Bit of nostalgia in this weird time,i will kick off
Suzuki gp 100
Yamaha rd 250
Yamaha rd 400
Suzuki gs 750
Kawasaki z1r

Currently have
Triumph thruxton
Triumph speed triple

In reply to Post #1
Didn't know you were into bikes Jeff

I will start with now and recent

Ducati Super Sport, full akrapovik, sounds amazing and some carbon, love it

Suzuki GSXR 1000 L8 Moto GP replica. Bike I wanted as a youth and could not afford! Best bike I have owned by a mile, sooooo smooth and powerful, unbelievable bike, just uncomfortable. Day at the coast, knackered for two days lol

Suzuki GSXF 1000 in phantom, really nice bike, just not the R...

Yamaha MT09. For the money I doubt there's a better bike on the market, proper weapon and a hooligan of a machine. 0 - 60 in 2.7 sec. flat out 140mph so they tell me. Mate has had blades all his life, in the bumpy twistys, could not catch me lol

KTM 390 Duke, cracking little bike, don't ask me why I bought it

Honda CRF 250L. Did a bit of winter green lane riding

Honda CBR 600RR Repsol MM replica, nice looking bike, wrote it off, ABS was utter crap

Kawasaki zx6r nice bike

Kawasaki ER6

Large gap, bought a car, misspent youth, fishing, Gym, pubs, fishing

Yamaha RD 125LC, powerband was amazing, massive step up from the ER lol. Loved this bike at the time

Suzuki TS50ER

Mz 50 lol

I've had a few off road bikes on and off over the year too

Trouble with living life in the fast lane, you get to the other end in quick time

They are my 2 or 3 hour hobby for a blast. Love bikes



I see you own a couple of top bikes now Jeff

had a fizzy on the road bitd, but was more into Moto x. Kawasaki kx100 works replica..fckin fast,front wheel came up in every Gear. rm 125 then cr 500.. then I got old and had to stop riding and just go watch.

In reply to Post #2
Yeah i just plod now , I like 70s and 80s bikes cant believe how much some of them go for ! Am looking to try and find a decent rd 250/400 also a bobber.

In reply to Post #1
Had a few "old nails" when I was younger, including a Honda CB200 and a Kawasaki KH250.
Divorced in 2000, so hit my second childhood, bought a Honda 750 Four, followed by a Honda VFR750. Then moved up to the VFR800 and changed that to a VTEC 800.
2006 I bought a brand new Kawasaki ZZR1200, absolutely hated it and after 6 months traded it in for a ZZR1400.
Absolutely loved that bike, superb handling for such a big 'un.
Finally got rid about 3 years later when I lost a very good friend in a motorbike accident and the wife was getting a bit jittery about me riding it.

In reply to Post #4
That's where all the money is now mate. I was talking to a bike dealer in January this year, told me they make more on those than new bikes

Bit of a revolution going on and lads who had these bikes in their youth are wanting them back

TBH I have been looking myself. There were a few bikes I dreamed about owning.

Honda NSR 400 in rothmans colours, stunning bike, going for around 7k!

RGV 250 going for around 5k

RD 500 and RG 500 anything from 10 - 15k!!!

I nearly bought a VTR SP1 a few years ago now, always a bike I liked. It's was going for 3K, same bikes are pulling around 8 now!

EBay or auto trader, try private, not the dealers. I know a shop, they buy them from here, and refurbish them

Owned many bike between the ages of 16 and 21. In my late teens I had two or three kicking about the garage at the same time. Drove my mum potty! I stopped biking when I got married and used the money I got for a couple of my bikes to put down a deposit on the house. I'd rather have had the bikes TBH! So in ascending order from the day I passed my test:

BSA Bantam

Triumph Tiger Cub

Royal Enfield Crusader

Norton Jubilee Twin 250cc

Ariel Arrow 250cc

Aerial Square Four 997cc (Squareil)

Norton Dominator 500cc (Featherbed frame)

BSA B32 342cc Gold Star

650 Triton (Triumph Boneville engine in a Norton Featherbed frame)

And finally (trumpet fanfare)

BSA B34 500cc Gold Star

I like that photo Ken you could've been in Quadrophenia

In reply to Post #8
Yes, very posh gentleman

In reply to Post #7
My dad had a few of those

Loving the clip on drops

I was quite late doing my bike test only passed in 1999 at 28 years old, trying to remember the bikes I had in order easiest way for me to try and work out.

