1983 - 1986 Issued License Plates
This issue was green on white and represents the first time the entire run of plates was made in the Bahamas. This was also the first time reflective license plates were issued in the islands. Nassau, Grand Bahama, and a limited run on some of the other islands received their plates on the newly introduced male-female die press. The remainder of the Out Islands received their plates on the older male-only die press. Keeping with tradition, there were numerous varieties issued in this year.
One thing to note on these varieties is that they can be found in combinations. For example, a plate made on thin stock, reflective, male-only dies, and no sealent.
Stock
Two types of blanks were used, thin and thick.
- Thin Stock
Thin metal, square corners, and most plates have pre-punched bolt holes. - Thick Stock
Thicker blanks with rounded corners.
Reflective Background
Reflective Background, Missing Sealant
The plating process consisted of applying the reflective paint to the plate, embossing and lettering the plate, then sealing the plate with a clear sealant. However, not all plates received the sealant. When Bob Bittner visited the islands in 1983, he noticed three drums of sealant and two were heavily rusted due to the corrosive nature of salt air. Sure enough, when he came back through later that year, two of the drums had rusted through and leaked empty. Therefore, not all plates that received the reflective coating could be sealed. These plates quickly deteriorated down to bare metal. This accompanying photo shows the typical condition of a used plate without sealant. The left hand side of the plate is bare metal. If you were to rub your fingers over the right hand side of the plate it would feel chalky, which is the remains of the reflective coating.
Non-Reflective Background
These plates were spray painted with a plain white background.
Flats
Flats are rare for this series, but do exist. Chub Cay, which only issued plates in the 1983 series, exclusively had flat plates matching the style above. Higher number Acklins plates also are commonly found flat.
Hand Painted Embossed
Some embossed plates were not roller panted, but rather hand painted, leading to a much cleaner lettering. The Acklins plate above is hand painted, and also had a lighter olive-green paint. Plates using this shade of green are not common.
Other Minor Varieties
 Square "T" |
 Non-centred serials |
Validation Stickers
Like the 1978 issue, some plates had front and back validation stickers issued in 1984, however I have only seen rear validation stickers in 1985 and 1986
Here are some examples of plates that were issued both front and rear validation stickers:
