This is a thread simply about motorcycles.
What you own.
What you've owned in the past.
What you like the best.
The style and type of riding you do and have done.
Where you've ridden, trips you've taken.
Tips and recommendation.
What's new of interest.
Anything of interest about motorcycles.
My latest ride is a 2014 KTM Duke 690.
Great handling and a good power to weight ratio.
Best as a track bike, but I use it mostly for afternoon rides in the countryside.
The more elevation changes and twisty roads the better
This is a stock photo, but I'll post an image of it later:
OK so don't laugh (OK, you can laugh) I owned this, a 1972 Honda C70:
So I'm officially a biker gal. I actually bought it to go to work because it took less than ten minutes and cost me something like 4 cents a day in gas whereas I had to take three different buses and it took me an hour to get to work before.
P.S. Also a stock photo. I'm not going digging for any of my own pictures of it.
I love motorcycles, but have never owned one. Given that the fatality rate is something like 35 times higher than cars (oddly, DUE to cars) I have always passed on them.
Had a buddy with a 72 or so Bultaco, had fun tooling that around Black Forest.
And Karen, I never would have pegged as a biker girl.
It is a real effort to remember all the motorbikes I had when I was young 1935 Matchless 250 (sloper) hand gear change, coil ignition. 1934 BSA250 Maglita ignition hand gear change. Velocette KSS 500 OHC. BSA500 side valve (ex dispatch rider bike) Triumph 600side valve with sidecar (I was married by this time 1953) Triumph Thunderbird. All second hand, and all maintained by me. Dirty hands and clothes.
I left one out. During the Suez crisis we had petrol rationing, so I bought a BSA Bantam. This was a 125cc two stroke with very good fuel consumption. I was able to get to work cheaply and within my petrol coupon limit.
Zip tie trick for mounting a radial tubeless tire.
It's that easy, I do mine this way.
I do have a zip tie tool for tightening up the zip tie, but merely putting a knee to the tire and tightening the tie by hand works . Just a little more effort.
One of my early motorcycles was this.
A 1972 Suzuki TS 90
Stock photo of a similar bike. Mine was this color green but had no stripe on the tank.
There were 2 versions. Mine was a 5 speed and there was a 4 speed with a dual range option for trail riding. A friend from high school bought the 4 speed model, but it turned out the 5 speed worked better for street and trail.
They cost the same.
I rode it frequently for 5 years and sold it to another friend so his son had something to ride. It lasted almost 4 years before the engine expired. It had a hard life and wasn't repairable.
I had a lot of fun on that little bike
I could beat a Vega to 40mph lol!
If a trail got too tough, I could usually walk it through a bad spot.
I did a lot of that. lol
There was that and the cost of film and processing.
I wish low cost digital cameras had existed several decades earlier.
I would have taken many more photos.
I'm familiar with this style bike.
I own a lighter DL 1000 Suzuki.
They can make decent travel bikes for adventures in areas of poor roads, but for off roading, nope. Too heavy and tiring.
IMO, for off roading and light carry travel, better a mid size dual sport bike like a Suzuki DR Z400.
I have ridden with friends that owned heavier bikes like Kawasaki KLR 650's and Suzuki DR 650's and they worked well, but much heavier than my 350 and probably at the upper end of realistic weight limitations for most guys off roading.
I still own an old Suzuki DR 350S that has served me well.
From riding in the greasy root infested clay of south eastern Ohio forests to the sands of Michigan to deserts out west, imo, it's the perfect 'do all' motorcycle. Not perfect in any one thing, but overall, good enough for just about everything.
IMO, the H-D with less aggressive off road tires would make a decent street scrambler. If you can justify that $19K buy in price.
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Related Threads
?
?
?
?
?
Tech Support Guy
9.9M posts
859.7K members
Since 1998
A forum community dedicated to tech experts and enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about articles, computer security, Mac, Microsoft, Linux, hardware, networking, gaming, reviews, accessories, and more!