Too many bikes?

[Fladdem]

Hey all, long time no post.

Recently I've been having thoughts that the fleet is a bit too big. How many bikes is feasibly too many bikes?

I've been weighing up just cutting down the fleet because they're all currently unrideable yet I no longer have the space to work on them to even get them close to a sailable condition.

What are your thoughts and opinions? I only really want my TTR 250, my MT 50 and my CB 400, but I only really want the 400 so I can see it go round the clock. Is it a stupid idea to try and sell them as is just to clear some space so I can get the ones I want back up and going? I've even considered actually paying a mechanic to do the work on them but I broke out in a cold sweat.

What say you?
Cheers!
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Current:1991 Honda MT50 (Soon to be a H100/MTX/MT5 hybrid), 1976 Honda Cub C70, 2005 Honda Varadero 125, 1993 Yamaha TTR250 Open Enduro , 2010 Road Legal Stomp YX140, 1994 Honda CRM 250 MK III, 1999 Cagiva Mito 125, 1992 Honda CB400 Super Four, Stomp T4 230, 1984 Honda H100s, 2009 Sym XS125K
Past:2003 Aprilia RS125, 1982 Kawasaki GPZ550(FREE BIKE!)
I'm having more fun than a well-oiled midget.

[Tankie]

If you can possibly keep them stable so they do not degrade anymore do so,
money in the bank does nothing .
Paying for work is expensive and will eat into anything you make on their sale, as you say, could just give you a bit more room.
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Always learning, everyday is a school day

[chickenstrip]

For me, bikes were always about riding. I'd choose one or two perhaps, the most realistic ones to get running, and get shot of the rest. I'd rather have one good bike I can jump on at any time than a bunch of rotting carcasses I'll never get around to fixing up. But it all boils down to time and money in the end - what can you afford to do, what do you have the time to do?
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Chickenystripgeezer's Biking Life (Latest update 19/10/18) Belgium, France, Italy, Austria tour 2016 Picos de Europa, Pyrenees and French Alps tour 2017 Scotland Trip 1, now with BONUS FEATURE edit, 5/10/19, on page 2 Scotland Trip 2 Luxembourg, Black Forest, Switzerland, Vosges Trip 2017
THERE'S MILLIONS OF CHICKENSTRIPS OUT THERE!

[chickenstrip]

[Fladdem]

You make an excellent point there. I do enjoy riding it, but it's broke down just after the BBQ in Wales, two years ago, and hasn't been started since so I can't really remember what it was like.

Which brings it back to your first point, sort of, it's sat for close to two years and I physically can't fix it because there is no space to tear it apart and work out what's gone wrong, my TTR is approaching four years because I have no room to sort it out anymore.

I don't want to brag, but money isn't so much an issue as much as it feels like admitting defeat if I defer the work to someone else. The issue I have is no one wants to buy my broken bikes, no one is interested in them even as projects so it appears that I'm stuck with them until I can come up with a solution.

The issue is, as well, I'm a hoarder, I've only ever sold a couple of bikes and they've both gone to friends or family. I also like having the option of bikes, although thinking about it, if none of them work, I have no option. It's the same with my cars, I have four of those too.

Basically I was hoping for someone to help convince myself to get rid of some junk, somehow.
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Current:1991 Honda MT50 (Soon to be a H100/MTX/MT5 hybrid), 1976 Honda Cub C70, 2005 Honda Varadero 125, 1993 Yamaha TTR250 Open Enduro , 2010 Road Legal Stomp YX140, 1994 Honda CRM 250 MK III, 1999 Cagiva Mito 125, 1992 Honda CB400 Super Four, Stomp T4 230, 1984 Honda H100s, 2009 Sym XS125K
Past:2003 Aprilia RS125, 1982 Kawasaki GPZ550(FREE BIKE!)
I'm having more fun than a well-oiled midget.

[Teflon-Mike]

1/ Every Day bike
2/ Sunday Best
3/ Dirt bike / comper / trackbike/racer
4/ Project Bike
5/ Senti Mental Bike
6/ ShowBike

Half a dozen then would sort of fulfil every reason for having different bikes; you could probably trim that a bit, say having dirt bhike as every day commuter, or show bike as sunday best.....

