Trucks, Caddies, AND

[Bill Ashton]

I just kinda remember flying down the high school access road, holding on for all my might to the handlebars, body seemingly flapping horizontally in the wind...this had to be '69-'70...and then Kawasaki came out with the three cylinder 500 (550?) to blow away the Suzuki...one kid in town had one, low clip-on or z-bars, black...sounded like a herd of angry bumblebees :lol:

 

[West R Lee]

I just kinda remember flying down the high school access road, holding on for all my might to the handlebars, body seemingly flapping horizontally in the wind...this had to be '69-'70...and then Kawasaki came out with the three cylinder 500 (550?) to blow away the Suzuki...one kid in town had one, low clip-on or z-bars, black...sounded like a herd of angry bumblebees :lol:

Ah, but the Susukis are the king of the speedsters now......the GS1100, then the Hayabusa...........200 mph bikes (at 200 mph....what the hell :lol: ). In fact, I think there was a big stink several years ago about them building their bikes to run too fast. May have even been legislation prohibiting it as I recall.

West

 

[Bikerdoc]

West, those old bikes sure bring in some high dollars these days. I wish I still had my Norton, my Triumph, and my BSA. Only rode (didn't own) one rocket; a Ninja. Don't remember the year but a guy stopped over and said he always wanted to try a Harley, so we swapped. When that Ninja hit 3 grand I almost p'd myself. :shock: I pulled over to the side and told the dude to get off my bike. :wink:

First time I saw that Kaw 3 banger I was riding my Sportster up Onondaga hill, heading to work at the Community General Hospital in Syracuse, N.Y. That 500 went by me like I was idling. I didn't know what it was until a few days later.


Peace

 

[West R Lee]

Not sure about the 500's Doc, but I've seen some fully restored Mach IV 750's and some Z1's go in the $20,000 neighborhood. I bought my 750 for $1000 back in '75 and the Z1 for $1400 in about '77.........both used at the time.

West

 

[Geo]

I attend a lot of antique motorcycle events. It's my bread and butter. I specialize in old Harleys but I see more and more Japanese motorcycles these days. The Mach III is highly sought and brings top dollar.

I wish I'd snatched them up back in the day when they were paying you to haul them off. :lol:

George

 

[West R Lee]

I attend a lot of antique motorcycle events. It's my bread and butter. I specialize in old Harleys but I see more and more Japanese motorcycles these days. The Mach III is highly sought and brings top dollar.

I wish I'd snatched them up back in the day when they were paying you to haul them off. :lol:

George

I sold mine back in '77 for $800. It was immaculate......looked just like the picture you posted.

West

 

[bluesypicky]

Wow.... nice bikes, nice memories, nice thread.
When I get home I'll try and see if I can recover pics of my ex-rides.
Not a Harley guy here, nothing against but it's just not my conception of the motorcycle fun, each his own...
I've been mainly riding (even racing back in Europe) dirt bikes, or "motocross" as we call it over there, but I've had a bunch of street bikes too, towards the end of my motorcyclist life, after I realised that I was too old for still be jumping 15 feet in the air on a bike, or outrun the cops to save my license, so I came to my senses (largely influenced by my wife who kept bringing to my attention that waiting for me to drive back home from Daytona on one arm and pain killers because of a broken collar bone, -popular injury- to take me to the ER wasn't her favorite hobby), I got rid of my last dirt bike 6 or 7 years ago.
Here is a list of the street machines I've owned:

1976 Honda CB750
1975 Suzuki GT750
1975 Kawasaki H1 500cc (or Mach III as y'all call it)
1974 Kawasaki H2 750cc (or Mach IV)
1998 Honda 750 VFR
2000 Triumph Daytona 955 I
2001 Suzuki GSXR 1000

I had these 70's bikes not when they came out but in the early 2000's as a result of a nostalgia crisis... and boy, no matter how great memories these killers bring back (particularly the Kawasakis H1 and 2) riding them now makes you understand why so many lost their life with (or because of) them.... brutal power, all in the high revs, poor handling on a skinny frame, and braking performance that could be compared with bicycle pads. :roll: but those were the days! :wink:

 

[Geo]

The front brakes on my panheads are laughable. They might hold you at a red light if the grade isn't too steep. :lol:

George

 

[bluesypicky]

The front brakes on my panheads are laughable. They might hold you at a red light if the grade isn't too steep. :lol: George

:lol: :lol:
yeah.... for the real braking, you better have good soles!

