OzVMX Forum
Clubroom => General Discussion => Topic started by: mxmaniac on October 28, 2009, 02:25:46 pm
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http://dirtbike.off-road.com/dirtbike/article/articleDetail.jsp?id=265930
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:D It's been a few years since I've read that. Thanks for reminding me.
I'm pleased to see that my beloved SP370 didn't get a guernsey, but then we all know that's not a 'real' dirt bike................ :-\
Also interesting to note that we are now enjoying bikes that we thought were heaps of shit 30 years ago. ;D
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THE LIST!
10. 1974 HUSKY 450 DESERT MASTER.
9. 1981 HONDA CR450.
8._ROKON 340.
7._YAMAHA SC-500 SCRAMBLER.
6. HARLEY-DAVIDSON BAJA 100.
5. CZ 250 ENDURO.
4. YAMAHA YZ490 (MOST YEARS). Yamaha introduced the YZ 490 in 1982, after a solid run with the YZ465. Sadly, the 490 was heavier than the 465, nowhere near as reliable, horribly difficult to start (hot or cold), came with a grim suspension, vibrated enough to bring blisters to your hands and was impossible to jet.
If you jetted it rich enough to keep this dog from seizing, it would blubber, puke, foul plugs and produce no power. If you jetted it to run strong, it would invariably seize. It came with air leaks, a wandering ignition, gimpy motor mounts and the worst case of Yamahop at high speeds since the original DT-1. Yamaha issued a mountain of service bulletins to try to fix the problems. None of them worked.
3. PENTON 125 MUD LARK.
2. ANY THREE-WHEELER.
1. And the winner (or loser, actually) is:
THE 1971 SUZUKI TM-400R CYCLONE! It weighed 242 pounds, dry, and delivered about 40 hp at 6850 rpm. Sometimes it delivered it at 4400 rpm. At other times, it would deliver it just when you least expected it. You see, the Cyclone had a weird ignition that would go from a starting mode to full advance whenever it felt like it. Even a change in temperature would change the power hit.
Picture this: you're exiting a hard- packed turn in second gear and you roll the throttle on. All of a sudden, the engine lurches into the fat part of the power curve and the rear end leaps out about three feet. The chassis shudders and sends you sailing into the clear blue sky in a nice arc. Moments later, you thump into the ground, painfully, and then a microsecond after that, the Cyclone lands on top of you.
Adding to the bizarre powerband was a set of forks that went rigid on square bumps and rear shocks that faded from anything hotter than headlight glare. Many companies produced endless handling and frame modification kits. None of these things seemed to help much, but the bike cost only $995 brand new and people kept buying them, trying to make them work. They all failed, to one degree or another, to tame the Cyclone.
The legacy of the TM-400 can be summed up in an ad that appeared in a newspaper:
"For sale-1972 Suzuki TM-400. Only te
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Graeme Smyth rode the Typhoon, used to fly, but only problem was never knew where he would end up. Totally unridable
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there will be tears :'(
looks like the list should be updated
hope frosty doesn't read this :'(
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Good calls but it is worth adding a couple:
1. XR500A ....Honda added 23" front wheel and realised it was total cock up, only lasted one year, used to have this frozen moment where you realised everything was going sideways but you could do nothing about it.....motor was sweet.
2. RM/PE anything fitted with original Suzuki remote resevoir twin shocks that would on a good day last one ride.
3. WR500 ..... red headed step child of the YZ490 ....lipstick on a pig
4. Husky 400AE, moments of brilliance, few of terror, lots trying to get the *^%^ started
5. PE175Z....11 forward speeds if you counted the neutrals between gears, maybe mine was a dud.
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I can see the ozvmx list coming to the surface..... :D
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a marketing strati gee. ;D
FOR SALE: 1972 Suzuki TM-400 Cyclone
E-mail this ad to a friend!
Add to my Checklist
Date Posted: 09/19/2009
Expires On: 01/17/2010
Ad Number: 16985
Ad Information
Category: Dirtbikes
Subcategories: Vintage Era, to 1987
Price Make an offer
Manufacturer Suzuki
Model TM-400 Cyclone
Year 1972
Mileage/Hours less than 500 miles
Has Been Raced No
For Sale By Private Party
Have Title Yes - Owner
Description
This dirt bike is a rare breed. "The most dangerous bike ever built" 240 lbs light with 40 horses and when it comes on the pipe it is enough to tear your head off.