125 KMX as a learner bike took the 500 fast access test then the following bikes I owned were,

ER 500 had it 2 weeks after passing test sold that on then bought an FZR600, absolute bargain in showroom condition on an 89 plate I loved it it was the first bike I went to TT on in 2000, updated then a year later to a brand new Bandit 600 when every dog and his dick owned one went for a ride out and got overtaken by my old mans mate on a 500cc 1960's BSA left me scratching to catch him up, chopped the Bandit in after a few weeks for a Ninja 600 forgiving bike and easy to ride but got bored of the power quickly so chopped that in for a brand new GSXr 750 another one I went to the TT on in In 2002 barely run in had that one less than a few years, settled down then had the power buzz out of my system and bought another showroom condition 92 plate VFR400 only had it 6 months and realised sports bikes and the seated position with my neck injury had to go so bought a new Speed Triple 955i then around 2008/9 I sold it had only done about 1500 miles on it sold it on as it wasnt getting used, bit of a break then from the bikes before I picked up a tidy old Fireblade then realised why I gave the bikes up as that sat in the garage another 12 months and only went out a few times on it, sold that quite some time ago now and never owned a bike since.

I first started riding on a ty 80 on my mates farm at around 9 years old , that was traded in for a ty 175 when i was around 13 , i bought a yam fizzzzz when i was 16 which got nicked from outside college which put me off for a few years until , at 18 i bought a kmx 125, a brilliant bike which i sold to buy a cbr 600 which i sold and bought a yam tenerre 660 before i lost my licence , which was sold to raise money for a property i wanted to renovate .
Around 20 years ago i came across an x Don Morley built c15 , for trials which was nicked a few years later , from the insurance money i bought a late c 15 engine ,then had a frame hand made and built a nice little pre 65 trials bike , which i still have , over the last 10 years i bought and sold 2 tlr 200's but i could not put up with the spit back and stall's whilst i was competing , which brought me to the Fantics , fantastic little trials bikes , i now own 3 X 156 cc and a 250 cc which i regularly compete on , or try too ! oh and a DOT 250 with banana forks , in bits at the moment and a few engines forks frames etc dotted around here n there !

In reply to Post #1
J plate (1991)
RGV250

great bike

also a mid 90s 125 KMX


AR50 , MT5 ,DT50 , DT125....

Started off on a FS1E then a CB100 and passed my test on a DT125. Sold that bike to a mate who sadly was killed on it when we were apprentices. Went for my dream bike at the time a Yamaha RD 350LC YPVS, got lucky on that when it slid under a bus but I didn't going work in the snow. Didn't bother after that til got a Honda CBR500 in 2014. Currently on a 2018 Kawasaki Z650 which I'm more than happy with

In reply to Post #7
Flipping heck Ken thats a fantastic list of bikes if you still owned some of them you would be alot richer !! Brilliant brilliant photo that .Thankyou

First real bike was a Suzuki GSX600F which I ran for around a year before trading it in for a Suzuki GSXR1000.

Then for some unknown reason I decided I wanted an unfaired bike so went for a Suzuki Bandit 600 and then a 1200 before settling on a Ducati Monster which I think was a 900.

I ran that for several years before buying my last bike which was a Ducati 999 which was sold when I had children and moved over to a car

In reply to Post #7
Only ever owned Vespas or Lambrettas, Vespa GL..GT..PX...Lambretta Li..none of this oily greasy rubbish
Love the suit Ken,I've one very similar, tho mines is a 'four n eight',where you a 'Mocker' back in the day?

In reply to Post #17
where you a 'Mocker' back in the day?

@fraid so...

I did own a scooter once, a Lamby 175TV (panel-less of course) but I found I couldn't keep the bloody thing upright, especially on wet roads.

(BTW, looking at your avatar I have to ask, are you any relation to Ferdinando.)

In reply to Post #18
A Tv 175? Beautiful scooter. No relation Ken, I've just loved his scooters since I saw one when I was about 13
G
I've seen restored TV's go for 9-10 grand So much for cheap transport..
Bet you wish you had of kept yours

In reply to Post #19
I think most of my old bikes are now very sought after. Still, no use crying etc.

I had a cagiva mito evo in 2008 when I started getting into bikes, done my cbt and used the Mito to get some road experience ready for my main test. I never done the test though so sold the bike and that was it until 2016 when I bought a suzuki sv650, done all my tests and got hooked! Since then it's taken over from my fishing and other hobbies. I then got a 2012 Yamaha r6 which I sold and got a 2015 triumph street triple r, I've had that for just over 2 years now and it's brilliant, almost as fast as the r6 but so much more usable on the road. I also have an older zx6r track bike which I got just over a year ago and have done 4 track days with.

