Neilly Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 1 hour ago, thaiguzzi said: I went; Yamaha FS1E (metallic gold Fizzy) Fantic GT50 in Italian Red Honda CD (not CB)175 that was my Dad's old commuter, given to me on my 17th birthday, very, very uncool bike for a teenager, and hence had to get rid of the L plates ASAP, which was about 2 months after said birthday. Sold it immediately and bought a....... Yamaha RD350B (metallic blue, disc brake front), to this day, one of my fave bikes i ever owned, and far better than the RD400 that replaced it. Fairly close... Gilera 50cc Trail (x 2) Suzi GT250 for about 6 months after passing my test at 17 RD350B, metallic silver with J & R cans (they were loud...but oh so sweet)...had this for a few years until... RD350LC...first the white/blue and then the black/red/orange with Allspeed cans...after this I went Yam 1100's for a while. There was an XJ650 in between the two LC's...but not for long. During the above there were all sorts of dirt bikes (I used to race enduro)...the one I kept the longest was an XR350 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neilly Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 Baak do a nice makeover for the Royal Enfield (13,750€ duty free ????) https://www.baakmotocyclettes.com/en/motorcycles-triumph-guzzi-enfield/379-royal-enfield-trial-1960-ltd-classic-500.html Bit arty...but nice all the same Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justgrazing Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 MV 350 Scrambler and another shot of a 750s .. Is that not a stunning motorcycle or what .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mogandave Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 Is the case on the 750 bead blasted? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justgrazing Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 4 hours ago, thaiguzzi said: I went; Yamaha FS1E (metallic gold Fizzy) Fantic GT50 in Italian Red Honda CD (not CB)175 that was my Dad's old commuter, given to me on my 17th birthday, very, very uncool bike for a teenager, and hence had to get rid of the L plates ASAP, which was about 2 months after said birthday. Sold it immediately and bought a....... Yamaha RD350B (metallic blue, disc brake front), to this day, one of my fave bikes i ever owned, and far better than the RD400 that replaced it. Always kinda liked the CD175 for its no nonsense approach .. sure it wasn't sporty like the CB but there was a reliability and indestructibility about the CD that commuters liked .. And the painted enclosing mudguards and chainguard is quite chic now .. Always preferred the blue over the red .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justgrazing Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 15 minutes ago, mogandave said: Is the case on the 750 bead blasted? Not that I'm aware of .. Old bigger MV's all appear to have that finish on major engine components from the casting process .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justgrazing Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 6 hours ago, thaiguzzi said: I went; Yamaha FS1E (metallic gold Fizzy) Fantic GT50 in Italian Red Honda CD (not CB)175 that was my Dad's old commuter, given to me on my 17th birthday, very, very uncool bike for a teenager, and hence had to get rid of the L plates ASAP, which was about 2 months after said birthday. Sold it immediately and bought a....... Yamaha RD350B (metallic blue, disc brake front), to this day, one of my fave bikes i ever owned, and far better than the RD400 that replaced it. Early sixties C50 given to me as a non runner when I was 14 .. Be worth a fortune now if I realised it at the time .. Then :- 76 a Fizzy ( purple best colour ) 77 brand new RD250 after my old man signed guarantor 78 s/h Mach III 500 Kawasaki and an S2 350 in bits ( should have kept that but sold it in after 500 went bang ) then later RD400 with my works bonus and MZ 125 to save RD in the winter 79 more bonus and a CB750 F1 plus MZ 80 to 82 out of action with broken legs after a big accident one cold wet morning going to work so had to sell everything .. Mid 80's in London and some dough again KH400 , Elsie , BMW R80 and Harley XL Sportster ( quite possibly the worst bike ever owned hated the thing and couldn't wait to sell it ) Lived in Spain late 80's with a GPZ1000 and 125 Cagiva for round town .. GPZ possibly the fastest truck in the world 90's upto 2000's back in London a TR1 ( wished I'd kept that now for the engine alone ) Kawa GPZ 500 twin unburstable engine in those bikes XT600E nicked Suzuki DR650 nicked CX500 DT175 Yam 76 vintage .. 2003 R1 bought more because it was cheap than because I wanted one .. A ton in first gear as they all do nowadays along with that riding position is too much for me at my age .. Oh and not forgetting a Yam Fino in Thailand though I don't enjoy riding in Thailand with the road casualty figure and in Pattaya I find you got have reactions of a fly to deal with some of the plonkers on the roads .. Not enjoyable .