The Bikeshite Thread

[UltraWomble]

Suzzy Freewind - been offered a 1997 one for £700 - has MOT needs brake pads on front. No crash damage that I can see and Oxford hot grips FTW!

 

Any ideas on whether these are much cop or not?

[Jerzy Woking]

The Freewind is a bit gutless at both the bottom end of the rev range and again at the top end, but is great in the midrange. It uses the DR650 engine so well proven reliability

 

Sounds a good price compared to what you would have to pay for the older DR

.  

[hairnet]

plod along ftw

 

if its not knackered then why not and itll be fairly new also

[hairnet]

 

i think im insane

[twosmoke300]

Don't suppose anyone wants a 81 Kawasaki z440ltd with a years ticket for 750 sheets ?

It's really tidy and original bar the Koni shocks and motad exhaust . An afternoon with the autosol and I reckon it would look lovely .

[wuvvum]

 

i think im insane

We concur.

[hairnet]

you have spacy

 

say nowt

[UltraWomble]

Don't suppose anyone wants a 81 Kawasaki z440ltd with a years ticket for 750 sheets ?

It's really tidy and original bar the Koni shocks and motad exhaust . An afternoon with the autosol and I reckon it would look lovely .

As ever - Photos.

 

Basically I have a bag of sand here burning a hole in my pocket and a need for something 2 wheeled.

[Fabergé Greggs]

 

i think im insane

I've always wanted to try one of those! Details!!

[hairnet]

http://www.skyteammotorcycles.com/motorcycle-range/ace125/

[castros_bro]

Lurking at GU2 7XH till it's home gets demolished for housing

 

[martc]

Oh i know lots of Jap stuff is made in China,

 

I'm genuinely interested to know which "western" bikes are made in China; I understand that the Yamaha YBR125 (and 200) is built in China; the Suzuki Inazuma maybe (but something nagging tells me that this could be indonesian). A couple of Benellis are, and didn't BMW move the production of the "F" series from Italjet in Italy to China, or was just its engine production from Rotax in Austria to China?

 

Are there any others?

 

I've always had an interest in countries of origin ever since I noticed that my Matchbox cars were Made in England but a tinplate helicopter was Made in Japan.

[Eddie Honda]

BMW G310R - TVS Motor Company, Bangalore, India.

[UltraWomble]

Lurking at GU2 7XH till it's home gets demolished for housing

 

 

Bugger, looks nice

Just had an offer accepted on a X9-500 though on eBay, closer to home too.

 

I'm genuinely interested to know which "western" bikes are made in China;

CG125 ( made by Wuyang I think)

Honda Innova & Wave were both made in China

CBR 125 and 250 again

The Pug 110cc cub thing (Vox) they have was made in China

And there are others - Im sure the QC standards are higher for a "named" brand, but then quite a lot of stuff is made in the land of cheap labour these days ( iPods and all sorts of consumable stuff).

 

Give them another 10 years and I do think they will be every bit as good as Proton cars are now.

 

Quite a lot of parts are made in mailand china - the FMI 125 engine, the

[Jerzy Woking]

Bennelli ( and a few other manafacturers) parent companies are Chinese. Why not, they have the wealth to invest in stuff that Europeans will not.

 

I'm at an age where Japanese bikes were laughable quality wise with screws made of cheese, brakes that were all but useless in the wet, tyes made of bakelitea,  etc. But they were still better than their British equvileness! 

[strangeangel]

Honda Innova & Wave were both made in China

 

CG125 ( made by Wuyang I think)

 

 

I thought the Wave family were all built in Thailand?

 

I'm pretty sure Wuyang were one of the many who copied the venerable CG125, as opposed to building it under licence. The really piss-poor CGs are the ones that were built in Brazil.

 

Victory tout themselves as a premium Merkin manufacturer, but the bits are all made in China and merely assembled in the US of A!

 

Also the Peugeot V-clic scooter, IIRC the same machine is also badged as a Sinnis.

[cort1977]

Rotax blocks for the BMWs are cast in China but the engines are then assembled elsewhere.