Then inflate it with donors for project bike... bikes waiting to be the project, etc

There'r no right or wrong number....

Limit is money.... you can only ride one at a time, so why pay tax and insurance or have petrol sitting in ones not used

Limit is space.... you CAN start to stash them in the loft or living room, and stuff, but it IS a bit silly when you have to move a moto guzzi starter motor to make a cup of coffee....

Limit is time.... you can only ride one at a time, and theres only so many hours a day to spend balencing carbs, polishing chrome or stringing cam chains...

You have hit the buffers......

So you need stretch something, or shrink something to make it fit.

Would you like a Honda CB125 Super Dream? Or three?
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My Webby'Tef's-tQ, loads of stuff about my bikes, my Land-Rovers, and the stuff I do with them!
Current Bikes:'Honda VF1000F' ;'CB750F2N' ;'CB125TD ( 6 3 of em!)'; 'Montesa Cota 248'. Learner FAQ's:= 'U want to Ride a Motorbike! Where Do U start?'

[Baffler186]

I wouldn't keep any bikes that I couldn't ride, unless it was an ongoing project that has regular progress made. And I'd stick to one project at a time. It's all about how you use them though. If you commute, race and go off-roading then 3 bikes would be worth it. For me though, one is enough, I can't be doing with cramped garage space. my commuter is kept in good nick because it's also my sunday best.

I guess you could ask yourself what would you gain from the extra space and the time not spend spannering? Also predict what money you might gain/save by cutting down to just 3?
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Current: 2009 SV650 S, 1990 Kawasaki GT550
Previous: 2009 CBF125, 1998 GSF600, 2004 FZ6 Fazer, 1978 CB400a Hondamatic

[chickenstrip]

[stevo as b4]

Fuck me, I feel good about my life now with 2&1/2 old bikes and an old car all not really working or taxed.

Mate, I think like me you have at times got more into the car thing than bikes, and there's nothing wrong with that. (Being nosy do tell what the 4 rides are).

I think you've got to keep the MT as that was always your long term special build, and it does make most sense to me for many reasons.
1, how much space does a lightweight 50 take up, and it's parts/spares.
2, it was your little mad project/special build that would still be very worthwhile for someone who wants a project build for one day.
3, Parts prices arnt too mad yet, and they made loads of them, so you can get the parts easily still which is a big factor to me.
4, it was your original sentimental bike, hard to put a price on that.
5, 80's mopeds are getting popular with nostalgia hunters now, and while they are cheap enough to build/restore still compared to 70's mopeds, they are going up in value and will keep doing so too IMO.

Hell you could build up an MT in your living room/Kitchen/Bedroom and it's feather light so it won't be hard to get a complete bike in or out of the house.
If your going to work on a project yourself then bike wise this is the one to do IMO.

As for the rest, if like me you don't need or rely on a bike then if your not planning on riding bikes much, you don't need them.
The 400 would go straight away if it were mine, and I'd possibly replace it with a CB500 (or any popular UK market bike to make life easier for parts).

Sell the rest if you need the space or cash, and remember a grand or so would make a hell of a way into a very special MT50 build without having to compromise on much.

I've now got space for 2more bikes in my shed, but please don't let me find a way to fill it as im trying for a simple life not one where I'm too scared to open the shed door again and see how much stuff is in my way.

[chickenstrip]

Got it! Multiply their worth a zillion times by advertising them as barn finds!
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Chickenystripgeezer's Biking Life (Latest update 19/10/18) Belgium, France, Italy, Austria tour 2016 Picos de Europa, Pyrenees and French Alps tour 2017 Scotland Trip 1, now with BONUS FEATURE edit, 5/10/19, on page 2 Scotland Trip 2 Luxembourg, Black Forest, Switzerland, Vosges Trip 2017
THERE'S MILLIONS OF CHICKENSTRIPS OUT THERE!

[Tankie]

Smart move!
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Always learning, everyday is a school day

[inline4]

[B5234FT]

I'e come to the same sort of point, limited by time, where I realised that two bikes, 6 cars, a trailer and a racing dinghy was too much to try to look after.

When I realised I'd seen my MOT man on average once a month last year I decided it was time to thin the fleet.

