help in Australia

[cliffa]

Ive just realised that I never posted the result of returning the head. After initially dealing with Les, his daughter dealt with me. Right from the outset she convinced me I would get my money back. It was a long process , with covid impact on shipping and the head being “ lost “in gb customs for 3 or 4 months. PayPal were as useless as the proverbial , and really using them as a legal backstop was a mistake. However, the day norvil got the head back ,I received an email from Kate saying she would do the refund. I did not recover shipping or customs duties but was relieved to get most of my money back. I think the takeaway from this is ,I have heard beards daughter is determined to get the business functioning correctly for this century, maybe there is some truth in that.....

Casual, as Baz said, glad you got most of your money back.

In case you are still after a head, you may be interested....

https://www.accessnorton.com/NortonCommando/fullauto-heads-update.34253/

I somehow don't think you will find any porosity there

 

[Shelby-Right]

Hi , I'm a newbie in NZ and to Norton , but was Auto Machinist in the 80s , have worked as a fitter turner , and fitter welder , i have done a lot of tig welding AC and DC , to me your slightly damaged threads look like a weld repair that has been machined and blasted , and as already mentioned the thread doesn't do the sealing , just provides the clamp pressure for the seal ring , I don't think you will any issues with that . Cheers Mate .

 

[outawack]

I am new here, and need help with a problem that has arisen . I purchased an 850 head from a firm in england( no need to mention his name) the head is new ,But the right hand exhaust port has the first 2 threads missing sections at the bottom. The reason they are missing is because there is a void in the casting below those threads and as the head was tapped those threads collapsed. ( I must add ,that’s how the head came) I have been to a local engineer and his response was that possibly if the nut remained tight there would be no problem. ( on a norton )I asked if he could grind out the offending section and fill it using a tig then re tap them? He didn’t think that would work. I am south of Sydney and feel the best way I can deal with this is to find a norton specific engineer who can assess the issue and if he can’t repair ,give me a report I can use to get my money back,( a task I’m not looking forward to) So if anyone can help me please leave a message and hopefully I’ll learn how to find it. Casual

Hi, sorry to hear you have had an issue with a supplier.
You could try Murray from Cycle Craft Engineering in Perth he has a great reputation and is a Norton specialist.

 

[outawack]

As i tried to go back to sleep a number of things were swirling in my brain. A number of members asked how the engineer tested the head for porosity. He didnt test it. He simply stated porous head. Now i dont know why he said that.So the reality is i have no actuall submissable evidence that proves the head is porous,simply an opinion, which by the way kommando, means there is no evidence to conclude that this head is from the original batch. Ive probably made things worse now telling norvil what the engineer said. Secondly i have checked the paypal site and they do require the item returned and i appreciate that no proof of delivery means no help from paypal. So really it looks to me as though, unless norvil decide to agree to a refund ( which,if i had any chance ive ruined it by mentioning porosity prior to having actual proof) i havnt got a legal case. Which leads me right back to the start of this thread,where i am trying to find a suitable engineer over here to assess the head. At some point last night Full Auto posted something on this thread ,but i cant find it. That may have been the advice I'm after ( could you repost,FullAuto?). As to legal action ,i doubt id waste my time or money after reading all the stuff about norvil. Id be better off finding out the true condition and then make a ballanced decission.Onethings for sure,i really struck a nerve in this community by raising this issue, I do regret wasting so much of everyones time on this and once i can see a way forward i look forward to getting back to the real reason this forum exists,which as i seeit is to share information on our bikes. Thanks to all and if anyone comes up with an engineers name on the east coast I'd appreciate it . Many thanks casual

Unfortunately you will probably not win this fight, i have had a similar experience with a fuel tank from a welsh manufacture, very expensive alloy tank that is now shed art due to the crap workmanship. take it as a tough lesson learned and move on.

