Davenport Swap Meet 2013

For some reason, I had never been to the annual swap meet in Davenport, Iowa. Which is strange because it's less than 2 hours from where I live. I've always known it to predominantly consist of vendors selling vintage American iron. And while I love all these old bikes, I don't spend any of my money on anything other than Nortons or period aftermarket specialty parts. But what the hell, it's Labor Day weekend, so I decided to take the Friday off, and my buddy and I would make the trek.

It turned out to be well worth it, and I picked up a few needed parts. Nothing too crazy or exotic, but I found the Dominator timing cover that I've been searching for, the tail light bracket that's eluded me for some time now, a spare featherbed cross brace and a Webco float bowl extension. All for about a hundred bucks.

Past that, there wasn't a ton of British bikes or parts, but definitely enough to satisfy my attention and make the trip well worth it. Here's a smattering of what was on hand (or at least the things that interest me):

Flat track Norton with high dollar Steve Maney crankcase and cylinder
                                   

Ian Kennedy valve covers. I'd like to take a minute and talk about these. Ian Kennedy made some aftermarket parts back in the 1960's, most notably, his cast aluminum top yoke. As long as I've been around vintage bikes, and as much as I've searched for all these cool old bits, I've never seen these. When I first walked up, I thought this bike was for sale. It sat next to another Norton flat track rolling chassis that was for sale, and they both had signs in front of them. Since I was so excited to see these, I ignored what the sign actually said, and my plan was to try and purchase the rocker covers. I never try and buy individual parts off a complete bike, because it's basically just rude. But I was going to break my own rule and have a go at these things. Luckily, I realized the bike wasn't for sale, before the owner walked over to talk about the bike. So I wisely just kept my mouth shut and listened to him explain the very interesting history of the machine. Too bad for me, as I was willing to cough up a big chunk of money if these would have been for sale. Anyone out there that has a set of these kicking around, please email me. I'll gladly pay good money for them.

International Norton Owners Association gearbox inspection cover. These were made in stainless steel with painted inlay. They've been unavailable for quite a while now. I see them on bikes every once in a while, but I've never seen one for sale. This is another one of those things that I'd like to find some day.

 Dunstall Commando rear set bracket detail:

Inside the hall with all the bikes that were in the show, there were a few cool machines. I've always liked the paintwork on the Excelsior.

Back out in the swap meet area, interestingly painted pre unit BSA

You'll see a lot of old machines like this for sale, and while I'm not the buyer for these types of things, I think they're a thing of real beauty

JAP V-twin motor for sale. Magnesium crankcases and twin Amal GP carbs. It's hard to tell the scale from this photo, but this thing is massive. Far too big for any motorcycle frame. This would have originally powered a 3 wheeled Morgan.

A very original looking Yamaha race bike. I believe this to be a TZ 250, but could be wrong. I'm just not that educated on vintage Yamahas. Either way, it looked very purposeful.

Saving the very best for last. This Norton is the show stopper. Hands down, my 2nd all time dream bike. A very original featherbed framed Norton International. The featherbed Nortons are by far my favorite motorbike in the world. The absolute cream of the crop, would of course be a genuine Manx Norton. Followed in close second place by this machine.

The International is an overhead cam 500cc single cylinder machine, and unlike the Manx, you can actually ride and enjoy this bike on the road. You get the world famous featherbed handling with Roadholder front end, with the performance of an OHC single. Obviously the Manx is a purebred race bike, with no provision for electrical or lighting. It's also got no kick start or kick stand, so riding one on the road is impossibly impractical. So the closest road going brother to the Manx, would be the International.

A rare machine in every regard, especially here in the United States. Importing Norton motorcycles into the US didn't pick up until the 1960's, so there just aren't that many 1950's era examples to be found here. Much less one of this nature and this condition. This bike looks to be very original, well sorted and completely ready to ride. It was for sale, but carried a price tag well out of any modest man's budget.

The International cambox made for a tight fit in the road going frame. So much so, that the top tube needed to be crimped at the factory to make for clearance. Also seen in this photo is the original Amal TT carburetor.

Note the tire pump mounted on the top frame rail. This is the only machine with the tire pump frame tabs mounted on the left. All others were mounted on the right side frame rail. But for reasons of clearance on the cambox, as mentioned above, the factory simply changed to mount it on the near side.

