As built by NYC Norton,1973 Norton 750 Commando Roadster

Frame no. 235155 Engine no. 235155

• Motor Cycle News 'Machine of the Year' for five years in the UK
• Nut-and-bolt restoration
• Rebuilt by Kenny Cummings - NYC Norton in Jersey City
• 'The Perfect Norton'
As the 1960s wound down, Norton had a problem. To battle rivals BSA and Triumph, the company's parallel twin had been taken out to 750cc, and while the resulting Atlas model retained superior handling due to its Featherbed frame, engine vibration was a real problem. The ingenious solution would make the Commando 750 one of the most rider-friendly Britbikes of the era. For 1968 a new frame held the engine/gearbox/swingarm unit in a rubber-mounted cradle, a remarkably efficient 'Isolastic' anti-vibration system that effectively isolated the motor's oscillations from the rider. The new Commando became an instant hit, being voted Motor Cycle News' 'Machine of the Year' five consecutive times in the UK.
Besides the new frame, the running gear was pretty familiar – forks, hubs, brakes and transmission were as fitted to earlier Nortons, long proven in service. The engine's 'new' forward-inclined cylinders, the sharply angled rear shocks and distinctive cast alloy foot peg carriers added some flair.
This stunning 1973 late-model 750 Commando Roadster underwent a complete rebuild by Kenny Cummings' NYC Norton located in Jersey City from the fall of 2018 to the spring of 2019. Barely broken in with just over 100 miles on the odometer this might be called the 'perfect Norton,' certainly the 'perfect Commando.' The full build-sheet, available in the history file, is too long to print here...the bike was stripped to its last nut and bolt and slowly but surely inspected and then rebuilt to the highest possible standard using the 50 years of accumulated knowledge shared among Nortonisti around the globe. Magnafluxed crank, Nikasil cylinder bores with new camshaft, lifters, pushrods, and much more. The 4-speedgearbox was thoroughly re-built with new bearings, stainless fasteners and a reverse cam plate. Tri-Spark electronic ignition, Podtronics solid state 200w rectifier, Mikuni VM34 carburetor, LED battery status monitor in the headlamp shell, and again much more accompanies a full frame, suspension, and brake upgrade (mostly hidden) together with a stainless re-spoke of the original Akront flanged alloy 19-inch rims and Avon AM26 RoadRider tires. A new steel gas tank – the proper Roadster replacement – was painted in what had, in the 1970s, become 'Norton's traditional black and gold.' No step in the reconstruction process was left undone.
Let's give former Norton Motors employee, and now the Barber Museum's technical consultant, Brian Slark, the last word, 'Really, the Roadster was a hot rod, and that's what American riders bought it for.' And this beautiful example may just be the best one ever built.