classic bikes

[irmscher]

32 comes in a lot of models some rubbish but the dbd 34

[MarkyB]

I used to have a B33, cracking bike, regretted selling it ever since .

Budgie, you didn't take you mobile, or it can't take pictures?

[Budgie]

yeh did take my mobile but i don,t know how to post a pic of my own tourer as a signiture on this forum leave alone from a mobile,i know it,s no excuse but i,m an engineer by trade although my job now is an e.h.o. with the local council so i "should" be competant with a pc but i bluff my way through the day

[MarkyB]

If you don't have a data cable for the phone, Bluetooth the picture to a laptop.
"Where there's a will. there's a way"

[Budgie]

i,m gona have t learn,i,m really gonna have t learn

[irmscher]

Budgie bluff your way through the day Ihave an iphone but havent a clue too much technology in an idiots hand

[dp]

Marky i may of been a bit harsh but rims that are made out of bad metal and spokes that need changing arent so good . I love the old Enfields and even have a soft spot for mZ but to import a bike in the same guise it was sold in England and made better and free tax isnt good .I like British engineering and that is not without its faults but had standards and Qc and was made out of good metal that lasted and still does [ie Morris Minor ]and i suppose its just a sign of the times with no industry, selling it to foriegn countrys who we used to export to

When I bought my (1980) Indian Enfield last year, the previous owner said the trick was to use Indian parts in some circumstances but not others. Eg chrome and rubber is not good quality, buy British. I've stripped a few threads on mine (never stripped threads on anything else) so am suspicious of the metallurgy too.

BUT you have the choice of quality by replacing/upgrading most of the Bullet with British quality parts or cheaper Indian ones. And it's just a Meccano set, for big boys and girls so simple to replace bits. You can build the type of bike & level of quality you want.

Hitchcocks (mentioned above) have organised the remanufacture of parts in the UK where the Indian quality is suspect. So you can do a rolling upgrade. Indian parts are cheap but usually do the job which is the requirement in India where the bikes are practical workhorses, not 'classics'.

I've duplicated all the electrical components (spare coil, regulator/rectifier etc) with Indian parts for not much money so if something fails I have a spare in situ and would just order another direct from India. At some point I'll probably replace the rear wheel rim with a new British equivalent since it's gone rusty.

As for MZs, I think they're great too.

[irmscher]

imho better to buy British in the first place or early indian ones as the quality has drasticaly demised or better still an MZ German engineering at its finest

[chrisd87]

I've just bought a Suzuki GN400, in need of a bit of light restoration. Got it home by dismantling it and putting it in the Minor! I suspect it'll be considerably more difficult to get parts for than an Enfield but fortunately I don't need many (at the moment). I'd have preferred an Enfield, but one in an equivalent state would probably have cost 2-3 times as much as the Suzuki, plus would be less powerful, have the controls the wrong way round, &c.

If you're going to look at MZs, then also take a look at Jawas and CZs as well. Same sort of no-nonsense engineering, but less popular and therefore less of an inflated price!

Good luck with your continued search

[Budgie]

i missed out on a jawa 350 just over a year ago fairly local to me apparently restored[it looked pucca in the photos] and came with a load of spares £550 ummd and arrrd to long and ping it got sold

[irmscher]

Dont forget Budgie Mz Jawa Cz are two strokes better off with a tiger cub

[Budgie]

Yeh forgot about that,think i,ll stick to four strokes must admit i fancied a cub some months ago but lost out to another buyer

[StaffsMoggie]

Talking of Cubs, what about the legendary Honda C90? Those things are just about indistructable...

[Budgie]

yeh my dad had a c50 it was bomb proof

[MarkyB]

Classic in a way, not the first bike that springs to mind though.
It will be the first bike I'll get an MOT on when I have some time and can find an MOT slot.

[Budgie]

Just seen an advert on the site i,m keeping a close eye on for classic bikes and the ones i,ve been asking about on here,talking about a cub they,ve got one for sale matching no,s? very good condition £1750.so i googled t20,its a 1961 model, read up on the cub[it was wikipedia] and was a bit suprised on the writeup looks like it had a few design faults especially to do with the chain and poor lubrication causeing premature stretching and various other of putting problems what do you think folks? oh and something about the headstock being weakened by design and main bearing problems

[chrisd87]

The sort of problems you've been reading about are one of the reasons why people started buying Japanese! Plenty of British bikes of the era seem to have annoying design faults that result in poor reliability.

Have you considered a Velocette LE? Quite an unconventional bike but one of my favourites (among British bikes at least).

[Budgie]

yeh i did actually and the one i fancied was an ex leeds police bike and in good nic but got beaten to the post before i could travel to check it out,i think it went for £1500

[Budgie]

Here goes another.....ajs csr 14 1964 thoughts please price £1850 ex.con?

[xpress]

I am a puch fan.