How many C'Do owners bought their bike new?

Cookie,
Appreciate the offer.
Ever in Penna look me up I can ride an electraglide for the day and you can ride and critique my 72 yellow
combat for me. I'd love to get to the west coast some day.
I spent 5 weeks in Bridgeport Northern CA in 1987 w/ the Marines.
I saw some serious potential riding spots.
I spent 5 weeks at 29 palms Oct that same year.
That's a place I don't care if I ever see again.
Froze at night and sweated all day.
Wondered when the coyotees were going to come down off the plateau and eat me.
You all have some cool ridin spots out there. Maybe I'll be able to go to an INOA event someday out your way.
I could throw out an email to you and see what your schedules like? Some day hopefully.
I too was a handsome specimen w/ hair in the 70's.
A little wider and a little less on top now.
I like your yellow Goldwing color looks close to my commando.
Bike looks massive and very stylish w/o all the junk that's on em today.
Marshal
72 Combat
95 E-Glider
10R when all else fails

Always have a few running bikes and friends drop in now and again to help exercise them. It's probably better for them to have a few miles and oil themselves up. Last time I was up your way was for the giant swap meet, I want to say Hershey?, but it has been some years.
When the snow gets up to your ears you might remember we have a back room.

The picture below was taken in 2002. My brother ( in the center) and our childhood friend Charle (right) came by for a visit and we went for a long ride. The picture was taken at the end of the ride. I think each of the bikes leaks at bit more at this stage of their life.

The green roadster in the middle was sold new in Fresno in 1972 by the dealer on Mckinley Blvd. The original owner is the brother of a vendor that I deal with on a daily basis. The original owner drove the bike for a short period until he could not get it to start. He got so pissed that he left the bike in the feild behind his brohers house. It sat in that field uncovered in the weeds for 20 years. The original owners brother saw me riding the white Norton to work and told me the story of the green Norton. I bought it for 100.00.

I took the head off and sent it to the shop in San Jose that I still use and had them replace the valves and guides. the carbs were sent in as well and were resleeved. The valve stems had worn out and there was no lift on the intake valves. I filled the engine with transmission fluid and let it sit for a year. The exhuast system, fenders, headlight, and chain guard were all replaced with new pieces. The bike began life as an Interstate. I was able to trade the interstate tank for a raodster tank . There was about a years worth of elbow gease applied to the engine cases. I found a painter and had the standard green paint job done. After about a year I drained the transmission fluid, kicked the engine over , and reinstalled the head. I used the old school copper gasket at the time. I am still gratefull it does not leak. The bike fired right up and has been driven about 10,000 miles without any work to the bottom end.

I guess that makes me the second owner of the bike. The speedometer and tach still work. The bike had under 1000 miles on it when I bought it. It is much more responsive that the later bikes and still has the original points set up. Amazing that all the original stuff still works. It still amazes me that with the internet parts are generally not a problem.

Cookie - That is a beautiful 750 Commando Featherbed Hybrid. I lived in San Bruno for years and still remember the loop down Skyline , over to the coast, and back up to Pacifica. I did that ride for years. Probably a great ride on that Hybrid.

I drove a 78 GL1000 for years. I can understand why you like them enough to have a few of them. When it gets over 100 degrees here I switch over to a water cooled bike. That is usually about three months out of the year. My 78 GL1000 had over 100,000 miles when I sold it. The F6 I have now has about 20,000 miles on it. I have a hard time getting my wife on the back end of a Norton. She is happier on the back end of the Valkyrie.

Got my Commando Interstate new in 1972 when I was 21 from Coburn and Hughes, a dealer in North London. Traded in my Honda 450cc Black Bomber.( Hmm, that would be worh something now). Anyway, will never forget upon first time taking it out the showroom just how big, torquey and grunty it seemed. Wonderfull.
Mind you over the years its mechanical competency has pissed me off,and I made a couple of attempts to sell it, but equally gave a unique riding pleasure and shout out loud whoops of adrenalin scraping round the country lanes.
One will never have clean hands or fingernails but thats just the nature of the beast.

I know our memories aren't what they used to be so it would be interesting to see just how the players prices compared back then. When I bought the Norton Commando I remember looking at the Honda 750 four, Kawasaki 750, and Triumph. It seems like BMW was quite a bit more.

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When I bought my Commando, I was tempted by the then new Z1 Kawasaki. The money was even. A 750 Norton Roadster or a Z1 could be had for $1995. I decided I didn't want to buy a new model with no history. Besides, I've always been partial to twins.

The T150's were a couple hundred more than the Norton.

Let's see now, the 900 Z1 was announced in the fall of 72? So you probably did your comparison about summer of 73? The Norton had gone up from when I bought mine in the fall of 1970- or 71.
I'm trying to recall when I tested a Z1, my bike was a few years old so maybe 1974 or so. I was at one of those points where you have to decide on a top end job or trading and new payments. The top end job won.

There was a bar right across the street from my college apartment which usually had a number of Britbikes out front. I fell in love with a red Fastback after hearing it fire up. (There was also that blue Rickman Enfield cafe racer.)

