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- Jan 21, 2011
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In another thread there was a lot of misinformation about Norton racing at Daytona in the 1940's thru the 1960's and I would like to set the facts straight.
Genuine plunger-framed M30 Manx models were raced at Daytona beach in the late 40's and early 50's complete with their magnesium engines, brakes and even DOHC valve gear. They were the same Manx bikes as raced in England with the exception of having to have 7.5:1 compression and kick-start mechanisms added to meet American Motorcycling Association rules. Steve Lancefield and then Francis Beart both went to Daytona with Manx bikes, piloted by various American riders the most famous probably being Dick Klamfoth who won the Daytona 200 more than once on a Manx in this era.
The American motorcycle manufacturers and the Triumph motorcycle company were of course not happy about Norton's Daytona performances. Harley Davidson and Indian along with BSA Chief Walt Brown and Rod Coates, the top Triumph man in the eastern United States was in charge of their racing program and also was a member of the AMA rules committee tirelessly lobbied for rule changes that would favor their marques.
This lobbying and politics kept the featherbed manx and other British OHC racing bikes out of AMA competition thru the early sixties, by which time they were just about obsolete anyway.
Because the Norton featherbed 88 was a production bike, the AMA could not keep it out of competition, and the works racing department began making special "Daytona 88" racers to compete at the Daytona 200 starting in 1953 when two were sent over and they finished with very high placings.
Throughout the fifties these Daytona twins evolved into what was basically a Manx Chassis with a model 88 engine in it. The engines had some tuning which resulted in the "Daytona" camshaft profile, which was incorporated into the production twins in the late fifties. Also the bikes were fitted with a bit higher compression and twin Amal GP carbs. If you run the serial numbers of one of these bikes through the factory records kept in England by the NOC, it will come back as a Norton 88 with the "Daytona 88" option.
The latest wideline Daytona 88 bike I have heard of and know of, is a 1959 model. When the slimline featherbed was introduced for 1960 AMA rules would insist that it would be used in competition.
Doug Hele and the racing department were heavily into developing the Dominator twins in the late 1950's to increase the performance of the road bikes vs. BSA and Triumph offereings, and for use in racing, first in production racing, then looking at it as a good replacement for the heavier, complicated and expensive to produce Manx. Works prepared model 88s began winning production races in 1960 and in 1961 everyone knows that the Domiracer appeared at the Isle of Man and did very well.
Heads with polished ports and big valves, along with twin-carbs and other production racing parts were available from Nortons for the Dominator twins from 1958 onwards. From 1961 onwards performance "SportsSpecials" were sold as complete bikes on the showroom floor which had performance parts as standard equipment.
The last three Daytona 88 racers were prepared over the winter of 61-62 for the daytona 200 that spring. Since the actual Domiracer would be illegal by AMA rules, these three bikes were built with production slimline frames and engine castings. To these were added Domiracer large-rod-journal cranks and rods, bucket tappets, needle-roller cams, a racing magneto and handed Amal GP carbs. Specail alloy tanks, Manx brakes and swingarm were used on the chassis. After 1962 Bracebridge street was closed and the racing shop was sold off to outside vendors, Nortons works racing days were gone forever.
The Berliner corporation who was the distributor for Norton in the USA from the late 1950's onwards had other ideas though. They wanted more Norton racing bikes for the 1964 Daytona race. Since the Norton racing shop was gone, AMC contracted with Paul Dunstall to produce them. Dunstall took four 88ss bikes and built them to racing specs. The engines were standard apart from having milled cylinders to increase compression, along with the addition of racing magnetos, handed Amal GPs and Dunstall exhausts with reverse=cone meggas and a crossover in front of the cylinders between the down pipes. Manx forks and wheels and fenders and special alloy tanks were added. These 1964 88ss bikes dynoed a bit over 50bhp.
Some racing twins were supplied for use other places besides Daytona. A few Daytona 88s were supplied to the Canadian Norton distributor a few times in the 1950s and a few were used in the early fifties to marshal at the Isle of Man races.
For both the Daytona Manx and twin racers, a special set of close-ration gears was used. In England these were known as "Scarborough" gears, and in the USA they were known as the Daytona gear set. Because the AMA required the use of a kick-start mechanism, first gear in the Norton box could by no higher than 2.3:1. So this first gear was used along with close-ratio racing 2nd, 3rd and 4th gears. The big jump between first and second was a disadvantage, but it was better than the standard and even lower street first gear ratio.
After the Norton Manx and Matchless G50 were both out of production and the might of Japanese motorcycle manufacturers was brought to bear on the USA and the AMA, the AMA started to let OHC engines and racing frame options into it's racing program.....And then it was left to Honda, Yamaha and Suzuki to battle in the board-room with Harley Davidson and each other over racing rules....
