I first met Robert Pandya when he was managing external relations for Polaris Industries – specifically for Indian Motorcycles. He’s been a passionate motorcyclist for decades and like many veterans of the industry, he sees that there are lots of concerns with the future of motorcycling. Unlike many, he’s putting in a tremendous amount of effort to figure out what …
47cc Folding Moped – 1975 Carnielli Motograziella
Post Listing Update: This Motograziella did not get any interest at the unmet opening bid of $2,400. I’ve featured all kinds of folding scooters over the years, but this just might be the most stylish of them all. “This” is the Motograziella, a 47cc folding moped built by Carnielli of Vittorio Veneto, Italy. Carnielli was founded in the 1920s, but …
1972 Penton Berkshire 100
Post Sale Update: This Penton sold for $4,200 after 43 bids on eBay. John Penton and KTM started their partnership with the 125 ISDT Six Days, and once it became obvious that the two companies had some financial potential, they expanded the lineup to offer multiple displacements. The smallest of the offerings was the 100cc Berkshire.
Restored – 1966 Honda CL77 Scrambler
The seller originally bought this bike to learn how to wrench on bikes and get some quality time in with his son. The project is over and the seller has too many other bikes to keep this around, so now it can be yours.
Nourish Weslake Project – 1974 Norton Commando Custom
Post Listing Update: This Norton only saw one bid at the original ask of $8,000. It did not meet reserve. During the heyday of the Rickman brothers, they asked Harry Weslake to design a 8-valve head for the Triumph Bonneville. In conjunction with a small displacement increase, power was bumped up 20%. That sounds great but the idea was dropped. …
Ending Soon – 1975 CCM 500MX
Post Listing Update: Not surprisingly, this CCM did not get any interest at the asking price of $37,500. It’s been relisted but I’ll only feature this bike again if the seller offers a serious discount in the future. In 1971, Alan Clews founded CCM (Clews Competition Machines) by taking advantage of BSA’s decision to shut down their competition department. Clews …
No Reserve – 1970 Yamaha RT1 360
Post Sale Update: This RT1 sold for $6,855 after 32 bids on eBay. Yamaha earned themselves a lot of fans with the release of the 360cc RT1 enduro in 1970. The motorcycling public had high expectations after the smaller DT1/AT1 models, so the big brother was going to be just as good, right? Indeed it was. That’s why they are …
Video Intermission – The Hard Life of a MotoGP Tire
The folks over at Pramac Racing (a privateer MotoGP racing effort competing with Ducatis) just shared a video of a hot lap from an unique perspective. Follow along as Danilo Petrucci takes you for a few laps (at what I believe is Jerez) and shows you what a front tire has to put up with.
No Reserve – 1954 Moto Guzzi Zigolo 98 Turismo
Post Sale Update: This Zigolo sold for $4,500 after 29 bids on eBay. Introduced in 1953, the Zigolo was Guzzi’s first partially-enclosed motorcycle. It was designed to be cheap transportation for the masses and it featured a 98cc two-stroke engine.
World Record Jumper – 1972 Yamaha 650
Post Listing Update – despite 21 bids on eBay, this Yamaha did not meet reserve at $6,200. John “Cowboy” Hall was a stunt rider in the 70s who earned three world records with this Yamaha 650 that has since been converted to a street legal tracker. His records included jumping 20 cars in Nashville, Tennessee, 16 cars (indoors) in Portland, …
Video Intermission – On Two Wheels – Adventure Scooters
Every year, Bonnier puts on a couple of three-day challenges that they call the Adventure Rally. A combination of on-road and off-road, it’s a navigation rally that’s specifically designed for ADV bikes. So of course, Zack and Ari from On Two Wheels decide to tackle it on 50cc scooters – a Honda Ruckus and a Yamaha Zuma.
1964 Montesa Diablo Cross 175
12-7-17 Update: Over a year later, this rare Montesa is back up for sale. I still can’t find good information on it though reader yrrah added some info in the comments below. It’s got a $1,100 discount over last year’s asking price but that still means the seller is looking for an opening bid of $5,500 here on eBay. The …
1968 Bultaco Metralla
Post Sale Update: This Metralla sold for $6,100 after 46 bids on eBay. One of the definitive Spanish street bikes of all time, the Bultaco Metralla (Spanish for “shrapnel”) was appropriately named as it when it was the world’s fastest production 2-stroke bike when it debuted. In the seller’s words, this example “is the culmination of 7 years of work …
Restored – 1979 Fantic Chopper 125
Post Listing Update: Despite 9 bids on eBay up to $4,600, this Fantic did not meet reserve. In 1971, the Conservative Party in England introduced legislation known as the “Sixteeners Laws” – it banned 16 year olds from riding bikes that were 250cc and up. European and Japanese manufacturers responded with a wave of 50-125cc mopeds that were informally called …
Rare Trike Project – Muskin Tri-Cat
Based out of Colton, California, the HPE Muskin Cement Corporation specialized in pool construction but when the minibike craze took off in the US they decided they could also make some money with small vehicles. I’ve featured a few examples of their most common product, El Gato