I bought mine from Comerfords in Thames-Ditton south of London. Price was $1310 USD. They used to run an ad in the back of some of the cycle magazines. They would arrange return shipping to the US and handle all the paperwork. My friend was another engineering student and we decided to go on this great adventure to England because he had a lot of relatives there and we could stay for free. I originally wanted to get a Triumph to save money (earned by pumping gas for a number of summers.) He was a rich kid from Long Island and went with the Norton. He really wanted me to get a Norton too so after reading all the road tests I was finally convinced. I was 21. We bought two new Roadsters in June of 1972. His was black and mine was yellow. After waiting around the whole day at the little cafe across the street we finally took delivery. We put about 1500 miles on, going down the wrong side of the road, in England in about two weeks and Nothing Broke! We had a great time - two 21 year olds on the loose in the motherland of Nortons. First stop was to buy a leather jacket!

I was going to school in Ithaca, NY and the local dealer there was RiderSport. Owners were Bill Bryant, who was a big Velo fan, and Martin Violette who did the wrenching on the Nortons. They also sold Hondas - a lot of Hondas - and not too many Nortons. A bunch of young kids worked on the Hondas. When my bearings went at 4700 miles in the Fall of 1972, Martin was the guy who rebuilt my engine. It took all winter and into the Spring and cost about $800. They wouldn't honor any warranty because it was bought in England and the US Distributor (Berliner I think) would not honor it. Lesson learned! I think Martin still lives in Ithaca. Every time the new models came out I would upgrade my bike where practical... such as oil filter, clutch, high output alternator, etc. After that bearing fiasco I never had my Norton in any shop again and just learned how to do it myself. I still have my original yellow fiberglass tank and sidecovers but now the bike is Signal Orange.

Russ

aries said:

Got my Commando Interstate new in 1972 when I was 21 from Coburn and Hughes, a dealer in North London. Traded in my Honda 450cc Black Bomber.( Hmm, that would be worh something now). Anyway, will never forget upon first time taking it out the showroom just how big, torquey and grunty it seemed. Wonderfull.
Mind you over the years its mechanical competency has pissed me off,and I made a couple of attempts to sell it, but equally gave a unique riding pleasure and shout out loud whoops of adrenalin scraping round the country lanes.
One will never have clean hands or fingernails but thats just the nature of the beast.

Click to expand...

You had a 450 Black Bomber isn't that the bike from 'Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance' ?

My uncle Rollie taught at Cornell and I recall a big brit bike scene there. My mother had to drag me past Triumphs and BSAs when we visited.
Didn't Richard Farina live there when he wrote "Been Down So Long it Looks Like up to me?". A friend who knew him said he was part of the hevy BMW and drugs scene. Seems like he died falling off a BMW on the way back from a party celebrating the book release, if this is not faulty memory.
It does seem a lot of us saw one at school and fell in love.

While still in the US Navy after returning from Vietnam I jumped ship in North Carolina to pick up my new Norton. I had been paying for it so when I arrived it was paid for... $1955. It was a Friday afternoon and they were just about to close up, but I had nowhere to go so they pulled it out of a crate and I waited for them to put it together. Been riding it ever since. That first time was the only time it was ever in a shop. Went to live in Chile, South America for about 10 years and took it down there too, only Norton I ever saw down there was mine. Was glad that Chile got to hear the rumble of a Norton 850. Now have it back here in Texas and ride it all the time. Go here to see it at a rally a couple of years ago (page 9). http://www.bmoaonline.com/pdfs/archives ... Hi_Rez.pdf

Phil

I bought my first Commando in 77, it was 2 1/2 years old then, as a crazy youth I thrashed and abused it to the extent that returning from Scunthorpe to Scotland after a Rally (around 340 miles) I used most of a 5 gallon can of oil on the return journey, the thing smoked like a two stroke all the way home. My local dealer Sandy Bloy was a NVT Dealer and had 2 of the last Mk3 Commando's in stock at around £1200 if I remember correctly, I agonised over the decision and eventually traded my Commando in for his own 6 month old Guzzi Le Mans Mk1 at around twice the price, 3 years later I returned to the Norton fold and have owned my current bike since then. I do remember that both the Mk3' sold and both were back for new Cams and followers within 6 months so that was a lucke escape for me I think. Sandy is now also a Norton man despite the trials and tribulations of being a NVT dealer back then.

I know a few guys who have owned their Commando's from new, and also 650SS , Atlas and Dommi's, being Scots they like to get their moneys worth I suppose

I looked for a new British bike in 1977 and had the choice of a Jubilee Bonnie or a 1974 850 MK2 Commando Roadster from new 'old stock'. Page Motors in Edinburgh sold me a Commando from a batch of 25 they purchased from Norton which failed to meet the USA export spec.
Having traded in my old RD250 Yamaha the Commando was a bit different to ride, I rode home from the dealers through the streets of Edinburgh changing up when I meant to change down and sometimes even trying to brake with the gear lever!

Great bike though and after all those years still fun to ride.

I knew batrider would provide an interesting testimony.
I was waiting
Marshal