More tech

[RickO]

I have never owned a new motorcycle. I have always bought used or put something together from pieces of other peoples' cast-offs.

I really enjoyed Costa's $1000 Kawi special from a couple of years ago. I would really appreciate how-to articles of all types.

I realize that new bike manufacturers advertise in the mag and I enjoy reading about all the newest things I won't be buying for a while. Aftermarket suppliers also advertise in CC and it would do them a service if how-to articles encouraged people to fix their bikes using their products and services.

An example would be a project bike with a series of upgrades and modifications, tracking costs and time involved and showing some before and after pictures and performance figures.

If you absolutely won't dirty your hands on something that I could afford, then how about projects involving newer machines. For example, a few years back (OK, many years ago) one of the US bike mags converted a GSXR into a decent sport tourer using a different windshield, bars, tires, hard luggage etc.

Sure would be a refreshing change from the me-too test reports of the new bikes that all the other magazines are also reviewing.

[Uwe W.]

Great ideas Rick, and they follow the sentiments you expressed in the Better Bike Shop (http://www.passionperformance.net/community/forum/showpost.php?p=194&postcount=19)thread.

Are there other readers here that would like to see more articles on older/used bikes?

[Malks]

I am like Rick and have never owned a new bike, so I would definitely be one of those interested in articles about older bikes. The Showcase article in CC has always been a favourite of mine; my only suggestion would be to expand it a bit more with additional photos and more details of the build. I liked the last one about the 1170 Kat.

Rick's suggestion of a project bike is a good one. The article could span a few months with updates as the project progresses.

[New & reborn Priest]

The sort of idea which Rick is proposing is a part of just what this sport (and Cycle Canada's contribution to it) is sadly missing.

It isn't hard - but it will deplete you bankroll - to plunk down your cash for a new bike. And when that has a few thousand miles on it and a year or two of age, trade it in for another. With enough bucks and a total lack of involvement, you wouldn't even have to change the oil. You could call it the Hollywood Movie style of bike ownership.

But is that the kind of involvement with bikes that we really admire? Don't we think of a true bike enthusiast as someone who makes his own bike? While we, most of us, are not able to fabricate frames and motors, it is possible (Sidecar Bob does it) to build a bike to our own particular purpose. And maybe in the process teach a young person or two that this can be done.

Not too many of us would lament the passing of the ratbike. (I personally think they had a place in the scheme of things.) But the late 60's model Norton parked on the curb outside the local library last week, one with a vintage Goldwing saddle, skinny tires, and CTC saddlebags grafted on, kept my interest for longer than a new swoopy sportbike or cruiser would... Not too many of those were around that day with snow still on the street.

Is a future generation of motorcyclists going to regard a bike as an unfixable appliance like a refrigerator? And to get rid of the thing as soon as it ages or falters? Or are they going to be educated to see it as an organic thing with a personality, one whose functioning is to be understood and enjoyed for its peculiarities?

[KZDon]

Are there other readers here that would like to see more articles on older/used bikes?

Sure, because it, like the annual fall tour articles, reflect more real-world riding and ownership...at least among this bunch of skinflint fuddy-duddies ;)

[Sidecar Bob]

Me too.

I enjoy the Showcase articles, but wonder if some of them will become uninsurable if their owners' insurance companies notice how many mods they have. I sometimes wonder how far we are from the regulations in some places that require inspection for something as minor as a handlebar swap. I, for one, don't tell my insurance company about any work I have done on my bikes.

Costa's article about buying & fixing up his personal bike was enjoyable on an entirely different level. I wonder how many people who are thinking about getting their first bike pick up a copy of CC and decide that the new bikes are too expensive and too intimidating. This kind of article could be what inspires them to start off with a used bike that they can fix up and put on the road without breaking their budget.

On the other hand, I have a feeling that there are only so many ways to tell that kind of story. Perhaps a column of tips (suggested by readers) for keeping older bikes on the road would be better...