Its been a long time...

Well I haven't posted a blog for a while, but that is what three kids, a mortgage, a job and a loving / patient wife do for you!

The Norton project has been on hold for too many years, and is about to re-start. However, before that can happen the detritus of some 8 years needs to be cleared away and the garage reclaimed.

To that end, a new garden workshop is going to be built . Internally it will take up all of 30 sq m permitted by planning rules and will provide me with a great hobby space for my railway modelling and other assorted crafts. Thankfully, advances in alarm and surveillance systems mean that the workshop will be as well protected (if not better) as the house, including remote CCTV, fogger (look it up...) and some other unpleasant surprises for the un-wanted visitor. It will also enable me to clear the garage and ready it for the Norton project to recommence and - drum roll - the commencement of a 40 year old dream of building an AC Cobra.

I will break these projects up into separate threads so anyone who is interested doesn't have to read about stuff they don't want to.

My intention is to give warts and all, blow by blow accounts of the projects, and I do realise I may have bitten off more than I can chew. However, two out of three kids have now commenced Operation Escape (or is that Operation Eject...) so time is a little more on my side. 

One thing I have noticed in many such blogs is that suppliers and such like don't often get a mention. I therefore intend to make sure any products I use are listed with their supplier. I am not doing this for any other reason than to help others. I have lost count of the time I have spent trying to track down a particular component seen in a blog when a nice handy link would have saved me a lot of trouble. Okay, I won't list who I bought a De Walt impact wrench from but I will list who I bought a bulkhead fitting from, for example, or who did my paint work or black chroming. I will also, with permission, provide links to other relevant blogs where I think they might be of use / interest to you, dear reader.

So, wish me luck as I re-open the cheque book and embark on a few too many bucket list journeys!

All the best

Andy

1952 Norton 30 International Clubman Restoration

I thought it was about time after far too many years to start the restoration of my motorbike (which was in turn my late father's bike). Here  you can see one of the better pictures I have of the bike before work started:

Now, that is not a pretty sight! The barrel and head have been removed, the mudguards are non-original, the saddle is missing, the mudguard stays need to be found - and so the story goes on. The good news is that the bike is complete and the original parts are all in the cellar, so I have been on a great treasure hunt and got what is needed. Now the long process of restoration begins and the wallet gets a lot lighter.

What is good news is that I have found out that the bike is a 100% genuine Clubman bike and was raced in the 1952 TT by a local North Eastern rider. More on that later...

I have stripped the bike down to components and the various bits and pieces have been dispatched to the required people. Again, I will update as each component or assembly is finished, along with supplier details, problems, tricks and tricks that we have found on the way, etc.

Wish me luck

Andy Viking