Finally a Norton

[2WheelsUp]

In my quest to have every bike I've owned in my garage... and ridable (thankfully it's a short list), I've been looking for a Norton... ideally a Fastback. Fastbacks are hard to find so I ended up (settled) buying a 75 Mk3, should be delivered in a few weeks.  All things considered for a Norton, its a rider's bike. Space is precious in my garage and I won't have anything in there that I can't/don't ride so a Mk3 is probably a better choice over a kick start bike with a drum front brake. The plan is a compete restoration however I've had my head into AccessNorton lately and I'm finding there are a lot of things to correct on these bikes. More than I remember from my youth ripping around the Northern Illinois cornfields on my '71 Norton... no helmet... cheap sunglasses... bar hopping... sometimes with a girl I barely knew. I'm sure it'll all be worth it but I'm realizing something I really knew all along... Moto Guzzis work.. they are very well made proven drivetrains, good electrics, brakes, handling... relatively speaking for that era. So I have my work cut out for me, won't be posting here obviously but hopefully folks on the AccessNorton forum will take me in. God help me.

[Kiwi_Roy]

Why not post here? there are many Guzzi owners who also appreciate an old Brit bike.

[2WheelsUp]

I agree and I'll certainly update major progress here, but a deep dive on a restoration is probably best posted on AccessNorton. They have a restoration forum as we do here that I've been looking at.. should find what I need there.. which is a lot.

[moto-uno]

  Need or Want ?  .  Peter

[huub]

i would call a norton a mechanics bike , and a guzzi a riders bike.
I still have my norton commando in the back of my shed ,
my first proper bike i bought in  1980.

but feel free to post your restoration , it might motivate me to dig out the commando.

[Scout63]

Congratulations on the purchase. AccessNorton is a great forum and helped me through a full restoration of my 72 Combat Interstate, which was also my first engine rebuild and first Brit bike.





The Norton has been very reliable once sorted and is a blast to ride. It’s not hard to kick when set up right, and you have the E-start.  I hope you love it.

[Dave Swanson]

I'll be following on AN. 

A well sorted Commando is a fine machine.  I am the 2nd owner of mine.

[cliffrod]

Very cool.    Those are held in very high esteem at our little shop.   I’m not on many forums but sure would like to watch the build… (hint, hint)

[blackcat]

Good luck with your project. In terms of a Fastback, you can always change yours to one if that is what you want but the only difficult part would be getting a metal gas tank. I bought an aluminum tank from an Indian company and it’s a pretty good match though it has a minor weep which I need to have my welder fix before getting it painted. When it comes to parts I order directly from Andover Norton as that is where the American suppliers get most of their parts and even with shipping it is cheaper to order from England.



This was my second restoration of the bike, only this time I went with Amal Premier carbs, it starts in a few kicks and the plugs are always good compared to the old carbs.  I also ditched the Boyer for a Pazon ignition as I got tired of the occasional kick backs with the Boyer and the Pazon is more forgiving in terms of battery levels.

[2WheelsUp]

I'll be following on AN.  A well sorted Commando is a fine machine.  I am the 2nd owner of mine.

Very nice bike!  Dave you keep pulling these beauties out ... how many bikes do you have?

In terms of a Fastback, you can always change yours to one if that is what you want but the only difficult part would be getting a metal gas tank. I bought an aluminum tank from an Indian company and it’s a pretty good match though it has a minor weep which I need to have my welder fix before getting it painted.

Yeah a Fastback conversion would be nice. I found Andover Norton has a complete tail piece including fender, license plate, and bracket. I found a UK source for an aluminum FB tank and a US source for a fiberglass version which they claim is resilient against ethanol.  Haven't found a seat yet. I see the Indian stuff on eBay... mixed reviews... great you found one that you can make work, may ping you about that sometime. I may end up leaving it as a Roadster, probably the smart thing to do, probably the best value for a Mk3. My bike has points so I'll be moving to a Pazon electronic ignition, not sure whether I need to upgrade other electronics until I get into it.

