looking for frame number dates 153297

Hi all, my frame has no date plate, so I am stamping up a new one, engine and transmission number is 153297. According to Bacon's Norton Twins, manufacture date would be 10/71 Asking members who still have original plates on their frames close to 153297 can confirm. Thanks!

ps I reviewed the thread on serial numbers that ended as a flame fest on whether bikes made after september 71 were 72's. I don't care, bike is already registered as 71, all I want is a manufacture date.
pps, how can something manufactured in a given year can be a next year, or these days, two years in the future model anyway?

How stupid do they think we are?
Don't answer that....

According to classicbike.biz the last SS model was S/N 150723, built in October '71. The '72 numbers started at 200001 in January. So yours was made late 71, I'd guess November.

And Google says, "In the United States, for regulation purposes (such as VIN numbering and EPA emissions certification), government authorities allow cars of a given model year to be sold starting on January 1 of the previous calendar year. For example, this means that a 2019 model year vehicle can legally go on sale on January 1, 2018."

My 850 Roadster was built in August of '74 and sold to me new as a '75 MKII. The bill of sale, title and CT registration still list it as a '75. I never saw reason to change it.

Thanks Dave, I already knew what the internet had to say prior to posting, I am specifically looking for people who have frame plates with dates that are probably original with numbers close to 153297. Thanks in advance

Mine is 151159 but the there is no date stamp on the tag. Might be something on my factory record but it’s not handy at the moment.

Mine is 151100 and plate is marked 1971, no month indicated.

Bob.

Hmmm, things were different in the 60's and 70's, Canada got a load of Honda 150 dreams that were all made in 1964(?), but every year they were unsold they were upped to the next model year. Another story I heard was that CZs came with blank rivet date plates, so the dealer could enter year of their choice. I have the sales history of my Norton from 1984, when it was sold by a small town Alberta Honda dealer, the bill of sale was written on one of those office supply receipt books, the ones with the carbon copies, 72 was crossed out and changed to 71. Back then in Alberta all you needed to register a bike was a sales agreement written on any kind of paper describing the vehicle, serial number (VIN did not exist yet), name of seller, name of buyer, signatures of both, and some statement or other re condition and that vehicle was free of liens etc.. Previous registration was nice to have but not required, unlike Ontario and probably every other province, state, or nation on this planet. In Alberta you could pretty much verify anything with your signature no questions asked. This happy state of affairs was changed after it was found that Alberta was a great place to re register stolen vehicles, attracting creeps and bums from all over, but that is another story.

If I had your problem I would order a frame plate already stamped and a factory record from Andover Norton and include a comment and ask them to use the appropriate date from the factory record when stamping the plate. Of course, you need to provide them the engine number.

Just guessing, but Oct/Nov/Dec 71 sounds right, with Nov 71 most likely, see: http://www.gregmarsh.com/MC/CommandoID.aspx

I have an Andover blank plate, I will stamp it myself, before I do, I want hear from the forum what was stamped on their 1971 plates. Bob says year only, I have seen plates like this too, so maybe I will go with that. The table with serial numbers and dates on gregmarsh site is the same as the one in the back of Roy Bacon's Norton Twins book, so maybe Roy copied it from Greg

everiman said:

I have an Andover blank plate, I will stamp it myself, before I do, I want hear from the forum what was stamped on their 1971 plates. Bob says year only, I have seen plates like this too, so maybe I will go with that. The table with serial numbers and dates on gregmarsh site is the same as the one in the back of Roy Bacon's Norton Twins book, so maybe Roy copied it from Greg

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No, as I said on the site, I copied it from his book. Also as I said on the site, almost everything is copied from others.

maylar said:

My 850 Roadster was built in August of '74 and sold to me new as a '75 MKII. The bill of sale, title and CT registration still list it as a '75. I never saw reason to change it.

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Not positive with Norton but I think that Aug 74 would be a 75 model year. Model year is much harder to nail down with Norton than some others. I think that titles were requested at the time of sale in most states and date used by importer/dealer was used.

My 1974 MK2A was sold in Scotland and then imported to the US in 1975. It's frame tag says 11/73. It is titled as 1975. I have a 73 Trident titled as 75, a 74 Trident titled as 73, and a 74 Trident titled as 74. So, the dates on titles are about worthless for bikes back then.

marshg246 said:

Not positive with Norton but I think that Aug 74 would be a 75 model year.

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There's no evidence of any Commando factory 'model year' cut-off date as early as August (74-75 or other) as far as I'm aware and the published 'year' serial numbers don't match August.

marshg246 said:

My 1974 MK2A was sold in Scotland and then imported to the US in 1975. It's frame tag says 11/73. It is titled as 1975. I have a 73 Trident titled as 75, a 74 Trident titled as 73, and a 74 Trident titled as 74. So, the dates on titles are about worthless for bikes back then.

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Exactly. The actual year recorded was often more to do with the date the vehicle was registered/titled rather than actual 'year model' which now seems to be of more importance than it was at the time, however, we are digressing from the OP's original question.