamped TL 31889

under seat on frame is stamped T.E.C 8-42

 

So i am assuming its a civilian model? although frame is khaki under the black. any ideas maybe war frame with earlier engine.

 

This is a bit of a puzzle, according to "British Forces Motor Cycles 1925-45" by Chris Orchard & Steve Madden, the smallest capacity bike supplied to the British army by Triumph was 350cc. The frame number you have given is from a batch of 5,495 Triumph 3HWs supplied on contract C13948 between 03/04/1942 and June 1943 with frame numbers TL30923-TL36417, and allocated census numbers 886687-890052 & 4852001-4854129.

There is no mention of any engine numbers beginning with 40- H2, So you have a wartime military frame with a mystery engine.

[speedex47]

if the bike had a 3HW engine would bike have been census number 887663, i ask as on the inside of rocker box and elsewhere is a number stamped 663 ?

[speedex47]

if the bike had a 3HW engine would bike have been census number 887663, i ask as on the inside of rocker box and elsewhere is a number stamped 663 ?

[79x100]

Unfortunately it is impossible to calculate the WD serial to frame number correlation for contract C13948.

 

A total of 5495 machines were delivered with 2129 to RASC and 3366 to RAOC. At this stage, RASC and RAOC still had separate numbering systems. The block C886687 - 890052 are RASC and 4852001 - 4854129 are RAOC. There is no surviving record though of which corps took which frame numbers and they are unlikely to have been delivered consecutively. There may have been blocks of numbers reserved for each or it may have been random.

 

I believe that the VMCC have Triumph factory records for the 3HWs and if they record depot destinations then it may just be possible to reconstruct the sequence...but it will mean noting down and analysing 5495 hand-written entries.

 

In general, identical numbers stamped inside cases are factory shop numbers intended to ensure that castings which had been milled or bored together ended up fitted to the same engine. At the engine assembly stage, it would not have been known what WD serial number would eventually be allocated.