Genuine plunger-framed M30 Manx models were raced at Daytona beach in the late 40's and early 50's complete with their magnesium engines, brakes and even DOHC valve gear. They were the same Manx bikes as raced in England with the exception of having to have 7.5:1 compression and kick-start mechanisms added to meet American Motorcycling Association rules. Steve Lancefield and then Francis Beart both went to Daytona with Manx bikes, piloted by various American riders the most famous probably being Dick Klamfoth who won the Daytona 200 more than once on a Manx in this era.
The American motorcycle manufacturers and the Triumph motorcycle company were of course not happy about Norton's Daytona performances. Harley Davidson and Indian along with BSA Chief Walt Brown and Rod Coates, the top Triumph man in the eastern United States was in charge of their racing program and also was a member of the AMA rules committee tirelessly lobbied for rule changes that would favor their marques.
This lobbying and politics kept the featherbed manx and other British OHC racing bikes out of AMA competition thru the early sixties, by which time they were just about obsolete anyway.
Because the Norton featherbed 88 was a production bike, the AMA could not keep it out of competition, and the works racing department began making special "Daytona 88" racers to compete at the Daytona 200 starting in 1953 when two were sent over and they finished with very high placings.
Throughout the fifties these Daytona twins evolved into what was basically a Manx Chassis with a model 88 engine in it. The engines had some tuning which resulted in the "Daytona" camshaft profile, which was incorporated into the production twins in the late fifties. Also the bikes were fitted with a bit higher compression and twin Amal GP carbs. If you run the serial numbers of one of these bikes through the factory records kept in England by the NOC, it will come back as a Norton 88 with the "Daytona 88" option.
The latest wideline Daytona 88 bike I have heard of and know of, is a 1959 model. When the slimline featherbed was introduced for 1960 AMA rules would insist that it would be used in competition.
Doug Hele and the racing department were heavily into developing the Dominator twins in the late 1950's to increase the performance of the road bikes vs. BSA and Triumph offereings, and for use in racing, first in production racing, then looking at it as a good replacement for the heavier, complicated and expensive to produce Manx. Works prepared model 88s began winning production races in 1960 and in 1961 everyone knows that the Domiracer appeared at the Isle of Man and did very well.
Heads with polished ports and big valves, along with twin-carbs and other production racing parts were available from Nortons for the Dominator twins from 1958 onwards. From 1961 onwards performance "SportsSpecials" were sold as complete bikes on the showroom floor which had performance parts as standard equipment.
The last three Daytona 88 racers were prepared over the winter of 61-62 for the daytona 200 that spring. Since the actual Domiracer would be illegal by AMA rules, these three bikes were built with production slimline frames and engine castings. To these were added Domiracer large-rod-journal cranks and rods, bucket tappets, needle-roller cams, a racing magneto and handed Amal GP carbs. Specail alloy tanks, Manx brakes and swingarm were used on the chassis. After 1962 Bracebridge street was closed and the racing shop was sold off to outside vendors, Nortons works racing days were gone forever.
The Berliner corporation who was the distributor for Norton in the USA from the late 1950's onwards had other ideas though. They wanted more Norton racing bikes for the 1964 Daytona race. Since the Norton racing shop was gone, AMC contracted with Paul Dunstall to produce them. Dunstall took four 88ss bikes and built them to racing specs. The engines were standard apart from having milled cylinders to increase compression, along with the addition of racing magnetos, handed Amal GPs and Dunstall exhausts with reverse=cone meggas and a crossover in front of the cylinders between the down pipes. Manx forks and wheels and fenders and special alloy tanks were added. These 1964 88ss bikes dynoed a bit over 50bhp.
Some racing twins were supplied for use other places besides Daytona. A few Daytona 88s were supplied to the Canadian Norton distributor a few times in the 1950s and a few were used in the early fifties to marshal at the Isle of Man races.
For both the Daytona Manx and twin racers, a special set of close-ration gears was used. In England these were known as "Scarborough" gears, and in the USA they were known as the Daytona gear set. Because the AMA required the use of a kick-start mechanism, first gear in the Norton box could by no higher than 2.3:1. So this first gear was used along with close-ratio racing 2nd, 3rd and 4th gears. The big jump between first and second was a disadvantage, but it was better than the standard and even lower street first gear ratio.
After the Norton Manx and Matchless G50 were both out of production and the might of Japanese motorcycle manufacturers was brought to bear on the USA and the AMA, the AMA started to let OHC engines and racing frame options into it's racing program.....And then it was left to Honda, Yamaha and Suzuki to battle in the board-room with Harley Davidson and each other over racing rules....
