I passed my test on a Jubilee in 1968. It wasn't a great bike to be sure. It was too heavy, the forks weren't damped and the brakes were next to useless. It leaked oil into the points chamber - there was a drain hole in the cover! - and it *rattled*. Many years later, a top-notch engineer I knew bought one and rebuilt the engine with enormous care to really tight tolerances. It still rattled as if it was knackered! I sold mine ASAP after my test and bought a 1958 Matchless G80S. What a transformation!
Yeh I think the big bangers are a lot nicer than the smaller capacity machines. Having to rev the nuts to make decent progress just doesn’t feel right on an old bike
A mate from school had a Norton Jubilee that rattled so much he could be heard three streets away and every time he parked it applied rust proofing to the ground underneath, later he bought a Honda Benly with oval brake drums - a great little goer but stopping was even more exciting. Another mate's brother in law had a Continental GT and loved it and had no complaints about the gearbox and an old codger across the road put serious mileage on his Crusader that had a full fairing and mostly carried a weighty pillion passenger - mileage often accumulated taking it back to the factory where they never found the fault he was complaining of. Another guy we knew then had a 175 Aermacchi, a little known Italian/American creation that looked a bit like an oversized Honda 90 Sport. A workmate had a Garelli 90. My brother-in-law to be had a Suzuki B100P, then a Super Six, and then "The Kettle" as the Suzuki 750 was known... I started with a Suzuki 50 Sport and then a BSA C12 and then a Matchless G11 finally ending up with a Honda CB250. Motorcycling was popular, cheap and above all, it was fun...
Motorcycles should indeed be cheap, unfortunately so many modern bikes just aren’t. The Jubilee is such a frustrating bike , it should have been a little belter but wasn’t
@ 17 y/o, in 1974 I started working for E.S. Motors in Chiswick West London. The proprietor , Peter Stapleton told me that under his father in the fifties and sixties they were the biggest Royal Enfield in the world. Interestingly, they became a Honda dealer in the sixties but Peter never told me how many more CB 72s they sold in comparison to the GT Continental! He claimed that he sugested the name for the G.T. Continental as a young lad working in the shop. The problems of the 5 speed box were down to the fact that instead of two sets of ‘ dogs ‘ on the layshaft, there were only one and with rough treatment, they wore very quickly. The other issue was that the selector mechanism needed very careful and precise adjustment. If the parts were new and the gear change effected with a delicate touch, the box did work well, however as virtually every British motorcycle g/box was like shearing off a 3/8 bolt to change gear and size 20 boots were a necessity, the 5 speed box never really had a chance. The Engine also had a complex oiling system, marginal at best and the typical lack of maintenance ethos of the young meant many dead engines.
The Hesketh and MV would both be on my lust list! I like the Mari mite line! Took me a second to get it.😁I live in Edmonton Canada so not as blessed as you on the other side of the pond when it comes to rare bikes. There is a Hesketh in the area however no vintage MV four. I have my eye out for a Lavarda triple. I stupidly passed on a non runner just out of town.☹
Fair enough my friend, but the tech members/mechanics on the forums, with decades of hands-on experience on these bikes say the performance chip somehow affects the timing, and that it's not necessary to mechanically advance it like on the 2 valvers. The K1 horsepower was dialed back worldwide to 95 bhp with the fear of a looming 100 bhp limit on ALL bikes in Europe. I remember those dark days - Triumph stood against those Euro politicians with their Daytona 1200. All I know is my K1 is now as smooth as my VFR 750, except at 75-85mph where the BMW is so glass smooth it feels electric. Good vids, thanks.
True enough, don’t think the euro political bods were that bothered really because those restrictions never happened. The 125bhp from the Japanese was a kind of gentleman’s agreement which I think Triumph broke for marketing reasons as much as anything else, it worked too because their bike sold and the Japanese dropped the whole voluntary limit thin for good.
I had a '92 K100RS with the 16 valve engine. Very nice on the interstate, accelerated like a turbine engine, but not much fun once I got to the mountains. Well, it was nice in fast sweepers, just don't try to shift that clunky gearbox halfway through a corner or try to change lines with a 600lb bike. The last time I rode it to meet up with some friends for a weekend the drive shaft broke. 38K miles! So much for BMW reliability!
Well I’ve always found mid corner gear changes on a shaft drive can be a bad idea. They always seem happier when you change early and use the torque to drive through.definitely true on Guzzis and BMW boxers
Always fancied a BMW k1 but was put off by the higher cost and heat issues from the enclosed engine. Bought a K100 (solid performer but somehow felt top heavy) then followed by the excellent K75S....surely one of the best (and smoothest) tourers you could buy in my opinion...and economical too.
