Post Sale Update: This RT1 sold for $6,855 after 32 bids on eBay. Yamaha earned themselves a lot of fans with the release of the 360cc RT1 enduro in 1970. The motorcycling public had high expectations after the smaller DT1/AT1 models, so the big brother was going to be just as good, right? Indeed it was. That’s why they are …
Ending Soon – 1971 Kawasaki G4TR Trail Boss
Post Sale Update: This Trail Boss sold for $2,225 after 37 bids on eBay. Kawasaki’s challenger to Yamaha’s DT100, the G4TR was also known as the Trail Boss in certain markets. It was was a light-weight, go-anywhere enduro with a 5×2 speed transmission. You could climb a 40 degree angle in first gear or keep up with traffic doing 65 …
Fighting Red – 1990 Honda Transalp XL600V
In the late 80s, Honda offered both an AT and a TA – the Africa Twin and the Transalp. Both were ahead of the times, though the latter was more street-biased. Consider it a jack of all trades sort of bike with a cult following. The US only got the Transalp between ’89 and ’91, and it was much more …
Quail Gathering Winner – Restored 1976 Yamaha XT500
Restored by Owen Bishop of Moto41 Restorations, this is one of the nicest XT500s I’ve ever seen. I first saw it in person at this year’s Quail Motorcycle Gathering where it won 1st Place in the Japanese category (beating out an awesome Honda CB750 Police Bike that I thought was more interesting), and it’s also won 1st Place at the …
ISDT Tribute – 1965 BSA B40 Enduro Star
Post Listing Update: Despite 48 bids up to $3,049, this BSA did not meet reserve. In the 1965 ISDT, BSA’s factory efforts with 350s and 441s had ground to a halt by day four thanks to the Prince of Darkness, Joseph Lucas. That’s obviously a bit of a stretch, but every works bike was knocked out due to electrical problems. …
“V649HP” – 2009 Kawasaki Versys Custom
Starting with a Kawasaki Versys 650, this seller has created a hell of a gravel road runner. There isn’t much here that identifies this as a Kawi.
Bike Review – 2017 Kawasaki Versys-X 300
View Post2000 Moto Guzzi Quota 1100ES
Post Listing Update: This Quota was pulled off of eBay, final sale price unknown. Moto Guzzi took their well-known 1,064cc twin and threw it in an ADV package to compete against BMW’s GS bikes. The result was as you’d expect – too heavy and under-suspended for serious off-road work, but very capable as a sport-tourer that could also play on …
Rare in the US – 2017 Bultaco Brinco RE
Bultaco stopped producing bikes in 1983, though they had a brief revival in 1998 when Sherco (a combination of Sherpa and Bultaco) used the name for a couple of years. The firm was best known for their two-stroke off-roaders and even the occasional road bike like the Metralla. So when the company was revived in 2015, it was a bit …
Yamaha Way-Back Machines
Vintage dirt bikes and enduros have become very popular lately. People have been dragging them out of their garages and barns and cleaning them up and they show up in large numbers at events like Barber Vintage Festival. Cruising Craigslist as I do (it’s a problem, I know) it appears the trend may be peaking. When you see a lot …
Great Story – 1974 Honda XL250 K1
This listing is for a Honda, but the reason it’s for sale is to fund the repair of a Willys Jeep. It’s a two-owner bike with an asking price of $1,500 and it’s clear that the owner is someone you’d enjoy hearing stories from over a beer. Does that make the bike worth it? Who knows, but you should at …
Restored but Sitting – 1985 Cagiva Elefant
11-3-17 Update: 10 months later, this bike is back up for sale with a slight discount down to $2,950. More importantly, the seller is now willing to offer the buyer a Dakar tank and seat for an additional $1,400 – I’ve updated the feature photo above to show what it looks like because it’s just plain cool. The auction ends …
Raw Hyde Adventures’ 2017 BMW Fleet
Elite riding schools typically utilize the latest and greatest machinery available, and RawHyde Adventures is certainly no exception. This also means they need to clear out last year’s fleet of machines to make room for the new bikes. There are a number of elements that make the bikes that RawHyde is selling that much more attractive, plus, the prestigious ADV …
Plated Enduro – 1984 Honda XR500R
1984 was the last year of the XR500R and it went out in style with a victory at the Baja 1000. The following year, Honda would bump up displacement to create the XR600. This example stands out as it is plated, it has just 850 miles, and it looks great.
Lightweight ADV – 1988 Honda NX250
The easy complaint with what manufacturers are calling “ADV Bikes” nowadays is that they’re just too damn big. If you also subscribe to that theory, let me go back in time a few decades with you. The middle weight of the Honda NX line-up (which also included a 125 and a 650) was the NX250, which was available for just …