What Did You Do With Your Commando Today?

jamesp · May 29, 2023

Hooked up spring to center stand which I installed yesterday.

KiwiShane · May 29, 2023

cjandme said:
Wow I'd heard about eucalyptus but haven't ever tried it yet. I never knew about the Avon skin so soft though, awesome info, thanks...another reason I love this forum. Cj

Last mosquito that bit me ended up in a Betty Ford clinic...

Starvingphotog · May 30, 2023

Hey there guys, I'm looking to get my wheels redone and plan on going with an 18"in the rear, and continuing with the 19" on the front. Any recommendations on tire setups I should consider? I'm leaning toward Avon since everyone else seems to like them, but not sure if they make an 18" for the Commando.

Richard Tool · May 30, 2023

Starvingphotog said:
Hey there guys, I'm looking to get my wheels redone and plan on going with an 18"in the rear, and continuing with the 19" on the front. Any recommendations on tire setups I should consider? I'm leaning toward Avon since everyone else seems to like them, but not sure if they make an 18" for the Commando.

Be aware that Avon has announced they are closing UK operations or at least motorcycle tires - don’t know how this will affect availability.

Starvingphotog · May 30, 2023

OH Yikes! I did not know that....Thanks for the heads up Richard. Looks like we'll need to find an alternative to Avon RR tires sooner rather than later.

jamesp · May 30, 2023

Starvingphotog said:
OH Yikes! I did not know that....Thanks for the heads up Richard. Looks like we'll need to find an alternative to Avon RR tires sooner rather than later.

Matt at cNw recommends Bridgestone BT46, 100/90-19 front and 120/90-18 rear. I have a set mounted, but not ridden on yet. You can still get Avons from Andover Norton or feked.com, last I saw recently.

Ron Hulton · May 30, 2023

There was an announcement by Goodyear back in the end of March 2023 stating that they intend to continue on with the Roadrider MKII. Fret no more ....

YING · May 31, 2023

jamesp said:
Matt at cNw recommends Bridgestone BT46, 100/90-19 front and 120/90-18 rear. I have a set mounted, but not ridden on yet. You can still get Avons from Andover Norton or feked.com, last I saw recently.

I got 2 Avons from Feked last month. I was surprised to see how quickly they came.

Starvingphotog · May 31, 2023

jamesp said:
Matt at cNw recommends Bridgestone BT46, 100/90-19 front and 120/90-18 rear. I have a set mounted, but not ridden on yet. You can still get Avons from Andover Norton or feked.com, last I saw recently.

Yes, I think I recall Matt telling me something about that a while back. I think that he modifies the rear tire as well since that dimension is too large for the swing arm. I might be wrong on that, but not sure 120 will mount without rubbing on the swing arm. Currently I have 110/90-19 on the rear and they fit nicely.

milfordite · May 31, 2023

Rode it 200 miles or so, then changed the oil to Royal Purple, changed primary oil, mounted new rear Dunlop and installed a new chain. Ready to rally!

bluto · May 31, 2023

Installed some clamp on headlight brackets as I detest the stock setup with O rings. Not great looking but they don't rattle ;-)

What Did You Do With Your Commando Today?

Tornado · May 31, 2023

Pulled front disk off/cleaned, degreased, prep'd and hit it with VHT caliper/disk paint. Getting ready to cure it in the kitchen oven (yes, wife is out of town ;-).

Reset primary and final drive chain tensions.
Nearly ready to replace front tire, so decided to try my hand at sidewall lettering paint in white....kinda like it but need better skill at staying within the letter lines before trying on fresh tire.

concours · May 31, 2023

bluto said:
Installed some clamp on headlight brackets as I detest the stock setup with O rings. Not great looking but they don't rattle ;-)

Today, I rode to the pub.
Then, after reading your post, while reposing in the garage viewing area, set out to find the clunking in my forks. NOT the headlight ears, nor the brake, it's internal to the forks. Madass Lansdownes. Not sure what the problem is, but I'm not taking it apart for now.

Richard Tool · May 31, 2023

bluto said:
Installed some clamp on headlight brackets as I detest the stock setup with O rings. Not great looking but they don't rattle ;-)

Actually they look better than the stock cheap looking tube / stamping weldments. I would change mine out but don’t want to disassemble the forks.

gpzkat · May 31, 2023

Tornado said:
Pulled front disk off/cleaned, degreased, prep'd and hit it with VHT caliper/disk paint. Getting ready to cure it in the kitchen oven (yes, wife is out of town ;-).

Reset primary and final drive chain tensions.
Nearly ready to replace front tire, so decided to try my hand at sidewall lettering paint in white....kinda like it but need better skill at staying within the letter lines before trying on fresh tire.

Gas grill works great for curing.

jamesp · May 31, 2023

Starvingphotog said:
Yes, I think I recall Matt telling me something about that a while back. I think that he modifies the rear tire as well since that dimension is too large for the swing arm. I might be wrong on that, but not sure 120 will mount without rubbing on the swing arm. Currently I have 110/90-19 on the rear and they fit nicely.

Matt told me that the Bridgestone 120/90-18 comes with shaved side walls from the factory. He told me that Bridgestone is the only tire manufacturer that does that. I should be able to get mine on sometime next week, will report back.

Tornado · May 31, 2023

Tornado said:
Pulled front disk off/cleaned, degreased, prep'd and hit it with VHT caliper/disk paint. Getting ready to cure it in the kitchen oven (yes, wife is out of town ;-).

Reset primary and final drive chain tensions.
Nearly ready to replace front tire, so decided to try my hand at sidewall lettering paint in white....kinda like it but need better skill at staying within the letter lines before trying on fresh tire.

Some pics of my handywork:

For disc painting, I just sprayed whole thing, no masking. Then fitted some old pads and spent a nice evening tooling about neighborhood doing lots of braking. Took a few blocks until paint started stripping away. After a good few miles, nearly all paint gone from friction surfaces and good braking returned. Surpriaed how cleanly the edges came out with this method. Way better than i could have done with masking.
Will swap back to fresh pads shortly.

KiwiShane · May 31, 2023

jamesp said:
Matt at cNw recommends Bridgestone BT46, 100/90-19 front and 120/90-18 rear. I have a set mounted, but not ridden on yet. You can still get Avons from Andover Norton or feked.com, last I saw recently.

I run BT 46's in the same configuration as yours...18R..19F...good tyres in my book

Fast Eddie · Jun 1, 2023

Tornado said:
Some pics of my handywork:
View attachment 107323 View attachment 107324
For disc painting, I just sprayed whole thing, no masking. Then fitted some old pads and spent a nice evening tooling about neighborhood doing lots of braking. Took a few blocks until paint started stripping away. After a good few miles, nearly all paint gone from friction surfaces and good braking returned. Surpriaed how cleanly the edges came out with this method. Way better than i could have done with masking.
Will swap back to fresh pads shortly.

A friend of mine did the lettering on his Avon Speedmaster… but only did half a job

…

cliffa · Jun 1, 2023

bluto said:
Installed some clamp on headlight brackets as I detest the stock setup with O rings. Not great looking but they don't rattle ;-)

Here’s what I did to mine…

Headlight bracket has movement up and down.

Hi all, after having work done on the front suspension of my 1974 850 Commando l had a knock in the front suspension. On investigation I have found that the left side headlight mount has about 2-3mm of up and down movement, after looking at many exploded diagrams and reading of manuals I have...

www.accessnorton.com

They are now such a good fit I’m not sure if the o-rings are even required any more.

What Did You Do With Your Commando Today?

Pittsboro,NC