After giving up moto cross, I still missed off-roading, so bought an XT500. When I and my pal with his 410 AJS motocrosser met up with two other friends of ours with their road bikes on our little practice circuit, they were gobsmacked that I could beat the AJ's lap time with my XT whilst appearing to be just out for a gentle Sunday afternoon plod. I let one of them have a go on the XT, and the following week they both turned up with brand new ones. For a lark, I entered a scramble with the XT in 1978, and it blitzed everything going up the very steep hill at Nancemellin, but going down the hill was a very different kettle of fish as the thing bounced about, only vaguely staying straight.😅However, I still managed to finish mid-field, much to the surprise of many. In 1981 I traded it in against an XT550, which was undoubtedly the most fun bike that I have ever owned.
They had the XT600? They could put the XT500 tank and seat on that? Not sure why you had the Suzuki 400 in there as I never saw one in 70s, why not have the DT400 a genuinely advanced bike with first monoshock frame
@@bikerdood1100 Great video bikerdood. Thanks. All nice bikes. But really all not very good "trail bikes". All the 4-strokes are way too heavy. (1974 Ducati R/T 450 excluded!)) The Suzuki's ring dings the closest proper off-road "trail bikes" Not the TM - too wild powerband "motocross" bike! If you took the TS400, and put on knobbies, it was getting there - but still encumbered with too much street paraphernalia. The first mass-produced 1970's real "trail bikes" were the Yamaha IT's. Starting with the IT400C in 1976. and the IT175D in 1977 Here was a proper "trail bike" one could ride in the International ISDT 6-days trails competitively. Off the showroom floor. If you were good enough! But the King Kong IT in the 70's was the IT400F in 1979. We will leave the legendary 1983 IT490K for another discussion - arguable still the best Japanese trail bike ever built! 😄 Thanks for the video - halycon days!
The XL500 with a lot of weight saver parts, modern flat slide carb, 21 inch front wheel from a late drum motocrosser and longer shocks and forks makes for a hell of a trail bike with a vintage 4S MX vibe. Worth about 5 times more than stock too.
I had an early XT500 & could start it first time hot or cold no problem & my friend who later had an XL500 could do the same but neither of us could start each other's bikes easily strangely.
I grew up on mini bikes, and my first motorcycle was a Harley dual sport, with a ~90cc engine. At twelve my Dad brought me a Yamaha YZ 400. That bike was a beast, that loved to scream! I kept that bike a long time, and only had to replace fork oil seals. I wish I still had it. After that I got a Honda XR 350, and instead screaming it like putting around in the woods, but also could go like hell smoothly, and quietly.
You know how to bring back memories. I had a XT500 back in the early '80's. Great bike. A few years later, I bought a XT600 Tenere ( not mentioned here ). It was a beast. I'm 6 foot ( 1.82m ) & could only just touch my toes on each side, so had to be careful when parking up. Yep, dropped it a couple of times when not "thinking"
XT 500 # 4 is in my shop and I started on the old 441 Victor and had several of them and the big bores are easy to start if you learn about them right, a 12 year old boy I taught to start the xt and he rode the heck out of it, he is of slight build and the envy of his dirt biking friends at school.
One bike to consider is the 1970 Yamaha RT1 360cc Enduro. I had one in black and red pinstriping when I was teen in the mid seventies. It was advertised as the first stock bike to complete the Baja 500. Excellent bike then and now!
Great video ! All the best big Trailies……..except the ‘Elephant in the Room’………BMW’s. GS 80. This is a bike with real ‘mystique’ and exotic engineering……horizontally opposed cylinders and Dakar Rally cred. A comprehensive history of this model would be a real treat !
Talking about riding an XT500 @14 years of age - I have a very amateurish YT video of my son riding one that I refurbished about 13 years ago. Without wanting to hijack this excellent video by quoting its exact link - it can be found under my name and "My Yamaha XT500 movie".
Scrouged a knackered road version Suzuki 185 as a kid run for a while over the local fields but it gave up the ghost so i swapped it for a running honda step through. I have just been given a fully restored Honda XL350 from a good friend just got to pick it up.
@@bikerdood1100 anything that we could get our hands on some of which I wish I had now. All sorts, step throughs 50cc to 90cc ohc and push rod versions, a red and chrome tanked honda 65 with gears bit like the ss50, CB and CD 175s, Pouch 250, Ducati 250 bloody fast, 2 Fantic 50cc trails, a few italian scooters, Greaves, Cotton, Sunbeam that smooked worse than any rwo stroke, a few BSA bantams , knackered Motesa 172 trails and the most terrifying of all a Bultaco 350 scrambler that had just about survived a shed fire thanks to the fire brigade an old chap on our estate helped us get it usable the original plastic tank had melted all over the engine
I had the 79 Honda XR 500. Yep goofy 23" front wheel. The frame sn swingarm I believe was made of electrical conduit pipe, both cracked regularly. The 79 XR was a light purpose trail bike, meant to use to find your favorite fishing hole.
I had a Yamaha TT 500 back in the day. I think it was a 1978 model. I also had a 1980 YZ465, Honda CR250 and a Yamaha XS500, all at the same time. They occupied my garage and my Chevy El Camino was relegated to the driveway. Good times indeed!
You overlooked the Honda SL350. I had the privilege to ride one to the top of Pikes Peak back in the day. It wasn’t a big thumper, but rather the venerable Honda 350 twin which loved to rev.
The XT 500 and SR 500 was some of Yamaha's icons! The engine, more on the rustic side, needed love to start and could kick back badly if the driver didn't exactly know what to do. While the Honda XL 500 had a much more refined engine. I am a Honda guy but liked them all.
You have to understand the de-compressor, and kick it like you mean it, as you say. It will spoil your day otherwise, and tomorrow as well probably. Jeff
I had an XT 500 in the late 80s , lots of grunt, but what a bastard to kick, seriously if it didnt start in the first three kicks , you gave up on it for a half hour. And it would kick back also, throw you over the handle bars or put a massive bruise on your calf. Was a great flat track bike , just loved to be sideways, but didnt really appreciate bumps.
Great list. Saw several of them in Palins in Derby where I bought my only new bike, a very classic blue CD175 - the first retro bike. But Surely the Triumph Adventurer as used by the Royal Signals White Helmets Display Team deserves at least an honourable mention here. It was rather better than the BSA I believe. Have got a CCM 604 frame that looks remarkably similar to the BSA frame. Thank you for sharing.
Think you will find the Royal Signals used Tigers Need to do a few videos on British off roaders Will b3 getting round to it at some point Hence why they are always tittle 5 not top five, gives me options for later
@@bikerdood1100 I think you will find that Wikipedia (and the internet in general) can be a very unreliable and somewhat deficient source for information about a lot of subjects, not least what actually happened only three years ago, never mind 50 plus years ago. I saw the White Helmets perform several times during the early 1970s, probably ‘70, ‘71, ‘72 & maybe‘73. Being bike mad 12-15 year old during this period, I gathered everything bike related I could lay my hands on. I wish I still had them all now. So I naturally grabbed the publicity leaflets from the White Helmets tent. These included the announcement that they were proud to be using the new Triumph Adventurer. But when I asked for more information about the bikes, I was told that they were mostly intended for the US market. For probably 40 years, that exchange (and an article in MCN) was my only knowledge of the Triumph Adventurer. None of my mates at the time were aware of it. It is however highly likely that they only used them for one season. But the image seared on my mind is of those siamese header pipes, and the distinctively shaped alloy tank and decals, and the side panels with the name Adventurer on them. I stood right next to them while they were still steaming! Mandela effect? Possibly, but very unlikely. How else did I learn about its existence in the UK during the early ‘70s?
I had a cd175 that had been nicked and got back without ignition key. I had to twist wires together to start it and it had been hit in the tank with a hammer. A true rat bike but a bike that would survive the apocalypse. It cost me £10 and got me around for a month or so.
I had a first generation XT 500 , on the way to work one early morning , i was waiting at a traffic light , a counter shaft seal let go . I pushed the bike the last two blocks to work .
I own a '67 Ducati Scrambler 250 I had as a teen. The narrowcase engines were Italian made ( in my bikes case..) wereas the later Spanish made 1970's singles were known as the widecases. As a trailbike the old Scramblers were fair, a low standover like a heavy honda trail 90. Suspension on the1960's bikes was pretty mediocre, less than 3 inches front and rear. But with a trail sprocket they were pretty good for smooth trails and gravel tracks. For such a old 4 stroke they sure ran great, Honda levels of RPM and smoothness with a much hotter performance and that iconic Ducati exhaust snarl when on engine braking.
