1974 Norton John Player Special

1974 Norton John Player Special 850 Commando
As seen on Jay Leno’s Garage, this Norton really is something special. Near the end of the video Leno states, “This is one of those bikes I’ll never sell. When I can’t ride it anymore, I just want to look at it.” (The link to the video is on the ebay listing)

Apparently Leno bought his in 1974 when it was new and selling for $3,000, which was $500 more than the standard Commando. It seems clear from his commentary that he just could not resist. He fell in love with the style and design of the bike and I have to agree. Even the odd double headlight works for me. This bike is cool. I love looking at it.

That said, I just paid a visit to a friend of mine that is an Aprilia rider and when I told him that I was posting a British bike his response was, “That’s unfortunate.” That made me laugh. So if you are not a fan of British bikes, in any way, not even an iota, then feel free to scroll on by.

For all you British fans out there – check out this listing on ebay!

Seller:
With the exception of the original racing body work, this JPS Norton has had a nut and bolt restoration completed by SoloMoto in Greenwich, CT and is a proper collectors bike. Aside for two small blemishes on the original painted faring, she is utterly mint.  Comes with clean and open title, no taxes.

Back Ground: The Norton Road race team sponsorship by the John Player tobacco company was a new commando model, the John Player Norton – or “JPN” for short. It was announced for the 1974 sale season, equipped with a streamlined, twin headlight half fairing and matching tank/seat unit in the John Player livery. Beneath the endurance-race inspired bodywork was a standard issue MK2A Commando 850. The “gas tank” is actually a fiberglass cover hiding an elongated steel roadster tank buffered by rubber mounting on the isolastic frame to reduce vibration. This was the first introduction of the revolutionary feather bed frame.

JPS this is a special model, production totaling for 1974 & 75 is approximately 200 units, with only 120 shipped to the US. The factory JPS won 14 international races including the Transatlantic Trophy, the Formula 750cc Isle of Man TT, the British 750cc Championship and the MCN Superbike Championship.

RSBFS:
The Buy-It-Now price is $19,900, which is not much more than $3,000 in 1974 when you factor in the inflation. According to the Dollar Times, “Adjusted for inflation, $3,000 in 1974 is equal to $19,273 in 2023. Annual inflation over this period was 3.87%” I realize this has nothing to do with the value, but I found it interesting that the prices were so close.

The bike has been through a nuts-and-bolts complete restoration and is marketed to a collector.

Twice in our history, this bike model and year has been reviewed by Mike here on RSBRS; once in 2018 and once in 2022.

“Based on the successful Commando model, Norton attempted to go racing with a bespoke factory effort. Success was limited, although Peter Williams managed to win the Formula 750 Isle of Man TT in 1973 on a semi-monocoque framed Norton emblazoned with John Player sponsorship. This bred the idea for a limited edition replica, and in 1974 the JPS Norton was born. Only 200 examples of this bike were built, with the distinctive dual headlight fairing mimicking the racer’s Peel Engineering-designed unit. ” – Mike 2018

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Now we need to have a moment to honor Peter Williams. The thought of participating in the Isle of Man TT race is nerve wracking. To be a contender is awe inspiring. To win that race is super human – or insane. I can see why Norton was psyched to create this limited edition and why John Player was on board to sponsor.
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“The most expensive of the Nortons parked in front of the dealer shop, the John Player Special (JPS for short if you like your acronyms), was a classic British twin wrapped in the cloak of sporty intentions. The bodywork was novel; clean at the rear, with real race bike intent, and more of an endurance look up front with the bar ends covered. The elephant in the showroom, however, was the full frontal view: massive twin headlights with a massive gap between them. It was a love it or hate it moment” – Mike 2022

I’m with Leno – I love the two headlights and I love the design. Though I have never been on one of these, it was fun to watch Leno in his video.

If you are collecting British bikes, this might be a nice addition.

Good luck to the buyer and seller!
LL