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Thanks for having me on for this episode, and thank you also for the birthday wishes... I'll be looking for a tee shirt in the mailbox with my daily delivery of motorcycle parts!
Thank you Andy Greaser!!! I just cannot stand all the shades of say blue there are in anodized and powder coated parts. And this coming from a strictly dirt bike builds!! The colors are pretty flippin standard in this industry, set in stone, I mean cmon there are only like 6 manufacturers of them total!!, why I can't find anything that doesn't clash with my yz blows my mind!! I'm not even talking just bling items either, couldn't find a rear brake lever that wasn't the expensive oem that didn't clash, or tusk impact wheels! Holy crap, there a great bargain, sorry revzilla, but my god its like baby blue! Plain black?? Nope. That's just a cpl of examples, I see this stuff everywhere. Idk I guess I thought this stuff would be more standardized?? Yz blue, honda red, kawi green, why is it so hard. Am i missing something here? And if not, then just a simple black or silver option is totally acceptable, but sometimes that's not even offered. My cheap Chinese ebay kke wheels, spot on yz blue!I How?? Maybe this is only a yz problem!? Anesthetics is tricky and yes im going to tear it all up anyways, but dangit, i wanna look good doing it. Ok that took alot out of me, im going to lay down for a while. Great episide btw 👍
For the discussion at about 1:10:00, Abso-flipping-lutely!! That is why I am so annoying with my ridign group towards going to courses. The first long-term bike I bought was an FZ6 and I got way in over my head. I scared myself shitless one day and that's when I decided to start taking motorcycling as a sport that requires training, unless I plan of having squared-off tires. Ever since that day in late 2020, I've gone to roughly 5 courses a year. Multiple pitbike courses, multiple big bike vs small track courses, and finally big bike vs big track. There is nothing better than going on track with a 2009 R6 with no electronics, overtaking a 2019 ZX10R on the corners right after a long straight (or an R1, BMW S1000RR, RSV4, for that matter)... Software (skills) before hardware (motorcycle) 😜😜
I also thought the sound was familiar. But did not recognize the bike! I also watched some of his videos and I was wondering where I listened to this sound in the past. I then matched the dots when they revealed it!
My first bike was a two year old Ninja 650 that had zero miles on the odometer, and it was absolutely brand new. When I asked how that was possible, the person I bought it from had a Ninja 400, crashed it, bought the 650 with the insurance, and then was too scared to ride it for two years, until she realized she would never ride it and it needed to go. So yeah, i say the worst bike purchase is the bike you don't ever ride.
People who put the sportiest track day tyres that don’t wam up on the road as they can’t ride the bike hard enough to warm them up then complain the tyres don’t grip.
Here is a horror story for you from someone who has bought a bunch of second hand bikes :D SO let me set the scene . Its 1-2 AM on a Saturday , me and my friends are out drinking and trying to pick up girls .I have had a few drinks and a friend of mine says "Hey I've been looking to buy a motorcycle to learn how to ride on and beat on and i found this no name 150cc for really cheap ,can you come with me to make sure its not a death trap before i buy it ?" And drunk me replies with " Yeah lets go dude , its a 4 hour drive we can be there by 7 or 8 " We close the club ( we get asked to leave because its closing time and the staff wants to go get some rest) Its 4 AM , we are in various stages of drunk or hung over so naturally we get in the car to drive 4 hours to go buy a no name bike . Went there , bought the bike , i ride it back home for another 4 hours , it rides weird but its a no name bike i looked at drunk and bought and i am still under the influence . FF to a day ,i go look at what we did and the frame is bent :D . Moral of the story ? Dont drive 4 hours drunk, to go buy a bike with no name , which you then have to ride back ,while still drunk . Or dont drink or something iduno i never learned anything because i have bough bikes while drunk several times after this
I bought a ktm and put 56 miles on it I will never do that again!! It was over heating and the dealer said that’s natural! So back to Honda would of loved to try something different for sure but so far nothing can do what I want to do for my money other than Honda. I’ve tried Suzukis and Yamahas and Kawasakis, the only thing that worked was 1 Suzuki. So after 30 years I guess it’s honda then suzuki. Kawasaki and KTM is way down the list!! I rather buy a pos Polaris than a ktm! Sturgeon said buy a ktm umm no he’s absolutely wrong! Figured out the hard way! Oh by the way I have a 996 SuperHawk
