Topic: What Was Your First Bike

[Cowboy48]

1979 Kawasaki KM100 (it was brand new).  Yellow tank, headlight, turn signals, the whole bit.  I was 10 years old and so scared of it that I cried while my Dad taught me to ride it (I hardly ever cry while riding now 

[jawshunter]

 So, where do you go from here? Will you get another 750 and will it be a 72' or do you
 want to get a little further away from 71'? Just curious. I can only imagine that, since you
 dismantled the 71', you're figuring on getting another one eventually. Wall, what ever path you
 take, Good Luck. Later on, Bill

thanks for the encouraging words bill. since then i've moved on to a 78 750k in much nicer condition than my last 750. i'm modifying it slightly by changing the tank and adding the seat from my 71. keep your fingers crossed. ; ) hopefully i'll be riding that one again in a couple of weeks. i've also got a rusty 74 350f i want to turn into a little cafe racer. i love the old fours, a little bad luck isn't going to stop that.
keep it rubber side down,
-tyler

Hey 71, let me know how 71 seat on the 78 goes. I've got a 78 K and I want to mount a pre-77 tank on it. I was planning on moving my 78 seat forward and remounting the seat hinges  and latch or make new ones to use. Aren't the hinges and seat latch on the opposite sides on the 78 verses 76 and earlier bikes?

My first bike was a CT70 and I was 11 years old. 

[unlucky71]

Hey 71, let me know how 71 seat on the 78 goes. I've got a 78 K and I want to mount a pre-77 tank on it. I was planning on moving my 78 seat forward and remounting the seat hinges  and latch or make new ones to use. Aren't the hinges and seat latch on the opposite sides on the 78 verses 76 and earlier bikes?

My first bike was a CT70 and I was 11 years old. 

yes, the hinges are on opposite sides, and they also swicthed they latching mechanism. basically what i had to do was cut the rear seat hinge off of the k8 frame. at this point without actually attaching anything, the k1 tank and seat will match up perfectly on the bike. at this point you have to modify the seat pan to use the k8 mounting hardware and cut that rear hing and re-weld it up on the frame. also, swap the tank rubbers, it'll hold more firmly as they are different. if you end up using the k7-k8 syle seat, are you also ditching the rear fender? because if you move the seat forward it's not going to sit properly on the rear. that's why i swapped out for a matched set. i've just got the seat recovered and the tank stripped down for paint. i'll post some pics here in a couple of weeks. i'd love to know what you end up doing and how it turns out, good luck.

[towerviewchops]

1984 Honda ATC 70.  I was 2 1/2 years old, surrogate grandchild to a great couple, that my dad worked for, who had just bought a Honda Dealership.  Still have it and it still runs, everything's original except the tank.  Now I get to ride my son around on it.  Started out Honda and stayed that way.

Josh

[Dragon Rider]

early 70's cb360 twin.  I had never even ridding a motorcycle before I went to look at the bike.  But my 15yr old self figured that it can't be that hard, I just finished drivers ed and cars are easy.   

So I learned what the controls on a bike were and what they were supposed to do.  I confidently told the seller, yea I can ride, and he let me test ride.  

Well, I didn't drop the bike.  I managed to get it started, looked at the handle bars and remembered that clutch was left, brake was right and went zooming away.

(wow these things rev easy and sure jump when you dump the cluth at 4K).  Luckly I zoomed right around the corner and out of sight.  I  never did learn what he was yellling at me as I zoomed away.  I drove a few miles, figured things out and came back and bought the bike.  (that is probably what saved me is he calmed down right away when I said 'sold')

[Daves_76_SS]

My 750 Is my first bike.  Newbie

[mennedy]

My first bike was a Ducati 125 that a friend of mine left at my house one night in 1963. He was too drunk and someone drove him home. Two years later one day we were  sitting at my table having a beer and he started complaining that he couldn't find his motorcycle - he remembered taking it out but couldn't remember where he went or where he left it. I told him it was sitting in my garage and he asked if it was okay to take it home. The plates needed to be renewed so I said okay!

Next bike was the '78 CB550K I bought three years ago. Wished I had told him no, it was too late!

[Carbine]

......X6 Hustler.......it was a '66.....red. I was 14, the bike was 5 years old. Had quite a bit of practice riding some friend's Yammy Tin-Jets and Honda 100's.......but nothing really prepared me for the raw power of that 250!!    Bought it from a friend's older brother, he had lost interest in it after buying a car. Wish I had it now, even though parts apparantly become very difficult to find.

