Number plates

[Mike101]

While in wet France last week i was thinking over the loss of my wallet containing my driving licence and all my cards.

What i realised was that if i needed help i was in a jam bacasue i could not pay for a thing and if the plod pulled me i had no licence..nor could i pay any fine.

So i started to think about what else coud be an issue and one thing junmped to my mind...my numebr plate.

Imagine being in deepest darkest europe and your number plate falling off or getting broken. You are not getting a UK replacement anywhere nearby.

Driving without a numebr plate would attract attention i'm sure.

So when i can i will be getting a metal numebr plate. This will hopefully stop any unwanted breakages.

I've not seen any ABR bikes with them other than Phil's in France.

What say you all.

Mike

[Maljones]

Really good point you've got there and something I've never thought about but definitely worth considering a metal plate which can be bent back into shape if need be.

Mal.

[Paul-S]

Mike

You've got far too much thinking time on your hand

Great point - thanks for this, I had not thought about that either

[The Wilbur]

I rode to work and back through Edinburgh with my number plate covered with a poster for a Photo Quest:-

102_1154.JPG (134.34 KiB) Viewed 1549 times

no one payed any attention :whistle:

[bowber]

I'm not sure you'll manage to get one to be honest, all the number plate suppliers have to use approved parts and I've not seen any parts suppliers with metal boards.

There are 2 ways of doing the plates.
1 prints onto a reflective blank in reverse and then it's applied onto a pre glued clear acrylic plate, these are the ones that have the reflective behind the plate.

The other reverse prints onto a clear blank and then it's applied to the front of a pre glued reflective blank.

The second would work on an Aluminium blank with reflective on but I've not seen any Alu blanks in my suppliers catalogues.

I'm not a regular supplier though so I've not bothered to investigate it too much as I just order mine from the local Autoparts store using my DVLA supplier reg number & it comes with my details on and I don't need to bother having the equipment.

Try going to a few auto jumbles and asking the traveling plate makers that usually attend them.

Steve

[bowber]

I stand corrected, Tennents now supply metal blanks.

Steve

[P4ulie]

The things you think about riding alone :whistle:

Im not sure metal plates are even uk road legal on recent bikes

Has anyone ever actually lost/ broken their plate without doing extreme trails?

Plate is only as good as its mounting point, I would have thought a metal plate would be more prone to bolt fatigue. Ive lost a bolt before, temp fixed by a cable tie. If your plates gone its gone

[CRAIGREVO]

You can get them for about £13 on ebay but they are just as illegal as having a small plate get the wrong copper on the wrong day and he will have your pants down.

A metal plate wont stop the plate falling off. If you are abroad you could always pop into a sign writers and they can make you a temporary plate out off vinyl decals, or you could just make one out off cardboard.

[steve172]

I was once rear ended by a car on a roundabout on my 125. Plate came off but didn't break.

If you can't source a metal plate, or if not legal, then could always shove a spare in a pannier with a set of fixings? Wouldn't take up much space at all.

[Mike101]

If i lost my mounting i would cable tie it to my panneir or anywhere on the back of the bike.

Many years ago i dropped my old honda wetdream and the plate broke...so i got a new one...the following weekend while at a rally some drunken arse fell into my bike and broke my new plate....they stick out and are soo easy to brake.

Mike