HD MT-350 offroad - opinion and sources wanted

I 'need' a light off road machine and am considering a surplus Harley
MT-350 as seen here...
http://www.witham-sv.com/infopage.php?ID=134&Overide=1

Any comments on this, and do you have weblinks to other sources than
Witham Specialist Vehicles ?

/doc

 

Yes - if you want "a light off road machine", why are you considering
probably the heaviest 350 ever built!

 

Sometime around Wed, 25 May 2005 18:17:08 +0000, doc babbled on about:

If you really want a HD/Armstrong thing then fleaBay is a good starting
point, take a look at the MT500, not much difference in weight, lacks the
front disk and can be several hundred pounds cheaper as well, it has the
left hand kickstart Rotax lump that goes quite well, they are quite
limited off road (gods knows I have tried hard on the things) also seems
quick on tarmac, great fun to ride and will pull 90mph plus with the bonus
of being eligable for classic insurance.

Steer clear of anything in desert colours as they are invariable full of
sand.

 

The 500's kickstart only though isn't it? The 350's e-start at least. I
still wouldn't touch one with a bargepole mind.

 

Sometime around Wed, 25 May 2005 22:56:27 +0000, Krusty babbled on about:

There are a few e-start 500s in existance, however they were built for the
Canadian Army and are hard to find. The MT is a curio more than an off
roader, however if you dont mind taking an angle grinder to them you can
loose a fair amount of weight, they should be accepted for what they are,
a utility machine that is different.

My brother and I ran them for a short while in the 90s(1) and had great
fun terrorising car users in Northants, he used to lead(2) and I used to
try and keep up and look for dirt to make up my defecit in road ability.

(1)His was barbeque black and mine was a sort of urban cammo thing with.
(2)He was probably GAKD but I was normally to far behind to see unless I
resorted to unfair tactics.

 

Typo of the month contender here, Dave. It just has to mean you're
shit and you know it ;-)

 

In uk.rec.motorcycles, doc amazed us all with this pearl of wisdom:

No links but there's a bloke in Cricklewood Broadway that punts them
out. I was seriously interested a couple of years ago but a bit of
research showed they had reliability issues.

Hang on.. <fires up Google>

His phone number and one or two others are about two thirds of the way
down this page:

http://members.aol.com/FGYT/ARMSTRONG/armstrong.htm

 

Sometime around Thu, 26 May 2005 09:18:56 +0100, Pip babbled on about:

I nodded my head when I read this, I can still get round corners however I
have lost the bottle to brake late and often find myself stringing corners
together with just engine braking inbetween.

He was invariably behind me on the dirt(1) and always seemed slightly
uneasy, however I did have the benefit of having thrown Maicos etc down
twisty tracks (and through bushes, tapes etc) for a few years(2) However
road is a different thing, we had a thrash back from Northampton to
Bedford once, me on a CBR900RRT and him on a CBR400RR - he only beat me by
maybe 100 yards, however my argument was seeing him go airborn through a
110mph right hander just before Bromham made me drop back. He did duff me
up on a fast left hander a bit later on the A6, and then asked me quite
seriously why I had slowed down for the corner.\

(1) I do take the Rotax out occasionaly and it interesting to note that
I still feel quick, and still yearn for a little bit of competion, no
doubt to confirm I am also shite on the dirt these days.

(2) Andrew did come out once with us, but from memory he ended up riding a
horse instead, I accept the owner was quite cute, but that is one thing I
would never consider. I mean what sort of a person rides horses?

 

Blokes wot can't get a shag with anything shorter.

Prince Charles springs immediately to mind.

 

My eyes!

 

Well, first I read articles about this machine starting with...
http://www.realclassic.co.uk/snarley.html

and then, wouldn't you just love to attend a HOG-meting on a real Harley
made of so many European parts?

/doc