rocker spindles in right?

seattle##gs said:

HOLD ON...are you QUITE certain the exhaust spindles face foreward???

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Absolutely certain. Why?

See previous Fig. C7 drawing, also factory manual, section C8, 2 & 6.

http://www.classicbike.biz/Norton/Repair/70up_Commando/70upCommando.pdf

"2.Engage a rocker spindle into the cylinder head with the flat facing rearwards on the inlet side and forwards on the exhaust....
.
.
.

6. Align the rocker spindle as shown in Fig. C7.
Note : Flat on spindle faces away from centre of head, towards rocker cover."

Haven't we gone through this before!
https://www.accessnorton.com/NortonCommando/rocker-spindle-alignment.23742/

Did the oil pressure come up to normal?

seattle##gs said:

Thanks, all. Problem solved. All 4 spindles were in backwards. The whole process of setting it straight was not too bad ....heat with MAP gas and draw them out just enough to see the flat. The annoying part is the gasket cleanup on the plates.

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Did you make sure the washers didn’t fall out if you pulled the spindles out that far?

"Did the oil pressure come up to normal?"

Hmmm, wonder what THAT is?

Of course, the old (and still valid) rule of thumb for engines is 10 PSI per 1000 RPM. You cannot go wrong with that figure but not sure if Norton ever paid any attention to that.

I suspect their guidance was that if checked with a gauge, the gauge should show "some" oil pressure.

If pressed for something more specific, it might have been, "More than what the gauge indicates with the engine not running."

MexicoMike said:

"Did the oil pressure come up to normal?"

Hmmm, wonder what THAT is?

Of course, the old (and still valid) rule of thumb for engines is 10 PSI per 1000 RPM. You cannot go wrong with that figure but not sure if Norton ever paid any attention to that.

I suspect their guidance was that if checked with a gauge, the gauge should show "some" oil pressure.

If pressed for something more specific, it might have been, "More than what the gauge indicates with the engine not running."

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Yes I get your point, I have never had an oil pressure guage on a commando so I wouldn't know what to look for
And I think norton removed the oil pressure guage from early dominators because of the worry it gave it's owners?

So cold I see 60 psi on start up. Once warm running highway speeds 40psi thereabouts, varies with revs, at idle (900rpm) warm engine 10psi.

Steves said:

So cold I see 60 psi on start up. Once warm running highway speeds 40psi thereabouts, varies with revs, at idle (900rpm) warm engine 10psi.

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Sounds just right.
Better have a chat with that "rebuilder" fellow. He's gonna hurt something someday...

I hope this thread is not going to go quiet before concluding (again)!

Were the spindles in wrong?

If so, has correcting them restored the ‘missing’ oil pressure?

What was the conclusion regarding the wet dumping issue?

It's wierd. The idea is to restrict oil flow into the head.

Torontonian said:

It's wierd. The idea is to restrict oil flow into the head.

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Yep you don't want too much oil in the rocker box that's why dunstall Norton's had a metering jet

So I pulled out the spindles just enough to see that all four were in backwards. Turned them around and after everything else was taken care of, started the motor. It reached 45 psi fairly quickly at idle. Since it was midnight and the Boyer is just static timed I did not want to wind it up. I am pleased with the results and I think I've solved the problem. It was actually easy to R&R the spindles.
As for the wet sumping, an unrelated issue, I will recommend the AMR device to the owner.
When I replaced the oil pump I noticed that the cam nut required almost nil pressure to take it off. Later I discovered the gearbox clutch lever was badly out of alignment with the cable. When I went in to fix it I discovered the lock ring was only finger tight. Lots of bugs with this one.

Glad you sorted the spindles.

TBH though, that bike sounds like a disaster waiting to happen !