c1951 Norton 500cc Manx 'Featherbed' Racing Motorcycle

Description

One of the most famous names in the world of motorcycling, the Manx Norton was the direct result of the dominance of Joe Craig and his team in both the Senior and Junior TT events held on the Isle of Man during the 1930s. Produced to individual order at Norton's Brace bridge Street factory, the Manx Norton was a customer race bike with an overhead-camshaft air-cooled engine, the first Grand Prix model of 1938 being an extensively reworked International. After the Second World War both road-racing Inters, the 350cc Model 40M and the larger 500cc Model 30M, became known as Manx Norton's and were catalogued as such. From 1950, a new short-wheelbase frame - christened the 'Featherbed' and designed by the McCandless brothers - endowed the Manx Norton with superb handling and high-speed stability thanks to its low centre of gravity and became the benchmark for frame design for years to come. The frame featured welded, duplex construction with a pivoting rear fork and the Featherbed Manx proved an immediate winner, with Geoff Duke's victories in both 500cc and 350cc classes of the world championship in 1951 a highlight. Today, the Manx Norton is hugely collectible and a mainstay of classic motorcycle racing, looking and sounding every inch the thoroughbred race bike.