RXS100 reaches 500,000 miles

[27cows]

After 26 years and 8 months of ownership and an average of around 18,100 miles a year, the old fossil has finally reached the half million miles mark. This tatty old tiddler has given me incredible service and never once failed to get me home. Here's a picture taken this afternoon at 500,029 miles.

https://5-t.imgbox.com/IqlT0QAW.jpg
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The RXS100: vehicle of choice for Chuck Norris

[arry]

Incredible

[Tracer1234]

[Itchy]

[stevo as b4]

Has it ever been rebuilt really?

There ain't gonna be an original part on it most likely being a small built to a price commuter.

Think of all the major things that fail at high miles on bikes, fork seals, pitted stanchions, leaky shocks, rusted tanks, head race bearings and well all bearings full stop.

Don't get me wrong, OP's bike and his determination to keep it going is an incredible achievement, worthy of a few magazine articles at least!

I'm guessing OP has had to replace everything several times, and had to use a few donor bikes to harvest for spares too. Fuck worn bearings, I'd bet lots of bearing housings have worn oval or loose in that much use, and it's needed some inventive engineering solutions to repair stuff.

[Tracer1234]

[27cows]

Bike is more than 75% original. Some bits have needed refurbishing, obviously. Mains have been replaced twice as a precaution over the years but I've never had a set fail and the current ones have done 266,000 miles. Had to replace a selector fork at about 80k - otherwise the gearbox is completely original and I can't remember replacing any of the bottom end bearings bar the mains. Not bad given that I've gone anything up to 20,000 miles between gearbox oil changes.

Replaced the steering head bearing with Koyo taper rollers at 22,000 and they're still going strong. And replaced the original shocks with a pair off a GT185 in 1994 - mileage uncertain at that point, probably about 60,000 - and they're still going. Sealed units FTW

Wheels are original - have replaced two spokes in the rear. Both drums have been skimmed twice. Forks are original bar the chrome, which has been redone twice. Headlight, wiring loom, clocks, seat (base and foam), swingarm, rear brake pedal, three of the four indicators, airbox, chain guard are all original. Other bits too. I've tried not to have her turn into Trigger's broom.

I still have the original pipe though it had to come out of service at about 400,000 miles as it was just crumbling rust. Ditto the mudguards - though I've bodged up the original front one and got it back in service now. Carb is original. Only component of it that's been replaced is the slide needle. And that was because I accidentally trod on it while working on the bike, not because it wore out.

The resistor and CDI unit are original. Had to replace the alternator some time in the mid 90s and the one I put on in its place, off a 1983 bike, is still going. I find it quite staggering that these components can last this long. I've found CDI and alternator failures pretty common on bigger bikes.

Tank is a replacement. I have the original and it probably wouldn't take an awful lot to sort the leaky seam. One of the panels was replaced many years ago after the one on there came adrift in motion, fell off and got crushed.

Crank is original but has had two new big ends & con rod kits. First big end failed on me at 54,000 miles (I blame the four learners who had the bike before me for its early demise ). Second was replaced at something like 300,000 miles because of the mad amount of side to side movement - but it wasn't knocking or misbehaving. Oil pump, head, barrel (three rebores) and all engine covers are original. As are the brake plates, wheel spacers, front wheel spindle (rear one popped its thread less than a year ago) and swingarm spindle. Kickstart is original but has had ludicrously worn splines as long as I can remember. Despite this, and the hilarious amount of slack and movement on the shaft, it continues to turn the motor over.

Had to replace the left handlebar grip once a very long time ago. Throttle grip and twisty bit are original. Bike is only on its third throttle cable, which is pretty good going. Footrest broke not long after I got the bike but I had it welded up and that repair had held for 26 years and 475,000 miles.

I would add that I have quite a few spare bits and these have been used temporarily at times over the years while an original bit was being refurbished so I could keep riding the bike from day to day. So the number of bits that have done the full 500,000 miles is probably quite small. I will probably need to hit about 520,000 for all of the original bits left to have done the full half million. That would also mean I had covered that amount on the bike myself, having got her with 18,196 on the clock, and having lent her to mates short term a couple of times in the early 90s.

There have been times when I'm struggling to hold 45 into a howling head wind when I've wondered what the fuck I'm thinking off using a wobbly, bouncy, under braked tiddler with no lights to speak of as my main vehicle so often over the years. But as many other bikes have come and gone in the garage, the old fossil had remained doggedly reliable and has been hilariously cheap to run. It probably takes a certain kind of stubbornness/tight fistedness/stupidity to do what I've done
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The RXS100: vehicle of choice for Chuck Norris

[pepperami]

Your bike now has the status of a LEGEND
And you Sir are now a GOD

That's really is impressive.
Your ability and confidence to split the cases to fix gearbox and engine ailments is the key to this bike's long life.

I truly take my hat of to you!
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I am the sum total of my own existence, what went before makes me who I am now!

