This is not exactly unexpected but it is still good news for the Ducati faithful. What a great season 2011 will be with Rossi and Nicky riding Ducati. I expect that there is rejoicing in the streets all over Italy today! Here is the press release from Rossi’s website- “It Read more…
Well, the guy I painted the Yamaha RZ500 for was happy enough that he brought me his Vintage 70’s Can Am 250 to work on. He has owned it since new and it has seen many race tracks in its day. Now, we are going to restore it so he Read more…
This is the 3rd and supposedly last of the Aprilia spoof ads. I liked the table cloth ad better, but this one is entertaining as well…
I picked up a Kawasaki ZZR600 at the auction last Friday and was reminded of what a great bike it is for the money. The current ZZR is the old ZX6R that was retired when the ZX636 and new ZX6R came out a few years back. Of course there are Read more…
Good video clip from NBC about women and motorcycling. It is cool to see women on all types of bikes these days. They do a good job of describing the “ride”- one said “you are just in the moment” and another said it is a natural way to de-stress. I’ve Read more…
This is the latest RSV4 ad from Aprilia PR. I personally like the race scenes at the end the best but the ads are very creative. BTW, it is worth noting that Max Biaggi just earned his ninth victory in the 2010 SBK Championship.  With prior dual victories in Salt Read more…
I saw this over at Autoblog today, but the rumors of a Ducati Power Cruiser have been around for a while. Let’s face it, that is the money market right now. Older guys who have money are not generally going to buy a Sportbike and the smaller boutique manufacturers like Read more…
I’m sure there are a lot of other “warehouse finds” out there, but lets face it, this is cool- a new, in the crate, 1979 RD400. It’s not worth millions like some cars would be, but it is still a super rare collectors item. I just wish they would put Read more…
I think Honda will have some serious competition for its Gold Wing very soon- From BMW press release… BMW K 1600 GT and BMW K 1600 GTL – fascination with six cylinders. Since BMW Motorrad presented the concept study Concept 6 in autumn 2009, the six-cylinder in-line engine featured in it has captured the imagination of many Read more…
This is not really new news, but still, it is worth heading over to Ducati’s website to check out their available colors and paint schemes. I’m really partial to the classic black and gold Darmah scheme but it looks terrible on the red frame. That bodywork really need to go Read more…
From Ducati- Follow the action on their blog page. Ducati returns to the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb for an encore performance on June 27. The weapons of choice – a pair of all-new 2010 Multistrada 1200s! Partnering with Spider Grips, Ducati is fielding a two bike team, piloted by Read more…
Harley-Davidson announced that the XR1200X Sportster, introduced in 2010 for export markets only, will be available through Harley-Davidson dealers in the United States as a 2011 model. The XR1200X is equipped with fully-adjustable Showa front and rear suspension components and can be dialed in to match rider weight, riding style Read more…
I’m not into the stunt riding stuff that much, but I have to admit that this is a great trick… Watch!
Just some light weekend reading for you… Here is a press release from JD Powers on motorcycle helmet owner satisfaction. I personally have both an Arai and a Shoei and while they are both great helmets, I prefer the Shoei for fit and comfort. But I have friends that swear Read more…
OK, this is a bit harsh since Harley really has updated their bikes with things like Showa suspension and Nippon Denso electronics (both Japanese, BTW) but, still funny.
