1973 750 Rebuild

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Aug 4, 2016
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Hey everyone. I wanted to post some of the work I've done to my Norton over the last 8 months. Mine wasn't nearly as difficult as some of the rebuilds I've seen on here. But I have put a lot of blood, sweat, and tears into this old girl, and wanted to share it with others who might appreciate it.

This is what I started out with. Like many on this forum I had always dreamed of owning a Norton, but never thought I'd be able to make it a reality. Being one of the younger members on this forum (no offense) :P , I barely make ends meet as it is, much less have the extra cash to spend on this particular vintage bike. But, this one popped up in my area on Craigslist for a pretty decent price. I immediately sold my Honda CB750 and put a little extra cash with it to get the Norton. Best decision of my life! Lol
1973 750 Rebuild

Cosmetically, this thing was pretty pitiful. Nearly all of the chrome was pitted, there were chip marks in the paint, a few rusty bits, and dirt and gunk everywhere! I took it home to clean it up and it began to resemble a Norton again.
1973 750 Rebuild

I rode it like this for a few months, but I just couldn't get used to the yellow frame. I decided to go back to the original black frame. I looked around for a few shops to do it for me, but quickly stopped when the average started reaching $4,000. Now I'm about as mechanically inclined as a toddler, but due to the insistence of friends and the help of some of the members on here, I decided to give it a shot myself. Turns out, the hardest part of the whole "restoration" was the first turn of the wrench.

1973 750 Rebuild


After breaking it down a bit, I noticed that the oil tank had the typical crack at the bottom mounting bolt. That’s where all the "gunk" was coming from. That part of the frame and the gearbox were caked in oil.

1973 750 Rebuild

1973 750 Rebuild


While I had the engine out I decided to clean it up and paint it. I also sent the timing cover and gearbox cover to AMR to try to help with the wetsumping and leaky kickstart.

1973 750 Rebuild

1973 750 Rebuild


After nearly two months of waiting for the frame to get back from the powdercoater, and the covers to get back from AMR, I was ready to put her back together. However, this was in the middle of summer.......in Texas. Luckily the girlfriend was sweet enough to let me bring the Norton inside to finish the build :lol:. From this point, the most difficult part was not crushing my little helper who liked sleeping under the bike.

1973 750 Rebuild

1973 750 Rebuild


More of the little helper.

1973 750 Rebuild


Towards the very end, the girlfriend even started leaving notes of support. :wink:

1973 750 Rebuild


Wheeled her back outside for the finishing touches.

1973 750 Rebuild


Switched out the decals to silver and she looked like a completely different bike!

1973 750 Rebuild

1973 750 Rebuild

1973 750 Rebuild


The bike now lives in my little shop and I ride it as much as I can. It was a fun project and fairly easy, but a lot more work than I had anticipated. I might build another one someday, but It's definitely going to be awhile. Lol. Thanks to everyone on this forum who helped me out during the build. I couldn't have done it without this great group of people.
 
Nice job. Looks like a fun rider now.

As much as I like yellow (yellow was my team color for the race bikes for years), it really was ugly on the frame. Looks much better in black and silver.

Ken
 
Well done. We have pics of your helper and the bike, how 'bout the girl friend?

She must be a good one, letting the bike build happen in house.
 
Very nice work.

I like your quote- "The hardest part of the restoration is the first turn of the wrench".

(although in practice, I've hit some REALLY tough parts, like extracting a rear isolastic through bolt)
 
Great looking work! A few years back I might have preferred the black and yellow bumble bee look with the gunfighter seat. These days I lean more to the stock look that you brought back to the bike. I'm not sure what that says about me and my taste...perhaps I've evolved.
 
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