[Tracer1234]

Incredible. How much is the tax and insurance on her?
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Riding: Yamaha MT-09 Tracer Occasionally Riding: 08 Suzuki SV650, Potato: 2011 Yamaha YBR Custom.
Used to ride: 2015 Yamaha MT-09 Tracer (smidsy) 09 Triumph Street Triple (P/X'd) 08 Yamaha YBR (Sold)
CBT 04/14. A: Mod 1 & 2 13/04/15

[27cows]

Tax is £17 a year and insurance was £87 last time round - it's gone up over 20 quid in the past few years having remained around the £60 mark for the best part of two decades.
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The RXS100: vehicle of choice for Chuck Norris

[Itchy]

[Kickstart]

Hi

Congratulations.

How long to get to the million?

All the best

Katy
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Traxpics, track day and racing photographs - Bimota Forum - Bike performance / thrust graphs for choosing gearing

[27cows]

Yep, I've stuck with 6 volt. Good lights would spoil the experience Have never seen the point of people putting YBR125 wheels and brakes on RXS100s. Why not just buy a YBR? I love the simplicity of everything and the way things can be bodged when necessary.

The million is never happening. I'm 48 now and find it more and more of a struggle doing the distances on a tiddler. To maintain 18,000+ miles a year till I'm well past retirement age - even if it was mechanically and structurally possible to keep the bike going - isn't something I intend to attempt

I will endeavour to reach the 520,000 mile mark so I can say I've done half a million myself on the old fossil, then put the bike into semi-retirement. Thinking of getting a 600 or 650 Revere to replace her with as the main commuter - I always loved these bikes. Mostly for their reliability and resistance to abject neglect.
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The RXS100: vehicle of choice for Chuck Norris

[stevo as b4]

Not sure if it's your thing, but mate you could get some really good magazine features out of your RXS now. I wonder how many other bikes in the UK of any size have done the half million?

It's maybe something I'd really like, to have a bike of mine magazine featured one day, as you'd have something to look back on in future and I find nostalgic articles and road tests pretty cool in a world where bike wise nothing much else is anymore.

Do you think you'll keep the RXS as it was when you stop riding it, as a patina'd tribute to its achievement, or do you see yourself doing a full restoration on her one day?

Either way it's something special that you'd be mad to ever part with after that amount of time and miles covered.

[27cows]

Some time ago a classics mag wanted to do a feature on the old fossil. But it's not my thing. Even though I love reading about such things myself

I'll do my best to have the old girl usable and still legal for road use till one or other of us finally carks it.

I can't see myself ever restoring the RXS. I hate seeing immaculate oldies looking like they just rolled off the production line. I've always prided myself that my old girl looks like she's had a hard life...because she has
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The RXS100: vehicle of choice for Chuck Norris

[Tracer1234]

[UnspeedySam]

You're a nutter, an inspiring nutter but a nutter none-the-less! Congratulations!

I don't do nearly as many miles as you do (I pretty much only commute and I reckon that's somewhere around 5-7k a year) but after trying to go back to my RXS for commuting a couple of years back I conceded that it just wasn't fun. However that was no fault of the bike's (although the brakes and lights are terrible...), but mostly to do with the fact I'm a little over 6ft and my knees hit the bars in tight turns, and it was just generally very uncomfortable for me.

I have now compromised and for the last few years had the Bros 400 as my commuter (and currently only working bike). It's still small and does 60mpg, but it's big enough that I'm not in physical agony after doing more than a few miles; I took it for a tour around Wales last summer and it did just fine. I'm hoping the legendary Honda V-Twin proves to be as reliable as its reputation (it has so far) but I doubt with my mileage that I'll even get it to 100k in reality.

I have toyed with the idea of getting something small and a bit crap for my commute to make things a little more of a challenge. But it would probably be something like a Chinese C90 clone or an old Yamaha Townmate T80 (shaft drive step through YES PLEASE!)...if I can fit on one properly...
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Riding: BMW R1150RT `02 bought mildly crashed
Fixing: Also the BMW as I get less broken bits
Gone: ZZR600 '00, TRX850 '97, RXS100 '93, JS125-6B '07, BMW R1100RS '93, Kawasaki ZX-6R-J2 '01, Honda Bros NT400 NC25 '88

[pepperami]

[STONEY!]

Brilliant love stuff like this one question though, where's the speedo cable?

[chris-red]

Yamaha may want that as a museum piece.
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Well, you know what they say. If you want to save the world, you have to push a few old ladies down the stairs.
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[27cows]

[Captain Caveman]

Excellent read, well done.
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Mazda Bongo 2.5 V6 = MPG 22 0-60 Fast for a camper van...
Impreza - somewhere between the two.....
R1 = MPG-who cares 0-100 Slightly faster......

[thx1138]

I saw this on ebay and though of this thread, nice bike - mad price.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/112567234213


your bike and your attitude is way cooler

[UnspeedySam]

[27cows]