Norton 850 Cafe Racer - Riding home tomorrow - wish me luck!

Martian999

Martian999

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Jun 23, 2024
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Hi Everybody,

Many thanks for allowing me to join this very informative forum.

Having owned a multitude of Japanese and Italian motorcycles, (during the past 50 years or so), I thought it was high time to purchase a classic British Norton motorcycle.

After a great deal of searching I came across a 'hybrid' 850 Norton that has been professionally built back in the 90's and it is still in stunning condition today.

It has been built around the Featherbed frame, (dating back to my birth year - 1959), but the engine is from a much later, (mid 1970's), Commando complete with later gearbox and belt drive.


All of the alloy and chrome is spotless and it has the aluminium 'Manx' petrol and oil tanks and she has the Robinson 4 Leader front drum assembly.

I am hoping to pick her up tomorrow afternoon and then ride it home, (approximately 115 miles), whilst trying to avoid any rain!

Wish me luck!

Regards,

Martian.
 
Martian999 said:
Hi Everybody,

Many thanks for allowing me to join this very informative forum.

Having owned a multitude of Japanese and Italian motorcycles, (during the past 50 years or so), I thought it was high time to purchase a classic British Norton motorcycle.

After a great deal of searching I came across a 'hybrid' 850 Norton that has been professionally built back in the 90's and it is still in stunning condition today.

It has been built around the Featherbed frame, (dating back to my birth year - 1959), but the engine is from a much later, (mid 1970's), Commando complete with later gearbox and belt drive.


All of the alloy and chrome is spotless and it has the aluminium 'Manx' petrol and oil tanks and she has the Robinson 4 Leader front drum assembly.

I am hoping to pick her up tomorrow afternoon and then ride it home, (approximately 115 miles), whilst trying to avoid any rain!

Wish me luck!

Regards,

Martian.
Click to expand...
Ride fast and take chances. ✊🍻:cool:
 
Hi and welcome. It sounds like you have yourself an interesting bike. Good luck with the ride home. Enjoy the adventure, and hopefully stay dry. Please post some pics when you have it.
 
Good luck.

Be careful if you end up in the rain and are traveling on wet roads with that 4LS front brake. They are not like a modern disc brake. Keep the rubber side down and have fun on your new toy.
 
Congratulations, and good luck. I also have a '59 featherbed framed bike with Commando engine(s). It has the engine tilted forward as in the Commando and I used it on the street, then for vintage road racing, and finally for landspeed racing. It's a lovely combination, and I'm sure you will enjoy it. However, mine does have updated disk front brake, and I would concur with Schwany's recommendation on being careful in the wet with the 4LS front brake.

Ken
 
Martian999 said:
Hi Everybody,

Many thanks for allowing me to join this very informative forum.

Having owned a multitude of Japanese and Italian motorcycles, (during the past 50 years or so), I thought it was high time to purchase a classic British Norton motorcycle.

After a great deal of searching I came across a 'hybrid' 850 Norton that has been professionally built back in the 90's and it is still in stunning condition today.

It has been built around the Featherbed frame, (dating back to my birth year - 1959), but the engine is from a much later, (mid 1970's), Commando complete with later gearbox and belt drive.


All of the alloy and chrome is spotless and it has the aluminium 'Manx' petrol and oil tanks and she has the Robinson 4 Leader front drum assembly.

I am hoping to pick her up tomorrow afternoon and then ride it home, (approximately 115 miles), whilst trying to avoid any rain!

Wish me luck!

Regards,

Martian.
Click to expand...
Good luck
Get back to us with a full report and photos if possible
I'm particularly interested in how much it vibrates
Cheers
 
Another 850 Commando/Featherbed combo, love them, a 59 frame be a Wideline frame me thinks as the 650 Manxman was the first of the Slimelines me thinks, if the Commando/Featherbed has been set up right and engine balanced right you will have one great bike to enjoy with the 850 motor it will handle great and have a very torquey motor with more herbs in the tank, I built mine back in 1980 and was the best thing I did.
It will take you a little while to get use to it, learn how to ride it before you start to throw it around, let the bike do all the hard work, once you get use to it you will push it through corners and look back thinking "did I go through that corner just then" lol they handle so well.
Enjoy it as every time I ride mine it puts a big smile on my dial and it always draws a crowd when ever I am parked up or get the thumbs up from others while riding.
Look forward to seeing pics and your thought on the set up and welcome.

Ashley
 
Must be the featherbed forward slant engine setup uses the same angle as on the commando?

Then commando pipes bolt up/fit the featherbed frame?

Prob most fb/norton engine setups are upright.
 
Wonder wot happened to the OP?

Did he get cold feet ?

Did he make it home ?

Did he make it home then sell it straight away in disgust ?
 
74ok said:
Must be the featherbed forward slant engine setup uses the same angle as on the commando?

Then commando pipes bolt up/fit the featherbed frame?

Prob most fb/norton engine setups are upright.
Click to expand...
Probably better with the slant motor. With both Featherbed and Seeley frames, having the weight well forward is usually better, as long as the bike has the correct size wheels. 19 inch for a featherbed and 18 inch for a Seeley. When a bike is light in the front, it can give you a thrill which you might not want.
 
74ok said:
Must be the featherbed forward slant engine setup uses the same angle as on the commando?

Then commando pipes bolt up/fit the featherbed frame?

Prob most fb/norton engine setups are upright.
Click to expand...

Correct. This is a picture of mine as I bought it back in 1982, with stock Commando exhaust pipes and Dunstall silencers, as well as Commando primary. It looks very different by now, of course.:rolleyes:

Norton 850 Cafe Racer - Riding home tomorrow - wish me luck!


Ken
 
ashman said:
Another 850 Commando/Featherbed combo, love them, a 59 frame be a Wideline frame me thinks as the 650 Manxman was the first of the Slimelines me thinks,

Ashley
Click to expand...
Had a 1960 99 slimline. So without factory records hard to tell which was first.
 
lcrken said:
Correct. This is a picture of mine as I bought it back in 1982, with stock Commando exhaust pipes and Dunstall silencers, as well as Commando primary. It looks very different by now, of course.:rolleyes:

View attachment 116331

Ken
Click to expand...
I would race that, but the megaphones might give a thrill , with a shove in the bum at the wrong time. I wish I had it when I started racing in 1969. It really has potential which a lot of guys would not recognise. It can be amazing what a bike like that can do.
 
acotrel said:
I would race that, but the megaphones might give a thrill , with a shove in the bum at the wrong time. I wish I had it when I started racing in 1969. It really has potential which a lot of guys would not recognise. It can be amazing what a bike like that can do.
Click to expand...

I did first race it pretty much like it was when I bought it, but with lights removed and a few other minor changes. My first race with it was also my first time at Daytona, in 1984, and also my first race with AMA. I'd brought it as a backup bike to my PR, and ended up racing it when the PR had problems. It worked great, and I finished somewhere mid-pack, and had a great time. It's partly visible in this picture of our pit setup, along with my PR and my friend's red Commando.

I road raced the bike in a variety of configurations for another 9 years, until I quit, and then had others race it for me off and on for another 14 years, until converting it to its current configuration as a land speed racer. I've now owned it for 42 years, and I think I've got my money's worth from it.:)

Norton 850 Cafe Racer - Riding home tomorrow - wish me luck!


Ken
 

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