Awesome ride! - It's worth all the sweat!

Bought a '75 Mark 3 a few months ago. It had been sitting most of the time for the past 15 years and needed plenty of TLC (and $ and sweat). Also had a valve job done a few weeks ago.

Well, I finally got to 1000 miles after the valve job and decided to take it for its frist real ride - holy shit!

Did a blast up Interstate 5 from North San Diego county to Orange County. The Norton easily kept pace with t 80 to 90 mph traffic on the freeway. What a great feeling to blast along at high speed! Bike was smooth and strong. Big grin from me.

Then it was a blast east on Ortega Highway - full of twisties, with hundreds of bikes out - harleys, sportbikes, you name it. The Commando just gobbled up the twisty, windy highway with speed and confidence - taking the turns like a hot knife through butter.

Got some astonished looks passing crotch rockets at 70 or 80 - these guys couldn't figure out what was going on.

Even gave my buddy a turn for a few miles . He's got Italian and Japanese sportbikes, but after a few miles of his first ever ride on a Commando, he was jumping up and down with glee "...wow, what a ride - never rode anything like it before - where can i get one..."

All in all - an awesome 200 mile ride. Wow - all that work and cash is worth it. What an incredible piece of machinery. The Norton has definitely moved to the front of the line in my garage.

But you guys already know all this... right?

Get out there - ride safe, but ride hard.

Keith in Encinitas

Keith-
I too can share the same enthusiasm for the MK3. I am restoring my second one as we speak and can't wait to get it back on the road. Some may poke a bit at the later Nortons, saying they are slower, less responsive, etc., but Ive restored many an old bike, large and small displacement, and my MK3 feels like it could pull the foundation out from under my house from a dead stop. I have to say, this old Brit iron catches a bad wrap by those outside its quirky little circle of devoted and psychotic riders--welcome to that circle. My Norton has never left me at a stop light, the gas station, or even my shop, disabled. Even running badly, my British Mistress has always brought me home.
Jason Delacroix
Bakersfield, Ca

Keith, Glad you like it that's good for the bike. I remember a long thread trying to help you seen here: http://accessnorton.com/norton_commando2228-15.html
As often happens that thread went no where because you never came back to say what you found to be the problem. Could you fix this? At least add to the list of things that have been found wrong on our Norton's?That I started on that thread. So much nicer when reading the old posts with titles to problems when you find the answer at the end.

Mark III

Hey Keith,

I JUST PICKED UP A MARK III MYSELF, DO YOU MIND SENDING ME YOUR EMAIL. THIS IS MY FIRST BIKE EVER! AND I GOT IT FOR A STEAL $800.00 COMPLETE NOT RUNNING. I WOULD LIKE TO ASK YOU SOME QUESTIONS AND GET SOME DETAILED PICTURES TO HELP WITH MY REBUILD. THANKS

inloes77@yahoo.com

Add me to the list of Mark III lovers.

My '75 is the best riding highway bike of my current stable of 20+ classic Britbikes including a 750 Bonnie special and a '75 T160 Trident.

I did a 600 mile day to, through, and back from, the Texas hill country in one day with no issues except a loosening exhaust nut which eventually had to be fixed because I "never got around" to properly tightening and securing it.

It's a great bike.