Quality of AN Spares.
- Thread starter Al-otment
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Perverse is the correct adjective for owning and riding a Commando or any Norton. Not that I had thought of it that way, but it surely fits. I have bin full of junk parts for my Norton. Some of them are quite new. Or at least hardly used. It is a great old bike that puts a stupid grin on my face every time I'm blitzing through traffic. Or 1000 miles from home unwinding some twisty back road. I take it as a point of pride that I can kick that old piece of shit to life and count on it to get me home.
Most of the parts I have bought have served me well. Ones that don't look so good may get used, but sometimes not. Being here in the colonies, it is not worth the price of the part to return them. They end up in the iron pile. I have had the least trouble with genuine Norton parts whether they are Andover Norton or NOS.
An aside: I have an '87 Volvo 245. This winter on a bitterly cold day ( -20F and windy) I was in the middle on nowhere South Dakota and the fuel pump shit the bed. The local Ford garage pushed it in, diagnosed the problem, got a new fuel pump over night, and $600 later I was on my way. When I got home I promptly replaced the 'new' fuel pump with a Bosch unit. No regrets. It is one of the facts of life. To this day, I would stop at the Ford dealer in Groton SD and shake the service managers hand and tell him about the great service I recieved.
Norton Commandos are in a bit of the same boat. I'd hate it if my engine blew up and busted the cases. But I would build it up again and carry on. Maney, AN, or good used '70 cases ? Good question. I'll burn that bridge when I come to it. In the mean time, I'll keep using the rod bolts that came with the bike. Go with what works. Avoid the questionable stuff. Sometimes you are too far from home for a breakdown.
Greg
Most of the parts I have bought have served me well. Ones that don't look so good may get used, but sometimes not. Being here in the colonies, it is not worth the price of the part to return them. They end up in the iron pile. I have had the least trouble with genuine Norton parts whether they are Andover Norton or NOS.
An aside: I have an '87 Volvo 245. This winter on a bitterly cold day ( -20F and windy) I was in the middle on nowhere South Dakota and the fuel pump shit the bed. The local Ford garage pushed it in, diagnosed the problem, got a new fuel pump over night, and $600 later I was on my way. When I got home I promptly replaced the 'new' fuel pump with a Bosch unit. No regrets. It is one of the facts of life. To this day, I would stop at the Ford dealer in Groton SD and shake the service managers hand and tell him about the great service I recieved.
Norton Commandos are in a bit of the same boat. I'd hate it if my engine blew up and busted the cases. But I would build it up again and carry on. Maney, AN, or good used '70 cases ? Good question. I'll burn that bridge when I come to it. In the mean time, I'll keep using the rod bolts that came with the bike. Go with what works. Avoid the questionable stuff. Sometimes you are too far from home for a breakdown.
Greg
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Onder said:
I'm glad you're getting your priorities in the right order. Totally disagree regarding the philosophy of using a modern bike in preference to a Commando. Everything is obviously going to wear out quicker with regular use - it depends whether you bought the bike to ride or polish. More Norton's are getting left in the shed because owners have a modern they prefer to ride. I've got no problem with that, just give someone who's after a Norton the opportunity of owning/riding one and sell it. This also goes back to spares suppliers - less miles covered by riders = less demand for spares = less spares produced until it becomes economically un-tenable to produce spares. The answer is to use your Commando and wear bits out. You've heard of the Nanny State - what about Nanny Owners.
SteveA
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Horses for courses......I am building a race bike so I am fitting non standard parts to non standard parts that look a lot like or Norton so includes a range of standard parts.....hiccups do frustrate me....but I try to march on....
If you want do a daily commute of over 80 miles, then to ride 400 miles a day two up with luggage, at what some would describe as 'highh speed', then take a pleasant hotel and dinner and a couple of beers......do it again for several days, including at least one day of 7 Alpine passes over 2000 metres, including the Stelvio at 2700 and then go home arrive Sunday and go to work on Monday.....on the bike...
Get a Honda Pan European (ST1100).....it does what it says....and covers 200,000 miles with only oil, filters plugs, pads, a cam belt and stuff and lots of tyres....
The pleasure is in the journey and enjoying it together with few distractions, more than the riding itself, but the riding ain't bad.....but if you want to cover less territory with a big grin.....better grin and bear the reality of running a 40 year old....
