here are a few pics of the show, to be fair, is was mostly the same as last year, the number of bikes being offered for judging was very low. The oval for bike parking was more interesting and I daresay some of those bikes were more trophy worthy than what was on display in the show.
and some from the carpark, very few 250's there, even less 2 bangers Last one is my 675, I have had my bike porn fill for the day
Nice line up. Good to see plenty of other makes there besides Laverda. I wanted an 860GTS back when they were new, then a black/gold Darmah but ended up with a SL500 Pantah. Don't wish I still had it as wouldn't be able to bend enough to get on it.
Trivia: 860 GTS was the best of the touring models. I was working at Fraser's Qld at the time they were released. The weakness with the bevel drive engines was always the big-end. The square case models also use to develop a crack from the RH main bearing mount to one of the bevel drive bush housings, but in many cases it was not a serious issue. I replaced the crankpin on my 1975SS with a nitrided version and it never failed and that included racing miles. I did the same mod to the SS engine that Oakhill/Robbins rode in the 1977 Castrol Six Hour along with a whole host of other mods. The 500 Pantah that you mentioned @Murdo had a gearbox bearing that was a little too small to handle the load and caused some warranty issues on early models. I replaced it with a precision class roller bearing and the factory followed suit with later models. It was always easy to contact the factory directly. Apart from that, the belt drive models were quite bulletproof. Wiring on early Ducatis was horrible. I just threw the whole thing in the bin and rewired the bike. Did lots of those. Most of the childish comments about Ducati's being unreliable is not the case. It is true that they don't hold up to abuse as well as Japanese bikes but if you are too stupid to change your oil and do regular maintenance then you should just sell your bike and get a car.
At the risk of mass booing, I'm a big fan of the CX500 and CX650 bikes. I wanted a plastic maggot back in the day and some of the custom versions getting around are truly wonderful pieces of art and workmanship. That one Kiffsta included in his report is one of the better ones I've seen lately. A good mix of donour bike, modern and classic.
I agree Frank. The Japanese have made some extraordinary bikes over the years but then they just dump them. All that tooling just thrown away, shame. They should give all of the VTR250 tooling to me so I can make them here in Thailand.
for me, that was the custom bike of the show , I am a café fan, but it has to be done right, this one was
Well if it had a rear mudguard, seat loop and a more suitable tank I think it would be much better but that is just me. It still represents a well done custom of a classic bike with great attention to detail.
I am with @maelstrom, for me there is too much open space below the seat and the rear tyre.. I have seen some really nice Carbon Fibre rear Huggers that would have looked good and been practical as well. Each to their own I guess.. that is what makes customising as popular as it is.. At least this one wasnt all flat Black.