Love that it's so original! Please don't restore it!
@aumkar224 күн бұрын
Nothing beats a 2 stroke triple.
@CathyPetrilli-x8z25 күн бұрын
How much?
@alexanderhikel2350Ай бұрын
I’m picking up my restored 69 today most excited I’ve been in my life !
@paulmilesАй бұрын
@@alexanderhikel2350 oh wow! Enjoy.
@twinpotracerАй бұрын
Am I right in saying 125 only built? In 1999, I used to go to the factory window and look at the bike in the window...one day, Shaun who works in there came outside and invited me inside to have a look. To the left of the entrance was a candy apple red Norton Fastback. He was shocked I knew what it was because I was only 11yrs old at the time. He gave me a magazine (which I still have) and some pictures and posters. I then jumped on my little BMX and rode home pretending I was on the bsa. I'm still looking to purchase one now. It seems silly, but that bike is the most significant of all bikes to me
@paulmilesАй бұрын
Great story! Thanks for sharing. I believe they made 100 for the Japan only market and sold them all in advance. Enthused, another 100 500cc versions were commissioned and built (maximum). So yes, under 200 in total
@duanetrivett750Ай бұрын
I have always wanted one of these GTs but the first thing I would do is month ball the exhaust and go for expansion Chambers and wake up the neighbors .
@grega9852 ай бұрын
Great sound💪 where did you get silencer?
@carolmiles74742 ай бұрын
Hi paul cant find you ,love you happy birthday fading fast your sister ,congratulations to your beautiful daughter xxxxxc❤❤❤❤❤❤❤😢😢😢😢😢
@petergibbon34002 ай бұрын
The front brake is from the 1968 model.
@stewartsackerson36463 ай бұрын
If you ever consider selling..:)
@paulmiles3 ай бұрын
@@stewartsackerson3646 thank you, but I’ve no plans to!
@gixxerman00163 ай бұрын
US version so standard bores as opposed to the chromed bores the UK got (with a little more power from the motor) from the 1975 'M' model....great if the bores are in good nick (they last very well as the rings & piston are supposed to be the part that wears). Lovely looking bikes, but as you say always in the 750s shadow.
@giovannitermite98543 ай бұрын
Il cruscotto porta strumento lucido è brutto,il collettore di scarico così arroventato è sintomo di carburazione magra , le scritte sui cassettini portatrezzi son posticce ,
@rainbowmat82043 ай бұрын
excellent bike and excellent sound sir
@philmuskett2654 ай бұрын
Really nice machine. Just a shame they didn't make more of 'em, I'm sure they would have sold 'em all.
@renestuder792554 ай бұрын
leider veraltete Motorentechnik. Alles noch mit Ketten!
@enricolessanutti49884 ай бұрын
R 69 S: la migliore motocicletta da turismo di ogni tempo. Tuttora insuperata sia per tecnica, sia per stile. Dico: la migliore, perché la Vincent è la Brough Superior non raggiunsero la maturità. La BMW di Monaco cessò la produzione di motociclette dopo aver prodotto questo modello
@K777John4 ай бұрын
Lovely bike, I recently bought its older brother-mine has the square barrel generator engine-starts first kick every time.
@christopherwhipps94744 ай бұрын
Beautiful bike better looking than a 60s Norton or a A65 Beeza, as far as your opinion on build quality they were no different to any other British bike of that era and a damn sight more reliable.
@ianwright39715 ай бұрын
I bought the last one Harris sold to the public..Also in red....It's an unburstable engine and I tuned mine to around 50BHP...With that sort of power and the light weight and good handling it was a match for any other single then in production and better than many....
@alfred-vz8ti5 ай бұрын
I had an r80, my best road bike, by far. they'gotten grossly fat since then, maybe to appeal to the harley market.. looking back, they probably had it right with the r69s.
@frederickbowdler81695 ай бұрын
Logo was FBC Francis Barnett of Coventry (where it was made).
@KenMcKinnon-c4r5 ай бұрын
I bought an SF3 new and it remains my favorite bike. I've owned various Jap bikes, Moto Morini and Moto Guzzies but the Laverda beats them hands down.
@jeffhildreth92445 ай бұрын
I owned a 1965 and a 1968 R69s. The motor on yours does not look like an S motor. Oh, and I also owned a very rare R69US.
@paulmiles5 ай бұрын
I’m afraid you’re mistaken.
@jeffhildreth92445 ай бұрын
@@paulmiles I do not see the "bulge" at the lower front of the motor where the harmonic balancer resides. Were they not used in 1962 ?
@paulmiles5 ай бұрын
No, they didn’t appear until 1963 second half , so realistically 1964 onwards.
@jeffhildreth92445 ай бұрын
@@paulmiles Thanks. My 65 and 68 and my 69 R69US have the balancer.
@4thinternational2835 ай бұрын
Nice looking bike, very unusual
@BLUESBOYBENFIELD6 ай бұрын
Forks are Paioli
@FerdinandoCeccato6 ай бұрын
GORGEOUS motorbike. I add a small observation. I can't stand mirrors attached to the outside edge of the grips. And I love the English accent.
