jcstokes wrote on 08/25/25 at 12:56:44:


Neither are available in the States.  What do you think of them?  

Harley is supposedly coming out with a bike under $6,000 available in the States within a year.  I think it'll be a flop.  They haven't shared any details.

I read somewhere that the H/D x350 , x500 are made in China and are rebranded Benelli’s with some slightly different colors & graphics. I’ve seen several different versions of the Honda 350 single , all very Honda , all very retro. Haven’t seen anything other than an artist AI rendering of a 500 single. Only thing I hear is 2026 here. First choice would be a Honda then a RE , or a RE 650 , CFMoto  I just can’t see one in my garage or under the tree in the yard. In the meanwhile I’ll just ride my tracker , no rev limiters , no abs , no traction control , no fly by wire throttle a real cable to a real carburetor , just a simple motorcycle that makes me smile and will never sell.

Yeah you can’t even call the V7 retro , it simply hasn’t changed much. That’s the appeal of the bike , value & dependability.

I can't help with many new bike recommendations. I started on dirt bikes, first on a Honda Elsinore 125, then a Yamaha 360 Enduro, back in the '70s. (That was after recovering from a bad collision on a Honda Dream 250 in 1970.) My street bikes have been a '72 Triumph TR6R, a '74 Honda CB750, a '94 Suzuki VX800, an '82 Kawasaki 750 twin, a couple of '82 Yamaha Virago 920s, an '02 Honda Shadow 1100, an '02 Moto Guzzi California EV, and my '02 Savage. Most of them were bought as basket cases, except the VX, the Shadow, and the Goose. The Guzzi was my favorite of them all, but I got old, got sciatica, and was afraid I'd drop it at a light or something. The seat height was just too high. I just acquired another basket case: an '85 Honda Nighthawk CB650sc. That'll be my entertainment this winter.  I like standards. My son is looking for a big single dual purpose that he can put fuel injection on. I personally think EFI might be a bit of overkill for a single, but he's going for it.