All in all, a lovely machine that's had the same owner since 1973. I've purchased some Norton parts from the owner in the past, and I'm going to try and get some additional information about the history of this bike.

On a final note to all swap meet vendors, I simply ask that you know the parts that you're trying to sell. I understand and can appreciate the dance, and the art of negotiation, but please know what you're talking about and know the value of what you're selling. Countless times these guys are valuing parts at absolute top dollar. Which in some cases is fine, if the condition of the parts warrant it. Don't try and sell me some shabby, nicked up, dirty discarded part at a high value as if you've put the time, work and money into restoring it. Don't tell me how rare something is, or how valuable something is. I already know. Anyone trying to buy some miscellaneous part of your swap meet tarp, probably knows exactly what it is, how rare it may be and exactly what it's worth. I know that I sure do.
Don't use ebay as your sole comparison for value either. It's a swap meet, not ebay. If you want to use ebay to asses value, then sell your crap on ebay. A swap meet might have a few hundred potential buyers, whereas ebay has a billion people globally looking at your listing. That's a massive difference. Also, don't tell me that it's probably the only version of that part that's available for sale at the swap meet. Because guess what, with that same thinking, I'm probably the only person at the swap meet that's willing to buy it.
Don't start the negotiation by asking me how much I want to pay for it. Because I'm going to always say the same thing; $5. I know how it works, the seller wants to get as much as he can for it, and the buyer wants to pay the least amount possible. I'm always willing to pay the price for what it's really worth. So unless it's a new old stock part, or you've put the time, work and money into making it perfect, and I can take it straight from the swap meet and bolt it onto my bike, then it's not worth top dollar.
All this advice I offer for free, no charge. You're welcome.

John Tickle RE brake plate - update

Well, after a whole bunch of hard work, the John Tickle RE brake plate is basically done. I'll admit that I was pretty excited to restore it, and I might have jumped the gun in putting this post up. It's technically not done, in the sense that it still needs new brake pads. But I think that we can all look past that detail.

As with all old / original castings, there's a porousness to it, so I really exercise restraint when sanding out the scratches and polishing the whole thing up. These old parts have a lot of soul to them, and you can see all the little details, which some might consider imperfections. But to me, that's what makes them great; the porous finish, casting marks and voids and all the little hand details that went into making them originally. Those are the things that you want to make sure to keep intact. Basically making it look great cosmetically, without destroying it's original charm and finish.

Rear scoop, for all that hot air to escape from.

Mesh covered front scoop with John Tickle RE detail, and good shot of how well all the original hardware cleaned up. The clips on the linkage turned out to have a gold hue to their plating, which was a nice surprising detail.

And the all important guts of the operation. 100% original, down to the springs and socket cap bolts that hold down the retaining plate.

Once disassembled, all the hardware and fittings got a quick degreasing and clean in the sonic tank, the inside of the brake plate and the shoes got wire brushed, the chrome brake levers were polished and then the face of the brake plate itself was sanded to remove all the scratches and gouges, and then polished. Everything was done completely by hand, and I worked on it for a minimum of 4-6 hours per evening, for a total of 8 straight days. The end result is well worth all the hard work.

It'll be mated to a standard hub that'll have cooling holes in the back side, and then the drum turned, and new shoes fitted and matched to the drum surface.

I'm still working up a post that'll highlight John Tickle and the parts that he manufactured. For the time being, this will go into the case and wait for the rest of it all to come together.

Apologies if the photos aren't too great. I can safely say that I'm a better wrench than a photographer, and these shiny things prove to be difficult to capture in photos.

Manual Labor

Well, it's been nothing but manual labor over here. Monkey work. Sanding and polishing more aluminum bits than I feel I can remember. Hopefully there will be some updates to all the On The Bench posts that I've started. Basically all of those bits have been cleaned, wire brushed, sanded, polished etc. But they still need some finish work. Paint, brake shoes, bearings etc. I'll need to make a parts order soon, but I'm saving my pennies for the Davenport swap meet next week. I'll save the photos and update posts until each piece has been completely restored to it's full glory.

In the past month I've helped out a few friends that are restoring projects of their own. I volunteered my polishing services. Even though neither of them are Nortons, I still really like seeing old bikes come back to life, so if I can help out some friends that are doing amazing restoration work, then I'm up for it.