 

[West R Lee]

The Kawasaki 750 Mach IV was far and away the quickest bike I've ever ridden Bluesy, not the fastest, but the quickest. Now you're making me delve into my dark side.

We'd get on these hot rods and ride into town at night and find cops parked at an intersection. Then we'd either burn off or pull a wheelie to try and get them to chase us. We did that no telling how many times until one night a friend of mine was about a mile ahead of the police and topped a hill realizing he was face to face with a road block. There was about a 30 ft. embankment on the side of the road and he tried to manuver it at pretty high speed. He is lucky to be alive. And that was the end of our days razzing the cops.

But back then, unless it was a trooper, considering we could exit on a trail (and we knew them all), the cops never stood a chance. And I'm still here to talk about it.........fate is a funny thing. There used to be an old railroad right of way that ran through the middle of town and 40 years ago, tracks and cross ties long gone, the city decided to make it into a walking trail and paved a small path with a big sign at every street intersection...."No motorized vehicles". The park ran from the middle to the far north end of town, about 5 miles, intersecting many streets along the way. Not wide enough for a car, but perfect for a bike....it was our favorite escape route. Actually had the motorcycle cops on their Harleys try and apprehend us on that trail a few times......never successfully. our parents all had police scanners to try and keep up with us :twisted: . Man, we were horrible, but back then, it seemed there was no adrenaline rush like speed shifting a powerful bike with the cops in hot pursuit.

When my buddy wiped out at the road block.......well that put an end to our harrassing the cops.....a good thing.......somebody was going to die....probably me! With age comes wisdom.....thank God!

West

 

[Geo]

I was on an open stretch of road and decided to open my CB750 up. Came over a hill and there he was. Saw him hit the lights and do a u-turn in my review mirror. Decided to pull over. By the time I shut it down, it seemed like a pretty long wait for him to pull up behind me. He was a nice guy. He scolded me a little,,,, then we talked about the bike and he wrote me a ticket for no license. Could have thrown the book at me. I was a stupid kid and had said as soon as I get a ticket I'll go get my license, which I did a few days later.

That old 750 had a few more miles on the back tire than it did on the front.

A car pulled out in front of me as I was pulling into a small town one evening and I had to lay her down and Jim I know all about going high side from that litte experience. :shock: Broke my right arm and had a good case of road rash. :|

I tore the bike down and built my first chopper out of it. Ten over springer on front, coffin tank, custom paint job, hardtail frame and a king & queen seat with a tall devil's tail sissy bar. 8) Oh man,,, I thought I was Peter Fonda. :lol: :lol:

George

 

[bluesypicky]

We'd get on these hot rods and ride into town at night and find cops parked at an intersection. Then we'd either burn off or pull a wheelie to try and get them to chase us.West

And I thought I was bad!
At least I was outrunning the cops out of necessity, but not actually looking for it! :lol:
I just happened to have been seen by a cop, doing a 100 mph wheelie on a 45, and I am pretty sure he wasn't coming after me to ask me what gear I was on... :roll: (but for those interested, in was the 3rd gear on the GSXR 1000....)

Problem with todays sports bikes is they are simply not useable on the public roadways, they are racing machines. How do you expect staying out of trouble with a machine that takes you to 90 mph by the time you have to hit 3rd gear? (out of 6 gears) :?

The last stupid thing I did, was racing a corvette on 95 between Stuart and Jupiter (quiet part of 95). I stuck the throttle all the way open, and seconds later, with the little bit of tunnel vision I had left behind the helmet visor, I saw 175 on the digital speedometer... I then let go of the throttle and got on the breaks thinking I better keep a firm grip on the handle bars, but to my surprise, the thing stayed on a rail and just stopped as if I had been doing 40 mph....
Impressive. Stupid, but impressive. Oh and I never saw the car again btw.... :lol: he must had given up early, after seeing me disappear so quickly.