As a few folk have said, I'm cutting back to what I can actually use, and for bikes, that means getting rid of the shiney one I've failed to get time to put back together, and swapping the shitter for something that can be used all year round and I dont care too much about, because being able to throw my leg over it whenever I feel like it mattters most.

[Islander]

The perfect number of bikes for any one person can be represented by n+1 where n is the number of bikes currently owned.

[thx1138]

I started the year with 5, I'm down to 3, with one up for sale.

[Copycat73]

4 .. because the garage is now full ..

1/ Every Day bike .. cb1000r abs
2/ Sports tourer ZZR14D8fABS
3/ Dirt bike / Husqvarna 701
4/ Project Bike .. nope .. no time.. energy or inclination
5/ Senti Mental Bike YZFR1 5VY
6/ ShowBike nope they are for ridin
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Whatever I post I have no citation and no intention of providing one..
caveat emptor

[The_west]

Only you can say....!
For me, I always used to have a couple of dirt bikes in the garage. I had a few years out of biking and have just got back into it, actually taking my test as well now not just hooning around at tracks lol.
I have a rebuilt '92 dr650, as I couldn't resist buying a off road (ISH) bike, but I want a crotch rocket. Thinking along the lines of gsxr or ninja 750, and I wouldn't actually mind getting a smaller trail bike again just for the lolz , nothing mental and high maintenance , wr250r, possibly xr250 kinda thing
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Grip it and rip it

[Ste]

[johnsmith222]

I had 4 bikes at one time, but never had them all on the road at any point, as it just didn't make sense.

One of the best things I did was going back to 1 bike, which meant I could focus on that, and keeping it in good mechanical condition. I feel I'm also more inclined to sort the little issues with the bike now that I have 1. (e.g. removing the footrest hanger to clean and lubricate the shifter).

Perhaps having another bike in bits distracts you from the more minor maintenance that's required on your main bike.

If you have 11 bikes, I would just focus on one at a time and get what you want rid of gone.

It's nice to have the space to work on the main bike without having to move other bikes about too.

[Courier265]

I only have enough space for my 3 bikes, Suzuki 250, Honda CBF500 and my Honda CB250 (soon to be replaced because of that cunt mayor)

All 3 used for courier work and all runners.

[kgm]

I'm finding three a pain tbh. It's a lot of maintenance. One I use for commuting, one for touring/pillion or pleasure use. One was a project but has been in the family since 1980 so I'm attached to that one.

[sl121011]

Three is the (current) limit for me, but then I work 60-70 hours a week....

Daily use - MT03 (660)
Sunday best / minter - CD200
Project / runner - Triumph 5TA

That lot keeps me busy enough thank you very much. If you're not making progress with them or keeping up with basic maintenance then it's time to think very carefully.
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Current - MT-03, CD200. Gone - CB500

[-Monty-]

People seem to pay good money for absolute shit on Ebay these days.

The fact you have made this thread suggests the situation is causing you a bit of stress, so bung them on Ebay as an auction and get shot of the ones you don't want. Someone will buy them so they can store them in their garage as a project for years on end too As has been said above, if you loose money on them, put it down to experience. You've already said money isn't an issue.

Keeping the CB400 just to see it go round the clock seems a fairly invalid reason for keeping the bike. I remember you saying you don't even like the bike that much, so get rid of it.

I have 3 bikes in my garage currently and sometimes feel it's too much, and one of them isn't even mine! Both of the bikes that are mine are in good working order though, so a jolly ride is only ever the push of a button away.

PS. Get rid of the cars as well! Why do you need 4?!
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Present: [Kawasaki ZX7r][Suzuki DRZ 400s]
Past: [Honda PCX 125] [Yamaha RXS 100] [Honda CB 500] [Triumph Speed Four] [Honda ST1100 Pan European - Po-Po Edition]

[Jayy]

Have 3 bikes and it's 1 too many in my opinion.

https://i.imgur.com/j3m4ylk.jpg

I'm going to swap the RSV4 for something next year and ditch the TNT.

[Hawkeye1250FA]

Personal choice. 😁

Obviously my wife's ideal number of bikes that I own is far less than mine! 🤣

I have the faired commuter
Naked hooligan
Sentimental original

Given more space, I would have a supersport as well. So my ideal number would be 4.
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1993 RF400R - 2002 Bandit 1200 - 2012 1250 FA