They make a sexy bobber!

Fairly cheap
Skinny
Air cooled
Kick start
Chain drive
very common so lots of parts and info available
YAMAHA

I will do one some day...

I say do it!

I had a cobbled up rolling mess XS 650 chopper. Weld-on hardtail, 5 inch flat fender, 10 over springer, Mustang tank, spool front hub, Sportster solo seat, custom paint by Krylon. No battery, just kick the hell outta it and go. Had the TT pipes that exited out the same side...very cool. Was putting gas in it one day and a guy made me an offer I couldn't refuse....otherwise I would probably still have it. Had another one too, in pretty much stock configuration...put a sidecar on that one and beat the hell out of it for awhile...it took the abuse quite well.

There is good aftermarket support for these bikes. I always considered them the bike that killed Triumph, beat them at their own game so to speak. But I'm glad Triumph came back and that there's room for everybody.

Sure wish we could drag TAMPA SVT back into the forum with this thread. He built and finished one just before he sold his Roadie. Would love to do one myself someday.

Rod

A few friends had them. Nice bikes, very solid platform and easy to mod.
My taste would run to a cafe bike and I have seen more than a few really great builds out there.
You won't regret the choice.

Ive got an 81 original unrestored,i gave 700 bucks for it.The guy i bought it from said it had not run in 10 yrs.I dumped the old gas,checked the oil,checked and cleaned the plugs,put a battery in her and it cranked right up.

I ride it in the alley about once a month just to keep the battery up.I wanted one of these back in the day,just took a while to get one.These bikes really have a great power to weight ratio,and even in somewhat poor condition mine starts right up every time.

Jumping on the xs,after riding the roadie feels somewhat like getting on a bicycle,but it is an easy handling bike and i find it really fun to ride,looking forward to getting it road worthy and street legal !

Here's one.

http://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/mcy/4233873705.html

Shores wrote:
Here's one.

http://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/mcy/4233873705.html

Holy S!!! That is sic!

these bikes are solid little pieces. For you youngsters this is the kind of bike some of us rode all over America. Motorcycles used to shake some and not be able to run 80mph all day BUT they were much better all around bikes than today. The Japanese twins kicked everyone's ass and the main reason's were reliability and simplicity. I rode botha Honda 350 (largest selling bike ever by the way) and a Honda 450 many times 400 miles at a crack, just me and the backpack on there. You could do anything with these twins in particular the XS650. Many of them are getting pretty f'd up in my opinion right now by guys that just don't know what they are doing. Other key thing with these twins is no oil tank, makes them so damn easy to configure in to a nice package. Finding where to put an oil tank is a pain some times. Many guys that are building these are putting in fake oil tanks and hiding the battery and electrics in them. I also like the XS for having a kickstarter. Nope, don't want one on the Roadie but on a smaller bike its good to have.

Plus one on the kick start. Since I put the pamco ignition on my 79, she's first orsecond kick every time. The starter is hard on the battery, and my starter gear spring is weak, so it's just as likely to grind as it is to catch. I just leg it every time.

I have had a few of them. Fun and popular bikes indeed. I still have a few vids on youtube. Chopzombie is my user there. If you have been googling them for a bit you have surely found Ardcore Choppers or Ardcore Speed and Fab now. They are friends of mine with great products. They have the best looking bobber frame or hardtail in my opinion. They know their shit. The Cole Foster tank bike you are drooling over looks like a roller they built for a customer a few years ago. The tank, springer, and fake oil tank look like the one they had on their lift in the shop. That frame looks like theirs too.

I have also been watching for a steal so I can play with another one soon...I miss this one.