Contact Information
Contact: Terry Buzard
Location: Issaquah, Washington 98027
USA
Telephone:
E-Mail: Reply to Ad
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The TM400 is a ball to ride. ??? Might not be so great under racing conditions where you need a great deal of control but as play bike on a farm they are excellent. ;D. On open flat red dirt farm tracks it is the most fun you could possibly have. Getting that big power hit and spitting dirt all over the place while your fishtailing up the road, nothing like it. :D
Given a chance I would crab a rough old one for myself. Bloody unreal old beasts. ;) My brothers is a real treat to ride.
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I don't know what you guys are on about the tm400 they are just a beast if anyone has one they dont want pm me. If you come off you get back on I havent found one yet but I will sooner or later and I will probably chrash it too but I won't sook up if I do and blaim the bike thanks Michael. :)
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1997 CR250.
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TM400: I suppose today you could make enough modifications to make it rideable, like new front forks, new rear shocks, maybe lengthen the swingarm, improved brakes. Nah sorry once you've tried to race one of these things, I don't think you can ever get back on one
They were frightening, you couldn't feel the front end until it hit a hole then the whole body felt it, and hung on
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I want to make one as stock may have to sell something to fund buying one not a pe though.
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Hey, excellent list! Am I a winner or a loser as I currently own 2 of the bikes on the original list?
Can anyone top that?! ???
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do you own the tm400 Paul??? :)
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Nope Frosty, just the CZ and Rokon. As if that isn't enough..........
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4. YAMAHA YZ490 (MOST YEARS). Yamaha introduced the YZ 490 in 1982, after a solid run with the YZ465. Sadly, the 490 was heavier than the 465, nowhere near as reliable, horribly difficult to start (hot or cold), came with a grim suspension, vibrated enough to bring blisters to your hands and was impossible to jet.
If you jetted it rich enough to keep this dog from seizing, it would blubber, puke, foul plugs and produce no power. If you jetted it to run strong, it would invariably seize. It came with air leaks, a wandering ignition, gimpy motor mounts and the worst case of Yamahop at high speeds since the original DT-1. Yamaha issued a mountain of service bulletins to try to fix the problems. None of them worked.
Gee that guy on the 490 at Ravenswood must know something the rest of the world doesn't........ :-X
I think most of the bad publicity about the 490 was started by Rick Siemen and the rest of the world has ran with it ever since. Which is probably good if you own one because there's about a zillion parts for them still available from Yamaha... 8)
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Which guy on the 490 at Ravo Rossco?
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84-86 XL/XR250 - Heads crack on all of them.
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The first YZF400 takes my vote as the one of the worst bike ever.
This bike changed the life of many a rider>:(
and the guy who was the supposed development rider was held up as a hero.
Noel
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The first YZF400 takes my vote as the one of the worst bike ever.
This bike changed the life of many a rider>:(
and the guy who was the supposed development rider was held up as a hero.
Noel
That's a bit harsh Noel.. I was stoked to be able to race a 4 stroke that could beat the 2 strokes.
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The CR450 definately belongs on that list. I bought a brand new one thinking it was so cool and going to be the best thing i'd ever ridden and it turned out to be one of the worst.
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It was Peter Clarke on the YZ490 at Ravenswood Brent.
Cheers,
K
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That's a bit harsh Noel.. I was stoked to be able to race a 4 stroke that could beat the 2 strokes.
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Hmmm, don't know if I'd be so excited about having to ride something designed to beat something half its size! ;D
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lol I wish I could have ridden one of those TM400's just to say that I had survived!! The reviews are hilarious
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canam 370 , yep , i,ve four yz490,s ( had six )
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That's a bit harsh Noel.. I was stoked to be able to race a 4 stroke that could beat the 2 strokes.
Hmmm, don't know if I'd be so excited about having to ride something designed to beat something half its size! ;D
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Why not if it got results and was legal?
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You are right.....just as well they had changed the rules to allow them!
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Husqvarna 250RT
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Not ridden a TM400? Lucky man ;).....have owned and would not even turn one into a Pre75 sidecar. Tim754
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The first YZF400 takes my vote as the one of the worst bike ever.
