Buying a Chopper

[marshg246]

In 2018 I had a titled frame and set of cases I planned to flip but came across a mess of a 74 850 on eBay that no one was bidding on. Extended forks, ape hangers, 2 into 1 exhaust and so on. I paid $1600 and it cost $450 to ship it me. It was untitled.

You can see how that POS "Chopper" became the bike in the second picture here: https://gregmarsh.com/MC/Norton/Norton_1974.aspx

 

[franko]

Are those BUB exhaust pipes?

 

[nortonmargie]

The photo is of BUB mufflers. Don't look like the mufflers on the "chopper." Anyone want them? $40 + shipping

 

[fiatfan]

2 Norton choppers in the same pic! In Sweden of course! The red one is a friends from the south of Sweden, the green one is mine. I bought the bike in 1974, then with Dunstall parts on it, transformed it a couple of times, sold it in -84. Bought it back 9 years ago, then it was transformed again and I didn´t like the way it looked. So I built this nostalgic "look-a-like", roughly as it looked in -84 when I sold it.

 

[baz]

2 Norton choppers in the same pic! In Sweden of course! The red one is a friends from the south of Sweden, the green one is mine. I bought the bike in 1974, then with Dunstall parts on it, transformed it a couple of times, sold it in -84. Bought it back 9 years ago, then it was transformed again and I didn´t like the way it looked. So I built this nostalgic "look-a-like", roughly as it looked in -84 when I sold it.

Here's a Norton softail I picked up last year
Monoshock rear,920 motor,PW cam,mk 3 engine but with right shift and belt drive,no electric start

 

[Stephen Hill]

Who knew there were all these chopper fans lurking in the background!

 

[Fast Eddie]

I bought a Triumph chop off a mate. It was a proper child of the 70s… and not in a good way.

I modified it somewhat and had some great fun with it.

I was rebuilding a Triton at the time so I put some of the cast off hot rod bits in the chop motor, then turned it into a bit of a ‘chop rod’ kinda thing and sprinted it a bit.

I eventually turned it into a Steve McQueen Great Escape tribute kinda thing. Looked old and decrepit but went like stink !

All good honest (ish) fun !!

My ‘chop rod’ is number 91 below. The other bike is my mates Rickman Zundapp 125 that he shoehorned a 600cc 4 valve CCM motor into. That thing was amazing but just wanted to summersault when opened up !!

Happy Daze …

 

[baz]

Who knew there were all these chopper fans lurking in the background!

I've been building chops since around 1980
I've also de chopped quite a few along the way
The problem is most 70s stuff was backyard built just for 'the look' and some of it was bad, very bad
Some well engineered too
But generally people were young/didn't have the money, ability or experience to build things properly
Hence the reputation they still have
But they are built for fun and good times
They're not comuters
Or race reps etc
Although it is funny to get past a race rep rider
on a hard tail if only briefly

 

[acotrel]

Having fun is always good, but a broken neck is never good. In Australia these days, getting a modified vehicle registered usually requires an Engineer's certificate - minimum cost is about $2000. Professional indemnity insurance is important. Building a motorcycle for road-racing is much less controlled, but race organisers are also beginning to understand the effects of insurance on their fun. I think there is a big problem with motorcycle racing in Australia - the politics are horrible because motorcyclists do not know what game they are in. It used to be 'race on Sunday, sell on Monday' - we are all now much more risk-conscious. Climate change affects insurance premiums for everything.

 

[NORTSTER1974]

The two Harleys were built in the mid 1970s. The first bike was a 1959 panhead. The second bike was a 1969 triumph Bonneville which me and a buddy built it had an 80 in wheelbase. The third bike was in 1960 panhead also built in the mid-70s and featured in Street chopper magazine. Both pan heads were running Durfee girders. I guess seeing the panheads rolling through the neighborhood when I was a teenager prompted me to get into the chopper thing. The 69 Bonneville which was stretched and raked with a 20-in over front end went straight down the road with your hands off the bars at 20 miles an hour. Brad sold his 60 pan head for $2,500, I sold my 69 Bonneville for $1,500, and Maury still has his 59 panhead down in Florida probably in his living room.

 

[NORTSTER1974]

The two Harleys were built in the mid 1970s. The first bike was a 1959 panhead. The second bike was a 1969 triumph Bonneville which me and a buddy built it had an 80 in wheelbase. The third bike was in 1960 panhead also built in the mid-70s and featured in Street chopper magazine. Both pan heads were running Durfee girders. I guess seeing the panheads rolling through the neighborhood when I was a teenager prompted me to get into the chopper thing. The 69 Bonneville which was stretched and raked with a 20-in over front end went straight down the road with your hands off the bars at 20 miles an hour. Brad sold his 60 pan head for $2,500, I sold my 69 Bonneville for $1,500, and Maury still has his 59 panhead down in Florida probably in his living room.

It's not about buying it's about building!

 

[baz]

The two Harleys were built in the mid 1970s. The first bike was a 1959 panhead. The second bike was a 1969 triumph Bonneville which me and a buddy built it had an 80 in wheelbase. The third bike was in 1960 panhead also built in the mid-70s and featured in Street chopper magazine. Both pan heads were running Durfee girders. I guess seeing the panheads rolling through the neighborhood when I was a teenager prompted me to get into the chopper thing. The 69 Bonneville which was stretched and raked with a 20-in over front end went straight down the road with your hands off the bars at 20 miles an hour. Brad sold his 60 pan head for $2,500, I sold my 69 Bonneville for $1,500, and Maury still has his 59 panhead down in Florida probably in his living room.

some raked out front ends can be a bit heavy and want to flop from side to side until you pick up speed
One I had with 12" over springers used to sort itself out at exactly 30 mph it'd just give a little shake at the bars
And then after that it's be fine
PS
If you use raked yokes on a raked frame you can restore the trail but please don't tell Al !!!!!