Fullauto's 850 rebuild

Well, it's been a long road. Three and a half long years ago I came to grief on my MK 1 850 Commando and considerable damage was done to my "works hack". It was a well sorted and generally a bit untidy bike, but beautiful to ride. It had done plenty of long trips with great joy along the way. Following the crash, it lay, forlorn and neglected while I (slowly) healed, still with some issues today. Finally it was dragged over to British Imports shop in Malaga, here in Perth, Western Australia. A rough timeline was given, a deposit paid for the purchase of parts and labour and the work finally began. A new frame, as the original was bent beyond repair and the bits and pieces put on a stand. Powdercoating went out and came back..............



The motor was torn down, cases cleaned, one of Jim Comstock's crankcase breathers was added and bits sent everywhere for various jobs to be done. I've never wanted a trailer queen, but, in the end, Ben convinced me that this bike will basically become my calling card, requiring that it remain clean, tidy and polished. I now see the wisdom of this move and should make this bike a cut above the average works hack, which it certainly is. The crankshaft, pistons, big end shells and various other bits plus gearbox bits (complete internals) were sent out for ceramic coating and micro polishing as appropriate.





Piston skirts and tops coated.





Camshaft coated with a NASA developed coating which works better with more pressure and heat and becomes very shiny with use.



Cylinder head. Combustion chambers and both inlet and exhaust ports ceramic coated, and valves.




That should do to whet your appetites. More to follow. The build should progress fairly quickly from here as I've given Ben until the 1st of August to have it finished.

Looking good.

You seem to have forgotten to include pics of shiny new alloy barrels though...

A very good looking bike behind the Commando !

You need transparent cases, barrel and head. Beauty of this bike is far from being skin deep.

Basic spec as follows, if not mentioned, standard parts are used.

Fullauto Technologies head, number 2. Ceramic coated combustion chambers, inlet and exhaust ports. Unported. Standard size Black Diamond valves, Ceramic coated.
PW3 cam. Lobes coated.
CNW single coil conversion.
TriSpark ignition. Fantastic product.
Maney barrels.
Hepolite pistons, skirts coated, tops ceramic coated.
Jim Comstock supplied conical valve springs.
Lifter blocks and rockers micropolished.
Jim Comstock crankcase breather.
Sparx 3 phase alternator and solid state regulator.
Quartz halogen conversion for headlight.
Belt primary drive by Heyward.
Double sided primary drive adjuster.
Barnett clutch plates.
Dave Comeau clutch pushrod seal.
Gearbox internals micropolished. 22 tooth sprocket.
Production racer forks with Lansdowne conversion. (Thanks John! looking forward to this).
11-5 inch Production racer floating disc with AP twin piston caliper.
Original style Lockheed master cylinder with adapter for standard switchgear.
Ikon rear shocks.
Morad 2.5 inch x 19 inch rims. Avon Roadrider 100/90 - 19 tyres. Great believer in these.
Corbin seat.
Smith's electronic instruments.
CNW LED tail light conversion and tail light mount. 750 style tail light.
CNW turn signal conversion.

Other spec as I remember them.

Fullauto said:

Well, it's been a long road.........

Piston skirts and tops coated.

That should do to whet your appetites. More to follow. The build should progress fairly quickly from here as I've given Ben until the 1st of August to have it finished.

Click to expand...

thanks for posting the thread and these pictures. I love all of this new age technology creeping it's was into our old rides. Like I've said before I think that there has never bee a better time to own and ride a norton. Looking at your pistons though, I have to ask why you stayed with the hepolites instead of lightening things up in there with the JS ones while you had it apart. Cj

All in good time. I don't want to start with a perfect Norton now do I? Pistons are something I will turn my attention to in due course. After barrels. And a few other bits and pieces.

Fullauto said:

Basic spec as follows, if not mentioned, standard parts are used.

Fullauto Technologies head, number 2. Ceramic coated combustion chambers, inlet and exhaust ports. Unported. Standard size Black Diamond valves, Ceramic coated.
PW3 cam. Lobes coated.
CNW single coil conversion.
TriSpark ignition. Fantastic product.
Maney barrels.
Hepolite pistons, skirts coated, tops ceramic coated.
Jim Comstock supplied conical valve springs.
Lifter blocks and rockers micropolished.
Jim Comstock crankcase breather.
Sparx 3 phase alternator and solid state regulator.
Quartz halogen conversion for headlight.
Belt primary drive by Heyward.
Double sided primary drive adjuster.
Barnett clutch plates.
Dave Comeau clutch pushrod seal.
Gearbox internals micropolished. 22 tooth sprocket.
Production racer forks with Lansdowne conversion. (Thanks John! looking forward to this).
11-5 inch Production racer floating disc with AP twin piston caliper.
Original style Lockheed master cylinder with adapter for standard switchgear.
Ikon rear shocks.
Morad 2.5 inch x 19 inch rims. Avon Roadrider 100/90 - 19 tyres. Great believer in these.
Corbin seat.
Smith's electronic instruments.
CNW LED tail light conversion and tail light mount. 750 style tail light.
CNW turn signal conversion.

