Half a Car: The Motorbike Thread

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Devilchrono
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Big Brain Bradley wrote: Mon Aug 27, 2018 10:55 am
Devilchrono wrote: Mon Aug 27, 2018 9:37 am I've been poking around bike sites and reading about various sportster style bikes as a first bike, if I could get the wife to agree to it, and I'm digging the HD Iron 883. Anyone have any thoughts on these? Also, yes I'm considering used first if at all possible, but haven't ruled out new either. https://www.harley-davidson.com/us/en/m ... n-883.html
Have you taken an MSF basic course? Ever ridden? what kind of riding do you plan to do? Dont forget to budget ~2k for good gear.

Harleys.'....are expensive for what they are. The new honda rebel (300?) will be better in every way for a new rider, and cost half as much new.
1) I have not taken one, but will before I actually purchase anything. I know better than trying to do anything without taking that course, as it's a great source of information and teaching.
2) Never on the street, always just dirt bikes and four wheelers; though it's been about 15 years since I've been on anything
3) It would mainly be a nice weather cruiser to/from work. Maybe the occasional weekend jaunt by myself.
4) I already know gear is gonna cost a pretty penny cause I'd be as safe as possible with it.
5) The Honda Rebel is something I've looked at too, though it seemed smaller than the Iron 883.
CorvetteWaxer wrote: Mon Aug 27, 2018 11:26 am
Big Brain Bradley wrote: Mon Aug 27, 2018 10:55 am

Have you taken an MSF basic course? Ever ridden? what kind of riding do you plan to do? Dont forget to budget ~2k for good gear.

Harleys.'....are expensive for what they are. The new honda rebel (300?) will be better in every way for a new rider, and cost half as much new.
Bolded the points I would make here from this post.

Harley's are expensive, but if you really want one, there's a 99% chance a Honda won't make you happy.

I personally would avoid a Sportster just because probably it won't be long before you want something different. The Sportsters only have a 5 speed transmission, so they kinda suck if you get on the freeway. Plus, how tall are you? Most of the Sportsters get small for guys in the 6 foot range.. Even at 5'11" I feel cramped on them. If you really want a Harley I would personally try to spend more (I know it is quite a bit more than the Iron) and get into a new Softail. The new 2018+ Softail bikes have the 107 cubic inch motor and a very nice new frame design that rides WAY, WAY, WAY better than the Sportster or a pre-2018 Softail.

If you haven't really ridden before, grab a used something or other that you won't care too much about to get some miles on, then buy the bike you really want in a year. You might not like riding as much as you think if you have little/no experience and this will save you some money.


I'm 6' tall, 235 LBS last time I stepped on a scale. Power is something I've considered, but so has size. I don't need to be able to reach triple digit speeds, I've outgrown that I think. But something that can keep up with traffic and I'll be comfortable on is important to me. I'll look into the softail bikes as well. Right now, this is all just a dream but I want to do it right if/when I can.
Barnes93cb wrote: Mon Aug 27, 2018 12:40 pm
Devilchrono wrote: Mon Aug 27, 2018 9:37 am I've been poking around bike sites and reading about various sportster style bikes as a first bike, if I could get the wife to agree to it, and I'm digging the HD Iron 883. Anyone have any thoughts on these? Also, yes I'm considering used first if at all possible, but haven't ruled out new either. https://www.harley-davidson.com/us/en/m ... n-883.html
Do not waste your money on an 883. The sportster will be a decent starter bike for most. And some stick on the bike.

But the 883 is too small for regular use. I suggest getting a sportster 1200 if your heart is set on that bike. But honestly I would recommend going to a larger bike. Maybe a used dyna of some sort. There are so many options that you will be hard pressed to outgrow in 3 months. But I can assure you an 883 will get boring quick.
I've heard that and am aware that may be the case. The 1200 is a consideration because of that.
4zilch wrote: Mon Aug 27, 2018 1:40 pm
Big Brain Bradley wrote: Mon Aug 27, 2018 10:55 am

Have you taken an MSF basic course? Ever ridden? what kind of riding do you plan to do? Dont forget to budget ~2k for good gear.

