Well I get a call from a buddy that says one of his long time friends and collector of old motorcycles has only 2 months to live. What I need help with is helping him figure out what years the bikes are, The guy has something like 40+ motorcycles and he also says a lot of parts. He has asked him to sell off the stuff and give the money to the family, He has asked me to look into values and years of the British stuff and maybe help sell some if I want. At this point he has only moved about 10 of the bikes because of space at his shop, If any of you know the years of some of these bikes and would like to help, that would be really cool. Thanks in advance for your help, Chuck.















Thanks again guys, I will get more photos of the other bikes when he gets space to store them or when I get a chance to see them.

How old is he?

Jean

Very sorry about your friend's friend, please pass along our prayers for comfort and peace in his time remaining.

The Green bike with leading link forks is a Greeves Griffon, I'm GUESSING '69.

The AJS looks like a 370Y Stormer, probably 72 or so.

Sorry I can't be of more help, I hope reputable bike lovers come to his rescue and get top dollar for them. This is a case where I REALLY hope the current market doesn't figure in to the sale. As much of a vulture as I can be sometimes, instances like these are where some of us humble ourselves and do everything we can to help. Really sorry i don't have top dollar to offer for the Griffon, I've always wanted one. They WILL find happy buyers.

Hortons Norton wrote:

There's a tank badge on this one but it looks like a Puch twingle. Or Sears Allstate, same thing.

This guy knew his bikes. A decent collection and I'm sure the rest of the bikes are similarly collectable. They aren't perfect so you're not going to see top dollars here but it would be a good auction.

Thats what he thought too Dave, The badge on the side says Sears I think. Jean I'm not sure how old the guy is, I should be finding out more as time goes on.

Hortons Norton wrote:Thats what he thought too Dave, The badge on the side says Sears I think. Jean I'm not sure how old the guy is, I should be finding out more as time goes on.

I once traded a Sears Allstate in a little worse condition for a couple boxes of Norton parts. Don't ask why I had the Allstate or what happened to the Norton parts.

The Norton looks like a 1949 Big 4, 600cc(ish). 82 x 113 = bore x stroke.
The D and 24283 tally for 1949 but the 7 after the D may be a later addition?
More popular with a sidecar than solo, but would be better solo in modern traffic.
I'm not an expert on these but it looks reasonably original to me. Would go very nicely in the garage next to a Commando.

Hortons Norton wrote:Thats what he thought too Dave, The badge on the side says Sears I think. Jean I'm not sure how old the guy is, I should be finding out more as time goes on.

Always gets to me to see a friend so near the end, three of my friends passed away due to cancer and it pushes me to do as I please now that I was forced into retirement. Hope he enjoys every last minute of his life.

Jean

Thanks Paul, Dave, Iain and Jean, That's a good idea Jean. I think sometimes people live in the past and future too often, when all we really have is the present. The older I get the more I also see that time is not so much on my side, and that family and friends are the things I find valuable now. I think I may have taken things for granted years back. I will post again when I have more pictures, Do you guys have any ideas on value of these bikes? I know it's hard when you can't see them in person.

I'm on the road till next Tuesday, so it's not so easy for me to research values at the moment.

I'd hate to throw unrealistic numbers out there.

Get this, I'm not even going to offer my customary $350 for the Greeves!

ntst8 wrote:The Norton looks like a 1949 Big 4, 600cc(ish). 82 x 113 = bore x stroke.
The D and 24283 tally for 1949 but the 7 after the D may be a later addition?

"7" is the model code for a Big 4.

http://www.britishspares.com/42.php

The Big 4 has lost it's tool box and front and rear guards don't look original. Saddle is a late wartime WD 'universal' frame that was developed to fit all models (including Norton of course). Horn is modern pattern. There is just a hint of 'Far East' import about the bike which might put off some buyers. An e-mail to the VMCC in the UK will tell you where the bike was despatched to and when. It must be quite late 1949 to have the 'Laydown' gearbox

Any rigid Norton sells these days. In the UK, these post-1948 Big 4s would fetch probably £2500 - £3500 in that condition (perhaps £3500 - £4500 as a runner) but I can imagine that because there are fewer of this type in the US, the collector's price might be higher.