My bike has 13K miles, bought from the second owner since 1990, and he did a partial restoration, including the top end/pistons/rings, done in 2006 by Frank Holmes (Franks Britt Bike Barn in NH) but the PO doesn't have records and doesn't remember what all was done, and Frank has retired. I did find a phone number for Frank, so perhaps he'll have some records. The picture below shows my bike right after the work was done in 2006... looked pretty good... however shortly after the resto it sat unattended in a garage (suspect uncovered, what a shame) until now as shown in the other pictures. I don't know how severe things are until I get it here or what was done internally so I'll most likely be pulling it all apart and starting over, which is fine, it was factored into the price. The bike starts but I don't really want to run it until I look inside the cylinders and sort out what, if any, damage happened during it's long sleep. My understanding is that the camshafts on the Mk3 (maybe earlier versions as well) are a weak point as well as the layshaft bearings, and wet sumping issues can be solved with a Jim Comstock valve. I need to find a engine builder I can trust... sort of the Charlie Mullendore of Nortons (I already asked Charlie, not interested). There is a guy down here, Beno Rodi, who has a long background in British bikes and racing that I'll talk to but if anyone can recommend someone please let me know, doesn't have to be local.

In any event, I'll post back here when I have something significant and maybe message some you Norton guys for advice.

[Dave Swanson]

It's sad that it was left to rot, but good for you if it resulted in a fair price.

Fastbacks are cool and all, but if you want your kids to be able to have an easy sale on BAT I would leave it as is.  The MKII used to be the hot ticket, but it seems that the MK3s are the ones getting the big money nowadays.  I can only attribute the shift from the MK2 to the MK3 due to the aging of the buyers in the classic Norton market.   Although my MK2A is one of the easiest to kick start bikes I own I can see how kick only starts weeding out potential buyers.

My bike has a Boyer MK3 and it has been flawless, but Pazon certainly has lots of positive reviews.  I wouldn't be put off by the Tri Spark either

Other than the Boyer ignition, the only whiz bang, non standard item on my bike is a Colorado Norton Works LED tail light.  They are a great safety upgrade. 

[Huzo]

Why not post here? there are many Guzzi owners who also appreciate an old Brit bike.

Ab-so-bloody-lut-ley…
I never owned or sought one back in the mid seventies, all my bikes were Suzuki 2 stroke triples, but your Norton reminds me of romantic and heady days.
Nortons for me, we’re always “lean, lithe and pretty” against their contemporaries, that shuddering, shaking under you with a relentless pull that wouldn’t quit….Somewhat of a metaphor, for a young guy….
Also those ever beautiful reverse cone mufflers that whistle hauntingly.

Those and Conti equipped Ducati SS 750’s or 900’s…….Horn.

Back then I had so much less, yet infinitely more….Somehow….

[blackcat]

I agree with Dave, I wouldn't convert the bike to a FB as you'll spend a lot of money and have some headaches along the way, I'd spend money on the basics to get it going. I don't know much of anything about the stock electric starters but was told by a friend that a starter from a Sportster is a good swap and produces flawless starts on his Norton.   Pulling the heads and barrels off of those bikes is not that difficult and you don't have to pull the engine, though the cam is a different story.  The guys on Access have a lot of knowledge, I'd consult that list. And a brand new wiring harness from Andover is probably not expensive if you discover the current harness is chopped up in any way. Looks like an easy project, clean it up and give it a start after looking inside.

[2WheelsUp]

I never owned or sought one back in the mid seventies, all my bikes were Suzuki 2 stroke triples, but your Norton reminds me of romantic and heady days.
Nortons for me, we’re always “lean, lithe and pretty” against their contemporaries, that shuddering, shaking under you with a relentless pull that wouldn’t quit….Somewhat of a metaphor, for a young guy….
Also those ever beautiful reverse cone mufflers that whistle hauntingly.

Those and Conti equipped Ducati SS 750’s or 900’s…….Horn.

Back then I had so much less, yet infinitely more….Somehow….

So this is my 71 Norton ... circa 1975 in Dekalb IL.

Yes... a Norton chopper, and I wasn't the only one, many triumph choppers as well. What were we smok'in?

[berniebee]

I'll be following on AN. 

A well sorted Commando is a fine machine.  I am the 2nd owner of mine.