@@andygreaser6958 HEY ANDY! After about a year of letting it sit I finally got around to rebuilding my EX! Derusted the gas tank (EvapoRust; she's a beaut now), carb rebuild, added fuel filter, new sparks (OG Densos from 90s; yowza), new tires (old ones were from '01!), new EBC brake pads, replaced black nasty brake fluid, replaced seized gas cap, new throttle cables, and FINALLY new x ring chain and sprockets. You were SOOO right, well worth the ~30 hours of work and cruising the ex-500 forums haha. At 9850 miles as of now. It feels like a completely new bike. New BT46s feel great, obviously well overdue, as with much else on this bike... 😮💨 Very excited to get out this spring, especially because I'm teaching my dad to ride on his new KLR! Take care! ☺️ (Videos on the channel if you care to peak. Vid was pre frame wash and sprockets/tires)
@@ChristopherT_ Couldn't be happier to hear that your project bike was a success. Those EX500s are terrific bikes. Wish I could have kept mine, but I have way too many other machines taking up space. Happy riding ✌️
In the 1980's as a young college student in Los Angeles a motorcycle was my only form of transportation. I needed a cheap bike to get around when I was in between real bikes (a track prepped GPz550 and a GS750ES) so relying on the GPz name I purchased a GPz305. I knew it would be slow and less than enjoyable, but for Kawasaki to even put the moniker "GPz" on that little red piece of crap was a total embarrassment to the brand.
I was in a dealer today and they had an MT 10 with 345 miles on the clock, found out the person frightened himself and nearly crashed, so sold it, that was a bad bike and deal, must have lost allot on money in a short time, great second hand bike for the next person.
As of now I haven't bought a bad motorcycle..... yet. in terms of financed. my speed twin 1200 would probably be the most "bad" purchase i made as its the most expensive to run due to the servicing cost and the premium fuel it uses to run out of my bikes, but i can still support my self... poorer cause of it. The best purchase I ever made was on my 2021 postie bike(hunter cub CT 125) which is my 3rd bike. for one i'm not just limited to tarmac roads, I can use all of its power, cheap to run and it puts a smile of my face every time I commute to work in it :).
The sad truth is that in the 1970's I thought that the KZ400 (the standard, not cruiser) would be the perfect motorcycle for me. That is about as high as my aspirations went. I still think it is a good looking motorcycle. . It is important to remember, though, that the speed limit was only 55mph at the time, so even 250's could keep up on the highway. It was very sad when a lot of the Japanese motorcycle companies switched from "standard" to cruiser styling in the early 1980's The photos of the KZ400 and KZ440 LTD illustrate this.
Yeah I remember thinking the 87 Kawasaki Vulcan was the best of motorcycles at the time. God that was the only bike I wanted back then and now I don’t even like cruisers at all. I’m now riding a 2021 Kawasaki Z 900 RS café
@@postersm7141 The irony for me is that I now actually own the new version of the Z400 for a lightweight playbike, but I had forgotten how much I wanted the old one. Forty years of tech later, the current 400 is about as fast as most of the 650's of my youth.
1998 Harley Ultra Classic: no power, flexy-flyer frame, wooden brakes, and gut busting suspension. With mods & purchase, $33k invested. It blew up 2 years and many miles from nowhere. After $4500 in labor, HD covered the parts, I sold it for $14.5k. Ugh. Of the 40 some bikes owned, this was the worst.
Subbed. Gonna go through your videos when I have a chance. I had high hopes for the PanAm, my only concern being longterm reliability, I am very curious to see how they will age after real world use.
Hey guys, bragging here, I have 10 motorcycles, I'm 69 years old and poor. Some would say I'm motorcycle poor. The most I've ever paid is $5,500 dollars for my 2011 Ducati Multistrada 1200 S Touring. I could only afford this because my 2004 Multistrada 1000 DS was stolen and insurance paid out. I enjoy High side-Lowside because y'all talk about older bikes mostly, the kind I can afford. Keep up the good work! Old Roughneck
Worst purchase is a 72 Norton Commando. I had fond memories of my neighbors Norton 850 - he let me ride it a few times and I loved it. Fast forward 35 years and I have a buddy who has one he’s restored to like new condition. I drool over the bike then see a Norton in boxes on Craigslist. It was ‘mostly’ complete - I had the motor built, frame prepped, seat rebuilt, new metal tank painted, wheels relaced,…and it sits. I have yet to do the wiring, find carbs and rebuild the forks. I’ve gotten into dual sports and adv bikes - I’d much rather ride than work on the Norton on the weekends. I’m a few years from retiring - maybe then I’ll find the time to finish it.
