Post Listing Update: This Manxman did not meet reserve despite 39 bids up to $4,450 on eBay.
Built just between November 1960 and October 1961, the Norton Manxman is a rare bike that was built for export only – most came to the US, though another significant chunk went to Australia.
I’ve seen production estimates ranging between 550 and 654, but all Manxmans were in a gorgeous blue with red seat/white piping. It also got plenty of chrome plating and a special exhaust system unique to the model. The 650cc twin produced 52 horsepower, sufficient to get the bike up to over 120 miles per hour.
This example is offered as a project that runs. The seller states, “I rescued this in the summer of 2018 and since then have been reviving it but now I need to move it on.” The bike had apparently been sitting since 1968 after it suffered some sort of gearbox failure. The seller has gone in and done quite a bit of work – new fork tubes/bushings/seals/steering head bearings, some replaced parts in the gearbox internals, and the installation of a center stand. He also cleaned the twin Amal Monobloc carbs, replaced the oil, installed new spark plugs, and he was able to take the bike for a short spin. There’s still plenty of work to be done – the headlight is missing, the “wheels are dreadful”, as the seller tates, and there’s a small amount of corrosion in the frame. But hey, it’s a project, right? Hopefully someone thinks this rare Norton is worth saving.
Find this Manxman project for sale in Altadena, California with bidding up to $2,370 and the reserve not yet met