Red Baron - your bike's immaculate condition is a testament to the owner's care. You should be proud of it. I bet it was the biggest thing on the roads in Puerto Rico. From what I've seen of Latin American roads, it would have been a whale compared to the local scoots, probably a lot of the cars too

Rhondasoul - Funny how growing up changes your riding style. I want to be doing this in my 60's, so after seeing a few friends drop out in their 20's, I'm a little more calculated in how I choose my risks now. As you say, life preservation is key. Not to mention all the other costs of reckless riding - wrecked bikes, fines/impounded vehicles, having gravel scrubbed out of your arms or legs with a wire brush by a nurse that's sick of seeing bikers in the ER...

 

Hahahaha it amazing what growing up can do to a bloke lol yep I have the same vision as you to grow old on a bike. Oh the cost of fun lol can be quiet a big one hehehe also having kids makes a big difference to your thought process too I've found since I've been a dad I'm no where near as reckless as I once was. Tho having said that I'm still living riding the big girl I still wrap the throttle and hit the top end of the speedo every now and then lol the young fella in me hasn't died completely hahaha

 

I ride a 89 CBR1000f as part of a mid-life crisis!
I wanted an 89 or 90 CBR as my first big bike in 1995 when I got my licence- CBRs were close to $10k for a 6 year old bike which was pretty much their new price. I ended up buying an 88 GPZ900R for $6200 which I still have and still love it too. Different kettle of fish to CBR- not as comfy or refined. Steers a bit better. (quicker)
I'm now a Motorcycle Instructor with a few bikes so CBR has filled the 24 year old desire to have one. I still rate it as one of the best looking bikes out of Japan. Love the blue/white paint scheme. Now I am old and round the bike is sooooo comfy too. Nice. GPZ is a bit hard on me.
Plan on restoring the CBR including paint. Managed to buy quite a few NOS parts from all over the world for it however a NOS right switch block has eluded me so far. Will find one eventually.

 

Still one of my favorite paint schemes. Nice bike!

 

Time to bump this thread. The testimonials in it are great! I'm glad to be a part of this group now; haven't personally owned a scooter in 18 years. I started on an '82 CB900 Custom - loved that bike! Sold it in '97 six months after getting out of the Navy. Got married a year later, and purchased a '97 VFR. Loved that bike too, but it was the stupidest thing I could have done to my marriage (and finances) at the time. An unexpected wheelie with my wife on the back sealed its fate (and almost sealed mine) so I traded it on a '96 Magna, purple and white w/the sport faring. Loved that bike too. Couldn't afford to keep it so had to give it up. Kept most of my gear though; not gonna make the mistake of selling good motorcycle gear again.

Fast-forward to about a month ago - had to sell one of my cars due to the engine going bad (too long of a story to post here). My other car was also ailing, so I needed to find a vehicle solution that would allow me to leave a car home some days for my wife to use while my daughter commutes to school in her Jeep. I also don't want my insurance to bankrupt me when my son gets his license, so a motorcycle seemed like a good option. I was able to obtain a personal loan and started browsing CL for the best bike for $2K and an inexpensive cage.

I went and looked at another VFR (THAT was an interesting conversation with my wife) that was wrecked and appeared to only need minor work, but it needed way more than what I was willing to invest so I passed on it. A cruiser was out (although I had borrowed a friend's Soft tail over the summer) so something sportier and reliable was in order. Then I found the black/grey/yellow CBR I have now; got the guy to go down a bit in price, got a helmet and both factory and Haines repair manuals with it, and some other minor goodies, along with a big grin on my face that hasn't faded. My wife even likes it - miracles do happen!

I did have to put a clutch in it and rebuilt the clutch and front brake master cylinders, but I've enjoyed working on it and don't have much more to do besides general stuff. It will need tires soon and eventually brakes, but it's fast enough for me and classy looking (as sportbikes go). A coworker who rides an R1 is quite envious of me, and I've received a few compliments from others regarding how clean it is.

That's all for now...

Raz

 

I unfortunately dropped my beloved on a greasy cold road at walking speed and she was busted up pretty bad. There was not a scratch on me but the compression of the left side of the fairing caused the energy to build up and blew the right side out like someone had hit Lolitre with a bazooka. I rode it to my main dealers and all the mechanics came out to offer advice and pay respect to a 23 year old bike they all had at some point serviced or put through the compulsory Ministry of Transport test.

They said parts and labour I was looking at somewhere near £4,500 that's if they could source the parts. I have 10 years no claims on my insurance and this affords me really cheap insurance, I didn't want to foul that up. So reluctantly I rode her home, her guts all on show, I went the long way to make sure I could have that last mad moment, that last licence losing twist of the throttle, to feel what it's like to sit atop a cruise missile as the distance comes at you in a blur of danger and excitement. I hoped nothing would blow off and luckily nothing did.

My wife was worried, first for my safety, then my sanity. She knew this bike represented my freedom, represented my ego, my machismo, represented the little boy in me and the realisation of a dream to own one to owning one. She placed a massive obituary page on facebook and was generally upset like it was a bereavement.

Somehow I just knew things were not finished. The bike just shattered it's plastic, no structural damage, nothing bent or twisted, just 1 million pieces of red plastic. So I spent months trying to find the same bike in the same colour that was being broken. No joy, then spent the same amount of time looking for a high mileage bike and low and behold one came up for £750. Bike was used as a touring workhorse. 79k miles on the clock (mine 32k) but still running like a dream.

I spoke with here and she said get it, I spoke with the seller who had the best part of 40 bikes, cafe racers, track bikes, all sorts so he knew my pain. I didn't test him on the price and he very generously delivered the bike to me free of charge from about 60 miles away.

I budgeted 3 days for the transplant, ended up being 8 days. I got the new plastic and headlight assembly on, but the sub cage was bent and none of the holes lined up. So it was strip down , remove the cage from the donor bike add to Lolitre and then build up again. I learned a lot. Bike mechanics in the winter in your back garden is not much fun. Something as simple as unscrewing and screwing nuts and bolts will make you smash your hands up to bits, you will drop screws and bolts constantly question yourself if you remembered to put all of the bolts in correctly, but I got there, yes I did it.

The bike had about 9 days before it's MOT test was due and I was nervous, not sure why, I was thinking they might spot something I had missed and the bike would need an expensive repair. NOPE it sailed through it's MOT. 24 years of age and a compete clean sheet of health. That is testament to how good Honda made these bikes. They are absolutely bullet proof and go like stink.

My only sadness is I now have a donor bike that deserves to be ridden. 80k miles and runs like new but has graciously donated her parts to keep a young 'un on the road. Do I keep it for parts? Do I find a bike super mechanic who can restyle her into a street fighter or something funky? Or do I sell her for breaking? I don't know. For now she is covered up and in storage.

So with massive amounts of joy and a small amount of sorrow, I'm back on the road. Lolitre is sweet again.

 

Ouch! Glad to hear you got her back together - I say make the other a street fighter but IMO they don't look all that great exposed and naked. Glad to hear you were OK and mental note made not to low-side mine. Ugh!

Cheers,

Eric

 

I almost did the same thing pulling away from a parking spot at a rest area,bike just wanted to flop over for reasons unknown,so glad i was able to get a leg down,kind of embarrasing.Heart breaking photos,Im so glad to have avoided that nightmare.Im always very aware of that now when getting underway while turning at low speed,You feet rearward arent exactly ready to save the day if you f up