Vidar has now sent me some pictures of the identification plate from his bike which has a number very close to mine. The plate is what John describes above as the USA type. This shows the month and year in the top box which the serial number in the lower box. The serial number is preceded by 850 so has nine digits in total. There is a circular stamp with the three lines inside at each end of the nine digit number. Thanks for everyone's input.
Identification plate
- Thread starter Zep1975
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That tends to be the very late Mk3 production as below, normally it would be just the 6-digit number, no 850 prefix or circular stamps.
https://www.bonhams.com/auctions/25383/lot/575/
https://images1.bonhams.com/image?src=Images/live/2019-03/14/24859047-1-7.jpg&width=960
https://images1.bonhams.com/image?src=Images/live/2019-03/14/24859047-1-6.jpg&width=960
My Mk3 is later than yours and only has the 6-digit number.
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EDIT 336089 ? 77 ? sorry from pix on bonham link
Strange my 5 mile MKIII vin cert plate shows 7 75 333906
imperial tube frame neck stamped #850#333906#
Bike came from Wisconsin in 83
Earlier British imperial frames have Renold build date on the LH side plate like one of my other MKIII frames ... R 75 2
Strange my 5 mile MKIII vin cert plate shows 7 75 333906
imperial tube frame neck stamped #850#333906#
Bike came from Wisconsin in 83
Earlier British imperial frames have Renold build date on the LH side plate like one of my other MKIII frames ... R 75 2
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77?
77 would be year of manufacture. Since assembly and sale of these last bikes was a slow process, no month is stated.
I am sure most of you have read Frank Melling on the final days of the Wolverhampton, Andover and Small Heath plants. Here is his story on final Commando production:
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And so to the final conundrum. Why were the final models dated "1979" when the last Commando was built in 1975/76?
Here's the fuzzy bit of history. When the Norton works (based at the old Villiers factory in Wolverhampton) went into receivership, the production line closed.
About 1,500 Commandos were in the process of being built - all silver MkIII Interstates. Dennis Poore, previously owner of the Norton brand and by now in charge of NVT Ltd at Shenstone, prompted the receiver to restart the "work in progress" against a solid guarantee to purchase all Commandos that emerged from Wolverhampton. During 1977, they were delivered mainly, although not exclusively, to British dealers.
The last 25 bikes, however, were retained by Norton and retailed directly at a very handsome profit. The last Commando was sold to a customer who insisted on having legendary Norton tuner Ray Petty hand it over to him at a formal ceremony. Here he had a piece of valuable history - the last Commando ever to leave Norton… except that works manager John Pedley allegedly took exception to a "civilian" having the final Commando and had his workers build another one, with an even higher engine and frame number, for his own personal use. This tale was related by an extremely well-connected ex-Norton man and might well be true.
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-Knut
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The actual last Commando 336539 (John Pedley's) was built in 1977 but not registered.
https://www.bonhams.com/auctions/19163/lot/455/
The last officiaI Commando I believe was finally sold (by AN) in Edit:
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ZEP sn is 333524, is this not correct? He is trying to determine month and year
VIDAR nine digit sn 850333XXX is what does not seem authentic,
6 75 seems reasonable for ZEPs bike
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I use Bonhams auctions as a resource, the pics they take are very detailed but they limit the size on the website and you lose that detail using their website. You can get to the full detailed photo by editing the photo url and removing the text after jpg. You can then download this file to your PC. This image is limited to 960 wide on the website but is actually 2448 pixels wide in the original file.
https://images1.bonhams.com/image?src=Images/live/2019-03/14/24859047-1-7.jpg
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Yes, it would.
A 333xxx bike sold in Norway (if that's where Vidar's was originally sold?) with the *850*3xxxxx* format plate stamp could be authentic, however, a UK market Mk3 of that period I would normally expect to have had the usual 6-digit number.
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I'm pretty sure No. 333569. 6 - 75 is correct.
The same number: 333569 is also stamped into the crankcase.
I bought my bike for approx. 10 years ago. the seller then told me that he had imported it from the UK. It also had miles and not km. on the speedometer.
Vidar
The same number: 333569 is also stamped into the crankcase.
I bought my bike for approx. 10 years ago. the seller then told me that he had imported it from the UK. It also had miles and not km. on the speedometer.
Vidar
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