Cagiva is an Italian motorcycle manufacturer. It’s history would make a great basis for an Italian Motorcycle-themed soap opera. Giovanni Castiglioni and his sons ran the business out of Varese, Italy. Over the years there were deals involving a used Aermacchi/Harley Davidson factory, a buyout of Ducati in 1985, and later buyouts of Moto Morini and Husqvarna. Most of these …
1972 Harley Davidson Shortster
Post Sale Update: This Shortster sold for $1,750. In 1972 Harley (Aermacchi) introduced the 65 CC Shortster minibike. It was an apparent attempt by Harley to get kids on a HD and get them dreaming of the big bike. One advertisement showed a youngster standing with his minibike by a pond. The reflection in the water was a Sportster. The …
Ending Soon – 1992 Yamaha FZR 600 Supersport Replica
In the early 90s, Yamaha’s primary sponsor for their AMA Supersport bike was Vance & Hines. In ’92, the Japanese manufacturer celebrated this relationship with a limited production run of FZR600s adorned with the V&H purple/yellow paint. Depending on who you ask, Yamaha made between 500-650 of these, though I can’t find an official production number anywhere.
1990 Honda Transalp
In the late 1980’s Honda jumped into the Dual-Sport fray with their Transalp. Initially conceived as a 500, it was bumped to 600 (actually 583cc) by the time it was introduced in 1987. It was a V-twin 4-stroke that put out roughly 50 hp. It was actually too big to be a motocross or enduro bike, and didn’t really fit …
Yamaha Engine – 1949 Harley-Davidson Hummer Racer
I’d love to know what the builder was thinking when he put this together. Starting with a ’49 Harley-Davidson Hummer, he added a ’53 Teleglide front end and…the motor from a ’87 Yamaha YZ125!
1989 Honda NX650 Dominator
My first taste of dual-sporting was with a beat up NX650, so I’ve got a bit of a soft spot for them. They don’t come up for sale very often, and this is one of the nicest I’ve seen in a while (I’d put the original front fender back on in an instant, though).
Some Work Needed – 1968 Bultaco Matador
Post Sale Update: This project sold quite quickly at the asking price of $1,250. It’s a well known success story of how “Paco” Bulto resigned from Montesa in 1958 and formed a new company that had almost instant success on the track and a long and legendary run in dirt racing. The Matador started out as a 200 CC dirt …
5 Rarities in Italy
A elderly gentleman in Carini, Italy has a collection of bikes, most of which he has owned for over 30 years. Unfortunately, he is getting old and needs to sell some motorcycles, so a group of his friends are helping out. They’ve currently got 5 bikes up on eBay, and all are said to be “in beautiful restored condition” and …
1971 Norton Commando 750 Cafe Racer
Any reader of this site doesn’t need an explanation of why the Norton Commando is one of the legends of motorcycling history. I like this example because it’s got a “cafe” tank, seat, and clipons – I think it’s a beautiful twist on a legend. What do you say?
Entry Level Harley? 1967 Harley-Davidson M65 Sport
In the 1960’s Harley Davidson realized it had nothing to compete with the small, entry level motorcycles that were flooding into the US from the Far East. As a result, it teamed with Aermacchi in Italy to produce Harley-badged models for the US market. The first to appear in the US was the Sprint 250, and later this model, labelled …
1982 Honda Motocompo
Post Listing Update: After being relisted, this Motocompo was pulled off of eBay, final sale price unknown. I don’t know why I like the Motocompo so much. It’s just so quirky and adorable that I can’t help but want one. Honda designed the Motocompo as a 50cc folding scooter that would fit in the trunk of subcompact cars Honda was …
Auto MX – 1978 Husqvarna 390 AMX
Husqvarna is a proud Swedish company with over a 100-year history of making motorcycles. While they built many street and road-racing bikes prior to WW2, they are best known for their dominance in motocross, enduro and desert racing in the 1960s and 70s. The 1978 Husky 390 put out 41HP at 8000rpm and was very competitive with the open motocrossers …
1970 Rupp Enduro
In the 70s, Rupp was one of the leading producers of minibikes in the US. They introduced the Enduro in 1970 along with a company-wide new design for the frame and carb.
280 Miles – 1969 Suzuki AS50 Maverick
This tiddler was Suzuki’s baby street scrambler – good for 59 miles per hour and 114 miles per gallon. This example still needs to be broken in as it has just 280 miles on the odometer.
2005 BMW 1150RT-P Police
Have problems with traffic, but don’t live in California and enjoy the advantages of lane-splitting? Here’s your answer. BMW has provided motorcycles for many state and local police units, and the R1150RT-P was a model purpose-built for Police use. The basic bike was a stock 1150RT, but it had several optional modifications to safety equipment (crash bars), storage(radio topbox), and …