In reply to Post #21
I worked with a lad, and he did a 50 mile commute everyday on an SV650. It's was his dads and he gave it to him. It' had nearly 80,000 miles on the clock!!!

I was in Padgetts one day and we were discussing bikes. The SV was faster than a 2013 R6 at 0 -60 but after that down hill rapidly

Thinking about doing the same myself mate, 1000cc track day bike. 200bhp on the road is mental

In reply to Post #22
Yeah I'd say that's about right, I remember my first ride on the r6 it felt so weak up to around 7k, I was used to the low grunt of the twin. After 7k it went mental though! I loved owning the r6 but couldn't do many miles on it. It was so hard on the wrists and back. The street is so comfortable but feels just as sporty, sounds great with the arrow can too. Track days are definitely where it's at though, it's so frustrating on the road having all that power not being able to use it, must be even worse with 200bhp!

In reply to Post #23
Those R6 and 600 sort class are more like a proper race bike, not much good road riding around but once you hit that 6 or 7000rpm powerband a whole new level of Ming Mong is discovered

I've had a couple of 600 sport bikes, brilliant for racing around on, like a diesel car, flat as fart without the turbo / powerband. Just used to find them frustrating to ride, up and down the box all the time. When you look at the R6 it's up there with the best and when you see those Isle of Man TT lap times it's pretty amazing

Bikes are at a completely different place now and the electronics are amazing. I heard a few talking a while ago at a local bikers cafe, yeah, I can handle this R1, this that and the other. OK mate I thought, you turn the traction control off and don't change gear at 9 or 10,000rpm, do it at 13,000 because that's where all the power is on those inline 4s, totally and absolutely mind blowing

Added two more to the collection today
Triumph t100 2004 4500 miles black and red
Yamaha rd 400 in kenny roberts yellow fully (properly) restored
Have to build a **** load of rods now to pay for them !
Seriously got the collecting bug now again
Next on the list is a Honda 750 four

In reply to Post #25
Nice 👍

To be fair, I would say they are more like and investment than a loss. I would have thought they would make make money from the day you bought them?

In reply to Post #26
The T100 was a steal , The rd 400 was expensive but a grand cheaper than it was two weeks ago due to lockdown !! Cant wait to ride that round these country roads when lockdown ends ,as long as its not winter !!!

In reply to Post #27
Better get yourself a can of Castrol R

In reply to Post #28
Bloody hell that takes me back , Actually got a girlfriend years ago because she liked the smell of the bike due to castrol r !! Weird bitch !!!

I used Castrol R in all my cafe racers. I would ride up our road then turn and ride back again slowly, sniffing the gorgeous smell of the R as I did so.

In reply to Post #30

the one thing i can remember from watching vintage bikes race up the 1/4 mile hill @ Houghton tower sprint was the smell of Castrol R , all my oils are fully synthetic now sadly !

In reply to Post #30
You tearaway !! When i lived at my mum and dads all the neighbours complained to the council about the noise of my bike after i had removed the baffles !! Oh the good old days

In reply to Post #31
Got to admit, I can smell tit now

Smelt amazing, bikes, bikes, bikes, 2 strokes, tank shake prior to the autolubes, happy days

In reply to Post #33
I hope it's a clean tit

In reply to Post #34


Dunno what's happening of late, typo, predictive text or summat else, can't blame the ale, just finished work

In reply to Post #34
Can't be if he can smell it

In reply to Post #36
Mmmmmm, I'm thinking crusty nipple milk now

Like I once told my mate, if he fell in a bucket of tits he would come out sucking his thumb

In reply to Post #36
“Wash up love, found a bottle of Castrol 2t”

In reply to Post #38
Honda H100SD
Kawasaki ZX10 (original version)
Honda 400
Honda 250
Kawasaki gpz 500
Suzuki sv650
BMW kt1100
Honda CBR 1100 carb
Honda CBR 1100 Fi
Harley Fatbob current bike.

In reply to Post #39

I use putoline in my 2 strokes and have done for a few years now , does anyone know if the 2 stroke oils smell like the old 4 stroke castrol R and are they fully synthetic ? if so it's on the shopping list !

XL 125
DT 125 LC
GAMMA 125

Got a 6 month ban for being silly on the GAMMA. Planned to take my test after the ban and get a RGV 250 or NS400R.

It never happened though.

That was almost 30 years ago.

In reply to Post #40
Not saying one doesn't exist but over the years I've used several different oils in my saws, mineral to fully synthetic but never had or heard of one that smelled like Castrol R.
In the pre cat days the normal answer was to put a few drops into a car's petrol tank to get the smell. I don't think a modern 4 stroke engine would like that now though.