@georgetrakadas85956 ай бұрын
I had one R25 and one R67 but the R69 is King
@deangdmppajj46926 ай бұрын
I like the look of this more than the new goldie
@paulmiles3 ай бұрын
I think the supply of engines dried up, Dean.
@gkgzj99996 ай бұрын
68 model not 69. Front brake.
@gkgzj99996 ай бұрын
Going by the front brake cable routing its a 68 model mate not a 69. Cheers Rog
@suzukin-jiji22066 ай бұрын
SR500 Wow!
@dereklmcguire6 ай бұрын
Loved it Thanks ! I had an MSS in 60s , just bought one last month , MSS with electric starter, alloy rims , 12volt electrics , twin leading front brake .
@ap4709pk6 ай бұрын
This is absolutely gorgeous 😮
@veritasvincit27456 ай бұрын
I considered one along with a Honda VT500, XBR500 and Yamaha SRX600 in 1987 but ended up buying an F2 Gauloises blue YPVS 350 because I was 18 years old and all my mates had fairly fast bikes. Looking back I think that the 350 was the wise choice but I missed out on not getting the Matchless. If my mate's had not had bikes I'd have probably bought one.
@robertbruce18876 ай бұрын
I love Triumph Bonnevilles, especially that year range he is talking about, but he has a point about some of their odd poor quality details, the one l laugh about is how sometimes they would have one foot peg ahead of the other!
@muckle86 ай бұрын
I remember looking at these bikes in a shopfront in Southampton back in late 90’s with my late father . We didn’t realise then the motor was a Yamaha.
@paulmiles6 ай бұрын
It’s a great-looking motor, in truth.
@muckle86 ай бұрын
@paulmiles a good strong unit too - I’d love one now tbh!
@limyrob13836 ай бұрын
Yes I recall that too. Were they assembled in Southampton? That's the only time I've seen one.
@muckle86 ай бұрын
@limyrob1383 I believe it was a workshop of sorts who were building these specials , jap motors in old BSA frames, I think I did talk to a guy there briefly one time but it was a long time ago now ! Good to see their creations are still around though.
@AshleyPomeroy6 ай бұрын
The transparent mobile phone holder is a clever piece of future-proofing!
@4thinternational2836 ай бұрын
Very interesting, not heard of these bikes before.
@MarkPearce-u7m6 ай бұрын
I've owned 14 kawasaki triples in my time, never had a centre cylinder seize, Elvis isn't on the moon either. 😂😂
@gren5096 ай бұрын
They are about 50lb lighter than a Jota ! Superb bike though. I recall the original test in Bike magazine where the guy almost crashed it due to the not so SF brakes ;)
@bananabrooks3836Ай бұрын
Yes thanks, l did wonder about his stats there.
@JackTheSkunk6 ай бұрын
I love the classic look, but I think they should have punched it out to 650CC and made the fins much larger to approximate the look of the old Gold Star.
@paulmiles6 ай бұрын
There would have been issues with type-approval then. Lots of tuning parts for the SR and it doesn’t need to be 650cc, a 535 big-bore and better cam makes a world of difference and keeps it rideable on the road. Big fins? Nah, it’s a nod to the DBD amd not a copy imho. Cheers P
@markdoolan72827 ай бұрын
I don’t mind the clocks. I’ve got similar ones on my bike. They suit the look and if you get the originals from the states they aren’t that cheap either. I think it looks great. Can’t go wrong with that engine. How much do they go for?
@paulmiles6 ай бұрын
That’s a tricky one to answer. Being so rare, prices range between ‘HOW much? It’s just a tarted up SR” and “go and find another one for sale!” In the U.K. they are currently somewhere between 6 and 12 thousand pounds; I’d suggest the lower price to be the correct one.
@craig61197 ай бұрын
Think I'd prefer the newer one.
@paulmiles7 ай бұрын
We’re lucky to have so much choice 👍🏻
@gitaneVYS491R7 ай бұрын
Always liked the look of these. I've never seen one though.
@kdsowen28827 ай бұрын
Great-looking Machine , I haven't seen one in-the-flesh and they probably never made it to NZ . I sold my SR500 2-years ago , I've regretted-it ever-since , it was 'properly' Cafe'd ,Imola-seat, clip-ons,rear-sets etc 565cc, stroked steel-crank, forged-rod and piston, worked-head etc 40mm-flatslide , heavy-flywheel 11:1 compression . The only person who could start-it apart from me , rode a manx-Norton . It was a beast , running the same wheels as yours and very-fast . My mates T140 couldn't touch it , selling it was one of the stupider-things I've ever done . Dave nz
@paulmiles7 ай бұрын
Sounds like a fantastic machine. We’ve all sold stuff we should have kept though.
@bucktadlock52587 ай бұрын
Just pushed a 68 out of a actual farm barn, where it had sat since 1980, even in the sad shape its in, its still a very cool motorcycle,