Kawasaki Z900

45 years ago, Richard Jones couldn’t afford a Big Zed and these days he can’t justify the five-figure cost of a 1970’s Z900. Conveniently, Kawasaki offer a modern alternative. But can it possibly capture the charisma of the original machine? I still remember, as a callow youth, the excitement of reading MCN’s road test of the Kawasaki Z1 in 1973…

Honda CB400F

Honda 400/4s are popular, relatively plentiful and commonly spotted at classic bike shows. So it might’ve been easy to overlook this one – but Marion Thirsk went back to double-check and discovered that its subtly different to the standard 400/4 you might find on British roads… Closer inspection reveals subtle differences to the normal UK model. Black sidepanels, a sidestand…

Honda Black Bomber

In 1968 Soichiro Honda rode his firm’s 10 millionth motorcycle off the production line. That bike was the ground-breaking CB450 Black Bomber – notable not least for its use of novel valvegear with torsion-bars ‘springs’ in its top end. It wasn’t long before racers transformed the CB streetbike into a world class competitor, and the Drixton Honda was born. They’re…

Honda CL350

Here’s another contender for our ‘compact classic’ competition. Honda’s street scrambler from the late 1960s comes with 100mph potential, electric starting and a not too scary purchase price. Richard Jones examines its credentials… So here’s the problem. You like the look of those trail / adventure bikes that seem to be ridden by everyone yet you don’t want the cost,…

Suzuki GT750

Now that it’s an acknowledged cult classic, this iconic 1970s water-cooled 750 triple doesn’t come cheap. But if you spend one single quid to enter the VMCC’s raffle, there’s a chance you could win this very bike. So what’s it like to ride? Remember the ‘Universal Japanese Motorcycle’, that faintly derogatory term from the 1970s and 80s? Its point was…