 

[Casual]

Thanks everyone, and i can smell a fullauto head down the track, thats how this saga began. I found possibly the last one ,not on a bike, but couldnt get it. Anyway " thats life"

 

[robs ss]

Thanks everyone, and i can smell a fullauto head down the track, thats how this saga began. I found possibly the last one ,not on a bike, but couldnt get it. Anyway " thats life"

If you're going down the Fullauto path be sure to waist your 3/8" bolt shanks down to 5/16" or buy the ARP ones.
They're not cheap and you don't want to damage it. (This advice also applies to original heads.)
Will save you later on (blown/weeping head gaskets, etc)

 

[Casual]

It would seem I only come out from lurking mode when I need help, So here I am again. Over the past 18 months ,I have been assembling parts for my commando project. I buy from England , u.s.a and Canada, ( I even bought some parts for my monster from Ukraine about 6 weeks ago). Till now ,depending on the ebb and flow of covid, I have managed. Problem now is getting parts out of the US and Canada because USPS does not deliver to Australia and New Zealand since September 2021(a lot of suppliers only use usps) One of those suppliers is Matt from CNW. Matt has tried to get parts to Australia for quite a few people recently using a delivery system related with usps which supposedly allows delivery to Australia, but our customs sent all his parts back, which has stumped Matt. The solution would seem to be to use fedex or DHL, but for Matt to use either of those services he has to drive approx. 5 hrs. So I’m thinking if I could find someone in Canada( or closest centre to Dolores.co, ) I could get Matt to post to that person and get them to drop them at a DHL depot. I’m unsure at this stage about how the paperwork side would work, but thought I’d put my feelers out to see if someone up your way might be willing to help? I’d also like to hear from other Aussie’s and Kiwis who are in the same pickle. There just has to be a way to solve this issue. It may be that Matt manages to find a way to overcome this problem, but so far he has not, my package is not huge, just ISOs + headsteady( which hopefully will be finished shortly ) Looking at the world stage right now, I’d like to get my parts sooner rather than later. Matt I apologise if you manage to sort it, but figure now is a good time for me to explore options( as I indicated to you) Just to clarify I would pay for the DHL freight and forward that to the person dropping the package, which I guess will mean I’d need to sign up a vip membership( which I keep forgetting to do)Thanks all , Casual

 

[johnm]

It would seem I only come out from lurking mode when I need help, So here I am again. Over the past 18 months ,I have been assembling parts for my commando project. I buy from England , u.s.a and Canada, ( I even bought some parts for my monster from Ukraine about 6 weeks ago). Till now ,depending on the ebb and flow of covid, I have managed. Problem now is getting parts out of the US and Canada because USPS does not deliver to Australia and New Zealand since September 2021(a lot of suppliers only use usps) One of those suppliers is Matt from CNW. Matt has tried to get parts to Australia for quite a few people recently using a delivery system related with usps which supposedly allows delivery to Australia, but our customs sent all his parts back, which has stumped Matt. The solution would seem to be to use fedex or DHL, but for Matt to use either of those services he has to drive approx. 5 hrs. So I’m thinking if I could find someone in Canada( or closest centre to Dolores.co, ) I could get Matt to post to that person and get them to drop them at a DHL depot. I’m unsure at this stage about how the paperwork side would work, but thought I’d put my feelers out to see if someone up your way might be willing to help? I’d also like to hear from other Aussie’s and Kiwis who are in the same pickle. There just has to be a way to solve this issue. It may be that Matt manages to find a way to overcome this problem, but so far he has not, my package is not huge, just ISOs + headsteady( which hopefully will be finished shortly ) Looking at the world stage right now, I’d like to get my parts sooner rather than later. Matt I apologise if you manage to sort it, but figure now is a good time for me to explore options( as I indicated to you) Just to clarify I would pay for the DHL freight and forward that to the person dropping the package, which I guess will mean I’d need to sign up a vip membership( which I keep forgetting to do)Thanks all , Casual

Wow. 5 hours. That does sound more like outback Australia than the USA.

Must be pretty peaceful out there.

