INCOMING !
NEVERWOZZA NORTON
I thought I should drop you a line as I have seen the December 2017 issue of RealClassic and of course noticed the mention of the Norton 76 which I have on loan to the National Motorcycle Museum.
I did note your mention that more than one must have been built at Marston Road but I can confirm that only one was built at the factory during the sit-in. This will now make you wonder how the second example exists, which I will try to explain.
For the USA market the lower emission SU carburettor was required. The required steps to incorporate the SU meant that the frame had to be modified. Two frames were prepared during the development of the bike and my father, Bernard Hooper, bought both the assembled 76 and the extra frame and engine assembly. I can remember this sitting in our works at Bernard Hooper Engineering after Dad and John Favill set up their base there after the attempts to get Government backing fell on deaf ears.
So how come there is a second ‘76’? Dave Beale, who worked for us until around the mid-1980s, asked dad if he could buy the second frame and necessary other parts, such as FPS wheels, Brembo brakes, etc, to build a replica. The tank on the original in the museum is actually a Roadster tank underneath lots of filler to form the restyled ‘76’ tank. Dave carefully packaged this up to send to a tank maker so Dave’s bike actually has a proper tank.
The other clues that made me realise the second photo was indeed Dave’s bike were the enclosed chain, the raised handlebars (Dave wasn’t keen on the flat bars) and your mention of no electric start. As I recall Dave already had a Mk2 engine which he preferred and hence no electric start.
Anyway I hope the above helps to shed some light on the story.
Peter Hooper
Huge thanks for that, Peter. The bike in the pic nearby is the second, non-factory, Norton 76. Bernard Hooper (Peter’s father) and John Favill were responsible for the revolutionary Commando and its vibe-quenching Isolastics. It’s always excellent to fill in a few gaps in our history.
FrankW
I see from RC165 that you must really like my drawing of a neverwozzer Norton Challenge as you have published it again. You last used it for RC Norton Challenge – when I caught up
