It sounds better now. I statically balances the carbs using the old drill method. After this video I but some vacuum gauges on it and now it’s perfect.
Brian You may want to follow that link to the other video to hear the difference (it might seem slight to some) after I tweaked it some more. I was able to remove a bit of the lumpiness.
What a great machine ... what a great story. When Dave gets that rebuilt engine dialed in and set up it will be a challenge to keep up with him. A '2020 Combat' with properly sized bearings etc - quite the bike.
Interesting build. Looks like 110mph just sitting there. You know those kids there, I remember when I was a kid and a couple of our Pop's friends would drop by on bikes, or my brothers friends would come hang out, those are cherished memories. Those kids there, I bet this will always be a cool place in their minds to remember.
Thanks Wooley! Yes, the kids were especially intrigued by the drone! We had to wait for them to disappear before Dave could get his shots in! I didn't realize there were so many kids in the neighborhood 😜
I bought a 750 production racer back in 1972. I believe there were only a few hundred built at the factory. It had a 5 speed gearbox and all the Norvil racing parts,including the head steady and front brake assy. I raced it in northern Cal, and took a rather nasty crash when I hit some oil on the track at Sears Point raceway. Luckily the bike did not get airborne, and was able to fix the rashed up parts. I quit racing shortly after and sold it. It was one of the fastest production bikes for its time at that track that was quite twisty. It came with high pipes on one side to give it more ground clearance. I bet it’s worth a fortune today.
I love that in a world full of stupid gimmicks and excessive editing the videos I keep coming back to are of a bloke with a singsong taffy accident just having a chat with his mates about their bikes. Great as always!
Great to see Dave's bike on the 'road' in the 'Cul de sac' a good opportunity on short trip to flag up any issues. As Dave say a little tweak in tickover then a few cobwebs to clear this out a bit should work .. ha ha. atvb Mike, thanks once again to all the guys participating it this fun series. t ..
Thank you Terry, much appreciated! And I am glad that you are enjoying this little mini-series :-) it's been so much fun. And there are still a few videos to follow as well. Best wishes and hope you have a good weekend. Cheers, Mike
Another beautiful bike and a real credit to Dave's ability, Norton got it right with the tilt forward engine and upswept peashooter exhaust, sad it took Triumph until the T160 to get this right and even those from the BSA rocket 3. A Commando is a bike I nearly but never owned and a regret I didn't. Dave beauty as this bike is and beauty is in the eye of the beholder I can't help thinking of this bike with the Lyta tank as I stated to another bike in one of Mikes vids, my bias though as other than a Brough Tank the Lyta it's my favourite tank of all time, and I agree a Brough tank would do nothing for this bike. I do know this is the correct tank with this cafe race kit tailpiece/seat and fairing. A styling quirk I always thought strange with the Norton cafe racers is the tailpiece/seat appears to slope down at the back, I know they all did, even Michael Wallers Yamaha Commando Special did the same. Dave this is no criticism, I would be proud to own this bike any day and the thunder of it coming up that street must have been something else. Your drone footage was excellent and would love to see more, I will be going straight to your channel and build for more. Mike great vid as always, you know great guys - real enthusiasts, keep them coming and Thank you to you both.
Thank you Greg. Much appreciated! Hope all is well. There should be a few more videos from the cul-de-sac coming soon :-) hopefully we won't run out of motorcycles :-) best wishes, Mike
What a lovely looking bike, but I don't think my back, neck, shoulders and wrists could handle the riding position. I'd certainly go for a different handlebar set up. But the sound that old Norton makes would almost be worth the pain on my old body. Thanks for sharing it with us.
Ha ha, thank you Peter! We had a terrific ride in the Oregon countryside yesterday. I felt great afterwards, but Dave couldn't even get his boots off :-) I think he went to bed in them :-) cheers, Mike
Uh oh. Another 'real' motorcycle... you can see the asphalt on the other side of the bike as you look through the engine bay. I always liked the near-linear torque as I rowed through the gears. Outstanding bike.