Worst bike I bought was when I was 20 years old in 1995. I bought a 1980 Honda CM200. 6 volt bike that the guy had a 12 volt battery in. So I got to figure out why it had electrical issues. It also had no keyed ignition, he had a swamp cooler switch to turn it on. 😂
My background is in writing, and I was looking at applying to RevZilla for a content writer position when I happened to meet Lemmy while exhibiting one of my restorations at a motorcycle show. A few months later, I started at Common Tread.
@@emoservedwithfries most motorcycle publications are open to freelance contributions. Pick a motorcycle topic that you understand well, pitch your story idea to a site or mag that might be interested, and be open to whatever feedback the editor gives. Low-stakes way to get some experience without quitting your day job.
Third bike since I began riding… Yamaha Tracer 9GT, Yamaha Tricity 300 and my Triumph Speed Twin 1200. And I only got my license in August 2023. Yep, I’m the same with cars. Fourth Merc now in theee years. I’m silly that way
Man, I grew up fawning over paintball magazines. Glad I never felt pressured to buy a gun of my own cause I could always borrow my dad's or an uncle's. I think paintball is mostly going away and airsoft is taking its place
Steg pegz are australien and made for the Finke desert racer and they are crucial for this race for those who knows but for pine barren with jack 😂 its a bit over the top and can get in the way
If Norton pulled a royal Enfield interceptor(a good looking bike for a good price) maybe but I just don't think Norton has the market or the funds to create such a product.
Those of us that are at the point of only owning a used motorcycle as primary mobility. We tend to research and be as patient as possible to get the best reliable deal.
Ha! My guess was going to be the Husqvarna based on the first two hints. I was more confident of that after hearing the engine sound for the second time. I am familiar with this bike's sound only because I used to follow a RU-vidr called TheRoyalJordanian. He rides the Nuda! It's even in the intro soundtrack to every one of his videos, well, at least from a few years ago. Not sure what he rides now, though.
Great episode. I am tipping my hat to Andy for his love of inexpensive, small motorcycles. I tend towards the latests and greatest and have spent way too much!
I had a 2000 ZRX 1100 and I absolutely love that bike and would still have it today if it wouldn’t have gotten stolen from the motorcycle shop of all places. Now I have a 2021 Kawasaki Z 900 RS café
It would be neat to hear a commentary on the sport cruiser class of bikes. The sport bikes that are made to be more comfortable like a cruiser and the cruisers that have a sport engine put in them ( ex... honda magna with a vfr motor in it) to spice it up.
Worst motorcycle purchase that exists: bmw 650 gs. Single cylinder turd that’s as fun to ride as walking. Worst motorcycle adjacent purchase: shoei and arai in america in general (snell only no ece) but specifically the shoei gt air II, $700 for a dot only helmet. Ridiculous.
Don't think I had a bad one my best purchase Honda cb500x. Guy was legit moving and I had only had 500 cash so that's what he took. Sold it 6 months later added 5,000 miles to it dropped it once got 3,500 for it.
Around 1:45 into this conversation you guys bring up a game that I play all the time, "What car/suv/truck is equivalent to this bike?" For example, I think a Honda NC750X is like a VW Passat. Gets good gas mileage, is kind of nerdy, does what it is asked simply, but doesn't win any MAJOR style points. What vehicle was I describing? You can't tell because I was talking about both .
I have two Norton 961s. A 2016 Commando SF 961 and a 2017 Dominator Naked 961. I live in the USA and my only complaint is that TVS Norton refuses to sell spare parts.
I've been riding for like 5 years and I've bought more motorcycles than Zack worst one was... an 2015 R3 that I owned for about 3 days and traded for a 2020 MT03. It had a frame guard the previous owner had clearly dropped the bike on and it was STUCK. ON. ran okay but felt choppy at low speeds. the KZ 440 doesn't sound all that bad, ~40hp on a 440cc bike from the 80s is a good deal, but i guess it's not really spurgeon-sized and also the cruiser styling isn't for everyone. I owned a 1990 vulcan 500 for 4 years so it definitely doesn't bother me.
