I just got a call from a fellow who is as confused as I am. He has an Indian. Tha motor number is GDA12345 we'll say. Does the GDA stand for 741 and is that a 30:50, 500cc motor? How do you know what year it is? I know my Chief Stuff but that's it. HELP.
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Originally posted by John Guntner View PostI just got a call from a fellow who is as confused as I am. He has an Indian. Tha motor number is GDA12345 we'll say. Does the GDA stand for 741 and is that a 30:50, 500cc motor? How do you know what year it is? I know my Chief Stuff but that's it. HELP.
GDA always meant 30.50 to me, because so many were "civilianized", but they started under military production. ... for 1941 ... (I think)
... but I never knew of a production 45" 741.
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Hi,
The '41' of 741 would typically mean 1941. Military bikes have a different numbering system than civilian bikes. 741s might have actually been in the design phase prior to 1941. Production likely started in earnest in 1941 and the early 741s were probably made in calendar year 1941. This does not mean that all 741s were built in 1941. 741s were also likely built in calendar years 1942, 1943, 1944, and 1945. Even though some of the bikes were built in later years, they all bore the 741 designation 'GDA'. In general, civilian bikes bore serial numbers that reflected their calendar year of manufacture. The highest 741 serial number I know of is GDA38037. It is possible that production went over 40,000 but I don't have evidence of this. There seems to be a higher survival rate of machines numbered over 32,000. This could be because these bikes stayed stateside and were not shipped overseas to be destroyed in WWII.
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