No, it is not ideal, and there are certainly frustrations, but the situation is a damn site better than for some less popular bikes, and as has been said repeatedly, Norton themselves had enough hiccups.
If you want do a daily commute of over 80 miles, then to ride 400 miles a day two up with luggage, at what some would describe as 'highh speed', then take a pleasant hotel and dinner and a couple of beers......do it again for several days, including at least one day of 7 Alpine passes over 2000 metres, including the Stelvio at 2700 and then go home arrive Sunday and go to work on Monday.....on the bike...
Get a Honda Pan European (ST1100).....it does what it says....and covers 200,000 miles with only oil, filters plugs, pads, a cam belt and stuff and lots of tyres....
The pleasure is in the journey and enjoying it together with few distractions, more than the riding itself, but the riding ain't bad.....but if you want to cover less territory with a big grin.....better grin and bear the reality of running a 40 year old....
No, it is not ideal, and there are certainly frustrations, but the situation is a damn site better than for some less popular bikes, and as has been said repeatedly, Norton themselves had enough hiccups.
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SteveA said:
Pan European? Go one step further and get a car...... the riding is the journey. Many ways to get from A to B, my preferred choice of transport is the bike. It may be easier on many newer bikes but it's the experience of riding the Norton that I'm addicted to. I could fly to Finland and hire a new Triumph when I get there, so I've been to the Britti ralli on a British bike - all the boxes ticked. Or ride the Commando there and back.
Fast Eddie
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Seems to me that all opinions have been aired here and we're kinda going around over again.
Maybe we can summarise it thus:
We accept we're riding 40 year old bikes (and we're doing so in an age where expectations have increased).
We are fortunate to have numerous suppliers to call upon to keep our bikes running. All of which seem to have customers who have good experiences, as well as less satisfied ones.
AN is one such supplier. Joe has at least stuck his head above the parapet and put his case forwards, telling us about his company's aim to continually improve the parts quality etc.
At the end of the day, we, the customers, have to 'speak with our wallets' and support the suppliers we are most happy with.
We will never all agree and one or two suppliers that's for sure.
My own final point would be that it seems clear to me that in the classic bike world as a whole, parts quality is improving, but we still have to be vigilant as customers. And in this modern age of higher expectations, suppliers do need to continue to improve further still. Some more than others!
Maybe we can summarise it thus:
We accept we're riding 40 year old bikes (and we're doing so in an age where expectations have increased).
We are fortunate to have numerous suppliers to call upon to keep our bikes running. All of which seem to have customers who have good experiences, as well as less satisfied ones.
AN is one such supplier. Joe has at least stuck his head above the parapet and put his case forwards, telling us about his company's aim to continually improve the parts quality etc.
At the end of the day, we, the customers, have to 'speak with our wallets' and support the suppliers we are most happy with.
We will never all agree and one or two suppliers that's for sure.
My own final point would be that it seems clear to me that in the classic bike world as a whole, parts quality is improving, but we still have to be vigilant as customers. And in this modern age of higher expectations, suppliers do need to continue to improve further still. Some more than others!
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Medal? No ,he wants a pat on the back..its not easy to voice your opinion on this forum with out the shaddows jumping on you!
Al-otment said:
SteveA
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Al-otment said:
I never used the ferry either....just my Eurotunnel frequent traveller account!
My wife used to ride pillion on my Commando in the '70s.....she really wasn't going to sign up to it across Europe 30 years later....
And now she has retired from it completely....so back to the racing
SteveA said:
Eh. My refrigerator is 20 years old and works fine, but it is not my first choice for touring. ST1100s are great bikes, but basically appliances. I regularly commuted and continue to take 5000 mile summer trips on my Commando. 350 miles in a day is just a start. The early seats were much harder and more comfortable at the end of the (500 mile) day.
A Commando is a machine made up of parts that are bolted together. If you want to use it regularly you have to rebuild or replace all the bits that are worn or were substandard from the factory with better parts. Where you get those parts is a matter of experience. Go with the good stuff. Wear it out. Rebuild it. Repeat. That way we can have parts available forever.
Full disclosure - I'm planning on taking my '82 GL500 on tour this summer. A soulless appliance to be sure, but we have covered a lot of ground together.
Greg
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