So, I opted for keeping a drivers license and a jail free life, and sold the damn thing, but damn was it a great machine, as illegal as it should be...

 

[West R Lee]

Here's a video of today's fastest production bikes.......

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RNlVFNiV1ds

I'm with you though Pascal, these things they ride now bear little resemblence to the motorcycles we used to drive. We always used to call them cafe racers when they first started coming out with the streamlined farings that they laid down on. Always looked very uncomfortable to me.....ah, the crotch rocket.

West

 

[Geo]

Yeah!!! Café Racers is a subject I can dig!!!

England, Germany, Italy, Japan & USA represented

What a great era!!!! 8)

George

 

[West R Lee]

Some great shots of some really cool old bikes George.

West

 

[Dr Izza Plumber]

<snip>

OK, let's talk bikes.....we'll see how far back you guys go.
West

Hey West, didn't know that You were a cycle dude too!

I worked in a motorcycle shop for 5 years; during My last 2 years of HS, and 3+ years after HS.
We worked on any make motorcycle, including motor and transmission overhauls, wheel re-building, electrical, etc, plus we rebuilt/repaired automatic transmissions (cars/trucks) during the winter, when business slowed down.
Mornings during the Summer season, I performed the vehicle safety inspections, and had the opportunity to ride just about all the hot machines. (for Brake Tests)
Norton 750 Commando, Kawasaki triples: 350cc, 500cc, 750cc, plus the 550 and 750 Hondas......Laverda 750, Moto Guzzi 750, Harleys of all kinds, Ariel Square Four, etc.
The first 750 Kaw triple that I safety tested, was still pulling the front tire off the pavement at half throttle, in fourth gear.
About the only bike that would really give those 750 Kaws a workout back then, was the 750 Norton Commando.
Those friggin' Nortons were super wicked in their heyday.
When the Kaw Z-1 came out, I had the opportunity to ride a new one of those as well....what a fantastic machine that was!

Anyhoo, here's My current ride:

 

[Geo]

Man, that batwing fairing looks like it came right off the Harley assembly line. :shock:

Nice looking bike. 8)

George

 

[Dr Izza Plumber]

Geo,

It's a Tsukayu fiberglass fairing, and the Strongbags also came directly from that same manufacturer.
Dollar for dollar, their fiberglass motorcycle accessories rein near the top of the proverbial pile.
I didn't use their mounting system recommendation for the fairing though, I had My factory windshield bracket cut and mig-welded by a local professional.
A drawing with the measurements desired, was provided to the welder, and the bracket easily bolted right back onto the machine as if it was factory built.
Since I already had a near new Jensen 160 watt marine CD radio and speakers, I opted to install that unit in the fairing.

Yes, it's one of the first of (then new 2005 ) C50's, as I bought it in early January of 2005, when that model with fuel injection came out.
It's predecessor, the Volusia VL800 was built from 2001 to 2004, and it was carburetted, rather than fuel injected.
It's also liquid cooled, and shaft driven, with a C90 boulevard rear drive; gear ratio 3.02:1 versus the 3.66:1 for the C50 drive gears.
That particular modification is called the "DJ Drive" after it's originator Daniel J Hillis of Ohio.
He is an LEO, plus a very talented mechanical entrepreneur/fabricator, who loves to experiment, or find a better way.
He didn't care for the excessive RPMs generated at 70 mph & up road speeds on his C50, so He found a method to fit a C90 drive onto the C50.
After some beta testing, He began to sell this upgrade as a kit, and I bought one from his first batch of 80 units.
That drive has made My machine into a serious highway cruiser, rather than a grocery getter machine.

 

[adorshki]

and boy, no matter how great memories these killers bring back (particularly the Kawasakis H1 and 2) riding them now makes you understand why so many lost their life with (or because of) them....

I'm kinda surprised no one's mentioned the nickname Kawasaki had back around the late 70's after the Kamikazi KZ900 came out...heard it from a guy who was visiting from Italy and a buddy who was into racing (at sponsored events). :shock:

 

[dapmdave]

Great thread, folks. Keep 'em coming.

Dave