Picked up a Royal Enfield Bullet

[HardDrive]

A power house she ain't. But the 500cc single makes a nice thump. 2004 model.

The previous owner suggested that its a good idea to 'bring some tools' when I ride it. Always a good sign.

[widgeon13]

Very nice, any Royal Enfield is a super find.

[UconnTim97]

Nice motorcycle there and it looks like it would be lots of fun to ride. Enjoy!

[sc_rufctr]

Damn I love old school stuff like this.

Were are these made?

[duncan1437]

Originally Posted by HardDrive

The previous owner suggested that its a good idea to 'bring some tools' when I ride it. Always a good sign.

arriving at the destination can be overrated. enjoy the journey!

[LakeCleElum]

Originally Posted by sc_rufctr

Damn I love old school stuff like this.

Were are these made?

Made in India - The 500cc has 22 hp......Hold on tight .

[Jeff Higgins]

An Indian made, outdated British design. What could possibly go wrong?

Hope you didn't sell the Duc...

[Gogar]

Congrats! I hope you kept the Ducati too; if you did I think the contrast would be a really enjoyable thing.

[HardDrive]

Originally Posted by Jeff Higgins

An Indian made, outdated British design. What could possibly go wrong?

Hope you didn't sell the Duc...

No kidding. Its crude. I still have the Duc, but I am going to sell it. Probably going to replace it with a Moto Guzzi of some flavor or a larger cc 70s Honda CB.

[nynor]

you, sir, are a brave soul. it does look nice.

[Jeff Higgins]

My one "keeper" for the last30-some years has been my '76 "Ironhead" (not sure if that refers to the riders or these damn bikes) Sportster. I keep it for two reasons: first, it's just like the first street bike I ever owned (this one is actually the third, but I went through a Sportster per year for the first three years I had my license). Second, it reminds me how wonderful new(er) motorcycles really are. It really is a POS, but it's my POS.




Traditional bikes from that era - that of the big British singles and parallel twins, and American V-twins, are a whole different animal than what you are used to. They are literally their own worst enemies. The combination of poor materials, poor design, poor workmanship, and severe vibration means they just shake themselves to death. And leak like the Exxon Valdez. Most problems are traced to the former (you address the latter by continually filling it with oil) - some poor, over stressed part finally rattled and shook for its last time and just gave up the good fight.

So, yes, "bring tools" is good advice; I would add "spare parts" to that list. You won't have to ride it for long to figure which spare parts you will need to have on hand at all times. Unlike the old days when these POS's were new, you won't find parts locally. Hell, we used to be able to go into any Schuck's or NAPA store and find electrical parts for the old Harleys, because they were all Motorcraft or Delco anyway. We changed them so often that we all knew which old Ford or Chevy starter, generator, relay, solenoid, or whatever we needed. "I need a starter relay fo a '62 Ford F100..."

More good advice: buy a pickup truck, leave it full of gas, unlocked, and keys under the seat whenever you go ride the Royal Enfield. Never call the same friend twice in one month to go get the truck and come and get you; otherwise they get kind of tired of it. Never ride it further from home than they are willing to come and get you.

Have fun...

[LeeH]

Very cool. Never seen one of these before. Were a lot of these imported, or did someone just bring this one over? I've always thought if I bought a modern bike that looked old I'd get a Triumph Thruxton.

[HardDrive]

Originally Posted by LeeH

Very cool. Never seen one of these before. Were a lot of these imported, or did someone just bring this one over? I've always thought if I bought a modern bike that looked old I'd get a Triumph Thruxton.

I'm not sure when they officially started importing them. Its been at about 10 years. There is a decent dealer network out there. Before 2009, these really were a 1950s design. You should see this thing shake when its idling. Its a hoot. They were asking $5K for a bike thats really a $2.5k bike, so not a whole lot were sold.

Post 2009 (could be a bit off on the date), its a different story. Fuel injection, much, much better fit and finish. The new ones preserve the classic look, but they're much better bikes. Ducati Seattle (very reputable dealer) just signed on to be part of their network.

The most shocking thing isn't the engine, its the brakes. Terrible. Front drum brakes on a motocycle. Yikes.

[sc_rufctr]

Originally Posted by LakeCleElum

Made in India - The 500cc has 22 hp......Hold on tight .

Even with only 22hp I'm sure I could get myself into trouble on that thing.

I used to drive a Fiat 500 which had about the same power. (500cc, 2 cylinder air cooled)

[motion]

Originally Posted by HardDrive

A power house she ain't. But the 500cc single makes a nice thump. 2004 model.

The previous owner suggested that its a good idea to 'bring some tools' when I ride it. Always a good sign.

Living the dream! Enjoy in good health!

[Jeff Higgins]

Originally Posted by HardDrive

I'm not sure when they officially started importing them. Its been at about 10 years. There is a decent dealer network out there. Before 2009, these really were a 1950s design. You should see this thing shake when its idling. Its a hoot. They were asking $5K for a bike thats really a $2.5k bike, so not a whole lot were sold.

Post 2009 (could be a bit off on the date), its a different story. Fuel injection, much, much better fit and finish. The new ones preserve the classic look, but they're much better bikes. Ducati Seattle (very reputable dealer) just signed on to be part of their network.

The most shocking thing isn't the engine, its the brakes. Terrible. Front drum brakes on a motocycle. Yikes.

Yeah, the new ones have been pretty thoroughly redesigned. Unit construction, electric start, disc brakes, fuel injection, etc. But, they are still made by the same people in the same place...

I rode a demo that one of the early importers had at Sturgis in 2003 or 2004. Truly uninspiring. Good thing it didn't have much power, because it had no brakes, either. And yes, the guy wanted way too much for them, like about double what they were worth. Trying to capitalize on nostalgia, and the "Royal Enfield" name. There wasn't very much I would have called "royal" about that one, though.

I've checked out the new ones at DOS. They do appear to be much better finished than they were some years back. They still want way, way too much for them, though. The kind of money they are asking will still buy a far, far better motorcycle.

[tabs]

Trouble, trouble trouble on my miind...