72 Norton Custom, cl, woooster ma, $5900

[chuck peterson]

Now this would go into my very collectible pile

It’s imaginary, so cost doesn’t count

Of the age, well done, choppers-ish, hand built, so wrong its great, straight out of a gang movie, not to be replicated, tom skerritt would approve, definitely a nod from Easy Rider

https://worcester.craigslist.org/mcy/d/upton-1972-norton-commando-custom/7158054045.html

[PeteS]

Nice finish but no brakes. Don't kid yourself, dragging your feet would work better than a Commando rear drum.

Pete

[JJ]

This Norton on BAT (Bring-A-Trailer) was very tasty, IMHO...and was recently *SOLD* a high price!!

[Tusayan]

Don't kid yourself, dragging your feet would work better than a Commando rear drum.

Sonny Angel once explained to me that the Norton rear drum was introduced in something like 1928 and didn’t need to be updated according to Norton management circa early 1970s (before they introduced the rear disk).  This was with a wry grin in the way only he could do it.  I sure miss him.

[PeteS]

Sonny Angel once explained to me that the Norton rear drum was introduced in something like 1928 and didn’t need to be updated accordingly to Norton management circa early 1970s.  This was with a wry grin in the way only he could do it.  I sure miss him.

I have a '71 Commando which has the quick disconnect wheel. The brake was useless and I eventually installed a rear wheel from a '75 with a disk but before that I rode a '68 Commando with a bolt on wheel and that brake actually worked.

In many ways the Commando was a disappointment to me. I bought mine wih its racing heritage in mind. The Norton girls didn't hurt either but coming off a Yamaha 350 two stroke neither the handling nor the brakes were anyway near the Yamaha and the Japanese had another 15 years to learn how to do suspension. I still love the Nort though. Thankfully the Guzzi came along to do what the Norton can't.

Pete

[acguzzi]

it also looks like it has negative trail 

[Bert Remington]

Tusayan -- I bought my Commando from Sonny Angel.  Yes a memorable rider and personality.  Do you remember the poster of the athletic young lady in the service area?  I've never forgotten.

When I sold my Commando, the buyer asked if there was anything that needed to be done.  I said Yes, drive around looking for bags of gold.  The Commando was tremendous fun but for me the end came when I discovered the cause of the incurable primary case leak was the depth of the O-ring groove deepened around the curved ends.  I was riding a Honda 750 within a month.

[blackcat]

The Commando was tremendous fun but for me the end came when I discovered the cause of the incurable primary case leak was the depth of the O-ring groove deepened around the curved ends. 

I haven't heard that one about the groove depth.  Mine just leaks from the connection between the primary and the transmission shaft.  I've replaced the felt seal with a conventional seal but it is still leaking and I need to take the whole thing apart again and take a look.

When I recently put mine back together, I installed new brake shoes front and rear and it stops within reason. Certainly better than with the shoes I had on there in the past. Some insist that the brake stiffening plate for the front drum helps quite a bit so I may do that at some point in time.

[Bert Remington]

blackcat -- I spent years adding primary oil and wiping the rear wheel clear (kept the chrome in perfect condition).  I tried all kinds of sealants and nothing worked.  One day I had the primary cover off to clean the groove and try a new sealant.  As I was running my finger around the groove, I noticed it deepened at the front and rear curves so the O-ring didn't press against the cover.  Yeah young and dumb didn't notice it earlier.  I placed my first advertisement ever in the SD Union the next day and sold it that weekend.

The brakes needed constant attention and adjustment to get acceptable performance.  As I remember, I spent every other weekend on them.  They were good enough for my riding skills.

[blackcat]

The leak on my 68 is definitely coming from the back of the primary as I can see the trail of oil. 

Honestly, I don't ride mine that far and almost never on the freeway so I'm OK with the brakes.  The oil leak drives me crazy and there was a guy in California that addressed this problem with the seal but he went out of business so I tried what he did but clearly did something wrong.

The later bikes seem to have a lot of these problems addressed but I still like my bike and I don't see myself owning multiple Commando's.....unless it was a production racer.