When comparing new bikes with those of the past I struggle to  find any real improvements other than power output.   The manufacturers seem to be attempting to reinvent the wheel, but usually are going backwards in the process.
Royal Enfield of India used to make some really nice bikes, but they have lost the plot with some of their latest efforts.      Same deal with Ural.

Driving a bike designed in the 1930's and basically unchanged, has shown me that youngsters are far more interested in classic bikes than todays plastic fantastic adventure bikes.  They may be confused, but they are not blind.

springman wrote on Yesterday at 12:09:04:


Which newer designs do you appreciate and why ?

I do love the look of old classic motorcycles.....especially 500cc singles.  Matchless bikes are lovely, the BSA Gold Star has always excited me, and the Norton Manx is just about as cool as any motorcycle could be.

There is a local fellow who has been a collector for years, and I bought a little Honda Trail 110 from him.  He is approaching 80 years old and he showed me his rather large collection that took 2 building to display.  He is just starting to sell off his motorcycles and would likely sell you something for a reasonable price.

He had 3 BSA Gold Star bikes in very good condition.  I told him that I always felt I wanted a big 500cc vintage bike.  He asked me why - was it for a "collector",or a bike to ride.  He cautioned me that he has owned and ridden Gold Stars since they were new, and they are not at all like a modern motorcycle.  They vibrate significantly, and they are not easy to start reliably.  He said the majority of the time he can get them started - but sometimes they just refuse to start and you need to walk away and try another day.

Here is the starting procedure for a Gold Star from a British Bike Forum:

STARTING PROCEDURE FOR A GOLD STAR

1. Open the petcock.

2. Pull in clutch lever and put bike in neutral, sometimes rocking the bike backwards and forwards a little to make this possible.

3. With the clutch lever still pulled in I kick through to be sure clutch plates are free.

4. Release clutch lever.

5. Move magneto lever to 1/3 of its full travel.

6. Apply choke (in the case of the two Gold Stars and G80; not for ZB34 or G80CS)

7. Tickle carburetor until fuel appears.

8. Pull in compression release lever and kick bike through 4-5 times.

9. Release compression release lever.

10. Tickle again until fuel appears.

11. Use kickstarter to bring piston to the hard stop near TDC, pull in compression release, and use kickstarter lever to ease it a few degrees farther, just past TDC (in the case of the G80CS continue to push kickstarter nearly to bottom of travel).

12. Release compression release lever.

13. Allow kickstarter to return to the top of its travel.

14. Holding the front brake to keep the bike stable I kick the bike through with as much force/speed as I can muster.

15. A millisecond after the kickstarter lever reaches the end of its travel I rock the palm of my hand to blip the throttle slightly while still keeping the front brake applied with my fingers.

16. Assuming it started I immediately remove the choke while continuing to blip the throttle. The font brake no longer needs to be applied unless all of this is taking place on an incline.

17. Immediately after removing the choke I move the magneto lever to full advance while continuing to blip the throttle.

Supplemental Procedure

17. If it did not start I repeat starting with step #11.

18. If after a few more tries it hasn't started I remove the choke (if applied) and repeat starting with step #7.

19. At this point push starting becomes the only option, ideally aided by several strong friends and/or a hill.


While vintage bikes have "soul" - they are not better than modern bikes for a lot of us who want a reliable and comfortable bike to ride on long rides.  They require more maintenance and parts wear much faster than they do on modern motorcycles.  They don't have counter balancers and vibrate a lot more than a modern motorcycle.  They have drum brakes that are not as easy to operate as a modern motorcycle with disc brakes and ABS.  They have spoked wheels with tubes and flat tires are hard to repair while out on the road.  And while I have owned a lot of motorcycles with kick starters and never felt it was a problem - kick starting a 500cc single is a bit of a challenge (Having an electric starter that works every time is a nice thing as I approach my Geezer years).

I would still love to have a vintage "collector" motorcycle to ride locally when the mood hits me - but the motorcycle I am going to ride for 200-300-500 mile day rides with my buddies is a modern motorcycle.

I am currently building a Savage that will somewhat resemble a vintage British single.  It is a way I can get a bit of a classic look while still having a modern engine and chassis.

And I agree......you just can't get a modern bike that has the classic looks of a vintage bike!!!!!