Great selection of scoots.ive owned many japenese enduros and every one was a hoot to drive.on and off road.the bsa,s and Ducati look nice but never rode one
I owned a white 79 XL500S. Great bike and easy to start which the XT500 wasn't. Although here in the Netherlands the XT was the cooler bike to have. Weak point of the XL500S was the undersized chain. By later models this was modified. And of course the strange 23 inch front wheel, new tires were only available from just one brand.
@@bikerdood1100 Magazine articles back in the day said Honda thought it would help with ground clearance and jumping over obstacles, but it hurt suspension travel, turn in speed and now tire choices! I have an XL500 and don't really notice much difference, and I do like the bike, but my XL600r is the better bike in all ways. The handlebar comp. release is especially nice!
I bought a new XT500 in 1976, dealer I left deposit with was unable to find one, I tried 5 other Yamaha dealers, but no luck, my last try was a car dealer that dabbled with bikes, he found me one in France!! Could be a real pig to start, I would never have started it without a de-comp button, brakes were shite, 6 volt light were a joke, 6 months warranty wasnt long enough as it started to drinking engine oil at an alarming rate at 8 months old, it was serviced by a main Yamaha dealer when due. I ran the motor in correct, front fork seal's knackered up at 9 months, 10 months I sold it at a bloody loss.
Yamaha XT is a legend, reliability and simplicity, but Honda has a modern, dynamic engine and a beautiful appearance. It's a pity that there was no DR 500, but I know that they started producing them in 1980.
I've had 2 XL 500 Hondas over many years. The first one was a 1982 silver tanked superseded twin shock they were selling brand new REALLY cheap as it was being replaced by the new single shock. It had some quirks, silly things, some I wouldn't expect from a usually thorough and quality brand like Honda. Eg: Put indicator on approaching a corner you need to make BUT, naturally braking comes almost immediately after and as soon as the brake light came on, too much power drain and the indicator would stop and the brake light would be dull. Mine also, while trying my hardest to run it in carefully decided to randomly cut out and leave me in awkward situations, on the side of the road pulling EVERYTHING apart trying to find the problem. I didn't, it would 'randomly' come back to life, never having actually found the problem. I did wind up GETTING it fixed, how the hell was I to guess they'd put a resistor in the plug cap? Why did they even do that? That was the source and once replaced, problem solved. They also had a throttle they probably thought was a good idea but, just made life harder if you wanted to go straight to full throttle as it was something like a 270 degree roll of the throttle from idle to full so, I developed a sort of sliding palm roll way of snapping straight to full. They did have that weird and wacky 23 inch front wheel while everyone elses dirt bikes had 21 inch. It did make for some interesting rough terrain handling effects, quite good ones I thought once used to it. I've been on a lot of rough dirt roads and corrugated can be really hairy when both wheels being roughly the same overall diameter could at the right speed start skipping off the tops of the corrugated humps and effectively just start floating around. With that 23 inch front the XL 500s would float around at the rear BUT, the front would tack straight and true, making them, pretty fantastic for those kinds of roads. The second one I picked up years later, feeling sorry I'd let the other one go when I did. I'd picked up a 25 Yamaha that'd been in a head on and had a fairly new engine but badly bent up frame. A guy I met had this old XL 500 (a 1981 model with the red tank) after the previous owner who apparently never did ANY sort of servicing at ALL! It had a locked up engine but, mechanical work I can handle and he wanted a moderate type bike engine for a go cart so, a perfect trade was made and I completely rebuilt and modified that engine from top to bottom, especially all the rocker gear and cams as due to him letting the timing chain get so slack it had sawn through a little brass tube that once the cover was on, fed oil up to the top. That one I worked the engine up a bit, fixed or replaced anything that needed it and swapped that silly three quarter rotation throttle for a quick action one that only took ONE quarter turn to full, all round, a much more fun bike to ride, quicker too.
Oh we have have several Hondas over the years Honda build quality is good but never as good as some would have you believe It’s sill thing like the obvious top ends but also simple things like they don’t use enough grease on assembly so jammed in a heel axles is a bit of a thing with them Also the paint ain’t as good as it used to be these days
@@bikerdood1100 Yep, back then I didn't know a whole lot about Hondas but everyone else raved about them being made so well I thought with the superseded price being so low, it may not be the latest and greatest but, $1,600 for a brand new 500cc trail bike, simply because the new one was very different and they knew everyone would want the new suspension and look so sold the old version so cheap. I did ride a LOT of dirt so really would have loved it too but, for the price for a new bike, I had to go for it. They definitely didn't make a perfect bike by any means. I did add air caps to the front and better shocks to the rear but, it still didn't like jumps at all. It had it's good points, including that kinda unique thumper sound and feel and a pretty relaxed seating position but definitely not the best thought out bike by any means.
@@lorditsprobingtime6668 well build quality is generally good but they aren’t without that shortcomings People live in extremes where good is indestructible and othered are super fragile As always the real world is somewhere in between
Trust me any big bore two stroker can do that I well remember watching my uncle being thrown in the air by a kick back from his Husqvarna. He didn’t walk properly for days Those big stroker MX bikes were lethal
One bike per company per video Or the video is just plain too long and no one watches. Two Suzukis would be an extra extravagance As Lady White Adder would say
Already. Honda and a Suzuki in the video If the video was longer it would not get watched There’s always another video after all can’t put everything in a single video
🙄you may find I featured both bikes in other videos Also by a trail bike I’m referring to a machine you can ride legally to the trail not an MX bike you stick in a truck
Don't need a front brake with the engine braking 🤣 I had one new in 1978 I loved it, hell of a work out off road 😩, had a Srx600 yamaha what a nightmare it was hard to start high gearing perhaps I had a bad one
I had an 82 XT550 whose electronic ignition module would fail every 8 months or so. I replaced it 3 times at $350 each and finally sold it in frustration. Shop said they were "notorious" for EI failures. But my God, that thing was a torque monster.
Still got my 79 XL500s, which I've owned since new. While there are much better bikes out there, it's still my favourite bike to ride. So many memories on it.
Really enjoyed that, thanks. I'm an ex Suzuki TS 250 owner -- much fun was had on a ten-year-old bike in the early 90s. I sold it to an Irish contractor I worked with for £250 -- he took it home on the back of his pick-up and used it on his farm. Might be still there for all I know ;-)
Yep; here in South Africa the XT was a bit of a legend. I loved my TS400 though; it was my daily ride for work in Johannesburg during the week and hit the bush every weekend. Great days.
@@Deontjie I never attended Skipskop, but there were XR's everywhere. If you kept the TS in its power band it was plenty lively enough. If the terrain called for something a bit 'more' though, it was back to the trailer and release the beast. My ex team Maico SA 490, (total rebuild by Maico), gave plenty of XR riders a 'WTF was that?' moment as they were enveloped in a cloud of dust and two stroke oil smoke. The XR was a great bike, my riding buddy had one and I often took it out for a spin. Happy days.
@@cousinjack2841 That Maicos was not great. They were scary. Drum brakes and all. In the same league as the IT490 and the CR500. Didn't the KTM and Husky of those era kicked on the wrong side? Elsinore red rockets... Yes, we are getting old. I still ride my XR650R. The last thumper.
@@Deontjie I'll have to agree; the Maico was a bit of a bitch at times, and quite scary when she was in a bad mood. Brakes...what brakes? It just added to the adrenaline rush. Good fun tough. Yes; the kick start was on the left and I had to replace the stub shaft several times. Enjoy the riding bud.
Very nice video. I had a 78 XL 250 Honda for many years as a local commuter and it served well. Sold it off to a collector in south East GA I’m mid 90s. Now days I have an XR650L and a DR 650 both are great but The XR gets the most attention. Life is short so Get out and ride!
Great video man! I was 3yrs.old in 1974 when I started riding a Honda Z50 and it was old when I started riding it ..The bike saved my life really, but that's another story lol I remember riding a bunch of 185/175cc bikes that were kinda awesome really! Just a couple of ideas since you asked!
Yeah they looked nice real nice but they were like riding a brick in the bush compared to the later XLS The XLS was like laying in a hammock compared to a Motorsport But you're not wrong they had the look
Great video! Thanks. That Suzuki 400 ring ding is awesome! Best 400 single ever made! Powerful and bulletproof😄 TM = motocross version, Cyclone. With knobbies. That thing would eat your lunch! TS = enduro version with dual sport tires, Apache (Universal Tyres if you are a Brit.)
I had a 70 (?) TS185 but the crank seal went away ... Sierra They had the black box POINTLESS spark system ... good on a 2 stroke ...about 225 lbs. ... and the weight was low.
