ca-ms7201-e-the-norton-stor
THE STORY OF THE NORTON
Part 12: The 1930s. Why, when Nortons utterly dominated the racing scene the world over, and the name of the founder became the most important brand name in the business, did not everyone
crave a Norton?
WHILE Àrthur Carroll was at work on the new 0.h.c. Norton which made its debut in the 1930 TT and a year later dominated the TT with a shattering 1-2-3 in the Senior and satisfying 1-2 in the Junior, much work was afoot behind the scenes to completely redesign the bread and-butter models. The move was rather overdue for Normn@ had carried on producing basically early vintage machines well into the late vintage period and the minor face-lift provided by the introduction of saddle tanks throughout the range in 1929 had done little to disguise the fact. that the diamond frame used on the side-valves and milder o.h.v. models was very much the same as it had been from the very beginning. The wheelbase was Still long., the Saddle high. and in veleran style the magneto siurk out like al -‘ore lhumb in front of lhl: engilîw, and even an elaborate cast-alloy cover did not overcorne prejudice against this position. now that most ‘other makers had resited the inslrument tu the rear of the rylìnder. Bul now there were new and younger men behind the svenes and were lo make a big slride forward not only with their raving machines hut wilh model@ for the man in the street. Walter Moore, who had been the of the early Norton suvcesscs with the o.l1.v. models and had then designed Ille first o.h.c. model which had won ille’ Senior straight of the drawing board. had left the firm. He had gone lo lake charge uf 1he NSU faclory al a prinrrely salary. though ihere were many who thought his departure was influenced by the rlevlining fortune of lhe o.h.c. Ñorton. Young Lansdowne Norton, son of the revered founder of the marque, had lefl. mo, lo lake up a position with lhe Brialol Airvrafg concern and to become an aero engine of considerable reputc. Arthur Carroll. who had been Walter undersiucly, had been promoled tu «hief draughlsnnan . _ . they did not talk much of designers in lhose days . and imo lhe breech came a youn,-2 man who was in have as signiñvam a parl In the redesign of the roadster machines as Carroll had wilh the racers. Thi.; was
Edgar Franks, who a generation of Norîon enthusiast; will remember as author of many editions of lhe Norton instruction books. Edgar Franks was just the man for the joh_ After serving his apprenticeship with the Sunbeam Motor Company, he had jumped at a chance of being in al the birth of a motorcycle pro-
duced by a racing hero of the period, none other than Howard Davies. It was a shoe-string enlerpriae but carried out with such vigour and enthusiasm that Howard Davies won the 1925 Senior and was second in the Junior on HRD machines of his own manufacture, It was wonderful training for a young man for he saw every aspect ofthe motor» cycle manufacture from drawing board to Íinal viclory in lhe Island. Now retired and living in Cornwall, Edgar Franks revalls those hectic days with ai smile. “When I went lo work for Howard Davies”, he says, “the only drawing he had was in vlnalk on the wall. I had to get out working drawings of all the pans.” The rise to fame of the HRD was meleorif: but n slump brought il down jus! as quickly and Franks had to look for another job. A great believer in direct action, he went to Nnrtons, asked for a joh, and gut one. Behind the redesign of the roadster range there was more than a desire to bring the image up to date. There was lhe desire to improve production elfi-
viemry and rut costs by making as much of the product within the Norton com-
plex as possible. Hilherto much of the machine had been bought out. Forks were wheel hubs Enfield., Webb or Horlon, gearboxes always Sturmey Archer. The object in the future was lo avoid buying such romponents outside or at least outside the group of firma who were “related” lo Ñortons by reason of having common directors. Such firms were Abingdon King Dick, the family concern of the Mansells . . . William Mansell it who sleered Nortons through the vintage years and his son Dennis was their star performer in trials wilh sidecar for 10 years and more. Other in the Norton
were Tallboys of Whillon who made the tanks and sheet. metal parts, Motor Sîanlpings, Àlfred Roberts, Ltd., who made rubber parts, and of course the Shelley engineering concern. The Shelley family had been major shareholders in Norton.; since Pa Nortorfs day when they had the major parl. of his engines, and in falli. lhs Norton works was so integrated with the Shelley works that _il was to decide which was which. In fact what passed as the Norton foundry was in fact the Shelley foundry. Beginning with the engine, the first object apart from the obvious one of moving the magneto to the rear of the engine was lo incorporale dry sump lubrication, rapidly becoming de rigour in motorcycle design. Dry sump lubri~ cation of vuurse been incorporated by Waller Moore in his later develop-
ment of the push-rod engine--in its rac-
ing and super sports E52 form and in his e.h.c. design--but ir had non been so much a fast circulation system ag a gradual replacement system, and the reciprocating rotary pump was hardly an ntlraclive manufacturing proposition. Carroll, in unashamedly borrowing from the 0.h.c. Velocelle in his design of the new o.h.c. Norton, had copied the oil pump, its location and drive, faithfully and was all for using il on the roadsler models. Franka did not like the idea ai all. Correctly, I he felt that the idea of a pump pressed into n hole bored in the wall was asking for lronble in large-avale production. Apart from the diflïculty of removing the pump for service, the machining of the housing in the crankcase demanded great arcuravy and the slìghest imperfection in the cast-
ing would resllïl in leaks and the scrap-
ping of a major component. “I wanted a simple gear pump whirh could be bolted in place, easily and removed. Í had a long battle with Carroll over this before I got my own way. Abingdon@ finally made the pumps and lhey were wonderfully reliable in servire and very tolerant as to fit of the worm drive.” Users of Ñurtun singles over a period of more than 20 years will. I am sure, endorse his view . . . apart, per-
