I just love the dual-sports because you can ride on the street or the highway legally, then duck off onto the trails and go exploring whenever you want. I don't need a street-only bike, I'd get into too much trouble with a crotch-rocket.

 

Here's a short video, idle/rev and walk-around... it was still warming up. The sound on the video really doesn't do it justice. You can really feel the thump of it in person!

<iframe width="640" height="480" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Jfw1yVTkQBc" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

That's a sweet little bike!

 

Impossible to do. Nice bike!

 

It's very easy to do when you have a 500.00 speeeding ticket in your wallet

 

Ouch! The only speeding ticket I ever got was $420 in my '95 V8 T-bird... 91 in a 65 on the freeway a couple weeks after graduating high school. Had to sell my 1970 Firebird project to pay for it.

 

117 in a 75 on the freeway

 

I'm surprised you didn't go to jail! OUCH

 

The only thing to save my azz Glenn is my dad is a cop where I got stopped at. And as soon as I seen him I pulled over he didn't even have to turn his lights on.

 

Man this makes me want to get a bike again. I had a '78 Yamaha XT550 as a kid. It was beat to pieces when I got it and I just rode it until it would hardly run. Didn't have the money or the time to mess with it so I sold it cheap. During the time I had it I managed to help a friend of mine burn up his YZ125 trying to keep up with me! Locked his motor up tight!

Two things to remember:
1- ride like you're invisible and assume that no one sees you coming
2- if you ever get to the point where it doesn't scare you just a little to get on that bike, get rid of it. Stop respecting its power to kill you and you're getting close to letting it do so.
Other than that, just have fun. I'd love to get a bike again, but I think I would be looking for a new wife if I did that. Maybe someday after the kids are bigger. Or maybe something like this and I could convince her it is just a "dirtbike"... Gotta be at least as safe as the three wheeler we ride around the place now right!? LOL

Bike looks great Evan. Be careful and have fun.

 

Oldbird1965,

If I could figure out how to post a picture here I'd put one up of my '66. It's matching numbers but not stock. My brother used to own a bike repair shop in upstate NY which mainly concentrated on British bikes and this is one he accumulated during that time. It was a basket case so he used the parts he thought would make the bike better like the later dual pull front brake hub and a single carb for ease of tuning. The bike was supposed to be for his wife but the kick starter was so short and she was so light she couldn't manage to kick it through. Soooo, when I was 17 he just gave me the bike with the understanding that I don't sell it. I'm 50 now and he hasn't had the shop in close to 30 years. I think he still has eight or ten BSA's and Triumph's lying around.

As far as the vibration goes I know what you mean. I had my bike up to 70 the other day and besides the fact that it's at about 4k rpm it really starts to vibrate at that speed. I think I need to change the gearing a bit for highway riding so I don't feel like the motor's going to toss a rod at any moment!

Jeff