Ii had a SL 125 in 1977 & it was probably the most reliable bikes I've ever owned. Man I gave that bike stick... not the best bike for the dirt but I had HEAPS of fun on it :)
In the day, I owned a Victor Special: gorgeous to admire, sounded wonderful, but a ghastly thing to actually ride. I never really had much trouble starting it (yes, even when hot), but the oil tank filler cap was perfectly positioned to bite you in the back of your knee if you weren't careful...and it was only marginally faster than a DT250, which was also handsome and much better mannered. When you consider what we had to endure back then to be a daily rider, it's amazing any of us still enjoy motorcycles. Mediocrity must build devotion?
I use to have a 2000 Honda XE650R uncorked with stage 2 HRC motor kit >> anything on that monster 63 HP ...Thumpers owned 2000 XR650R ... !999 Honda XR650L with L.A. Sleave 720cc kit w/ white bros pipe also bike had HRC XR650R upgrade in 2000, ... 1976 Yamaha XT500C W/ Pro Tech 560 cc Kit all bells and whistles ... Yamaha 1977 XT500 stock ... 1982 Yamaha Red XT550 stock ... 1982 Yamaha white XT550 stock ... 1987 Honda XR600R w/pipe ... Those are my thumpers had others under 350cc range. I love my 4 strokes ,,List not included is all 2 strokes and street bikes
My first bike in late 1978 was a new Yamaha DT175MX, two weeks before Christmas - I still remember the excitement of getting on it in the morning when it was new, but a year later I’d passed my test and just had to have an XT500, and what a bike that was, it really was unique at the time, and I absolutely loved it … still laugh at the memory of seeing it launch my friend over the saddle when he tried to start it one time, he never asked to ride it again!
My first one (in 1979) was a Suzuki GT 125. The hornet. 1980 I bought a BMW R75/5 (short rear arm!). Yes: the XT was legendary when it came to starting it! Also legendary: the NSU 500 Konsul. The hub of the Kickstarter was matched by the hub of the piston. When that one kicked back: fun guaranteed! Do you know about the "reverse gear" of the Yamaha XS 650? On the center stand, with the motor running: its hopping backwards when you twist the throttle :-)
Years a friend had an XT500 Yamaha a BIG thumper!! ( i am not sure now, it had an orange/chrome tank, maybe it a TT500?? ) I do think the two stroke engines were axed unfairly they could have improved No End, inspite of what anyone thinks they make more power than four strokes, a four ONLY makes power ONCE in four strokes, a two stroke makes power EACH time the piston comes up!!!!
Well rumour has it the end came because Honda for example realised that with a four stroke owners went to dealerships for servicing, which of course means regular dealer income while two stroke owners did not. This was especially true in competition bikes such as MX
The Yamaha XT was a bike I always wanted. but they were quite difficult to find. but maybe it worked out for the best. because waiting a while proved that there was an even better big bore bike to choose from. and that's the Suzuki DR 650, it's really the ultimate big bore dual sport bike.
Never seen the BSA before. Good-looking bike. Yamaha XT500: I had the E model.1981, bought secondhand in 1983. Over the ensuing six years, I rode to Portugal return three times from England, and Greece and back once. Brilliant bike. And now, one of my bikes is the Yamaha SCR950. It feels like an XT with a Harley Sportster engine in it. Fascinating video.
I had an XR 500 for a few years, great bike, bullet proof engine, super reliable and easy to start with the automatic decompressor. Mine was slightly geared up for the road and would do just over 100MPH at which speed the air would get under that big front mudguard and make for a very entertaining ride. Most agreed that the XR 500A was more powerful than the bike that came after it (XR500B?).
@@bikerdood1100 Sadly my Yamaha SR500 was stolen long before its cam bearings wore out. But, if I remember correctly, they were easily replaceable in that Yamaha engine.
@@derekp2674 I think they had a similar problem but cannot be sure. There were needle roller conversions available at the time but I didn't have the cash 🤣
Common Fault will all RVFC Honda's I've got 2x XR600 Heads that have scored Cam Tunnels from Oil Starvation & Overheating, After an Oil change make sure the Oil Pump is Primed & Always check the External Oil Feed line to the Head is flowing! I suspect that is common point of Failure for XR's 👍
@@derekp2674 Honda XRs have a Ball-bearing only on 1 side of the Cam Tunnel to support the Cam Chain Tension & Machined Non Replaceable Plain Bearings for the Cam Tunnel- Not a Great Design imho! Once they're worn - the head is Rubbish - This is the Major Failing Point of Soo Many XR Engines!! I have 2x Destroyed XR600 heads that we're off a Couple Non Running Motors i bought! You can't get OEM Replacements Honda doesn't make them anymore! 👍
Currently two BSA B50s reside in my garage. I can vouch that they can be awkward to start, but once going they are a blast. The only thing that stops my B50T from climbing the steepest of slopes is loss of traction. Riding into a foot of liquid mud under six inches of water will stop it too, but that is another story!
@@DennisMerwood-xk8wp I know. But my remnant of teenage desire still would like to see and hear about them from today’s perspective. How about an AJ…..? They did have a trail bike too.
@@take5th By the 70's the AJS's were anachronisms. Last AJ and Matchless was 1961. Big old heavy underpowered dogs. The 1967 Norton P11 Ranger 750 - really only a desert sled for the Yanks. 1972/3 Triumph Adventurer TR5T - Google it!
@@DennisMerwood-xk8wp thanks. That triumph is awsome, hope they come out with their new version in next 24 months! I forgot the subject was trail bikes, sorry. I did have a Honda CL350 “scrambler” for a couple of years but never even tried to take it off-road (heavy, slow). The AJS to me looked radical, not knowing the history. When you start, everything is new. Those were the days, eh?
I would like to see a collection of 70s two stroke street machines. Perhaps a bit about the RD350/400s being giant killers or a story on suzukis triples along with Kawasakis triples and their fearsome reputation. Anyway, you asked what we might like to see so...keep the fun stuff coming🍺😃
Thing about the XT500 the off road version the TT500 were pretty much the same bikes. I miss the enduros of the '70's. A street bike that could perform just as well on dirt, mud, rocks what ever. Then back on the road, all yuckyed up.
I loved my Yamaha DT3 250 until it seized recently. I just got my Honda CB360 running today after a major engine rebuild. Now, I just need time to strip the wee Yamaha and find out why it seized. I know a few people with the XT500, brilliant bikes.
I had a B50T and a B50mx with the 32mm ported factory head. It ripped but overheat one day on a 450km hectic ride of my youth. LOL! XT was good and the Big Honda's. B44 is better with B50 clutch.
I bought the original Yamaha TT500C (2/76 build) to do enduro's. We needed to get concessional licensing for these as some events included sealed road sections. When I went to licensing the examiner (who believed he knew it all) declared that it was an XT500 that was old stock as it had no compliance plate (Pre 1975 they didn't need them). He promptly fully road licensed the Motocross version (TT) which I'd added the lights, indicators and speedo to. So it had a dry weight of 120Kg's with the unbreakable plastic bits on it. Compared to the milder tuned XT's 155Kg's. I had also put on a much lighter exhaust than the huge monstrosity it came with, an 11.5:1 Piston and 480 flat-track cam from Powroll. Replaced the 34mm Mikuni Carb with a 42mm and a K&N air filter to help it breathe! It was a great street sleeper as the big plastic tank and muddy condition suggested just a trail hack but had mobs of power and would still wheelie in top gear, as well as break traction on gravel at will up to 150+Km/h (rand out of straight road to try for top speed). And if you think the TT500 could kick like a mule, just try it with the 11.5:1 Piston in it. An ankle smasher if you got it wrong! I mainly used it to race enduro's and it would go through a rear tyre in 2 days and a chain in three. Damn near tried to pull my arms out of their sockets. When I sold it they put the original tank back on it as a Commuter in Melbourne, and it surprised many a Honda 750 and occasionally a Kwaka 900 (if you could keep the front wheel down!). In hindsight I wish I had kept the beast but I couldn't justify it when buying a house. Oh, the memories!
@bikerdood1100 It sure was. After I sold it I realised that my sore shoulders were hanging on to it whilst caning it through 80 km enduro loops - 1 morning, 1 afternoon. So 160kms trying to wring it's neck!