 

[Shelby-Right]

Hi , I haven't had any issues getting parts , I've ordered from classic bike shops in UK on royal Mail etc, been ok 2-3 weeks, definitely dhl the best I think , about a year ago I bought 2 stainless Devon rims and spokes for my 49 Matchless, sent through DHL 88 pounds , the tracking was incredible 7 days from UK. Then I bought some RGM progressive front springs for the Norton from a classic bike shop in Aussy ,freight was really expensive initially 75aud then about 2 days later the sent me a 40aud refund , good blokes . Cheers from NZ

 

[johnm]

Hi , I haven't had any issues getting parts , I've ordered from classic bike shops in UK on royal Mail etc, been ok 2-3 weeks, definitely dhl the best I think , about a year ago I bought 2 stainless Devon rims and spokes for my 49 Matchless, sent through DHL 88 pounds , the tracking was incredible 7 days from UK. Then I bought some RGM progressive front springs for the Norton from a classic bike shop in Aussy ,freight was really expensive initially 75aud then about 2 days later the sent me a 40aud refund , good blokes . Cheers from NZ

Plenty of flights and good service out of Europe to NZ. My last Andover parcel took 6 days to NZ.

It's the USA postal service that has shut down.

There are still also flights Auckland to LA but USPS doesn't seem to want to use them. I had a friend go to the USA late last year.

USPS were always a bit flacky at the best of times. I had a parcel from Matt cross the Pacific 4 times before it got to NZ. Including a side trip to Japan. So maybe they have decided its all too hard.

So unfortunately while you can get excellent parts from Matt at CNW, Kenny at NYN and Jim Schmitz the US courier firms are rock bottom world's worst service.

With the borders all opening hopefully it will be back to normal in 3 months.

 

[gortnipper]

I am a Yank in NZ, and have never had an issue with USPS pre-covid, although it always took longer getting here than it did from here to there.

Now it is fairly screwed as the Postmaster General is a Trump appointee whose stated goal is to dismantle/slow down the delivery service for USPS and he can only be removed by the Board of Governors who is also headed by a Trump crony. One of the first thing he did was dismantle the automatic sorting systems in city/regional hubs immediately prior to the 2020 elections.

Louis DeJoy faced more than a dozen conflicts of interest when he began serving as Postmaster General because of his family's investments in a number of companies closely tied to the U.S. Postal Service and his own business XPO Logistics. According to documents, it shows he was initially allowed to merely recuse himself from matters involving those companies rather than divesting from them.

In NZ we have a YouShop freight-forwarding depot in the US and UK. These are NZ Post run depots.

It used to be pretty competitive , but for large/heavy parcels it can be quite a bit more dear now. Small parcels arent so bad, especially since USPS isnt working. Recently, I had a large parcel come thru that was about 3.5x the price quoted by the online calculator. But, for ISOs and a headsteady that would work fine I would think if you had a friend here in NZ, and then Matt's shipping would just be to Portland, Oregon.

Here is a calculator - which has been reasonably accurate for smaller items such as yours - https://www.nzpost.co.nz/tools/youshop/youshop-pricing

You may want to look into a freight forwarder affiliated with AUS post? Or with DHL, etc that Matt can ship to?

 

[Casual]

Thanks Gortnipper, I’ll look at that. I had thought earlier that the Portland idea would be easiest and Thankyou for the historical backstory on usps

 

[johnm]

I am a Yank in NZ, and have never had an issue with USPS pre-covid, although it always took longer getting here than it did from here to there.

Now it is fairly screwed as the Postmaster General is a Trump appointee whose stated goal is to dismantle/slow down the delivery service for USPS and he can only be removed by the Board of Governors who is also headed by a Trump crony. One of the first thing he did was dismantle the automatic sorting systems in city/regional hubs immediately prior to the 2020 elections.

Louis DeJoy faced more than a dozen conflicts of interest when he began serving as Postmaster General because of his family's investments in a number of companies closely tied to the U.S. Postal Service and his own business XPO Logistics. According to documents, it shows he was initially allowed to merely recuse himself from matters involving those companies rather than divesting from them.

In NZ we have a YouShop freight-forwarding depot in the US and UK. These are NZ Post run depots.