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neilly Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 1 hour ago, Justgrazing said: though I don't enjoy riding in Thailand with the road casualty figure and in Pattaya I find you got have reactions of a fly to deal with some of the plonkers on the roads .. Not enjoyable .. When I was doing my apprenticeship I used to commute thru Bath and Bristol everyday on my RD350...how I'm still here today I have no idea. I do enjoy riding in the country in Thailand...but towns not so much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justgrazing Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 6 minutes ago, Neilly said: When I was doing my apprenticeship I used to commute thru Bath and Bristol everyday on my RD350...how I'm still here today I have no idea. I do enjoy riding in the country in Thailand...but towns not so much. Cool .. We used to ride out that way abit also Gloucester down to Glastonbury , Yeovil , Salisbury and out to Weston for the beach race .. Some nice roads down that way same over the water in Wales especially the Brecon Beacons upto mid Wales .. I've ridden out in the sticks in Thailand but even then there's a lot of dodgyness on the roads particularly riding the wrong way on the hard shoulder because they don't wanna ride a mile or two to the next cut back .. There's also the issue of drink driving in Thailand which does seem to be quite prevalent .. UK the fear of god is put into you about DD'ing now which is why the numbers are way less than what they used to be but Thailand hmmm .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thaiguzzi Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 6 hours ago, mogandave said: Is the case on the 750 bead blasted? No, all those in line 4's by MV were sand cast. Heads, barrels & c/cases. It was (amongst other things) what made them stand out from the herd (dross). 6 hours ago, Justgrazing said: Always kinda liked the CD175 for its no nonsense approach .. sure it wasn't sporty like the CB but there was a reliability and indestructibility about the CD that commuters liked .. And the painted enclosing mudguards and chainguard is quite chic now .. Always preferred the blue over the red .. That's the kiddie! Same colour and everyfink. Yeah, in hindsight they were a cool bike. I cannot remember for the life of me if the valanced mudguards were real metal or pretend metal (plastic), I seem to remember the CB 175 had a weird split tank with chrome trim, in between being a really weird vinyl quilted covering, like you'd see on bad car roofs like Capri's etc. 70's fashion hey.... That CD 175 above felt like a real fast big heavy bike after a Fantic 50 i can tell you.... 3 hours ago, Justgrazing said: Early sixties C50 given to me as a non runner when I was 14 .. Be worth a fortune now if I realised it at the time .. Then :- 76 a Fizzy ( purple best colour ) 77 brand new RD250 after my old man signed guarantor 78 s/h Mach III 500 Kawasaki and an S2 350 in bits ( should have kept that but sold it in after 500 went bang ) then later RD400 with my works bonus and MZ 125 to save RD in the winter 79 more bonus and a CB750 F1 plus MZ 80 to 82 out of action with broken legs after a big accident one cold wet morning going to work so had to sell everything .. Mid 80's in London and some dough again KH400 , Elsie , BMW R80 and Harley XL Sportster ( quite possibly the worst bike ever owned hated the thing and couldn't wait to sell it ) Lived in Spain late 80's with a GPZ1000 and 125 Cagiva for round town .. GPZ possibly the fastest truck in the world 90's upto 2000's back in London a TR1 ( wished I'd kept that now for the engine alone ) Kawa GPZ 500 twin unburstable engine in those bikes XT600E nicked Suzuki DR650 nicked CX500 DT175 Yam 76 vintage .. 2003 R1 bought more because it was cheap than because I wanted one .. A ton in first gear as they all do nowadays along with that riding position is too much for me at my age .. Oh and not forgetting a Yam Fino in Thailand though I don't enjoy riding in Thailand with the road casualty figure and in Pattaya I find you got have reactions of a fly to deal with some of the plonkers on the roads .. Not enjoyable .. 9 hours ago, Neilly said: Fairly close... Gilera 50cc Trail (x 2) Suzi GT250 for about 6 months after passing my test at 17 RD350B, metallic silver with J & R cans (they were loud...but oh so sweet)...had this for a few years until... RD350LC...first the white/blue and then the black/red/orange with Allspeed cans...after this I went Yam 1100's for a while. There was an XJ650 in between the two LC's...but not for long. During the above there were all sorts of dirt bikes (I used to race enduro)...the one I kept the longest was an XR350 It appears you, me & Neilly are of a similar age group and similar teenage motorcycle history... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neilly Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 1 hour ago, Justgrazing said: I've ridden out in the sticks in Thailand but even then there's a lot of dodgyness on the roads particularly riding the wrong way on the hard shoulder because they don't wanna ride a mile or two to the next cut back After 30 something years or working in the middle east I'm fairly used to odd ball driving so it doesn't really bother me...I just treat them all like they're out to kill me. Back on subject...two very different styles... