Designed and built originally as an attraction at a Japanese amusement park, when Honda officials saw the reaction of all ages, they decided to market the bike to the world. Starting in 1964, the Z50 turned out to be a very successful seller for HMC. Commonly called the ‘Monkey Bike’ based on how adults looked riding this teeny bike it …
0 Miles – 1978 Harley-Davidson MX250
In the late 70s, Harley was in a phase of small-displacement bikes while under the control of AMF. They decided to dabble in the world of motocross, and had their Italian branch, Aermacchi, build the Harley-Davidson MX250. It was the first (and only) HD MX bike, and it only lasted for one year. This example is claimed to be in …
1963 Triumph TS20 Cub
The first Triumph Tiger Cub was born in 1954 as a little brother to the TR6. By 1963 the Cub was available in several variants including the TS20 Trials which was advertised as being as close to the Triumph ‘works’ bikes as possible. 340 of the Triumph TS20s were built in 1963 with all but 10 being shipped to the …
1968 Greeves Challenger
Bert Greeves first brush with motorcycle manufacturing came in 1954. By 1960 his lightweight Greeves 250CC dirt bikes were dominant in England using a Villers motor. In 1964 Greeves introduced his own motor in the Challenger. The rest is history, for the rest of the 60’s Greeves dominated the 250 class world wide. Greeves was a big proponent of “Race …
1991 Aprilia Climber 280
A cost efficient way to get into trials riding (or a really great way to have slow speed fun off-road), this Aprilia Climber features a 276cc Rotax engine.
1969 Indian Boy Racer
In 1968 Floyd Clymer bought the Indian Motorcycle name and some of the tooling with the idea of resurrecting the legendary marquee. Clymer was a legend in the motorcycle world before he bought Indian as a publisher of books and magazines, including Cycle. He was a car dealer, a motorcycle dealer and distributor, and mostly successful at all of them. …
1968 Montesa Scorpion
Montesa was formed in 1944 under a partnership between Pedro Permanyer and “Paco” Bulto. When Montesa decided (after considerable success) to leave the racing division in 1958 Bulto moved on to form Bultaco. Montesa floundered for several years until it brought out it’s 250 CC single that would form the backbone of the successful Scorpion series. Where Bultaco concentrated on …
Just Ride It – 1975 Yamaha DT125
Editor’s Note: A few days ago, Tom Wacker featured a DT250 that was in need of a restoration. Today, Ted Clough counters with a DT125 that’s ready to go!
Curmudgeon Project Collection – 10 Bikes For Sale
Someone named Dave Nisse runs Curmudgeon Motorcycle Restoration, and he’s in the process of dumping some of his project bikes.
1956 Ariel HT5 Replica
Between 1958 and 1964, the Ariel HT5 racked up 161 trial championship wins at both the UK and international levels. Finding original examples of the bike is no easy task, but even today there are companies that make replica frames. Throw in an Ariel 500cc engine and you can complete the rest – or you can just buy this one.
Widow Maker – 1974 Suzuki TM400 Cyclone
A couple of days ago I wrote up a TS250 Suzuki and mentioned this very bike. Commonly known as the most evil handling motorcycle ever built. It would actually spit you off on the straight and level if you caught the torque band just right. It had a floppy frame (I stiffened mine), poor geometry, and the motor was light …
Christini 2WD – 2007 KTM 300 XCW
Christini has made a name for themselves in the motorcycle industry thanks to their AWD system. While they now offer a variety of models ranging from 250-450ccs in displacement, they also offer kits to convert certain modern dirtbikes to two wheel drive. Here’s a recent KTM equipped with such a kit – which would have cost the owner $3,995.
1985 Honda CR250R
This bike is said to be like new, and it sure looks to be in amazing shape. It was apparently dealer prepped for storage in the 80s and for some reason it’s now seeing the light of day again.
The Legend – 1971 Husqvarna 400 Cross
Some motorcycles are notable, some are famous, but only a very few can claim to be legends and carry that legend for over 40 years. The Husky 400 Cross is one of those. Introduced in 1969 it was instantly the open class dirt racing standard. Many notable riders and victories were racked up in very short order. Steve McQueen owned …
1995 ATK 605
Post Listing Update: This ATK was pulled off of eBay, final sale price unknown. In their heyday (during the 90s), ATK was known for creating some of the best handling dirt bikes a rider could get straight off the dealership floor. Their approach was simple – take a proven engine (in this case, a 600cc Rotax unit) and envelope it …