Classic Barn Find - '74 Norton Commando
- Thread starter PhiloMcGiffin
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- Dec 18, 2004
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First see if she is actually frozen up. Put a tad of marvel mytery in there and then give her a go. I watched a fellow pour marvel over the valve train of a 6 cyl Ford Granada with most of the valves stuck in the gides. After 30 min she fired up and ran like a top. Welcome to the forum. I love the pic of you chipping her free of her ice cold tomb. I am sure she will be making warmth in her and your heart soon.
Yes, is it even stuck? If not change all the fluids, engine oil, fork oil, tranny oil, lub swing arm with 140wt oil through the grease nipple. Is it a metal gas tank? You may want to coat it with a coating like caswell regardless, and the time is now before you put new gas in.
I have a fear that the sludge in the sludge trap has time to petrify (not really) but dry out enough so that it is no longer a paste and little dry kernels can come off the dried sludge and work their way out to the big end bearings after a bike has been sitting this long. Some type of flush for sure is recommended. Your bike has very low miles though so maybe if you frequently change oil in the beginning and change filters often you will be ok. It's too cold this time of year to be in a hurry to start your bike anyway, take your time and work your way through it. Buy a good manual and do the routine maintenance work for starters.
I have a fear that the sludge in the sludge trap has time to petrify (not really) but dry out enough so that it is no longer a paste and little dry kernels can come off the dried sludge and work their way out to the big end bearings after a bike has been sitting this long. Some type of flush for sure is recommended. Your bike has very low miles though so maybe if you frequently change oil in the beginning and change filters often you will be ok. It's too cold this time of year to be in a hurry to start your bike anyway, take your time and work your way through it. Buy a good manual and do the routine maintenance work for starters.
The reason I suggest a lube is that rings can actually break tiny slim sections out easily if they are partially frozen. A southern CA friend had some of the best pix of this I've seen. You might not even notice while turning the bike over. It takes a few seconds to put in some lube, overnight soak is best actually. The other thing s to make sure the oil has not sludged while sitting, I think GP had good pictures of that on his hybrid build. Both conditions can cause a rebuild on an engine that does not need it.
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MMO is well-know for its ability to un-seize motors. I have seen it myself several times, In one case a cement mixer engine had not been run in 20 years and was seized solid. After MMO in the cylinders, two days later the engine started and ran (new plugs/wires and oil changed). This occured in the '80s and the mixer is STILL running just fine. MMO is widely used in aviation circles and used to have an MILSPEC number and was widely used in military vehicles. It may still be - I don't know. Never heard of mixing it with brake fluid.
Your bard find is about like mine was, 4200 miles and hadn't been touched in 20 years. Lots of dust and bird crap. Mine was in eastern Colorado though, very dry so hardly any deterioration. It was a pretty easy restore as far as restores go in my opinion. I only repainted the frame, swing arm, and triples. Kept the original iso's, new boots and tires, and a thorough cleaning, that's pretty much it. I see you too have the original mufflers. They are pretty quiet and kind of ruin that great Norton sound but they are original. I kept mine on but when money becomes available, I'll store those off and get some repro's that sound good.
Good luck, will be watching this one.
Good luck, will be watching this one.
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- Feb 13, 2010
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OK... Thanks for all the input... I've made my decision:
MMO mixed with a small amount of diesel... I'll leave it in for a few days... and then carefully remove, while I also change all fluids. I trust GrandPaul so no brake fluid. Pictures to follow. Your positive "karma" will help.
MMO mixed with a small amount of diesel... I'll leave it in for a few days... and then carefully remove, while I also change all fluids. I trust GrandPaul so no brake fluid. Pictures to follow. Your positive "karma" will help.
grandpaul
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I wouldn't mind using brake fluid if the purpose was to free the stuck engine for disassembly; but brake fluid is not a lubricant, so it would be a contaminant in the system if the engine was subsequently going to be run.
My 2 cents, which you now need to add $1.23 to, just to get a decent cup of coffee!
My 2 cents, which you now need to add $1.23 to, just to get a decent cup of coffee!
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- Jan 14, 2004
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Great find.
FYI, that is an original unmolested exhaust. What's unique are the mufflers with the welded mutes.
These were 74, Mark II specific and cannot be purchased anywhere that I am aware of.
They don't really have a lot of extra value as they don't flow as much as others but to the super anal types...
The other item you can't buy are original mirrors.
What do they look like?
Ride on....
FYI, that is an original unmolested exhaust. What's unique are the mufflers with the welded mutes.
These were 74, Mark II specific and cannot be purchased anywhere that I am aware of.
They don't really have a lot of extra value as they don't flow as much as others but to the super anal types...
The other item you can't buy are original mirrors.
What do they look like?
Ride on....
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- Feb 7, 2010
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Marvel Mystery oil down the plug holes and nothing else. There should be plenty of oil laying in the crankcase from sitting idle. Once you get it turning over, pull the crankcase drain plug. Most of the oil that used to be in the tank will be lying there. No real need to oil the rockers, the oil in the case will take care of the cam and as soon as you get new oil in the tank, turn it over a few hundred cycles to get oil circulating throughout the bearings and rockers before you attempt to fire it up.
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- Feb 13, 2010
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I've attached some pictures of my battery compartment... apparently the PO didn't think battery hold downs were of much value?
PS... Can you tell from the picture if the bike is wired + pos or - neg ground?
I guess Battery overflow tubes were of no value either :evil:
PS... Can you tell from the picture if the bike is wired + pos or - neg ground?
I guess Battery overflow tubes were of no value either :evil:
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- Nov 20, 2004
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PhiloMcGiffin said:
It still has its original positive earth/ground rectifier (and Zener diode presumably?) so it should be wired positive earth/ground, regardless (the images are too small to identify the battery terminals, but I think the red ground wires look as if they are on the correct [+] terminal).
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ludwig said:
It's true, but from my experience of the MkII camshaft (tossed after 11k miles), no amount of oil will prevent it wearing at an alarming rate (still not an excuse to deny it some oil though
)Anyway - what a find!!! I'm more than just a bit jealous. Underneath all the crud it actually looks pretty good.
Looking forward to seeing how it progresses
It apears that you have a positive earth (ground) electrics. As most all Britt bikes of that era do. The red wire attached to the center stud of the rectifier would bear this out. Depending on your opinion on reliability vs orginal you can replace the rectifier and the zener with a solid state replacement box.
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