Hey 89r - A site made just for you :-)

Rich Rohrich

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BSWIFT

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I like it! Is that the imfamous 650?
 

Ol'89r

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Very cool site Rich. :cool: Thank you.

If memory serves me correctly that was Alex Jorgenson's Norton. I believe it was built by Ron Wood and Alex won the Sacramento Mile national on it in the mid 80's It was Nortons last national win on the dirt track.

BSWIFT. That one is a 750.
 

Rich Rohrich

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I ordered a copy of the magazine so I'll let you guys know what it's like.

I still want to build a Gary Nixon replica from my 2005 Bonneville. Sometime in the next few years I'll get around to it.
 

BSWIFT

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That thing looks fast sitting still. Bet it is a hoot with nicely preped track and big pair to twist the throttle! Speedway, flattrack or whatever you want to call it is one motorcycle dicipline that I've never tried. There something about the constant propensity to high side that has kept me from slinging one sideways but it really looks fun. We have several 1/4 mile tracks around here and most run the Mad Dog class. Mid-size chassis with 150cc limit. Very competitive and mostly 40-50 year olds racing the class. Many smaller guys than AJ.
 

Ol'89r

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High Lord Gomer said:
Is that a twin or is it two pipes and two carbs on a single?

It's a 750 twin Mike.

A bike like that one is the reason I have to laugh at many of the riders of today when they complain about their new race bikes. That is a typical (although very nicely done) race bike of the late 70's and 80's. It uses a highly modified 750cc twin Norton engine. Racing cams, extensive porting and flow testing by CR Axtel (local tuner guy). Balanced crank, high compression pistons, special coating treatments and to make them live we had to magnuflux, zyglo and shot pean everything that moved. All fine tuned on a dyno.

The stock frames and wheels were thrown away and replaced with a C&J racing frame, Barnes wheels and disc brake, Cerrani forks and fiberglass or aluminum gas tanks. About the only thing stock on those bikes were the engine cases and they were highly modified. Even the tires were modified. We used to harden the tires and hand cut the tread for different tracks.

Today you can walk into your local dealer and purchase a state-of-the-art racing machine with more power than most riders can even hang on to. You can take it from the dealer directly to the track and be competitive. Yet everyone complains about having to take the time to check their valves and do a little maintainence. :yell: If the riders of today had to go through what we had to back then to build our own bikes, there would be a whole lot less people at the track. :nod:
 
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flying flea

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Mar 18, 2008
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My dad loves flattrack but I've never seen the bikes. I had to ask why the brake and gear shifter were on the same side. :whoa: :ohmy:
 

Ol'89r

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flying flea said:
My dad loves flattrack but I've never seen the bikes. I had to ask why the brake and gear shifter were on the same side. :whoa: :ohmy:

That was another thing flea. We had to cut down the cases on the left side for ground clearance and move all of the controls to the right side. Google the name 'Sammy Tanner' for information on the original 'Flying flea'. :cool:
 

SpDyKen

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Mar 27, 2005
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Ol'89r said:
Racing cams, extensive porting and flow testing by CR Axtel (local tuner guy).
Hey, Ol'89r, did you mean to say 'god,' instead of 'guy?'

I'm sure you have a different perspective, knowing & working with him, but I've always thought of CR as "The man," when it comes to head & flow work. I've heard some impressive stories of his work. I'd like to hear yours!

By the way, very nice bike, Ol'89r. :boss: Thanks for sharing it with us, Rich. :cool:
 

2strokerfun

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May 19, 2006
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Ol'89r said:
The stock frames and wheels were thrown away ...

I'll bet there is a Norton owner cruising ebay who would start crying if he heard that. Now if I would have only hung on to all the muscle cars I owned as a teenager........
 

Ol'89r

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SpDyKen said:
Hey, Ol'89r, did you mean to say 'god,' instead of 'guy?'

I'm sure you have a different perspective, knowing & working with him, but I've always thought of CR as "The man," when it comes to head & flow work. I've heard some impressive stories of his work. I'd like to hear yours!

Yes Ken, my mistake. God is a more correct term when referring to Axtel. :nod:

I had him do a small amount of work for me but being a struggling young racer with a family I couldn't afford his full services. I did send all of my engine parts to him to have them tested and treated, (Magnifluxed, zyglo'd and shot peaned). Ax had a testing facility nearby that did that kind of work for the aircraft industry. I was lucky to have a mentor that was close to me named Danny Macias who was IMO every bit as good as Axtel. Danny understood flow characteristics and taught me to do my own work.

2strokerfun.

I can't tell you how many stock frames, wheels, gas tanks, etc, etc, that I threw in the trash back then. Now, part of my business is restoring those old bikes and I'm having to pay big bucks to buy all of that old stuff back. :bang:

20/20 hindsight. :(
 

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