New member 1972 Commando Combat Barnfind

After a week of scouring this forum and its many links for Commando Combat info here is the responsible party for high jacking my 20+ year long focus on Triumph's and the occasional BSA. Bought new in San Jose, CA in 1973 it is a true barn find that's been in dry storage since the late 1970's, last registered in 1978. Odometer shows just a little over 3000 miles, the cylinders had oil put in them during storage so the engine still turns over nicely and so far I have not found any reason why it could not be brought back to life with a little effort and elbow grease. Obviously there will be a lot to do before that is attempted though. Gonna start with cobweb / dust removal and some chrome polishing before lubing everything with fresh fluids and doing the necessary pre-run wrench turning, rebuilding carbs, tires, etc.



Matching engine, frame, gearbox # 2076QQ.



It's mostly there besides the seat frame loop, seat, rear fender tail light etc. It had a generic fiberglass racing seat that was not done right and had to go. I won a '70s vintage Corbin Gentry seat on ebay to try on it when it gets here and a simple fender design in mind. Not sure if I'm going to end up keeping this bike or not at this point though. With 3000 miles on it is seems doubtful that the main bearings have been swapped for superblends according to the numbers I've seen on this forum although I did come across a source that said the mains were upgraded by the factory before this engine number. Knowing for sure would help a lot with the decision of what to do with it. I just have not decided how sidetracked I can get, and how much $$$ I can throw at it with a garage full of unfinished Triumph projects giving me a WTF?

http://www.showandgo.blogspot.com

You get that bad boy running and see how long those Triumph projects hang around. :mrgreen:

A much better thing than a Triumph, but a 1963 Bonneville would be nice to own.

Nice.

Great score! Welcome aboard.

Gatsby

Marhvelosity ; ignore that anti Triumph Chap . Which Triumphs have you ? ? ?

Chances are if its a late device it has the upgraded bearings . If the crank lifts up & down , with the primary off , it may well Not .

Not the kind of thing you let go of , as its not the kind of thing that pops up every day , unless its got a 19 tooth sprocket . :lol: 8)

If the carbs are warped , Id go for 32 Mk II Amals . Are the tyres perished or just ancient . Take youe time , no half measures please .

Thanks for the comments guys and no worries about some ribbing, I have to admit that many aspects of the Triumph design are poorboy in nature compared to some of the Norton design elements. Steel lower fork sliders and boat anchor weight, cast iron front wheel drums 'till 1970???

Getting back to the Combat this weekend to get deeper into it. I believe the tires are original, they are "Made In England", the rear is toasted but the front looks pretty good. The 32mm Concentrics (or the cables) are stuck so I will be taking them off next to give them a soaking and dismantling. As long as they are in decent shape I will just rebuild them and use as is with the K&N filter that is on it. Rest assured the bike will be handled with care and I will post updates as I go.

Triumphs have some major design advantages if you want to play. But a hot 650 will usually self destruct if you ride it to the max it will deliver. I persevered for 12 years , racing my short stroke 500 which used all 650 parts, except the crank which was a billet of 63mm stroke. I sold the bike when I reached the stage when I could no longer tolerate its peakiness, and nasty nature. I'd already machined 12mm off the barrels, and fitting shorter rods meant making an alloy set of shorter barrels. It all became too difficult. By that time historic racing was up and going, and a weslake head would have put the bike into period 5 along with the H2 and Z1 Kawasakis. I also couldn't afford the essential 6 speed box back then.

I love your 'barn find'. I couldn't afford it these days, but it is really nice to think about. I keep buying lottery tickets. I'd love t o get a really pristine Commando and start riding it around our town often. I know w hat a buzz I get on the rare occasoions something like that goes down our main steet. Usually the closest thing we get to it, is some Harley sounding like a tractor ridden by a patch gang member. What w ould be really nice would be to do the business to a 1963 Bonneville, and give it a squirt through the middle of a bunch of those idiots. I really miss the sound of a hot triumph being fanged - I must be a silly old fart ?

Nothing wrong with Triumphs especially those with the late unit 500,it was probably one of the best engines to come out of 'England and strong enough to win Daytona.





Good luck with the project kustomhut.

The only trouble with the late model 500cc Triumph motor is that they are not easy to play with. The 650 cams don't fit, and a 5 or 6 speed box is expensive. The 5 speeder from the 70s 750s don't fit.
The motor in the picture is the one with the ball race on the timing side, all the earlier ones had a plain white metal bearing, and made the motor very suspect in the oiling department. All of that said, if you could cop the expense , that bike has really great potential as a racer. The Percy Tait Daytona 500 obviously had all the goodies in it - stuff we average punters could not get. With a motor of that stroke and with decent cams, a 6 speed CR box is essential. However it should cream a molnar or summerfield manx.

Lovely photos - do you own the bike ?

Well I must have caught a bad case of Commando fever because even after reading every negative story posted online, real or myth, about the Combat engine, I decided to keep it, rebuild it, and figure out how the hell to pay for it all as I go. I need the Combat Commando experience, so the story continues. Most of the rubber parts are toast from sitting for 35 years, but so far the hard parts look REALLY good and I plan on reusing as many parts as possible to take advantage of the low mileage machine and try to keep costs down. The ex pipes and mufflers were full of rusty chunks and pretty beat so I'm going to swap them out for something different. The initial fantasy of giving the bike a once over and firing her up faded into a more realistic decision to do a full dismantle and basic rebuild adding as many of the recommended modifications possible.



After stripping down and cleaning off decades of cobwebs, dust, mouse crap, and beginning disassembly the Commando chassis is a beautiful thing.





Upon inspection it appears that very little if anything on this bike was adjusted after being purchased in 1973 and parked in 1978. Slack chains with no signs of ever being adjusted. Fasteners appear untouched and all looks to be in excellent condition. Just a light graying to some of the oil.







Notice the assembly number in grease pen inside the primary and the build number sticker survives on the rear iso.

But the zorsts are merely cosmetic . AND the original sound may well be enhanced , as is .