The ES2’s racing origins

The model started off as the overhead valve version of the cammy CS1, before becoming a solid, dependable mainstay.

Words: JAMES ROBINSON

Though later Norton ES2s were regarded as sensible, middle-of-the-road motorcycles, the model was initially launched as a hot-stuff sportster, making its bow at the same time as the CS1 (Cam Shaft 1) and effectively being an overhead valve version of the range-topping cammy, the ES2 sharing with the CS1 its running gear, including the new three-stay frame and TT Webb forks. There’s long been debate about ES2s (although they didn’t even have a name at that point) in the 1927 Senior TT (an event in which the CS1 made a race-winning debut, thanks to Stanley Woods) and the model’s participation, while Bonhams have, in their April 27, 2025 sale, one of the earliest ES2s extant – a machine used in the 1927 Amateur TT, the forerunner to the Manx GP.…

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The Classic MotorCycle (Digital) - 1 Issue, April 2025

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