The 1993 Yamaha GTS1000 was a breakthrough for motorcycle suspension technology, when a major manufacturer, using the RADD (Rationally Advanced Design Development) front suspension designed by James Parker, did away with the front forks and replaced them with a single sided swingarm. It was a leap into the future, the end of forks, the advance everyone was waiting for, … except … [Read more...]
The Classic Ninja That Started the Speed Wars, the 1988 Kawasaki ZX10
In 1988, Kawasaki unleashed an amazing motorcycle, the Ninja 1000 or ZX10. The motorcycle press flat ran out of words to describe this thing, everyone was sure it was the ne plus ultra of super bikes. Who could imagine any factory topping what this bike could do right off the showroom floor, of course, as time went on, they did, but the reaction at the time was simply shock and … [Read more...]
This Kawasaki KZ830 Turbo is Just Like You Would Build It
Ezio Covelli has a nice little business building custom motorcycles. Like any builder, he's always trying to hit that sweet spot, the right combination of modifications, color, stance and performance and then bringing it all together in one bike and it looks like he did it with this one. What started out as a very ordinary 1978 KZ650 has become an extraordinary KZ830 turbo, … [Read more...]
The Honda GB500 You’re Waiting For is Here
You'll see a Honda GB500 TT come up for sale now and then, sometimes they've been "improved" by their owner and other times they've just been abused, but this one hits all the right buttons. It's in beautiful condition all around and mileage at just over 8300 is relatively low. There's no corrosion or pitting obvious anywhere and it has the same small hairline crack … [Read more...]
2000 Kawasaki W650 – How Japan Might Have Built a Triumph
The Japanese motorcycle companies went through a period when their designers focused their attention on the older British classics, like the Triumph Bonneville, and figured they had a better idea or interpretation of the concept. The Honda GB500 was their way of doing an English cafe racer and the Kawasaki W650 you see here recreates the classic Bonneville. These W650s, just … [Read more...]