1968 Norton Commando
1968 Norton Commando Background & History
The 1968 Norton Commando introduced the world to this game-changing new machine. But would it be enough to stem the tide of competition from Japan? The first Norton Commandos were all Fastbacks, designated Model 20M3, although they weren’t referred to as Commando Fastbacks, just Norton Commandos. The first one, Engine #126125, rolled off the assembly line in February 1968 to rave reviews. The press gushed endlessly about it and sales took off. The Norton Commando literally saved Norton Motorcycles, for a few more years, at least. Norton had been part of the AMC empire (Associated Motor Cycles on American Motors) who also owned Matchless, AJS, James and Francis-Barnett. But only Norton was actually making a profit when AMC went out of business in 1966. Manganese Bronze Holdings of England bought the Norton brand with their eye on Norton's newest product on the drawing board, still two years from production. They bet the farm on one bike: the Norton Commando.
1968 Norton Commando gets Isolastic Suspension
Introduced to the world in the 1968 Norton Commando, the Isolastic Suspension System insulated the rider from engine vibration that had plagued the Norton Atlas and Dominator. This allowed the factory to extract more power from the engine, which previously had to be limited in the interest of smoothness. The new setup effectively canceled virtually all mid- and high-rpm vibration. Only at or just above idle (tick over) could any engine vibration be felt, and it was minimal. This was a game-changer. Every British vertical twin had been plagued with wicked engine vibration that beat up both rider and machine. In fact, they were famous for it. Riders of classic British motorcycles simply accepted it as an inevitable fact of life when riding a high-performance motorcycle. The 1968 Norton Commando changed all that, thanks to Isolastic Suspension.
1968 Norton Commando Frame
The frame for the 1968 Norton Commando was conventional with a single large-diameter back bone and twin front downtubes forming the engine cradle, then turning up to meet the upper shock mounts, with lots of cross-bracing for strength. However, early frames suffered from weakness around the heastocks and some frames actually broke. This was quickly remedied with the addition of a second backbone tube, running under the main one and further bracing and stiffening of the neck (steering head).
1968 Norton Commando Engine
The engine was the same old 745cc Norton Atlas engine with a 9.0:1 compression ratio and twin 930-series Amal Concentric carburetors. The engine was slanted forward though, to give the bike a new look, but this forced the intake manifolds to curve downward to keep the carbs level and clear of the fuel tank. Ignition was by twin coils and a capacitor, powered by a Lucas RM21 alternator inside the primary chaincase. The engine crankcase was a separate component in a textbook example of non-unit construction.
Every Norton twin before the Commando had vertical cylinders, like Triumph and BSA. For the all-new Commando, Norton decided to give it a more modern look by mounting the engine at an angle, so that the cylinders now slanted forward at a rakish angle. It really set off the looks of the new 1968 Norton Commando. Accomplishing this was actually easier than it sounds. The engine crankcase, the primary chaincase and the gearbox were all separate units that were bolted together with mounting plates into one solid assembly, which is called ‘non-unit construction’. Primary chain adjustment was accomplished with an adjustable tensioner inside the chain case, rather than by moving the gearbox back and forth in its mounts to affect primary chain adjustment, like pre-unit Triumph twins. The entire engine package (ie: engine, primary chain case and gearbox) was supported by 3 rubber mounts, one at the front of the engine, one at the top of the rocker box and one at the rear above the gearbox. This floating engine package also provided a solid mounting for the swingarm pivot. This arrangement allowed the entire engine package and swingarm to move as one in their rubber mounts, insulating vibration from the rest of the chassis and rider. Shims were used to adjust and control sideways movement of the mounts, which could compromise handling.
The 4-speed gearbox was straight out of the AMC parts bin with a revised case. The primary chain was triplex. At launch, the very early models came with conventional multiplate wet clutches. But these were soon replaced in production with diaphragm clutches. These did not contain an internal rubber shock absorber like the previous units had. A beautiful outer primary cover was held in place by one central bolt. The gearbox was shifted with the right foot, as God intended, and used a shift pattern that was different than almost any other British bike in its class. Most bikes had a shift pattern of "one down, three up", meaning from neutral, the gearbox was placed in first gear with one kick down, then second-through-fourth was all upwards pulls of the toe. Not Norton. The 1969 Norton Commando, and all Nortons shifted the exact opposite: One up, three down. Many riders with more than one bike (the other bike not being a Norton) struggled with the muscle memory from their other bikes, causing them to downshift when they wanted to upshift. Of course, Norton owners got used to it and many actually preferred it. Norton never upgraded the Commando to a 5-speed gearbox, the way Triumph and BSA did. Pity.
1968 Norton Commando Running Gear
The front forks for the 1968 Norton Commando were shortened Roadholder forks, straight from the Norton Atlas parts bin. The front brake was an 8-inch TLS (Twin Leading Shoe) unit in a new full-width, finned alloy hub. This unit was formerly a racing option on later Featherbed Twins. It had a front air scoop and exit vents in back, but the front scoop was blocked off on street bikes (the remained open only in racing applications, with a steel mesh keeping debris out). Wheel sizes were 19-inches front and rear with a 3.00 X 19 front tire and 3.50 X 19 rear.
1968 Norton Commando Body & Paint
The tank and tail section were made of fiberglass. The tail section formed the back of the seat and a radical-looking rear fender that gave the bike the nickname “Fastback”, which was soon adopted by the factory when other models of the Commando were introduced and needed to be differentiated from one another. The nose of the dual seat wrapped around the back of the tank forming kneepads. The oil tank was on the right and a matching side over on the left, hiding the battery and electrics. The tool kit was contained in a small compartment in the rear fender that was accessed by removing the seat.
The only correct color for a 1968 Norton Commando Fastback was British Racing Green. The tank and tail units were painted as such, with the oil tank and side cover painted silver. The frame and cast iron barrels (cylinder block) were painted black. The tank emblems were a new round Norton logo in green, meant to signify Norton’s emergence into the world market. All it did was confuse buyers and ugly up the bike. Classic Norton script was soon to return.
1968 Norton Commando Specificiations
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Model designation Original Price Engine type Displacement Bore & Stroke Compression Carburetors Ignition Engine output Oil system Oil capacity Primary drive Clutch Gearbox Ratios, overall: 1st, bottom 2nd 3rd 4th, top Final drive Frame type Suspension, front Suspension, rear Brake, front Brake, rear Wheelbase Seat height Weight |
20M3 Fastback $1,457.00 Air-cooled OHV parallel twin 746cc / 45 ci 73mm X 89mm / 2.875″ X 3.503″ 9.0:1 2- Amal Concentric, 30mm Battery & coil, Lucas 58 bhp @ 6500 rpm Dry sump 6 pts Triplex chain Multi-plate diaphragm, wet 4-speed constant-mesh, right-foot shift
12.40:1 8.25:1 5.90:1 4.84:1 Chain Double cradle, Isolastic Suspension Telescopic fork, hydraulic damping Swing Arm, 2 dampers, Isolastic mounts 8″ TLS drum, full width 7″ SLS drum, full width 57.1″ 31.3″ 431 lbs |
1968 Norton Commando Books
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