VIN # and Year Identification

[Dave Pickett]

Has anyone created at Serial #VIN Directory?
Same with Engine numbers.  I found one for Husqvarna that is very cool, and a similar page listing like this for Pentons would be great. See //WWW.huskyclub.com/model.htm for a sample. Would assist is identification and model year.

Dave Pickett

[Blue_Dog]

David:
Just click on Search and type "What Year"
and that post will answer your questions.
B_D

 

[Bob]

What Year Is It?
The following is a listing of Penton motorcycles by year and what to look for:

The Steel Tank Bike Era

1968 – (Starting Serial no. V001) non-high breather frame with cast aluminum mid frame air box – short seat – 35mm Cerianni forks (30" from top to bottom) with long rubber accordion boots – 4 bolt  rear sprocket carrier (part of hub assy.) – long steel chain guard (20" across the top) – curved style center stands – Sachs motor with cast iron cylinder with butch cut heads. Come with Magura ISDT style controls.

1969 – (serial no. V1360) same as 1968 except – short aluminum or steel chain guard (11" across the top) – high breather frame – skid plate welded on bottom of frame – round air box.

1970 – (serial no. V2117) same as 1970 except – most came with longer seat (20" long) – 35mm Cerianni front forks came with short rubber boots – straight style center stand – a 7" frame extension was added on the bottom left side of frame to hold a down style exhaust pipe – gas tanks have holes  for tank bags – Sachs motors came with radial aluminum heads.

1971 – (serial no. V4578) identical to 1970 except for triangular shaped gussets on rear motor mounts to back of frame tubes.

NOTE: Serial numbers shown for the 1968 thru 1971 "steel tank" bikes are for reference only. Your bike could have a lower serial number for any given year.

The Chromemolly Frame Era

1972 – Sachs 100 & 125s and first year for the KTM 175. Cerianni 32mm front forks. Chromemolly frame with round tube for backbone under gas tank. 175 has a black KTM motor with flat side cases. Exhaust pipes have a metal heat shield. Fiberglas air boxes and gas tanks are painted Red for 100, Green for 125 and Blue for 175. Small White "Penton" decals on upper front part of gas tank with name of bike and two White stripes under it. Air boxes come equipped with a triangular shaped aluminum cover that also forms an oval number plate. All bikes come with alloy front and rear fenders and the straight rear hubs with sprocket carriers. Come with Magura smooth style levers and metal "quick release" throttles. Gas tanks held in place by leather tank strap.

1973 – First year for the KTM 250 motors and all frames equipped with high breather tube under gas tank. 100s, 125s, & 175s equipped with 32mm Cerianni front forks, 250s with 35mm Cerianni. All bikes come with plastic front and rear fenders. 250s come with small "Penton" decals on the upper front part of Gold painted gas tanks and conical rear hubs.

1974 – All bikes come with 35mm Cerianni front forks and thicker seats with more foam. First year for the 400 KTM motor. All KTM motors are painted Silver and come with a rounded profile clutch case cover. All frames for KTM motors come with flattened rear frame member to allow positioning the rear shocks in a 45 degree (laid back) position. Gas tanks have the long Penton stripe decals. The heat shield for the exhaust pipe is a fiberglass number plate that comes up and over the pipe. The rear fenders are fastened to the frame (rear loop) with a "U" bracket in the center. Rims are high shouldered Akronts. Frames with KTM motors come with conical rear hubs. Magura "Power" levers are used.

1975 – 250s come with Red painted tanks & air boxes. Gas tanks are a low profile design but appear larger in size on the sides and are held down by two spring tensioned cables.

1976 – Last year for Sachs powered 100 & 125s. First year for the KTM 125 motor and MC5 series frame. Rear frame loop behind seat is eliminated, rear fender comes bolted to the rear seat. Air boxes are aluminum and color for all bikes is Orange. Rear shocks are mounted at 45 degree position. Front  forks are leading axle Cerianni or Marzocchi. GS (enduro) models use same frame style as 74 & 75 but gas tanks have a "Penton" decal and Black & White "L" shaped stripe decal running from front of tank to about halfway then angling up to the top. KTM powered bikes come with Marzocchi gas charged  rear shocks, and low shoulder alloy Sun rims.

1977 – New frame design for GS-6 series is a wide high breather backbone with aluminum air box and 45 degree mounted Marzocchi gas shocks. All bikes come with leading axle 35mm Marzocchi front forks. GS series use same gas tank design and lettering as the 1976 but use a leather strap to hold it down. MC series gas tanks have a large "PENTON" decal surrounded by a "C" shaped Black 7 White stripe. All bikes are equipped with a longer designed plastic front fender.

