I enjoyed the article on the Ariel VA/VB. Enclosed is a photo of a 1939 Ariel VA that I found in Princes Risborough, approximately 1990.
It was one owner and came with tax discs from May 1939 through to December 1968, but with only about 10,000 miles on the speedo.
Being complete and not messed about, it was easy to get it working and it was a nice bike to ride.
The DVLA were much more cooperative in those days, so there was no problem getting the original number back.
I sold it on after several years to buy something else, but I spoke to the current owner a couple of years ago, so it is still around.
Draganfly were helpful with a head gasket, rings and a spindle kit for the girder forks.
Maybe the current owner could be persuaded to bring it to Founder’s Day this year as he lives nearby?
I will be going on my 1939 500 Bullet, as this year’s theme is 70 years of the Royal Enfield Bullet, and it is always nice to see machines that I used to own.
Chris Brady
Buckinghamshire
Read more Letters, Opinion, News and Features in the July 2019 issue of OBM – on sale now!
