Honeybadger

Miss Honeybadger, what were you doing in the '90s?

Image - only_camera_in_the_room

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Diabolik

Illustration - Robert Sammelin

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Honeybadger

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Honeybadger

Keep your chin up. You th' Honeybadger!

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Dublin - Get it while it's hot!

Today was a beautiful sunny summery day in Dublin and I was mooching around on foot...

Harley Davidson 883 Sportster - These used to be quite rare before the Celtic Tiger but now they're commonplace. They're relatively cheap, particularly the Nightster version and to my mind they represent excellent value for money.

KTM 640 LC4 - There aren't too many of these around.

Note the crash damage on the bikini fairing and the mudguard - par for the course really.

Honda CB400 Super Four. There are tons of these in Dublin. I'm not sure they were ever officially imported here and I expect most of them arrived as grey imports during the '90s. Very popular with couriers, if you see a motorcycle in Dublin, chances are it's a Super Four or a Bros!

KTM990SM - Not too many of these either, if you see a KTM here it's more likely to be a 950/990 Adventure.

Honda CBR250RR Gull-Arm. This is probably a grey import too. During the '90s there was a big market for new 250/400cc motorcycles in Japan. However, there was virtually no second hand market for these bikes and owners had to pay a disposal fee to get rid of them! At the time Ireland was hungry for cheap, quality bikes (and cars) and consequently a great number of JDM machines ended up over here. Many of them are still in use.

Honda Blackbird. Probably more common than the flashier Hayabusa. I'd imagine Honda probably have the lion's share of the market here.

Yamaha Vmax - The Vmax first appeared in 1985 and was in production virtually unchanged 'til 2008! And nearly 30 years on it still looks deadly. The Vmax is still in production but the later model isn't anywhere near as nice as the old one.

The Soviet and the Honeybadger.

#Dublin ###

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Museum

My friend Melissa the Honeybadger managed to secure an invite to a private motorcycle museum in Dublin. It's an amazing and varied collection of machines and memorabilia, with a very gracious host.

It was a lovely day out.

Two Sunbeams...

Honda CBX 1000 - In-line 6 cylinder motor making 105 BHP in the mid-seventies!

Honda CBX 1000B - As above, but with mono-shock rear suspension and a fairing and (very small) cases.

Neither of these CBX 1000s have ever been run on the road. They're as new.

Gilera CX 125 with single sided suspension front and rear. I read an article a while back claiming that this was one of the 50 most iconic bikes in history. Oh, really?

Early 60's Suzuki/Colledas

1960's BSA Gold Star

Kawasaki Scrambler

Bridgestone, the tyre manufacturing powerhouse, used to make motorcycles.

Honda CB 250.

The Bridgestone again.

The blue bike in the background is also a Bridgestone.

Kawasaki Z1 - Now that is iconic!

Kawasaki Z1 R.

Kawasaki Z1300 cutaway engine and drive-train. I remember this when it was in KDI in Golden Lane

Kawasaki Z1300, liquid cooled, 6 cylinders and quite heavy!

Yamaha RD350 YPVS. Iconic? Maybe. But probably not as iconic as the LC.

Yamaha RD400.

Sunbeam S7, air-cooled inline twin with shaft-drive. There's something very appealing about this machine. It just looks... right.

Bimota SB8.

EXUP engined Bimota YB11

Bimota 500 V-Due. A 500cc 2-stroke twin with Direct Fuel Injection and electronic ignition.

It was a fantastic idea, but it didn't work.

The bike was so unreliable that it bankrupted Bimota - Read the story Here

Ducati 160cc Single.

Kawasaki 2-stroke triple.

Melissa and the Soviet.

Melissa.

HRD Vincent. Also iconic...

Kawasaki GPz 1100.

Kawasaki Z1000 Mk II

Kawasaki Z650.

Honda CB900F and Suzuki GT750 Kettle.

Yamaha TZ350 Race-bike.

Honda VFR750 RC45

Suzuki RG500.

Melissa imagines herself pootling down a country lane in Berkshire or Kent or somewhere like that...

BSA M20.

Triumph Trident triple.