To put this into perspective my bike is a CCM 604e Sport made in 1999 with a tuned Rotax 604 engine (an engine which dates back to the early eighties), the bike weighs 140Kg wet and makes about 70 rear wheel hp on Dynotech's (Basingstoke) rolling road or about 80 bhp at the crank, this engine is 680cc and in road tune, it starts on the button and idles smoothly, max power is at 7.2k rpm and the max torque of 70 Nm is at 5.3k rpm although the torque remains above 60Nm from 2k to 8k rpm, the rev limiter is set to 7.8k revs but the engine is safe to 9k with little reduction in power past the peak at that rpm. This self tuned Rotax engine is a SOHC single cylinder 4 valve unit with 5 gears and has an oversize bore of 103.25mm bore and an 81mm (std) stroke, it has a balancer shaft which really works well and the engine is as smooth as silk at all speeds and is fitted with a big VM44 Mikuni carb, drivability is fantastic with perfect throttle response at all speeds and the ability to drop down to 2.5K in top gear without transmission snatch. A tuned CCM Rotax engined bike like this makes all those 70's, 80's and 90's era big singles whether 2 stroke or 4 stroke with their 30 something hp look pretty pathetic, the legendary Kawasaki H1 500 triple of that era makes less power FFS and it's big brother the 750 H2 only about the same but with less torque and a narrower power band! Roland, HT Racing Ltd
Nice glimpse back to the '70s. I worked as a mechanic for a Suzuki/Kawasaki dealership in NY state and the TS 400 was felt to not be worthwhile as a trail bike. It was heavy, the engine acted constipated. Balance was off front to rear so steered heavy. I owned several TS250s, competed in enduros and it was a true workhorse if set up correctly. Later on, I owned an XT500 which was overall a fine motorcycle with excellent geometry to handle backroad riding. Also owned a XL500 to rebuild, it had a 23" front wheel. Kawasaki had a 350cc off-road machine called the "Big Horn" starting as the F5 in 1969 but was never refined to meet it's potential as a larger bore trail bike, generally in about the same league as the big Suzuki and not a pleasurable ride off road. We sold several early 70s BSAs and they had the footrest bolt carry both footrests and a misadventure with a rock could break the threaded bar and both footrests would fail.
I owned a Kawasaki f9 350cc Big Horn motorcycle and it was a lot of fun to drive. I did a lot of dirt bike riding with it and it was a beast. Had a lot of fun with that big thumper.
@@davidabernathy4553 That was the best version. A good bit of refinement was done to make it more civilized, especially sound deadening dampers in the cylinder fins. Our only F5 rider using his hard on the trails had his front down tubes break coming down from a jump and it launched him over the handlebars! They weren't all bad by any measure, would prefer it over the TS400.
@@davidabernathy4553 . I still own my F9 1973 Kawasaki. Got the bike when I was 13 after moving up from a 125. Could never part with my 350 way to many memories. Someday hope to completely restore it but some parts maybe hard to find.
Had the Yamaha XT and TT 500 and later SR500 (would have front wobble over 140k/hr. This was followed by the Suzuki SP 360, DR 400 and 500 (400 was better). Also had the road going version of the XL500. Not too shabby. Wish I still had one of them.😢
I love these 1970's trail/enduro bikes. Had an SP 600 Suzuki thumper & a DT 400 Yammi. I stay off bikes now because I've almost been killed twice. Who wants to live forever right?
Still ride my 1979 Honda XL500s when I can. Great condition (except for several hill climbing bumps and bruises). Wouldn't trade it for any of the newer bikes.
its funny, buying with my heart I'd go for the Suzuki TS400 but buying with my head I'd go for the XL500, but what I did back in the day was buy a XT500, Hindsight is an amazing thing
After giving up moto cross, I still missed off-roading, so bought an XT500. When I and my pal with his 410 AJS motocrosser met up with two other friends of ours with their road bikes on our little practice circuit, they were gobsmacked that I could beat the AJ's lap time with my XT whilst appearing to be just out for a gentle Sunday afternoon plod. I let one of them have a go on the XT, and the following week they both turned up with brand new ones.
For a lark, I entered a scramble with the XT in 1978, and it blitzed everything going up the very steep hill at Nancemellin, but going down the hill was a very different kettle of fish as the thing bounced about, only vaguely staying straight.😅However, I still managed to finish mid-field, much to the surprise of many.
In 1981 I traded it in against an XT550, which was undoubtedly the most fun bike that I have ever owned.
Yamaha should have given you a job in sales 😂
Great video. I think yamaha could sell a load of XTs as a modern retro.
Likely could with an electric leg and fuel injection it would be a tonne of fun
@@bikerdood1100 Not to mention a disk up front as well.
They had the XT600? They could put the XT500 tank and seat on that?
Not sure why you had the Suzuki 400 in there as I never saw one in 70s, why not have the DT400 a genuinely advanced bike with first monoshock frame
yes. CORRECT.
Had a XT 500 love it but the two stroke motorcycles rules.
I remember that both the XT500 and the SR500 from Yamaha, were very well regarded at the time stayed in production for a long time. Great Video.
Thanks
Need to cover the Sr at some point
The Yamaha 500 is and was the best.
@@bikerdood1100 Great video bikerdood. Thanks. All nice bikes.
But really all not very good "trail bikes". All the 4-strokes are way too heavy. (1974 Ducati R/T 450 excluded!))
The Suzuki's ring dings the closest proper off-road "trail bikes"
Not the TM - too wild powerband "motocross" bike!
If you took the TS400, and put on knobbies, it was getting there - but still encumbered with too much street paraphernalia.
The first mass-produced 1970's real "trail bikes" were the Yamaha IT's. Starting with the IT400C in 1976. and the IT175D in 1977
Here was a proper "trail bike" one could ride in the International ISDT 6-days trails competitively. Off the showroom floor. If you were good enough!
But the King Kong IT in the 70's was the IT400F in 1979.
We will leave the legendary 1983 IT490K for another discussion - arguable still the best Japanese trail bike ever built! 😄
Thanks for the video - halycon days!
@@oneofmany1087 without a doubt ...
The XL500 with a lot of weight saver parts, modern flat slide carb, 21 inch front wheel from a late drum motocrosser and longer shocks and forks makes for a hell of a trail bike with a vintage 4S MX vibe. Worth about 5 times more than stock too.
5 x to you maybe
@@bikerdood1100 Ha you haven't seen it
I had a 1978 XT500, great bike! I had a lot of fun on it.
Big and adaptable
I had an early XT500 & could start it first time hot or cold no problem & my friend who later had an XL500 could do the same but neither of us could start each other's bikes easily strangely.
Well you do learn the Querks of your own bikes
@@bikerdood1100 My friends who had XT500's always said you needed to "threaten them with a tow rope" to get them to start!
I grew up on mini bikes, and my first motorcycle was a Harley dual sport, with a ~90cc engine. At twelve my Dad brought me a Yamaha YZ 400. That bike was a beast, that loved to scream! I kept that bike a long time, and only had to replace fork oil seals. I wish I still had it. After that I got a Honda XR 350, and instead screaming it like putting around in the woods, but also could go like hell smoothly, and quietly.
Good mix of bikes and experiences
You know how to bring back memories. I had a XT500 back in the early '80's. Great bike. A few years later, I bought a XT600 Tenere ( not mentioned here ). It was a beast. I'm 6 foot ( 1.82m ) & could only just touch my toes on each side, so had to be careful when parking up. Yep, dropped it a couple of times when not "thinking"
Tenere was a great but not a 70s bike so not really applicable to this video
XT 500 # 4 is in my shop and I started on the old 441 Victor and had several of them and the big bores are easy to start if you learn about them right, a 12 year old boy I taught to start the xt and he rode the heck out of it, he is of slight build and the envy of his dirt biking friends at school.
They do all require the correct technique and they all have different characters
One bike to consider is the 1970 Yamaha RT1 360cc Enduro. I had one in black and red pinstriping when I was teen in the mid seventies. It was advertised as the first stock bike to complete the Baja 500. Excellent bike then and now!
Sturdy enough then
Why did this video make me cry? Maybe because all these bikes were my dream ones when I was a kid!! Specifically the Yamaha. Bellissime 🤩
That I can’t answer
Glad you enjoyed it
My TS400 was a beast on the street, punishing on a rough trail.
That seems to be the consensus
I had a TT500. It was an awesome wheelie machine!
Nice
Very nice and interested Vid of 70s Legend Bikes,thanks 👍🏻.
Glad you enjoyed it
Great video ! All the best big Trailies……..except the ‘Elephant in the Room’………BMW’s. GS 80. This is a bike with real ‘mystique’ and exotic engineering……horizontally opposed cylinders and Dakar Rally cred. A comprehensive history of this model would be a real treat !
Too big to be a trail bike though, that was in a very different class of bike
I remember someone giving me a shot of an XT500 offroad when i was 14 years old and i thought it was great 👍
Lot of bike at 14, I tried a Two stroke Husqvarna 370 on fields at the same age. Bloody terrifying
Talking about riding an XT500 @14 years of age - I have a very amateurish YT video of my son riding one that I refurbished about 13 years ago. Without wanting to hijack this excellent video by quoting its exact link - it can be found under my name and "My Yamaha XT500 movie".
