[RideApart] - Top 5 Bike-uriosities – Week of 4/18

[Ninjette Newsbot]

Top 5 Bike-uriosities – Week of 4/18

At Bike-urious, we’re spending all of our time finding the most interesting motorcycles that are currently for sale for you to drool over (and maybe empty your wallet for). So let’s take a look at our five favorite offerings from this week!

1. 1966 Cimatti 160 Sport

Two years ago, a reader let me know that a motorcycle museum in Denver was letting go of seven small Italian bikes. One of them was this 1966 Cimatti 160, which had just 10 miles on the odometer. Since then it's gone through two owners, a little bit of work to get it running, and 110 miles, but it's now up for sale again.

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Much like the partnerships between Wards Riverside and Benelli or Sears and Puch, Cimatti's were imported to the US through a retail store chain -- in this case, Gamble's. This specific example apparently sat in a store for years as no one would buy it due to a scratch on the front forks. It eventually made its way to the collection of the late Jim Dillard, and it's bounced around a couple of times since then.

Now it has just 120 miles and it's claimed to be completely original -- while the battery is new, the tires are still the original Michelin Rapidos and the seller says they show no evidence of cracking or rot. It's truly in impressive shape, and the seller says it'll start with one or two kicks whether it's hot or cold.


For what it's worth (which isn't much), the first time this bike was offered, the BIN was $3,500. Find this Cimatti for sale in Deerfield, Illinois with bidding up to $1,025 and the reserve not yet met here on eBay.


2. 2008 Bimota Tesi 3D

Funny Front Ends (FFEs) are awesome, and the hub-steering front suspension found on Bimota's Tesi 3D might just be the coolest of them all.


The 3D is one of the best examples you can find of an exclusive Italian sportbike, though this is arguably more of a streetfighter. It's powered by a Ducati 1,078cc dual-spark engine, and the dry weight is 370 pounds. For more information on the Tesi, check out this review from Cycle World who say it's a solid improvement over the 2D. MSRP was a hefty $35,900, so it'll be interesting to see how much bidding gets to.

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This Tesi (VIN: ZEST311D68R000023) is #23 off the line -- it has less than 2,250 miles and it's claimed to be in excellent original condition. It's being offered by the third owner who says the bike needs nothing to go right now, although a new set of tires will be needed in the not-too-distant future. Find this Tesi 3D for sale in Roswell, Georgia with bidding up to $24,600 and the reserve not yet met here on eBay.


3. 1 of 21 - 1968 Greeves Oulton Racer

Chas Mortimer is the only rider to have won races in the FIM World Championship classes of 125, 250, 350, 500, and 750. He was also the original owner of this Greeves Oulton race bike, of which just 21 were ever built.


The Oulton utilizes a 344cc engine and it was designed to be the bigger brother to the successful 250cc Silverstone. Unfortunately, the Oulton was not as successful, and Bert Greeves retired in 1968, quickly ending the company's time with road racing.


The seller says this is a photo of Chas Mortimer on this very bike from back in the day!This unrestored example has the original example as well as Dunlop rims and tires, plus an Amal GP2 race carb. Unfortunately, it's been in long term storage and the seller has not tried to start the bike, though he claims the engine turns over and has good compression.

Find this Greeves Oulton for sale here at Cosmo Classic Motorcycles in East Sussex, England for $21,209.

4. Restored Combat - 1972 Norton Commando Roadster


In 1972, Norton offered an optional high spec engine initially just for the Roadster and Interstate -- they called it the "Combat." The British firm advertised an extra 5 horsepower from the Combat engine (and it was paired with a disc brake up front) but there were serious design issues and the engines started failing at an unpleasant rate. As hindsight is 20/20, the main issues of crankcase and bearing design were discovered and rectified by some in the aftermarket. This example has been restored to a claim of "100% perfect, concourse condition" with Superblend bearings -- the hope being that you won't have any engine issues going forward.

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For more on what caused the issues with the Combat engine and how they can be addressed, check out Andover Norton. This numbers-matching example (VIN: 210313) has just 3 miles on it since the restoration, as it only leaves the house for shows or to get started periodically. The seller says this bike is perfect and ready to be ridden, though it still needs break-in done. The seller says this bike was at the Vegas auctions in January where it was bid up to $14,500 -- now it's up for sale with no reserve.


Find this Combat Commando for sale in Boise, Idaho with bidding up to $9,000 here on eBay.


5. Original Owner Project - 1975 Triumph Rickman CR


The Rickman brothers are best known for their Metisse frames, but in the 70s they also made a series of Competition Replica (CR) machines for the street and track. The owner of this example bought it new in 1975, raced it for a season, and then put it in his parent's garage, where it has since sat. Now it's ready to be restored.


As the seller notes, time and moisture have left their respective marks on this bike, though it's complete and original. There's pitting in the nickel plating of the frame and the engine is locked up. Because the bike was only used a racer it does not have a title, but you will get the MSO and the seller has the gauges as well. The seller also has a spare Triumph 650 bottom end that needs rebuilding if it helps. It's an interesting project and a somewhat cool story. Are you up for the challenge?


Find this Rickman for sale in River Falls, Wisconsin with bidding up to $1,580 and the reserve not yet met here on eBay.


Discover the most interesting bikes you never knew you needed from Abhi at Bike-urious.

Check out the rest of Abhi's RideApart output here.


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