1970 roadster kick start lever

hello Forum

saw a 70 roadster the other day. the kick start lever was definitly a couple of inches longer than mine. looked like a forging, not home made. looked the real deal except for extra length. The owner had no idea of the history or modifications.

can anyone shed some light on this. did Norton fit a longer lever sometime.

any advice greatly appreciated.

good fortune to you all
Bradley

I remember vaguely seeing longer ones available somewhere, I reckon they could do with another 1-1/2", make the world of difference I'm sure, of course extending your own and making it look "factory" wouldnt be hard (lots of weld prepping). all the answers will follow shortly when they all wake up on the other side of the planet.
Don ex Brizzie

B.Rad said:

did Norton fit a longer lever sometime.

Click to expand...

The 850 MkIII kickstart lever is slightly longer.
http://www.oldbritts.com/12_121018.html


RGM also sells a longer lever.
http://rgmmotors.co.uk/images/full/full_957.jpg

Dunstall used to sell longer kickstarts back in the day. Never seen one "in the flesh", only pictures.

I got my kick start lever at Commando Specialties. I measured the total length of the stock lever and the new one and came up with the new one being a little over 3/4" longer than the stock one.

http://commandospecialties.com/Prod_Det ... ProdID=173

Of course, you could render the discussion moot with this:

http://commandospecialties.com/Prod_Det ... ProdID=197

hello Forum. lovely day in Aussie.

thanks to all advice. good stuff. it is humbling when people from all over the planet offer their advice. thanks all.

forgot to mention, this 1970 Roadster I saw was supposed to be unmolested and 100% as it came from the factory. the owner bought it in 1975 and has not changed anything. the bike even has the little white plastic clips covering the headlamp halo mounting nuts. plus the bling paint. Looks to me the same bike as a 69 S except for upswept exhaust.

I am curious as to whether this lever was fitted from the factory and what is the story. it is 2 inches longer, not just a bit, quite noticeable.

any one out there with a 69S or 70 roadster that has a tale to tell would love to hear it regarding kick lever. the point being this lever is supposed to be original. I would love to know.

thanks again to all
Bradley

My '74 has the (what I now know to be) MKIII style kicker, all scarred to hell from sliding down the road. For a time, I tried to see other damage on the bike, but none found.. then it hit me, duh, someone bought a scarred up take off part from a wreck to enjoy better kicker shape goodness.

Still no pics of your mystery part?

Theres a picture , probably in M cycist Illustrated , of p. williams at the I.o.M. , maybe 72 P.R. with a 12 foot kickstart on the yellow perill , Welll , seems near up to the seat at the foot crank anyway .

From the 1973 Dunstall catalog-

I had one of those Dunstall kick levers offered to me for sale, $800.00 :shock:

Apparently not too many were produced.

I'll stick with my T140 style folding lever, works a treat.

That's a stout number... Have you thought of a cut, lengthen, re-shape, weld and replate exchange service to the forgings?

I bought the Dunstall lever in 1974 for my '71 after I milled the head to Combat compression. It does make a difference in effort, but the extra length caused the top of lever to contact the pavement when kicked through on the center stand. Necessary, as few '71's retained their sidestand very long. That's been rectified, but I'd still rather kick from the center stand anyway. Nice to know it's appreciated to $800 now. My '74 Dunstall catalog lists it at $24. I have a '71 catalog and it wasn't offered then, so I doubt that 750 came from the dealer with anything other than stock length.

hello Forum hope all is good. I have not replied sooner as I been a bit crook.

My thanks to all replies so far.

I now can get a photo of the aforesaid lever on the bike. this may take a couple of days though. soon as I get it I will post it.
thanks again
Bradley