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Norton is like a fish that has been caught, gaffed, hauled into the boat, bonked on the head, taken back to shore and then flops out of the ice bucket, slips off the jetty and manages to flap off before anyone can fillet it and do anything useful with it! Every time some new grifter buys the name some shitty version of what was basically a 500cc platform with a non unit gearbox is trotted out with great fanfare claiming, like Hesketh, (remember them?) that it's going to be the revival of a 'Great British Name!'. @#!#$# off with this noise! Norton is dead. It died, with the rest of the British motorcycle industry, at the beginning of the Second World War. Yes, Joe Craig continued to develop the pre war 'International' OHC motor in the race shop and it continued to be competitive, at least on the tighter circuits, as the Manx. But post war the models offered to the public were your quintessential 'Grey Porridge'. Horrid, slow, shitboxes like the 16H and later the twins in the form of the 'Atlas' and, (Smirk!) 'Dominator'. Models that were so vibratory, not to mention unreliable, that the Dominator was ruefully known as the 'Morecome Flagelator' due to its propensity for shaking loose fillings and shedding bits of itself like confetti as its owner wheezed from breakdown to breakdown! The 'Commando's' were even worse! Yes, they were pretty, yes the name has a certain, (Thouroughly undeserved) reputation for??? Well? Something good? But they weren't. They were awful. Just like everything else made by the British motorcycle industry post-war. How do I know this? Because I lived through the death thoes of the industry and it was pathetic to watch. The only thing more pathetic is seeing a seemingly inexhaustible queue of dolts with rose tinted specs queuing up fo be fleeced by whatever grifting spiv has bought the name off the last grifting spiv who is cackling into his bank account in some tax haven that doesn't have an extradition treaty to anywhere they can be taken to task. FOR THE SAKE OF ALL THINGS DECENT! LET NORTON'S ZOMBIE CORPE REST! Its a turd that keeps on giving!

Well, the ride was great on Friday! 100 miles of great roads and several laps of Laguna Seca Raceway just for added fun. They really didn't limit us on the track, so it was wide open...that corkscrew is incredible, and I have the greatest appreciation for racers who can rail it. I was the only spine frame Guzzi that I saw, and a lot of folks had never seen a Rosso Corsa; and I got many compliments and thumbs up. There were many Tonti customs, a very nice LeMans 3, some V85's and of course the venerable Falcone singles that did well on the ride. Saturday was wild, my wife and I were lucky to have early entry tickets to the show, and got to see most of the bikes...so many nice historic rides to see. My Rosso was parked at the Bring a Trailer paddock...nice guys there too. About 1130 it started to rain, harder and harder...maybe 1.5 inches fell until about 4 pm! We were fortunate to bail out early, put the bike on the trailer and get back to our room with out too much drama....it was the first time in 14 years that the event got rained on, but the show went on, and I was amazed that no one was complaining, griping or whining about the conditions. Its a great event, costly yes, but worth it....highly recommended!!

Ok, I have been here before. Looks like I cannot resist V11. I just bought a V11 Ballabio with 37.000km, started doing all maintenance work. After I adjusted the valves correctlythe engine runs smooth at low idle. My Ballabio ist equipped with Mistral cans - with db-eater. You do not want to get in trouble with German police. Well, the Ballabio is my 4th Guzzi, I am riding a Griso 8V in Tenni-Look (was a black devil before conversion) with 1400ccm, a California Classic and the new Stelvio. Tomorrow we are heading to Mandello to spen some nice days at Lake Como - but I will go with the Stelvio instead of the Ballabio. Sometimes I go on trackdays.I already booked three days in Chambley- with my new V11. I do not want to do this with the Griso... You may understand why...

I'm riding from El Paso to Fairbanks in July on the BMW... won't have much time for maintenance on the yellow missile, I guess I'll just wipe it's ass again this year lol

What a total wanker. The bike was rubbish years ago when it was first released and still is. As for British made wank? Well, Wheels and suspension aren't just for starters. Foot pegs and carriers that look like something I made in my workshop. Rubbish sold on "Britishness" that doesn't exist and poor quality, masquerading as rawness and simplicity. Phil

Well, the bike is pretty. The film is mediocre. The camera person is an amateur, and they don't really have the audio sorted. Wind noise should not ever happen. And the bloke corresponds almost perfectly to the classic stereotype of a public school twat. Ok, that is not really fair, and perhaps says something about my personal predjudices, but still... But the bike really is pretty. Pity I don't like parallel twins.