This bike changed the life of many a rider>:(
and the guy who was the supposed development rider was held up as a hero.
Noel
Hi Noel, who was the development rider ????
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Doug Henry wasn't it?
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1997 CR250.
Yes that was onebike that I hated.Sold it at a huge loss and luckily lept my 94 .Still got it.
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The first YZF400 takes my vote as the one of the worst bike ever.
This bike changed the life of many a rider>:(
and the guy who was the supposed development rider was held up as a hero.
Noel
That's a bit harsh Noel.. I was stoked to be able to race a 4 stroke that could beat the 2 strokes.
What's wrong with the YZ400F? It was a pretty good bike. Same with the 250F. Good from the get-go. The 426 and some of the early 450 versions were monsters though!
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Doug Henry wasn't it?
He was one of them, but also I know a couple of people who worked for the factory during testing. I think the YZF400 was a watershed model as its basic design became the standard for all the 4 stroke race bikes that followed. 426 was probably better engine as Yamaha had some field experience by then.
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1997 CR250.
Yes that was onebike that I hated.Sold it at a huge loss and luckily lept my 94 .Still got it.
Yep, I rode a 97 back-to-back with my 93. Good power, but just had this bad 'solid' feeling about it. Basically no frame flex at all. You don't realise how much give there is in a chro-mo frame until you ride a 97 CR250.
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1997 CR250.
Yes that was onebike that I hated.Sold it at a huge loss and luckily lept my 94 .Still got it.
Yep, I rode a 97 back-to-back with my 93. Good power, but just had this bad 'solid' feeling about it. Basically no frame flex at all. You don't realise how much give there is in a chro-mo frame until you ride a 97 CR250.
IMO as well as that solid feeling , I also felt that the power and ergo's were better on the 94.
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Wouldn't Mikkola have been the test rider for the early YZ and there is the story about him digging a hole during the lunch break and trying to bury it!!
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Wouldn't Mikkola have been the test rider for the early YZ and there is the story about him digging a hole during the lunch break and trying to bury it!!
No, that was Hakan Carlqvist in the early eighties.
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Wouldn't Mikkola have been the test rider for the early YZ and there is the story about him digging a hole during the lunch break and trying to bury it!!
Heiki Mikkola managed team Yamaha for one year after retiring(around1980) and then got away from bikes.Hes an organic vegitable farmer just out of Helsinki.
Doug Henry and Andrea Bartolini were the guys who gave the yz400 their race debuts in the US nationals and WORLD series but like MARCFX said there was lots of testing done by the Yamaha testers first .Doug Dubach was involved I heard.
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The YZ400F had a motor too good for it's shitbox chassis, the japs should have used the Husaberg chassis as well as copying the engine-same bore and stroke as 400 Berg, same type of piston design (no skirt ) to produce a fast reving lightweight 4 stroke engine. The japs have always copied the Euros and most of the time made it better! That first 400F put a lot of people in the intensive-care ward, as bad as any 3 wheeler. The story I heard was Yamaha bought a 501 Berg and a 400 Berg to see what made them go so fast and the rest is history!
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The YZ400F had a motor too good for it's shitbox chassis, the japs should have used the Husaberg chassis as well as copying the engine-same bore and stroke as 400 Berg, same type of piston design (no skirt ) to produce a fast reving lightweight 4 stroke engine. The japs have always copied the Euros and most of the time made it better! That first 400F put a lot of people in the intensive-care ward, as bad as any 3 wheeler. The story I heard was Yamaha bought a 501 Berg and a 400 Berg to see what made them go so fast and the rest is history!
Absolutely correct!, Husaberg were the inovators of the modern 4 stroke motor, the Japs just coppied/ stole their technology, and KTM had to buy it to obtain it.
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Doug Dubach was and still is 1 of the main test and devolopment riders for the YZF Yamahas. Henry and Bartolini were the guys that got to race the ultra trick works Yamaha 4 strokes in '97, '98.
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If you go back a bit further. It was Husqvarna that really started it all by putting a four stroke top end on an existing two stroke bottom end and developed them for a few years.
When Husqvarna was sold to the Italians,a group of Husqvarna engineers and riders wished to continue developing powerful lightweight fourstrokes.Husaberg was created and the rest is history.
