Basket Case. . . How bad is bad?

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I was thinking that was the camera lens. It would be good to have a pro check it anyway, but straightening isn't that expensive. As fas as those trees go I never had a problem with them even when I wrecked the bike.
 
Cookie said:
I was thinking that was the camera lens. It would be good to have a pro check it anyway, but straightening isn't that expensive. As fas as those trees go I never had a problem with them even when I wrecked the bike.
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So you can confirm that the smaller horizontal tube is suppose to be straight, not bowed?

I would think the expensive part of frame straightening would be shipping it out. Do you think the trees are original?
 
Bonwit said:
So you can confirm that the smaller horizontal tube is suppose to be straight, not bowed
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YES, Is there any form of steering stops on the steering yokes or has it all been ground off :?:
 
splatt said:
Bonwit said:
So you can confirm that the smaller horizontal tube is suppose to be straight, not bowed
Click to expand...

YES, Is there any form of steering stops on the steering yokes or has it all been ground off :?:
Click to expand...

Not sure. . . I seem to recall the steering moving block to block.
 
splatt said:
Bonwit said:
So you can confirm that the smaller horizontal tube is suppose to be straight, not bowed
Click to expand...

YES, Is there any form of steering stops on the steering yokes or has it all been ground off :?:
Click to expand...

I just looked at the frame diagram in the online workshop manual. . . I see what you mean!
 
I recall the tube under the top tube is straight myself. Since I'm running a featherbed I can't just go out and check. What counts is where the mounting points are, if it needs to be straightened figure an extra $150- $200 if you can't do it yourself. These are prices around here in No. CA, not sure where you are and local costs. It helps if you have friends.
 
The bike is a 70 roadster [or may be 69/70 s type] from what i can see the rear guard still looks to have the "dent" that makes room for the tyre pump i ss an origonal centrestand in one of the pictures, these bikes are getting harder to find so if the frame can be fixed go for it.
 
Your bike is most likely a 69/70 "S" Type or a 70 Roadster, either being a fairly rare and collectable model Commando. Looking at the head pipes I would assume that it's a 1970 Roadster which is essentially an "S" with low exhaust (the way the pipe exits the head is also different than later Roadsters). Roy Bacon lists the "S" as falling between s/n 131257 and 134088 and the first Roadster starting at s/n 135140. The triple trees are factory correct 69/70 "S" or 70 Roadster. The oil tank is also 69/70 "S" or 70 Roadster. The two little covers attached to the lower tree/tube clamps are unobtanium. The flat wide seat is correct and if original, hard to find. The green dot guages are correct and also hard to find. The taillight housing being black and not metalflake silver may mean that the bike was originally delivered in a solid colour and not metalflake. The front fender is incorrect. Change the head steady to the Mark III box type as your original is prone to brakage. $.02 Regards, R Model Tony
 
R Model Tony said:
Your bike is most likely a 69/70 "S" Type or a 70 Roadster, either being a fairly rare and collectable model Commando. Looking at the head pipes I would assume that it's a 1970 Roadster which is essentially an "S" with low exhaust (the way the pipe exits the head is also different than later Roadsters). Roy Bacon lists the "S" as falling between s/n 131257 and 134088 and the first Roadster starting at s/n 135140. The triple trees are factory correct 69/70 "S" or 70 Roadster. The oil tank is also 69/70 "S" or 70 Roadster. The two little covers attached to the lower tree/tube clamps are unobtanium. The flat wide seat is correct and if original, hard to find. The green dot guages are correct and also hard to find. The taillight housing being black and not metalflake silver may mean that the bike was originally delivered in a solid colour and not metalflake. The front fender is incorrect. Change the head steady to the Mark III box type as your original is prone to brakage. $.02 Regards, R Model Tony
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Great information! Thanks Guys.

A couple of more questions if you don't mind. . . Given that the head pipes are different this year, will they be a pain to find, and/or cost a fortune?

I'm trying to understand the covers attached to the lower tree you describe. Not sure I understand. Are you talking about the small caps I see? What are they for? Any issues rebuilding this fork?

The seat pan appears in good shape. Are seat covers of this design available?

Regarding the color. . . Any idea how many solid colors were available that year? Are there paint codes available if one wants to restore to factory?

What's the difference between the '70 front fender and later? Will it be hard to find one?

Thanks again for all your input. It's great to have such knowledgeable experts on this forum. I can't tell you how thankful I am that I didn't buy this bike not knowing I had a bent frame to deal with. Hopefully, I can find someone in the Dallas, Texas area who can straighten it.

Regards,
 
I had a 70 with those forks, it went 110 over and over and over. I was frequently giving other kids thrill rides with it and it was steady as a rock.
I did not have the ring around the headlight if I recall.
It should take you at least ten minutes to get replacement pipes, I'd think the fender would not be hard either. Check Ebay, I've seen seat covers there too.
I think I had a total of three bikes from that age range from one time or another. I tended to buy them wrecked and use the best parts on my everyday rider. Off the top of my head two of them were solid colors and I think one was blue metal flake.
Actually I have friends who would be more likely to remember my bike colors than I would. Better memories.
As far as the head steady goes I think I made my own from some shock rubbers and steel. You have your choice of good ones these days.
 
Front fender looks like it was once original but was "bobbed". (Front brace removed and fender shortened.) This happened to a lot of front fenders of that era. Don't worry about "unobtainium" - It's out there.
 
Yep, somehow that happened to my front fender about 1971 or so. Kids with a hacksaw and too much time on our hands.
 
Use the headpipes that you have if they're in reasonable shape. They will be a pain to find if you're looking for an exact replacement. Compare the angle at which they exit the head to a later Roadster pipe. They're different.

The caps cover the studs and nuts which hold the headlight halo onto the trees and are cosmetic. A friend of mine looked for those unobtanium caps for ten years and ended up making them himself.

Seat covers are available through British Cycle Supply and the like..

Solid colours for 1970 were Signal Red, Canary Yellow and British Racing Green.

What you have is not a Norton Commando front fender. The chrome front fenders from 68 to 71 are all pretty much the same and they're getting hard to find. I rebuilt a piece of crap one for my 71 because of the unavailability. Photos of these fenders can be seen in the "Metalflake factory colors" thread.

Good luck with it. In my opinion it's a keeper and worthy of restoring.

Regards, "R" Model Tony
 
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