The Yamaha XS650 is a well-known classic medium displacement standard. Produced between 1968-1985 (though the US stopped getting them in 1983), they weren’t a game changer but I’m on a temporary kick for well-preserved bikes that were popular 40 years ago – I’m sure plenty of you readers used to have one and wouldn’t mind a bit of nostalgia.
1973 BMW R75/5
The owner of Fastheads is letting go of his personal ride, a solid R75/5 that he’s owned for the last 20 years. The bike now has 62,573 miles and the only non-OEM parts are the handlebars, mirrors, grips, and battery. It comes with the original tool set and everything is claimed to work great. Find this slash 5 for sale …
Sandcast – 1969 Honda CB750
#6,655 of the 7,414 original sandcast CB750s, this bike has just 14,530 miles and looks great thanks to a NOS tank (which has never had fuel in it) and NOS side covers. The only Sandcast bike features this one is missing are the recessed ignition and the ‘rolled rim’ rear wheel. It’s a good-looking Honda.
2007 Ducati GT1000 SportClassic
An instant classic, the Ducati GT1000 matches an excellent 992cc 2V engine with retro styling. Here’s an example in the rare Black and Cream paint scheme with just under 2,000 miles on the odometer.
Granada Red – 1963 BMW R60/2
Here’s a ‘completely rebuilt’ example of the BMW R60/2 that the seller claims is basically a brand new machine. Additions to the stock bike include Hella bar end turn signals, chrome headlight mirrors, protection around the headlight and tailight, as well as engine crash bars. Find this ‘brand new’ R60 for sale in Pratt, Kansas with bidding up to $11,063 …
1963 Triumph Thunderbird 6T
The Thunderbird name has shown up on 3 distinct models of the Triumph line since 1949 – this 6T model is from the original series. For its public launch, three production bikes were ridden from the Meriden plant to a circuit near Paris where they were then ridden over 500 miles at an average of 92 miles per hour. The …
Ex-Royal Fire Service – 1959 Matchless G3
Post-Listing Update: This Matchless G3 did not meet reserve at $4,250. Back when I interviewed Angus Dykman of Northeast Sportscar, he specifically called out a few of his bikes as ones that weren’t available for sale at the time. I found myself absolutely taken with one of the bikes in particular, so I’m surprised to see that this former Royal …
1984 Kawasaki KZ700
The Kawasaki KZ700 was a one year only bike built to get around a tax on imported bikes with a displacement of over 700 (designed to help Harley Davidson).
Couple of Ariel Square 4’s
The design for the Ariel Square 4 goes all the way back to 1931, soon after Edward Turner created the interesting new four-cylinder motorcycle engine formed from two OHC parallel twins. The design became known as the square four engine, and lent its name to this Ariel motorcycle.
1938 Norton 16H
Between 1911 and 1954, Norton produced a series of bikes all around a 490cc side-valve engine. These bikes were referred to as the 16H – H stood for Home, as in a domestic model. The 16C (Colonial) was introduced in ’21, and had more ground clearance for roads in poor condition.
Toaster Tank – 1973 BMW R75/5
Here’s a low mileage (19k) example of the BMW R75/5 which looks great in original Granada Red paint. It’s being offered by the third owner, who refreshed by the bike in early 2014. The refresher avoided any cosmetics – instead the bike got new tires, suspension, ignition, cables, handlebars, and seals. All work was done by Bombars Beemers, and this …
1970 Honda CB750 K0
Post Sale Update: Per the comments, this bike later sold for $13,500. Post-Listing Update: This CB750 sold for $15,000 but was then relisted and then did not meet reserve at $11,100. Built by the multiple show-winning restorers at Vintage Motorcycle Rescue, this K0 CB750 is an excellent example of an early die cast CB.
1979 Benelli Quattro
The Benelli Quattro – named for its four-cylinder engine, was built under Alejandro de Tomaso’s leadership in an attempt to revitalize Benelli and to directly take on the Japanese (particularly Honda’s CB500 Four). In fact, de Tomaso bought a CB500 for his engineers and told them to ‘get inspiration’ from the bike, though the styling was handled by Paul Martin …
The Raider – 1968 Suzuki T-305
Also known as the Raider, the Suzuki T-305 was a small two-stroke twin that produced 37 horsepower at 7,500 rpm and was capable of 94 miles per hour. Here’s a reasonably priced example that was recently restored – the only flaw is that the speedometer is broken. This bike has 28,342 miles and looks like a fun runabout with the …
1 of 10 Prototypes – 1968 Honda CB350
You’re probably all quite familiar with the Honda CB350 – which was actually the world’s best selling motorcycle in just its first year of production. But here’s a special bike for classic Honda fans – one of the ten pre-production prototypes.