Commando Instrument Number List

L.A.B. I had some instruments restored in Australia fairly recently by a chap (sadly now retired) who will make any instrument out of any core. He could reprint the dials and any other work required, so the fact that some bikes may have two separate instruments with the same number is not entirely inexplicable. They could originally both have been speedos or tachos and been repaired by a previous owner.

dave M said:

the fact that some bikes may have two separate instruments with the same number is not entirely inexplicable. They could originally both have been speedos or tachos and been repaired by a previous owner.

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Mike mcmanus mentioned that he had a speedo and tacho with identical numbers, and he was good enough to send me some photos.
Basically, I came to the same conclusion that the two instruments could have been repaired and the dials possibly reprinted, as the dials were marked a little differently to the normal style, also the (Veglia) speedo had no trip counter, and the green globe logo on the speedo appeared to have been printed the reverse way around, the 'shadowed' part of the globe being to the left side instead of the right!

G'day Dave,

Did you get your gauges done by OTTO Intruments in Brisbane or elsewhere and L.A.B. wouldn't the exclusion of a trip meter require more than just a few cosmetic changes, i imagine the whole inner workings would be significantly different to a speedo with a trip meter :?:

Mike.

mike mcmanus said:

wouldn't the exclusion of a trip meter require more than just a few cosmetic changes, i imagine the whole inner workings would be significantly different to a speedo with a trip meter :?:

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No, I don't think so, as the inner parts (even between speedo and tacho) are very similar, just the trip number wheels and a couple of extra parts are added to make a 'trip' speedo from a 'non-trip' speedo.
And to 'blank off' the trip is really a case of fitting a dial without the trip slot.
This prompted me to test a Norton speedo and tacho, and, by spinning them up with a battery drill to the drills' full 'low speed' setting , remarkably the needles on both speedo and tacho moved around to approximately the same point on each dial ! So converting a speedo to work as a tacho could just be a matter of changing dials? To do the opposite extra parts will obviously be needed.

This interchageability was certainly true of chronometrics. War Department units have no trip but inside, the basic "frame" for the movement has the lugs for the trip wheels and the paper gasket under the dial plate even has a cutout for the trip.

I did once, out of idle curiousity, put a speedo on the tacho cable and as L.A.B. says, the scale of movement seems comparable. (How to make your motorcycle look like it's doing 100mph standing still )

Do we know why the "Green spot" clocks have no trips ? Was it just cost saving on Norton's part ? Other SSMs had them in the 1960's, didn't they L.A.B. ?

79x100 said:

Do we know why the "Green spot" clocks have no trips ? Was it just cost saving on Norton's part ? Other SSMs had them in the 1960's, didn't they L.A.B. ?

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As you say, purely a cost-cutting measure I would think?

Mike, My instruments were done by Dennis Quinlan of KTT Instrument Services in Sydney, a wonderful craftsman who restored the Ivan Rhodes Velocette-project instruments for the National Motorcycle Museum as his swan song. Dennis has now retired and become a full-time Jazz musician. I personally am thinking of packing in the Jazz and repairing speedos instead, I suppose the grass is always greener!

Things must have been pretty tough for Norton at that stage , you would think the amount of money saved wouldn't amount to "a hill of beans", hey dave sounds like there's more money playing jazz than fixing instruments 8)

Mike.

My numbers

These are my numbers for my 1973 Interstate with matching numbers (302144):

Speedo- 09190919900 (green dot w/trip odometer)
Tach - 09200909900 (green dot)

Thanks Del,

Those (Veglia) numbers would seem to correspond with what I have listed for 1973.


Due to the latest responses the list has now got left behind on p2, so I've brought it forward as it has also been updated when more information became available.


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SMITHS SPEEDOMETERS


MPH speedos are normally marked; *1000 turns = 1 Mile*

SSM 3001/02 150 MPH (1968-70) Solid Green Spot

SSM-3001/02A 150 MPH (19??) Green Globe Logo (this could be a later replacement part?)

SSM 3001/09 150 MPH (1971-74) Green Globe

SSM 3001/10 240 KPH 600 turns (1972) [1971-74?] Green Globe

SSM 4003/00 150 MPH + Trip odometer (1975-on) NVT

SSM 4003/01 240 KPH 600 turns + Trip odometer NVT known to be used on Triumph 750 Bonneville/Tiger 75/76. Possibly also Commando 850 MkIII ?

SMITHS TACHOMETERS 4:1

RSM 3003/10 9k RPM (1968-69) Solid Green spot. No red zone

RSM 3003/10A (added to this list: 12/2009)

RSM 3003/12 9k RPM (Commando 'S' 1970) Solid Green Spot? 7,000 RPM Red zone

RSM 3003/15 9k RPM (1971-74) Green Globe

RSM 3003/(21) 10k RPM (1975-on) NVT


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VEGLIA SPEEDOMETERS (also used in pairs as well as Smiths types but only fitting the deeper black instrument housings used from 1973-on)

09190909900 (1973-74) 240 km/h + Trip, Green Globe, 'Norton'

09190919900 (1973-74) 150 MPH + Trip meter, Green Globe and 'Norton'
1000 turns = 1 Mile

0919 090 9911 240 K/MH + Trip odometer (1975) NVT

0919 091 9911 150 MPH + Trip odometer (1975) NVT


VEGLIA TACHOMETERS 4:1

09200909900 9k (1973-74) Green Globe and 'Norton'

0920 090 9911 10k (1975) NVT


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At least one instance an owner having both a Veglia speedo and tacho sharing the same number *09200909900*. The speedo unusually has no trip counter and the tacho having no redline marking. Certain details suggest that these instruments could have been refurbished or modified at some time, and the dial/s re-printed, as the dials seem to have a slightly different style to the more commonly available type?

Here is another speedo from a mkIII on ebay (280050656511) with alledgedly matching numbers (335820)

It doesn't prove anything as it may not be original but it's another 4003/00 1000