1957 Norton International Model 30 ENG. 720511 FRAME. 11 72055


ONE OF THE LAST.
Pared back, refined and continuously influential, the Norton International placed itself at the head of the pack during the early 1930s and remained a permanent fixture in the racing scene. Stubbornly retiring from production in 1957, the Inter has an overhead bevel cam engine which remains a design classic and heavily referenced. Aggressively refined by works racers and intended for pure racing, the International could nevertheless be ordered direct from the family with refinements such as lights and a kick-start-equipped gearbox as offered here. The International remained fundamentally unchanged between 1932 and 1953 when it gained the highly successful Featherbed frame, all-alloy engine and ëlaid downí gearbox. With hand-finished build quality and rider-specific specifications, the International was expensive to acquire and, by the mid-í50s, was being challenged by cheaper parallel twins. With this, the International ceased to be catalogued after 1955 but could still be obtained by special order until 1958; many of the later machines incorporated Manx components.

It is understood that this fine example is one of only seven Internationals made to order during 1957 and 1958; this makes it one of the last of the Internationals.

Text courtesy Webbs Auctions More information at Motorcycles of the 20th Century EMU Contributor Page

Norton International