Be still my beating heart. That's a lovely bike!

[radguzzi]

Three years ago I changed this '73 850 Roaster into an Interstate for local fellow. 

Tank and side covers, both from India, they needed some work to fit properly however, not too bad really.

Rob

[PeteS]

My ‘71 Fastback owned since new. Very little original is left. Seat, tank, tailpiece, sidecovers, tach, triple clamps. Thats about  it.





Pete

[2WheelsUp]

My ‘71 Fastback owned since new. Very little original is left. Seat, tank, tailpiece, sidecovers, tach, triple clamps. Thats about  it.





Pete

Beautiful bike, hard to find. Rare to find one in the hands of the original owner... Cheers!

[Scout63]

A 75 electric start roadster is as marketable as Commandos get.  I’d keep it stock, or at max swap out to a different tank/seat/sidecover setup and keep the stock parts. That’s also a very nice example you have.  AccessNorton is a wonderful forum but please keep us posted here.

As usual, some of the members here have some beautiful Nortons. It may be time for some Guzzi v (insert brand) threads.

[Dave Swanson]

 It may be time for some Guzzi v (insert brand) threads.

Something along the lines of "The Battle of the 850s".   

[Tkelly]

Sprinter v marathoner.

[blackcat]

This is one of the bikes my friend Kenny built from NYC Norton. Kenny does great work and if I had lots of cash and wanted to have a Norton built, he is the guy I'd talk to about doing the work. The workmanship is quite good.



The gallery has some great photo's of the bikes:

https://nycnorton.com

[Huzo]

This is one of the bikes my friend Kenny built from NYC Norton. Kenny does great work and if I had lots of cash and wanted to have a Norton built, he is the guy I'd talk to about doing the work. The workmanship is quite good.



The gallery has some great photo's of the bikes:

https://nycnorton.com

What a beautiful touch with the green frame against alloy.
Styling wise, it’s pretty hard to pick anything…. Maybe a touch higher tank…?

[2WheelsUp]

This is one of the bikes my friend Kenny built from NYC Norton. Kenny does great work and if I had lots of cash and wanted to have a Norton built, he is the guy I'd talk to about doing the work. The workmanship is quite good.



The gallery has some great photo's of the bikes:

https://nycnorton.com

Killer bike! One of my old riding buddies is having a Norton built by Matt at CNW, allegedly the last full restoration CNW is doing. The numbers are insane, you have to really love Nortons to justify it... and I guess a lot of people do because it's tough to get into one of his his build cycles, suspect NYC is the same.

[2WheelsUp]

A 75 electric start roadster is as marketable as Commandos get.  I’d keep it stock, or at max swap out to a different tank/seat/sidecover setup and keep the stock parts. That’s also a very nice example you have.

That's what I'm seeing and one of the key reasons I went for a '75 roadster. My current plan is to restore it the best I can to stock and as you said, making sensible upgrades to fix the common problems, and perhaps I will stumble across FB parts that can be used to change the body into a FB tribute.

[blackcat]

I think Kenny stays busy all year long with his projects and he also races his Seeley framed bikes. He will likely be at Barber’s this year as most years.

[2WheelsUp]

He will likely be at Barber’s this year as most years.

Good to know, I will be there as well.

[Dave Swanson]

I always turned my nose halfway up to the MK3 electric start Commandos.  Now I want one.   

[Scout63]

I always turned my nose halfway up to the MK3 electric start Commandos.  Now I want one.   

I’m still where you were before Dave. The look is there with the 75 but the air box is more complicated, pipes not the same, higher weight, left side shift and black dash. My tastes run towards the P11, high pipe SS and front drum.  When my leg won’t work I think I’ll come around.

[Dave Swanson]

I’m still where you were before Dave. The look is there with the 75 but the air box is more complicated, pipes not the same, higher weight, left side shift and black dash. My tastes run towards the P11, high pipe SS and front drum.  When my leg won’t work I think I’ll come around.

I'm almost 2 years post my hip replacement and am back to kicking bikes just fine, so maybe I can continue to avoid having an electric start Norton.  A Commando needs to shift on the "right" side!