Harleys.'....are expensive for what they are. The new honda rebel (300?) will be better in every way for a new rider, and cost half as much new.
You'll get no shortage of opinions around here on what is and isn't a good first bike.

But to :fax: 's questions, have you ridden, what kind of riding do you want to do, what experience do you have with motorcycles? Budget for gear, absolutely, you could probably get by with $1000 pretty well.

If you're inexperienced, sign up for an MSF course. Go to dealers, sit on bikes, see what you like. I'd shy away from new bikes, go cheap and see if you're even going to like riding and upgrade from there. Buying a used $2000 ninja 250 that you can't resell a few months later for $2000 is a good way to go.

PS, you'll probably tip over at some point, so buying something pre-crashed isn't necessarily a bad thing starting out.

PPS, I followed none of my own advise starting out and lived to tell the tail.
I'd only go new if I couldn't find something used that I like. I am well aware I'll lay it down at some point, I've ridden enough dirt in the past to know it's gonna happen. As weird as it sounds, my wife is more comfortable with the idea of me having a cruiser style bike than a sport bike, so that's why I'm looking at the sportster style more than anything else right now.
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Devilchrono wrote: Mon Aug 27, 2018 2:35 pm
Big Brain Bradley wrote: Mon Aug 27, 2018 10:55 am

Have you taken an MSF basic course? Ever ridden? what kind of riding do you plan to do? Dont forget to budget ~2k for good gear.

Harleys.'....are expensive for what they are. The new honda rebel (300?) will be better in every way for a new rider, and cost half as much new.
1) I have not taken one, but will before I actually purchase anything. I know better than trying to do anything without taking that course, as it's a great source of information and teaching.
2) Never on the street, always just dirt bikes and four wheelers; though it's been about 15 years since I've been on anything
3) It would mainly be a nice weather cruiser to/from work. Maybe the occasional weekend jaunt by myself.
4) I already know gear is gonna cost a pretty penny cause I'd be as safe as possible with it.
5) The Honda Rebel is something I've looked at too, though it seemed smaller than the Iron 883.
CorvetteWaxer wrote: Mon Aug 27, 2018 11:26 am

Bolded the points I would make here from this post.

Harley's are expensive, but if you really want one, there's a 99% chance a Honda won't make you happy.

I personally would avoid a Sportster just because probably it won't be long before you want something different. The Sportsters only have a 5 speed transmission, so they kinda suck if you get on the freeway. Plus, how tall are you? Most of the Sportsters get small for guys in the 6 foot range.. Even at 5'11" I feel cramped on them. If you really want a Harley I would personally try to spend more (I know it is quite a bit more than the Iron) and get into a new Softail. The new 2018+ Softail bikes have the 107 cubic inch motor and a very nice new frame design that rides WAY, WAY, WAY better than the Sportster or a pre-2018 Softail.

If you haven't really ridden before, grab a used something or other that you won't care too much about to get some miles on, then buy the bike you really want in a year. You might not like riding as much as you think if you have little/no experience and this will save you some money.


I'm 6' tall, 235 LBS last time I stepped on a scale. Power is something I've considered, but so has size. I don't need to be able to reach triple digit speeds, I've outgrown that I think. But something that can keep up with traffic and I'll be comfortable on is important to me. I'll look into the softail bikes as well. Right now, this is all just a dream but I want to do it right if/when I can.
Barnes93cb wrote: Mon Aug 27, 2018 12:40 pm

Do not waste your money on an 883. The sportster will be a decent starter bike for most. And some stick on the bike.

