Comments on: Banquer 920 – Norton Featherbed with Yamaha Virago Engine and Shaft Drive

By: Jerry

Jerry — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 13:22:00 +0000

None the less this bike is art, well executed and inspires me to go in search of a virago as shaft drive is the max. Great bike

By: Jerry

Jerry — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 13:15:54 +0000

I lifted this passage from Wickapedia the mention of “featherbed” has always conjured up the image of the following:This invention relates to a new or improved frame for a motorcycle which comprises two substantially parallel rectangular loops each formed from a single length of tubing, and the ends of the tube forming each loop cross and are welded to each other at the top front corner of the loop, the free ends of the tube which extend beyond the crossing point being welded to the side of an inclined head tube adjacent to the top and bottom thereof. The assembled frame is extremely strong for its weight and designed to provide the maximum resistance to any stresses applied to the frame by road shocks or by the driving torque of the power unit. This was patented in 1949.

By: Harold

Harold — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 09:07:33 +0000

The Featherbed frame is NOT a type of frame, it’s a brand, and was manufactured ONLY by Norton during it’s production run, from the early 1950′s to 1968, when they built the first Commando rubber mount frame and forward tilting engine. It was named that because of it’s solid yet comfortable handling and was the company race frame, and every Manx,Dominator, or Atlas, as well as some other engines, were all in them. The Norton and Matchless scramblers used 2 non-featherbed frames for light weight and off-road use. But the frame, which came as a wideline or slimline for different engines, is fairly valuable, especially the Manx Slimline, and cutting out the downtubes makes it worthless, except on that bike. There are 1 or 2 guys making reproduction Featherbeds, 1 for sure in England, and the price is resonable. Every conceiveable engine has been swapped into them, including a Harley WA Army flathead 45.

By: roger de vries

roger de vries — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 18:01:29 +0000

hey joe! i’m interested in wot mod you did to the starter.mine already has a 4-brush setup but has eaten the teeth of the flywheel & idler gear. i really, really dig tr1′s.would not ride anyfing else if i could only get a permanent starting fix. Great bike

By: DnA

DnA — Thu, 13 May 2010 02:30:21 +0000

Banquer did an absolutely brilliant job here. It took guts to fit a Virago engine into a Featherbed frame. The Virago 920 engine is a torque monster hidden in a boring 80s frame. I remember riding a friends 920 and was blown away by its sheer power. This beautiful example has me thinking about doing a custom 920 of my own.