My Norton Is Finally Done

Very nice...doe's she go? :mrgreen:

Forgive me if this ends up being a double post. I tried to respond earlier and my response hadn't shown up in the thread.

First off, thanks for all the kind compliments. I really appreciate the positive support. Here's the story on this bike:

I've had this Commando for around ten years. At the time I got the bike it was an older, tired amateur restoration. It ran decent and looked OK. For most of the time I have had the bike I just maintained it mechanically. Most of the tough jobs where I either didn't have the tools, time or skill have been done by Jeff at Redline Cycle here in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Over the years, I bought and sold other bikes that I used as my primary riders. Even when the Norton wasn't running, I could never bring myself to part with it. For me the Norton Commando is more than just a motorcycle. It represents an aesthetic and philosophical ideal.

A couple of years ago I sent the sheetmetal off to Craig at Precision Motorcycle Painting in Indiana (I think). He did such an outstanding job on the paint. No decals. All hand done. It took me two years before I got the bike put back together due to work, family and other priorities. The paint looked amazing, but frankly the rest of the bike looked pretty ratty by comparison. Furthermore, my headers pipes were cracked and needed to be replaced. So off to Jeff at Redline for new pipes and a complete professional detail.

The scope on this little project began to creep. . . . If I was going to get shiny new headers, then the old pitted and dented mufflers would have to go. If I was going to replace the mufflers, then I would need a 1975 spec kicker to avoid scratching the new pipes. And of course that dent in the front fender would no longer be acceptable. Replacing the fender revealed that the front wheel had been laced up incorrectly. Well, as long as we were taking that apart, we might as well polish the front hub. . . . You get the idea.

The bike turned out much nicer than I expected. Almost too nice to ride. Almost, but not quite. I fully intend to ride this thing hard. Normally, I do not polish my bikes. I hadn't polished the aluminum on this Roadster in the ten years that I had it. Guess I'll been spending some serious time now rubbing on this thing to maintain the shine. And I just had to take a few pics before I messed it up all over again.

Magnificent. No go get some blue on those pipes.

2 questions....
How long did it take ???
-and-
How much did it cost ???

Outstanding machine BTW.

marknorton said:

How much did it cost ???

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No forum member should necessarily feel obliged to answer a "how much?" question-as I think we all know the answer is often "too much"! :roll:

When I started to rebuild my Commando I kept all records of cost as I figured it would be fun to add them up. I now I can say I really don't think it would be, But as the years go by and I ride and put more miles on it I think it was more than worth whatever the cost may be. Also the cost of having so much fun in building it cannot be measured in dollars anyway, I'd do it again in a heartbeat. In fact I'm working on restoring a 98 s1w Buell right now, Sorry it's not a Norton guys. :wink: Oh BTW your bike is awesome and looks brand new, Nice work. Ride safe guys.

Yes after about 3 yr into my first initial total rebuild of Ms Peel I quit trying to keep up with my spending though still put invoices in ever thickening loose left binder.
We may get more mileage for our bux than a big ole Harley but not necessarily less than them in the long run... I long ago lost any ability to rationalize with wife that a motorcycle would be less expensive commuter than big ole cage, ugh.

On a scale 1 to 10. It's a 10 from looking at the pictures. Nice job! The fruit of your labor deserves many compliments. Just needs a picture of a great looking lady on the bike wearing a Norton T-Shirt. Ride Safe.

What else could be said.
Its simply stunning!

Mikem

I'd sure like to see a "before" photo.

Absolutely perfect.

Stunning!

Always nice to look at this on a crappy night, freezing rain. like tonight.

Do not ever add up all the invoices on a privateers project, ugh, I just save em all in big loose leaf books in a box and go by the increasing heff of it.

I ain't fooled one bit by the, "I don't polish my bikes, just ride em" huh, even us hayseed hicks can't keep from wiping down and rubbing off everything on our Commandos till what's left of their finish shows through. If you really ride em much, even sane legally, its pretty common for things to wear and shift and dissolve and un-clamp, almost like a wooden sail boat ... its never done on going project that always needs you or rots away or sinks w/o constant protected maintenance. No one creates and keeps a head turner w/o ongoing bleeding.

So what exactly is your problem?

We'll make a List . :idea: :mrgreen:

Nice Job . Now youd be justified in takeing a year off (work ) and rideing it around the world , to get a bit of petainia and ageing . :lol: 8)
Whatch out for R.S.I. mainaining the shine . :?

A list? I suspect he's already registered.

I think he was a politition in a previous lifetime . Karma & all that .

Matt Spencer said:

I think he was a politition in a previous lifetime . Karma & all that .

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That would explain only a small portion of the blather.

Awesome job! Well done.

WOW!

I really love all the bright work parts brought to a high shine.

Your Commando is absolutely beautiful, and well worth all the money and personal time committed.

Great job!