@@DaveZee01 I will have a look Dave thanks 👍
Scrouged a knackered road version Suzuki 185 as a kid run for a while over the local fields but it gave up the ghost so i swapped it for a running honda step through. I have just been given a fully restored Honda XL350 from a good friend just got to pick it up.
Nice
And I had to ride a C70 on fields , oh the poverty 😂
@@bikerdood1100 anything that we could get our hands on some of which I wish I had now. All sorts, step throughs 50cc to 90cc ohc and push rod versions, a red and chrome tanked honda 65 with gears bit like the ss50, CB and CD 175s, Pouch 250, Ducati 250 bloody fast, 2 Fantic 50cc trails, a few italian scooters, Greaves, Cotton, Sunbeam that smooked worse than any rwo stroke, a few BSA bantams , knackered Motesa 172 trails and the most terrifying of all a Bultaco 350 scrambler that had just about survived a shed fire thanks to the fire brigade an old chap on our estate helped us get it usable the original plastic tank had melted all over the engine
I had the 79 Honda XR 500. Yep goofy 23" front wheel. The frame sn swingarm I believe was made of electrical conduit pipe, both cracked regularly. The 79 XR was a light purpose trail bike, meant to use to find your favorite fishing hole.
Why did they choose a 23” wheel I wonder
@@bikerdood1100 Idk. It was the front wheel I think they used on every 79 fullsize HONDA. It looked stupid and was prone to breaking.
I had a Yamaha TT 500 back in the day. I think it was a 1978 model. I also had a 1980 YZ465, Honda CR250 and a Yamaha XS500, all at the same time. They occupied my garage and my Chevy El Camino was relegated to the driveway. Good times indeed!
Not much space in there
I still own a 1971 Yamaha RT1 360 I bought it new in 1971. I am in the process of restoring it at the moment. I am from New Zealand.
Well you got you moneys worth that’s for sure
And unlike a Tesla actual Green motoring
My first street bike was a 73' Kawasaki 350 bighorn enduro,a bit heavy but fun.
American models had truly odd names
Wonder how they cane up with big horn 🤔
You overlooked the Honda SL350. I had the privilege to ride one to the top of Pikes Peak back in the day. It wasn’t a big thumper, but rather the venerable Honda 350 twin which loved to rev.
Nope I included a different Honda
Great video, If possible I would like to see the Z1 and subsequent KZs... I love the early air cooled Zs... Need a lottery win to buy one now though
You certainly would
The XT 500 and SR 500 was some of Yamaha's icons! The engine, more on the rustic side, needed love to start and could kick back badly if the driver didn't exactly know what to do. While the Honda XL 500 had a much more refined engine. I am a Honda guy but liked them all.
A mater of kicking like you mean it I think
You have to understand the de-compressor, and kick it like you mean it, as you say. It will spoil your day otherwise, and tomorrow as well probably. Jeff
I had an XT 500 in the late 80s , lots of grunt, but what a bastard to kick, seriously if it didnt start in the first three kicks , you gave up on it for a half hour. And it would kick back also, throw you over the handle bars or put a massive bruise on your calf. Was a great flat track bike , just loved to be sideways, but didnt really appreciate bumps.
Ahhh the joys of a big single
Great list. Saw several of them in Palins in Derby where I bought my only new bike, a very classic blue CD175 - the first retro bike.
But Surely the Triumph Adventurer as used by the Royal Signals White Helmets Display Team deserves at least an honourable mention here. It was rather better than the BSA I believe.
Have got a CCM 604 frame that looks remarkably similar to the BSA frame. Thank you for sharing.
Think you will find the Royal Signals used Tigers
Need to do a few videos on British off roaders
Will b3 getting round to it at some point
Hence why they are always tittle 5 not top five, gives me options for later
@@bikerdood1100 I think you will find that Wikipedia (and the internet in general) can be a very unreliable and somewhat deficient source for information about a lot of subjects, not least what actually happened only three years ago, never mind 50 plus years ago.
I saw the White Helmets perform several times during the early 1970s, probably ‘70, ‘71, ‘72 & maybe‘73.
Being bike mad 12-15 year old during this period, I gathered everything bike related I could lay my hands on. I wish I still had them all now.
So I naturally grabbed the publicity leaflets from the White Helmets tent. These included the announcement that they were proud to be using the new Triumph Adventurer. But when I asked for more information about the bikes, I was told that they were mostly intended for the US market.
For probably 40 years, that exchange (and an article in MCN) was my only knowledge of the Triumph Adventurer. None of my mates at the time were aware of it.
It is however highly likely that they only used them for one season. But the image seared on my mind is of those siamese header pipes, and the distinctively shaped alloy tank and decals, and the side panels with the name Adventurer on them. I stood right next to them while they were still steaming!
Mandela effect? Possibly, but very unlikely. How else did I learn about its existence in the UK during the early ‘70s?
I had a cd175 that had been nicked and got back without ignition key. I had to twist wires together to start it and it had been hit in the tank with a hammer. A true rat bike but a bike that would survive the apocalypse. It cost me £10 and got me around for a month or so.
My 1976 XT500 enjoyed this video.
Glad to hear it
I had a first generation XT 500 , on the way to work one early morning , i was waiting at a traffic light , a counter shaft seal let go . I pushed the bike the last two blocks to work .
Oooo 😟
My cousin had a 73’ XL350 Honda, Hooked me..
Best drug there is 😎
I own a '67 Ducati Scrambler 250 I had as a teen. The narrowcase engines were Italian made ( in my bikes case..) wereas the later Spanish made 1970's singles were known as the widecases. As a trailbike the old Scramblers were fair, a low standover like a heavy honda trail 90. Suspension on the1960's bikes was pretty mediocre, less than 3 inches front and rear. But with a trail sprocket they were pretty good for smooth trails and gravel tracks. For such a old 4 stroke they sure ran great, Honda levels of RPM and smoothness with a much hotter performance and that iconic Ducati exhaust snarl when on engine braking.
They were also marketed as Motorans Ducati here so in Europe so you could always read the tank
Great selection of scoots.ive owned many japenese enduros and every one was a hoot to drive.on and off road.the bsa,s and Ducati look nice but never rode one
Rarer sights I expect the two euro bikes
I still have my 1977 TT 500 that I bought new. It has been transformed into a street tracker
Now that’s owner devotion
I owned a white 79 XL500S. Great bike and easy to start which the XT500 wasn't. Although here in the Netherlands the XT was the cooler bike to have. Weak point of the XL500S was the undersized chain. By later models this was modified. And of course the strange 23 inch front wheel, new tires were only available from just one brand.
Why did they choose that wheel size 🤔
@@bikerdood1100 Magazine articles back in the day said Honda thought it would help with ground clearance and jumping over obstacles, but it hurt suspension travel, turn in speed and now tire choices! I have an XL500 and don't really notice much difference, and I do like the bike, but my XL600r is the better bike in all ways. The handlebar comp. release is especially nice!
@@charlesatwell6658 that’s Honda. Sometimes too clever for their own good
I bought a new XT500 in 1976, dealer I left deposit with was unable to find one, I tried 5 other Yamaha dealers, but no luck, my last try was a car dealer that dabbled with bikes, he found me one in France!! Could be a real pig to start, I would never have started it without a de-comp button, brakes were shite, 6 volt light were a joke, 6 months warranty wasnt long enough as it started to drinking engine oil at an alarming rate at 8 months old, it was serviced by a main Yamaha dealer when due. I ran the motor in correct, front fork seal's knackered up at 9 months, 10 months I sold it at a bloody loss.
Crap brakes was a theme common with most trail bikes of the period
Ditto difficult starting
Yamaha XT is a legend, reliability and simplicity, but Honda has a modern, dynamic engine and a beautiful appearance. It's a pity that there was no DR 500, but I know that they started producing them in 1980.
Ohh bit late
Needed some two strokes in there too
@@bikerdood1100 You're right 🙂 Thank you for a very interesting material
The big XL had a lot of torque too
Well that’s why they built the thing I expect
I've had 2 XL 500 Hondas over many years. The first one was a 1982 silver tanked superseded twin shock they were selling brand new REALLY cheap as it was being replaced by the new single shock. It had some quirks, silly things, some I wouldn't expect from a usually thorough and quality brand like Honda. Eg: Put indicator on approaching a corner you need to make BUT, naturally braking comes almost immediately after and as soon as the brake light came on, too much power drain and the indicator would stop and the brake light would be dull. Mine also, while trying my hardest to run it in carefully decided to randomly cut out and leave me in awkward situations, on the side of the road pulling EVERYTHING apart trying to find the problem. I didn't, it would 'randomly' come back to life, never having actually found the problem. I did wind up GETTING it fixed, how the hell was I to guess they'd put a resistor in the plug cap? Why did they even do that? That was the source and once replaced, problem solved. They also had a throttle they probably thought was a good idea but, just made life harder if you wanted to go straight to full throttle as it was something like a 270 degree roll of the throttle from idle to full so, I developed a sort of sliding palm roll way of snapping straight to full.