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Doug Dubach was and still is 1 of the main test and devolopment riders for the YZF Yamahas. Henry and Bartolini were the guys that got to race the ultra trick works Yamaha 4 strokes in '97, '98.
The header pipe was a twin pipe set up from memory on the bike Henry rode in sx..
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Doug Dubach was and still is 1 of the main test and devolopment riders for the YZF Yamahas. Henry and Bartolini were the guys that got to race the ultra trick works Yamaha 4 strokes in '97, '98.
The header pipe was a twin pipe set up from memory on the bike Henry rode in sx..
Yeah you could be right. I saw both Henry's and Bartolini's works bikes at the '98 Mx des Nations and they were both quite different and very trick and not much like the production bike.
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Yeah you could be right. I saw both Henry's and Bartolini's works bikes at the '98 Mx des Nations and they were both quite different and very trick and not much like the production bike.
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That was Foxhills in the mud? Lucky guy .How long did it take to get outta there.
Matterly Basin was horrendous took like 3 hours to get out on the road about 200metres from were we parked.
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That was Foxhills in the mud? Lucky guy .How long did it take to get outta there.
Matterly Basin was horrendous took like 3 hours to get out on the road about 200metres from were we parked.
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Yeah that was Foxhills..unbelievably muddy. We had to have a bit of help to get outa there the next day.
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That was Foxhills in the mud? Lucky guy .How long did it take to get outta there.
Matterly Basin was horrendous took like 3 hours to get out on the road about 200metres from were we parked.
Yeah that was Foxhills..unbelievably muddy. We had to have a bit of help to get outa there the next day.
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I got it on DVD.
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If that list was done today you woud have to add ANY chinese bike upto about 2 years ago. After that most chinese bikes :P.
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Except for the Bultaco Lobito*, there are no bad dirt bikes. Some bikes are ready made to win races straight out of the box while others may need a bit of help to get results. Seeing Andy Caldecott win with amazing ease on an "evil" TM400 and "slow" TM250, Boagy win 125 races at will on, of all things a Rickman Zundapp and that guy at the Conondale Nats on the XL500 sticking it to Belly convinces me that any bike can be made a winner. Not every rider can unfortunately!
The TM/TS400 Suzuki is indeed a dangerous beasty but with the advantage of nearly 40 years of playing with the things we can now turn them into serious race tackle with just a few parts upgrades (full circle TS crank, modern ignition, modern tech pipe, decent forks or fitting PD or Gold valves, and a decent set of shocks).
http://www.mccookracing.com/articles/firko_rogerSuzukiMe.htm (http://www.mccookracing.com/articles/firko_rogerSuzukiMe.htm)
The YZ 490's problems can be greatly lessened with a bit of creative head/carby and pipe work. Methinks the 490s appearance on the bad list is because it replaced such a great bike. People expected an even better machine than its predecessor but unfortunately the YZ 465 was a great bike with a reputation that the YZ490 couldn't hope to live up to. It was merely a good bike when people were expecting a brilliant bike. It's a similar situation to another notorious 'bad boy' bike the '82 490 Maico, which followed the most reverred open class bike in MX history, the '81 Maico 490. Some unfortunate quality control problems, extremely bad press and tainted the '82 Maico placing it on many critics worst bike lists when in actual fact, once the problems were sorted at factory level (after the first month of production) the '82 Maico was a superb ride, possible even better than the legendary '81 model. Unfortunately the press and coming in the wake of a legend ruined its reputation forever. Today, the 82 model Maico and the YZ490 are half the price of their earlier brothers but can easily be made more than their equal.