Thanks a lot Dick, glad you enjoyed the video. Dave and I took a ride yesterday and I filmed it, so that should be coming up in the next week or so. Cheers, Mike
Very nice! Just like the second one I built. The belt primary drive is definitely worth it. If you can get the parts still, there is a Norvil racing caliper for the front. It fits to a different fork slider, replacing the original right hand unit, (the left remains the same). The disc is a 12" floating unit. It stops! There is also a Norvil head steady available, it is an iso-elastic unit, a nice piece of engineering! In the past I've tried a variety of cams up to a 4S, and cam timing (there is even a vernier cam sprocket available). Not worth the effort on the 750 I have found. I had gas flowed the head and fitted larger Amals. It would fly up to 100 mph, then ran out of breath. Standard cam would pull all the way to 120. I wish I still had it!
Keith Attwood I’m not sure I’ll spring for the Norvil front brake. Too many other projects sucking up my play money. I’ve got a homemade rose joint headsteady. If you’ve watched the engine rebuild series your might have caught sight of it. Smoother and more accurate than an isolastic.
@@swooshdave I've only just found this channel. I'll check out the builds for sure. The Norvil headsteady really is a pretty unit, no shimming required. I never had a problem with isolastics. I fitted a vernier unit to the rear and a standard unit to the front. Set the clearance to 6-8 thousandth and the handling was great. I also modded a mk3 gearbox cradle (could use a mk2a) as that uses the swing arm spindle held by cotter pins. Much better than the earlier spindle held by a piddly little bolt.
@@swooshdave That's a nice mod. I ran with the original headsteady for some time. With the reputation of the originals for breaking, and my love of UK country roads and speed, I made the change! Also, when I used the mk3 gearbox cradle, I kept the mk3 swingarm too. As the mk3 was a box section, it was stiffer. It also required a mod, as it was designed for a rear disc brake. I had to weld a piece to take the lug of the drum brake.
Thanks Bill. Dave has written a quite a lot since we filmed this and we even had a couple of hours ride yesterday. I took some clips just approve it :-) It performed flawlessly! Hope all is well. Best wishes, Mike
![A really Cool Commando! [visit 28 of 31]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Cxrga5Ehgmw/mqdefault.jpg)
![A really Cool Commando! [visit 28 of 31]](/img/tr.png)
![Norton Commando Cafe Racer [visit 25 of 31]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/KRHVjgrERpQ/mqdefault.jpg)
![1970 Norton Commando [visit 5 of 31]](/img/1.gif)
Hi Mike the bike looked great but did not sound to healthy but i am sure he will get it sorted 😜👍
It sounds better now. I statically balances the carbs using the old drill method. After this video I but some vacuum gauges on it and now it’s perfect.
@@swooshdave you guys do a great job with the old bikes 😜👍
@@mickducati1947 You can see the results after the tuning here: ruclips.net/video/S2o9A-tDorM/видео.html
mick ducati sounds awesome to me
Brian You may want to follow that link to the other video to hear the difference (it might seem slight to some) after I tweaked it some more. I was able to remove a bit of the lumpiness.
What a great machine ... what a great story. When Dave gets that rebuilt engine dialed in and set up it will be a challenge to keep up with him. A '2020 Combat' with properly sized bearings etc - quite the bike.
Interesting build. Looks like 110mph just sitting there.
You know those kids there, I remember when I was a kid and a couple of our Pop's friends would drop by on bikes, or my brothers friends would come hang out, those are cherished memories. Those kids there, I bet this will always be a cool place in their minds to remember.
Thanks Wooley! Yes, the kids were especially intrigued by the drone! We had to wait for them to disappear before Dave could get his shots in! I didn't realize there were so many kids in the neighborhood 😜
Bike sounds awesome.
Always loved Nortons.