It used to be pretty competitive , but for large/heavy parcels it can be quite a bit more dear now. Small parcels arent so bad, especially since USPS isnt working. Recently, I had a large parcel come thru that was about 3.5x the price quoted by the online calculator. But, for ISOs and a headsteady that would work fine I would think if you had a friend here in NZ, and then Matt's shipping would just be to Portland, Oregon.

Here is a calculator - which has been reasonably accurate for smaller items such as yours - https://www.nzpost.co.nz/tools/youshop/youshop-pricing

You may want to look into a freight forwarder affiliated with AUS post? Or with DHL, etc that Matt can ship to?

Useful information thankyou.

Regards John

 

[outawack]

There was a period earlier in the year when USPS and others weren't shipping to AUS but i think that has now changed. As i am now receiving parts from Canada regularly. Also i spoke to Matt just yesterday and he never mentioned any problems with shipping to AUS. If parts were returned it was probably because AUS Customs couldn't contact the customer and the duties weren't paid. Make sure you ask Matt to describe the parts as vintage motorcycle parts or you will get screwed by customs on duties. Andover does this with all of their shipments.

 

[Casual]

There was a period earlier in the year when USPS and others weren't shipping to AUS but i think that has now changed. As i am now receiving parts from Canada regularly. Also i spoke to Matt just yesterday and he never mentioned any problems with shipping to AUS. If parts were returned it was probably because AUS Customs couldn't contact the customer and the duties weren't paid. Make sure you ask Matt to describe the parts as vintage motorcycle parts or you will get screwed by customs on duties. Andover does this with all of their shipments.

Outawak, thanks for that, it’s strange to hear that. Were the parts you received sent via USPS or an affiliate? I only talked to Matt on Monday, and all he said was he thought d.h.l was a good idea, so this confuses me. I think everything I’ve ever received from Matt in the past has been labeled “vintage m.c parts” I

 

[Rosey]

Outawak, thanks for that, it’s strange to hear that. Were the parts you received sent via USPS or an affiliate? I only talked to Matt on Monday, and all he said was he thought d.h.l was a good idea, so this confuses me. I think everything I’ve ever received from Matt in the past has been labeled “vintage m.c parts” I

I am in Sydney and I have 2 packages of parts (not Norton) shipped by UPS from Germany ,one late last year and one early this year no problem. DHL are also delivering as well but very slow,they air freight from Europe to either Middle east or SE Asia then sea freight to Australia.. The last DHL package took about 6-7 weeks another 2 months + .I think the time is dependent on the size and weight of the pacakage.

 

[Casual]

I am in Sydney and I have 2 packages of parts (not Norton) shipped by UPS from Germany ,one late last year and one early this year no problem. DHL are also delivering as well but very slow,they air freight from Europe to either Middle east or SE Asia then sea freight to Australia.. The last DHL package took about 6-7 weeks another 2 months + .I think the time is dependent on the size and weight of the pacakage.

Roses, thanks .yep ups maybe worth a look

 

[gortnipper]

Thanks Gortnipper, I’ll look at that. I had thought earlier that the Portland idea would be easiest and Thankyou for the historical backstory on usps

Just note that there is a $2000 NZ value limit on parcels with YouShop. Again, ok for your small packages but not necessarily if you want to do a estart kit.

 

[Casual]

Just note that there is a $2000 NZ value limit on parcels with YouShop. Again, ok for your small packages but not necessarily if you want to do a estart kit.

Well that’s interesting mate, I’ve just been communicating with Matt today and he’s just got back from a trip and found a message from his local p.o telling him to bring back all the packages that were returned from AU, as usps have just started some delivery to AU again. So I’ve agreed to run the gauntlet and see how it works out. I will post the results... in time... . Matt also said that although the service to AU was recomencing,that does not include NZ

 

[Casual]

Well that’s interesting mate, I’ve just been communicating with Matt today and he’s just got back from a trip and found a message from his local p.o telling him to bring back all the packages that were returned from AU, as usps have just started some delivery to AU again. So I’ve agreed to run the gauntlet and see how it works out. I will post the results... in time... . Matt also said that although the service to AU was recomencing,that does not include NZ

Ps my CNW E start is already on the bike