*I should take Hoonys lead here and explain to Bultacophiles that I don't hate Bultaco Lobitos at all. After I wrote my now infamous 'Julio Inglesas' piece http://www.mccookracing.com/articles/firko_JulioLeavesMeCold.htm (http://www.mccookracing.com/articles/firko_JulioLeavesMeCold.htm) describing my first day experience with my own Lobito, I've become the victim of scorn from Bultaco owners Australia wide. el Presidente of Club Bultaco, a bloke with a Polish name I can't pronounce, went into a rabid, spiteful and possibly libelous campaign against me in the Club Bultaco magazine, showing an unbelievable lack of understanding of the concept of satire or a smidge of a sense of humour. That's why I want to take a Lobito, a pound of Lan Choo, a nice plate of Cocoa Fluffies and the Hillsong songbook to this years Bultaco Rally. There are some fences needing rebuilding and I need to feel the love of the Bultaco community. ::)
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10 worst dirtbikes of all time... (in no order)
Yamaha's 1972-present
Suzuki's (including all footpegs, ok, i do like RM 465/500's)
Kawasaki's
Maico's (excluding the 490)
Bulty's ( excluding the pomeroy model)
Monty's (excluding the Rossco model,......... Nah that's in the list too)
Ossa's
BSA'a (CCM's excepted)
Aspes ( say no more)
Ktm's ( excluding all the big "great white's")
let the fun begin
i posted this up earlier then pulled it as i thought it may be taken way too seriously, after reading the "Deals Gone Bad-For the Benefit of a Legend" thread, but now i think otherwise
Disclaimer this is a bona fide shit stir only, anyone on here still have a sense of humour and like to take the piss ? i actually have a love of all things on two wheels that are engine driven from 1912 8 valve alcohol fuelled Indian board track racers to now
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I hate to admit but i now have 5 hondas in my shed as my YZ's were way too fast for me .! i had a YZ490J & YZ490K and luved both of them ,hard to keep back mudgaurds on them .
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Glad you reposted it up Hoony... 8)
Suzuki how dare you :o
BSA they are still going strong after all these years,they sell the most parts out of UK for VMX. :D
Ossa's dam good trail bikes I believe :P
Disclaimer this is a bona fide shit stir only, anyone on here still have a sense of humour and like to take the piss ?
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BSA they are still going strong after all these years,they sell the most parts out of UK for VMX.
Yeah parts are easy to find. Just walk the track after an event :D
Nice list Hoony.
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[quote
and the guy who was the supposed development rider was held up as a hero.
Noel
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http://vimeo.com/6643456
I have no problem with anyone holding up Doug Henry as a hero :) :)
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Hey Hoony ever had a Hodaka, ATK , Huskquvananna (Swedish type real bolt up through the seat tank joint ones ,and the later model Italian loser efforts) or a Carabela ?? sorry that last one was very low... :D Tim754
Nothing to disclaim ;)
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Hey Hoony ever had a Hodaka, ATK , Huskquvananna (Swedish type real bolt up through the seat tank joint ones ,and the later model Italian loser efforts) or a Carabela ?? sorry that last one was very low... Tim754
Nothing to disclaim
You know how to kick a chap in the goolies Tim. Except for the Italian Husky, I've owned all of those bikes......and liked them!
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I knew that ! :D :D :D :D :D :D :D and I too have at some stage owned and ridden ( maybe not raced) all those treasures. Was once again sitting here pondering all the machines that have slipped in and out of my time, loved the ATK (weird little disk brake and chain adjusters and all) the old Husky was given to me years ago stupidly I gave it to someone else, the Carabela was just different fun, always started first kick , had surprisingly smooth power ,always missed gears and bad rust in the cracking frame. Swapped it for another Hodaka. Hodakas had them all .I still have a list of a lot of the Hodaka frame numbers I had , reason I check the numbers at meetings if I can just to see if any of the little shits that spent some time with me still haunt others with their evil quirks. Cheers
PS the ATK had a Rotax... Yummy!!!!!!
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Yamaha's belong on the list for sure, and I've even heard that the only good Yamaha has 88 keys.
Cheers,
K
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We'll see next year K........
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Bultaco 125 Sherpa S, drop the clutch at the start and sit there and wait for it to stop four stroking as the bloody eletrics were crap
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At least you'll be able to give us a tune at luch time Ross. I hope you've got your Liberace outfit and Peter Allen congas!
Cheers,
K
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Any 4 stroke ever made take your pick........................................
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Hoony - was going to write and advise you had been taken off the official Christmas card list but after his "even worse" comments to follow this has been extended to include BIGK also ;D
Gents - I am a Yamaha convert!!!!
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Yamaha on the list ??? what are you thinking K. Lozza 4 strokes aren't as good as 2 are they but I do like a good tt500 or xr500 and I am really dissapointed in tm400 being top of the list they are a nice bike just because the caused a few injuries here and there thanks Michael.
