What Did You Do With Your Commando Today?

Café au Lait said:
I ride with my arse pushed right back to the hump. I rode FE’s bike, it was exactly the same but my feet were of course much further back, knees therefore lower and ankles at a much more acute angle, same reach though; actually slightly different as his bars are a tad lower and narrower. Great at speed not so good around town. Yours I imagine would be a good compromise especially as you like to ride at 135mph😂😂😂 Of course leg length has a lot to do with it too but I’m super comfortable on mine so will be leaving as is.
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All riding positions are subjective
I remember in bike magazine they had a rider animated onto a feet forward chopper with ape hangers
Then the same rider on a cafe racer but the rider was turned 45° in exactly the same pose
 
I prefer the looks of the Roadster overall but the Interstate look is growing on me. The main thing I like about the Interstate is I can actually grab the tank with my knees, with the Roadster my legs just seem to flap around in the wind !
 
Fast Eddie said:
I prefer the looks of the Roadster overall but the Interstate look is growing on me. The main thing I like about the Interstate is I can actually grab the tank with my knees, with the Roadster my legs just seem to flap around in the wind !
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Have you ridden a fastback Eddie?
That configuration was by far my favourite if used as a solo
The FB seat really isn't long enough for two people IMO but as a solo it's very good
Plus the Extra capacity over a roadster tank is great
I was gutted when my tank started to melt
I have a metal long range FB on the shelf but it's shape dosent appeal to me
 
baz said:
Have you ridden a fastback Eddie?
That configuration was by far my favourite if used as a solo
The FB seat really isn't long enough for two people IMO but as a solo it's very good
Plus the Extra capacity over a roadster tank is great
I was gutted when my tank started to melt
I have a metal long range FB on the shelf but it's shape dosent appeal to me
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Once, over 25 years ago Baz, and I wasn’t concentrating on the riding position (didn’t matter much back then) but on seeing how fast it could go !

But as a Triumph man, I do recall being amazed how smooth it was at high revs, also thinking how easy it would be to blow one up with it being so smooth and encouraging such abuse !

But then I got the hinge in the middle on a fast bend and thought that confirmed all the stories of them being ‘bendies’.

Shame I wasn’t astute enough to understand it was just worn out / badly adjusted…
 
Fast Eddie said:
Once, over 25 years ago Baz, and I wasn’t concentrating on the riding position (didn’t matter much back then) but on seeing how fast it could go !

But as a Triumph man, I do recall being amazed how smooth it was at high revs, also thinking how easy it would be to blow one up with it being so smooth and encouraging such abuse !

But then I got the hinge in the middle on a fast bend and thought that confirmed all the stories of them being ‘bendies’.

Shame I wasn’t astute enough to understand it was just worn out / badly adjusted…
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A badly set up commando can be a nasty beast for sure!
 
I finally dragged my 750 out of the garage after a year of pure neglect - day job getting in the way as usual :rolleyes:

The last time I rode it it was great, but tick-over was a little erratic, and it tended to start putting out a bit of black smoke on one cylinder after being left at idle for a minute or so.
I dropped the float bowls to find the original plastic float needles still in there. I can't think why I didn't change them when I first rebuilt it, but they're now viton tipped brass numbers, and no more smoke.
This was the bike with totally knackered carbs - until I replaced the throttle needles & jets, it now idles perfectly and pulls cleanly throughout the rev range.

Incidentally, it had a sump-full of oil, and the tank was pretty much empty. I know a lot of folks would have drained it and returned it to the tank, but to be honest I've never felt the need.
I gave it a few slow kicks to move the oil around a little, primed the carbs and it started at the first kick.

Went to the Cafe with Mrs. Bogus on the back, and she's impressed with it. The drum brakes are still bedding in, so no Valentino Rossi late braking. I think that helped :)



 
MichaelB said:
I've chased a strange somewhat ringing noise on my Mk 2 850 forever.
Finally just put it off to the harmonics of the wind ringing through the fins.
I don't remember this on other Commandos.
Whether that's the issue or not, i've given up as there are no mechanical maladies.
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Could be the timing is a little too advanced.
 
B+Bogus said:
I finally dragged my 750 out of the garage after a year of pure neglect - day job getting in the way as usual :rolleyes:

The last time I rode it it was great, but tick-over was a little erratic, and it tended to start putting out a bit of black smoke on one cylinder after being left at idle for a minute or so.
I dropped the float bowls to find the original plastic float needles still in there. I can't think why I didn't change them when I first rebuilt it, but they're now viton tipped brass numbers, and no more smoke.
This was the bike with totally knackered carbs - until I replaced the throttle needles & jets, it now idles perfectly and pulls cleanly throughout the rev range.

Incidentally, it had a sump-full of oil, and the tank was pretty much empty. I know a lot of folks would have drained it and returned it to the tank, but to be honest I've never felt the need.
I gave it a few slow kicks to move the oil around a little, primed the carbs and it started at the first kick.

Went to the Cafe with Mrs. Bogus on the back, and she's impressed with it. The drum brakes are still bedding in, so no Valentino Rossi late braking. I think that helped :)



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Bike looks great. Re the empty oil tank, I was concerned that there’s no supply to the oil pump until it can somehow return oil from the sump and create some pressure thus supplying the engine?
 