I toured Southern France 20 years ago on a then 17 year old K100RT. Top heavy it most certainly was, later on I found that was overtightened steering head bearings. Other than that it was a great two up inexpensive tourer. But… the excess heat issue… entering Barcelona in 30° C ambient heat was unbearable. The engine jetted excess heat to my inner thighs at any speed, going fast just made it feel like you had switched the hair dryer to “full”. I ended up riding north with a towel over the saddle and mild burns on the inside of my legs. It was sold after two years of great service and a year old R1150GS was purchased just before Ewan and Charley gave them the depreciation of gold bars! Roll on a couple of decades and many bikes have passed between my legs and the current ride is a R1250GS and it’s as good as all the reviewers say 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
Cool video. The the K1 was a brave move by BMW that led to the K1200RS so that's a good thing. The K12RS was an designed as a high speed, long distance bike. I toured the continental divide up the Rocky Mountains from New Mexico to Canada on one and I took it coast to coast across the US and I remember it with a smile. You could literally run these things flat out all day and it was happy to do it. The RS-SE had ABS, cruise and heated grips and it was fairly advanced in the market. In the day, if you wanted to go really far, really fast, the Flying Brick was an excellent choice.
Interesting videos that include some bikes ive forgotten. Ive noticed that you haven't mentioned the Yamaha GTS with it strange single-sided front fork yet. I owned one when they first came out, just to be different. I toured southern Europe with mine. Great for motorways but at slow speed i found the front a bit heavey on the steering.
There’s just so many interesting machines aren’t there. I’m planning a video about suspension systems and it would definitely get in there as it’s the most commercially successful hub steered bike, a very interesting machine
I can remember seeing a GT Continental for the first time ,I was about 8years old. I was about as excited as someone who had just bought one. I thought it was a real racing bike . My mate had a crusader sports which developed almost the same power as the GT around 20 bhp . I had an Ariel Arrow ( not the sports) which couldn’t keep with the Enfield. Mind you even the four speed box missed gears ,I can remember his engine reviving high on changes ,it could still beat me though.The only time I beat him and some other mates was when I blasted off at a country pub first and caused such a smoke screen I left them choking in the wake!
I wanted a K1 from the first time I saw one, but couldn't afford it, not that they were readily available here in Australia. I finally found one in 2003, but it was gone when I got there. I test rode a K75s and then owned it for the next 15ys as it was just the best thing I had ever ridden. If my knees could still handle it I would be riding it still. When the K1's come up for sale now, they are half as much again as they were in 2003. Same goes for the R1200c. Would still like one of each, even though I probably couldn't ride the K and didn't like the R when I did ride it.
@@bikerdood1100 Well deserved. I know absolutely nothing of the bikes after 1970 - it's an age thing probably 😂- but the knowledge you have shared on these is astonishing. Pleased I've discovered your channel - plenty to enjoy here. 👍
I had a K1 - blue/yellow, bought together with my father. Constantly had problems, regularly went out at full speed, the first electronic control unit delivered was faulty. It need one and a half year to find the problem, in the meantime all the modules got changed. ….never again….☹️ Also lost oil, frustrated we sold it after two years with a high loss in value. ☹️ The power in the lower rpm range was weak, since then I don't drive 4 cylinders anymore...😏
My friend owned a Norton Electra. The side stand broke. The electric starter broke. The center stand broke. The kick starter broke. Therefore, he had to lean it against a tree or fence and push start it. I had a RE 250 Continental GT--slow but great fun. I did not have the shifter problem, but the gearbox itself was fragile. I ruined one by speed shifting--the teeth came off a couple of the gears.
When they were first introduced they were notorious oil burners. Because of the way they were assembled, oil seeped past the gaps in the piston rings whenever the bikes were parked on their side stand. Another case of BMW letting their early adopters doing their QC testing for them.
Good engines but I had a tele lever model. Hated the way it steered at low speed. Nearly dropped it on the first roundabout I came to. Very slow steering at low speed. Also very heavy bike. Got a 600 Hornet which weighs under 400 lb @ 95hp. A better power to weight ratio than most modern middleweight street bikes.