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Ah-haaa!! There it is, at long last...between the K and the Lozza !!
Michael has finally used a full stop.....ACTUAL punctuation !!
Nice work, Michael ! ;)
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Ok but what is my price? Please say tm400 thanks Michael.
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I think you'll find he used two full stops!!!! ;D
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Some-one - Please give Michael a ride on a TM 400 .
They are really feral Michael and need to be treated with a lot of respect .
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Hoony - was going to write and advise you had been taken off the official Christmas card list but after his "even worse" comments to follow this has been extended to include BIGK also ;D
Gents - I am a Yamaha convert!!!!
well, what can i say Ross, ...............maybe i don't want a Xmas card from A turncoat ex Honda rider ::) the crew at Bryant Park in Smithton, Tas will be dissapointed in your actions as well :D ;)
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Hi Stewart I don't think it would be a good idea to ride some ones tm400 I might break it and I would feel very bad for the owner. I am suprised at the lack of them in Australia or maybe I am not good at looking. If I were paying attention to this site Firko found a ripper in the US that sold for not much at all obviously with shipping it would have cost a little more but still was a great buy. I will have to keep looking if I can get my hands on a motor and frame that would be good enough. I really like the orange 71 model thanks Michael. :)
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Michael...Cool to see you use a little punctuation. Try an apostrophe after thanks and before the word Michael and we'll all sleep a lot better in knowledge that our puppy is learning new tricks!
If you're going to the Broadford Bonanza next Easter, bring your gear along and I'll give you a ride on my Boyd and Stellings TM400.
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Thanks Firko I'll have to see if I can make it I would like to go it would be great to have a go on your tm400. I heard they have enduro tracks as well so can fire up one of the pe400's and I will be in business. What do you think about tm400 being 1 worst bike of all time? I have an rm400c I have to do up also thanks, Michael.
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watz wiv all da gramma isuz see who uzez gramma or correct spellin these dayz :)
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I see The Puntuation Police are back on the beat........ ::)
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I see The Puntuation Police are back on the beat........ ::)
(punctuation) :-*
Surely you have the same problem trying to decipher incorrect spelling and one long sentence without any breaks. I know it is hard for me to read and sometimes give up as it seems like ramblings of a mad man. The longer the post, the worse it is.
Fair comment? Or just ramblings of a mad man.
On a side note my spelling isn't crash hot either any more.I haven't had to write/ type this much since school. Using Firefox must have a built in dictionary or is in the computer software as it underlines any incorrect spelling on the page and gives the correct spelling.
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Well. Basically I think it's just wank and anal. I doubt their posts are unreadable.
The biggest thing I notice is that some 17 yr old kid is always getting jumped on about it and others (guys who I know are a lot older and hold a higher ranking in the VMX community and would tell you to fork right off) don't have a thing mentioned to them.
Hmmm? :-* :-*
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I see The Puntuation Police are back on the beat........ ::)
(punctuation) :-*
I rest my case.....
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I too think it is a VERY POOR EFFORT to post with no punctuation. A few seconds is all it takes to change a posting from near nonsense to intelligent discourse.
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I see The Puntuation Police are back on the beat........ ::)
(punctuation) :-*
I rest my case.....
Tongue in cheek bud.
Not unreadable. Just tend to put it in the too hard to read basket. Same as when you see a really long post and think nah, too hard (sometimes). A couple of full stops would help alot. Nothing personal to anyone either.
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Don't call me Bud, Bwad. ;)
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::) Sorry....mate.
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I agree with Brad, it's frustrating to read but if nobody says anything, how is he going to get better? Most of us learn by repetition and once you leave what they call school these days it's all over. If we can get Frosty and others to write better then I think thats a positive. It's nothing personal but "you learn something every day" and thats one of the GOOD things about life!!!! Your not going to get better at anything unless somebody points it out. Cheers John. ;)
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Or even "you're", John. My original post had a ;) at the end of it, to indicate to FrostyPE400 that it's nothing serious. And the last thing I'd be doing is to dissuade a youngster from getting stuck into vmx : more the merrier I reckon, and I'm rapt that younger riders are able to "get" the buzz of hammering round on gnarly old clunkers with us. But we're not texting, and although I don't consider myself a member of the Punctuation Police, it doesn't hurt to at least go through the motions of hanging on to some of the grammar and punctuation that forms a legible read.
