Poll
- Thread starter gatsby
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Age 64
Got my 72 Combat Commando in 2007 after it rested for 30 years in a garage with damaged lifters.
After taking a year off for cancer I got it back on the road in 2009.
Since my wife knows I get twenty years younger when I ride it she's ok with my late life crisis.
Any day when it's at least 35 degrees fahrenheit and dry I take it out for a spin.
In the Pacific Nortwest sometimes I have to wait for the dry part. Salt spray murder on alloy.
Almost 7,500 miles since restored.
Always get a kick out of the positive reactions I get with it.
Got my 72 Combat Commando in 2007 after it rested for 30 years in a garage with damaged lifters.
After taking a year off for cancer I got it back on the road in 2009.
Since my wife knows I get twenty years younger when I ride it she's ok with my late life crisis.
Any day when it's at least 35 degrees fahrenheit and dry I take it out for a spin.
In the Pacific Nortwest sometimes I have to wait for the dry part. Salt spray murder on alloy.
Almost 7,500 miles since restored.
Always get a kick out of the positive reactions I get with it.
DogT
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Yup, 78th USASASOU 62-63. Spent my whole time in Berlin listening to the East German Central Committee on a microwave 64 channel PPM. The ditty boppers called us Monterey Mary's back then. Worked at Teufelsberg in the Grunewald. Lived in Andrews Barracks in Lichterfelde. Horrible shift work, week of days, week of mids and week of midnight, you could never get used to it.850cmndo said:
Dave
69S
850cmndo
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DogT said:
Interesting. I was one of those diity boppers/mill monkeys in Bad Aibling, south of Munich, and then Augsburg. Never forget my first NATO alert. Scared the hell out of me. As they say...assholes sign anything. And don't get me started about shift work. Days, swings, mids......ugh.
Rode a Honda Magna 750 to P cola Florida 25 years ago, wrecked it and bought my 74 850 from a shop calles Skinners. I then tried to ride it back to Chicago, it broke down but I forgave her and we have been togather ever since. Does any one remeber or heard of that shop? I am 46 and never sell any thing ( that makes for an awesome auction when I leave this world)
Hortons Norton
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Hey that would be me too!!!!! lol :lol:
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Age 53. First purchase age 16 in 1974.
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I became the second owner of my '74 850 Roadster sometime in '76 when I was 31.
Have gone through lots of bikes by then and since, from other British iron, a Harley, couple of Spanish and Japanese to an NSU, two (count 'em!) TWO Moto Beta, a Whizzer, etc., but the Norton was the only one I've kept.
Still have it at 67. Got a couple of my wife's bikes still sitting around but the Norton is the only one I ever ride now, except for my new Street Triple every so often. No auctions for me, I intend to use everything up before I go. I can just picture some auctioneer unloading for $10 a cardboard box with all my left over/extra Commando parts and tools stuffed inside. Quoting Hobot: "Ugh".
Have gone through lots of bikes by then and since, from other British iron, a Harley, couple of Spanish and Japanese to an NSU, two (count 'em!) TWO Moto Beta, a Whizzer, etc., but the Norton was the only one I've kept.
Still have it at 67. Got a couple of my wife's bikes still sitting around but the Norton is the only one I ever ride now, except for my new Street Triple every so often. No auctions for me, I intend to use everything up before I go. I can just picture some auctioneer unloading for $10 a cardboard box with all my left over/extra Commando parts and tools stuffed inside. Quoting Hobot: "Ugh".
gatsby
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Great responses! While there may not be enough data to be statistically significant, there is one thing that has jumped out at me. There does not seem to be many commando owners who are currently in their 40's. Does anyone have any theories on the missing generation?
Cheers,
Gatsby
Cheers,
Gatsby
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You guys have all seen my bike. I built it out of parts in about 1978. The rolling chassis cost $300, the motor $1300 and the original gearbox and clutch $300. I'm 71 years of age, and this bike is the only commando I've ever owned, and I love it dearly:gatsby said:
As far as the 'missing generation' is concerned, it is about the de-industrialisation of America and Australia. We don't do stuff any more. It is now all computer games and plastic throw-away toys.
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Age 55
Bought my first Commando MK3 around 1979 still got it (in bits!!)
If you count the Triton I built at 17/18 years old then my connection with Norton goes back a long way, although I ride my Hinckley Triumph these days I can't wait for my Norton to be back on the road again.
Gatsby
The missing generation. I think it's to do with what interests the youth of today have eg. x boxes, internet, computers, drugs etc. When I was a youth (yes I was once!!) our interests were mechanical things, mending things, making do with what you had, getting cheap and affordable transport to work, and probably very important was the availability of a home with a garage to tinker about in. These days people are probably more likely to be living in little boxes or apartments with nowhere to strip and reassemble a bike. Another issue is which bike do you choose these days? they are hermetically sealed against tampering!!
Just my tuppence worth
CB
Bought my first Commando MK3 around 1979 still got it (in bits!!)
If you count the Triton I built at 17/18 years old then my connection with Norton goes back a long way, although I ride my Hinckley Triumph these days I can't wait for my Norton to be back on the road again.