One friend is restoring an old 1960's Lambretta, so I polished all the little bits. Knobs, switches, trim pieces etc. Probably 25 or 30 pieces. Could have been 40 pieces, I can't really remember.

Another friend is restoring a mid 1960's Motobi, so I restored a primary cover, timing cover and 2 brake plates. He also had a set of Borrani rims that needed to be re-polished after becoming oxidized in storage, and a set of Bultaco TSS levers. All really good stuff, so I was honored to put in the work to help out. Hopefully the bits I worked on for these guys are up to par with the restoration work they do on their bikes.

With all the above mentioned work, it was time to clean out the remnants of the sand paper bin. I burn through a lot of sandpaper over here, and most of it gets tossed along the way. But I keep lots of the scraps to use as needed. You'd be amazed at how many times I need a 600 grit sand paper, but not a brand new one, just one that's been worked down a bit and isn't at full grit. As much as it's just work, there seems to be a bit of an art to it. In the end, I think it's just patience.

Hold tight, updates with pretty pictures of restored parts are coming soon....

Norton Owners Club show - Chicago 2013

The Norton owners club show here in Chicago has really started to make a name for itself as the most legitimate vintage motorcycling event. Two years ago, the show was still being held at the Harley Davidson dealership in St. Charles, but last year, it moved closer to the city and is now being hosted at MCC in Villa Park. MCC has a much more authentic connection to British and European motorbikes, and is the modern dealership for Ducati, KTM, Triumph, Husqvarna and Norton (if the new Norton ever makes it to the US). It's a nice facility with an expansive parking lot that makes for the perfect venue to host a show. I missed this show last year due to being out of town for work, and I heard about it from my friends all year round. I'm a Norton guy, so going to the Norton Owners Club show, is kind of a must attend event.

I've been looking forward to the show for months now. It makes for a nice destination to ride to, and it's a chance to see some great vintage motorbikes up close in person. It's about 42 miles from my house if going the scenic route, which is a mix of surface streets, rural highways and a fast paced, yet bumpy section of the highway. Weeks ago, the temperature had been sweltering hot, and the Norton was running really lean. This would be the first decent chance to test the tune of the bike in decent weather, and a long enough ride to really judge the different settings. A few days prior to the show, I lost the tach drive plug while out for a ride, but luckily didn't lose the gear. Either way, without a fix, or a replacement, I'd be unable to ride. Luckily, a close friend has a small machine shop in his house, and in about an hour's time, we were able to machine a new aluminum plug. So all was set for a fine day, and a really great way to spend a Sunday.

Bultaco Metralla, pretending to be the much desirable TSS. This is one of 2 replica bikes that he had at the show. Both of different size motors and entered in separate classes. I doubt the owner had any intentions of tricking anyone, but to the untrained eye, you'd think this could be a genuine TSS. A very good friend of mine knows a lot of these bikes, and was in attendance to point out their subtle differences. Either real or not, it's a good looking machine.

Two valve Jawa speedway bike, in original, as raced condition.

Unrestored and original condition Ducati 860. These models tend not to be nearly as desirable or expensive as other vintage Ducatis, but I personally really like them.

Nice looking BSA, also original and unrestored.

The other side, with nice bronze tachometer drive.

The usual sea of Triumphs

A very nice and original pre unit Triumph 500. I spoke to the owner who said it's been in the family since new. Strangely, it was for sale. Seems to me that it'd be more valuable to keep it and enjoy it, then to get the $5000 or so that it's probably worth. But then again, what do I know.

Late 70's Triumph 750 class. Easily the least desirable section of the show.

Due to this being a Norton Owners Club show, you'd think there would be more Nortons in attendance. But that just wasn't the case. In the 850 Commando class, I think there were 4 bikes, 2 bikes in the 750 Commando class, and 2 in the "other Nortons" class.

Here's a really nice early 1950's ES2. I really like these old thumpers. If this one would have been in a featherbed frame, it'd easily have been Best in Show.

1966 Norton Atlas in cafe racer trim.

Inside the dealership, they had a few vintage machines on display. Which was a nice surprise. This one a small displacement MV Augusta.

And the extremely cool Italjet 50cc road racer.

