Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton

Cheshire bloke

Joined
Dec 18, 2011
Messages
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This is a follow on to Phil's Norton Girl topic where he asked about the Norton Nemesis, which got my old brain cells thinking about some info I got from the man himself Al Melling, many years ago at a motorbike show (might have been the Classic Bike Show, can't remember which one!) somewhere in the UK, must be 14 year ago? The bike did exist, sort of, a mock up was on display with various engines, I especially like the Nirvana engine.

So I finally dug out the info pack and have scanned it for you nice people to peruse at your leisure and to marvel at the comings and goings and general skulduggery surrounding Norton, It all adds to the Norton story especially the press release for the court proceedings.
Don't know if this stuff has been published here before, hope it's of some interest.

Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


Here is some detail on the Nemesis and other projects:
Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


And the press release:
Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton



CB
 
Interesting, Thanks for that.
Not come across much of that Nirvana engine before, is it possible to get a larger scan of just the engine ?

What is not mentioned there though is that the Nemesis 1500cc V8 engine was
apparently two Kawasaki ZXR750 (?) top ends cobbled onto a crankcase of sorts.
With goodness knows what used as the crankshaft.

If it had gone into production like that, there may have been a few copyright issues... !
 
NOTE : the Date is 20 - 9 - 00 .

theyve a 750 ' Norton ' four there . Is it a kwickersaki copy ? . presumeably the Eight is two Veed .
 
This is the only info I have on the Nirvana, the photo in the info pack was a bad copy to start with, and making it larger just gets worse. Hopefully somebody with better inside knowledge will come along soon, even though it is 14 years ago. No wonder it took so long to get Nortons rolling of the production line again.

Didn't know that about the Kawasaki link, nothing is new is it? it has been said that the Hinckley Triumphs are heavily influenced by Kawasaki too!



CB
 
Cheshire bloke said:
This is the only info I have on the Nirvana, the photo in the info pack was a bad copy to start with, and making it larger just gets worse.
Click to expand...

Thanks - I thought that might be the case, was worth a try.

Matt Spencer said:
theyve a 750 ' Norton ' four there . Is it a kwickersaki copy ? .
Click to expand...

Apparently the 4 a journalist was allowed to try ( but not look at the motor)
was not a kawasaki copy - it WAS a Kawa donk !!

Matt Spencer said:
presumeably the Eight is two Veed .
Click to expand...

Yep.
Alan Millyard (sp ?) in the UK is an expert at doing this.
Has built a V12 from a pair of 6 cyl 1300 Kwakas, amongst others.
Uses the original crank though....
 
Was the Nemesis around the same time as the Bernard Hooper stepped piston engines ? (twin Wulf ?and vee eight)

The almost Norton 4.

Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton
 
Time Warp said:
Was the Nemesis around the same time as the Bernard Hooper stepped piston engines ? (twin Wulf ?and vee eight)
Click to expand...

No, different eras.
The Nemesis was 1990s.
Wulf was early 1970s.
That 1950s Nougier 4 has been discussed here before too.
BRM have also done several prototype 4's for Nortons, a 500 in the early 1950s
and a 750 in the early 1970s.
 
They did build some of all that.
But folks that had a good look at some of it said it was wood painted silver.
Or disguised kwaka bits.
Or couldn't actually be taken for a ride....
 
That V8 bike looks like the same old furphy, you imagine it and it seems OK. A friend of mine built a bike with a turbocharged Chev V8 motor. He and several of his mates tried riding it - they all crashed almost straight away. It is easy to build something which would scare you shitless. I personally wouldn't try to sell something like that. The watercooled 1300cc Kawaski four was bad enough. I'd much rather ride a 125cc Cecatto or MV Bialbero. All this big stuff is for wankers - especially Harleys.
 
I saw one of Drysdale's creations at the Broadford Bonanza a couple of weeks ago, however couldn't be bothered having another look at it. I wasn't aware that he was making watercooled 750cc V8s though. Found your photo interesting. At least 750cc is a sensible size, anything over 1000cc is a sign of idiocy to my mind, unless you are building a trike. I think the Munch Mammoth was absolutely disgusting.
 
acotrel said:
.... At least 750cc is a sensible size, anything over 1000cc is a sign of idiocy to my mind, unless you are building a trike. I think the Munch Mammoth was absolutely disgusting.
Click to expand...

I agree.

This Melling/Norton Nemisis fiasco. It seems that every few years in the UK, a wannabee with a good line in talk, sticks his head up from the swamp and announces his "World Beater". It was happening in the 60s, 70s, 80s , 90s.
Why do we give these people oxygen?
cheers
wakeup
 
wakeup said:
It seems that every few years in the UK, a wannabee with a good line in talk, sticks his head up from the swamp and announces his "World Beater". It was happening in the 60s, 70s, 80s , 90s.
Click to expand...

Why stop there. ?
It was happening in the 00's, 10's, 20's, 30's, 40's, 50's.
And again in the recent 00's and 10's.....

If folks didn't dream, and try out every possible idea under the sun, and see what sells,
we'd all still be riding penny farthings, and talking on tin cans and string, and flying kites...
 
Rohan said:
wakeup said:
It seems that every few years in the UK, a wannabee with a good line in talk, sticks his head up from the swamp and announces his "World Beater". It was happening in the 60s, 70s, 80s , 90s.
Click to expand...

Why stop there. ?
It was happening in the 00's, 10's, 20's, 30's, 40's, 50's.
And again in the recent 00's and 10's.....

If folks didn't dream, and try out every possible idea under the sun, and see what sells,
we'd all still be riding penny farthings, and talking on tin cans and string, and flying kites...
Click to expand...

I don't have any problems with dreaming. I do quite a lot of it myself. In fact I put a thread on this very site about peoples dream bikes. What gets up my nose are these people who have had a thought bubble, which they then extrapolate to a super finished, fully developed product, with nothing more solid than the vacant space between their ears.
I understand that there are people who are constantly coming up with good ideas, that they have to get developed into something practical, produceable and then, hopefully, saleable. They provided much of my income, when I had to work for a crust. No, the people that irritate me are those with no understanding of the tasks "design", "development" and "manufacturing", how interlinked and vitally important they all are. They assume that because they are a salesman/property developer/financial advisor/real estate agent/lawyer/whatever that they are experts at everything, and/or that because they have made a squillion bucks exploiting the peasants, or digging up stuff and selling it, that their opinion is of value to mankind.
cheers
wakeup
 
When you look through history, a lot of successful companies have had an ideas man,
and the practical/hands on/production man/team.
(AND the man with the finances....)

Bert Hopwood seems to claim Edward Turner was like that, and it was the folks around him got things sorted and in production and on sale.
Phil Vincent and Phil irving are another that come to mind.
Pa Norton and his team.
etc etc.

I worked for a company where the success reportedly came from an idea sketched on a paper napkin at lunch one day...

With thanks/apologies to Scott...
Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton
 
Nemesis, Al Melling and Norton


Anyone know if the " Magnesium Tecnologies " FOUDRY that did the DRYSDALE is still functioning , or its sucessor ???
Site and Email seems to have gone awol along with Phone Number .
 
If you don't spell them correctly, google is unlikely to find what ye seek.

Going to build something similar .... ?
 
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