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thaiguzzi Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 3 hours ago, Justgrazing said: 80 to 82 By then it was all going down hill for me (depending on your attitude and outlook in life). I owned a Triumph (the same one i have today), i'd discovered Easy Riders magazine, for the first time in my life i had a point of focus - yeah i wanna be like them - my hair got ever longer, my beard got proper, and my arms got full of tats. And my partying got seriously professional & out of control. And i met all the "wrong type of people" - basically the best people in the world. Just like them guys in those old Easyriders mags. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neilly Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 7 minutes ago, thaiguzzi said: It appears you, me & Neilly are of a similar age group and similar teenage motorcycle history... I was thinking that earlier...I left school in 76...so yup, all about the same I reckon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mogandave Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 By then it was all going down hill for me (depending on your attitude and outlook in life). I owned a Triumph (the same one i have today), i'd discovered Easy Riders magazine, for the first time in my life i had a point of focus - yeah i wanna be like them - my hair got ever longer, my beard got proper, and my arms got full of tats. And my partying got seriously professional & out of control. And i met all the "wrong type of people" - basically the best people in the world. Just like them guys in those old Easyriders mags.Not many Triumphs in Easyriders that I remember... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melvinmelvin Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 what is this ? not sexy -but it worked as far as I remember came in 125 cc and 150 cc and 175 cc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thaiguzzi Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 11 minutes ago, mogandave said: Not many Triumphs in Easyriders that I remember... Correct, but there were the odd one. Plus Easyriders dug Brit stuff. Plus i could'nt afford one until 20 years later. 18 minutes ago, Neilly said: I was thinking that earlier...I left school in 76...so yup, all about the same I reckon Ditto, left school summer of 76, 16th birthday a bit later in the year, so bicycles it was during that famous glorious summer.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kickstart Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 On 11/20/2018 at 7:17 PM, Justgrazing said: Yes mate across the range they were good bikes .. Always a bit more polished and refined than the Kawa's and not as lary .. And some of my hombres back in the day went same route GT250 on Hell plates then onto bigger models .. A guy from my home village had a new 750 back in '77 in that mid'ish crystal blue colour they came in .. Absolutely cosseted it , if it rained he'd head off back home and spends hours in the garage towelling it off .. Any way he was into bird nesting alot and went down the south coast on it looking for nests and promptly fell off the cliff he was searching and was killed .. His parents had to arrange to have the Suzook brought back home where it stayed in the garage for yrs the parents refusing point blank any enquiries if they wanted to sell it .. I moved from the area early 80's and the guys parents have long since departed also in that time with the house long sold and though I stay in touch with some of my old mates no one there knows what happened to the bike .. Yea the GS750 that took over from the GT was one of THE late 70's bikes .. The Honda had got fat and ugly .. The Zed's were getting watered down after original Boss Z1 and though Zed 650 was good it didn't have the out and out oomph of the bigger bikes and Yamaha weren't quite sure with the XS750 .. GT550 and 380 .. The black 380 is a 76 with just 1600 miles up and was for sale around 8k .. The green 550 looks nice .. Shame really that these bikes are no longer practical to use other than the weekends now with the price of fuel and the anti 2 stroke smoke nutters .. Edit .. And first model GS750 .. 21 I had a GT380 a good bike, except as has been said the petrol consumption, one time 80 miles to a tank full. did not like the wet many a time drove home on 2 cylinders in the rain, damp plug caps. A friend of mine had a GT550, he put on triple expansion chambers, the noise that thing made, one evening he went down Worksop, in Nottinghamshire high street, you could hear him a mile away, almost played tunes on the thing those were the days .try that to-day etc, etc. A while ago on TV, somewhere, someone started a thread about the noise of Thai motorbikes, and Jim and 550 come to my mind that would make Thai BIB look twice if he rode past. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mogandave Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 Back in the ‘70s my girlfriends dad had a nice Bonneville. I tried to buy it a few times, but he never wanted to sell. He rode it a couple times a month and it still looked like new last time I saw it about 16 years ago. Shortly after that he traded it for a 665 Sporty...f’n moron. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kickstart Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 7 hours ago, Justgrazing said: Always kinda liked the CD175 for its no nonsense approach .. sure it wasn't sporty like the CB but there was a reliability and indestructibility about the CD that commuters liked .. And the painted enclosing mudguards and chainguard is quite chic now .. Always preferred the blue over the red .. I will come out of the closet, I had one it was my work bike for a year or to, even went Retford Notts, to York one bank holiday, 2 up, as you said, the CB 175 was better, had twin carbs, mine was red. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neilly Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 26 minutes ago, thaiguzzi said: Ditto, left school summer of 76, 16th birthday a bit later in the year, so bicycles it was during that famous glorious summer.... I was lucky, my birthday is in early July, so had a couple of months looning around before starting work end of September...and yes, it was a glorious summer. My only problem then was finding the money for petrol each day! I was over in UK earlier in the year and it was being likened to the summers of 76 and 77...they were both good years Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justgrazing Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 1 hour ago, thaiguzzi said: That's the kiddie! Same colour and everyfink. Yeah, in hindsight they were a cool bike. I cannot remember for the life of me if the valanced mudguards were real metal or pretend metal (plastic), I seem to remember the CB 175 had a weird split tank with chrome trim, in between being a really weird vinyl quilted covering, like you'd see on bad car roofs like Capri's etc. 70's fashion hey.... That CD 175 above felt like a real fast big heavy bike after a Fantic 50 i can tell you Never owned one but had a go on a a couple and always thought they were a good honest bike you could wring 100% out of .. Them guards I think were metal as I'm sure I've seen CD's rusted out a bit on the rear one .. 1 hour ago, thaiguzzi said: By then it was all going down hill for me (depending on your attitude and outlook in life). I owned a Triumph (the same one i have today), i'd discovered Easy Riders magazine, for the first time in my life i had a point of focus - yeah i wanna be like them - my hair got ever longer, my beard got proper, and my arms got full of tats. And my partying got seriously professional & out of control. And i met all the "wrong type of people" - basically the best people in the world. Just like them guys in those old Easyriders mags. I got into Bike mag the Original one .. early 70's I think it was first published and doing a paper round early 70's used to buy MCN ( I know I know I've seen the light since ) which was all leading to a wanting for bikes after riding round a field on a stripped down C50 .. 70's were a generally good time , work was plenty , life was simple , summers were long , booze , birds , bikes with some narc's .. a life of irresponsibility living at home then a bone shattering moment outta the blue ( don't it always happen like that ) one wet morning early doors 1980 put me in hspl for 4 mths and near 2 yrs before I could walk unaided again .. By the time I got signed off by the Doc' the whole situation had changed .. Thatcher was in laying waste to all the old trad' industries .. where I grew up felt the brunt of it no one had any money anymore people moved away and when an opportunity presented itself to go and work in London I did where I got the dough together to resume biking .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justgrazing Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 1 hour ago, kickstart said: A while ago on TV, somewhere, someone started a thread about the noise of Thai motorbikes, and Jim and 550 come to my mind that would make Hahaha a bloke I worked with back in the 80's had a Z1300 Kawa with a 6/1 on it the " silencer " being only a short length of pipe like a mortar tube and no baffle .. no joke you could hear that for miles especially if he was late for work .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Damrongsak Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 Back around 1973/74, I worked as a mechanic at a Suzuki dealership. Uncrated and prepped quite a few of the GT bikes. I got to road test bikes that came in for tuneups and whatnot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KhaoYai Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 On 11/19/2018 at 3:11 PM, Justgrazing said: Badboy H1R racer version of KH750 .. Like it needed any encouragement .. The H1R was a 500 - the racing version of the H1 500, not the 750. I had one and it scared me sh**less - used to sieze the middle pot when flat out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justgrazing Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 5 hours ago, kickstart said: I had a GT380 a good bike, except as has been said the petrol consumption, one time 80 miles to a tank full. did not like the wet many a time drove home on 2 cylinders in the rain, damp plug caps. Yea great days weren't they but no as you say they were not what you could call economical bikes to ride .. RD400 would drop beneath 30 mpg if ridden enthusiastically and my Mach III K would empty the tank in 50 miles if caned and let's face it they were nearly impossible to ride any other way .. under 3000 revs they didn't not want to know bogging down ,surging and rattling but get over 3300 and Jesus C , twang off it would go with that hard edged scream only K3's could make with accompanying smoke screen .. Suzy's sounded not dissimilar