 

You get loads of this anti-China rhetoric over here as though US bikes were renowned for their quality.   I am pretty sure that a Chinese factory can make as decent a product as a factory anywhere else with the right management and QC.  

 

John Ruskin famously said "There is hardly anything in the world that some man cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper, and the people who consider price only are this man's lawful prey".  

[martc]

CG125 ( made by Wuyang I think)

 

Give them another 10 years and I do think they will be every bit as good as Proton cars are now.

 

 

I think the last generation of CG125's (at least those sold in Europe) where made in Brazil. The successor to it, the CBF125 is made in India. However there are many Chinese copies of the CG, in full, or just the engine slotted into every conceivable style of bike.

 

I agree that the Chinese will start to churn out some quality products, the WK bikes sold in the UK have had a very good press, although there is more than a hint of ER6 about them.

 

http://www.wkbikes.com/650cc_motorbikes_wk-650i.html

[richardmorris]

My fellow Thames tortoise 2cver helps out at the London motorcycle museum.

 

http://www.london-motorcycle-museum.org

 

It's in Greenford off the a40 and has quite a lot of exhibits in regular use.

 

There's also a regular meet down the road from me at jacks fish and chips in Bagshot on the a30 every Wednesday

 

https://lightwater.wordpress.com/2014/06/12/bagshot-hosts-a-weekly-motor-bike-meet-bikes-ancient-and-modern/

[warren t claim]

I need to learn to moderate my throttle hand. Even after 30 years of riding I'm still fucking insane

[Eddie Honda]

Grin factor 11.

 

[UltraWomble]

I need to learn to moderate my throttle hand. Even after 30 years of riding I'm still fucking insane

I have meal plates in my throttle wrist that make it heavy - thats my excuse officer and Im sticking to it....

[hairnet]

To paraphrase Pieter vorstedt

 

Depends how you do it

[matty879]

Bought in January, and collected yesterday! No point in rushing!!

only just seen this,its prompted me to get my finger out and redo mine,it  was fun taking it through the house to the shed,but second stripdown in 18 months has begun,this time to build/paint properly

[hairnet]

oh shit

 

 

[Faker]

only just seen this,its prompted me to get my finger out and redo mine,it  was fun taking it through the house to the shed,but second stripdown in 18 months has begun,this time to build/paint properly

Jolly good show!

[Dave_Q]

Howdy tat fans, 

 

I've recently tried to scratch my moped itch with a modernish Piaggio, but I don't think it's going to do the trick.

 

I want something older I think, I like the look of a Vespa type shape but I'm way too tight to pay the scene tax. 

 

Can you suggest other, more left field makes of classic scooter to look for? Could be from any part of the world or era really, doesn't have to be a manuel but probably needs to be 125cc or more because BEEFCAKE.

[Fabergé Greggs]

Howdy tat fans,

 

I've recently tried to scratch my moped itch with a modernish Piaggio, but I don't think it's going to do the trick.

 

I want something older I think, I like the look of a Vespa type shape but I'm way too tight to pay the scene tax.

 

Can you suggest other, more left field makes of classic scooter to look for? Could be from any part of the world or era really, doesn't have to be a manuel but probably needs to be 125cc or more because BEEFCAKE.

You can get the LML Vespa replicas for circa £6-700 on eBay occasianally.

 

I think they had a problem with the cranks for a while and some of the electrics are a little cheaper but otherwise there's nothing to separate them from a Vespa PX at all.

 

I was reluctant to get a Vespa for ages but eventually curiosity got the better of me. Now I love blipping through the manual box and all the sounds and smells of two stroke.

 

They're pretty slow for a 125 two stroke but that just makes it all the more fun going flat out EVERYWHERE

[panhard65]

How about a Manet Tatran. I sold this one a few months ago, they are a nice little scooter but rather rare I found this one in France. It was cheap for a scooter at 400 euro. I sold it for a grand which is about the rate for a 50's / 60's 125cc project bike. There is a good market for them over here keeping prices strong. Another nice scooter is the Monet Goyon Starlett. Again rare over here but can be had for sensible money in France

[Eddie Honda]

but probably needs to be 125cc or more because BEEFCAKE.

250+ then

 

What about a Henry Honda CN250? (Helix)