Back out in the lot, amongst the BSA's, I found this one to be the gem of the bunch. I don't know a ton about BSA's, and I despise the unit motor lump, but the styling of the cycle parts on this one, made it classic and very attractive.

You don't see many Royal Enfield twin cylinder machines. A nice looking restoration, and top quality RK Leighton seat.

The other Bultaco that wished it was a TSS.

Bultaco cockpit.

Single cylinder AJS, another rarity.

750 Commando stood along in it's class after being rolled off a trailer. Not long after, it was joined by another yellow 750 Commando which found it's way to the show on a trailer.

I wished I would have taken more photos, but as is often the case, I get busy trying to have a good time and enjoy the show. Being a part time internet motorcycle blog nerd simply comes second to actually enjoying the bikes, the people and the show in general.

The selection of Vincents at the show was impressive. One of which had some serious fading paint to it's primary cover. It was a really nice bike, and looked to be ridden frequently. When the owner fired it up at the end of the show, the float bowl on the rear cylinder dumped enough gas onto the painted primary to tell the tale as to why the paint loss. Another indication that it sees some serious time being ridden. I'm a big proponent of actually riding these bikes. That's what they were made for. I'll concede that I understand why some choose not to ride them, but I feel that those people really miss out on the other half of what owning a vintage motorcycle is all about. I enjoy wrenching and restoring just as much as the next guy, but until you get to send it down the road, it's just not complete.

There were a ton of nice motorcycles and scooters at the show, and unfortunately, I didn't photograph nearly as many as I should have. Hopefully next time I'll do a better job, or better yet, hopefully anyone out there that's reading this, will come out to the show themselves and enjoy it in person.

The Norton Owners Club put on a nice event, and even gave out some cool trophies for each class. I really hate to prop myself up, but my Norton won 1st in class. Don't pat me on the back too much though, there were only 2 bikes in the class, so I had a 50 / 50 chance at it. Either way, it's nice that other people enjoyed the bike. I'm sure I got some extra points for actually riding it there.

And last, but certainly not least, one of the highlights in my opinion, was the fact that the club had T.C. Christenson out to the show, and signing autographs. For those that don't know, T.C. Christenson rode a twin engined Norton drag bike, named the Hogslayer. The bike was designed and built by T.C., and John Gregory of Sunset Motors, and together, they absolutely dominated the drag race world for a long stretch of time. You can look it up online, and even purchase a DVD documenting the entire thing.

It's always really cool to sit and talk with a living legend. Thanks for the autographed photo T.C., I truly appreciate it.

On The Bench - John Tickle RE brake plate

This is the type of thing that cafe racer lore is made of. I've wanted this brake for 10 years now, and while I've seen a few for sale over the years, I never had the money at the time to buy one. Luckily, this time around, the stars aligned and I had some cash saved up for something else that had fallen through. So when this one came up for sale out of the UK, I jumped at the chance for it.

For those that may not know, this is a twin leading shoe brake plate manufactured by John Tickle back in the 1960's. Made specifically to drop right in to the standard Norton drum brake hub with no modifications at all. The twin leading shoe literally doubled the stopping power of the stock Norton Dominator and Atlas single leading shoe brake. And with it's mesh vent cooling everything off, it helped greatly with brake fade.

This particular brake plate is in excellent shape. All of the components are in tact, and show almost no wear at all. It must have had a pretty easy life on whatever motorbike it serviced.

At the time of this photo, I hadn't done anything to the brake except to clean up the linkage arm and clips. They got a quick bath in the sonic tank, and turned out excellent. Completely clean, and showing a really cool goldish color plating to the clips.

Inside view, showing all of the original components. And that's all the way down to the original cap socket bolts for the retaining plates. Everything will get a quick clean in the sonic tank. Brake shoes will get a cleaning with the wire brush, and then treated to a new set of pads.

Detail shots of the front scoop covered in mesh. Pulling in enough air to keep things cool, and then passing hot air out the smaller vent scoop to the rear.

The brake plate will get all the little nicks lightly sanded out, and then the whole unit will get a thorough polish. I'll admit that I'm excited about this piece. All the other bits that I've been working to restore / rebuild, will have to be set aside while this thing gets my full attention.

I'm working on a more extensive post that will highlight John Tickle and some of the great aftermarket cafe racer parts he manufactured.