Post-Sale Update: Well, that was quick. This Bandit was snapped up for the BIN of $2,200 within 30 minutes of this post. Americans typically think of the Bandit as a 600 or 1,200, but Suzuki also made them in 250 and 400 variants – the latter of which was exported to the US for only a couple of years. The …
31 Miles in 30 Years – 1955 BMW R25/3
View PostRideable Custom – 1980 Kawasaki KZ750
While most of us find beauty in machines, some find art. And some, like Matthew Ortiz of Swerve Customs in Albuquerque, NM, manage to find the magic combination of practicality in design. Here, the lowly Kawasaki KZ750 LTD is transformed into such an animal.
The Survivor – 1974 Harley-Davidson Custom
Post Sale Update: After being relisted several times, the Survivor sold for $2,450 after 17 bids on eBay. Built by Bob Cecchini on an Arlen Ness frame, “The Survivor” was the cover bike for the July 1974 issue of Custom Chopper thanks to cool features like forced induction, one piece body/gas tank, and “progressive one-pedal brakes.” It has since been …
Picture Intermission – 2011 Honda Boardtracker
View PostNeeds Some Work – Harley-Powered Cushman
When this Eagle left the Cushman factory in 1957, it had a 318cc engine that produced 8 horsepower. This one’s a little bit different, thanks to a 1,000cc Harley engine. Insert joke here about how few horsepower a Harley engine makes anyway.
1 of 300 – 1983 BMW R100RT 60th Anniversary
BMW decided to celebrate their 60th Anniversary with a “specially commissioned” run of 300 examples of the R100RT. All 300 were adorned in a Pearl White paint job and came with paperwork that certified the limited nature of the production run:
Picture Intermission – Project Scout Contest
BMW, Harley, Yamaha, and Ducati (I’m sure I’m missing others) have all given custom builders bikes to work with in the past – a couple of weeks ago I shared the Custom Rumble Scrambler contest that Ducati held. Now Indian’s getting in the game with Project Scout, a dealer custom contest with 36 entrants. Voting is now open, so take …
The Other Orange Classic – 1975 Rickman Honda 750
Post Listing Update: This Rickman did not get any interest at the asking price of $18,500. The brothers Rickman made quite a name for themselves back in the day. Perhaps best known for the Rickman Metisse off-road racers, their modus operandi were their beautiful and effective nickel plated steel frames housing any manner of running gear. When the modern and …
Sat for 3 Decades – 1965 Honda CL77 305 Scrambler
The dirt-oriented brother of the Superhawk, the CL77 featured increased ground clearance (thanks to the distinctive exhaust), a bigger frame (which eliminated space for an electric starter), smaller fuel tank, bigger 19-inch wheels, universal tires, and more. The 305cc parallel twin revved to 9,000 rpm and produced 28.5 horsepower. Weighing 352 pounds, this wasn’t a svelte off-roader, but the distinctive …
Needs Restoration – 1940 Koehler-Escoffier KS3G
Named after its founders, Koehler-Escoffier was founded in 1912. They were taken over by Monet-Goyon in 1929, and then both companies went out of business in 1957.
1,000 Miles in 24 Hours on a 22 Year Old Bike
Let’s go back in time a few years, to my first truly long ride. In the past I’ve shared with you a story of going border to border – from Canada to Mexico – in less than 24 hours. But before I did that, I had to join the Iron Butt Association, and that required an entry ride of 1,000 …
1978 BMW R100RS Motorsport
A while back, a good friend and I had a stupid and futile conversation on car and motorcycle values and investing. As a motorcycling accountant, I find this topic fascinating. As a guy in the classic auto industry, he dealt with this every day. We spent a lot of time looking at cars that had risen quickly in value (Hagerty.com …
In Belgium – 1961 IWL SR 59 Berlin
Established by Daimler-Benz in 1936 to build airplane engines, Industriewerke Ludwigsfelde (IWL) built scooters between ’54 and ’65 – they’re still kicking under Mercedes Benz, where they build Sprinter vans.
1 of 325 – 2015 Triumph Thruxton Ace Special Edition
Post Sale Update: After being relisted several times, this Ace Edition Thruxton sold for $10,100. Last year, Triumph released a limited edition of the Thruxton called the Ace Special Edition. 325 example were imported to the US, and the price of exclusivity was $700. As it seems every manufacturer is doing nowadays, the ‘special edition’ was just different paint and …