A little over three decades ago

Lonerider59

Lonerider59

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A little over three decades ago Yamaha was terminating the production of one of it's most memorable and important models...The XS Eleven. I was very lucky to have recently obtained one in very good condition, albeit needing some TLC and maintenance. I had forgotten how unusual the bike was for it's time and so as I re-read some old road tests and other articles about the motorcycle I had a lot of flashbacks about how things once were. When the bike first appeared, I was only 29 years old and my wants and pocketbook were far apart. I had a six year old daughter, a brand new job in computers, and would be facing a life-changing divorce in another year. I was very into bikes, but my Kawasaki H-1 was all I could afford at the time and it was a handful at that.
The most interesting parts for this "old fart" is the fact that the 1980 XS Eleven, although a relic now, is still more of a motorcycle than most people can handle with any finesse and the fact that after 30 plus years, it will still bring the same price it did when it was new, if it's been kept in original or mainly original condition. When I read the road tests I am reminded how thorough the test riders were with the specifics of the machines as far as dimensions and comparisons went. For a person my age, it is interesting to see what was brand new and practically unheard of back then and how much it has changed today. I was wondering in 30 more years, what will we think on the FZ1? Will it still be as intriguing and the "wow" vehicle it is or will it even have a place in motorcycle history? We'll see I guess and I hope I live to see it another ten years from now to see if it keeps in the running.

Check out some of what was said about the XS1100 three decades ago.
http://www.xs11.com/xs11-info/articles.html
 
I guess I'm a little younger than you and at age 54 have been through a lot of life altering events this past year. But the one constant has been my riding. Unlike a lot of you I only just took up riding 8 years ago.

I also enjoy your overview of bikes through the decades. It has always been my contention that major changes in bikes and cars happen over decades not year to year. Once you've juiced up the FZ1 it'll probably still be a few more years before a bike totally blows it away for what its intended purpose covers.
 
My first bike was a 1976 Honda CB550, then considered one of the best bikes available although overshadowed by the almighty CB750. When I was at the Barber Motorsports Museum last year they had a cherry CB550 on display and it brought back fond memories. Although it only put out about 50hp it was plenty fast.

Another bike I enjoyed was my 1994 Yamaha Seca II, a simple air cooled engine in a steel tubular frame. Nothing fancy but it was fun to ride.

As bikes become more and more complicated and focused I'm not sure they are actually more fun to ride.
 
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My first bike was 1975 Suzuki GS400, got it in 1980. But my dream bike was 1982 red n blk Suzuki GSXR 750, never got to have it thou :doh2:
Now 20 some years later I got myself 07 FZ1 n loving it
 
Those XS Bikes have a huge following. I started on an XS650 I picked up for $75.00. Then went to an XJ1100 witch was the blow out model of the XS1100, Yamaha put out to end the Model. I all ways preferred the XS style better though. The motor is a beast but the trans has issues so pick one up as soon as possible, to have one in reserve may pay off. Also clean the (spoge hole) in the Rear Master cylinder and change the brake lines. Both of these issues and there fixes are well documented on XS11.com. In fact I followed the Trans swap instructions from there to fix my 1st.2nd gear. Best write up on the net I have ever followed and that's what you want the first time you pull a Trans lol. But I did not flip the bike up side down as they suggested I did it up rite.
I think the issue with the Master cylinder was a big factor when my trans went out. At least it helped to kill my all ready weak gears faster because as the return port (the Spoge hole) clogs, and rear brake is applied it will not full disengage creating stress on the trans helping in the destruction. I cleaned my master cylinder 3+ times and it kept clogging that's why suggest changing the lines as well. In my case the 30 year old rubber keep braking down and stopping up the works.
I had the bike for two seasons and sold it the third and didn't ride for 5 years till I moved down to Texas from Michigan this year. Dumb me I bought an 1100 Shadow thinking it will have the same grunt as the XJ1100. HA. Not even close!! But at least I had some thing to ride while looking for my FZ1. Good luck with the XS you'll have a blast!!

PS: PICS PICS PICS
 
I guess this dates me - my 1st was a '61 Honda 50 - C110 model. Made a 'deal' with my Dad - if I made straight A's in the 9th grade, he'd let me buy one. So I started saving my paper route money as soon as I made the deal. I was 13 at the time and we were on an air force base where kids could get a motorcycle license for the base at 14. Fortunately it was a huge base so you could plenty of riding.

After I brought home my 5th straight 6week report card with straight A's, Mom and Dad realized I was going to do it. He had offered the deal never thinking I could do it and he definitely didn't want me having a motorcycle. Mom was even more set against it, but they realized they couldn't back out - it would've killed me. So in June after receiving the Jr Hi School award for the Letter athlete with the highest scholastic record (perfect record for the year), I bought a new, white Honda 50 C110.

I've never been without a motorcycle since.
 
I really admire riders who made deals with their parents years ago when they caught the fever for a bike. Back in the 60's when I got bit, as far a I can remember there were only a couple bikes in my town and most people still considered them somehow outlandish devil mobiles. When I asked my old man he said "if you ca get a job to pay for it you can". I got a job and I did pay for it. There were probably many parents who put the deal on the table never expecting their kid to flollow through but also didn't want to renege on the deal either. Riding has been my love ever since, and it really didn't make much difference if it was a 120cc or a 109 in. I'll attach a pict of my FZ1 and the "new XS11.
 
Very nice looking bikes. My first was a '78 Yamaha DT100 enduro 2-stroke. I still have it and rode it with my son on the back (poor little bike). I learned to ride on it, and he is too. It's street legal, but will only do about 40-45 mph due to very low gearing, but that's perfect for learning. I hope to fix it up a bit next summer and throw up some pictures. Enjoy those bikes!

Sent from my ADR6300 using Tapatalk
 
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