68 commando 750 Help

Hello everyone,
Noobie to this site and hoping you may be able to help me. I have been given an opportunity to buy a 68 commando 750 but know very little about them. The bike is in good condition and has had over 10,000 spent on it in the last 5 years. Just wanting to know of any common problems or things to look out for and the price bracket I should be paying. Doesn't apper to have any accessories other than clipons and is complete and running. Any help or information would be appreciated. Located in Australia Thank you

A well sorted, clean Norton you can ride run without breaking down run around $6000 to $7000 USD.

The original 68 frame was found to be too weak where the headstock attaches to the backbone tube.
They could break suddenly and cause a crash.
Yours should have the replacement frame with the short headstock gusset replaced by a tube triangulating with the top tube near the headsteady mount.
Take a look under the tank to confirm it has the small horizontal tube immediately above the head.

Post some good pictures and list work recently done and you will get a better guess on what a fair price should be.
Welcome to Norton Commado's.

If the coils under the gas tank are stacked one on top of the other, then it has the 'widowmaker' frame. Norton first had dealers weld reinforcing plates at the headstock, then replaced the frames entirely. If the coils are side-by-side, its got the replacement frame. The reinforcing tube on the later frames forced the re-positioning of the coils.

The first Commando was 126125 and the last in this first batch was 128634. This last Commando in that batch went to Berliner, LA, 30 September 1968.

All '68 Commandos were fastbacks, and you need to be careful with the fiberglass tank - don't put ethanol-containing gas in it, even if it was coated with something. There's a site, http://www.pure-gas.org/ that lists E0 fuel stations.

Well maintained such early Commandos seem to be highly prized by their owners.
Fully maintaining any bike is an expensive business, but there is a danger the baby has been thrown out with the bath water ??

This one doesn't seem to have mention that its frame has been replaced, or strengthened ?,
as it needs to have been. (as mentioned above).

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Norton-Comman ... 0947015191


'original Dunlop WM3 rims' ??????

Yes, Rohan, those wheels do not look original - are they 18 inch/alloy?

It certainly is a hansome machine and has been on ebay for about a month with a buy it now price of £15000. Prices have gone a bit daft over here recently with tidy Mk3s going for £6-8,000. With 60% of Commandos going to the United States, you guys are a lot better off than us when it comes to availability.

The 1968 Commando factory frame and engine numbers matched, the frame number was stamped on the left side of the headstock. I don't know what the dealers did when the newer frames were substituted for the widowmaker, as far as numbers on the new frame.
I bought a 68 with 22k miles on it, original frame. There is a plate welded at the top of the down-tubes, and something was welded inside the large backbone tube just behind the headstock. I had a tube welded on, as was done for the upgrade. You do have to re mount the coils, and you need a different mount, or a different head steady also. If you go with a Boyer Ignition make sure you have 6 volt coils, not the 12 volt ones.
The more I work on this bike I realize that there is very little information about it. As previously stated, many parts were used only on the 68 Commmando. Still when you fire it up and take it for a ride, it's all worth it.
I have never seen an original 68 with alloy wheels, only chrome. The one on ebay is really nice, but for that amount of cash.........