Why are all Nortons Black?

I've got a yellow combat and I really get excited when I see an orange, blue or especially the metal flake colored bikes.
I see at most gatherings 7 outta 10 Norton's are black.
I really enjoy the ocassional red 1974 in my area.
At the rate I'm seeing black Nortons by the time I will my bike to my son he will have one of the few non-black bikes.
We need a resurgance in Nosalgia Norton Bike colors
Can I get an Amen!

Only get an amen if you leave yours yellow!

Because rattle can paint doesn't come in Fireflake Roman Purple... :roll:

All Nortons black? I don't think so.

I don't think the Commando is a Model T, But the first one I remember seeing was yellow and I can still see and hear it in my little brain. Man did that bike have an effect on me. The thing sounded like a pissed off GIANT wasp and moved twice as fast, Kinda looked like one too! Yellow Commando's are cool.

I have to agree there are a lot of black ones. But there are very few with original paint either. As R model Tony points out the FireFlake is dificult to duplicate, as are the metallics Norton used. My '73 Roadster has original metallic blue paint and I have loaned a side cover to a friend who had his custom painter duplicate the metallic. It took several tries for him to get it right. It appears to have a solid blue base with the metallic blue over that. The inside of the cover is not metallic. I'd like to know what his final paint bill was.
There were a lot of black Commandos sold in the day. When I bought mine in '73, the dealer had 3 black Interstates, 2 metallic blue Roadsters, and a yellow Hi-Rider. Black was available from '71 to '75 if I recall correctly, while the other colors would last a year or so. Even my '73 metallic blue roadster was a considerably different metallic in '74 - '75.
Another reason guys choose black might be paint cost. I can buy two quarts of DBU9700 black for what I paid for one quart of custom mixed DBU yellow for my Production Racer replica. And that's not metallic!
I have had Commandos in pearl white, red, silver, blue, yellow, and black. The next one will be BRG!

I think black is the most popular color for bikes available in black. With my Speed Triple, Black has been an available color since the model was introduced in '94. The other colors rotate through the years, with the usual number being 3 with an occasional special color.

When I bought my basket case, it was black. Stripping the tank revealed it had been painted at least 4 times, and the base color was Red. I didn't realize the color was an early Commando color until after I painted it. (Bike is a '73, but had fiberglass tank and side covers when I got it).

Most of the people I talked to expected me to paint it black. 'Commandos should be black" was the common cry.

As others have postulated I suspect it is partly a cost issue and then there are simply alot of people who like black stuff . I've never been one of them . The tires , seat and frame are black along with many other components . I've never , ever wanted a vehicle painted black , along with all of the other black stuff . I've had two black cars and that was two too many. I'm having a second tank and side covers painted candy apple red for my Mk III . I plan to swap back and forth between that and my other favorite , the John Player scheme . If my bike was from an earlier year , I wouldn't mind having a fireflake blue set .

My 70 S is bright yellow and staying that way. i love the analogy with the wasp. It is oh so true. Most Nortons i see are black and it looks pretty sweet against the chrome but i seem to get more comments both from the guys and girls about how nice the yellow is

I've put this in another post, but what the hell. I've been getting a few positive comments about this one lately, so here it is. Note brand new cylinder head!! Just kidding.

I love seeing any colors other than the black and gold... Unless your bike is well restored and stock why not change the paint up and make it your own?

This guy's bike is non-traditional, but it's beautiful! http://www.nortonfastback.com/html/spri ... ndex_4.htm

My '72 Interstate is a red one, tho maroon might be a more accurate colour description. Since the engine and frame are non-matching, might be a flip a coin to guess what it was origionally. I was (Still am), very tempted to get it sprayed black...Tho I have to say...One of the other members here posted a pic of his in a green. Fetching colour I thought.

Wasps! They are drawn to yellow and orange Nortons. They land on the tank while parked. They fly down your neck when riding....

So that's why Nortons are black. :roll:

Russ

When I first got my Norton I went to a Norton owners rally where I saw about 30 black Nortons, a yellow one and a blue one. That's why mine is bright red. I have to admit though that some 15 or so years later the bikes I see now appear to be a lot more colorful.

Most of 'em are black NOW becasue most of 'em were black THEN.

That, and it's a commonly known fact that the vast majority of repainted bikes get painted black. Same goes for stolen bikes and basket cases.

I also agree with zotz, I've been seeing more and more colors show up on refurbished & restored Nortons.

They just look so darned good in black, that's why! Plus all the reasons noted above. I'm told that black was by far the most popular color when they were new, and dealers would repaint other colors to meet customer demand. So it's been said anyway.

My 750 had been repainted black when I bought it (probably because that's the easiest color to work with, as GP noted) but it has a nice original Fireflake Royal Blue tank now. Still has black sidepanels though. And my 850 is silver. So I'm doing my part for color diversity!

At the Mancos rally I saw lots of colors. Other colors are becoming more popular I think. Perhaps soon we'll be asking "why aren't there more black Nortons?" :wink:

Debby

I think a lot of people, myself inculded, wanted to capture a classic British look. Black and gold sure fills the bill. And it is plausible, after all they did make'em. I don't think I've ever seen a black BSA.

I'll leave mine yellow as well 8)

It's remarkable how often people who never saw a Production Racer before, tell me they like its yellow colour.

I have not painted yet . Still haven't made up my mind, although, black was the first color that came to mind. When you think you have a "BAD" machine it just has to be black. Paladin? Zorro? Hopalong? maybe we were trained that Black was cool? :lol:

And here's the answer...

MEANING OF COLOUR
A biker in black craves protection; those in green will keep the motorcycle in good condition and a biker in blue is an insurer's dream. These are just some of the results of a recent study by Devitt and a leading colour psychologist to evaluate what the colour of leathers and motorcycles say about the the individual.

According to Angela Wright of Colour Affects, each colour has slightly different implications: the colour someone chooses for a motorcycle indicates his/her attitude to the activity itself, while the colour of the leathers indicates attitudes to oneself.

Although the most popular colours are comparatively predictable - for motorcycles: red, blue and black; for leathers: black and red - what each colour says about its rider makes for very interesting reading. “Many people think that colour is just a matter of how things look and it is often dismissed as being purely cosmetic. However, the truth is that colour is light - the source of life itself; there is nowhere that colour does not exist and our instinctive, unconscious response to it is a vital element in our survival,” she says.

So, what, in Angela's opinion, can a biker learn from his or her own colours?

Beige: Calm, dependable, no fuss biker
Blue: A biker with clear thought, maturity and responsibility
Black: This biker requires protection from the outside world
Gold: Symbolises luxury, top-of-the-range, expense, sophistication and glamour
Green: Balanced and peaceful. The biker will keep the machine finely tuned
Grey: Enjoys a well-made, functional machine. Sometimes has slight low self-confidence
Mauve/Purple: Upmarket biker, but also rather naughty and self-indulgent.
Orange: A biker who likes physical comfort, pleasure and sensuality, though opposite to blue
Pink: A maternal biker, loving, nurturing and a strong assertion of the feminine
Red: The sign of strong and masculine biker, exhilarating and exciting
Silver: The biker who loves luxury, speed and fine engineering
White: The biker wants uncompromising, clean excellence and the world to keep away
Yellow: Self-confident and optimistic biker. Fun, yet more mature than the orange biker

hm, my Buell is orange...


:mrgreen: