Cool man, i had a 850 commando and a 99 750 ss Ducati.. they had had similar in a way. Weight, power etc. I thought the air cooled ss 750 was a Norton with no issues! My thought only, let me know!
What great bikes !! With so thin and light lines ... Nothing to do with current monsters, stuffed with electronics .... And the magnificent sounds of the desmodromic VTwin, and the english vertical ! I love Switzerland : nowhere else in the world can you find such a clean underground garage 😁 and such clear mountainous landscapes, with such beautiful curvy roads !!!👍👍
My dear the Bikes of 50's,60's & 70 are mostly beautiful as compared today's Bikes.May be they are not technically refined but look wise still beyond compare.Thanks for sharing such video
I was trying to buy the 750Ducati but I couldn't quite afford it so I settled for the Commando.All these years later I'm still very happy with my Norton!
Lived in Phx in the USAF after 2nd tour in Vietnam. Bought this 1972 750 with 2000 miles on it. Tinkered with it alla time....loved that bike. Usta go downtown Phx on Central Ave where all the cars/motorcycles would race from light to light. I never lost a race. Of course there were lots of vehicles I never saw...but I raced all comers and never lost. I weight 150 pounds, the bike I got down to about 415 pounds, and squeezed a few more HP with different carbs and different exhaust s. Also changed the valves. I took it to a drag strip once and ran a 12.4 . That was a fast bike. Since then, Ive owned an Indian RoadMaster... a big ass bike with enough room to pack my house, every thing known to man...adjustable windscreen etc.But I will never forget that Norton. The best thing was the power shift. The shifter was down for high.....so would do mthe ole crack the throttle for a microsecond, bang down on the shifter and be fully engaged throttle. It took me less than a hundredth of a second to get from 1st to 2nd, 2nd to 3rd... just so fast.shifting. I even amazed myself. LOVED that bike. So so so sorry I let it go for being strupid...real stupid
Hey DUDE. Can you imagine one nose on the throttle brake away, hunting a Honda CB750- top speed on the f(l)ight , a small village comes near soon…… Good feeling and best regards!🏴☠️
My Norton had an american engine equipment. They are better than most of European. We re- importet the Norton from Sri- Lanka and they had much fun with that bike. An police director was the owner…
The Norton Commando is simply the most beautiful bike ever made and a damn good ride. But the 750 Ducati is a brute from another world. I rode one for 20 years and it's a mystical experience. No ride like it before or since.
I came across your message buy pure chance, I know both of these bikes very well, I have a old friend who still had a GT 750 Ducati from new, has not been started for 20 years but I rode others as well as I worked in a used bike company in the 70s.. The Commando was to me the better, It had low down grunt and let it go it was fast, the Ducati sound is music... All motorcycles are fun no matter what it is, the art of ridding is to avoid cars, don't ever think the driver has seen you, when I ride I consider myself a cloud that cant be seen...
I’ve had a Norton and a Laverda by the same time. For 2 years. Sorry- but I sold the Laverda. :-( it’s been a S. The Ducati was easier to handle. You have to know these italian Bikes, then you’ll fall in love with. Best regards! Und Grüezi ⛑️
Two bikes of roughly a half century ago, perfect in weight, power curve, handling, sound and character...AND, STUNNING to look at...All one really needed to enjoy ripping through twisty mountain roads, something I throughly enjoyed back in the day, until the thrill was gone. Running a proper Norton (or Ducati) through these kind of roads, in it's sweet spot, is as perfect of a motorcycle experience as one can have...
Yes and no. I bought a new one in '74. Nice machine. Plenty of power, handled great. The problems were usually electrical. Their system was crap. Valve guides were also very short and not especially long lived. For those of you who think these things really don't matter, think again. It doesn't matter how nice the engine is or how well it handles or how rare it is when you 300 miles from home with no headlight. Ask me how I know. lol
@@jeromeclements6532 Oh yeah. All true. I had a 750 GT for 20 years. I had to replace the Ducati valve guides with longer ones from a Yamaha. And I had to totally rip out the electrical system and replace it with real automotive parts after my fuse box melted in the middle of Nevada. But after that it was good for a long time.
I have a 75 Norton 850 Roadster MkIII. Very unreliable when I bought it. Went over the electrics (just cleaned it all up, every connector and earthing place) and it was super reliable for 10 years. Threw the choke away. Tickles instead, and it always start on first or second kick, (electric starter not connected) even down to freezing water temperatures. Lucas Rita ignition. Fast, good roadholding and it is one of the best sounding motorcycles ever. Curious about an old Ducati though. Absolutely a very nice bike.
Agree one of the best sounding bikes ever cause I have one. Bought it in 1973 and it is insured and licensed to go. Starts second kick like you say. Mikuni is my friend. It just WORKS without complaints but I have "sorted" the Amal issues. Always a plugged idle jet. The rest is just purely idiot proof.
Had a second hand black 750 norton in the 70s with a clutch that would slip a lot but it was still a blast to ride even at moderate speeds. One of our mates had a red and black Duke GT as well which compared to the norton was totally bullet proof. Very nostalgic to look at this great clip of both bikes. Thanks for the memories.
I never had the pleasure ti ride a Norton Commando but i enjoied 2 Ducati 750 which I thought where the most similar to the Norton... Well they where great Motos lacking the athmosphera....of the Commando...
Had a 2nd hand 750 commando in the 70s and rode with a guy who had a new GT Ducati. I ended up coming back with the norton on a trailer (my lack of maintenance skill) but the GT appeared bullet proof I thought. They are both handsome and timeless machines. Some of the post GT Ducatis were less aesthetic I thought compared to the GT.
Peter, I have to agree with your comment re aesthetics!! I've got a 1977 GTS 860, nice bike, but the addition of the huge, heavy and inadequate electric starter does nothing for it's good looks.... Cheers Paul in NZ.
My first bike... a 1974 Norton 850 Commando Roadster $1,700 USD brand new. Regrettably I had to sell her. I needed the money to buy my 1978 Ducati Desmo 900 SS. $4,400. Back in the day, that was a LOT of money. I've since had Hondas, Suzukis, Yamahas, Triumphs and HDs. Bought em, rode em, sold em. All of them except my beloved Ducati. I've had some ridiculous high offers but I'll never sell her. I wonder how many were produced?
My Norton had the same trouble. kick stand always hd to pushed up . never fully retracted on it's own. I also miss not having a finger that smells gasoline on cold starts when tickling the carbs. Great video
Nice bikes. Long time ago my brother had a Norton 850 Commando Interstate, and at the same time I had a Ducati 750 GT, also roundcase, but with electric starter (nevermind, it never worked, by the way). The Ducati was way more reliable, Nortons were haunted by their Lucas electronic shit. Beautiful machines, and they sounded the right way.
Never had a Norton, but I had 2 1974 round case Ducatis. A GT and a Sport. Great bikes but I can't say a whole lot abut the build quality or the electrics. Terrible switches, fuse boxes and all the other little things that can be such a pain in the ass. Once those problems were sorted out (replaced), they were more fun than the law allows. lol
Oh, yeah. The electrics on my Ducati 750 were totally worthless. My fuse box melted in Nevada. The headlight was too dim to let me go over 40 at night. I had to rip everything out and put in real wires, coils and switches. After I did that it was a compete delight.
True story, 1974, I went to buy my first big bike a Norton 750 Atlas in 1974. The seller was a professional motor mechanic. He had the Atlas, a 750 Commando and a Ducati 750 GT. Why was he selling the Atlas? Well he said the Commando was faster. He did not understand why as it had basically the same motor. I later found out why. They ported the commando head and got five extra horsepower. However, he showed me his Ducati 750 GT. It was a work of art. Probably no faster than the Commando But a work of beuty. If you find a 750 GT BUY IT. They are so rare. Later in my life I rode and owned 900 Ducat(is then went on to other things
Had a 75 Commando and 79 900ss, both wonderful bikes but not the most reliable. Are the oil stains on the lock up floor from the Norton? Great video, thank you.
Die Norton erscheint für mich wesentlich eleganter und kräftiger. Die Ducati dagegen kommt etwas billig/fipsig daher. Aber das ist Geschmackssache......
Phil Schilling in 1974. "Cycle" magazine. "The Norton vertical twin should have died and gone to legend a generation ago. In a world of perfect logic, engine designs should never maunder on for decades and finally be crushed by onrushing technology. Good ideas deserve better. Good engines should go to harvest in the fullness of their autumn; most mechanical things which struggle on simply die cold and wretched in December. Seasons do not cover England in perfect symmetry. Spring is cold and damp, and so is fall and winter. Onrushing technology there slows; the present walks in cadence with the past. And mechanical things like the Norton twin soldier on and on...through the Fifties...into the Sixties...and reach the mid-Seventies. In other places, someone would have raised the last hurrah at an earlier stage-when the original 500 twin turned to a 600, or 650, or 750, or 850. But somehow, no matter how deep Norton reaches into December, the final cheer never comes. There's only the next hurrah."
Lame. He probably doesn't approve of the Vincent Rapide, Black Shadow, Ariel Square, Brough Superior or other old technologies either. We all know he couldn't afford either of these bikes or maybe even a Commando now.
Which is the quicker? I have a 750 commando and used to have a 900ss bevel and often wondered which of these two 750’s were quickest. I rather suspect they are very similar. Thanks.
the two are similar. the ducati is a bit more "modern" than the norton. the 5 speed transmission of the ducati is certainly better than the 4 speed transmission of the norton. the Norton has the better torque. the ducati the better speed and smoothness ...that is my subjective opinion.
@@2BritalyReally. I've ridden many motorcycles and nothing is smoother than my Commando with the isolastic motor suspension. Often overlooked, never discussed and nothing smoother.
2Britaly Yep, have found that out now and also ordered that exaust system. Is it possible to get in contact with you on messenger for further questions? Peter Szamer is my name. I have a 70 roadster myself, in sweden.
Thank God other manufacturers never copied Ducatis front cylinder configuration. Why would they make such an abomination. Now the Norton thats a beautiful symetrical design.
They made "such an abomination" because it's perfectly balanced and keeps the bike narrow. Now, it does end up forcing you to have a long wheelbase but the bike handles quite well despite this except at very low speed. So all you have to do is avoid low speed. No problem.
The old bevels with 100 inch wheelbase r not the best bikes to negotiate the hairpins. Love them thou had the same one with twin disc. Never saw one black yet.