NOTE: All 1972 thru 1977 Penton motorcycles have an 8 digit serial number stamped on the steering head of the frame. The actual serial number is the last 5 digits. The 3 digits preceding the 5 digits is the date code. The first digit indicates the year, the second two digits indicate the month. For example, a serial number of 30161040 would be January of 1973. Some bikes have an extra two digits of "54" stamped on them. An example of 54 41078651 would indicate an October of 1974 date.

To determine the year of a KTM motor, you need to find the serial number. For this, look for the number stamped on the engine case, just below the bottom cooling fin of the cylinder, on the ignition side of the motor. The serial number is coded with the first number determining the year and the next two determining what size the motor is. If the first number is a "3" then the year is 1973, a "4" would be 1974, and so forth. The following is a list of motor sizes: 51=125cc, 52=175cc, 54=250cc, 55=400cc. Thus a motor number beginning with 654 would indicate that it is a 1976 250cc.

All KTM motors also have date stamps as part of their castings. They have small clocks with an arrow in the center pointing to one of the numbers from 1 thru 12. The numbers indicate the months of the year with the arrow pointing to the month of manufacture. Under the arrow is a two digit number indicating the year. The motor cases also have cast-in part numbers. These again follow the codes for motor size by observing the first two digits (e.g. 52 indicates 175cc).

[rd400pi]

POGers,
  Although the standard description post we refer to for ID'ing a bike is good, it doesn't always seem to work or make sense.  A perfect example is the MC5 I just picked up on Friday.  The serial number on the right side of the frame next to the steering head is: 550 02531.  Those are the only numbers there.  The engine # is 6-5410955.  I figure that this is a 1976 MC5 250cc due to the engine #. The orange tank has the thick horizontal stripe front to back (not the "C" shape).  The I have is why doesn't the frame # fit the conventional wisdom of first 3 numbers meaning yr/month? Any help out there?

 

[flattracker23]

I just bought a Penton today. It has a frame number 54 31270033. So is it a 1973 or a 1974?

Spencer Gaydon
Lubbock, TX

[Dave Pickett]

quote:
David:
Just click on Search and type "What Year"
and that post will answer your questions.
B_D

 

Dave Pickett

[rd400pi]

Spencer,
  This might help.  I purchased a 73 Six Day (advertised as a 73) a few months ago with frame #21159845.  Folks are maybe used to thinking that new bikes/cars come out in the fall and therefore this would be an early 73 model?  No, it's not.  It is in fact a 72 (Nov) because of all the little details.  Pipe, fenders, chainguard, swingarm/kickstand.  Maybe the December bikes need to be identified the same way, by little details, not necessarily the 312.  I know it was a long answer but, it seems for every question I get answered, I end up with two more questions.  Good Luck.

   Mike Husted (rd400pi)

 

[Mick Milakovic]

This site on our Yahoo group will help identify some, but not all of the questions:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PentonRestorationandTechGroup/files/Identifying%20Your%20Penton/

Mick Milakovic
Delphi, IN
765-268-2570

[Larry Perkins]

Okay, here are some things to remember.  The dated serial numbers which apply to 72, 73, 74, 75, and many 76 models are the date manufactured not necessarily the year.  In August KTM went and I think still does go on break, which is European for vacation.  The next year model begins production, or at least did back then, in September.  A good rule of thumb is if it is 9, 10, 11, or 12 in the month position it is the next year model which in Spencer's example makes his a 74 bike.  That is my spin on this serial number deal.  Unfortunately like all things there may be some exceptions.

Now I have a couple of questions on serial numbers that I have what I think is an answer on but I will pick some brains from the past to see if I am right or have been told right.  

Number one I have a 1973 motor that carries serial number R34.  

I also have a non hi-breather KTM frame with no serial number.  The number has not been removed it just does not have one.  

I won't give what I think the answers are until I get some other opinions from other old knowledgeable ones.  What do you think men?

 

[Dave Pickett]

On the R36 engine and frame w/o numbers, did the frame have "Timkin" bearings in it? I have a R46 motor and a frame without numbers. I am curious also about this. The frame I have has "73 isdt" stickers and FIM paint markings. The mystery continues......

Dave Pickett

[jj]

I recently picked up a '76 MC-5 with a frame serial number of 550 03567 and motor serial of 6 5412031. This should raise the '76 serial number record by another 31 bikes.

John J Slivka