1946 Norton model 18 questions

Big learning curve comming up !!.  I know little about these very charismatic bikes ,but something I do know is throw nothing away.  Parts and patterns to get things made  will be very scarce in your neck of the woods. At all costs avoid fuel with ANY ethanol content.. This will play havoc with old metals and fuel tank. Avoid thin  oils that will drain off surfaces and find leaks.Dont be too fussy about oil leaks or a bit of smoke.  Its a bit like running an old loco ,   I run a 30's Rudge 500 ,very similar in many ways.

No problem as far as I'm concerned on my 1952 ES2. The petrol used in these bikes in the early 50s was awful stuff. And Cleveland Discol which was popular in the late 50s especially in NE England was up to 20% ethanol and nobody batted an eyelid - in fact many people including my dad swore by it.

I do agree don't throw anything away.....

You don't need to carry points - as long as it starts they will be fine and even if it doesn't a quick wipe through with a bit of card will get it going. It's easy to think these are delicate flowers that require very gentle handling but they were built and used as workhorses and will survive no end of rough treatment. They're far more cosseted now than they ever were.

M01 magdyno is the usual fitment with an E3 or E3L dynamo.

I'd suggest you try to get a copy of the Norton handbook by E M Franks who was the Norton service manager around the time your bike was made.

Don't worry about it, enjoy it.

.. the 1946 is tight wire advance but the best way is to check by popping the cap off the mag and turning the engine to see which way the points rotate. It's always possible it's had a replacement engine.

It probably has a ground metal to metal head joint rather than a gasket. At least would have had originally.

Parts? Our own NOC shop has a lot, RGM have a good range and Andover Norton has some as well.

The 1946 Model 18 uses the 1938 pattern engine. It is identical (apart from some minor casting differences) to those sold during 1938 /'39 and then again after the war (1946 - '47). The design was changed completely for 1948. Your engine has the flat lever followers which could be fragile.

Frame is the standard post-war rigid cradle but forks were a one year only type as they changed to telescopic for 1947...Any 'wide' Norton girders will fit, but '46 had a different headlamp mounting system.

Due to the unusual cam drive system (inlet cam is driven from exhaust cam and not directly from the crank), you have a clockwise magneto (with anti-clock dynamo). The M01 is a face-cam magneto so the points are nothing like those on coil ignition engines.

There is no one-stop-shop for single cylinder Norton parts.