They did have that weird and wacky 23 inch front wheel while everyone elses dirt bikes had 21 inch. It did make for some interesting rough terrain handling effects, quite good ones I thought once used to it. I've been on a lot of rough dirt roads and corrugated can be really hairy when both wheels being roughly the same overall diameter could at the right speed start skipping off the tops of the corrugated humps and effectively just start floating around. With that 23 inch front the XL 500s would float around at the rear BUT, the front would tack straight and true, making them, pretty fantastic for those kinds of roads.
The second one I picked up years later, feeling sorry I'd let the other one go when I did. I'd picked up a 25 Yamaha that'd been in a head on and had a fairly new engine but badly bent up frame. A guy I met had this old XL 500 (a 1981 model with the red tank) after the previous owner who apparently never did ANY sort of servicing at ALL! It had a locked up engine but, mechanical work I can handle and he wanted a moderate type bike engine for a go cart so, a perfect trade was made and I completely rebuilt and modified that engine from top to bottom, especially all the rocker gear and cams as due to him letting the timing chain get so slack it had sawn through a little brass tube that once the cover was on, fed oil up to the top. That one I worked the engine up a bit, fixed or replaced anything that needed it and swapped that silly three quarter rotation throttle for a quick action one that only took ONE quarter turn to full, all round, a much more fun bike to ride, quicker too.
Oh we have have several Hondas over the years
Honda build quality is good but never as good as some would have you believe
It’s sill thing like the obvious top ends but also simple things like they don’t use enough grease on assembly so jammed in a heel axles is a bit of a thing with them
Also the paint ain’t as good as it used to be these days
@@bikerdood1100 Yep, back then I didn't know a whole lot about Hondas but everyone else raved about them being made so well I thought with the superseded price being so low, it may not be the latest and greatest but, $1,600 for a brand new 500cc trail bike, simply because the new one was very different and they knew everyone would want the new suspension and look so sold the old version so cheap. I did ride a LOT of dirt so really would have loved it too but, for the price for a new bike, I had to go for it. They definitely didn't make a perfect bike by any means. I did add air caps to the front and better shocks to the rear but, it still didn't like jumps at all. It had it's good points, including that kinda unique thumper sound and feel and a pretty relaxed seating position but definitely not the best thought out bike by any means.
@@lorditsprobingtime6668 well build quality is generally good but they aren’t without that shortcomings
People live in extremes where good is indestructible and othered are super fragile
As always the real world is somewhere in between
I don't know if it counts ke100 was fun bike for me when I was a kid. gearing
seemed a little tall for trails
super reliable
Not really
But a good suggestion for another video
Had the Yamaha in the 70s and the Honda in the 80s. Thumpers rule.
They rule better with electric start 😂
where is the Yamaha 360? That was a great bike. Like having a street legal Husqvarna. I have heard of people going cross country with them.
Big trail bikes
500 trumps 360 I’m afraid
Legendarisch de XL500, almost broke my neck on it on several occasions, still loved it.
Does that saying exist in English?
Erm 🫤
Close enough
I had the XL 500 S. watta engine never a problem. never, fun and fast.
Good solid beasts
XR600 forgotten?
Not at all
Bit late for this video though as it’s primarily about 70s bikes and there’s already a Honda in there
To this day I ride a heavily modified sr500 , I had this bike since 1983
Simple robust
What else do you need from a bike
The XT500 is the great grandfather of the Ténéré.
Don’t say great grandpa it makes us seem old, but very true 😂
Yamaha DT360 and 400 of the 1970s?
🤔
Yamaha TT 500 three models , in Australia
Three ?
That’s just excessive 😂
Suzuki 2 stroke for me 👍
On road maybe
Not one of their crazy MX bikes
Yamaha made a badass 2 stroke SC 500 motocross. Watched one break mechanics ankle kick start fresh out crate!! 😐
Trust me any big bore two stroker can do that
I well remember watching my uncle being thrown in the air by a kick back from his Husqvarna.
He didn’t walk properly for days
Those big stroker MX bikes were lethal
That Honda engine was a work of art
Yet actually quite simple at the same time
All of the XL range was very good with Honda quality cant say more .
Only have experience of the XL 250 myself
But very good
And the SP 370 SUZUKI ?
One bike per company per video
Or the video is just plain too long and no one watches. Two Suzukis would be an extra extravagance
As Lady White Adder would say
Small trail bikes?
🤔
Why not
@@bikerdood1100 I've got a 92 xt225, but why not go back further? 👍
why no mention of the suzuki sp-370 or the honda xr range?,only telling half the story!
Already. Honda and a Suzuki in the video
If the video was longer it would not get watched
There’s always another video after all can’t put everything in a single video
Get the kick wrong on xt & you're missing skin if you're lucky 😁
Well that’s big singles for you
Bultaco and Husqvarna should absolutely be in your mix.. not sure why you stayed with boring underpowered big bikes🧐
🙄you may find I featured both bikes in other videos
Also by a trail bike I’m referring to a machine you can ride legally to the trail not an MX bike you stick in a truck
They have better technology and engineering in motorbikes now, but those old bikes had class.
Is new better
Do we need all the crap attached to modern bikes ?
70s kawasakis
Two strokes or four
I’ve had my XT500 for about 28 years. Useless front brake but super reliable, Have had 90mph out of it, 60mpg. I love it.
Also got an SR500 too.
It seemed almost traditional that trail bikes had to had rubbish front breaks
70s ABS I guess
Super duper
I had two '78 XT500s back in the 80s. Love those bikes.
Don't need a front brake with the engine braking 🤣 I had one new in 1978 I loved it, hell of a work out off road 😩, had a Srx600 yamaha what a nightmare it was hard to start high gearing perhaps I had a bad one
I had an 82 XT550 whose electronic ignition module would fail every 8 months or so. I replaced it 3 times at $350 each and finally sold it in frustration. Shop said they were "notorious" for EI failures. But my God, that thing was a torque monster.
Still got my 79 XL500s, which I've owned since new. While there are much better bikes out there, it's still my favourite bike to ride. So many memories on it.
Seems a lot of people kept hold of those machines
They wear like iron, I’d take any old Honda or Yamaha in a heartbeat
i had the 500R and its the most fun on a bike i have ever had.
@@petes3011 I rode my IT175 to school, I miss being Mr cool lol
I really do miss the polished gas tank aesthetic from back then. Such a solid nostalgia boost whenever I catch a glimpse of one!
I expect it’s too expensive to make tanks that way today
Shame
Really enjoyed that, thanks. I'm an ex Suzuki TS 250 owner -- much fun was had on a ten-year-old bike in the early 90s. I sold it to an Irish contractor I worked with for £250 -- he took it home on the back of his pick-up and used it on his farm. Might be still there for all I know ;-)
Hope it brought some memories back
TS 185 here
💪👍
Yep; here in South Africa the XT was a bit of a legend. I loved my TS400 though; it was my daily ride for work in Johannesburg during the week and hit the bush every weekend. Great days.
Such a shame you don’t see two strokes anymore
If you were at Skipskop, you would have had to try and catch-up with the guys on the XRs.
@@Deontjie I never attended Skipskop, but there were XR's everywhere. If you kept the TS in its power band it was plenty lively enough. If the terrain called for something a bit 'more' though, it was back to the trailer and release the beast. My ex team Maico SA 490, (total rebuild by Maico), gave plenty of XR riders a 'WTF was that?' moment as they were enveloped in a cloud of dust and two stroke oil smoke. The XR was a great bike, my riding buddy had one and I often took it out for a spin. Happy days.
@@cousinjack2841 That Maicos was not great. They were scary. Drum brakes and all. In the same league as the IT490 and the CR500. Didn't the KTM and Husky of those era kicked on the wrong side? Elsinore red rockets... Yes, we are getting old. I still ride my XR650R. The last thumper.
@@Deontjie I'll have to agree; the Maico was a bit of a bitch at times, and quite scary when she was in a bad mood. Brakes...what brakes? It just added to the adrenaline rush. Good fun tough. Yes; the kick start was on the left and I had to replace the stub shaft several times. Enjoy the riding bud.
