961 Sport by......John Deere

Good Evening all,
Still getting to grips with my Norton so a couple of questions if I may.
I rode up to my local triumph dealer to book my Sprint in for a service and spoke to the guys up there - long standing relationship - the senior technician had a look at the Norton, all positive and then started the bike up. He asked if it should sound like it does as he thought it a bit agricultural, I said it sounded as it had since I collected from the factory - obviously not as smooth as a Bonneville 120 or a thruxton. I have not yet had the chance to compare with another Norton - few and far between! So does it sound right?
Secondly, now I have a few more miles on the bike I am able to “push on” a bit At a constant 80 ish I am getting some noticeable vibrations through the right foot peg- does this diminish with the first service?
Thanks
John

The sound is „normal“ at any rate for a 961. Source is the clutch basket. Egli has a modification which helps to keep it within a reasonable range for a couple of thousand miles at least.
But if you plan to change the original ones to open pipes, the sound of the clutch can be endured. At very least this could change though with first service (if you change pipes), but I don’t think vibrations will diminish after service...

Vibrations go away if you BALANCE the balance shaft and replace ALL the bearings in the engine. Or —- just deal with it nothing bad will happen.

richard-7 said:

Vibrations go away if you BALANCE the balance shaft and replace ALL the bearings in the engine. Or —- just deal with it nothing bad will happen.

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Ha!
...grow a pair then?

Yes the pipes will drown out the engine noise a bit, as will a Hedon Helmet, but its just a case of getting use to a different engine that isn't as advanced (nor does it want to be) as a japanese 4 cylinder machine. A proper engine with bits flying about in oil

The vibes are the result of somewhat poor QA/QC in manufacturing tolerance/alignment between the crankshaft and balancer shafts.
Previous threads have revealed this, but it's not a serious issue that effects reliability.
It's best that you find through riding the 961 the best RPM with lowest vibes for comfortable cruising.

The vibes on my 961 are worst around 4400-4700 RPM. They are annoying, but certainly not serious.
So I normally cruise around 4000-4200 RPM or an indicated 70+mph.

I sometimes ride with my sportbike buddies, who enjoy cruising at around 90.
The 961 is very smooth at 5200 RPM at indicated 90mph.

Fast Eddie was right when he called it a "bag of nails."

Mine sounded like nuts and bolts rattling around in a bin but got easier on the ears after a while , it`s just how it is. You expect it and accept it. It`s a NORTON, an ICON of Brit bikes and not a modern triumph or any jap bike. Good bikes all of them but everybody has them.

First service and new shorties and de-cat ,the sound is all good and a rare sight to see.

BritTwit said:

The vibes are the result of somewhat poor QA/QC in manufacturing tolerance/alignment between the crankshaft and balancer shafts.
Previous threads have revealed this, but it's not a serious issue that effects reliability.
It's best that you find through riding the 961 the best RPM with lowest vibes for comfortable cruising.

The vibes on my 961 are worst around 4400-4700 RPM. They are annoying, but certainly not serious.
So I normally cruise around 4000-4200 RPM or an indicated 70+mph.

I sometimes ride with my sportbike buddies, who enjoy cruising at around 90.
The 961 is very smooth at 5200 RPM at indicated 90mph.

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Sound advice - thanks, will play around to see what works for me although may then need to play around after first service
Good excuse to get out and ride

Unlike some that cruise at a respectable 4 to 4200....I prefer going past the vibe zone and cruise at what I call the sweet spot....4800, or 80mph.

I barely notice the engine noise now EXCEPT when I wear my open face helmet.

When I was running my bike in I got quite concerned how harsh the vibes were getting as I approached 4k rpm but I've since found that my bike smoothes out again shortly past 4k. The best zone is without doubt 4500 - 6000.

MxMartin said:

I barely notice the engine noise now EXCEPT when I wear my open face helmet.

When I was running my bike in I got quite concerned how harsh the vibes were getting as I approached 4k rpm but I've since found that my bike smoothes out again shortly past 4k. The best zone is without doubt 4500 - 6000.

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Thanks
As Brittwit says, I need to find the sweet spot - excuse to play more frequently
Only really noticed it yesterday as I got a chance to ride at 80+ for about 9 miles - previously pottering around at 3500 rpm ....
Definitely not a bike to just get on and ride, you actively have to stop it trying to throw you off.
John

Eljahara said:

Good Evening all,
Still getting to grips with my Norton so a couple of questions if I may.
I rode up to my local triumph dealer to book my Sprint in for a service and spoke to the guys up there - long standing relationship - the senior technician had a look at the Norton, all positive and then started the bike up. He asked if it should sound like it does as he thought it a bit agricultural, I said it sounded as it had since I collected from the factory - obviously not as smooth as a Bonneville 120 or a thruxton. I have not yet had the chance to compare with another Norton - few and far between! So does it sound right?
Secondly, now I have a few more miles on the bike I am able to “push on” a bit At a constant 80 ish I am getting some noticeable vibrations through the right foot peg- does this diminish with the first service?
Thanks
John

Click to expand...

The triumph technician listens to triumph s all day long, so being an engineer he may of been concerned at the rattle,buts that’s only cause he prob not heard or seen one b4, my mates 750 roadster sounds the same ,it’s the norm, run the bike in exactly how Norton say , open it up gradually as the revs allow & u will be fine, get 1000 miles out the way & u won’t look back , quirky bike but a great looker for sure, I had a 955 new & that was back & forth to dealer , I quite enjoyed the different loan bikes I had whilst warranty work was done at the time, try get to the ACE CAFE in sept, we will all start chatting bout that towards end of August I imagine & finalise a firm date , u done the right thing keeping the bike, it’s a an adults meccano set after all. I may do a few minor things on bike, but I’ll always deal direct with the factory or an authorised dealer , I got 5 stamps in the book now .

I think the title of your thread is a little harsh, even disrespectful...

To John Deere tractors...

BLIGHTYBRIT/SF said:

The triumph technician listens to triumph s all day long, so being an engineer he may of been concerned at the rattle,buts that’s only cause he prob not heard or seen one b4, my mates 750 roadster sounds the same ,it’s the norm, run the bike in exactly how Norton say , open it up gradually as the revs allow & u will be fine, get 1000 miles out the way & u won’t look back , quirky bike but a great looker for sure, I had a 955 new & that was back & forth to dealer , I quite enjoyed the different loan bikes I had whilst warranty work was done at the time, try get to the ACE CAFE in sept, we will all start chatting bout that towards end of August I imagine & finalise a firm date , u done the right thing keeping the bike, it’s a an adults meccano set after all. I may do a few minor things on bike, but I’ll always deal direct with the factory or an authorised dealer , I got 5 stamps in the book now .

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The ACE sounds tempting, I have the Essex and Herts motorcycle run on 9th, big fundraiser for a good cause and attracts about 3000 participants. Looking at your post on the ACE get together, I really like the monochrome union Jack on the bike in the video - any idea where I might get a similar decal?
Thanks
John