Without a doubt. I've seen and heard one run and ride in the flesh. Impressions? massively overweight, and chunky. Poorly engineered. They had perennial issues with oil leaks from the cam drive covers and an appalling gearbox shifting action that was never really addressed. I learned quickly in the mid 80's from being in Britain and hanging out with the industry people a lesson about the English speaking motorcycle press. They were so parochial in those days you could pretty much dismiss all their opinions on British made or British involved anything. So they pumped this thing up a lot but the reality was disappointing. Bit like those horrid Janus things made in the states now. Phil

Had breakfast every morning with the John Player team that year, NICE. Cheers Tom.

While I accept the thrust of your argument, winning the 1992 Senior TT with the rotary was an achievement, and a worthy revival. Sent from my SM-S901B using Tapatalk

At least the Hesketh had sex appeal. I wanted one in the worst way, even stopping by the importer's house in California, or Colorado...Brian something maybe? *edit* Roger Slater. It wasn't easy to find his residence in 1979. Probably best it didn't happen.

There are so many components NO motorcycle company makes, Wheels , tires , bars , levers , cables , instruments , plastic components , switchgear , etc. That can be said about all manufacturers .

Four months out and still riding your @$$ about getting to SSR XX, @gstallons . . .

Ha ha. Don't hold back now mate! Hilarious.

I don't back them off docc, too much chance of introducing freeplay. All single/double groove ball bearings will accept a decent amount of axial load and commonly do in practice. It's when it becomes excessive it's an issue such as when the wheel bearing spacer is too short and the amount of torque applied by the axle nut has to be tolerated. Remember even in that case the wheel bearings still last quite a while. In the case of the massive double row ball bearings at the pivot a small amount of preload is preferable to zero or clearance. When I say small I mean "nipped up" to coin an Aussie phrase. Maybe 1 foot pound or so. Think about ball races in a car gearbox main shaft and layshaft for example restraining the lateral force imposed by helical cut gears and 5 or 6 hundred foot pounds of torque generated by the engine. The Koyo bearing catalogue also backs this up for deep groove ball bearings and advises if axial loads are large to increase the shoulder radial depth in the housing. So they accept that significant axial loads will sometimes occur. Phil

The Norton Commando has been trying to resurrect from its ashes several times now... Let's hope this time it will be real! I really like its looks and how it sounds.

Ok, it looks like a Vespa, so it's almost a Guzzi.

I am. I used to dive with contact lenses; I don't recommend. You need to be able to remove your mask underwater, put it back on, and expel the water. You can do it wearing contact lenses by closing your eyes until your mask is dry again. Unless someone knocks your mask off, and then you lose the contact. Later on, they made contacts that you wear and throw away. So it wasn't as big of a deal. As Audiomick correctly said, you can get prescription masks, but they are not as practical. Because the correction is only localized. Also, when you have younger kids, their shortsighted vision evolves a lot.

So evenly inserted, lightly tight, very lightly.

I just watched the vid. Have to say that I expected way worse based on the comments, above, but I liked it. [Yes, that's damning with faint, etc. ] Dobbs seems a likable fellow and, more on point, I very much like the moto. Have always thought Nortons grand, and wished the (several) resurrection efforts well. I do wish we could see more of Monika than the one photo I found out there. Bill

At least yours has been sawn properly. I just got my jacket from the alteration lady this afternoon, and the patch is slightly slanted. Of course, she may not have the eye for it. Never mind that I warned her before the job! Grrr!

Thank you, again, @p6x !

No docc C3 just refers to the bearings internal clearance. The V11 wheel bearings are the classic single row deep groove ball bearing as an example. Phil

I am guessing it is his girlfriend. I am going to give some points for not mounting the camera on his head, so the viewer don't have to witness each and every jerking moves, especially while riding in the city. To me, helmet mounted cameras means an early exit and a thumbs down. About wind noise, the only way to not have any, is to have a separate recorder. I have a Zoom H1n which I put inside the tool's compartment of my V11. It works wonders. Only I have no video to speak off, because my DGI Pocket 2 can't handle any wind. As soon as I put it on the chest strap, the gimbal motors are not powerful enough to fight the wind. I am waiting to get a new camera to go back to making some videos of the V11.

Personally I consider the 'New Commando' a near-miss at best. They really didn't capture any of the proportion or style of the original, and the engine just isn't knobby enough while still appearing dated. Meh.

At least we woud be prepeared to handle the ign lock, looks familiar to me. And the music , hearing the bike, much better. Cool bike, hope they succede. To many has been burned before, paying big down p, thats it, no bike. Cheers Tom.

Hi @ScuRoo are there any Aussie commentators like this you could recommend? I follow Matt Barrie (here he is on the Equity Mates show) and would be interested in others of a similar bent. I find it odd that people escape from the UK to Oz, and yet the situation almost seems worse there (from the outside). cheers!

