My New TOP SECRET project...

locOleoN said:

LOL.. what a big pile of comando?.. LOL... or after its finished on the road with an alloy tank & Manx cafe racer seat?

Click to expand...

Good luck with this project. It will be a challenge after playing with simpler unit jap multis, more so if they have wet sumps.

Here is a pic of me and my friends Commandos. His is the mint alloy manx tanked one.



I love my Commando. It has a high maintenance to riding ratio, but when it's running
it's great. The biggest trouble with the Commando is that it makes perfectly functional decent performing motorcycles like the cb750 look awkward and feel boring. So you begin to fight the past design compromises and wear of time.
A Commando looks fast just sitting still, which it does a lot of if you have points and worn out carbs. Still, its looks are seductive enough to make one fight a sissyphean battle of updating parts, replacing broken bits and struggling to set everything up. Every problem defeated brings one closer to..... to what I don't know. A dry garage floor?

Since you're totally dissembled now it's a good time to
a- replace the swingarm pivot bushings
b- have the amals sleeved or swap to a single mikuni
c- install vernier isolastic calipers

c

This is the 72 Combat in its' current configuration. I've just added set of dual 32mm mikunis.

Will work for cookies

Best sounding and looking exhaust ever.

just buy one for $5000 and use that collection of rust as a reminder,,,not to build one(I have owned 2 of these valve eating,shaking nightmares),,,,,,,,,,,good luck!

Re: My New TOP SECRET project...Dec 29/07 Update

Ok.. So today at 8:00am Im at my buddies shop to officially start COmmando project!!..

First, I had to literally dig the bike out from under a foot of hardened show.. Good thing I had wrapped it nice and snug under 2 weather proof tarps!!:... Notice the shovel on the right??!!



By lunch time:... rebuilt the motor and practically done ;D




JUST KIDDING.... That was another Commando in the shop being restored... unfortunately not mine :'(

Ok.. seriously, We dragged the poor bike into the shop to inventory what we have, document what is missing, and list out what I'll need to hunt down:.. Thanks To Andrew for an electronic copy of the 72 Norton Parts Manual!




Surprisingly, its about 75% complete... So I slapped the wheels on her, gathered all the Amal Carb parts, cleaned them in the chemical tumbler and will rebuild the carbs at home over the next few days.



Just about to wheel her away to tuck her into a nice little warm corner of the shop until I get the parts on my list..


Here are just some other bikes being done at the shop as we speak:

So you gonna do this right or are you gonna slap it together and have it at Tim's the first Thursday we meet next?

Tintin said:

So you gonna do this right or are you gonna slap it together and have it at Tim's the first Thursday we meet next?

Click to expand...

Naaaww.. This one is gonna be a 2-3 yr project. There is no hurry on this bike...
The cb450 is gonna be a quick slap-em together bike that should be ready before the next thursday night meet.

I have a back end of a tank already chopped for the cafe seat on that cb450. ;D