Very nice video. I had a 78 XL 250 Honda for many years as a local commuter and it served well. Sold it off to a collector in south East GA I’m mid 90s. Now days I have an XR650L and a DR 650 both are great but The XR gets the most attention. Life is short so Get out and ride!
Couldn’t agree more
I lost my lower left leg off a TS 250 in 88 , mind you the Ford fiesta that pull out in front of me helped ,, 😁, great fun bike up to that point,,
Bloody fiestas
Unquestionably my new favorite TH-cam channel, as a teen during the 70s you're bringing back wonderful memories
Thanks very much
Just some old bike fans
Definitely not a commercial venture, it’s all about the bikes, any bikes really
Great video man! I was 3yrs.old in 1974 when I started riding a Honda Z50 and it was old when I started riding it ..The bike saved my life really, but that's another story lol I remember riding a bunch of 185/175cc bikes that were kinda awesome really! Just a couple of ideas since you asked!
Good suggestions
I would like to see the Honda xl250 motorsport granddaddy of all Japanese single 4-stroke trail bikes one of the nicest looking trail bikes ever built
Interesting
Ditto
👍
Yeah they looked nice real nice but they were like riding a brick in the bush compared to the later XLS
The XLS was like laying in a hammock compared to a Motorsport
But you're not wrong they had the look
From South Africa 500 Yammie locally called the. Thumper...
I once owned a Suzbox TS 250 Savage, Somewhere around the mid 1970's
Well thumper makes sense
Great video! Thanks.
That Suzuki 400 ring ding is awesome! Best 400 single ever made! Powerful and bulletproof😄
TM = motocross version, Cyclone. With knobbies. That thing would eat your lunch!
TS = enduro version with dual sport tires, Apache (Universal Tyres if you are a Brit.)
Glad you enjoyed it
I had a 70 (?) TS185 but the crank seal went away ... Sierra
They had the black box POINTLESS spark system ... good on a 2 stroke ...about 225 lbs. ... and the weight was low.
Had a TM400 Suzuki as a fifteen-year-old and you can only imagine how that went!!!
I had the Honda S L 125 in 1978 about 2 weeks ago i found an old photo taken back in the day of me sitting on the bike i payed £ 150 for it in 78..
150 might cover the front wheel now
Maybe
@@bikerdood1100 Sadly yes...
Ii had a SL 125 in 1977 & it was probably the most reliable bikes I've ever owned.
Man I gave that bike stick... not the best bike for the dirt but I had HEAPS of fun on it :)
@@chrismckay9923 I sold my SL to get a Suzuki R M100. fast but not as reliable as the 4 stroke Honda. Happy days...
In the day, I owned a Victor Special: gorgeous to admire, sounded wonderful, but a ghastly thing to actually ride. I never really had much trouble starting it (yes, even when hot), but the oil tank filler cap was perfectly positioned to bite you in the back of your knee if you weren't careful...and it was only marginally faster than a DT250, which was also handsome and much better mannered. When you consider what we had to endure back then to be a daily rider, it's amazing any of us still enjoy motorcycles. Mediocrity must build devotion?
That’s why 2 strokes became the norm off road for many years
I use to have a 2000 Honda XE650R uncorked with stage 2 HRC motor kit >> anything on that monster 63 HP ...Thumpers owned 2000 XR650R ... !999 Honda XR650L with L.A. Sleave 720cc kit w/ white bros pipe also bike had HRC XR650R upgrade in 2000, ... 1976 Yamaha XT500C W/ Pro Tech 560 cc Kit all bells and whistles ... Yamaha 1977 XT500 stock ... 1982 Yamaha Red XT550 stock ... 1982 Yamaha white XT550 stock ... 1987 Honda XR600R w/pipe ... Those are my thumpers had others under 350cc range. I love my 4 strokes ,,List not included is all 2 strokes and street bikes
That’s a big ole beast
My first bike in late 1978 was a new Yamaha DT175MX, two weeks before Christmas - I still remember the excitement of getting on it in the morning when it was new, but a year later I’d passed my test and just had to have an XT500, and what a bike that was, it really was unique at the time, and I absolutely loved it … still laugh at the memory of seeing it launch my friend over the saddle when he tried to start it one time, he never asked to ride it again!
You always love your first bike but your first big bike is something else
My first one (in 1979) was a Suzuki GT 125. The hornet. 1980 I bought a BMW R75/5 (short rear arm!).
Yes: the XT was legendary when it came to starting it! Also legendary: the NSU 500 Konsul. The hub of the Kickstarter was matched by the hub of the piston. When that one kicked back: fun guaranteed!
Do you know about the "reverse gear" of the Yamaha XS 650? On the center stand, with the motor running: its hopping backwards when you twist the throttle :-)
Haha yep my brother and dad did same thing both over the bars scared to death of it
Years a friend had an XT500 Yamaha a BIG thumper!! ( i am not sure now, it had an orange/chrome tank, maybe it a TT500?? )
I do think the two stroke engines were axed unfairly they could have improved No End, inspite of what anyone thinks they make more power than four strokes, a four ONLY makes power ONCE in four strokes, a two stroke makes power EACH time the piston comes up!!!!
Well rumour has it the end came because Honda for example realised that with a four stroke owners went to dealerships for servicing, which of course means regular dealer income while two stroke owners did not. This was especially true in competition bikes such as MX
The Yamaha XT was a bike I always wanted. but they were quite difficult to find. but maybe it worked out for the best. because waiting a while proved that there was an even better big bore bike to choose from. and that's the Suzuki DR 650, it's really the ultimate big bore dual sport bike.
👍🏻
Never seen the BSA before. Good-looking bike. Yamaha XT500: I had the E model.1981, bought secondhand in 1983. Over the ensuing six years, I rode to Portugal return three times from England, and Greece and back once. Brilliant bike. And now, one of my bikes is the Yamaha SCR950. It feels like an XT with a Harley Sportster engine in it.
Fascinating video.
Glad you enjoyed it
I had an XR 500 for a few years, great bike, bullet proof engine, super reliable and easy to start with the automatic decompressor. Mine was slightly geared up for the road and would do just over 100MPH at which speed the air would get under that big front mudguard and make for a very entertaining ride. Most agreed that the XR 500A was more powerful than the bike that came after it (XR500B?).
Sounds hairy 😂
@@bikerdood1100 All good clean fun.
I agree with the XR they were grunty. The TT Yamaha was also highly rated. Bikerdoll sits side saddle on a punch.
I had the XR500 version. Twin shock. Fantastic bike! Quite competitive if you worked it a bit. But the cam bearings died eventually and I ditched it 😢
Top end problem on a Honda
Well I never 😂
@@bikerdood1100 Sadly my Yamaha SR500 was stolen long before its cam bearings wore out. But, if I remember correctly, they were easily replaceable in that Yamaha engine.
@@derekp2674 I think they had a similar problem but cannot be sure. There were needle roller conversions available at the time but I didn't have the cash 🤣
Common Fault will all RVFC Honda's I've got 2x XR600 Heads that have scored Cam Tunnels from Oil Starvation & Overheating, After an Oil change make sure the Oil Pump is Primed & Always check the External Oil Feed line to the Head is flowing! I suspect that is common point of Failure for XR's 👍
@@derekp2674 Honda XRs have a Ball-bearing only on 1 side of the Cam Tunnel to support the Cam Chain Tension & Machined Non Replaceable Plain Bearings for the Cam Tunnel- Not a Great Design imho! Once they're worn - the head is Rubbish - This is the Major Failing Point of Soo Many XR Engines!! I have 2x Destroyed XR600 heads that we're off a Couple Non Running Motors i bought! You can't get OEM Replacements Honda doesn't make them anymore! 👍
I still have my 1970 BSA Victor Special. Lots of fun.
Nice
Currently two BSA B50s reside in my garage. I can vouch that they can be awkward to start, but once going they are a blast. The only thing that stops my B50T from climbing the steepest of slopes is loss of traction. Riding into a foot of liquid mud under six inches of water will stop it too, but that is another story!
I can believe that
Ah, the bikes of my youth. In that vein, would like to see a mid-seventies Norton commando review. Wanted one badly, never happened.
Ditto
Now where to get my hands on one 🤔
A Norton Commando is NOT a trail bike Stephen!
@@DennisMerwood-xk8wp I know. But my remnant of teenage desire still would like to see and hear about them from today’s perspective. How about an AJ…..? They did have a trail bike too.
@@take5th By the 70's the AJS's were anachronisms. Last AJ and Matchless was 1961. Big old heavy underpowered dogs.