To shepherd a drug from concept through a 20% chance of final approval, it costs drug companies 5+ years and 2-5 billion dollars. Without investors, we would have only about 25% of the drugs we have now. IOW, I would be long gone. Necassary evil or double-edged sword? Or both? Fortunately, yesterday I signed up for an insurance plan that will cut me down to $3K/year out of pocket. A $175,000 SAVINGS!

All patches have been dispatched, minus Randy, for whom I am still waiting for an address. The three overseas shipping takes 6 to 10 days according to USPS. Also, as strange as it may seem, the tracking is restricted to US IPs, and only till the shipment is on US soil. At present, Tomchri's package has flown from Chicago. I am monitoring progress on NZ and Germany.

But it's not red...

You could be totally correct on the congestion and fees But I tend to take a more nuanced view 😏

interesting topic! i'll only add that i drug my kids to hawaii to certify, since i just wanted it to be easy and fun, and we scored on both counts (but more than a decade ago). I certified in Alaska, and loved it, but it was in fact a goat-rope if comparing it to warm water, and I'm just glad I did that when i was younger and had the ignorance to think "why not?" lots of good diving up there by the way, but its more of a "when in Rome" thing. though look up "gods pocket" down near Vancouver Island (BC canada) if you want motivation to get into dry suit diving. Maui and the big island both have multiple reputable shops/schools (padi, etc), and they go to warm, usually clear-viz sites, where the whole thing is easy and enjoyable. Bring or rent a shorty, but thats all thats needed unless somethign odd is going on with water temps. Big island had some real nice, clear water dive sites with plenty of coral and fish to gape at while they're learning. But i'd consider bringing my own regulators, as its seems like as often as not when i rent gear when traveling it's safe enough, but crappy/worn-out enough to be finicky, and less "smooth" for me and certainly for a learner. like skiing, crappy gear can make it a worse experience for the learner. For most of the gear who cares, but a mask that fits and you like, and a good regulator setup is stuff you can keep pretty much forever, easily fits in luggage, and you can assure its dialed in before you go.

Lends to a potential progression of the SSR mantra: Get (Uranus) There. Bring Tools.

Getting ready to head up the coast on Thursday to the Quail M/C Gathering up in Carmel, The folks at Bring A Trailer invited me to park my Rosso Corsa in their corral, and comp'd me entry tickets for 2...so YAY on that. Hope the weather holds and I keep the rubber side down on the ride!

Many people drop the forks on their later model V11s to get the steering back towards where the early model red frame ones are. They raked out the V11 a degree or so as people complained the bike steered too quickly. Everything is relative..... Anyway, people often drop the front end 10 - 15 mm, so I would say that should not be an issue, but it should make your bike steer faster. You may prefer that you may not. If it were me I would try it and see what you think. Something else that enters into it in a positive way is the trail. The GSXR forks have less offset than the Guzzi forks and as such the GSXR forks will have more trail than the Guzzi forks at the same angle. More trail, as long as it is not too much trail, is a good thing and helps with stability and feel. But knowing the extender caps are available if you should decide you need them is a good thing.

I have swapped to GSXR front end on one of my Guzzi's, a Daytona (much related frame wise to a V11). A GSXR front end would be a better choice. They are more common, so easier to get and cheap. They are also better forks, that use radial brakes (at least most late model versions do), a lighter front wheel, and parts/upgrades for them are easy to come by. Most suspension guys can make a GSXR fork do whatever you need it to do. Also, the swap was not that hard, consisting of a complete GSXR front end (forks, wheel & discs, and brake calipers, I used a Brembo radial M/C), using tapered steering bearings from a Suzuki DRZ 400, and making a few assorted brackets and what not for things like the headlight and turn signals. I used a front end from a '04 GSXR 1000. I had a suspension guy spring and valve it for me. Further research and measuring says that an '06 -'07 GSXR 750 front end is actually a better choice. But either will work and I am sure some others will as well. There is a wealth of info on GSXR forks, there is info detailing the dimensional differences between the different years. Here is a site with some of that info. http://www.svrider.com/forum/showthread.php?t=135430 I highly recommend the swap. It is awesome. I had about a grand in the swap, including the Brembo RCS master cylinder and having the forks re-valved/sprung. I think I paid $600 for all the GSXR front end parts.

It's too late, I've burned up the bike. I'm now a former V11 rider. I took off the starter. Unfortunately, I only unhooked the battery ground. The hot starter wire grounded on the shock adjuster when I was working on it. I smelled fire and got it free but too late. The electrics are dead. Totally. Fuses are ok but there's melted insulation under the side cover. So far as the shifter, I was able to get the adjuster off and backed it with an allen head and tighten it. Have no idea about that. Believe me, I'm sick about it.