[bill440cars]

......X6 Hustler.......it was a '66.....red. I was 14, the bike was 5 years old. Had quite a bit of practice riding some friend's Yammy Tin-Jets and Honda 100's.......but nothing really prepared me for the raw power of that 250!!    Bought it from a friend's older brother, he had lost interest in it after buying a car. Wish I had it now, even though parts apparantly become very difficult to find.

            Talk about power and speed! The X-6 was a screamer. I had a 66' Honda CB72 (250) that
      was built up some and was a pretty good runner(I was in the USAF @ Misawa AFB, Japan).
      During the good weather months, we had drag races on the main straightaway of a dirt
      racetrack. I would strip my Honda down and raced against a CL77 (305), a 250 Suzuki dirt bike
      (don't remember the year or model) and a certain Suzuki X-6 Hustler. Only one I beat was the
       Suzuki dirt bike. That X-6 had the lights taped up and that was it! Every weekend, He would
       blow my wheels off, I'd go back and do something else to mine, come back and get a little
       closer to him, I never did beat him even though I was getting closer to him. I picked up on an
       old Yamaha twin Scrambler (Don't remember the model, street bike with upswept pipes) minus
       an engine and a wrecked Kawasaki Avenger. I was making plans to merge that Kawasaki rotary
       valve engine with that Yamaha with intentions of blowing the wheels and the engine off of that
       Suzuki for good. Then, I got my orders to ship out of Japan and to Hamilton AFB, California.
       Never did get to beat that Suzuki, except in my dreams. My buddy w/ the sidecar has a high
       pipe (scrambler) version.  Later on, Bill

[Carbine]

and a certain Suzuki X-6 Hustler

Aye, Bill.....they were fast! For their time and displacement very much so. The older guys (kids?) in my high school were all into britbikes, and in the parking 'row of honor' there were mostly Bonnies, Atlas's and the like. One of the hottest bikes was supposed to be a Royal Infield Interceptor 750....and the guy who rode it certainly lived up to that reputation. 6 foot tall or taller in his Civil War cav boots, whenever he strode out to it after school, a hush would fall over the 'crowd' as we watched in reverence as he tickled the Amals, fiddled with this and that, then furiously booted the big twin to life. A month or two later, I found myself leaving the school parking lot with him following close behind. Very close behind, just another senior trying to push around one the the kids (me) I guess. We rode like that in traffic for a bunch of blocks, stopped for some stoplights, surrounded by school buses, cars, etc. Finally, the road opened up ahead, just as we idled through an intersection, and I then heard the Infield explode in anger behind my left ear, and the guy tried to pass me on the left, just inches (it seemed) from my footpeg. My reaction, more out of fear than anything. was hit the throttle and 'get to it'. I ran the X-6 through the gears, on the tank as low as I could get, and concentrated on keeping the bike in the middle of my lane. Well, he never passed me, and I never pulled away more than a bike length away from him...... So, a draw as it were. For him, however, a draw was the same as losing. Me?, well a draw for me meant the same as winning a date with Raquel Welch......animal skin outfit and all.........            

[SteveD CB500F]

So did he beat you up the next day?

That's what would've happened in my day if you embarrassed one of the older kids.

[Carbine]

So did he beat you up the next day?

Nah, but discretion being the better part of valour......I did park the Hustler at a friends house a few blocks away during school for the next several days.  Also, I didn't go bragging about the event at the bike park either........ 

[bill440cars]

and a certain Suzuki X-6 Hustler

Aye, Bill.....they were fast! For their time and displacement very much so. The older guys (kids?) in my high school were all into britbikes, and in the parking 'row of honor' there were mostly Bonnies, Atlas's and the like. One of the hottest bikes was supposed to be a Royal Infield Interceptor 750....and the guy who rode it certainly lived up to that reputation. 6 foot tall or taller in his Civil War cav boots, whenever he strode out to it after school, a hush would fall over the 'crowd' as we watched in reverence as he tickled the Amals, fiddled with this and that, then furiously booted the big twin to life. A month or two later, I found myself leaving the school parking lot with him following close behind. Very close behind, just another senior trying to push around one the the kids (me) I guess. We rode like that in traffic for a bunch of blocks, stopped for some stoplights, surrounded by school buses, cars, etc. Finally, the road opened up ahead, just as we idled through an intersection, and I then heard the Infield explode in anger behind my left ear, and the guy tried to pass me on the left, just inches (it seemed) from my footpeg. My reaction, more out of fear than anything. was hit the throttle and 'get to it'. I ran the X-6 through the gears, on the tank as low as I could get, and concentrated on keeping the bike in the middle of my lane. Well, he never passed me, and I never pulled away more than a bike length away from him...... So, a draw as it were. For him, however, a draw was the same as losing. Me?, well a draw for me meant the same as winning a date with Raquel Welch......animal skin outfit and all.........            

              carbine, as much of a admirer of the Interceptors that I am, gotta respect the 2 strokes from Japan of that era. They were quite fast for their time. Myself, I loved the sound of the open megaphones on my 66' CB72 Hawk. I might not of outrun that X-6 but, I sure sounded good trying.
Enjoyed your story and I'm glad he didn't take it out on you physically.  Later on <bill

[Loudpipe]

So, what was your first bike, or any bikes you had that were particularly noteable (good or bad!).  Tell some stories that go along with having each bike if you want.  Let's hear about your experiences with motorcycling!