Gatsby
The missing generation. I think it's to do with what interests the youth of today have eg. x boxes, internet, computers, drugs etc. When I was a youth (yes I was once!!) our interests were mechanical things, mending things, making do with what you had, getting cheap and affordable transport to work, and probably very important was the availability of a home with a garage to tinker about in. These days people are probably more likely to be living in little boxes or apartments with nowhere to strip and reassemble a bike. Another issue is which bike do you choose these days? they are hermetically sealed against tampering!!
Just my tuppence worth
CB
I,am 64 and I,ve been ridding Nortons since 1965. My first norton wasn,t a commando but a 1965 400 Electra that I bought new at the tender age of 17 and still own today. The Electra has always gotten a bad rap but I put over 40 thousand mile on mine with no problems except for a broken chain and two flat tyres. I restored it in 2000 and it looks better today then it did new. My first commando was a used 75 roadster that I bought in 1977. I had a 940 kit from HPI out of California and was pulling 80 hp. Dam thing would really run!! ( a hog and rice eater 
). Times got hard and sold it for $1300, I had $600 in the motor. Lost my ass on it!! I bought my next commando in 05, a 76 mk3 with only 4200 miles on it and still own it today. I also owned a 75 mk3 that I bought in 06 and sold a couple of years ago on ebay for $13,000.00. Made out well on that one. I also own a Victory Kingpin (very nice bike) and between the three of my bikes I average about 10,000 miles a year. Not bad for an old FART!! Hershey
). Times got hard and sold it for $1300, I had $600 in the motor. Lost my ass on it!! I bought my next commando in 05, a 76 mk3 with only 4200 miles on it and still own it today. I also owned a 75 mk3 that I bought in 06 and sold a couple of years ago on ebay for $13,000.00. Made out well on that one. I also own a Victory Kingpin (very nice bike) and between the three of my bikes I average about 10,000 miles a year. Not bad for an old FART!! Hershey
rvich
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gatsby said:
If you are 40 now, you would have turned 16 in the late 80s. It was before internet and after most Commandos had been beaten on for a while. We see a lot of bikes that where laid up in that time period just now coming out of barns. Technical help was harder to find and parts were harder to source. I know that without the internet and availability of parts I wouldn't own one now! I don't know for a fact but I suspect that I am not alone in that. If you are 30, The internet has grown up with you. And if you are 20, you probably don't remember a time before PC.
Well, its a theory anyway.
Russ
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"I know that without the internet and availability of parts I wouldn't own one now! "
It is several orders of magnitude easier to get Norton parts today than it was when Norton was making/selling Nortons and there were dealers in most major cities! Just getting a different size set of main jets back then was often a bit of a PITA/wait.
It is several orders of magnitude easier to get Norton parts today than it was when Norton was making/selling Nortons and there were dealers in most major cities! Just getting a different size set of main jets back then was often a bit of a PITA/wait.
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I'm 58, bought my 71 Commando in 75 shortly after joining the RAF, left the airforce 2 years ago, still got the Commando, It's done 150 MPH on the IOM (in the back of a Puma heli) (and no I wasn't sat on it at the time)
The 40 year olds missed bikes and went straight to cars when the bike licence age went up from 16 to 17 in the UK
The 40 year olds missed bikes and went straight to cars when the bike licence age went up from 16 to 17 in the UK
I'm 46 and bought my 73 750 in the late 80's, in NZ back then it was mostly only gangs owning brit bikes and therefore always liable to be stolen so japanese bikes were the norm. I wanted to be different and still do, the commando really appealed and was generally acceptable at any motorbike gathering and parts were not too bad. In the 90's and on, motorbikes in general have decreased in popularity with cars becoming cheaper with better performance but now we see a resurgence in retro customs from the 70/80's amongst the kids so maybe old bikes will make a come back too . Great to hear others have still got their original bikes from the early days, if anyone from the US had a black roadster #221393, it's here in NZ
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Carlos is this you? Go get some more of your 20 year old friends and take over the club. We really need younger minds to bring back the fun 
So as a 20 year old, in my Norton club -NCNOC- thy call me the puppy I the group and I'm curious as to why there aren't more younger people involved in bikes like these. I told the president Of my NOG that I would do my best to bring the age average down and recruit younger folk and so far I've convinced one person and that was my Principle from High School. Although its not the age I was looking for its a start and soon enough ill have my own gang to ride with. Have fun riding guys and be safe. If you see a young kid on a commando its probably me so don't be afraid to stop and say hi!
Monjebrick[/quote]
So as a 20 year old, in my Norton club -NCNOC- thy call me the puppy I the group and I'm curious as to why there aren't more younger people involved in bikes like these. I told the president Of my NOG that I would do my best to bring the age average down and recruit younger folk and so far I've convinced one person and that was my Principle from High School. Although its not the age I was looking for its a start and soon enough ill have my own gang to ride with. Have fun riding guys and be safe. If you see a young kid on a commando its probably me so don't be afraid to stop and say hi!
Monjebrick[/quote]
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