1952 Norton Model 7 Dominator Motorcycle

Description

Following years of building singles, Norton broke with tradition in the late Forties and released their first twin, the Model 7, to compete with Triumph's Speed Twin. Breaking cover at the 1948 Earls Court Show, the earliest Model 7 bikes had a plunger rear-end frame with Roadholder forks but had, by 1952, adopted a swinging arm frame. Designed by Bert Hopwood, the Dominator was powered by a twin-cylinder 500cc OHV engine that developed around 29bhp, giving the Model 7 ample performance - it could top 90mph under the right conditions. Notable features of the design included widely splayed exhaust ports that lent themselves to tuning. The Dominator handled well, was very reliable and generally performed very well as a road bike while later models, using the Featherbed frame, went on to enjoy a successful racing career. Finished in the classic Norton colour scheme of polychromatic grey, the Model 7 certainly looked the part and remained in production until 1956.