Stevo said:
Bike looks great. Re the empty oil tank, I was concerned that there’s no supply to the oil pump until it can somehow return oil from the sump and create some pressure thus supplying the engine?
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I'm fairly confident the pump isn't sitting in fresh air, and those few kicks before trying to start are to make sure there is oil circulation.
I've never killed a motor this way, so I'll keep with it.
The only thing worse than an oil thread is an anti-wet sumping thread 😄
 
Went for a spin on the 'S' yesterday, and I was just thinking how smooth it is, and congratulated myself on how it never misses a beat, when... a couple of misfires then total silence.
Dead motor, dead electrics - apart from the horn.
The 'Genuine Lucas' ammeter was hard over, so no deep diagnosis required.

So today I removed the ammeter, stripped it and confirmed the coil winding had 'released the smoke'.
I centred the needle, refitted it and connected the ring tags to one terminal.
I think that's going to be the full extent of the fix, unless someone knows of a source of good quality ammeters?
 
Clutch lever felt a bit tougher to squeeze this spring. Oiled cable, stripped out clutch for a good cleaning (ATF was clean and nice in primary but put in fresh of course.) Reset clearance and now back to easy 2 finger action and super easy engagement from neutral to first. Did oil change in shocks as well. Oil coming out quite clean and still with colour. Lovely ride after & the old girl sifts along beautifully after 30+ years and 75K miles of ownership. What a great bike.
Also of note, last year I installed a new wiring harness. The original was 50 + years old and functioning perfect as always, just a lot of cracking/deteriorating at connectors. Very good service life in my opinion.
Cheers
 
Adjusted my chain. 1st time in 4,000 miles. Decent chain from the Chainman. Went to book in a rear tyre change. They no longer touch bikes more than 10 years old. Have to find somewhere else or do it myself.
 
It was Andover Norton’s Open Day today and the route via Kingsclere has some excellent roads with s few long straights to open Arnie (cNw #101) up. Very good turnout, mostly Commandos with a smattering of 650SSs and quite a collection of Rotaries but AN parking organisation was so woeful that many non Nortons among them somewhat diluted the impact.
What Did You Do With Your Commando Today?


What Did You Do With Your Commando Today?
What Did You Do With Your Commando Today?

Also present was Milliard with the Nemesis, noisy bugger!
What Did You Do With Your Commando Today?
What Did You Do With Your Commando Today?


Arnie got loads of attention from other owners and AN staff alike, even Ashley Cultler was impressed🤣

One unfortunate soul had his side stand break and his Rager took some damage including a smashed clock😢
What Did You Do With Your Commando Today?
 
Drove it out of Toronto to trout fish . Set up my lousy tent at Shelter Valley which leaked bad in the sudden morning thunderstorm . Tossed it into the fishermen trash heap after the sun came out . Ran great on the way home ( with fish in sidebags ) until intermittent miss firings around Morningside drive , which grew worse until death at Timothy Eaton Church near home . A nice man helped me reconnect the Boyer wire in the T-cover . Got me home . Fish in fridge .
 
Torontonian said:
Drove it out of Toronto to trout fish . Set up my lousy tent at Shelter Valley which leaked bad in the sudden morning thunderstorm . Tossed it into the fishermen trash heap after the sun came out . Ran great on the way home ( with fish in sidebags ) until intermittent miss firings around Morningside drive , which grew worse until death at Timothy Eaton Church near home . A nice man helped me reconnect the Boyer wire in the T-cover . Got me home . Fish in fridge .
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Maybe not a perfect trip, but a fishing trip where you come home with fish is good!
 
Went to the Quail MotoFest near Monterey, California. About 250 miles round trip, mostly freeways, although there were some fun stretches. Went there on Friday, back today. Norton ran well. I noticed that the left plug was a little too whitish for my taste and closed the air screw on the Amal on that side a couple of millimeters. Got back, checked sparkplug, now decent shade of grey. Unfortunately the gearbox is leaking, I think around the kickstart mechanism, and I think the forks could use some attention. Was planning to ride Norton to the Quincy rally in June (about 500 mile round trip) but now reconsidering. I talked to a mechanic, he can look at both issues, but not until the end of June. I don't think I will have time to do it myself. Bike will probably do fine if I keep adding oil to the gearbox, but that is not ideal. I think it will depend on how hot it is going to be. If it is really hot, will definitely take one of my modern bikes.
 
Café au Lait said:
It was Andover Norton’s Open Day today and the route via Kingsclere has some excellent roads with s few long straights to open Arnie (cNw #101) up. Very good turnout, mostly Commandos with a smattering of 650SSs and quite a collection of Rotaries but AN parking organisation was so woeful that many non Nortons among them somewhat diluted the impact.
View attachment 119851

View attachment 119846View attachment 119847
Also present was Milliard with the Nemesis, noisy bugger!
View attachment 119849View attachment 119850

Arnie got loads of attention from other owners and AN staff alike, even Ashley Cultler was impressed🤣

One unfortunate soul had his side stand break and his Rager took some damage including a smashed clock😢
View attachment 119848
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Thanks for attending, we knew it was going to busy but not as busy as it was. In the past we have tried parking the Nortons in one end of the car park, but where there are groups arriving on mixed marques they will rather not stop if they all can't park together in their group, strange I know.
 


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