But the 883 is too small for regular use. I suggest getting a sportster 1200 if your heart is set on that bike. But honestly I would recommend going to a larger bike. Maybe a used dyna of some sort. There are so many options that you will be hard pressed to outgrow in 3 months. But I can assure you an 883 will get boring quick.
I've heard that and am aware that may be the case. The 1200 is a consideration because of that.
4zilch wrote: Mon Aug 27, 2018 1:40 pm

You'll get no shortage of opinions around here on what is and isn't a good first bike.

But to :fax: 's questions, have you ridden, what kind of riding do you want to do, what experience do you have with motorcycles? Budget for gear, absolutely, you could probably get by with $1000 pretty well.

If you're inexperienced, sign up for an MSF course. Go to dealers, sit on bikes, see what you like. I'd shy away from new bikes, go cheap and see if you're even going to like riding and upgrade from there. Buying a used $2000 ninja 250 that you can't resell a few months later for $2000 is a good way to go.

PS, you'll probably tip over at some point, so buying something pre-crashed isn't necessarily a bad thing starting out.

PPS, I followed none of my own advise starting out and lived to tell the tail.
I'd only go new if I couldn't find something used that I like. I am well aware I'll lay it down at some point, I've ridden enough dirt in the past to know it's gonna happen. As weird as it sounds, my wife is more comfortable with the idea of me having a cruiser style bike than a sport bike, so that's why I'm looking at the sportster style more than anything else right now.
:word:

You might consider something in the naked/standard realm as well. KTM Duke 390/690, Ducati Scrambler, Monster 821, Triumph Bonneville.

Either way, ride what makes sense to you.
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Friday...kid at sitter...weather nice... time to go ride!

I did about 180 miles in total.
Went and did some primitive roads in the hills in north LA
https://www.google.com/maps/dir/30.7738 ... e4!1m0!3e0

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lots of single track road.

I stayed off the highways getting to and from my destetionation so to speak, but man, I forgot how much I missed riding. Like a real bike, that can comfortably so some distance.

Bike never missed a beat. Seat got a little hard around hour 3.
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Started to get the :dong: for a motorbike again. Told GF about it she said have fun looking.
Yesterday found out a friend of mine got a new-to-him Honda CBR. Because he was rear ended on the highway and his old motorcycle was turned into a pile of steel and rubber.

It's a curse, guise. Every time I start looking I hear about a horrific accident.
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Johnny_P wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 2:16 pm Started to get the :dong: for a motorbike again. Told GF about it she said have fun looking.
Yesterday found out a friend of mine got a new-to-him Honda CBR. Because he was rear ended on the highway and his old motorcycle was turned into a pile of steel and rubber.

It's a curse, guise. Every time I start looking I hear about a horrific accident.
look, you already bicycle. That's just as dangerous, if not more due to lack of gear.

Its risky. Other drivers make it more risky. I personally migigitate that risk by avoiding the highways. You've taken MSF? then you are a step ahead of 80% of riders. Im sure you learned to read traffic from the bike and know what cars will do stupid shit before they do it, the bike is no different.

Anyway, you do you boo.
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Johnny_P wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 2:16 pm Started to get the :dong: for a motorbike again. Told GF about it she said have fun looking.
Yesterday found out a friend of mine got a new-to-him Honda CBR. Because he was rear ended on the highway and his old motorcycle was turned into a pile of steel and rubber.

It's a curse, guise. Every time I start looking I hear about a horrific accident.
:wasteful: Let's get ADV bikes.
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Apex wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 2:52 pm
Johnny_P wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 2:16 pm Started to get the :dong: for a motorbike again. Told GF about it she said have fun looking.
Yesterday found out a friend of mine got a new-to-him Honda CBR. Because he was rear ended on the highway and his old motorcycle was turned into a pile of steel and rubber.