HD TwinCams every one I owned had rear cylinder intake lifter failure causing various levels of catastrophic engine failure. Dyna Wideglide 96”, Crossbones 96”, RoadGlide 103”, RoadKing 103”, RoadGlide 110 CVO, RoadKing 117 CVO.. everyone of them had rear cylinder intake lifter failure at 6-12k miles all were fixed under warranty but it would take the dealerships 3-8 months to fix each one - I have been fortunate to own at least 2 bikes at a time I wouldn’t have been able to ride a full season in the northeast. I tried every brand of lifter/cam plate and oil pump at best they would delay the inevitable. Cue the responses - I’m sharing legit experience- it’s not a flame and there is zero need for hurt feelings or personal attacks. I’ve since moved on and I no longer have to deal with arrogant service writers and for the last 6 years have had zero issues with the current brands I ride. I stopped riding/owning HDs for the last 3 years… They just don’t survive long long days at real highway speeds. If I have ta Xplain ya wuldn’t undaStanD.. yeah that’s why I kept on trying to support HD along with relationships in the HD corporate and consumer environments.
I did just that I bought a Honda night hawk 650 bit off more than I wanted to get into I will get it running right but it will take time it not my first bike but it's been a long time since I been on a bike I am 62 years of age in November I will 63 don't feel that I am to old just wish I had looked over this thing a little closer!!!!!!!
I like the comparison with Indian in the Norton story. It's not like you can't have a successful revamp. The key difference in my mind is that Indian makes bikes for the "masses". Norton seems like more of a collectors bike brand. They appear to want to make a small amount of bikes to circumvent certain emission and other standards. I'm not sure who they are gunning for except maybe the affluent UK brand snobs. Good for them but in my mind not a positive for the biking world. Just my 2 cents. I'd rather have a lot of great bikes then just a small number (by design) of super bikes. You could argue it's about the beauty and art but as proposed in an earlier episode, bikes should be ridden imo
Steg pegz were designed for desert racing like Finke, Baja or Dakar to help ease the fatigue of countless hours standing on the pegs at 150 km/h over rough ground, allowing you to relax your arms and legs from gripping the bike a little and still be locked in, I don't see a benefit for an adventure bike when you can slow down and sit for a spell
The worst moto purchase for me was a Suzuki Savage that was my wife's first bike 7 years ago. That thing was horribly uncomfortable. You basically just sit on your tailbone and grind it to powder. After about 15 minutes you want to get off. Not to mention the horrible vibrations. She loved riding, but hated the bike and ended up selling it and giving it up for a few years. Now she's got one of the new KLR 650s and loves the bike AND the riding. She didn't understand you can actually take a long multi day trip on a bike until now and is hooked. Amazing what a bad bike can do to someone's want to ride, especially starting out.
Kawasaki 440 LTD .. that was me probably. My first street bike. I loved it. 17 years old. Just finishing high-school, lived in the country with nothing but backroads and no insurance ... living the dream. At least I made an impression. I also owned an 81 Honda CR/GL 500 with a transverse v twin. That was my worst purchase ever. Ask, and I'll tell you why. But what a sweet build that thing was. It had a single wheeled, you're tow behind trailer that connected at the rear axle.
My first bike was a buell blast and it was terrible in every way. But it was my first bike so i learned a ton on it, it was cheap, small, and i didn’t care much about it so you thrash it about. My next bike was a cbr500r (new) and it was my actual worst purchase. It looked AMAZING but ultimately wasn’t super comfortable and id ride around with 1 hand 90% of the time on straight roads (corners were fun, but few and far between). I felt disconnected from the whole motorcycle experience. Like riding around with 1 hand was a very “meh” experience. I missed the terrible buell because it was more involving and interesting. I SHOULD of done more research prior to the CBR but money wasn’t really an issue, i just wanted a new bike and it looked great. I thought it was what i wanted. (But i also only had 1 other bike so i didnt really know WHAT i wanted haha). I got most the money back on re-sale and it also taught me a lot, but it wasnt a smart purchase. Now i know better 😂
My first bike and one I still own is a ‘95 EX500. I decided that I’ll never get rid of it, instead will restore it as much as I can and ride it around town and get a mid-size adventure bike for traveling.
