Guys, I feel the need to come clean on this issue. I couldn’t sleep the other night and it was 4 am! So I did what every 58 year old motorcycle geezer would do and I flipped on the internet. I spent the next 2 hours looking at JUGGS. I looked at big ones and little ones and several hundred others spread out in between. I came to the conclusion that size is not the most important factor to be considered. Here are a few conclusions I made.
1.BIG ones that under perform are not as good as smaller issue that kick ass!
2. Size is not as important as the Juggs matching the frame they are on. Example is big juggs on a little frame don’t come off right. On the other hand little juggs on a big frame ain’t right either. The jugg or juggs if you will, need to be a useful size for the frame they are on.
3. To touch and feel them is always more important than just looking at pictures !
4. Some are very high maintenance, and others just keep on doing what they were meant to do with very little upkeep.
5. The bigger they are the more it costs you to keep them happy and in top shape.
I know a guy shouldn’t compare juggs but, I have to give you my thoughts on this topic-----------------The juggs I like best are on these bikes.
# 1 bike for me is a 1973 Penton Jackpiner or husky 360 cc
#2 bike is a a late 60’s BSA Victor 441
I probably like these bikes best cause that’s when I could almost afford to buy one. I Lusted for those two bikes!
WHAT is you favorite bike of all time?
David H
Last edited by david h on 11 Dec 2009 10:57, edited 2 times in total.
I remember as a kid on my bicycle at the local trails seeing an 441 Victor and a Norton Commando climbing some big hills. There was also a guy on an old Sportster there as well. That was before the Japanese invasion of 2T dirt bikes and you just rode your street bike off road. Seeing this endeared me to those old bikes. I always liked the S-model Nortons with the high pipes too.
'74 XLCH kick only, '81 GS750EX, '98 / '00 Buell S3T's, any 620 RXC, any 300 EXC/XCW - EXC450.
These are a few of the over 30 bikes I've owned over the years. These bikes may not have been the fastest or best handling bikes in their class, but they were fun to ride and that's what it's all about, having fun.
I've been riding motorcycles my entire life--I turned 38 this year. However, I'm not "into" motorcycles like a lot of you are--I guess. What I mean is, I notice that many of you know a lot about motorcycles that I don't seem to know. You know interesting history of the manufacturers, you are familiar with all the models. You can describe the changes in a particular model throughout the model's life-cycle.
I often say, I've been riding my whole life, but I'm not technically a good rider. (Many of you can attest as you've witnessed me flailing around on the ground or helped me limp back to my bike!) After all these years, I'm still scared to pull a wheelie, and I make stupid mistakes when things get even the slightest out of control.
I've not been exposed to a lot of different bikes. I started around 5 years old with a Honda MiniTrail 50. A real clutch and 3 gears. If I had to pick just one bike that I loved more than all the others, that would probably be it. I LOVED that machine. Growing up on the farm with an abusive father who believed "fun" was from the devil, I felt very lucky to be able to occasionally ride that little motorcycle in between chores. We had 240 acres filled with terraces. Dad would not allow us to jump, but he really couldn't see us on the back 40.
That little motorcycle represented freedom and hope to me.
My world was crushed one day when my older brother pulled up to our gas tanks to fill up the MiniTrail. Several months prior, the kill switch stopped working. As was typical, instead of fixing it, dad told us, "just pull the spark plug wire off". I hated the anticipation of the electrical shock as you tried to time your yank between pulses--an impossible task. Well, on this day, the inevitable happened. My brother had pulled the spark plug wire off to kill the little motor. He removed the gas cap and filled up the tank. Then, he made 2 critical mistakes. He forgot both to replace the gas cap and the spark plug wire. With one kick, gas sloshed out of the tank and onto the open spark. WHOOSH! My beautiful, little, blue MiniTrail became a charred, black, melted wires, rubber, and seat foam pile on the gravel.
I guess dad figured we got what we deserved. It took me several months to work up the courage, but I could not stop thinking about that motorcycle. So, at probably 7 or 8 years of age, I collected scraps of electrical wire and a roll of black tape I stole from the workshop. One by one, I traced the burnt, bare wires from point A to point B, and as best a kid can do, I replaced them with my scraps--twisting wire ends together and covering with black tape.
I found some foam rubber scraps and using duct tape, I fashioned a place to sit on the bike. The bike looked like some kind of Mad-Max, apocalypse, Frankenstein contraption. After taking the carburetor apart, cleaning with WD-40 (that's all I knew), finding the tiny needle I dropped in the gravel, I got her buttoned back up.
VROOOOM! A few kicks, and the little MiniTrail fired up! My little brother and I rode that thing for several more years.
Since then, I've only ridden and owned a handful of machines. My oldest brother (11 years older than me) had a 100cc Yamaha enduro that he left behind on the farm. It barely ran, but we got to enjoy it from time to time. Dad had a newer 100cc Kawasaki Enduro. It was basically a street bike with dirt springs on it. When we got older, dad would allow us to ride it around the farm. However, he would never allow us on the road and told me that I'd never ride a motorcycle on the streets while living with him. (That was one obstacle I knew I could solve!). I moved off the farm before my 18th birthday and quickly picked up some kind of 185 cruiser--a Yamaha I think. A year later, I found a beautiful 250cc Kawasaki F11 Enduro. I met a beautiful girl when I owned that motorcycle, and she loved riding on the back on the country roads. That bike gave me enough of a "bad boy" image that she was able to overlook the real geek I am! I've been married to her for over 17 years now. A few years later, I picked up an 84 Yamaha Seca 750--first "real street bike". I remember being thrilled and terrified of the big power the 750 had. It was so much bigger than anything I had ridden before.
