Odd Drum Front Wheel

Stephen Hill · Jan 8, 2015

Somebody gave me a Norton drum front wheel. Externally the hub looks identical to the hub on an Atlas or early Commando. But half the hub is cast iron and the other half of the hub is aluminum. Three bolts inside the hub hold the two halves together. I suppose I could use this on an Atlas or a Commando? Any ideas when Norton switched from this bolt up hub to a one piece aluminum hub?

Stephen Hill

madass140 · Jan 8, 2015

my guess sometime in the 50's

Rohan · Jan 8, 2015

I'd suggest that is not a factory built wheel - some owner has cobbled that up.
I have a fair selection/progression of Norton wheels, from early iron half width to alloy full width,
and none of them fit that description...

A clear pic or 2, from each side, may help determine its parentage.
It wasn't uncommon at one point to bolt 2 half width drums together, back to back,
to give a double sided wheel/brake.

Stephen Hill · Jan 8, 2015

My photo manipulation skills suck. Wheel looks exactly like an 8 inch Atlas/early Commando drum style front wheel. One half (the open side) is cast iron, the back or closed side is cast aluminum. The cast iron half is painted silver so the whole thing looks like aluminum. Definitely a factory job.
Stephen Hill

Rohan · Jan 8, 2015

Take photo, post to free service like photobucket, post link here.

That description does not match any factory Norton wheel I've seen, or heard of.
(Although I've not held a 1955 only wheel, but it shouldn't neatly fit a Commando).
(And was all alloy anyway. ?)

P.S. A lot of the half-sided Norton hubs were rivvetted together, so if the rivets were removed,
if would be possible to substitute something else - which is what it sounds like you have.

madass140 · Jan 8, 2015

I've had one or two of those hubs in my possession overtime, according to Roy Bacons book they were fitted in 1955, stating thatit was a full width hub with bolted in brake drum. apparently that changed to the cast in type in 1957.

Rohan · Jan 8, 2015

Be interesting to see when/if Stephen can post a pic then, won't it.
I'd have thought that would be a rather loose fit in Commando forks,
unless there is some extra spacer(s) ...
Cheers.

johnm · Jan 9, 2015

Yes that is a real Norton hub.

Dont know the year for certain but 1955 early mid 50s sounds about right. Would have been fitted to Norton Dominators.

I own one and they are desirable to Clubmans class competitors because they fade less than the full alluminium one. They are heavier however.

John

Triton Thrasher · Jan 9, 2015

If we're talking about the Norton aluminium hub with bolted-in drum,Edit: I'm wrong a out the construction. I have one in the shed.

From http://www.klassiekrijden.nu/techniek/norton-1955-model7-dominator-88-sparepartslist.pdf
Tensioning the spokes doesn't distort the drum. Edit: I'm wrong again!

ILLF8ED · Jan 9, 2015

sounds like the '56. First year full width hub was a bolt together part and one year only. Don't loose it, quite rare and some restorer somewhere needs it.

Rohan · Jan 9, 2015

This doesn't sound entirely like what Stephen has described ?,
so it will be interesting to see his comments ...
Or pics, if they can happen.

Stephen Hill · Jan 10, 2015

A few photos of the "odd" Norton hub. Here you can see how the cast steel half (closest to the camera) is bolted up to the cast aluminum half.

In the next two photos you can see the wheel looks very similar to an all aluminum 8 inch hub.

The pencil is pointing to the face where the cast aluminum and cast steel halves meet. The steel half has more sand casting texture. I am saying steel. Perhaps more likely cast iron.

The dimensions of the hub are virtually identical to the standard issue Atlas or early Commando hub. While I haven't tried it, I don't see any reason why the regular backing plate wouldn't fit, and the whole unit drop into a set of Commando forks.

Rohan, you forced me to post my first photos. Probably overdue. Thanks......

Stephen Hill

Rohan · Jan 10, 2015

Thanks for the pics then !
Can't say I have met up with this mid 1950s type wheel, but you seem to have what has been previously described.

I wasn't aware that half of the hub wasn't aluminium though. ?
Will a magnet stick to those bits ?
Cheers.

Stephen Hill · Jan 10, 2015

Yes, in the photo with the pencil, the half away from the camera is magnetic, including the spoke flange.
Stephen Hill

Rohan · Jan 10, 2015

So its not that the brake drum is a bolt on job,
its to bolt the whole 2 halves of the hub together.
Can you see the seam where the 2 meet, under your pencil there ?

Thanks Stephen, I've not seen these type hubs in detail before.
No wonder they are a bit heavier....

Must be good silver paint, wonder what they used back then ?

Rohan · Jan 10, 2015

Triton Thrasher said:
If we're talking about the Norton aluminium hub with bolted-in drum, I have one in the shed.

If you have a bare hub, have you ever tried undoing the 3 nuts....
Mark the alignment BEFORE doing this, pleeez.

74ok · Jan 11, 2015

madass140 said:
my guess sometime in the 50's

fyi, your sig is not working
mylasttriton.jpg

Triton Thrasher · Jan 11, 2015

Rohan said:
Triton Thrasher said:

If we're talking about the Norton aluminium hub with bolted-in drum, I have one in the shed.

Click to expand...

If you have a bare hub, have you ever tried undoing the 3 nuts....
Mark the alignment BEFORE doing this, pleeez.

No it's a scruffy complete wheel.

I was wrong about its construction: it is, as shown above, an iron half (or a thick iron finned drum, if you prefer) bolted to an alloy half hub, with the iron painted to look like alloy.

I wonder if any heros made a two-sided brake out of two iron halves. No, that wouldn't work, because all the bearings are in the alloy part.

Rohan · Jan 11, 2015

Triton Thrasher said:
it is, as shown above, an iron half (or a thick iron finned drum, if you prefer) bolted to an alloy half hub, with the iron painted to look like alloy.

That was a surprise - I've never heard that mentioned about this type of 1955 hub before, and not actually handled one.
Can you see a visible seam where the iron and alloy meet ?
Must make for a heavy front wheel...
I'd have thought it was a bit loose in Commando forks ?,
only being 7" centres on the 55 forks where the Commando uses 7 & 3/8".

Triton Thrasher · Jan 11, 2015

I can't see the seam around the outside, but the brake half shows some rusty stains through the paint on the fins.

I can't see the join in Stephen's photos either.

Odd Drum Front Wheel

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