My favorite are commandos
The early fastbacks and the interstates
Thank you Robert. Glad you enjoyed the video. @SwooshDave also has an Interstate! Here it is: ruclips.net/video/NPAaT4zpYeQ/видео.html Cheers, Mike
I bought a 750 production racer back in 1972. I believe there were only a few hundred built at the factory. It had a 5 speed gearbox and all the Norvil racing parts,including the head steady and front brake assy. I raced it in northern Cal, and took a rather nasty crash when I hit some oil on the track at Sears Point raceway. Luckily the bike did not get airborne, and was able to fix the rashed up parts. I quit racing shortly after and sold it. It was one of the fastest production bikes for its time at that track that was quite twisty. It came with high pipes on one side to give it more ground clearance. I bet it’s worth a fortune today.
Well Done! I have always loved all Brit bikes even though I had Triumphs!
Thank you Jim!
I love that in a world full of stupid gimmicks and excessive editing the videos I keep coming back to are of a bloke with a singsong taffy accident just having a chat with his mates about their bikes. Great as always!
😜Hehe, thank you Marlon! I really appreciate it. These visits have been so much fun in keeping our spirits up. Best wishes, Mike 👍
Great to see Dave's bike on the 'road' in the 'Cul de sac' a good opportunity on short trip to flag up any issues.
As Dave say a little tweak in tickover then a few cobwebs to clear this out a bit should work .. ha ha.
atvb Mike, thanks once again to all the guys participating it this fun series. t ..
Thank you Terry, much appreciated! And I am glad that you are enjoying this little mini-series :-) it's been so much fun. And there are still a few videos to follow as well. Best wishes and hope you have a good weekend. Cheers, Mike
Another beautiful bike and a real credit to Dave's ability, Norton got it right with the tilt forward engine and upswept peashooter exhaust, sad it took Triumph until the T160 to get this right and even those from the BSA rocket 3. A Commando is a bike I nearly but never owned and a regret I didn't.
Dave beauty as this bike is and beauty is in the eye of the beholder I can't help thinking of this bike with the Lyta tank as I stated to another bike in one of Mikes vids, my bias though as other than a Brough Tank the Lyta it's my favourite tank of all time, and I agree a Brough tank would do nothing for this bike.
I do know this is the correct tank with this cafe race kit tailpiece/seat and fairing. A styling quirk I always thought strange with the Norton cafe racers is the tailpiece/seat appears to slope down at the back, I know they all did, even Michael Wallers Yamaha Commando Special did the same.
Dave this is no criticism, I would be proud to own this bike any day and the thunder of it coming up that street must have been something else.
Your drone footage was excellent and would love to see more, I will be going straight to your channel and build for more.
Mike great vid as always, you know great guys - real enthusiasts, keep them coming and Thank you to you both.
I remember seeing the John Player Nortons at Oulton Park 73 or4. Now they were loud. Lovely bike, Dave does have to stretch.
In the day the more you had to stretch the more street cred you got, easy when you're 21, 11 stone and fit as a butchers dog.
@@nightster6378 Now I'm 50+, Lord knows how many stone (too many) and more like an overfed poodle.
@@nightster6378 Oh to be 11st. again
@@swooshdave Me too only 60+ the rest sounds about right.
@@berniebne8243 If only. I would nearly trade my CBX6 for that.
Beautiful bike Dave👍
Great video as always Mike.
Thank you Greg. Much appreciated! Hope all is well. There should be a few more videos from the cul-de-sac coming soon :-) hopefully we won't run out of motorcycles :-) best wishes, Mike
Another beauty! Thanks Mike.
Thank you Ian! Glad you enjoyed it. There are more to come too! Cheers, Mike
I had a black and gold one
Dunstall kit
Combat motor
Great bike👍
Awesome, thank you Dave. Glad you enjoyed the video. Best wishes, Mike
What a lovely looking bike, but I don't think my back, neck, shoulders and wrists could handle the riding position. I'd certainly go for a different handlebar set up. But the sound that old Norton makes would almost be worth the pain on my old body. Thanks for sharing it with us.
