69 "S" Phoenix rises again

DogT said:

They sent me a picture of one and it is the right one.

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Dave, as usual, thanks a lot for the info - I guess by the time my Roadster is done I owe you to put a eulogy plaque on that thing .... ;-)


Tim

Erich,
Yes, thanks for the addition. Some of my dates don't seem to add up correctly between the dates and the numbers. I suppose at some point people may have changed the date on the plate, they certainly couldn't change the number unless they switched out the motor and trans and started using the motor number instead of the frame number. I don't know, anything can happen.

Dave
69S

Thanks Dave,

It was also Norton, and their assembly may have been different. IIRC one of the Norton books I have mentions that they set up the basic chassis and power plant first, then built finished machines as needed. There could be number variances from the factory. From what I understood, the D/69 would be the build date for mine (built as a '70), and May 1970 would be the dispatch date to North America.

For the central oil tank, I am curious as to your routing of the oil lines for the added filter. I still need to do that.
Mine is down in bits for the winter waiting on new parts for a rebuild. I have a Fastback tank that I am fitting to it, along with a different seat. It means I need to get a set of later style side covers to fit with the tank, but should be nice in the end. Gonna paint it the medium blue that I currently have on the bike. I still want to recover the original seat, and repaint the original bits back to the fire flake red in case I decide to put is back to stock appearance.

You have put together a nice machine there. Hope it gives you many fun miles.

My seat cover for my 70 also came from RK Leighton i am very happy with it, i have both an early [pre 71] short mudguard stay [same as i used on my 70] and also a 1" longer pre 71 stay which hopefully my freind John will use as patterns to reproduce some this year I think the fastback and R used the longer the ones and the S & Roadster used the shorter stays.

A freind also has had early centre stands reproduced over here.

hi Dave hope u dont mind me posting a pic on ur thread, thought u wouldnt mind seems its related (70 type 's'), this is my tank i got of ebay really happy with it steel too and no rust at all inside, one tiny dint in the rear to fix but thats easy, im happy hopefully make a lot more progress this year like all u guys have, well done!

Possm and Adam, thanks for the input. No worry about hijacking the thread, it may be nice to keep the early info in one place, or maybe not, I don't know. Possm, that's good to know about RK Leighton, I was just going on recommendations.

Erich, when you put the filter on, it is real apparent how the lines go. Not much to worry about. Only thing you have to deal with is the inside timing block pipe is the return and goes to the 'in' on the filter, right side. 'Out' on filter, left side, goes to return on oil tank (small banjo). Feed line from tank (large banjo) goes to outside pipe of timing block to the pump. Old Britts has a good write up on putting on the oil filter. They also have the brass compression gaskets for the small banjo, you have to call and ask Ella for 14698. I didn't put any extra shielding on the lines, just used standard 3/8" gas and oil line after I un-soldered and removed those barbed things on the pipes.



Dave
69S

Thanks for the pic. I was wondering if the barbs could be heated and sweated off the banjos. Would definitely make finding oil line easier.

I've got to get that white tie wrap off that pipe and put a black one on.

Dave
69S

Dave, with so much information on one type of commando I'm sure there is a book here somewhere! Then again I guess thats exactly what this forum is all about. One huge data base of info. I was interested to see your pic of the oil tank and plumbing and I hope you don't mind me posting a couple of more pics. As you can see I seem to have an extra small oil feed which rises and is terminated under the seat. I guess this was for a chain oiler??

Regards, Mark.

Yes, that little line is the chain oiler. It was the first modification I made to the bike when I got it. Crimped it shut and soldered it. You can't see it in my picture because I have it turned over and it points backwards. I forget how it was all hooked up and routed, but the centre bolt in the chain guard held the end of it. There was plenty of oil leaking around everything to oil the chain, rear wheel and inside the rear guard, transmission, cradle, and plenty left for a puddle under the bike. I also used to get a lot of oil coming out of that hole in the front of the oil tank, that hole goes up into that 'top hat' thing on top of the oil tank and ends there. Breather for the oil tank. It would drip down on top of the trans and the bike was always a mess behind the motor. So far, nothing is coming out of that hole, but I only have 10 miles on it. Some people have trouble and some don't. If I do, I may operate on the oil tank to try to get that breather so no oil can get into it, or run a separate line from that hole down to drip on the ground instead of the trans. I think 69750S (Bruce in Juarez) does that. I solved the oil leaks with Prematex Blue Racing formula Hylomar for all the gaskets and the flange on the crank cases (thanks to hobot). Expensive but effective, $15/1.2oz., but it will do the whole bike.

