Have you ever sold a bike which you really wished you had kept?

Question

I am lucky enough to have a pretty large collection of motorcycles and have actually only ever sold about three and kept the fifteen others that have come into my life. If times got really bad then I guess I could sell them all with the exception of my 1981 Triumph T140ES 750 Bonneville, which I bought when I was an apprentice and is even in my will being mentioned that it is not to be sold or passed outside the family.
However are there any bikes for any reason that you have sold that you wished you had kept and if so why. If not you then any friends with a similar case. I worked with a guy once who sold his original BSA Gold Star for a hundred quid, it would be worth a fortune now.
I do wish I had kept my first ever powered two wheeler which was Velo Solex that ended up in the skip. I had so much fun on that as a kid riding up and down my parents drive for hour after hour.

jamand - my Bonneville is exactly the same colour scheme. Great isn't it?

Answer 1

Yes. Many years ago I had a 500 Vincent with an Alpha bottom end, high compression piston and an extra tooth on the drive sprocket. It did not want third below 60 mph and would hit 100mph without build up. No theft lock was needed. Just leave it fully advanced and it would break any mans ankle. I moved, got a car, got involved with women (fool) and for no better reasons sold it for a fair £40 in 1965. Many a time I have dreamed that I opened the garage door and found it standing there...............

Answer 2

My yellow 1993 Triumph Daytona Super 3

Triumph didn't make many (500?) and it was an attempt to make rather lardy Daytona keep up with the Fireblade by making it lighter and more powerful. The result wasn't fast enough or light enough, and it was mega-expensive.

I wanted one in '93 simply because it looked so good in plain yellow, trimmed with black. Eventually I bought one on a whim in 2004 and kept it three years during which time we did 15,000 miles despite it being my second bike. It wasn't 100% reliable but it wasn't bad at all, and when it was running perfectly it was wonderful.

The main thing about the Super 3 is that it oozes character, and it's so exclusive despite being 15 years old. It handles well for it's age, and despite its weight and rather crude suspension you can chuck it around easily. I used to love chasing modern sports bikes around on it - it was hard work keeping up, but I could always pretend it had been easy :-)

It's a big heavy bike that needs to be dominated by a big heavy rider. At 6' and 15 stone I fit the bill quite well. Handling is crude - fanny about and it will keep going in a straight line - it likes a big heave on the bars to get it on to it's side, and even a nudge to get it back up again!

I got rid to make space in the garage, but to tell you the truth I sold the wrong bike. Eventually it was replaced with a 2002 Daytona 955i - a much better bike in every department, but without the character that made the Super 3 special.

Answer 3

I want my first bike back. A gold and white 68ish Triumph Bonneville, road it from Denver to Idaho when I was 16. My third a 70ish BMW grey and tons of chrome, bought it all covered with surface rust in Oahu and turned it into a beauty. Road it through alot of heavy tropical rain and I'm lucky to survive that idiocy. And my 8th bike a Honda 500xr cause I'm in the market for exactly the same thing.

Answer 4

Yep!

I had a 1963 Vespa, and I got it for $75.00 in 1979. I rode it around for several months, and I was offered $500.00, and I said "ok".

That was such a sad time! I regretted my decision for so very long, and I even tried to buy it back, with no luck.

Last year, I bought a Bajaj Chetak, which was the closest thing to that old vespa I could find, and the truth is that it is much better than the Vespa, but still has the feel of the old girl! They say you can never go back, and that is true, but I am very happy with my Bajaj. It is my daily commuter (except in heavy rain and excessive cold, then I use my car).

Answer 5

Damn, I guess I'm the "oddball" here!!

I've owned around 30 bikes in the last 25 years - I can say truthfully say, with hand on heart, that I don't regret selling ANY of them.

I only sell bikes because:

...they are too slow (Honda CD-200 Benly, Honda CB-250 Superdream)
...they are unreliable (Harley-Davidson XLCR-1000, Yamaha XS-750SE)
...they become unreliable (Moto-Guzzi 1000S, Kawasaki Z-1100 Spectre)
...they blow up (Moto-Guzzi California, Yamaha XS-650)
...I'm never going to get it on the road (BSA Bantam 125 Trials)
...they get boring (Honda GL-1200 Goldwing, Kawasaki Z-400)
...they are too hard to find parts for (Yamaha XV-500SE, Yamaha XZ-550)
...they threaten my licence (Kawasaki ZL-900 Eliminator, Triumph Daytona)
...or because something better comes along (Victory V-92C).

My bikes get sold, because I want to get rid of them for a VERY good reason!

My current bike (a Victory Kingpin) will only get sold if it ever falls into one of the above categories. I've owned it for 2 1/2 years and I still think it's brilliant...

Answer 6

Hi Shuggi Mac. I once had a Z650B1 wrapped it around the local lampost. it looked a real mess. thought it was going to cost a fortune to repair it. sold it as scrap for £100. the guy put it into a new frame added a new rear wheel and the hole in the casing was only the pin from the kickstart had gone through. new caseing and it was fixed a bit of cosmetics later and it was as good as the day before I smashed it. the bike is still running and still looks fantastic. I wish I had kept it.

Answer 7

Yep
Honda Goldwing 97 with only 8000 miles

Sold it when I got my new Harley and despite the Harley being great I now wish I had the wing converted to a trike then I would have the best of both worlds. Harley cos I love it and the Trike Wing for sedate runs out and for my daughter to use as I know she would

Answer 8

I had an '81 Kawasaki CSR 650 that I definitely regret selling.

It was my first real motorcycle, and it was ridiculously fast. 4cyl. overhead cams, 4-1 kerker header/pipe. I had a Ninja sprocket on it for a while - it would leave just about anything at a light. I loved it because while it had basically the same engine as the ninja, it looked like a normal motorcycle.

Great for pulling up next to someone on a crotch rocket - and making them cry.

Answer 9

Yeah...I bought a Honda CB750 Super Sport when I was in high school. I sold it about 20 some years ago because I didn't have the resources to fix it up and the cash did come in handy. I check them out on ebay every once in a while.

Answer 10

Yes - absolutely regret selling my Bonneville T140ES - best bike I ever had - one of the last off the production line as well.

Only good point - I sold it for more than I paid for it. Lovely candy red and black with gold coach lines -