It's a curse, guise. Every time I start looking I hear about a horrific accident.
:wasteful: Let's get ADV bikes.
WR250R is the juan I want

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Johnny_P wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 3:04 pm
Apex wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 2:52 pm

:wasteful: Let's get ADV bikes.
WR250R is the juan I want

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A fine choice.
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Big Brain Bradley wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 2:39 pm
Johnny_P wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 2:16 pm Started to get the :dong: for a motorbike again. Told GF about it she said have fun looking.
Yesterday found out a friend of mine got a new-to-him Honda CBR. Because he was rear ended on the highway and his old motorcycle was turned into a pile of steel and rubber.

It's a curse, guise. Every time I start looking I hear about a horrific accident.
look, you already bicycle. That's just as dangerous, if not more due to lack of gear.

Its risky. Other drivers make it more risky. I personally migigitate that risk by avoiding the highways. You've taken MSF? then you are a step ahead of 80% of riders. Im sure you learned to read traffic from the bike and know what cars will do stupid shit before they do it, the bike is no different.

Anyway, you do you boo.
Less gear but lower speeds, but your point is a good one. I took MSF and know how to read traffic generally. When I bike, I'm usually off on the side of the road, or on a lower speed road. Which I guess if you stay off highways and major thruways you've mitigated that.

IDK. My neighbor has a motorcycle, maybe I'll pick her brain a bit.
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Big Brain Bradley wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 3:07 pm
Johnny_P wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 3:04 pm

WR250R is the juan I want

Image
A fine choice.
They're cheap-ish, durable, and require very little upkeep. 250cc theoretically will be easier to learn on. Off road tires for possible enduro fun. Tons of bolt on mod options. And they're physically large enough for my 6'2" ass.
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Johnny_P wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 3:10 pm
Big Brain Bradley wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 2:39 pm

look, you already bicycle. That's just as dangerous, if not more due to lack of gear.

Its risky. Other drivers make it more risky. I personally migigitate that risk by avoiding the highways. You've taken MSF? then you are a step ahead of 80% of riders. Im sure you learned to read traffic from the bike and know what cars will do stupid shit before they do it, the bike is no different.

Anyway, you do you boo.
Less gear but lower speeds, but your point is a good one. I took MSF and know how to read traffic generally. When I bike, I'm usually off on the side of the road, or on a lower speed road. Which I guess if you stay off highways and major thruways you've mitigated that.

IDK. My neighbor has a motorcycle, maybe I'll pick her brain a bit.
20 mph is 20 mph. You probably know people that have been majorly fucked up crashing a bicycle.
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Big Brain Bradley wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 3:15 pm
Johnny_P wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 3:10 pm

Less gear but lower speeds, but your point is a good one. I took MSF and know how to read traffic generally. When I bike, I'm usually off on the side of the road, or on a lower speed road. Which I guess if you stay off highways and major thruways you've mitigated that.

IDK. My neighbor has a motorcycle, maybe I'll pick her brain a bit.
20 mph is 20 mph. You probably know people that have been majorly fucked up crashing a bicycle.
Yep. I don't know many that have been hit by a car, and really that's what scares the bejesus out of me regarding motorcycles. Got rear ended 3x in my GTI. I'd have died once on the motorcycle, likely dropped it, probably on myself, the other two. :iono: I really don't trust any other drives out there.
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Johnny_P wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 3:23 pm
Big Brain Bradley wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 3:15 pm

20 mph is 20 mph. You probably know people that have been majorly fucked up crashing a bicycle.
Yep. I don't know many that have been hit by a car, and really that's what scares the bejesus out of me regarding motorcycles. Got rear ended 3x in my GTI. I'd have died once on the motorcycle, likely dropped it, probably on myself, the other two. :iono: I really don't trust any other drives out there.
I’ll say this once, even with really derpy drivers, the vast majority of motorcycle accidents are avoidable if the rider is attentive to potential bad situations, such as positioning yourself at light to give yourself an escape route and/or avoids getting sandwiched between 2 vehicles. Lane position, reading traffic, ability to analyze a situation and determine the best escape routes quickly are all skills that will keep you alive.

Additionally, if you ever get serious about shopping, and plan on doing any amount of street riding, get a bike with ABS.