No offence, Michael, and hope to catch you at CD7 ;)
Thanks for your traditional calm and measured response, 414. ::)
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Thanks for your traditional calm and measured response, 414. ::)
That's what I'm here for......
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I tried not to reply because I thought this might happen. It didn't really worry me that I had to spend a little time fixing a post. I doubt 414 I would tell any to get lost unless they were having a real go at me. I don't really know alot of guys personally so if I can get to cd7 even as a spectator that would be good thanks, Michael.
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What do you think about tm400 being 1 worst bike of all time?
Like I said earlier Michael, I don't think that there are any really bad dirt bikes, least of all the TM400. The Suzuki definitely has some nasty flaws but they can mostly all be sorted. The TM will never handle as well or have the sheer speed of a 440 Maico or 400 Husky but once the virus infected parts are removed or replaced, the big Cyclone is a handy piece of gear, capable of holding its own against the opposition. Plus, you've got a bike with a bad boy reputation...the motocross equivalent of dating Roberta Williams.
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That is good to know Firko I will have to ring a few guys and see if can find anything. I stopped looking for a little while because I have been doing that gt80 up but when that is done I will try and find a tm400 again thanks, Michael.
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I see The Puntuation Police are back on the beat
And the squad is growing daily. ;D
The biggest thing I notice is that some 17 yr old kid is always getting jumped on about it and others (guys who I know are a lot older and hold a higher ranking in the VMX community and would tell you to fork right off) don't have a thing mentioned to them.
Michael's not the only one that's been singled out at all. A number of others, most notably Freaky have been picked on for their lazy posting, and not just by me. I singled Freaky out (which inspired some sharp debate between us)because he's shown that he's more than capable of producing an articulate and well punctuated posting but more often than not his posts were bordering on indecipherable. You've probably noticed that his posts have improved beyond expectation in recent times. Michael's the product of the 'texting' generation where punctuation and sentence structure are bypassed in the interest of a quick text. He's not the only one, amongst others a prominent Viper identity is guilty of the same crime. Knowing that these guys are quite articulate, its easy to dismiss their posts as lazy and with not caring about the reader.
I tutor HSC and Uni students in essay writing and and I've observed that 'text' style language as displayed in Michael and others posts is fast becoming the new accepted standard for written communication. It may be OK for a quick text to the mate to see if he wants to go for a beer but to present a 3000 word essay on business law with basic spelling mistakes, hardly any punctuation and paragraph long sentences is just plain disasterous. That's why the parents call me in, as the kids themselves can see nothing wrong with it until it's pointed out to them.
We don't have to produce posts Ernest Hemingway would be proud to call his own on the forum. All we need is a little bit of respect for those expected to read them by using capitals and punctuation where needed and take a bit of care with spelling. It's not that hard.
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roberta williams has a head like a robbers dog .and ive seen the thing up close ,the tm 400 doesent deserve to be associated with her .megan fox is more the bad girl you should date ;)
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there's a TM400 in October's Just Bikes for sale. Page 64. $4,200.
ED
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Thanks Ed I better keep saving thanks, Michael.
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I agree, don't be lazy, and check what you've written to see if it at least reads o.k. My magor hassel is when I post from my daughters lap top as it has a couple of dead keys on the key board and when you look back it has missed a few which makes it heard to read-even for me. Apparentley I type too hard.
On the TM Cyclone-I remember them being exactly that-all piss and wind and not many could handle them. I was scared of a TM125 let alone a 400 for Gods sake so I thought they must have all been correct when they said it had too much power. However, they don't make as much as a 1000 Wasp and handle pretty much the same-so you just learn to hang on and rest when you can.
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worst dirt bike in the world would be eml`s xr 250 and vaughn you spelt major wrong
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Taht was just a test-on both counts :D
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Sorry, I've just come in late. I this the "ten worst spellers of all time" thread?
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I thunk so.....
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I thunk so.....
Come on Ross , some of us need more from you than that.Im getting withdrawal .....
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I'm saving myself for Sat night and you're not even going to be there to see it! Very selfish Brent. The Viper presentation only comes along once a year and your birthday comes along.......... Yeah. Well. You know what I mean. :-*
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the montgomery 414 was a real lemon ::)