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And now, for something completely different.
I was looking for a bike that would be solely a coffee shop cruiser. No long trips, certainly no bad weather and something prettier than normal.
I started down the Ducati route, to the point of calling a few people and making a few trips. I had an 860GT and an 851 in my past, but neither was more reliable than a $25 Rolex. But I thought I would look .... because I'm a moron. A 900SS or 900 CR would have fit the pretty bill. But none that I would want could be found.
I then moved to 999R territory. Certainly spendier, but I thought I'd take a stab. You know those people that you talk to and have an immediate bad feeling about? My misfortune was to come across them in this search. So moving on and keeping my mind open I continued.
Despite looking at the Italian stuff, I wanted something fairly reliable. Nothing is worse than looking at a pretty bike waiting for parts as it sit in the garage. Or worse, on the side of the road.
I find an ad for this bike on Craigslist. It had been there a month before disappearing. The fellow had built it as a tribute to the RC-162, a bike he loved in his youth. Built on a Honda CB 350/4 chassis, it had the right amount of pretty and reliability to satisfy me. The ad disappeared before I decided to respond. I just remember 2 key phrases, Holtworks fuel tank and David Swarbrick exhaust.
Holtworks and Swarbrick are small UK builders. Tony Holt builds alloy fuel tanks and David Swarbrick builds exhausts, both of them manufacturing by hand. I emailed both to try to find the seller. All I knew was that he lived on the Sunshine Coast and built the bike in the last 2-3 years. Both agreed to search their records, what a great pair of craftsman!
Before they were able to find the builder, I found an old ad for the bike in a far corner of the interweb. I contacted the builder and had an immediate, good feeling about this guy. He had just completed the bike in August and blew his knee out a week after. A retired mechanical engineer, he wasn't going to heal anytime soon and enjoyed the build more than he enjoys riding.
We agree on a price and the Mrs and I make our way over the following week.
Waiting for the evening ferry to Gibsons, home of the Beachcombers ..... if you're really old!
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The next morning, farther up the coast ......
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I was looking for a bike that would be solely a coffee shop cruiser. No long trips, certainly no bad weather and something prettier than normal.
I started down the Ducati route, to the point of calling a few people and making a few trips. I had an 860GT and an 851 in my past, but neither was more reliable than a $25 Rolex. But I thought I would look .... because I'm a moron. A 900SS or 900 CR would have fit the pretty bill. But none that I would want could be found.
I then moved to 999R territory. Certainly spendier, but I thought I'd take a stab. You know those people that you talk to and have an immediate bad feeling about? My misfortune was to come across them in this search. So moving on and keeping my mind open I continued.
Despite looking at the Italian stuff, I wanted something fairly reliable. Nothing is worse than looking at a pretty bike waiting for parts as it sit in the garage. Or worse, on the side of the road.
I find an ad for this bike on Craigslist. It had been there a month before disappearing. The fellow had built it as a tribute to the RC-162, a bike he loved in his youth. Built on a Honda CB 350/4 chassis, it had the right amount of pretty and reliability to satisfy me. The ad disappeared before I decided to respond. I just remember 2 key phrases, Holtworks fuel tank and David Swarbrick exhaust.
Holtworks and Swarbrick are small UK builders. Tony Holt builds alloy fuel tanks and David Swarbrick builds exhausts, both of them manufacturing by hand. I emailed both to try to find the seller. All I knew was that he lived on the Sunshine Coast and built the bike in the last 2-3 years. Both agreed to search their records, what a great pair of craftsman!
Before they were able to find the builder, I found an old ad for the bike in a far corner of the interweb. I contacted the builder and had an immediate, good feeling about this guy. He had just completed the bike in August and blew his knee out a week after. A retired mechanical engineer, he wasn't going to heal anytime soon and enjoyed the build more than he enjoys riding.
We agree on a price and the Mrs and I make our way over the following week.
Waiting for the evening ferry to Gibsons, home of the Beachcombers ..... if you're really old!
The next morning, farther up the coast ......
