Re: Motorcycles
It seems like the mid '80's to late '90's models were arguably the peak of manufacturing for simplicity of effective function, before EPA regulations mandated stupefying more complex systems. As an example of this, Liz's bike is a Kawasaki EL125 (Eliminator)... 2005 model as I recall. The gas cap is a mind numbingly complex assemblage, apparently constructed to "capture" gas fumes from the gas tank. Maybe that's a good idea... the concept anyway... but in practice, it doesn't seem to work seeings as how the gas tank doesn't seem to be able to breath, so when it's parked on a warm day, pressure builds in the tank till it forces gas to dribble out of the carb overflow... onto the ground. I've gone around and around trying to "fix it right"... but there doesn't seem to be any real fix besides leaving the gas cap cracked open on hot days.
Hear tell, Honda Rebels make for pretty good beginner's bikes... the 250's or 450's. I believe Honda made oodles of them over a fairly lengthy period of time... fairly bullet-proof, easy to maintain, cheap to own & operate, and nicely sized and balanced for the beginner:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_CMX250C
It seems like the '70's vintage bikes are past prime for being truly cheap. Nice ones are generally real money, and the cheap ones are generally basket cases, and getting difficult to source parts for. Also, IMO, the '70's vintage bike are fairly "clunky" compared to later models: '70's vintage bikes commonly were still equipped with drum brakes, were generally "heavier" and not as well ergonomically engineered, carburetion wasn't as evolved, electrical systems were arguably flakier, 2 cycle motors were much more common, suspension wasn't as good, mechanical assemblies were not as refined, etc...
It seems like the mid '80's to late '90's models were arguably the peak of manufacturing for simplicity of effective function, before EPA regulations mandated stupefying more complex systems. As an example of this, Liz's bike is a Kawasaki EL125 (Eliminator)... 2005 model as I recall. The gas cap is a mind numbingly complex assemblage, apparently constructed to "capture" gas fumes from the gas tank. Maybe that's a good idea... the concept anyway... but in practice, it doesn't seem to work seeings as how the gas tank doesn't seem to be able to breath, so when it's parked on a warm day, pressure builds in the tank till it forces gas to dribble out of the carb overflow... onto the ground. I've gone around and around trying to "fix it right"... but there doesn't seem to be any real fix besides leaving the gas cap cracked open on hot days.
Hear tell, Honda Rebels make for pretty good beginner's bikes... the 250's or 450's. I believe Honda made oodles of them over a fairly lengthy period of time... fairly bullet-proof, easy to maintain, cheap to own & operate, and nicely sized and balanced for the beginner:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_CMX250C
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