I had breakfast at Wailin'Wayne's Weekend with Charles Lucht, the 2016 BMW Trophy winner. He mentioned that Zach was the covering reporter for the trip through Thailand and would wheelie up raised concrete 2 tracks and the like. Charles was impressed with Zach's riding and said he was a good guy and I would love to hear more about Zach's experience on this trip!
Norton was a good bike in their day. The only way they could make it would be to build a dual sport that is better than any on the market. The retro look is going away before much longer don't expect it to last for years.
There was an interesting snippet on Norton recently to add: they had an intermediary model due to come out early next year (Atlas 650) which they planned as part of the refresh, but that's been now squashed and those who ordered have lost their deposit. They argue this model was born from the people involved in the transition of the TVS takeover and now that's no longer in their plan, but for me it's dodgy news layered on top of a dodgy brand. I'm not actually worried about TVS itself in this equation, rode them in India in the past, perfectly serviceable and affordable. Norton just has such a troubled history, it seems hard to shake, and that premium not so premium niche it sits in never really appealed to me on any level.
Never had to leave a comment before but I had to jump in here. Steg Pegz might look stupid but are incredibly useful and easily one of my best purchases. Pivot Pegs on the other hand suck.
This episode hit too close to home. Reminded me that buying an 80’s Ducati when you are 17 and only working part time is not the best financial decision.
i like listening to these podcasts a lot. i dont know why i avoided podcasts in general for so long, but this is one of the 4 or so that i regularly listen to. wish there were more of them out there.
Another good podcast....ive had over 30 bikes, btw...of all types and brands..with more to come!! Not in the industry, but boy, i love motorcycles!!😀😀like all of us, i guess!
Hello guys. Love the podcast. Question for you two. I have a 2016 Harley Davidson Dyna Wide glide for riding on roads and for trips, but wanted to get a more dirt oriented dual sport, like a KTM EXC-F 500 for riding the dirt roads and trails near me in Colorado. To maybe help, I am 6'3" and weight 185lbs. What are your thoughts on a good dirt oriented dual sport? Is the KTM EXC-F 500 overkill? Should I look at getting a Honda CRF300L Rally or something instead? I might want to carry some light bags for overnight hammock camping and have watched video's on larger bikes like the 500 having no problems carrying things to a point. I just don't want something that will feel under powered, but also not looking for a death wish machine either. Looking for light and nimble, so even though the KTM 890 is cool, I think its a bit heavy for what I want to do. Thank you in advance for any help you can provide.
I'm 6'1 180lbs and I'd go smaller. Sheer twist of fate I ended up with a 125cc Chinese dirt bike and it actually kinda hauls ass. It is honestly a little cramped, and I'd never want to take it on a highway, but for exploring dirt it's more than enough to get into trouble (currently typing with a broken shoulder lmao). I'd say a 250 is a great starting point unless you need to lay down hard-core mileage. Should be tall enough to be comfy and definitely enough power to freak you out on dirt.
You can also make an appointment with any MOTUL certified repair station and tell em Spurge sent cha! lol I think Norton is going for the nostalgia market, and those people will pay for memories. Look at the VW Beatle when that came back there was a wait list for them and they getting 18-20K each. As a guy who likes to own and drive vehicles you don't see many of on the road I would, more than likely, buy a Norton. Only ever bought 2 bikes the first was a mistake. 1972 Honda CB450 I bought from a guy I know for $200. it was a project bike that was full of potential but never got it kinetic. It was a bad time for me as I went on disability and didn't have the money to fix it up. Sold it back to the original owner a year later for $100. So, basically I paid him $100 to store his bike for a year. No clue on this weeks bike 😞 Andy good guest, not as good as Lance, but good! So the HD Glides are the Family Trucksters of the motorcycle world? Go F Yourself Highside Lowside! I'm Spurgeon Dunbar? Does the FTR have cruise control? Of course Spurge would take the Indian FTR he hates cruisers lol!
*_Love your guy's podcast. Sorry for not leaving a review on the apple podcast. I've never really gotten into them until your guys show. Thanks for the chat._*
Hmmm... It depends. In a way, Honda CB450S was the worst bike I've ever owned, BUT I did own a couple of older Tomos 50cc ex-postman mopeds. They were meant as a laugh, and ended being mine for some years. They were utter crap. P.s. CB was nicknamed "POSH". Not "fancy", but Piece Of Shit HonGda.
