Lost in shed!

[lonegull]

Somewhere in Britain lies my old Model 30, also known as 253 FKL. Despite a heartfelt plea to the DVLA its whereabouts remain cloaked in mystery. It has been painted blue from the black it was in my time and may have had the extra long crankshaft that used to stick out of the primary drive cover and threaten my ankles replaced, but where is it now?

[iansoady]

Not shown as being insured according to ASKMID.

[SPRIDDLER]

Not insured because it's on SORN........(Probably languishing in a shed, as Steve assumes).

The DVLA holds the following vehicle details for 253 FKL:

Date of Liability 01 09 2013
Date of First Registration 09 04 1959
Year of Manufacture 1959
Cylinder Capacity (cc) 600cc
CO2 Emissions Not Available
Fuel Type PETROL
Export Marker N
Vehicle Status SORN Due to Expire
Vehicle Colour BLUE
Vehicle Type Approval Not Available

I've heard that if you send a letter to the DVLA enclosing another letter addressed to "The owner of 253 FKL" and asking them with a suitable sob story to contact you they 'may' if you catch the civil servant in a good mood, forward it to the current owner.
May just be one of those apocryphal club night myths though.

[Rob Harknett]

The owner may not respond, I did about 25 years ago, the person referred to my bike, which I rescued the bare bones of, found the missing parts and rebuilt, as HIS bike. I got many phones calls and letters from the person asking to buy HIS bike back.
But he had no money to buy it back, I was offered everything from Grand Father clock to worthless boxes of records. He even said he DID intend to get HIS bike back eventually. This went on for about 5 years. I ended up just putting the phone down on him, but he left messages saying he has goods worth more than his bike etc. etc. etc. Needless to say, I was concerned about the safety of the bike.

[poplargreg]

[quote="
I've heard that if you send a letter to the DVLA enclosing another letter addressed to "The owner of 253 FKL" and asking them with a suitable sob story to contact you they 'may' if you catch the civil servant in a good mood, forward it to the current owner.
May just be one of those apocryphal club night myths though. [/quote]

Certainly NOT apocryphal! It worked for me (see posting on "where are they now", re PFH 933). You need to download the appropriate form from DVLA site (it's intended mainly for tracing the other driver in insurance claims), pay a small fee (£5 I think) and enclose an unsealed, stamped letter to the present owner. No need for a "sob story" - just explain that you are interested to hear from the present owner of a historic vehicle and to exchange info. regarding it.

I also mentioned I am a member of this club and that I own a similar machine now.

[poplargreg]

The owner may not respond, I did about 25 years ago, the person referred to my bike, which I rescued the bare bones of, found the missing parts and rebuilt, as HIS bike. I got many phones calls and letters from the person asking to buy HIS bike back.
But he had no money to buy it back, I was offered everything from Grand Father clock to worthless boxes of records. He even said he DID intend to get HIS bike back eventually. This went on for about 5 years. I ended up just putting the phone down on him, but he left messages saying he has goods worth more than his bike etc. etc. etc. Needless to say, I was concerned about the safety of the bike.

This REALLY annoys me! So you had a bad experience 25 years ago, bad luck. I don't suppose there are many nutters like this. You related the same story when I was looking for the owner of PFH 933. He is in fact a club member, but luckily not a forum user. If he had read the above, I very much doubt if he would have responded. As it was, he did. He sent photos - the bike a lot better than when it was 12 years old! I filled in some gaps in its history for him. That was the intention and both parties gained from the exercise.

Please don't keep relating the same story, you just spoil things for people looking for their old bikes who are not unhinged. I go throgh life being positive thinking the best of people, and am not too often disappointed.

[Rob Harknett]

Please check your statements are correct poplargeg
People are not trying to trace their bikes. They are trying to trace bikes they once owned that are now the property of someone else. Heres another fact, I do not think anyone in this club, other than the clubs dating officers, that has done more work trying to help people, discover history of a bike they own, once owned or owned by a family member. Take a look and see how many such requests I have responded to on this forum only, if you only look to find fault in a person, I guess you wont bother, but you remarked you only think of the best in a person, so look forward to your findings.

[poplargreg]

My statements were entirely correct. You are just splitting hairs. When Steve referred to "my bike", this is just an expression. I doubt he is claiming ownership
I know you continually help people tracking previously owned bikes, but you do seem to have a problem when they seek to contact present owners. I just pointed out that you nearly scuppered my innocent efforts.

[Rob Harknett]

Oh well, seems I am at fault so I'll not bother anymore with this forum if all I am doing is annoying people.
When someone who is only looking for the best in people, can only pick them up an on fault, I know I'm no saint and never will be. I will now only respond to direct contact with me.

[poplargreg]

There's no need to go off and eat worms Rob - I was not trying to offend you, more trying to have a rational discussion of what I see as quite an important topic.

This forum has a "Where are they now?" page. Those posting on it, including me don't seem to meet with much success. So I embarked on another route via the allegedly implaccable DVLA who proved very helpful. I have shared this information twice and both times this provoked a mini diatribe from you (I ignored it the first time). It seems to me to be rather inappropriate that a club official should use this particular forum to warn present owners off any contact with previous ones, thus negating the only purpose of the page!

If I posted on the "Recommendations" page something like "Not a good idea to reply to contact from members of this forum - I did once and was hassled for years", it would be removed pdq, and so it should be.

And finally (I hope) - we may refer to "my old girlfriend" or "my ex-wife", but it is not ok to say "my old bike". I really would like you to explain this anomoly. In this context "my" is a shorthand expression and does not imply actual or desired ownership.

The only way it might cause offence is if the last expression were to be confused with either of the previous two