Is that Wheels ?

[Martin]

Not too sure if I should have put this in the funny section or not, but it's a true story of something that happened in 1977.
I don't know if it's still there but there was a motorbike place in Blantyre called Wheels. My dad had occasion to 'phone them and asked, "Hello, is that Wheels ?", the bloke on the other end replied, "No, this is Scotland".

[Bobh]

Good one Martin. I actually bought a motorbike from that place in 1979- a Kawasaki KH250. Nearly bloddy killed myself when i had my accident6 months later. I think it 's been closed for years.

[Martin]

Wasn't the KH250 the little triple that went like sh*t off a shovel ? One of the big four along with the GT250, RD250 and the CB250 Dream (not to be confused with the awful Super Dream).
I liked Wheels, cheap and cheerful, much better than the other place I once tried , I think it was called Lloyd Brothers and advertised themselves as the biggest motorcycle stockists in Scotland, they were rubbish and never, before or after have I encountered a motorcycle dealer with such a terrible attitude.
I seem to remember a great cafe a few doors along from Wheels that did a very nice pie, chips and beans.

[Bobh]

indeed it was. The others you mention were -i think, Yamaha, Suzuki and of course Honda.

[Mr Plod]

Hahahahaha I remember my KH250 with awe. It probably only did about 15 miles to the gallon, handled like a jelly and went like stink in a straight line. It had a very distinctive exhaust note at speed. It ate spark plugs like there was no tomorrow. I traded it for a nice blue Yamaha RD250 and then later bought a Honda 250N Superdream ( That's a poof's bike ya fud !!! was my mates assessment of it lol ). The Superdream was very smooth and quiet, but it wouldnae pull a sojer aff yer sister.

I reckon a whole generation of biker kids in the late 70's spent their entire teenage existence on Japanese 250cc death mobiles. I know that I was part of a loose collection of about 40 individuals that went to the Carbethh Inn, The paraffin lamp most evenings on these machines. Hardly a single one of them had passed their "Full" motorcycle test. I suppose it must have been that way in the 60's for the youthful MOD's and Rockers.

I bumped into an old fella in his 70's from the wee toon who came up to me at the harbour when I stopped there on my Harley to speak to Hugh MacAlister at the wee prawn stall. The old fella recalled every bike had ever owned, including a Sunbeam, a Vincent Black Shadow and an assortment of BSA's and Triumphs, any one of which would be worth a kings ransom now. he had loads of funny stories about characters from the wee toon pranging their bikes or getting chased by the polis etc etc. Someone should round up all these old blokes and record their memories for posterity as they are literally a living archive of times past.

Is'nt it funny how everything seemed to be wonderful back in the day? I don't seem to be able to recall the miserable rainy days that must have been there. Strange that. :0)

[Martin]

There are loads of undocumented stories, most of them wonderful which should be preserved. I was talking to an old lad today who used to own a Royal Enfield Crusader from the Fifties, he's in his eighties so he probably bought it new.
I once owned a Vincent Black shadow from the Fifties, I lovingly restored it and eventually sold it for a small fortune.
That Super Dream was one of the most awful pieces of Jap cr*p ever to roll off a production line !
My favourite bigger bike was my 750 Triumph Bonneville T140 (I think), soft tail low rider chop. Fat Bob Fender, forward controls, Iron Cross mirrors and back light, ape-hangers, the lot.
The last one I built was a Honda CB 550 Four, made into a hard tail low rider chop, nearly ruptured my kidneys going over potholes !
But, from way back when, my fave smaller bike was the Suzuki GT 250, they ate pistons but were beautiful little machines, then there was the750 Kettle, not one of my favourites but an interesting ride. Shame a lot of those were ruined when folk bolted a chair on the side. The GT 550 was a nice bike, I liked it anyway. Had a GS550 once, a bomb proof engine.

[Govangirl]

Great posts!!!!!!

[Mr Plod]

Well I progressed all the way up through Honda 400/4, Honda KZ750 with a pantera full fairing and luggage racks. Had a few basket cases like a BMW R80/7 and a Benelli 500/4, a Laverda Jota that hated rain and would never start and a Motoguzzi 850 Le Mans that actually broke down the day I bought it and over 3 months spent 2 months in the garage getting warranty repairs lol. But I had a lovely suzuki GS1000 then a Kawasaki GPZ1100 but I could'nt afford the tyres and chains for them. Got a Kawasaki Z1300 which had to go cos it ate tyres and I could'nt hold it upright if I was maneouvring it on a slope. Had a Kawasaki GP1100 shaft drive that was a dream to ride, then a BSA A10 Chopper. The weans came along so the bikes were oot the windae and my biking days were over. Time to get the tartan slippers oot and drive a car. Waited 30 years till I retired and I bought a big Harley Davidson ElectraGlide Ultra Classic with all the gubbins like intercoms, CB radio, CD stereo player the works. Ahhhh paradise...........till the winter comes then it's oot wi the tartan baffies and back to the car lol.

[Martin]

"Harley Davidson ElectraGlide Ultra Classic with all the gubbins like intercoms, CB radio, CD stereo player the works.", aha, an armchair on wheels. Sorry, I couldn't resist that.
I wonder if anyone will be brave and admit to owning an MZ.
At one point I was doing up MOT failure bikes and flogging them on so to be honest, I've forgotten a lot of the bikes that came along.
The last time I tried a Harley was some 30 years ago, I haven't a clue what it was but it was horrible. It was made for long straight roads and useless for our towns and country lanes. It was so useless on cornering that I never felt the need to get on another. Wish I could remember what it was.

