Black barrels - Siver barrels

Status
Not open for further replies.
L

L.E.N.

Joined
Dec 12, 2012
Messages
115
Country flag
I was reading the Fire Flake Blue topic and it was mentioned that all "73's had siver barrels. I have a 1973 850 with serial number 305750 (matching #'s) that has black barrels and looks to be original. It is a Dunstall, did Paul have them painted black?
 
I have a 1973 Commando 850 which was purchased by the original owner (I'm the 2nd owner) from a Dunstall dealer while he was in the service in Europe. The only thing special it has is the 2 -1-2 exhaust and it has a silver barrel. I know it was purchased from Dunstall because I asked the original owner to apply for another title so I could keep the one that said the seller was Paul Dunstall, London. Personally I think the barrel looks better black.

Dave
 
I had two 850 Roadsters with 1973 dates on the frame tags, but one was late enough in 73' that it might have been considered a 74 model. The early one had a silver cylinder, the late one had black. They were both original paint bikes, the early one metalflake blue with silver pinstripe and the later one black with gold. What is the date stamped in the tag riveted to your steering head?
 
According to the Dunstall catalog, every Dunstall Commando through 1973 had silver barrels, whether 750, 810, or 850
http://www.woodgate.org/dunstall/models.html
http://www.woodgate.org/dunstall/73nor4.html

Standard '73 850s had silver barrels. '73 750s had black barrels if the brochures and ads are correct.
Black barrels - Siver barrels

Black barrels - Siver barrels

http://www.classicbike.biz/Norton/Brochures/1970/1973NortonLineUp.pdf
 
I had a mid-73 850 with black cylinders.
I took the rusting silver cylinders off, and replaced them with nice new looking black ones. :mrgreen:
Looked much more 'original' after this was done than the rusty wreck it was bought as.

NEVER discount the PO (previous owner) possibility.....
 
Good points all. The date stamp is 7/73. It looks as though there is not any "one way" here. I'm not sure that the PO didn't change things because he certainly did on other areas. But the paint and engine barrels look untampered with.
 
L.E.N. said:
But the paint and engine barrels look untampered with.
Click to expand...

A good painter and a good mechanic should leave no sign that they have been there, vis-vis a factory finish.
Likewise a good restorer.

Except for their business cards, and receipts, in the filing cabinet, shoebox, etc....
 
seems quite definite that your barrels were originally silver as many have said

and someone before you must have painted them black at some point, like most people do
 
Standard '73 850s had silver barrels. '73 750s had black barrels if the brochures and ads are correct.
Click to expand...

The brochure you refer to is the later one which really only covered the 850's and the never-seen short stroke roadster with 850-style barrel in black. There is another earlier brochure which has all the 750's and all in silver. I have a copy and will scan and post it when I get time.

All the 750 MkV's (S/N 22XXXX) with black clock holders and square taillight had silver barrels. To confuse the issue, many ads in 1973 showed the '72 model with silver clock holders, small taillight and black barrels. I know a lot of Tpeople preferred the black barrels so it is likely shops painted the barrels to make a sale.

This is a recent photo of my '73 750 just like I bought it 40 years ago (except for the Corbin seat). I have another I bought about 15 years ago and it has silver barrels as well.
Black barrels - Siver barrels
 
Mine looks to be more along the lines of the Mk 3 version since it has only a single disc brake, but it also has none of the Dunstall decals and also has the higher bars seen on the Sprint versions and also has no fairing. Perhaps when imported to the USA there was some variations made for the US market (Mk3 Sprint ?). Or it could have been entirely a PO installed kit.
 
I only know Combat thankyou very much so know that the real cream of the crop Commando Bomb was the 1st Commando distinguished by their Bad Ass Black High Heated Barrels and any lessor Norton after the Combat was only colored to try to suck on its bad ass well deserved image from the Real Bad Bart Black Hearted Combat Commando. Anyone as well as Norton can paint it Black but Black originally meant Combat Bomb in all the meanings of the adverb.
 
Ron L said:
Standard '73 850s had silver barrels. '73 750s had black barrels if the brochures and ads are correct.
Click to expand...

The brochure you refer to is the later one which really only covered the 850's and the never-seen short stroke roadster with 850-style barrel in black. There is another earlier brochure which has all the 750's and all in silver. To confuse the issue, many ads in 1973 showed the '72 model with silver clock holders, small taillight and black barrels. I know a lot of people preferred the black barrels so it is likely shops painted the barrels to make a sale.
Click to expand...

This thing with incorrect info in the brochures is especially prevalent in the P11 ads. The machines changed details so quickly that copy was obsolete before it went to print.

When I first did my 850 I painted the barrels black...then I saw the SuperPlus ad.

I'd like to see that early '73 brochure Ron, when you have time :mrgreen:
 
Thanks, Ron.

I think of '73s as 850s, but the 850 didn't go on sale until the Spring of '73. Makes sense that the early '73 model year catalog wouldn't even mention them.
 
I have to add, the 69 - 70 750 S models had silver barrels. I see them on Ebay from time to time with the barrels painted black. Which to me would scare a buyer away wondering if its not all the real deal.
 
While looking through my Norton Commando Parts Book, the cylinder part number is 063823. However, in my Mark II/IIA Supplement Sheets, the cylinder part number is 065074. Could this difference in part numbers mean the difference in color, or is there some other reason?
 
Another indication that both 750 and 850 had silver barrels for 1973 is page 71 of Roy Bacon's Norton Twins book. Peter Williams on an 850 Dave Croxford on the 750. Both have silver barrels. Caption "the two roadsters in 1973".
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top