JimVonBaden
Kool Aid!
Duh.
I'll bet that YZ490 is scary to ride full boreHonda, especially small ones. Also Yamaha; I currently have four TW200s and have also had a YZ490 and an XS650. Longtime fan of Kawasaki large and small, and a lifelong fan of Harley Sportsters.
You got that right! It spent more time in the air than on the ground. Like a powered pogo stick!I'll bet that YZ490 is scary to ride full bore
Interesting experiences. Care to mention which models? As a lifelong Honda guy I'd be curious.Can't say I really have a favorite brand.
I like them all except Honda.
Every one I have owned was a POS.
The only way I would buy another is if I was sure I could sell it for a profit.
Interesting experiences. Care to mention which models? As a lifelong Honda guy I'd be curious.
The 350 cam chain is pretty rare, they're endless (no master link) and rarely break. Cam sprocket bolts though, different story if someone rebuilt it before you. The 450 even more rare, had to have been mechanically/maintenance-wise mistreated before you got it, I've personally never seen a 450 rod break and big end rod bearings rarely go bad on them either. The MR250...? Never liked them to begin with, poor effort by Honda compared to the CR250 Elsinore. Never had the first electrical problem with any of my 4 CB750K, not even a bad coil. Ran the hell out of them too. I owned a brand new XL250 first so no issues with it despite beating on it really hard too, and later a used one in the '80s, both really durable. Sounds like 4 of those 5 were just bad luck bikes. Here's my 450, and I ride it like that even when I'm not at the track. 497cc, 11.6:1, MegaCycle cams, 36mm Mikunis, shift at 10,500 to 11,000, been together over 5 years.All older stuff.
CL350......cam chain broke.
CB450.....right cylinder connecting rod just decided to break in half.
MR250......flywheel was so out of balance it eventually broke the end of the crankshaft off.
CB750.......constantly chasing electrical gremlins.
XL250......intermittent starting issue that was never figured out.
Just to name a few.
All unusual problems that never seemed to happen to anybody else.
Yamaha. but currently ride a 2014 BMW R1200LC.Consider your motorcycling history consider what Marques/ brands of motorcycle you have ridden/ owned and your experiences you have had on them.
Taking everything into account. Which Marque/ brand of motorcycle is your favorite the one you have the strongest affinity with and still respect or still own.
Got that right! As much as I've pounded and abused (but never neglected) all of the Hondas I've owned I could be the posterboy for destructive testing. And before anyone asks if it's really me in that picture earlier, it is...Man, you just don't waltz in and talk smack about Honda...not RIGHT in front of Oldschool! Whatchoo thinking, man?!
Actually Jim il play devils advocate here, OK you like BMWs, but we are not all lucky enough to like what we work on, But i spend a lot of my time building fixing selling Land rovers, been doing this since i got my first 1951 series 1 80 inch in 1972 i was just 14. And though i know and even earn from them, i hate them with a vengeance, worst car ever made and totally useless IMO. Just sayin.Duh.
I am a bit of an obsessive type, but I would not love and ride BMWs if they didn't fit me and my riding style. They are actually easy to work on too. I have said on many occasions, that I would dump BMW if they took the telelever away from the GS!Actually Jim il play devils advocate here, OK you like BMWs, but we are not all lucky enough to like what we work on, But i spend a lot of my time building fixing selling Land rovers, been doing this since i got my first 1951 series 1 80 inch in 1972 i was just 14. And though i know and even earn from them, i hate them with a vengeance, worst car ever made and totally useless IMO. Just sayin.
Just had to come back in here to admire this photo again. That is so much motorcycle to have hoisted in to the air.I've owned 36 bikes since age 14 and all but 2 have been Hondas. I've had 7 new Hondas (SL175, SL350K1, CL450K4, XL250, ATC90, CB750K3, CB360G) and many Hondas bought totaled and rebuilt with my body man father's help as well, and all have been solid reliable bikes when ridden within their limits (and beyond as well for many of them). The only bad things encountered with any of them was the result of me wanting to do things the bike was not designed for nor was built strongly enough to accomplish without a major failure, like holeshots with a '75 and '76 Gold Wing. The early transmission shafts weren't strong enough and flexed enough under extreme power and load that first and second gears were forced apart enough that the teeth weren't fully engaged and it literally ripped the teeth off the gears. Did it hard clutching with revs on my first Wing while rolling along in first, had to split the cases, then later thinking first gear was the only weakness, did it again after putting a Barnett clutch in it and powershifting to second. After 2 full teardowns I got discouraged and sold the bike. Had the '76 later and did first gear again so I was done. Otherwise, all my other Hondas were practically bulletproof including both my CBXs that I blasted around Tampa mercilessly drag racing anything the same size back then and beating most of them (XS11s, KZ1000s, Z-1Rs, GS1000s and 1100s, KZ1300s, and Harley XLCRs by the time I got to 3rd gear after giving them a one bike rolling start) and regularly wheelieing them (starving the crankshaft of constant oil pressure which eventually led to wearing out the weakly oiled #5 rod requiring a rebuild). I would have bought a Rune when they came out but I couldn't afford one.
The other 2 bikes were an '85 ZL900, lots of reliable fun, and a Hodaka 125 Wombat enduro.
Thanks. After a while I got good at dropping the front end down a little early in first and using the fork bounce to get it back up in second gear, could go about 500 feet or so and drop down at almost 80 mph with the front tire chirping when it hit. It was totally unexpected to have the parts guy at the bike salvage yard my father did work for offer to take those pictures. I stopped in there often and that day he said he had his 35mm with 200mm lens with him and did I want to make a few passes so he could take some pics. I loved doing wheelies on my CBXs, really one of the easiest bikes I've done it on, and he probably took about 15 to 20 shots zooming out as I got closer to him in first gear. He got the best picture enlarged and gave it to me, unfortunately I don't have the negative and it was before cell phones and commonly available digital cameras (and, he was an alcoholic and was dead 5 years later). He also had me sign a second one (I told him I didn't want to do it but he insisted) and he sent that one to Colorado where his brother owned a bar. Never got to see a picture of it hanging there, bar is probably gone now anyway. Fortunately the road (Linebaugh Ave in northwest Tampa) was very undeveloped at that time and didn't have near the traffic and buildings on it that it does today. Where all that brown grass is behind me is now mass numbers of apartments across a 4 lane divided road. Sometimes I'm amazed at what I used to get away with...Just had to come back in here to admire this photo again. That is so much motorcycle to have hoisted in to the air.
Thanks for the kind words. I'm sure we all have tons of good stories from our wild youthful riding days, I have plenty myself. Not to prolong the highjack, but you are absolutely right about the environment vs the dollar, it's been happening around my area for decades and many fun riding spots are now housing developments, malls and other moneymakers.The health of the environment don't mean shit when there's a dollar to be made 😁
Sorry for the hijack, folks! Back to my corner ...