THE VINTAGE VENDOR VS PRE-PAINTED REPRO, YOU DECIDE...

jbbudgor · Feb 23, 2012

Hi Guys,
As luck turned out, I just finished painting an original steel Roadster tank for a customer and at the same time did some side covers to match a pre-painted Roadster style tank, made in India, which that customer left with me. So I thought I would take some pics of both tanks, side by side and let you see the differences. The repro tank was purchased from Burton Bike Bits for just a smidge under $900 shipped pre-painted. The repro tank is on the left and has the painted neck. CNW style smaller decals cleared over and a painted stripe. Everything on my tank is paint on paint, using decals as stencils only.

THE VINTAGE VENDOR VS PRE-PAINTED REPRO, YOU DECIDE...

http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn265/jbbudgor/Norton%20Pics/DSC00540.jpg[/img
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These next shots show the neck detail, repro tank is black, mine is polished as I do them:
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Next ones show lettering, the first two show the reduced size repro decal cleared over:
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These two show mine, paint on paint, no decal:
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Next ones show the rear stripe as is goes from two into one over the rear section, first two are repro:
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These two are mine:
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This last shot is the same as the very first one at the top of the page, just reversed to show the opposite sides. Please take particular note of the stripe contours and paint around the filler neck. Let me know what you think.
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Brent
The Vintage Vendor
[url=http://www.vintage-vendor.com]http://www.vintage-vendor.com[/url]

swooshdave · Feb 23, 2012

I don't like the bigger logo, it doesn't have the right shape or proportions. Where did you get it from?

davamb · Feb 23, 2012

I'd be knocking on your door if you were within cooee.

willh · Feb 23, 2012

Got to ask, did the original steel tank get the seams shaved, filled or what? I hated the seams on my MKIII OEM tank. Yours looks like a glass tank to me, has nicer lines than the repop.

cjandme · Feb 23, 2012

Certainly quality work on your part, thanks for the post/pics. Cj

jbbudgor · Feb 23, 2012

Swooshdave,
These are the same decals/stencils I have used for 5 years from the same guy. He cut them from a decal from a known supplier, never had a complaint. I think these Norton decals are like "British Racing Green," everybody has a different version.

Davamb,
Find out what the shipping costs are and I will do my best to be competitive. I did a Roadster for Chris Bryan in the UK.

Willh,
The steel tank is an unaltered original. Some had the seam, some did not. I'm sure somebody knows which was used on which model/year. These smooth steel tanks do resemble the glass tanks for a cleaner look.

Cjandme,
Thank you for the kind words !

Brent

swooshdave · Feb 23, 2012

You can see the difference in this original decal from a MkIII tank. I'd say the one from Burton is also very accurate in shape and size. While everyone might have a different version, even over the years at Norton they have many versions, I haven't seen any as big as yours. While you say the repp is reduced size logo, I'd posit that it's your logo that is enlarged.

Matt Spencer · Feb 23, 2012

They need to ship the Indian ones in a Round Box , you can see how its gone all square in the shipping . At least they paint them from the inside out . :mrgreen: :twisted:

splatt · Feb 25, 2012

Is the repo tank the correct shape? the pin striping makes it look very square and flat

jbbudgor · Feb 25, 2012

I'm not overly impressed with either of the repro tanks made in Pakistan or India, although the Indian made one seems better. If you did not have one to compare it to, it might look okay. But when you see it against an original, that is when you see the differences. In this case the pinstriping on the repro tank is certainly making the tank shape look worse. To my eye the front edges of the tunnel and the neck area are also not up to par. That being said, with a good paint job and proper stripping and lettering, you can make a repro look decent. The example below I painted for Roger Woolford in Virginia. This is an Indian made repro, the same tank as the black one above, also supplied by Burtons, but this one was in bare metal. Decals also came from them. The color layout was Roger's idea that he submitted to me on paper and I recreated it on the tank as best I could. If you look at the front of the tank, you can see how much flatter it is vertically than an original. If you use that as as guide, you end up with that blocky stripe shape as on the black one. So you kind of have to fudge it a bit and reach a compromise rounding the stripe to "fool" the eye.
Brent
http://www.vintage-vendor.com

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Rohan · Feb 25, 2012

I have a feeling those thicker style 'Norton' decals were used on the Interstate tanks ?

This was taken off a bike in a showroom in the mid ? 1970s (it leaked), thats its replacements box underneath.

Decals look chunkier than for the roadster tank I had at the same time.
And for which I still have some new ones, same era, waiting.....

rvich · Feb 26, 2012

Dave,
Why don't you put a rule up against your logo and see what the real dimmensions are. When I went to the local sign shop to get my stencils made he asked me how big I wanted them and went from there. It should be pretty easy for anybody who has the ability to make these to change the size and keep the proportions.

Brent,
I mentioned in another thread that my respect for your work went up considerably the further I got into my own paint project. Amongst the things I learned was that you can easily make a good paint job look like a bad one if your stripes don't enhance the shape of the tank. Thus my tank has none! I decided that I much preferred the cleaner look!
Russ

swooshdave · Feb 26, 2012

Rohan said:
I have a feeling those thicker style 'Norton' decals were used on the Interstate tanks ?

This was taken off a bike in a showroom in the mid ? 1970s (it leaked), thats its replacements box underneath.

Decals look chunkier than for the roadster tank I had at the same time.
And for which I still have some new ones, same era, waiting.....

Sounds about right, they would have made the logo "bigger" for the Interstate as the Roadster-sized one would like too small.

jbbudgor · Feb 26, 2012

Thanks Russ,
I appreciate the vote of confidence. I know there are plenty of guys that can DIY their tins. And in fact I have offered advice to many along the way when they wanted to try, some succeeded, some didn't. It's not rocket science, but it does take patience and money as you have seen. And if you don't have the materials on hand, a lot of money, at least for some good quality products. As for the lettering, I've seen so many variations. My customers have been happy with my work, so that's the basis I go by. As part of a very simple pricing policy I provide, which typically is all inclusive, I provide the decals/stencils. Somebody can always provide their own as did Roger on the black/sliver tank above if they prefer.
Thanks,
Brent

splatt · Feb 26, 2012

Rohan said:
I have a feeling those thicker style 'Norton' decals were used on the Interstate tanks ?

This was taken off a bike in a showroom in the mid ? 1970s (it leaked), thats its replacements box underneath.

Decals look chunkier than for the roadster tank I had at the same time.
And for which I still have some new ones, same era, waiting.....

Their doesn't appear to be a seperate Interstate logo.

One thing I did notice is that the factory logos don't appear to be mounted in the middle of the pinstripes but up above centre.Maybe if I was to put some decals or pinstripes on my black interstate I would be in a position to comment

nortonspeed · Apr 8, 2012

jbbudgor said:
These next shots show the neck detail, repro tank is black, mine is polished as I do them:

Beautiful paintwork! Brent I am very curious don't you treat the neck at all to prevent it from rusting??

jbbudgor · Apr 9, 2012

Well thank you for the kind words. To answer your question, no I do not treat the necks. Once they are stripped, they get polished when I buff the paint. After that, just some wax. So it will take just some minor maintenance over the years. A light film of petroleum jelly or occasional fine steel wool and polish should do the trick. If I paint them, then you end up with chipping paint from the locking cap. So this to me is the better option, not perfect, but better.
Brent
www.vintage-vendor.com

nortonspeed · Apr 9, 2012

OK Brent, never thought of finishing the neck like this. As I am fed up with chipping paint I will try polishing the neck. Thanks.

THE VINTAGE VENDOR VS PRE-PAINTED REPRO, YOU DECIDE...

jbbudgor

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