Ha ha, thank you Peter! We had a terrific ride in the Oregon countryside yesterday. I felt great afterwards, but Dave couldn't even get his boots off :-) I think he went to bed in them :-) cheers, Mike
Another cool story!
Thanks a lot! I'm glad that you are enjoying this little mini series :-) there's a few more to come as well. Best wishes, Mike
To good for words stay safe
Thank you Ian! We had a great ride in the Oregon countryside yesterday. Video should be posted in the next week or so. Best wishes, Mike
Uh oh. Another 'real' motorcycle... you can see the asphalt on the other side of the bike as you look through the engine bay. I always liked the near-linear torque as I rowed through the gears. Outstanding bike.
Thanks a lot Dick, glad you enjoyed the video. Dave and I took a ride yesterday and I filmed it, so that should be coming up in the next week or so. Cheers, Mike
Very nice! Just like the second one I built. The belt primary drive is definitely worth it. If you can get the parts still, there is a Norvil racing caliper for the front. It fits to a different fork slider, replacing the original right hand unit, (the left remains the same). The disc is a 12" floating unit. It stops! There is also a Norvil head steady available, it is an iso-elastic unit, a nice piece of engineering! In the past I've tried a variety of cams up to a 4S, and cam timing (there is even a vernier cam sprocket available). Not worth the effort on the 750 I have found. I had gas flowed the head and fitted larger Amals. It would fly up to 100 mph, then ran out of breath. Standard cam would pull all the way to 120. I wish I still had it!
Keith Attwood I’m not sure I’ll spring for the Norvil front brake. Too many other projects sucking up my play money. I’ve got a homemade rose joint headsteady. If you’ve watched the engine rebuild series your might have caught sight of it. Smoother and more accurate than an isolastic.
@@swooshdave I've only just found this channel. I'll check out the builds for sure. The Norvil headsteady really is a pretty unit, no shimming required. I never had a problem with isolastics. I fitted a vernier unit to the rear and a standard unit to the front. Set the clearance to 6-8 thousandth and the handling was great. I also modded a mk3 gearbox cradle (could use a mk2a) as that uses the swing arm spindle held by cotter pins. Much better than the earlier spindle held by a piddly little bolt.
Keith Attwood There are other options for the swing arm. Mike has a video n how to use some clamps. That’s the mod I’ve also used.
@@keithattwood59 A peek at the head steady: ruclips.net/video/mJCBkfxOTc8/видео.html
@@swooshdave That's a nice mod. I ran with the original headsteady for some time. With the reputation of the originals for breaking, and my love of UK country roads and speed, I made the change! Also, when I used the mk3 gearbox cradle, I kept the mk3 swingarm too. As the mk3 was a box section, it was stiffer. It also required a mod, as it was designed for a rear disc brake. I had to weld a piece to take the lug of the drum brake.
very good
Thank you Neil! Cheers!
Love 'em but mine never stayed in one piece for long. Oil leaks, loose barrel nuts. Isolastic,elastic etc:
Les pièces Dunstall peut ètre,merci pour cette beauté
Bien que les pièces Dunstall soient cool, ce sont en fait des répliques d'usine. (Google translate so hopefully not offensive).
The cul-de-sac strikes again!
Hehe, thanks Kyle! And there are a few more to come soon! Cheers, Mike
Top 😍👍
Thank you Erwin. Hope all is well. Best wishes, Mike
Hubba hubba, thats sexy
S, R, LR, JPS, etc, here is the timeline for this iconic british bike (as far as i know)
motoralbum.hu/index.php?/category/2020-norton_commando
Thank you Zimezum for sharing this list! It's great. Best wishes, Mike
Just needs a little breaking-in, I'd say.
Thanks Bill. Dave has written a quite a lot since we filmed this and we even had a couple of hours ride yesterday. I took some clips just approve it :-) It performed flawlessly! Hope all is well. Best wishes, Mike