Additional additionally, Jill and a friend of mine both had significant bicycle accidents within the last month. The latter was very accomplished in competition road cycling. Both of those were worse than any street motorcycle accident that any of my friends have had in the last couple years, honestly :fax: ‘s crash was probably the worst of anyone I know in the last 5-7 years. Everyone has a horror story, and quite frankly they’re pointless and tiring.
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4zilch wrote: Tue Sep 18, 2018 6:13 am

Additional additionally, Jill and a friend of mine both had significant bicycle accidents within the last month. The latter was very accomplished in competition road cycling. Both of those were worse than any street motorcycle accident that any of my friends have had in the last couple years, honestly :fax: ‘s crash was probably the worst of anyone I know in the last 5-7 years. Everyone has a horror story, and quite frankly they’re pointless and tiring.
and why was my crash so bad? Because 20 mph is 20 mph with no gear on.... See the common theme?
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4zilch wrote: Mon Aug 27, 2018 1:33 pm
Desertbreh wrote: Mon Aug 27, 2018 1:06 pm

That's a cool looking bike.
:dat:

sounds even better :doe:

sic rice rocket brah
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Johnny_P wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 3:04 pm
Apex wrote: Mon Sep 17, 2018 2:52 pm

:wasteful: Let's get ADV bikes.
WR250R is the juan I want

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sumo is life. Those WRs held value pretty well. I think its a great compromise on road off road do it all. Its better than the honda 250L. Im really curious about the 450L they will be dropping th'oon.

Just remember it will always be a compromise bike and not be stellar at on OR off road. But anything with a motor and 2 wheels is fun.
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my experience with bikes was a lot of dirtbiking as a kid. When I wanted to ride I ended up buying a beater Honda Shadow 750 that didn't run for $1,300. Brought it home and cleaned the starter switch and it was like new. Then I put about $1k into it and rode that for a bit. Learned on that weak ass bike and learned how traffic didn't see me, and then decided on my first bike that I actually wanted. I realized what I did and didn't need. And decided on a sport cruiser because I wanted power, but wanted to go on trips with buddies. Down in airboat land there's no real curvy areas. So straight line speed is what most of us have to appeal to us.

I wrecked the Vrod the 2nd day I got it, because of an increasing radius turn that had the speed for the turn rusted off of the sign. So I took a 25mph turn at about 55. Normally on a bike you can take them 20mph faster than the sign says (it's there for trucks really), but the increasing radius just pushed me further and further to the edge to where I jumped a ditch and went into a field. In my head I was going to ride the ditch jump out and keep it steady in the field and hold it upright. Off the road, and down the ditch (notice there's no jumping here, lol), the front wheel dug in and bent a 49mm stanchion tube about 15° and the bike just flopped and thus I became a minion to ragdoll physics. It was then that I learned that none of this is under your control once the first thing doesn't go as planned.
It didn't stop me from riding, just made me open my mind a little to be even more defensive.

So my suggestion would be to get something you can beat up first and then decide what you want to spend some real money on. You might find that you don't use it like you though. You might ride it to work more often than planned. You might only take it out on the weekends to go cruise. For me, I rode with friends for a while and then it became a burden to ride. Hot exhaust on my pant leg, combined with reflections of sunlight on the black asphalt, with a full face helmet sweating my ass off. I'd ride 10 minutes to work and be drenched in sweat. It just wasn't fun unless I was moving constantly on a bike to get windflow. So in town traffic riding sucked.
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Big Brain Bradley wrote: Tue Sep 18, 2018 10:55 am
4zilch wrote: Tue Sep 18, 2018 6:13 am

Additional additionally, Jill and a friend of mine both had significant bicycle accidents within the last month. The latter was very accomplished in competition road cycling. Both of those were worse than any street motorcycle accident that any of my friends have had in the last couple years, honestly :fax: ‘s crash was probably the worst of anyone I know in the last 5-7 years. Everyone has a horror story, and quite frankly they’re pointless and tiring.
and why was my crash so bad? Because 20 mph is 20 mph with no gear on.... See the common theme?
:dat:
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This is probably a terrible idea, but I've been kicking around VFR400 or RFV400. 50-ish hp V4 with a 14.5k redline.