but always a bit more polished and not quite as satanic .. The KH750 as we all know went to an early grave followed not long after by KH500 victims of the wind of change against big strokers but the last hurrah of the K's the S3 400 that morphed into KH400 was probably the most civilised of the lot having essentially a new engine over the 350 S2 rather than just upsizing the barrel's n' pistons and was constantly tweaked right up to the death for emissions ( read slower ) but also turning it into a half civilised bike .. S2 350 is probably the most hardcore of the smaller models and the one most prone to needing rebuilds .. frequently .. Yamaha's RD range I thought were always the most sophisticated of the performance 2 strokes having a lot of development with reed valves to give them reasonable low down torque without bogging down rather than the basic fairly crude 2 stroke set up of the K's .. And no mistake an RD400 was a quick bike for the day that could top the Kawa for top speed though maybe not blue haze output .. And misfires I used to put HMP grease or Petroleum jelly on the H T leads out of the coils and some around the seal of the plug cap where it grips the plug isolator before silicon spray become pop .. And not uncommon with the Kawa's was burned piston or ring break up in the centre cyl which ran hotter than either side pot .. Richening the mixture to give it a bit more fuel did nothing for the fuel consumption neither .. I don't recall the Suzy triples being as badly affected as the Kawa's with that but then the Suzy's were all a bit more refined than the K's .. Or as my mate Dean used to say if bikes were animals riding K Triples was like walking a tiger .. You never knew when it would bite yer 'ead off .. The final incarnation of the Suzy GT750 the B was I think the most polished big stroker to come out of Japan maybe not as pure as the early models and though I never owned a GT750 I had a blast on a few and a different experience to the K's much more torquey , more comfortable to ride and whilst it weren't that good like the Kawa's thru the bends GT always felt more stable .. If bikes are cars then GT750 is a big old Jag .. The 70's bikes were all individually recognisable You knew a Yam , as soon as you saw one , you knew a Honda without seeing the badge .. But as bikes progressed thru' the 80's a lot were getting bodywork and though retaining an element of individuality they have morphed now into looking almost identical .. Unless you see the badge or maker on the tank a Kawa can look like a Yam or Honda or whatever now .. The 70's a golden age for bikes and a glorious swansong for some .. Last of the GT750's .. The King is dead long live the King .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justgrazing Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 34 minutes ago, KhaoYai said: Well spotted my mince pies ain't what they used to be I had that pic in the wrong file .. What I should have put up and the later watercooled version .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KhaoYai Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 1 hour ago, Justgrazing said: Well spotted my mince pies ain't what they used to be I had that pic in the wrong file .. What I should have put up and the later watercooled version .. No probs. My H1 actually seized on the M1, 2 up on the way to Silverstone. By the time my brain got into gear and I pulled the clutch in, I'd left a 150m skid mark on the carriageway and had a hell of a flat spot on the tyre. We sat on the hard shoulder for 20 minutes to let it cool down then continued to Silverstone and back home without a problem. It was rattling though and I did eventually have to rebuild the top end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justgrazing Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 12 minutes ago, KhaoYai said: No probs. My H1 actually seized on the M1, 2 up on the way to Silverstone. By the time my brain got into gear and I pulled the clutch in, I'd left a 150m skid mark on the carriageway and had a hell of a flat spot on the tyre. We sat on the hard shoulder for 20 minutes to let it cool down then continued to Silverstone and back home without a problem. It was rattling though and I did eventually have to rebuild the top end. Hahaha yea great weren't they for that which is why I used to richen up as much as you dare the centre carb on all of mine especially doing motorway speeds with the engine staying constantly in the high end of the rev range where the mixture would weaken out a bit , engine would start running hotter then the heart stopper when it nips up .. Quick as you can go for the clutch .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canthai55 Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 3 hours ago, KhaoYai said: used to sieze the middle pot when flat out! That is why you increase main jet 3 or 4 numbers for middle cylinder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canthai55 Posted November 21, 2018 Share Posted November 21, 2018 In Alberta, in those days, getting a learners license for a car at 14 allowed you to ride up to 100cc bike. Had one of these, brand new, bought and paid for in my yard the day I turned 14. 700 bucks in 1968 was a lot of money Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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