This month the club looks at the classic market and suggests a few ways to grow old… disgracefully.
Well thats another year put to bed then but where did it go and how does time seem to get by us so quickly? Theres little doubt that the older you get the faster time seems to fly but the trick here seems to be to make the most of what you have. Theres a Joni Mitchell song that suggests – Dont it always seem to go that you dont know what youve got till its gone – never was the sentiment better expressed.
Whether its buying that one classic bike you always wanted, visiting an iconic race meeting, restoring the bike of your youth, building your dream workshop, touring Europe, or just getting out for more rides, its imperative that we all get out there and do it. Its going to be very easy in our dotage to look back and wistfully ponder on what we might like to have achieved; however its better to have at least done something and not got it 100% right than to have done nothing at all. Theres a very apposite saying that runs… the man that never made a mistake never made anything at all.
Theres a plethora of lifestyle gurus out there who will tell you what you should and shouldnt be doing. Their advice covers such disparate subjects as diet, exercise, career paths and lifestyles through to fashion and how to bring up your kids. The VJMC is thankfully free from such self – appointed sages who know they are irrefutably correct but should you need to know something about a classic Japanese bike theres a very good chance well be able to help you out or point you in the right direction. Whether you want to know where to get parts, who can fabricate a replacement exhaust pipe, who can help you import a bike from overseas or just advise what spark plug you need we have someone who can help.
On a different tack, the classic Japanese market seems to be ever expanding. With iconic Kawasaki Zls reaching the dizzy heights of ?15,000 or more folk are looking for more accessible machinery to own, fettle, ride and/or restore. There was a time when a sports moped was yours for a couple of pints but those days are long gone. A good Fizzy will see three grand any day, so for many aspiring owners these basic bikes are too pricey. The machines that were less than number one in their own field in their day are now attracting considered interest and justifiably so.
The power of the press has often been able to give a worthy machine an unwarranted kicking and for no better reason than it can. The middleweight four – stroke twins are a perfect example. Hondas G5 was never going to compete with the strokers but it wasnt a hopeless case, or a potential killer, and enthusiasts are now waking up to its quiet charms and build quality. The same goes for Yamahas XS400, generally panned but ultimately not a bad machine; in comparison with an LC350 its not fast but set aside a BSA B40 its light years ahead. Either machine can be bought for peanuts, will run economically and if maintained and serviced will provide cheap, reliable thrills out of proportion to their value.
Move on a decade or so and look at the first generation of sports 600s. In comparison to a modern R6 these bikes are quite soft and compliant but they embody everything the Japanese had learnt about the art of chassis building. Theres none of the 1960s and 70s hinge in the middle feeling, reliability of these bikes is as good as ever but they are just ridiculously cheap. For under a thousand pounds you can pick up a good example that just needs a service and a clean. For that money you can expect a bike thats faster than most of us would want to regularly go, handles better than many would honestly say they can cope with and still qualifies for classic insurance. All you have to do is use a bit of savvy and not buy the first example you see; there are plenty of examples out there and its very much a buyers market. Twenty – five – year – old sports bikes are very much still 2012 relevant.
Everyone needs a little excitement and stimulation in their lives and we classic enthusiasts are already a few rungs up on the ladder compared to many. There are more accessible classic Japanese bikes out there than you might at first think. Treat yourself to one and tell the grandkids that even as you approached the point where many people embrace a more sedate lifestyle you were still hooning round bends like a teenager. Wishing everyone a peaceful Yuletide from the VJMC.
STEVE COOPER
Steve Cooper is fanatical about riding, fettling and restoring classic Japanese bikes. Hes been riding for longer than he cares to remember and during that time has ridden the vast majority of bikes that are eligible for VJMC membership. In his shed he has a Suzuki T500, a Suzuki Stinger, three 200cc Yamaha twins, an MZ ES250… and a Yamaha Chappy.