I sold the Seca and had a 5 year dry spell before my brother and I decided to buy KLR650s. Loved the gravel road riding--getting back out in the country. The KLR quickly led us to real off-road riding where we decided smaller bikes were necessary. Sold the KLR, picked up a 99 DR350. Great bike, but I beat the hell out of it while all my riding buddies eased over obstacles on their "race-ready" KTMs. In March 2008, I dropped the big money on my 2008 Husqvarna TE450--fuel-injected, 50-state street-legal, off-road MONSTER. It's been great, and I love it, but not as much as I loved that Honda MiniTrail.
I have to say I'm a big fan of my Suzuki DL650 (Vstrom). I think a like it for some of the same reasons I liked my KLR. It's a great value and fits multiple niches. It's so comfortable and economical for commuting to work, yet I can go on a 1,000 mile 3 day road ride and throw in 100 miles of gravel while I'm at it.
If money, space, and time were not issues, I'm sure I'd own a lot more bikes, and at least one of every genre. Right now, I'd love to get a trials bike to play around in my back yard and practice balance and control.
1.BIG ones that under perform are not as good as smaller issue that kick ass!
2. Size is not as important as the Juggs matching the frame they are on. Example is big juggs on a little frame don’t come off right. On the other hand little juggs on a big frame ain’t right either. The jugg or juggs if you will, need to be a useful size for the frame they are on.
3. To touch and feel them is always more important than just looking at pictures !
4. Some are very high maintenance, and others just keep on doing what they were meant to do with very little upkeep.
5. The bigger they are the more it costs you to keep them happy and in top shape.
I'm just still imagining all those boobs.
thanks David
One of my favorite bikes was also one of the worst ones I owned: My Mom like alot of moms was a card carrying anti-motorcycle freak. I got a few chances to attempt (key word) motorcycles when I visited friends that lived on farms.
I knew purchasing a motorcycle would have to be a covert operation. My Dad, risking hot meals and other pleasurable activities helped me secretly buy a bike. She didn't talk to either of us for a week.
The trip to the dealer was a adventure in it's self. Ely's Suzuki in Inman. KS. I immediately fell in love with a 72' Suzuki TS400 cyclone. Bad selection for a guy that had less than a mile of experience on a 75 cc Indian.... which I wrecked by the way. The dealer pulled the bike out and started it for me (yes, I was buying a bike I couldn't even kick start!). Thanks to my guardian angel, the bike was pointed down a street that lead out of town. I was gone! Feet failing wildly, butt hanging off the seat (taillight crammed in my crack), slamming through stop signs and dips on my way to certain death. Luckily the bike must have had about two ounces of gas because it quit, coasting to a stop. Yes, coasted to a stop because I didn't know how to use the brakes. The dealer loaded it on the trailer for us, gave me a free helmet (do think I'll need it?), and had the local priest say a few Hail Marys.
I read later the Suzuki TS400 was one of the worst 2 stroke enduro bikes built. Low, long, heavy, with a completely unpredictable torque curve. I replaced broken parts like candy...mirrors, tank, taillights and rear fenders. I was worth every bruised kidney and bloodied body part.
Finally broke Mom of her motorcycle paranoia when she witnessed me losing control of a wheelie, dressed only in sneakers and cutoff jeans - on pavement. I think the hysteria of attempting to lift the bike off her mangled son cured her on the spot.
I guess the nostalgia makes you forget what a piece of crap your bike might have been.
Other bikes that have to get honorable mentions would be the DR350 and Weestrom, great dual purpose bikes.
""She'll never understand" (the love of motorcycles)
KLX435sr
Been there, done that: Husqvarna TE450, KTM 400EXC, TS400, TM250, XL250R, DR350, DR650, Weestrom, and 500 Interceptor.
"The first time I ever took a motorcycle airborne was the moment I realized that man can do some really stupid things while trying to impress a pretty girl."
Troy is right, that old Honda MiniTrail will never be forgotten. But for me, the day our neighbor(Jerry) came riding up the hill to our farm, bouncing on the seat of his new Honda, was a great day! What was that?...a mid-80s CR50? XR70? All I know for sure is that it was pretty new and the supspension/power was superior to our beat up, charred mini-trail. The day I first jumped it, our older brother (Erik...same one who caught the mini-trail on fire) was out riding horses with said pretty girl. They were stopped in the "South 40" at the top of the large terraced hill that formed the highest point of our property. I came up the hill to talk to them on Jerry's new Honda. They said they were impressed with my riding skills and Erik asked if I could jump it yet. I said "Sure, watch this!" So I pointed the little Honda down hill and accelerated into 3rd gear without a moments afterthought. Now, the realization of the daredevilish feat I had just performed didn't compute in my brain until I was a couple feet in the air traveling at a high rate of speed. Fear ripped through my body. I remember thinking "Oh no, what am I doing?" I stiffened up like a board, then was pleasantly surprised as the bike landed smoothly and continued down the hill with the shiny red side up.
My favorite bike was an '86 CR125 that I bought the summer of '89 from a guy in Oklahoma for $300. It was in new condition except he managed to burn up the clutch before taking a thorn in the eye. I replaced the clutch by myself (it was much easier to do than I was expecting) and quickly learned how to jump, pop wheelies, and basically get into lots of trouble. I had a couple of friends with bikes who would come out and ride with me. I had several trail sections set up on nearby properties along the heavily wooded creek banks. (Dad didn't approve of where I went but I knew the owners) You can probably guess what my riding gear was at the time. Yup, you got it! T-shirt, Blue Jeans, Tennis Shoes and a Ball Cap on backwards!! When I left for the Army in '91 I sold that bike for $900.