My plan for the drive chain is to oil it periodically, and when it stretches, get a new one, they are less than $30 from OB. You can spend well over $100 on one though.

Dave
69S

Dave i think i read in the Walridge cataloque that they stock leighton seat covers

Alan, yes I see that now in their 2010-11 catalogue. Both the seat and cover, they probably get the foam from them too. I still contend that the S and Roadster had a logo on the back of the seat. Here's a picture from the 'S and Roadster Riders Handbook'. If you notice too, there are less than 16 pleats on that cover in the picture. Being anal.



Now whether it's silver or gold is up to your latest proclivity. I remember it as silver. I think I would have noticed a gold colour. Nothing else on the bike is gold unless you strip off some of the plating on the control cable ends and the oil block on the timing cover and that is actually brass, and some of the decal colours.

I really like the decals I got from John, just wish they had a metallic gold colour to them, but then I am getting too picky. At least they don't pucker up like the Andover ones. One of these days I'm going to take one of the panels with a new decal on it to the body shop and see if they will put the 2-pack clear on it for me for a test.

Dave
69S

It is hard to see especially if you get distracted by the handsome guy in the background, but the Norton logo was stamped on the back of my '69 "S" and it was gold in color. I will try to find a better picture, but beleive me it won't be pretty because I'm now much older :wink:

Jean



It is amazing how acrappy pictures of the time were compared with what can be taken with modern digital cameras.

A pic of my '70 Roadster before I tore her down for a rebuild this winter (motor has been replaced by a '74 850). Seat has no logo on the back, but I am not sure if there was one there before, since it was well used before I go it.

A sign shop can make a stencil to paint seat logo and vendors sell them too.

If-n it was my Cdo I'd forgo any oiling of any plain chain especially at DogT's price.
Unless you oil enough to make as much mess as the factory oiler you ain't gonna
extend life much beyond clean and dry. Chains don't really stretch much to detect its the ware and tear of clearances. Fit new chain and try to lift out the rear sprocket valleys to get sense of what is normal. Chain tension has no effect on this.
When links can be lifted out valley thats where they ride and apply drive force and wear teeth down. After 1/3 lift out of valley I start thinking new chain vs new teeth.

What odd balls these early Cdo's are, glad I don't have to know the stuff like yoose poor guys do lower down the Norton evolution scale : )

Wonder if a microscope would reveal any trace of color in the nooks and crannies of the seat mat'l?

I've been using one at work this week to look at silicone rubber with metal conductive flakes in it so it seems like the thing to do right now. It is amazing what shows up and what a great tool your eyes and brain can be.

Also use a strong light.

I really don't think there is any colour left in my old seat logo. Just a shadow, but maybe tomorrow in the sun I'll get it out with the best magnifier I have and see if anything comes of it.



Jean, yeah, I can see some gold in there. When was that in the mid-70's? You must be an old cranky fart like me now.

hobot, I think we older bike anal-ists just like to tickle things to death, at my age there is nothing left to do.

Dave
69S

DogT said:

Jean, yeah, I can see some gold in there. When was that in the mid-70's? You must be an old cranky fart like me now.

Click to expand...

That picture is probably 1972, my "S" was a '69 which I bought new as a "leftover" in early 1970. As you can see, it didn't stay stock very long, the rims were changed to alloy, many parts painted, the hi level exhaust was cahnged to low level and I added Dunstall Decibel mufflers. One thing is for sure I am old and I hope to keep getting older for a good while :wink:

Jean

I just looked at my seat in the sunlight and it appears to be faded gold (yellow). Friday I was handed a binder with a stack of receipts for mine (going back three owners) and among them was a slip that included an " 's' seat -used $40.00" dated Mar.'85 from a vendor called British Marketing in Laguna Niguel, Calif. Man, there was alot of money spent on this bike, especially in mid '80's dollars. It must have had one heck of a rough life. By the early -mid "90's it was back in pieces again.
Dave, thanks for the tip on the chainguard.

Stay warm,


Tom