@@CaptHollister but hugely amusing when you were front row on the ferry as it arrived at Portsmouth with the bike having spent many hours on the side stand with the oil seeping into the cylinder heads. Cue the start up and you filled the car deck with blue smoke. Choking all those sports bike riders who were smug to the Nth degree. But we were smugger…. Three miles after departing we were at the local Tesco Express picking up a pint of milk for a cup of tea 5 minutes after clearing customs and well before the sports bikers had fallen off the M27 in their search for homes in the wastelands of northern England……
Fascinating, it Has to be said that the RE is easily as sexy as the small capacity Ducati,s from same era, and the MV ( OK smaller dimensions ) looks like a Munch Mammoth, . Also i seem to remember that @ the time reading that BMW worked closely with Peugeot on the K series engine,s ( a bit like Modern day mini,s)
@@bikerdood1100 I kind of answered your question if looked? The modern minis , made by BMW are a collaboration, avec PSA and BMW, it's all there to Google 4 yourself. No secrets
To be fair to MV Agusta, poor electrical components and bad chrome were a feature of all Italian bike manufacturers of the 1970s, except for one: Laverda sourced its components from the same supplier as Honda.
It was only the speedo- and tachometers Laverda shared with Honda. The handlebar controls were the same type that on the Suzukis of the 70’s and the general electric components were from Bosch.
It's a myth about K1s vibrating because of bore/stroke or lack of balance shaft - it's retarded ignition timing for emissions and strict TUV bhp limits. I recently bought a beautiful navy blue/silver K1 (tell me ANY bike that wouldn't be called weird in bright red paint with yellow running gear/seat/giant decals). An $89 Ebay performance chip cut the stock vibes 90%, plus response and power was noticeable.
Didn’t in fact say bore and stroke, the overlay short con rods caused the secondary vibration. Bike would have been sold in a number of regions with different emission regulations, which to be fair in Europe in the early 80s were not particularly tight at all. So the ignition timing is unlikely to be the same everywhere. The US being particularly stringent in some of its States in comparison to Europe. Emissions regulations seem to carry the can for everything these days
The K1 looked weird when it came out and time hasn't improved it. Problems with the MV were solely down to cost, no one could afford one then and still can't now.
Had a BMW K75RT/ABS, loved the bike but a Dog and I had a unintended meeting which caused the dogs demise and broke every piece of plastic on it so it was totalled. Kept the bike with the thought of rebuilding it but a buddy offered me more than I could pass up. Well he made one very fast sports bike out of it.
@@bikerdood1100 Would buy another in a New York Minute if I cold find one. Basically You have to wait till there is a death in the family for one to pop up on the market and then only then if they don't have a clue to what they have.
Such beautiful machines each and every one even if they were failures . A BMW rider pulled up to a red light next to an AMF Harley rider . The Harley rider asked hey , what's BMW stand for ? The BMW rider said Bad Man's Wheels . What does AMF stand for ? And the Harley rider took off saying Adios Muther Fker .
Royal Enfield's Indian operation put a Mikuni carburettor made under licence in India on the Bullet. It is a great improvement on the Amal carburettor, mainly because the body and throttle slide are made of materials that do not wear each other away. Am I right in thinking that the Mikuni carburettor was originally made under licence from Villiers, whose carburettor bodies and slides also do not wear each other away?
Hesketh motorcycles are actually still in production at there factory in Redhill Surrey. The company was taken over by Paul Sleeman in 2010, and who is now also Heskeths chief engineer. In 2014 they released a brand new bike the Hesketh 24 which is being produced in a limited number of 24 machines. All will be tuned by Harris Performance to suit each owners personal preferences.
@@bikerdood1100 Yes, but you claimed Hesketh ceased production, when they obviously have not and are still in business. Also the Hesketh/ Weslake engine is now an old design and it's far cheaper to fit a well designed, tried and tested American SS engine than design a brand new engine themselves. Apart from that, your video was very interesting and enjoyable.
He’s only building 100 I believe, which are apparently all sold. Fitting an American engine though. And I was talking specifically about the V1000 in all fairness. Most people are aware of the 24 after all, it has featured on the TV so it’s existence isn’t exactly news
Of course it did 🙄 And the R series came from the Citroen 2cv Although it did inspire the low line Brabham BMW F1 car which in tern changed the design of formula cars for ever as a slightly more historically accurate note
@@bikerdood1100I have read somewhere that the person who designed the Citroën 2CV engine in the 1940s based it loosely on a 1930s BMW motorcycle engine, having experience of repairing one for a friend.
I think the MV would have sold far, far better if they hadn't left that damned shaft drive on it from the earlier models. After all, Italian wiring never prevented anybody from buying Guzzis, or Ducatis or Laverdas, and they were all significantly more expensive than the Japanese competition. I know that shafts didn't dissuade Guzzi owners either, but the majority of Guzzis were not expected to be hyper sports bikes. The MV was, and the eye-watering price meant that they also needed to be the best, even if they were unreliable. But they weren't the best. They had the damned shaft, they had terrible electrics and they still cost about double of even their European competition,
