Ebay item 290358983846 How on earth does somebody manage to place the ad and not notice the problem?
Bugger - beaten to it by a minute. -- +----------------------------------------------------------------+ | Pete Fisher at Home: | | Voxan Roadster [ SPACE ! ] Yamaha WR250Z | | Gilera GFR * 2 Moto Morini 2C/375 Morini 350 "Forgotten Error" | +----------------------------------------------------------------+
'Nother discrepancy on 300356412313 Vincent Rapide Series 'C' There are distinct signs of a chain in place there. Looks like a v. nice bike. Who here has ridden one? What are they like? -- R100RT Aprilia Pegaso 650 IE "The Flying Mythos" Formerly: James Captain, A10, C15, B25, Dnepr M16 solo, R80/7, R100RT (green!) www.davidhowardjeweller.co.uk
I thought they were shaft drive too. The engine looks pretty with the black enamel - I wonder how durable that kind of finish is, on old alloy?
My mate has a series D lurking in his garage. Hasn't seen the light of day for years. His considered opinion is that they are not as good as all the people who claim to have owned one say they are (no offence Krusty). A few who do found that out on Pahnd Island a couple of years ago. He sees it pretty much as an investment. Judging by the price that one has already reached he is probably not wrong, given how much he paid for his. -- +----------------------------------------------------------------+ | Pete Fisher at Home: | | Voxan Roadster [ SPACE ! ] Yamaha WR250Z | | Gilera GFR * 2 Moto Morini 2C/375 Morini 350 "Forgotten Error" | +----------------------------------------------------------------+
They're very good indeed, compared to what else was around 50 years ago. The trouble is to make them good by modern standards, you need to change some things, which obviously kills the value. So you've got two choices: keep them standard & therefore fairly shit to ride but valuable, or do all the upgrades & enjoying using them. My dad & brother have always taken the latter approach, & do several thousand trouble-free miles every year as a result.
It was a long time ago but FWIW :- An absolute bitch to start, especially for non-lardarses. Bloody heavy. Poorly damped steering tended to wander and felt like a tankslapper was imminent. TLS drum brakes were ok for the 1950s but scary by modern standards. General verdict : If I had bought the one that I tried it would probably have killed me by now but if I survived i would be laughing at the stupid prices people are willing to pay.
No question that they were more powerful and faster than anything else. Also very stable at high speed. Reliable in comparison with bikes of that era. Not exactly flickable though. The subject came up when talking to my old vintage racing mate on the island who was complaining about the dumbing down of the VMCC parades. This is probably as a direct result of the Vincent full lap parade a couple of years ago which featured some big offs. He was watching at the bungalow and confirms that the first few rider, who clearly knew how to handle their beasts, were impressive. Further down the field they were all over the shop including on the grass. It could be of course that they would be crap riders what ever they were on, rather than just the machines of their boyhood dreams purchased in later life. His brother owns a well sorted and 'modernised' one which he has ridden, so he know where of he speaks. I wouldn't doubt it. Personally, even if I won the Euromillions, I wouldn't buy one. -- +----------------------------------------------------------------+ | Pete Fisher at Home: | | Voxan Roadster [ SPACE ! ] Yamaha WR250Z | | Gilera GFR * 2 Moto Morini 2C/375 Morini 350 "Forgotten Error" | +----------------------------------------------------------------+
Heh, I'll let my brother know, he was leading it ;-) Just the age old story I suspect - people not riding their own pace but trying to stick with faster people in front instead. I doubt I would either. Everyone else in the family has got at least one, but I've always been the black sheep
As would I. If I had one I'd have no qualms about replacing the forks, brakes and wheels with modern kit, even the frame with a replica. If I had to sell it, I'd re-assemble it as original and harvest the money.
