Hi All. I'm a relatively new Norton owner and member od the NOC. I was lucky enough to find a Trio of featherbed Nortons that had been stored since the 50's- a 1952 Model 30 International, a 1951 ES2, and a 1950 Daytona Manx. It was quite easy to confirm the history on the Manx through various Norton Enthusiasts (A big thanks to Jerry in the US, and Norton George in the UK) Incidentally, the Manx turned out to be the long lost #98 Francis Beart-tuned Works racer that took 1st Place at the 1950 Daytona 200. It was sold to a Norton collector in England, and restoration is underway. The ES2 was sold to a gentleman in Indonesia.
That being said, I'm left with a matching numbers Model 30 International that you might call 'Race Spec' since it's got an alloy/Bronze head, alloy barrel, Amal RN Carb, and a Lucas KNR1 Racing mag. I know these bike were not very common on this side of the pond, so I'm eager to find out what dealership this International came from, and what kind of racing might have been done with it. I have a title from the 60's, but the fellow who owned it is deceased. The motor and frame numbers are '46492 11'. Also, I've got a long parts list, so any help would be highly appreciated. Thanks, Pete
Pete Lucky you! My XLSS of…
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Hi Pete, If you are the sa…
Hi Pete, If you are the same person who posted this, with pictures on another Norton forum, the 3 bikes are plunger framed not Featherbeds. Great find 
I would have struggled to get rid of any of them, especially the DOHC Long stroke Manx. Good luck with the restotation of the Inter.
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Hi Ian and Dave, thanks fo…
Hi Ian and Dave, thanks for the replies. Pardon the 'featherbed' part of my post- not sure if I was tired, drinking, or if it was just wishful thinking, but the bikes are in fact Gardengate/plunger framed Nortons. I was lucky enough to get a remarkable deal on the 3 bikes, but I'm definitely not the right guy for the Manx- I lack both the knowledge and finances to restore a bike of that much historical significance. Presumably, Francis Beart was the last person to work on the Manx, so I was happy to put the bike into more experienced hands.
While the ES2 was cool, it was very rough and incomplete, and the little research I did proved that it would cost about as much to restore as the bike was worth. That left me with the International.I've always though a streetable Manx would be fun, so the Inter should fill that role nicely. I'm not going to build a Manx clone, or restore the Inter to factory specs, but something in between would be nice. Just a fast, fun road burner. Here's a link to the Norton Commando website where I posted some pics and more info on the Nortons. I'll follow up with Chris and Barry on the history of my Inter, and I'll start a build thread when I start to make progress. Cheers, Pete
http://www.accessnorton.com/new-member-gardengate-nortons-t13667.html
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Very nice bike. Looks like…
Very nice bike. Looks like you have a nice project on the go. It looks from the pictures like it has magnesium cases and cambox as well as an ally barrel and head. This would make it something a bit more than a standard inter I think.
The factory records from Chris give some interesting information. I got them through them NOC for my inter and they revealed the engine had left the factory to full Manx spec! I'm nearing the end of my project now and I can assure you, it's very rewarding!
If you are looking for parts, I've found Paul Norman at www.racingnorton.co.uk very good. Stu Rogers is also very helpful and has a huge stock of parts, but can be a little slow.
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Pete
Lucky you!
My XLSS of factory records which is the one NOC (Neville Hinton bless him) transcribed from the handwritten records for Inters only goes back to the prototype 500 F/bed. That was SERNO 47690 made 6/11/52. According to Roy Bacons book on singles SERNOS went from 42700 in 1952 to 48900 for 1953 which encompasses yours but is not much help.
Not sure if the Club Records Officer (Chris Streather) has any earlier info, he may have I suggest you ask him. Also Barry Stickland may be able to help too. (NOC Cammy TECH Advisor) He has quite a bit of history.
Have a good New Year.
Ian