GROUPS 14, 15 and 16:- Forks and front wheel, including front brake
FORKS AND FRONT WHEEL,: The Norton Roadholder front fork achieved an enviable reputation in the
early days of telescopic forks, due to a certain extent to a better clamping of the wheel spindle than some
competitive designs, especially the forks on the first post-war Triumphs. The reputation lives on even
though technology has proceeded over the last thirty years to give performance about as good as can be
expected from telescopics. Designs used by B.M.W., Marzocchi, Ceriani and many others-notably not
from Japan-are very well respected, but the poor old Norton fork has slipped slowly further and further
back until it is debatably the most old-fashioned telescopic fork in use. There is one modern feature, in
which the Commando is ahead even of the most prestigious machines-the steering bearings. Simply it is
this-I have had to do with one or two Commandos in my time but never have 1 heard of head races which
wore out. One or two damaged in accidents, yes; on, and 1 am only talking of the 1971 on models-the
early ones had what are best described as featherbed type yokes and cups and cones which were
abysmal. The bearings themselves are quite ordinary scaled ball hearings, doing a job for which they are
not really best suited, that is taking an end load. So why do they last so welt? Simple really---think for a
minute why head bearings fail. There can only be three reasons, accidents excepted.
(a) They are too tight. )t is difficult not to overadjust the adjustable type because one doesn't
know just when to stop and this bruises the tracks.
(b) They are too loose. This can be due to settlement after fitting and puts all the load on two or
three halls.
(c) The wet gets in, causing rust and fretting corrosion.
For once then, they got it right: bearings which can't be fitted too loose, or tight and which are sealed on
both sides to stop the wet getting in, and. equally important, to stop the grease getting out.
The best thing to put in Norton Teles is Automatic Transmission Fluid, but if this allows too much topping
then try Castrol Shockol or even the original "Castrolite". Don't use less than the recommended
disposable plastic cupful in each side (160cc) or you'll get even more than your share of topping. Seals
wear due to oil getting out, mixing with road grit, grinding the seal and the chrome away. It is the ultimate
folly to take the gaiters off. The latest gaiters will fit all post 1970 machines and should he compulsory. Or
use Montesa gaiters--slightly slimmer.
There has been a kit for use in the handling department. A steering damper made in the land of the rising
sun. Kit No: 064247, but it didn't help much. One other kit that was also available was the 063412 which
converted drum brake to disc. I'm afraid it', all down to one's own codging these days.
You should all know the story of the front brake, position---originally fitted behind the right hand leg. For
some exceedingly technical reason this caused all the bikes to pull to the left, and made most of them so
bad that you couldn't steer the machine hands-off. Nortons which wouldn't steer hands off! And no-one
complained. Well, actually, about a dozen people did, but there wasn't anything that could be done about
it. Anyway, later it was found that if you take the forks out of the yokes and swap them over the brake
finishes up in front of the left hand leg and the machine then steers O.K. No, I can't explain it either. This
is not the safest thing to do because there is a grave danger (that is, a danger which might lead to the
grave) that the bearing
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