75 850 Electric MarkIII JPS

Folks -

New to Nortons but have owned BMW's and host of Japanese bikes. Restoring a CB400F now..

My riding buddy's neighbor inherited this from a distant relative. Lost title, 7800 miles, last run in '83. Has not been dropped, paint is original and missing air box.

Don't have a photo URL handy but wanted opinions on value and whether this would be a good first British twin project to add to my small collection?

Looks like parts are readily available and I love the sound of these bikes.

I have a friend who used to work with Kenny Dreer when they were trying to resurrect the Norton brand here in the US so there's another reason for my interest.

Thanks much for your opinions...

Andy --

Missing title is the main concern. All else is relative.
Do the numbers match, engine and frame ( gearbox too is good). This may give you an avenue to trace ownership. Depending on its overall condition and the ability to title it, 5 to 10 g's. Sorry for the wide margin but it matches the info you have given.

10 g's for a bike last run in 1983 ?
Perhaps you overlooked that bit...
Doesn't say what year or model it is either

Could probably halve the numbers in those prices.
Depending on why it was parked, could require anything up to a full and complete rebuild.

Sounds like fun !
Show us a pic, and go for it...

Rohan said:

Doesn't say what year or model it is either

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Well, the title of the thread is: "75 850 Electric MarkIII JPS"

Rohan said:

10 g's for a bike last run in 1983 ?

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People will pay a premium for JPS.

Thats what you get for running several screens at once...
Ooops.

JPS auctions I've noted don't seem to get big bids ?
"A sheep in wolfs clothing" was the summary of one road test I recall.
Amd the Mk3 were even slower, and heavier.

Fairing kits were around a while back too - I found a cast-off one, bit tatty though.
Doesn't make a genuine bike of course.

Can you check if they are genuine, or a bolt on ?

Rohan said:

JPS auctions I've noted don't seem to get big bids ?
"A sheep in wolfs clothing" was the summary of one road test I recall.
Amd the Mk3 were even slower, and heavier.

Fairing kits were around a while back too - I found a cast-off one, bit tatty though.
Doesn't make a genuine bike of course.

Can you check if they are genuine, or a bolt on ?

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There weren't any genuine production "John Player" 850 MkIII JPN models.

http://www.andover-norton.co.uk/NCJPN.htm


This particular MkIII "JPS" is probably one of the "White" (with Blue and Red stripe) MkIII Roadsters.

The Roadster carried on into the 850 series, offered in its final form amongst other colour schemes as the Mk3 "White with Navy Stripe Blue" variant below, which I have seen offered for sale wrongly described as "John Player Norton", or even "John Player Replica".

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Thats what we initially thought this thread was about. ?

Maybe the OP could clarify ...

L.A.B. said:

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I will say it again. Original paint in good condition in this scheme will fetch a premium.

pete.v said:

I will say it again. Original paint in good condition in this scheme will fetch a premium.

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IF the bike is also in great condition ?
This one has had it all done - by the sound of it...
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Norton-8 ... 0981217837

Parked 30 years could be quite a different kettle'o'fish.
And the price should reflect that ?

Rohan said:

pete.v said:

I will say it again. Original paint in good condition in this scheme will fetch a premium.

Click to expand...

IF the bike is also in great condition ?
This one has had it all done - by the sound of it...
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Norton-8 ... 0981217837

Parked 30 years could be quite a different kettle'o'fish.
And the price should reflect that ?

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I said 5 to 10. How come you don't pick on me for the 5 number. I hope he can manage a title. I'd hate to see some wnaker get it just to part it out.
The ebay unit is almost to 9g's. 5 days left with 24 bids aleady. That one mey go for 12. We'll see.

We haven't seen it yet, but if he pays 10k for it, it sounds seriously too much ?
If you'd said 5k to 6k, we would have all nodded in agreement.
And wondered if he'd paid enough or too much. !
It doesn't go, after all. ?

We'll see on that other one.
Seems/sounds like one of the best bikes in RWB (red white blue) to show for a long time ?
We haven't seen it, or ridden it to try it though.

ag12680 said:

My riding buddy's neighbor inherited this from a distant relative. Lost title, 7800 miles, last run in '83. Has not been dropped, paint is original and missing air box.

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The first question might be why was it parked up.
Its fairly straight forward,if it was a minor problem (air box missing :?: ) and was stored properly,was a good bike then and now and would come back with time and elbow grease mostly then it is worth something and that something has some bearing on what you want to pay and how much you want it.
If it is a bike that had some problem that put it off the road and it was simply pushed in to a corner 30 years ago it might very well be a money pit even if you got it cheap (under $4500 in the US)
For every nice Brit bike be assured there are a dozen lemons waiting for the next starry eyed savior. :lol:

The MkIII on eBay has multiple bids from low %ers with a week to go.
Some are bidding on so many other auctions that it is registering 0% on that sellers auction.
The problem with eBay these days is you can not see the history of the other bidders,In the past I had shut down many shill bid sellers with a little homework.
There also seems to be a lot of people who simply like to bid then renege should they win,eBay prices are also like the tides,up down and all around compared to Craigslist where Nortons seem cheap to pick up.

Time Warp said:

Some are bidding on so many other auctions that it is registering 0% on that sellers auction.

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Interesting observation.
Their full-time missions in life appear to be to bid on as many auctions as possible !?

How many genuine bidders would be prepared to go against that...

Thanks for all the fast responses folks... While I get a photo going here are the answers to your questions...

It is the same bike as shown in the current eBay listing. PO put pull back bars, a Vetter fairing and Bates rear trunk on it. Apparently, he had health issues and parked the bike in his garage in Las Vegas (circa 1983) which explains its relatively better condition than a higher humidity climate. Numbers match and the motor looks untouched save for the missing airbox. Still has twin Amals, good stock seat. Has a two into one aftermarket pipe but comes with the originals. Motor turns over... Oil lines look soft, brake masters hold no pressure. Engine cases dull but not oxidized. Chrome is good. Tank and side covers are pristine. Rear shocks show rust. Title can be replaced if current owner can document inheritance. Or lost/salvage title with a bond worst case. If I bought it - I'd buy to keep. Have always bought well and sold poorly when it comes to bikes. My thought would be to get rid of the touring stuff, return to original bars, get it running and just enjoy it without diving into a restoration. I've timed Kawasaki Triples with three sets of points so not afraid of working with the old stuff but sounds like making it reliable would mean doing a minimum sets of mods from reading the forum. Just don't have the stomach for a money pit project and want to know what a fair price would be. There's a nice 73 on craigslist I've seen for $5500 though it's not white/red/blue.

Thanks again. Will get pics up...

Entertaining thread. I noticed its the rare Gary Player edition in the eBay ad??? 1 of 1.

quote="Rohan"]Thats what you get for running several screens at once...
Ooops.

That's what you get for bird dogging too many people at once, lol.

ag12680 said:

Have always bought well and sold poorly when it comes to bikes.

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I've never been much for selling in general,of the 30 motorcycles I have brought since 1976 I still have 21 of them.
This Mk3 sounds like a bike where a brass wire brush,can of silicone spray and some 0000 steel wool would do wonders on the alloy and tin foil and water on the chrome the same.

They say the longer you're married the more bikes you're going to need.

They also say,you have to get married one day,you can't be happy all your life.