Almost that is… As you can see from the picture, he is still waiting on some parts for the seat. But everything else is done and the bike runs great. I included a before/after picture of the front fender so you can get an idea of where we started. The Read more…
While I am working on the RZ500, my friend Jerry is up in North Carolina reassembling the SL 350 that we painted the bodywork for a few months ago. It is really coming along nicely and as you can see from this set of pictures, it will be a sweet Read more…
Now that the Street Rod is done, it is time for it to find a new home. The paint is beautiful, the aluminum is polished and the bike is completely serviced including new tires. Priced at 8999.00, it is about 2500.00 under NADA book value. The 07 Street Rod was Read more…
This is a glimmer of hope in an otherwise very bleak powersports industry. The fact that BMW is adding dealers may just be wishful thinking, but I suspect that they are planning on converting some owners of other brands. BMW has a great lineup now with the addition of the Read more…
So, if you haven’t ever seen this, it is worth watching. This guy lives up there and obviously has the course dialed in. But still, this is impressive. The guy filming is also on a Wing and you can hear his footpegs scraping in every corner. (Thanks for the link Read more…
Press release from BMW- HUSQVARNA NAMED MARQUE OF THE YEAR FOR 2010 AMA VINTAGE DAYS Woodcliff Lake, NJ – February 2, 2010…Husqvarna, BMW’s off-road motorcycle marque, will celebrate both its heritage and its future as the Marque of the Year at the 19th Annual AMA Vintage Motorcycle Days, July 9-11 Read more…
I have fixed a few bikes when guys have hit deer, and it is always a lot worse than this. The fact that he kept the bike up and didn’t crash is amazing. Probably more luck than skill, but hey, it’s better to be lucky than good sometimes!
Well, if you haven’t seen this, it is just great. He hadn’t ridden any bike in a year and he jumps on maybe the hardest, most beastly bike ever created and rides like it is 1975. Pretty cool.
It really seems like a simple and obvious thing to do- call a customer after the sale and make sure they are happy. But apparently it doesn’t happen very often. That’s because sales people are pressured to sell and once a bike is sold, they move on to the next Read more…
Here are a few pictures of the finished V-Rod Street Rod. This is a super rare bike that Harley only produced 700 of in 07. In addition to the paint and cosmetic repairs, I also did a complete service that included new hydraulic fluids for the brakes and clutch, oil Read more…
Today, the weather was a bit nicer with temps in the 60’s and sunny skies. So it was the perfect winter day to do the final buffing on the paint. Even though the paint looks great after clear-coating, we wet sand everything again to eliminate any slight orange peel or Read more…
We are in the final stages of the “restore the V-Rod” project and is is starting to get really fun. Today, we get to install the replacement exhaust and put the chrome heat shields back on the pipes. The original mufflers were scratched when the bike fell over- not badly Read more…
So, now we are in the final stages of our project and some of these are really tedious and time consuming. Since this bike was a daily ridden commuter bike, it wasn’t cleaned and polished regularly- so the aluminum parts like case covers, swingarm and wheels had that dull slightly Read more…
Jay Leno is one of the good guys- he loves motorcycles, cars and pretty much anything with a motor. So, it is really cool to see him do the dealer show intro for Piaggio Group’s line-up, which include Aprilia, Moto Guzzi and Vespa. Press release from Piaggio Group- Moto enthusiast Read more…
Well, the V-Rod is on the ground and rolling. After a thorough cleaning with all the bodywork off, we are ready to reassemble. Wet sanding the tank (really, air box cover) is easier with it off the bike, but I won’t buff it until it is installed. Plus, we have Read more…
Today I reinstalled the front end components- forks, wheel and the clutch and brake mater cylinders. Here’s a tip for you- always do your cleaning and polishing with the parts off the bike for ease and simplicity. It is way easier to clean a wheel with it off the bike Read more…
With the forks back on and the steering head nut tightened, we can now install the handlebars and soon, all of the switch gear and master cylinders. In the mean time, the tank and rest of the body work has been cleared and is drying and awaiting reassembly.
Well, I needed to strip the bike down more than I thought since the handlebars were tweaked and needed to be replaced and the steering head bearings need to be adjusted. I will say this- Harley does not design their bikes with ease of maintenance in mind. At any rate, Read more…
You had to figure that Erik Buell would figure a way to keep his dream alive and apparently he has done just that. While they will not be making any more street production bikes, they will continue to race with bikes made under license from Harley Davidson. Here is the Read more…
Well, here are a few pictures of the finished product. As you can see, it totally transforms the bike. Apparently, Yamaha does have a kit similar to this in other parts of the world but I’ve never seen one in the US. Tapeworks.com will have the graphics available as a Read more…