Horex is a German motorcycle company first established back in the early 1920’s by the son of Friedrich Kleemann, the financial manager at a preservative jar manufacturing business based in Bad Homburg, Germany. Kleemann purchased Columbus Motorenbau AG, a relatively small motor production factory and operation. Three years later Kleemann’s son, Fritz – an avid racing enthusiast – founded Horex-Fahrzeugbau …
“Fenrir” by JTEC MOTO – 1982 Yamaha XV920 Custom
I first came across JTEC MOTO after the Los Angeles-based shop produced a particularly cool one-off Ducati 900SS cafe build. Though the small outfit has worked with a wide range of donors, it seems to have of proclivity for V-Twin-powered projects in addition to a serious knack for creating some pretty stellar one-off subframes. Recently an XV920-based cafe build the …
“V10 Sport” Sidecar – 1999 Moto Guzzi V11 Bassa
Post Sale Update: This custom Guzzi sold for $8,000 after 16 bids on eBay. Known as the Jackal in Europe, the V11 Bassa was Moto Guzzi’s “Cruiser Italiana”. They said it had “attitude with atmosphere” and it was designed to add some Italian style to the cruiser market that America so thoroughly enjoyed. Yet none of that really seems to …
Restored – 1972 OSSA 250 MAR
Post Sale Update: This MAR sold for $5,000 after 39 bids on eBay. The OSSA MAR (Mick Andrews Replica) was built after OSSA hired the English rider to design and ride a new trials bike – he went on to win two consecutive European Trials Championships and three consecutive Scottish Six Days Trials with it. In 1973, Andrews moved to …
Restored – 1977 Ducati 900SS
Post Sale Update: This 900SS sold for $40,200 after 24 bids on eBay. Discovered in a “shed in western Texas” as part of an estate, the seller acquired this bike and “commissioned a concourse show level restoration” to join his collection of motorcycles. He’s apparently pretty serious about this kind of thing, as this bike is the 4th of 5 …
1955 BSA B33
Post Sale Update: This B33 sold for $6,750 after 20 bids on eBay. Introduced in 1947, the B33 gets very little glory compared to BSA’s performance bikes like the Gold Star, but this is what got many Brits around for many years – production ended in 1960. The B33 was a sales success because it was reliable, and they’re still …
1988 Honda Gyro UP
Post Sale Update: The seller lowered the BIN to $1,700, and that’s the number it sold at! I’ve featured several examples of Honda’s quirky 3-wheeler called the GYRO (which is apparently an acronym for “Great Your Recreation Original.”) The US only got one of the versions, a “S” model that was focused on just carrying a rider around. But Japan …
Little-Known German Project – 1936 Presto Werke Type 208
Post Sale Update: Ed S one-upped himself and bought the Presto himself for $1,100! Check it out in his office in the comments. Update: 5 months later, reader Ed S notes that this Presto is back up for sale. The asking price has plummeted from $25,000 to $2,400 – you can find it here on Craigslist in Boulder, Colorado. Presto …
American Style in Britain – 1971 Norton Commando Hi-Rider
When “Easy Rider” exponentially increased the popularity of choppers around the world, it was inevitable that certain businesses would try to ride the way. What was surprising was that one of those companies was Norton, who created the “Hi-Rider” variant of the Commando to counteract the popularity of big Japanese motorcycles like the Honda CB750. It looked silly – in …
The Antithesis of Practical – The Story of a Norton Love Affair
View Post“The Grey Mare” by Dromos Motorworks – 1975 Honda CB550 Custom
Dromos Motorworks originally built this one-off cafe racer – entitled “The Grey Mare” – with the intentions of utilizing the CB project to attract future clients and generally garner some hype within the industry. According to the shop, the build’s aim was to create a cafe-racer that, in its own words, “didn’t look like all the other cookie-cutter racers”, and …
1994 Honda Cub EZ90
Post Sale Update: This EZ90 sold for $2,650 after 41 bids on eBay. The Honda Cub EZ90 was a quirky flashback to the days of “you meet the nicest people on a Honda.” Designed to make motorcycles more friendly, the Honda EZ90 hid all of its mechanicals inside the futuristic plastic bodywork, and it even offered an electric start in …
Ex-Drag Racer – 1947 Ariel Red Hunter
Post Sale Update: This Ariel sold for $4,550 after 18 bids on eBay. The seller does such a good job telling the story of this bike that I almost feel silly trying to summarize it. In his words: In January of 1947 George Boskoff, a 20 year old gearhead from the South Bay area of Los Angeles, purchased this very …
T20-Powered, T200-Framed – Well-Farkled Vintage Suzuki Racer
The X6 Hustler was an important model in Suzuki’s history, helping the Japanese marque gain much-needed traction in the US market with the 247cc, two-stroke parallel twin. While motorcycles have obviously come a long way technologically in the more-than-half-century since the model’s release, the Suzuki can still make for an excellent little vintage racer. Case in point: this well-optioned, X6-hustler-powered, …
1979 Moto Guzzi 1000SP
Post Listing Update: This Guzzi did not meet reserve despite 13 bids up to $3,500 on eBay. When Moto Guzzi released the SP Spada, they debuted it with a fairing designed in their wind tunnel. I find it to be a bit goofy looking, but it results in excellent weather and wind protection. So while the SP doesn’t come up …