Norton Commando 961 - A Good Value

contours · Jan 11, 2018

TonyA said:
Hello Contours , you have a mechanic you trust there close to home ? We can come up with a series of checks that he can do for you. You may have to leave it with him for a couple of weeks.

I do now, Tony. I plan to have him take a look this Spring. I do have the coil and wires upgrade installed. And the Bosch head temp. sensor. I didn’t get around to installing the crank sensor yet, but I understand the sensor changes are meant to enhance performance, not solve issues.

gchoppin · Jan 11, 2018

richard-7 said:
I absolutely LOVE my bike. When ever I ride a different bike, the thrill wears off in under 10 minutes and I miss my Norton. I seriously have dreams in the winter months about riding it. So in that respect, YES a good value. Like Tony said, the mechanics of it is SOOOO BASIC that it is a true bikers dream. The bikes are better now and the older ones can be sorted. As is, the older ones won't let you down either. My dad rode twice across the country on a 2013 without a trans vent or a Bosch coil. Richard P across a few countries on a 2015 with all the upgrades.
Richard, did you replace the cylinders with the black or possibly paint them still on the bike?
Looking forward to spring time here in Canada.

gchoppin · Jan 11, 2018

Richard, did you replace the cylinders with black or possibly paint them on the bike. My bike is red. Struggling with the traditional Norton black sleaves.

Raphi · Jan 11, 2018

contours said:
I do now, Tony. I plan to have him take a look this Spring. I do have the coil and wires upgrade installed. And the Bosch head temp. sensor. I didn’t get around to installing the crank sensor yet, but I understand the sensor changes are meant to enhance performance, not solve issues.

Hi Contours
Did the problems already occur before you changed the head temp sensor?

TonyA · Jan 12, 2018

contours said:
I do now, Tony. I plan to have him take a look this Spring. I do have the coil and wires upgrade installed. And the Bosch head temp. sensor. I didn’t get around to installing the crank sensor yet, but I understand the sensor changes are meant to enhance performance, not solve issues.

Remember the father and son that bought 961's in the Caymans ? They had bad CAM sensors and bikes wouldn't start. Anyhow , what we need to know is exactly what symptoms you have and when . So , every time you start it go through the same procedure. Richard Pearce had his side stand switch go faulty on his 2016 . I had a connection issue on my tip over sensor . Did the bike ever kill on you when you were riding it ? I mean actually out on the road going 50 mph and then like turning the switch off ? Does the fuel pump pressurize every time you key on ? listen for it. Neutral switch on when in neutral ? What happens when you're not in neutral and you want to start ? The side stands got to be in the riding position or no start .. The starter will spin but motor won't start.

richard-7 · Jan 12, 2018

Norton barells. Not painted.

contours · Jan 12, 2018

Raphi said:
Hi Contours
Did the problems already occur before you changed the head temp sensor?

believe it or not, the problems were reversed after changing the head temp. sensor. I used to have cold temperature starting issues. Now I have issues after the engine has been running and parked for a few hours.

Raphi · Jan 12, 2018

Did you pack the sensor with some heat conducting grease or paste?

contours · Jan 12, 2018

TonyA said:
Remember the father and son that bought 961's in the Caymans ? They had bad CAM sensors and bikes wouldn't start. Anyhow , what we need to know is exactly what symptoms you have and when . So , every time you start it go through the same procedure. Richard Pearce had his side stand switch go faulty on his 2016 . I had a connection issue on my tip over sensor . Did the bike ever kill on you when you were riding it ? I mean actually out on the road going 50 mph and then like turning the switch off ? Does the fuel pump pressurize every time you key on ? listen for it. Neutral switch on when in neutral ? What happens when you're not in neutral and you want to start ? The side stands got to be in the riding position or no start .. The starter will spin but motor won't start.

Nothing so easy to diagnose, Tony. Unless the issues you mention are intermittent. I have not had any symptoms involving the neutral light or "kill" while riding. The fuel pump always makes an audible sound. The starter always spins, but will drain the battery if too many attempts are made.

Once she starts I am usually guaranteed a single session. Starting her up for another session while warm is unpredictable. This is the condition I've faced since the Bosch sensor has been installed. Which is actually less of a problem than before.

But what the heck. It's winter now and I can't do much of anything until late April when I can easily access the shed where she's parked and can possibly be moved somewhere for a detailed diagnosis. Going back to my original contention ... should any of this be happening with a 2 year old, barely ridden vehicle? Has my bike (or may of the ones we hear about) proved to be a good value? It is up to the individual in the end, of course. At the age of 63 1/2 years I would rather spend a lot more time riding than tinkering. Just my opinion.

contours · Jan 12, 2018

Raphi said:
Did you pack the sensor with some heat conducting grease or paste?

How much grease is enough? It was a messy re-install if that helps answer the question.

Raphi · Jan 13, 2018

contours said:
How much grease is enough? It was a messy re-install if that helps answer the question.

I didn’t do it myself, may be Richard-7 can answer your question about how much...

TonyA · Jan 13, 2018

Coat the probe completely , thats all. You know , It may be worth bring your bike to a dealer like MCC again. Let them hold on to it and test it for a while . You may have just 1 bad sensor causing all of this . When its hot and it wont start have you ever opened up the throttle while cranking ?

contours · Jan 13, 2018

TonyA said:
Coat the probe completely , thats all. You know , It may be worth bring your bike to a dealer like MCC again. Let them hold on to it and test it for a while . You may have just 1 bad sensor causing all of this . When its hot and it wont start have you ever opened up the throttle while cranking ?

No, I haven't done that before. To be more clear, if I shut it down for just 15 minutes or so it starts up fine. It seems to give me trouble after it cools down for several hours, but doesn't get to the point of a cold start. Then again the scenario is not very predictable.

I wonder if the re-map is tailored to each bike in some way. Or is it a straight forward replacement when a new map is installed?

In any case, I don't mean to hijack this thread. Thanks for all your input.

richard-7 · Jan 13, 2018

Could be the BIN file wasnt updated. Could be oil on your airbox sensor. Take out filter and gently wipe with alcohol. Could indeed be a bad sensor. Just because its new doesn’t mean it works. Be sure NOT to touch your throttle when starting in case you didnt know. But to be, it sounds like timing. Maybe your timing chain should be tightened or your pick up sensor is in the wrong position. Or your crank is out a few degrees.

Norton Commando 961 - A Good Value

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