1968 Norton Commando

1968 marks the debut year for the Norton Commando, launched as the flagship of the entire Norton range and a clean break from the aging Atlas platform it replaced. This is a big parallel-twin roadster built around Norton's Isolastic frame system, which mounts the engine, swingarm, and gearbox as a unit to damp out the vibration that plagued earlier Nortons. The result is a bike that pulls hard through the midrange and holds a highway pace without shaking your hands numb, rewarding riders who want to cover real distance rather than just posture at a cafe. It's a physical motorcycle to operate, with heavy controls and a riding position that demands some commitment. As a first-year model, the 1968 Norton Commando introduced a genuinely new chassis concept to the market, so there isn't a prior year to compare it against for spec differences. Buyers today are typically Britbike veterans or collectors who've owned Triumphs or BSAs and want the more sophisticated ride Norton engineered. Given its status as the launch model, well-documented original examples carry strong collector premiums over later production Commandos.