https://boston.craigslist.org/sob/mcy/d ... 70932.html
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4zilch wrote:This is probably a terrible idea, but I've been kicking around VFR400 or RFV400. 50-ish hp V4 with a 14.5k redline.

https://boston.craigslist.org/sob/mcy/d ... 70932.html
:fuckyeah:

But you need 200 hp to have fun, right?
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troyguitar wrote: Fri Sep 21, 2018 2:40 pm
4zilch wrote:This is probably a terrible idea, but I've been kicking around VFR400 or RFV400. 50-ish hp V4 with a 14.5k redline.

https://boston.craigslist.org/sob/mcy/d ... 70932.html
:fuckyeah:

But you need 200 hp to have fun, right?
That's literally what I'm trying to decide.

200HP w/ latest and greatest tech, or 50hp analog old thing.

The benefit of the latter is that it won't lose value, and will likely go up. They've doubled in value within the last 5 years.

One thing that gives me pause, is that I already have a 50hp analog thing.
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4zilch wrote:
troyguitar wrote: Fri Sep 21, 2018 2:40 pm :fuckyeah:

But you need 200 hp to have fun, right?
That's literally what I'm trying to decide.

200HP w/ latest and greatest tech, or 50hp analog old thing.

The benefit of the latter is that it won't lose value, and will likely go up. They've doubled in value within the last 5 years.

One thing that gives me pause, is that I already have a 50hp analog thing.
:word:

For non-competitive trackdaybro stuff where you're towing to and from, I don't think that the new hotness is all that useful but :iono:
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troyguitar wrote: Fri Sep 21, 2018 2:52 pm
4zilch wrote:
That's literally what I'm trying to decide.

200HP w/ latest and greatest tech, or 50hp analog old thing.

The benefit of the latter is that it won't lose value, and will likely go up. They've doubled in value within the last 5 years.

One thing that gives me pause, is that I already have a 50hp analog thing.
:word:

For non-competitive trackdaybro stuff where you're towing to and from, I don't think that the new hotness is all that useful but :iono:
You're correct in that it's not useful, but it sure is fun.
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4zilch wrote: Fri Sep 21, 2018 2:44 pm
troyguitar wrote: Fri Sep 21, 2018 2:40 pm :fuckyeah:

But you need 200 hp to have fun, right?
That's literally what I'm trying to decide.

200HP w/ latest and greatest tech, or 50hp analog old thing.

The benefit of the latter is that it won't lose value, and will likely go up. They've doubled in value within the last 5 years.

One thing that gives me pause, is that I already have a 50hp analog thing.
interesting. What would you do with it? would it see the track a lot?

Im a fan of the electronic nannies on a street bike, but I also like cool shit
brain go brrrrrr
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4zilch
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Big Brain Bradley wrote: Fri Sep 21, 2018 3:54 pm
4zilch wrote: Fri Sep 21, 2018 2:44 pm

That's literally what I'm trying to decide.

200HP w/ latest and greatest tech, or 50hp analog old thing.

The benefit of the latter is that it won't lose value, and will likely go up. They've doubled in value within the last 5 years.

One thing that gives me pause, is that I already have a 50hp analog thing.
interesting. What would you do with it? would it see the track a lot?

Im a fan of the electronic nannies on a street bike, but I also like cool shit
Track and street. The brakes suck bad enough on these old bikes, that I’m not sure ABS would even intervene if it were an option.

My main concern is that I’m not sure a 30 year old bike is a good decision as a primary bike. #oldbikeproblems Conversely it’s half the price of the Ape and leaves a bit more room for a roadster acquisition.
As the only published author in a well-known motorcycle publication in the room...
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