[Mr Plod]

They're much better than they were even 3 years ago. Completely redesigned from tyres up. So reliable in fact that they test ran one at constant average speed of 80mph for over 80,000 miles prior to rolling it out onto production and other than normal servicing it never suffered a single breakdown. I have had mine for 3 years now and I can do a full service on it (3 oils, plugs, air and oil filter, grease points) in an hour and at a cost of £70 for parts including next day delivery. Know any modern Jap bikes that can match that. I went from here, Campbeltown, to Lichfield, England last year. Average speed 60mph on A roads and 70mph (you gotta love that cruise control) motorways and never suffered so much as a glitch. I can get 250 miles on a full tank ( how many jap sports tourers can get anywhere near that at those speeds. It soaks up the miles, in comfort, with music through the helmet headfones, and the odd conversation with the pillion or other harley owners via CB or Bluetooth.

Don't judge Harley's by a five minute jaunt on a bag of nails you rode 30 years ago. They are just not the same beastie. Also a good rider will typically NOT be proficient on any bike until he has ridden it at most speeds on differing road and weather conditions for at least 1500 miles. It takes that long to get a feel for it.

My father had about 3 MZ 250 motorcycles. Another very fast very reliable bike. looks like shit, but it could give an RD250 a run for it's money from a standing start in a straight line and could corner with the best. Won a few trophies as well at international events including the TT. They actually had one called the MZ Trophy, which had a little plaque on the headlamp nacelle listing the years and wins. Each to their own.

[Martin]

Yep, each to their own. I once new a guy who bought an MZ, drove it from London to Edinburgh and threw it away when he got there !
I know nothing about cruise controls, what happens if it sticks on ? Is that possible ? I suppose you could always switch off the engine and hope for the best ? Just wondering.
BTW, the "five minute jaunt" was around London and then up to Denbigh (North Wales) and back, then down to Exeter, on to Princetown and back to London, I've never felt so insecure on a bike.
You say you get 250 miles on a full tank, what's the tanks capacity ? (in gallons please).
Afraid I know nothing about modern bikes, Jap or otherwise.

[Mr Plod]

Must admit though martin. I had an old 1960's harley as a project and it was a complete pig. The brakes were crap, the steering was too light and the suspension made the front end very scary at speed and on bends.

To be honest the new harley's are way beyond those of yesteryear. The standard engine size is now 1800cc as opposed to 1340cc of yesteryear. Because of competition from the Honda Goldwing Harley have had to up the ante somewhat and their bikes are now built to a very high standard and their engines are bullet proof and leak free.

My Harley has stood outside my home for 3 years, through 3 winters and the brightwork has no rust at all. Mines is the smaller 2008 model at 1600cc but can tank along all day at 70mph.

The cruise control is a flip switch in the dashboard. There's an engine kill switch on the handlebar controls so no worries. because the bike has fuel injection controlled by an ECU, the cruise control is very sensitive and automatically throws in power going up hills to maintain speed and throttles back going down hills.

It has no ignition key as everything is remote. as soon as you walk 15 feet from the bike with the remote the alarm activates and the immobiliser is switched on. It's smart enough not to activate in bad weather but try to move it an inch and it screams blue murder.

Tank size is 23 litres which is about 5 gallons.

MZ's were ugly bikes but they were reliable and simple to maintain. For despatch rider work they'd be fine. Cheap, reliable and dependable.

[Martin]

Now you mention it I do recall seeing despatch riders using MZs, an awful lot of them.
That bike of yours does sound very nice but a dashboard on a motorbike ? AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRGGHHHH !!!!
I take it there's a kick start in case the electronic start gives out ? I would be lost without a kick start, I remember one bike, an old British one I think, had a kick start with a kick like a mule, you really had to jump on it and be very careful.
I think if ever I was to own another bike it would have to be an old thing from the seventies or early eighties, not sure what it would be.
Built a trike once from an old Reliant, it looked good but was a proper old boneshaker.

[Govangirl]

I'm finding all this very interesting as I once discussed bikes on here:

http://www.kintyreforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=10503

To bring that up to date, my son has been riding his bike now for more than a year and everything has been great. He is a safe and sensible rider and is now going to go for the next level's training.
My current headache is that Mr Govangirl, in a severe state of mid-life crisis, has decided that he too is getting a bike He did the training, bought all the leathers and goes out on the son's bike. Personally, I think he looks like a real eejit driving along the harbour wall to the pub with a Dimebag Darrell heavy metal sticker on his bike at his age. Anyway, he has now decided that he too is going to go with the higher level test so he can get a bigger bike. He would like a Harley but I know he has said they are probably too big for him?????? He had decided upon a Triumph and has seen two so far. He's back from a business trip tonight so I'm going to memorise all the above info and really impress him with my Harley knowledge - might even work as foreplay!! The only thing is, lots of folk tell me that these old guys get their bikes and after a year, the novelty wears off and they get rid of it!!!
Me, I just can't see the attraction but as already noted, each to their own.

[Martin]

Mrs. Nesbit, I saw your post about your boy and a bike and kept my nose out as I didn't think I was qualified to give an opinion or offer advice. That sort of advice really needs to come from someone a lot more sensible than me.
Ok, so which one, husband or son is going to want to be a Prospect at your local Chapter ? I hope it's not your old man as I can't imagine you being an "Old Lady" with everything that come's with it. That's tickled I, thinking about that.