Other spec as I remember them.

Click to expand...

Steve Maney barrels!?!

Calling card!?!?

Hello...

Can't fit something I haven't got. As soon as they come off the production line, don't worry, they will be there.

Fullauto said:

All in good time. I don't want to start with a perfect Norton now do I? ........

Click to expand...

Understood, again thanks for posting. :mrgreen:

This isn't a look at me, look at me thread. It's to show what I'm doing and if anybody has any questions or suggestions, please feel free to post. I've already had one suggestion from Lyell about wrist pins which I intend to follow up. Let's get this thing built.

Fullauto said:

This isn't a look at me, look at me thread.

Click to expand...

Ya know,....... only a certain type of person would read your thread and not enjoy what you are sharing here....

Fullauto said:

It's to show what I'm doing and if anybody has any questions or suggestions, please feel free to post. I've already had one suggestion from Lyell about wrist pins which I intend to follow up. Let's get this thing built.

Click to expand...

When I rebuilt my engine many years ago, I fitted new pistons and they came with bent wire circlips for the wristpins... I didn't think anything of it at the time and installed them. A hundred miles later I am crusing along and I get a pop, and puff of smoke out of one exhaust pipe, I shut the engine down, pulled the clutch and coasted to a stop. One of those shitty wire circlips popped out and scored my cylinder wall. I had to rebuild again from the barrels up. This time I used proper circlips cut out of flat steel. At the time when I first built the engine, I didn't know enough and used a single crappy substandard part and it cost me time and money to tear everything apart and rebuild it again... lesson learned... (I know I still have those wire circlips in a bag in my parts bin with the one of those circlips with a flattened side on it... Its a reminder to me every time I see them)

Your project looks amazing. Please post more as you progress... Thanks

What about the horn? I did not see a horn on the list. Are you going to have a horn? If so, what kind of horn? Do you have one already? What a bout a relay? A lot of people are using realys with horn. I like relays, and horns of course. Have you started assembly without the horn and do you now have to start over?
HORN!
Toot toot aaaaaaaAAAAAAA beep beep Disco lives.

Sorry, I'm really just hear to look at you.

Forgot the most important part. I too, like horns. Loud ones. Got one from CNW. I was trying to think of a more difficult place for it, but it won't fit inside the oil tank. Relays. I like relays too. There will be a few of them.

Ken,
It's coming together. Really nice to see.
Cheers,
Tom
CNN

Nice build Ken!

Thanks Doug. And thanks for the poster. One of the other one's is getting block mounted to be hung in Harrop's showroom.

A mate of mine who is a diesel fitter by trade has been doing cermic coating on his bikes for a few years now, mine you he only rides very powerfull jap bikes and he floggs the shit out of them he revs them way past their safe limits, he has blown his bike up a few times but since he has been doing the cermic coating on major parts he hasn't had any problems, he is always on the back wheel doing freaky things at any speed and takes it to the drag strip regularly, he has never lost in his class (he rides it there and back home after), not bad for a 56 year old and has been doing this ever since he was 17, he is a crazy bastard and surprised he is still alive, but he will never change.

Ashley

I like seeing all the treasures laid out to assemble into a fast loud fortune. We should have bullet proof engines with the quality parts micro polished and special coasted but do not forget about dry friction impregnation as well as cryogenic tempering. Each of these processes claim to free up hp and make less heat doing it but adds a small fortune and time to send out but ah but what its worth for peace of mind.

Well, I thought, I'm not going to die wondering. If this work is worth doing, I'll find out. It was worth about AU$1100 so, not cheap. I intend to strip the motor regularly to assess any problems and just see how it all goes. I will post anything I find.
No, I don't have shares in CIC coatings here in Perth. As I say to people who ask questions about my particular areas of expertise and whether they should do something in particular. Try it, and then you'll know. Not just accept what is said by others.
As I say, accepted wisdom may be accepted, but it's not necessarily wisdom.