Scorned, derided and mocked; Classic Bike article

[wayne]

While searching for any information on the two RE5's I'd once read won a 24 hour endurance race back in the day, I came across this.

The title is confronting for an RE5 enthusiast but, quite a level headed article which says some good things about the bike that are often missed:

Scorned, derided and mocked;


By the way, if you recall anything about that endurance race, please PM me.

[rotoryguy]

Thanks Wayne.

I enjoy reading the many articles out there on the RE5.

Love it or hate it, it had a place in motorcycle history and in my opinion, it's a perfect example of pushing limits, wrestling with design elements and attempting to predict the future!

[janski]

A worthy article, thank you Wayne for digging it out. Again a mention of parts being dumped at sea, just not right, myth or fact?

[wayne]

Feb 12, 2021 12:49:13 GMT -5 janski said:

A worthy article, thank you Wayne for digging it out. Again a mention of parts being dumped at sea, just not right, myth or fact?

Rotary Recycle adamantly maintain that it's a complete myth. Jess would know, he spent a long time working with Sam and took over the business. Sam had direct contact with the factory including working there on RE5 matters for a year. He spent a significant amount of time buying up RE5 inventory from around the world. No way that would have slipped his notice.

A member of this board told me face to face that he used to buy parts from the importer in Brisbane, Australia (he named them, I just can't recall). In at least the '80's if not later, the spares guy who'd served him for years saved him a box of genuine engine tools as a gift. All other RE5 spares had been sent to the tip. I have no doubt both he and the counter guy were telling the truth (I saw the tools in their original Suzuki timber box) and it's the only verifiable story I've heard.

There's a major error floating around for a niche vehicle I'm a FB group member of. The error keeps propagating and it's because a 'net Journo once published it as a spec (I suspect for an overseas model). It's wrong by nearly a tonne. Any owner's manual will tell you. But no one, including the journos, reads the manual. They just google. The error self propagates forever. In this case, it could easily lead to a fatal accident with major liability consequences but it seems impossible to douse the myth.

[janski]

Thanks Wayne, I prefer your factual evidence, and also Jess did mention myth, say no more. My wet suite is now for sale