The Speedway Widowmaker has one of the greatest names ever affixed to a motorcycle. It also doesn’t sound like something you’d want to buy your kid who was learning on a tiny 80cc two-stroke.
Chappy – 1977 Yamaha LB80IIAD
Also known as the “Chappy”, here’s a cute little step-through scooter that’s in excellent condition. As you’d probably guessed, it was released to compete with Honda’s tiny trail bikes – the most common options were the LB 50 and this LB80, the latter of which features a 82cc engine and a 2-speed, 2-stage transmission. The LB80 is capable of about …
1971 Benelli Dynamo
11-21 Update: Reader Jim R. notes that this Benelli Dynamo is back up for sale on $1,500 here on Craigslist in Portland, Oregon. Apparently, Benelli made a tiny dual-sport called the Dynamo. Here’s your change to get one in decent shape and have little off-road races with Honda CT70s.
Tiny Racer – 1989 Yamaha YSR50
The Yamaha YSR50 was the most common of the rare 50cc sportbikes that came from Japan in the late 80s and early 90s. An instant classic, the YSR50 was always street legal, but is now primarily used in spec racing. This is one of the nicer examples I’ve seen – most are usually scratched up or rocking replacement body panels.
Reader Ride – 1st Edition 1965 Ducati 160 Monza Junior
I’ve always thought the Ducati 160 Monza Junior was a little bizarre – it was oddly blocky and squared off. Granted, I appreciate when companies try something different, but I’m still on the fence about how attractive the bike was. Thanks to this reader submission, however, I learned that the first ‘edition’ of the Monza actually featured some rounder bodywork. …
Bike Review – Honda Grom
The Honda Grom has become quite the internet sensation – I feel like I’ve seen a tremendous amount of press on it, and owners are a passionate group who have created a loyal community (and amusing internet memes):
1997 Harley-Davidson Velo Glide Ultra
I was really on the fence about featuring this because I obviously try to keep my posts limited to motorcycles. I’m going to pretend this is close enough, and maybe one of my Harley-loving readers will want to snap up this very expensive bicycle.
Ending Soon – 1960 Motom Junior
Post Listing Update: Despite 23 bids up to $1,325, this Motom did not meet reserve. Barely seen outside of Italy, Motom focused on four-stroke small-displacement bikes. The company was founded in ’47 and kept making bikes until ’71. Here’s a distinctive example of one of their models, known as the 48cc Junior. Check out that pressed-steel frame! This Motom was …
1972 Honda CB100 + CB350 + CB750
I was walking to dinner last night (yes, people sometimes walk in LA) when I encountered this little CB100 – I thought the paint job was fantastic.
1969 Honda S90
You all know I love the S90 – see the Bike-urious logo if you had any doubt. Recently, the only nice ones I’ve seen have been expensive restored examples. Here’s an impressively clean original model in red, one of the harder to find colors. It looks to have 3,500 miles, and even the fork gaiters and chrome look to be …
1967 Cimatti S50
Post-Sale Update: This Cimatti sold for $2,713.99 after 51 bids on eBay. It seems appropriate that a week before Halloween we set a bike all dolled-up in orange and black. I haven’t been able to find much information on this bike, so any secondhand stories would be greatly appreciated. But this little beauty has just 808 miles and has spent …
$425 – 1988 Honda Z50R
For just $425, you can be the new owner of a legitimate motorcycle! Bonus points – this was a one-year only paint scheme, if that means anything to you. There’s a couple of cosmetic issues, but it runs well. For this kind of money, you can buy a bike or just barely afford a Dyson vacuum. Find this cheap Honda …
A pair of Bridgestone 50s
In the 60s, Bridgestone was making some of the best motorcycles in Japan. However, their tire manufacturing brought in much more money, and the ‘folk tale’ is that the big 4 in Japan told Bridgestone that they’d stop using BS tires if motorcycle production continued. Truthfully, Bridgestones were just expensive and didn’t have a great dealer network. Still, it’s a …
1961 Suzuki Colleda 125
Suzuki started building bikes in 1954 – the first years of manufacturing were under the “Colleda” name. Fast forward to 1961 with the 123cc model, an air-cooled parallel twin engine that was capable of 10 horsepower. The bike weighed just 260 pounds and featured telescopic forks. Find this Suzuki Colleda 125 for sale in Bethany, Oklahoma with bidding up to …
1981 Honda Motocompo
Post-Sale Update: After 23 bids on eBay, this Honda Motocompo sold for $2,026. Sold for only 3 years, the Honda Motocompo was a tiny 50cc folding scooter designed to fit into the trunks of the subcompact cars Honda was making at the time, like the City. In fact, the City’s trunk was designed specifically to house the Motocompo. Nowadays, they’re …