This bike combines a KTM 450 chassis with a Honda CR500 motor, and the seller states that it weighs 225 pounds and makes 70 horsepower at the wheel. Good lord. Plus it’s got a Florida title, because they’ll title anything! He says that “the bike feels flickable in the air yet solid on the ground. It’s the best of old …
Guess That Bike – Amusing Phrasing Edition
Every once in a while we get a Japanese import over at Iconic branded with some sort of marketing phrase that didn’t get a proper translation. Here’s one of my favorites – do you know what it’s from?
Flathead V8 Power – Honest Charley
Want 8 cylinder power in a cruiser but think that Boss Hoss bikes are ostentatious and ridiculous? Check out this Honest Charley-branded bike, which features a 60 horsepower Ford flathead! Honest Charley was one of the original speed shops – older readers may remember seeing ads for hop-up Ford parts half a century ago. According to some comments over at …
1977 Laverda Jarama 1000 3CL
In America, Laverda offered the 3CL (and the up-spec Jota), but they renamed the former the Jarama in 1978 after the racetrack in Spain. It didn’t sell particularly well in the United States, so some dealers converted the base Jaramas to Jotas (and some people call these “Jarotas”).
4-Speed – 1971 Honda CT70H
For many CT70 enthusiasts, the “H” models were desirable as they came with 4-speed transmissions and a manual clutch (as opposed to the 3-speed semi-automatic transmission of the non-H models.
No Reserve – 1962 BMW R60/2 with Stolz Sidecar
Imported to the US by a serviceman in the early 2000s, this BMW was soon paired with a Stolz sidecar that was imported from Turkey immediately after.
2009 Kawasaki M1030M1
KLR fans, take a close look at that motor. If it looks different than what you’re used to, it’s because this is a diesel-powered Kawasaki built by Hayes Diversified Technologies for the US Marine Corps. Hayes actually built 3 military Kawis – a gas-powered bike based on the KLR250 (M1030), another gas-powered bike but based on the KLR650 (M1030B1), and …
Event Intermission – 2-Stroke Extravaganza
2-strokes are awesome, which means an “Extravaganza” about them should be awesome, too. This weekend is an event in Santa Clarita, California that claims to be the largest gathering of 2-stroke motorcycles in North America, and I’ll be there. Will you?
2016 Royal Enfield Bullet 500 Flat Tracker
Starting off with a Royal Enfield, the customizer of this flat tracker implemented custom bodywork and rear suspension to create something unique. But do you like it?
1981 BMW R80GS Paris-Dakar
Hindsight has shown that the introduction of the GS model line was one of the best things BMW did for their Motorrad business. But at the press launch in 1980, journalists (and the public) shared a general sentiment of “what’s the point of a large, heavy dual-purpose bike?” Modern cynics still have the same complaint as the bike seems to …
Picture Intermission – 9/26 Sunday Ride
I had some free time last Sunday, so I took a little ride to the Rock Store…and then I went a bit further. Here’s some of my favorite bikes from the day!
Rare Project – 1938 Genial Lucifer
Here’s one I had never heard of before – a Genial Lucifer!
Two Of A Kind – 1972 Yamaha JT2
A seller in Montana has a pair of JTs that are claimed to be original (unrestored) and appear to be in quite nice shape. They were built in the same month with VINs within 50 of each other, and both have less than 800 miles each. These were popular mounts for many first riders, and Yamaha sold plenty of them. …
1979 Cosmo Colt
Cosmopolitan Motors of Hatboro, Pennsylvania closed down several years ago, but for a while they had claim to the title of America’s oldest motorcycle distributor. Back in their heyday you could stop by and find bikes from a wide range of smaller Italian manufacturers – many Parillas, Benellis, Capriolos, Garellis, Betas, (and more) featured here on Bike-urious were originally sold …
#001/100 With Zero Miles – 2007 Ducati SportClassic 1000 Special Edition
In 2007, Ducati released a limited edition of just 100 SportClassics exclusively for the North American market. Called the Special Edition, it combined modern tech with traditionally-inspired design that was designed to remind Ducati fans of the 1978 900SS Darmah with its classic black and gold paint scheme. 90 were sold in the US, and 10 were sold in Canada. …