So, I did a thing! I've actually been
working on this deal for several months.
I went out and I scoured the internets,
classifieds, and even salvaged bike sites,
looking for this specific bike, because I
think, this bike, hiding under the sheet
right here, is one of the most
significant bikes of our era. And today
it starts. Today; today is new bike day!
[Music]
New Bike Day is always the best day,
right? But, what's the plan, man? Well, we're
going to take this bike and we're going
to walk through the used bike buying
experience. What you should look for and
what to ask the seller. And then what to
look at. And we're going to take care of
all the things that we take care of on
every used bike we've ever purchased, as
well as address some of the known issues
with this particular bike, in a series of
upcoming videos. And finally, and this is
the exciting part, because I'm always
going on and on about the importance of
track time, we are not only going to take
care of all the little maintenance
issues, but we are going to build this
into a rocking track bike. One that won't
break the bank.
I'm hoping that we can get this thing
ready for that first track day for
somewhere in the $5,000 ballpark, which
will include the $3,500
I've already paid for the bike.
The idea is I'm going to prioritize what
upgrades and things that need to be done
in order to get the most out of the
track experience. And the upgrades are
going to be coming out of my pocket so
I'm not going to be suggesting upgrades
that I wouldn't spend my own money on, or
upgrades based on past bikes that I've
built that I didn't think were worth it.
And we don't have a lot of time because
the first track day of the season is
just four months away. Now, after we've
done a few track days and spent some
quality time on it that's where we'll
start upgrading the things that might
need to be upgraded. We're not going to
just throw money at it. Have I strung you
guys on long enough? Are you ready to see
it? You know, like, when I was a kid,
learning to ride back in the '80s, I knew
that I wasn't ready for a fire breathing
GPZ900 or a Hurricane 1000. I wanted
something less intimidating. And and back
then, we had some really sweet ones.
Yamaha had the sick aluminum framed, as
big a deal then as it is today, FZR400
Genesis. Suzuki had the Italian looking
Bandit 400 and the GS500. Mrs CanyonChaser's 63 00:02:26,400 --> 00:02:32,640 First motorcycle. Kawasaki had
the EX500 and the Ninja 250, that didn't
see a meaningful update for almost 30
freaking years!
But Honda; Honda was killing it with a
stack of badass littles. The VTR 250.
Check out that that pink and electric
blue! Don't let those stupid, "men when I
was a kid" Facebook memes fool you. This
is what the average teenage boy lusted
after in the 1980s.
Then there was the GB500 Tourist Trophy,
that looked more British than any
British bike ever made. And then there's
the one that I wanted. The Honda Hawk GT!
Weighing in at a mere 190 kilos, 415
pounds, it was basically a GP250 frame
with a dirt bike motor, cranking out a
shoulder shattering, 39 brake horsepower:
At the crank. Look, back then entire
race series were built around these
newbie bikes. The problem was, as time
marched on, the industry stopped paying
attention to the new rider. All right,
all right! Enough already! here it is!
[Music]
This is a 2017 KTM RC390. It first came
to market way back in 2013. It features
inverted forks, radials by Bybre (by
Brembo0, and a trellis frame that is as
pleasant to look at as any Ducati.
It's a fuel-injected, liquid cooled 373
cc four valve thumper, single cylinder,
with ABS, a six-speed transmission, and a
slipper clutch!
This is the bike that changed the rules
of entry-level bikes. I remember when
they first came over here, almost
overnight, whenever you saw another bike
in a local canyon, odds were it was a
bright orange 390 series. KTM, thank you
for finally making a new rider friendly
bike that new riders were excited about.
And one that is capable enough to keep
us old salty-dogs entertained. Hell, even
Ari Henning raced one of these for a
couple years. As a result, all the other
manufacturers have upped their game. Two
years later we got the Yamaha R3, and now
we have a stack of seriously cool
entry-level bikes, largely because of
KTM's delightful 390s. And I'm telling
you, if you've ridden one of these 390s,
then you know they are an absolute gas
to ride. The torquey single chugs out a
respectable 44 horsepower and is as
narrow as a bicycle. With a tank full of
gas, the thing weighs a mere 160 kilos, or
360 some pounds. That's 10 more horsepower and
almost 20 percent lighter than the Hawk
GT I so desperately wanted in my youth. I
challenge you to ride one of these
things at full tick and not just giggle
yourself silly inside your helmet. You
feel like Mission Impossible while
rallying along at 45 miles an hour on a
$5,000 new-in-box motorcycle. As opposed
to riding a $30,000 Panigale-
Wali V4S Superbike at 45 miles an hour.
Same speed; vastly different experience.
Look, little bikes are hard to beat in
GPD: Giggles Per Dollar. So, that's why I
sought out and hunted for specifically
this motorcycle. Yes, I know. It's known to
have some problems and we're going to
pay extra attention to those. But, like it
or not, every motorcycle has some design
issues.
Building a track bike doesn't have to
break the bank and will open up a world
of learning opportunities. But more
importantly, I hope it'll help illustrate
how much fun little bikes are to ride. So,
guys, please stick around for the first
CanyonChasers video series in history!
I'd like to welcome our newest channel
members, RuMoto, Warren, Two Wheel Zen,
Robert, Stefane, Junebug, Bruce and Brett.
Thanks so much for watching! Ride on,
and ride well.
[Music]