I friend of
mine rode a Commando back in the late 1960s.
The British manufactured 2023 version looks exactly like it. Its a beautiful looking
motorcycle and I like the sport version (in the image) rather than the
cafe racer.
The
Commando Sport,
apart from the modern ABS brakes and the suspension
is probably as pure as it gets to replicating the original bike,
although a number of bikers, back then, preferred the cafe racer with
it's droop bars. The history of the
Norton Brand goes all the way back
to 1898 which is a phenomenal heritage.
Norton have fortunately been saved from bankruptcy, and this
time the new owners, TVS Motor Company through their subsidiary company,
Project 303 Bidco Ltd are pouring serious money, £16 million, into the brand's future
development. I have checked the
Dealer List and so far, there does
not appear to be any dealers in Scotland but given time, I am sure some
will appear as Norton regains it's reputation. The Commando is not a cheap
bike with its north of £16K price tag but if you want the raw 1960s
experience, it is definitely worth a test ride.
Video Reviews -
The Glory Days of British Motorbikes -
An interesting video of British motorbikes before the Japanese invasion -
Shoei & Bell Open Face Helmets & Halcyon Goggles
One item that I will definitely consider is a open face helmet and
Shoei J-O Helmets
are probably the best ones on the market and they come with a flip down
visor. There is also the
Shoei RJ-Platinum-R
style that has a top fitting small sun visor peak that
can be removed to allow you to fit a standard 5-snap GT visor design to stay compatible with other
aftermarket compatible visors and shields. Of course you can stay with
the stock top sun visor peak and opt to wear goggles or ballistic lens
sunglasses.
Bell
is another helmet manufacturer which provides a great range of open face
helmets and is worth considering. Their
Bell Custom 500
range as well as their
Bell Scout Air
range is worth checking.
Halcyon probably make the best range of quality goggles and
they can be purchased from
Halcyon Classic Parts.
See the videos on Shoei and Bell helmets below -
A video on the Shoei J-O Helmets -
A video on the Shoei RJ-Platinum R Helmets -
I like the
Bell Cruiser 2023 Bullitt Helmet as shown
below -
A video on the Bell Scout Air Helmets -
A video on the Bell Custom 500 Helmets -