Tank badge Colour

Green ,  its only red on a red bike.  However checking my own two tone 99   the badge is painted around the lettering with dove grey to match the lower tank . I think thats how they were done orriginally. Not to worry though, your bike is far too pretty to use ,  I will be happy to take it off your hands for a paltry sum  and  park up as an ornament !!.

Nothing better to do ,so I have gone thro my books looking at  early photos of  tank badges. I would say that there are more two tone bikes with the dove badge inset, but there are also  two tone early SS bikes with the tank main colour used in the badge . So not conclusive . The darker colours are more practical ,not showing the grime.

I have an unrestored Green/ dove grey ES2 and the badge is definitely green.

PaulN

I am fairly certain that not all the Slimline Models had badges with painted logo backgrounds. This appears to have only been a factory trim perk on certain models at certain times.  Plus the painted section did not always reflect the tank colour. 

If you check the attached factory brochure for 1961 with the two tone Green / Dove Grey finish it shows no painted badges. Whereas later Red Atlas and 650 Silver tanks have either a Black section or Chrome.  

The catalogued Featherbed framed singles and many of the lightweight models also have bare badges; some without even the knee rubbers. I initially thought that perhaps just the De Luxe models had painted badges but this is not a golden rule either.

Trust you to throw  another spanner in the works Phil,  Just when we thought we had it sorted !!  Now we have 3 options   plus that crazy one on the 650 std ?

Robert.....you are quite correct.  The 650 Standard Petrol Tank appears to be a creation to please all.  It has the paintwork of a late model 7  applied to a Slimline tank with some Slimline badges added to modernise it.  Some of this model were sold with grey seats. Others with what was desrcibed as a 'new tank'.  I am guessing this was the basic later 99 type with out the silver panel.

Not many of these models were manufactured and sold. I don't think the sales figure passed 300 but the  records regarding this version are very difficult to decipher. The 650 DeLuxe had equally low sales but all of these are trounced by the 650 Western of which only about 11 were manufactured. This bike was basically a 650SS but painted completely Blue........Frame, Tank, etc.  It was also known as the Westie or Westerner but the change of name still do help it sell.

The Westerner appears to have a black inset badge  against the blue tank. Another option ?.I wonder what the "new tank" meant ,  Perhaps a clearance of the left over  stock of the Manxman ? and its specially long seat.Or just the shifting of the filler cap from left to right.

That suggestion of moving the filler position would make sense.  It always seemed bonkers to have both the tank filler and side-stand on the left. Norton did get its Slimline tanks from two independent suppliers. The same with the silencers.

I thought the filler moved from left to right when they started selling side stands.  Filler on left caused fuel leaks with a full tank.

My 99 had a side stand when built  in 1959  well before they moved the tank cap.

Most Dominator models had a prop / side stand of some kind. The very early Model 7s had 3 stands in total. A main (centre), prop (side) on the front left engine plate and an extra stand hinged on the front forks that bolted through the back of the mudguard.

The Featherbeds had a frame mounted prop / side stand on the left. So how did riders manage in the USA and Europe??? Maybe all the roads were flat in those days.

A couple of Atlas and 650SS models had special prop / side stands with different backing brackets. Possibly these were designed to overcome the problem many owners experienced of operating the bike's side stand and then watching their pride and joy slowly slump over and bounce on the ground.

All the 'stand' numbers are listed in the DSN update.