Calling All Players: 1974 Norton John Player Special

Calling All Players:  1974 Norton John Player Special

That ad is just oozing the 70’s.  Check out the marketing.  It isn’t trying to appeal to the race replica crowd for a second.  It is trying to reach the more sophisticated.  I’m loving the guy with the blond by candlelight.  They wanted you ( yeah you, Thurston) to get off this thing and have a gin and tonic and a Players  cigarette.

Fast forward a few decades and what feels like a century of motorcycle technology and here we are.  Fall is around the corner and it is time to starting thinking about a winter project.  With a production run of roughly 200 bikes,  I thought this 74  Norton John Player Special  might be a good candidate for such a project.  It is rough around the edges but with a tear down and complete freshening up should make a fine edition to a collection.

My you have big eyes.   The John Player Special was Norton’s take on a race replica.  To celebrate their  racing success at the Isle of Man they basically modified a  Commando and offered it to the public.  Not much different than a Lucky Strike RGV or Rothmans NSR.  Just different cancer sticks.  It is kind of interesting that they went with John Player instead of the more common name of the cigarettes; Players.

Now take a look at the actual race bike.

Wow, that thing is bad ass!  How about the monocoque frame?  Too bad they didn’t make an exact replica.

The bike for sale appears to be a mostly stock example.  The one thing that stands out is the red frame.  Obviously, at some point the bike was apart and the frame resprayed.  The shocks and forks appear to be a little different than the ones pictured in the ad, although I did see a couple of pictures on the net with the same forks.

Here is her story:

An authentic John Player Norton.  It is in good but not pristine condition. Odometer reads 15,635 miles, which is believed to be accurate.  The engine, frame and gearbox numbers match.   I purchased it in 2002 from a neighbor who owned it for about 10 years.  Bike has been stored since 2004.  It ran well when I bought it and runs well now, though a bit challenging to start.  At some point the frame was painted red, but is black underneath. The fairing has a scrape on the right side and the plexiglass windscreen has been broken and (poorly) glued back – see pictures.   Otherwise the bike is complete and in very good condition.

As with any project the price has to be right.  Some nice examples have sold in the $10,000 range.  Considering the semi rough condition you would want it for considerably less.  Anyone know how difficult it is to source old Norton parts?

You can just see it in the bottom right corner.  No electric starter here my friend.

To put your butt in the seat, click here.

Jay Leno owns one and his video is really worth a watch.  He points out a lot of the finer points of the bike and some unique features.   You can catch a glimpse of a WW Gamma in his garage as well.

Ian