650 Norton mercury?

triumph2

triumph2

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Aug 13, 2008
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I just picked up a 1969 registered 650 Norton with matching frame and engine numbers, SS1295**. I thought it was a 650SS but the serial numbers are a bit high and it has a single carb so I am assuming it is a Mercury. Painted black with gold pinstriping and lettering and a chromed primary cover it doesn't seem to be stock as the 650ss would be all black with a silver tank and a Mercury would be all blue with a gray tank according to my initial research. It has a tach drive but no instruments came with it. I'll post pics as soon as I get a chance. There seems to be little information on these bikes so I would appreciate any input.
 
Welcome !
We look forward to the pics.

Anything could have happened to it in the past 45 years,
so it would be foolish of us to comment before seeing it...
 
Thanks for the welcome though I am not new here or to Nortons in general having owned a few including my '73 850 which I have owned since 1978. I tend to lurk more than post and only comment when I have something to add which might be worthwhile though with the knowledge base here that is rare.
 
Here are some pics. Not the best as I was planning on taking the bike out of the garage when it started to snow again. You can see the flakes all over the bike!! BRRRR
650 Norton mercury?

650 Norton mercury?

650 Norton mercury?

650 Norton mercury?

650 Norton mercury?

650 Norton mercury?

650 Norton mercury?
 
Exhausts with S T Y L E :? :wink:

650 Norton mercury?


could flog those mufflers to the H. D. chopper mob , for millions . :)
Looks like a good honest machine . :)
 
The instruments are missing and I have no idea what they would have been but likely standard Smith's stuff for '69. There is a tach drive so it probably came with the optional tach. The ownership shows that the bike was only on the road until 1975 and has sat since. Was the chromed primary cover and chain guard optional ? In general the bike looks to be relatively unmolested though the black paint and pinstriping is obviously a later addition.
 
It would, I think, come with 3 inch diameter Smith’s clocks, the Smith’s chronometric would be an optional extra ..Note; not the 3.5 inch gauges from India which are NOT chronometric no matter what they appear to claim :!:
 
If someone claimed that no Mercuries ever left the factory with some Atlas chrome tinware, I'd have to ask why not.

Put yourself in the maker's shoes, trying to get bikes out through the factory gate.
 
triumph2 said:
The instruments are missing and I have no idea what they would have been but likely standard Smith's stuff for '69.
Click to expand...

According to the Smiths list, the Mercury speedo was type SSM 3001/00.
Edit: (optional?) Tachometer: RSM 3003/00
 
Nice looking bike that seems to be all there, a great project to be had, whats your plans with it, complete rebuild I hope.

A good find and I am sure you will have some fun with it.

Ashley
 
Thanks for all of the info. The bike came as a lot with spare Norton wheels frames motors etc. mostly Commando, along with what has turned out to be an unmolested '74 Roadster with 24,000 miles on the clock. I'll probably sell the 850 to fund the restoration on the Mercury.
 
I have a 1968 650 ss that according to the record keepers was sold as a Mercury. According to the original owner, he purchased it new in Ontario as a twin Carb SS in SS colours. He claims the Dealer ordered it made up that way and Norton complied. There are not many differences between the Mercury and the SS, mainly the twin carbs and colours. Internally the engines and transmissions are the same.

Glen
 
That's interesting Glenn. This bike is in Ontario and I wouldn't be surprised if it was original. It is a 650SS in all but the single carb. I'd be interested in knowing the serial number of that bike or at least if it is close to mine which is 18SS/129551
 
All of the Mercurys were in a single run, just after the last Ranger 750 (P11/129145). These bikes were built mid-October to early December. Every Mercury produced would have a number from 18SS/129146 to 18SS/129896.
 
Were they built in a single run though, or a batch of numbers reserved for Mercuries so the numbers APPEAR sequentially.

Even back into the 1930s, Nortons reserved batches of numbers for some models,
so the numbers appear sequential.
When you look closely, the next number(s) in the sequence could be weeks or even months later.

There is a difference,
and the build date(s) come into it...
 
Interesting! only 12 numbers apart. Most likey that Harry Firth in Toronto was the importer and it wouldn't surprise me that he would order a batch to these specs. He was quite a character and it is said he made a deal back in the fifties with the president of Hepolite for special pricing and sealed it with a handshake only and the deal stood until he died.
 
Rohan said:
Were they built in a single run though, or a batch of numbers reserved for Mercuries so the numbers APPEAR sequentially.

Even back into the 1930s, Nortons reserved batches of numbers for some models,
so the numbers appear sequential.
When you look closely, the next number(s) in the sequence could be weeks or even months later.

There is a difference,
and the build date(s) come into it...
Click to expand...

I believe they were all built in a single run, as Manganese Bronze was planning to close Plumstead. There are a few other bikes in that number range. 129799 is reportedly a Commando, and a few Atlases were built, probably to fill an outstanding Police order.

I wouldn't be surprised if all the Mercury machines were built between mid-October and early December, then sat until ordered, even if it meant 6 months or a year.

Rangers were built mid September to mid October. P11/128646 was dispatched on Sept 15, 1968 and P11/129145 was dispatched on Oct 17, 1968.
 
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