I just got my first bike on Sept. 9, a '78 CB750F.  I got my motorcycle permit back in February, with a stern warning from my mother that I would never ride on a bike, own a bike, ride WITH anyone on a bike, or any combination thereof.  7 months later, a friend told me his father had an old motorcycle sitting in his garage. With no intention of buying it, I went over just to see it because old vehicles are awesome.  The next weekend, I went to talk to him to see if he'd be interested in selling it, which he was if I wanted it. I came home, got online and got an insurance quote, and told my parents I was going to buy it.  They refused to help me with any of the monetary costs of having a bike whatsoever, but didn't say no. Come to think of it, they didn't exactly say yes either.  An hour later I was at the bank emptying my account as a downpayment, and then on his doorstep. I rode it home and parked it proudly in the driveway, to which my mom just stared, my dad refused to come out and look at, and my younger sister (12) started crying, conviced I was going to kill myself. 

Since then they've all warmed up to the idea of having a motorcycle, and I've gotten my dad, who used to have an early '70s Kawi 350 in college, to ride it around the neighborhood.  Looks like they didn't disown me after all....

[GroovieGhoulie]

A '76 400F.  Perfect first bike in my opinion.

[ElCheapo]

1975 Yamaha 175 Enduro. Yes I started on a Yamaha. I can tell you that you can not do dry pavement burners on those. Left me running behind it and put in right into the neighbors bushes  Never did that again 

[DarkRider]

First street bike was a 93 Honda CBR 900RR and first dirt bike was a Suzuki RV125. Sold the Honda just after grad due to having certian memories of its rebuild i didnt want to relive after loosing my gf in a drunk driving accident.

[Jerry Rxman Griffin aka MuthaF'er]

68 CB350 in 71.
75 CB750F in 3/75 (refer to avatar)

[bowhunter]

1965 Honda CB50. First and only case of road rash (hopefully!) Dropped it on gravel at 30 MPH, spent the next 10 minutes
pulling gravel out of my elbows and knee. Stopped at the Honda shop on the way home for a replacement foot peg so my dad
wouldn't see anything unusual.

Bowhunter

[aptech77]

CM400E!! Super clean. Still have.

[pgagy]

My current bike is the first one I "own".... see pic.  I got instantly addicted to motorcycles the first time I threw my leg over the saddle of a Honda CRF250 (R?)  I don't even know if it was an R or not, but I do remember getting off the bike and thinking that I must own a bike at some point in my life... so three years later I finally got a bike to call my own.

This is the only picture I have of my bike - as I explained in the Tech Forum, I no loner have the battery charger to go with my camera, so no pictures until I get a new one.

[SteveD CB500F]

I've merged this with the existing thread of the same name.  I'm here somewhere (down the bottom), but for the sake of anyone new I started in 1976 on a CB125S

[HondaJay]

The CB650 i still have was my first bike, but not by much.  I bought it cheap to work on and learn how to ride.  I was told it would take about a month of solid work to get it on the road but less than a week later I had it running like new.  I jumped on it the first time I got it running and rode around the neighborhood.... I felt like I had been riding my whole life.  Just a couple days later I had learned enough to feel comfortable in traffic.  I had ridden in the rain and had even managed to ride a wheelie through second gear.

So I went out and got my '06 CBR1000RR.

Ive had a couple other bikes this year that I bought to fix up but didnt end up keeping any of them.  They just didnt offer anywhere near the performance of the CBR or the sentimental value of the 650 but I still love working on them... and the profit pays my insurance

[cmorgan47]

I rode a 1981 Honda CM400T all through college.  It was perfect...zero work.  Not enough get-up for the freeway however.

that was mine too.  a neighbor gave it to me and my buddy with a blown pistion.  replaced the engine, got it running right and it's still on the road....though now it's being ridden by my buddy's girlfriend.

[nippon]

As I was 15, I started with a uggly 50ccm Kreidler.
With 18 years, I changed to a 1980s KTM 420 GS.
It was a horrible toxic machine. Once as I kicked the starter
my sandals flew 15 meters away. After that, I did only push the KTM to start it. 
I only have pics of the net, not my own.

nippon