and yet despite all this.... they have actually produced some bikes.... good ones too. Fuck all people have managed that
and yet despite all this.... they have actually produced some bikes.... good ones too. Fuck all people have managed that
Great article..... and indeed sad.... Norton UK Ltd currently appears to be a ponzi scheme....
Plus 1 for the bike loved the look and style, looks like they were under capitalised and were using the deposits to build the bikes and pay for parts etc more like a cottage industry should have built ten then on sold to build more. Pity you can't get a frame kit and drop in a Yam TRX850 motor would be the go, style and reliabilty.
But is it really a true Norton ? don't think so just the same as a Bloor Triumph, it's just a Norton in name only.
Just like the look of them and thought if you could get the frame and running gear it could be a fun ride, I'd call mine Boris as in Boris Fuckoffsky an infamous black Russian Bike racer.
Some would say the last true Norton's were made at Bracebridge st.... You can buy new Norton Commando made to what ever year you like...http://www.norvilmotorcycle.co.uk/road.htm or Genuine new parts off Andover Norton...http://www.andover-norton.co.uk/....owned by a German.....who had the Norton name for a while and made so bikes .....and Kenny Dreer who made the proto types....its all rather complicated ..who owns what..
Then there are Manx Nortons you can buy new to....
Triumph....they were bought out by BSA in the 50's..... went bust in the early 70's ..lumped in with Norton for a while..limped on as a workers Co Coop..... sold to a guy who made them poorly for a while then John Bloor bought it....and made a success of it.
I wonder what bike company has been in continuous ownership the longest? Honda?
DeMyer's Laws - an argument that consists primarily of rambling quotes isn't worth bothering with.
Could be worse.
They could have ordered the Norton Genesis. At least the 961 has orders/deposits.
Reactor Online. Sensors Online. Weapons Online. All Systems Nominal.
And little chance of seeing the bike if going by the current info.
Maybe BMW or Audi could buy it....Germans seem have a soft spot for British stuff.....
DeMyer's Laws - an argument that consists primarily of rambling quotes isn't worth bothering with.
John Bloor bought the Triumph name and building rights then went about building a modern bike using a modular system to help with the start up costs. He built a modern factory and used parts from outside suppliers and aren't some Triumphs made in Thailand now?
Close... Harris never owned the name. Bloor bought the Triumph company primarily for the land the factory sat on. He redeveloped it into housing and while he was doing that and having a bit of a think about what he might do with the company, he licensed Les Harris to produce T140's for a while.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Les_Har...businessman%29
ohhhhh...don't go there....it upsets the Triumph purests who think they are hand assembled by a bloke with a flat cap on who says eup.....
Its like when they fitted Japanese carbs to Harleys.......
( if memory serves me the 'Classic Range' is partly built in Thailand...... probably shipped to England to have the Made in England sticker fitted...)
DeMyer's Laws - an argument that consists primarily of rambling quotes isn't worth bothering with.
who cares? really... lets be honest Ohlin's are owned by Yamaha. there's Kayaba, etc etc.... the 'design' is to me more important, the Triumph is a British design, but if the best brakes are Brembo, forks kayaba, suspension, ohlins, or even Ikon shocks for twin shock models, Japanese wiring looms? Would you rather a 'complete and reliable' package, or go the way of 'make do' as we used the 'best of british!!!' Trust me ANYONE who has owned an old Brit bike with electrics supplied by the 'Prince of Darkness' would have preferred better, had it been available and fitted from the factory. Remember the Honda 750 and the Trident are of the same era.
The Norton story is typical and sad, Hesketh was another great idea, The Silk 700 (modernisd Scott), the carbury 1000, they are all great idea's underfunded. Hell what would have happened if Brittan had had funding? Maybe somone like Bloor could pick up the design/name (Norton) in the future.. The design is there, the prototype 'sorted'......
Last edited by GrayWolf; 27th August 2012 at 13:38. Reason: error
If the road to hell is paved with good intentions; and a man is judged by his deeds and his actions, why say it's the thought that counts? -GrayWolf
I don't care who makes it as long as it's a working functional bike, the Euro's have the right idea fit the best parts from world wide sources.
There's a market for the brands from the past , just need a modern platform as most would prefer to ride them than rather tinker/cajoule them to work.
Hands up who remembers when Harley used the USA Gov protection laws to tax other makes over 700cc in the US it didn't help them not going bust again.
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