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Origins
The Norton Manx, formalised in 1946 from the factory's racing lineage, became the privateer's grand prix weapon of the classic era: an overhead-cam single — eventually double-knocker — in the featherbed frame that redefined handling, campaigned by every serious racer from clubman to world champion. Manxes filled Isle of Man TT grids for two decades, won beyond counting, and kept winning in classic racing ever after; production ended in 1962 but the type never really retired. As the definitive British racing single, the Manx distils Norton's whole authority — 'Unapproachable', said the slogan, and on the Island's 37 miles, for a long age, it simply was. Half the classic grids on earth still start to the sound of one.
Norton Manx,Bj.1954 · Lothar Spurzem · CC BY-SA 2.0 de