The 1967 Norton P11 Ranger 750 - really only a desert sled for the Yanks.
1972/3 Triumph Adventurer TR5T - Google it!
@@DennisMerwood-xk8wp thanks. That triumph is awsome, hope they come out with their new version in next 24 months! I forgot the subject was trail bikes, sorry. I did have a Honda CL350 “scrambler” for a couple of years but never even tried to take it off-road (heavy, slow). The AJS to me looked radical, not knowing the history. When you start, everything is new. Those were the days, eh?
No Suzuki SP370 or 400?
One company one bike
Who said it would be the only video
I would like to see a collection of 70s two stroke street machines. Perhaps a bit about the RD350/400s being giant killers or a story on suzukis triples along with Kawasakis triples and their fearsome reputation. Anyway, you asked what we might like to see so...keep the fun stuff coming🍺😃
Def need to do one on RD
Any public display of bikes like that might attract the attention of the Greenie Militia (Just Stop Oil)
@@davidnobular9220 sounds like a good opportunity to give a few "tune ups". I love tuning up liberals.
@@davidnobular9220 no
If it’s on the country side their EVs won’t have the range and there’s no public transport
Thing about the XT500 the off road version the TT500 were pretty much the same bikes. I miss the enduros of the '70's. A street bike that could perform just as well on dirt, mud, rocks what ever. Then back on the road, all yuckyed up.
It was a great all rounder which is of course exactly what is intended to be
I loved my Yamaha DT3 250 until it seized recently.
I just got my Honda CB360 running today after a major engine rebuild.
Now, I just need time to strip the wee Yamaha and find out why it seized.
I know a few people with the XT500, brilliant bikes.
Les hope you don’t find too many horrors hidden inside
I had a B50T and a B50mx with the 32mm ported factory head. It ripped but overheat one day on a 450km hectic ride of my youth. LOL! XT was good and the Big Honda's. B44 is better with B50 clutch.
Useful mod tip there
Pity the Honda XR fam wasn't really out in the 70s. They were great early 80s enduro bikes! ❤
True indeed
why wasnt the HONDA SL350 included? gee it only won BAJA 2 yrs in a row over these featured here
Not necessarily about racing bikes it’s trail not competition machines
Already one Honda in the video too
I bought the original Yamaha TT500C (2/76 build) to do enduro's. We needed to get concessional licensing for these as some events included sealed road sections. When I went to licensing the examiner (who believed he knew it all) declared that it was an XT500 that was old stock as it had no compliance plate (Pre 1975 they didn't need them). He promptly fully road licensed the Motocross version (TT) which I'd added the lights, indicators and speedo to. So it had a dry weight of 120Kg's with the unbreakable plastic bits on it. Compared to the milder tuned XT's 155Kg's.
I had also put on a much lighter exhaust than the huge monstrosity it came with, an 11.5:1 Piston and 480 flat-track cam from Powroll. Replaced the 34mm Mikuni Carb with a 42mm and a K&N air filter to help it breathe! It was a great street sleeper as the big plastic tank and muddy condition suggested just a trail hack but had mobs of power and would still wheelie in top gear, as well as break traction on gravel at will up to 150+Km/h (rand out of straight road to try for top speed). And if you think the TT500 could kick like a mule, just try it with the 11.5:1 Piston in it. An ankle smasher if you got it wrong!
I mainly used it to race enduro's and it would go through a rear tyre in 2 days and a chain in three. Damn near tried to pull my arms out of their sockets. When I sold it they put the original tank back on it as a Commuter in Melbourne, and it surprised many a Honda 750 and occasionally a Kwaka 900 (if you could keep the front wheel down!).
In hindsight I wish I had kept the beast but I couldn't justify it when buying a house. Oh, the memories!
Sounds like an absolute monster
@bikerdood1100 It sure was. After I sold it I realised that my sore shoulders were hanging on to it whilst caning it through 80 km enduro loops - 1 morning, 1 afternoon. So 160kms trying to wring it's neck!
To put this into perspective my bike is a CCM 604e Sport made in 1999 with a tuned Rotax 604 engine (an engine which dates back to the early eighties), the bike weighs 140Kg wet and makes about 70 rear wheel hp on Dynotech's (Basingstoke) rolling road or about 80 bhp at the crank, this engine is 680cc and in road tune, it starts on the button and idles smoothly, max power is at 7.2k rpm and the max torque of 70 Nm is at 5.3k rpm although the torque remains above 60Nm from 2k to 8k rpm, the rev limiter is set to 7.8k revs but the engine is safe to 9k with little reduction in power past the peak at that rpm. This self tuned Rotax engine is a SOHC single cylinder 4 valve unit with 5 gears and has an oversize bore of 103.25mm bore and an 81mm (std) stroke, it has a balancer shaft which really works well and the engine is as smooth as silk at all speeds and is fitted with a big VM44 Mikuni carb, drivability is fantastic with perfect throttle response at all speeds and the ability to drop down to 2.5K in top gear without transmission snatch. A tuned CCM Rotax engined bike like this makes all those 70's, 80's and 90's era big singles whether 2 stroke or 4 stroke with their 30 something hp look pretty pathetic, the legendary Kawasaki H1 500 triple of that era makes less power FFS and it's big brother the 750 H2 only about the same but with less torque and a narrower power band! Roland, HT Racing Ltd
All very good but produced a couple of decades later the the bikes in the video and CCM were built in tiny numbers.
The rotax is a great power unit but 70 or 80bhp lol your dreaming no way on earth
Nice glimpse back to the '70s. I worked as a mechanic for a Suzuki/Kawasaki dealership in NY state and the TS 400 was felt to not be worthwhile as a trail bike. It was heavy, the engine acted constipated. Balance was off front to rear so steered heavy. I owned several TS250s, competed in enduros and it was a true workhorse if set up correctly. Later on, I owned an XT500 which was overall a fine motorcycle with excellent geometry to handle backroad riding. Also owned a XL500 to rebuild, it had a 23" front wheel. Kawasaki had a 350cc off-road machine called the "Big Horn" starting as the F5 in 1969 but was never refined to meet it's potential as a larger bore trail bike, generally in about the same league as the big Suzuki and not a pleasurable ride off road. We sold several early 70s BSAs and they had the footrest bolt carry both footrests and a misadventure with a rock could break the threaded bar and both footrests would fail.
Interesting
Never heard of the big horn before now, sounds like a an American market name. Bikes were rarely given names in Europe back then
I owned a Kawasaki f9 350cc Big Horn motorcycle and it was a lot of fun to drive. I did a lot of dirt bike riding with it and it was a beast. Had a lot of fun with that big thumper.
@@davidabernathy4553 That was the best version. A good bit of refinement was done to make it more civilized, especially sound deadening dampers in the cylinder fins. Our only F5 rider using his hard on the trails had his front down tubes break coming down from a jump and it launched him over the handlebars! They weren't all bad by any measure, would prefer it over the TS400.
@@davidabernathy4553 . I still own my F9 1973 Kawasaki. Got the bike when I was 13 after moving up from a 125. Could never part with my 350 way to many memories. Someday hope to completely restore it but some parts maybe hard to find.
Proud owner of a 1980 XL 500. Took it to Moab, UT.
Rode it around Watkins Glen International Speedway and everywhere else you could imagine.
Nice 👍🏻
Had the Yamaha XT and TT 500 and later SR500 (would have front wobble over 140k/hr. This was followed by the Suzuki SP 360, DR 400 and 500 (400 was better). Also had the road going version of the XL500. Not too shabby. Wish I still had one of them.😢
Well a lot of those big trail bikes were there same
Definitely didn’t intend them for high speed roads
I love these 1970's trail/enduro bikes. Had an SP 600 Suzuki thumper & a DT 400 Yammi. I stay off bikes now because I've almost been killed twice. Who wants to live forever right?
Remember that SP 600 big old thumper
I expect it was the basis for the later DR Big
Still ride my 1979 Honda XL500s when I can. Great condition (except for several hill climbing bumps and bruises). Wouldn't trade it for any of the newer bikes.
Well all old bikes have some battle scars
I'm 68 years old and the best bike and most fun was in 1975 I bought a new Honda MT 250 Elsinore. Would not trade those years of fun for anything.
Nice 👍🏻
its funny, buying with my heart I'd go for the Suzuki TS400 but buying with my head I'd go for the XL500, but what I did back in the day was buy a XT500, Hindsight is an amazing thing
Isn’t it though
🇦🇺😎👍
Thanks
TS400 was much more capable than the TM it derived from, my Dad had both. Being heavy was it's main problem since it was very reliable.
Well a bike can be too light sometimes as I think the TM proved, shaving of too much weight resulted in a flexible chassis