I need some help! Looking for a while at buying a vintage mx to have some fun on. No racing, no shows, just trails and dirt roads. A 73 Pursang came up and i wanted your opinions. It will need some work and needs a few parts but owner says engine runs. For $1500 is this a good deal? What do you see in the pics that is good/bad? I'm a noob in the mc world. Thx. Jags [/URL][/IMG] [/URL][/IMG] [/URL][/IMG]
Vintage bikes are only good for competeing or collecting (I have two). You can find a modern bike for the same price that will be much easier and less expensive to maintain, as well as be more durable and have much better suspension and brakes.
Aint that the truth. There is nothing quite like riding in the rain and heading down a trail as it suddenly drops over a steep hill while you apply every ounce of strength and weight you have to squeeze even the tiniest amount of braking force from drum brakes that have taken the day off as you fly down a slope with a sharp corner at the bottom. Those are memories best left in the past!
It would be a cool bike to get and set aside,best to hear it run and see if everything works though for that price. The 74 would be the one people lust after ,lighter frames,some good changes. As far as going riding it would probably nickel/dime you to death keeping it going,hard to find parts to keep it going,and yeah,brakes back then were mere rubbing devices at the best of times,shifting is done soccer style with a long well placed kick at the lever,and even then they pop out of gear sometimes. Two strokes have gotten a whole bunch better the newer they get,an old one like that would run pretty ratty compared to even a 90's 2 stroke. I raced Bultaco's for 3 or 4 years and its an aqquired art to shift and ride them.
There are a lot of worse things in the world to do than spending time dicking around with old bikes. If it moves you, buy it.
different strokes I guess. I'm working on a 71 Yamaha RT1 right now. It runs great, a good old ride. As a play DS bike, smoker to boot, you can't beat it. Simple, durable, etc. A person can have a lot of fun trail riding without doing triples etc. There is something to be said for bringing these old gals back to life and making them useful. As for the reliability comment. I'd question if you ever rode one of those old bikes. For the most part they are so simple and reliable, there's a reason they are still out there soldering on. No electronics, no radiators, no power valves and electrics, no hi-tech suspections stuff. Just simple and it works for what it was intended to do. I'd love me some ol Bul. Looking for one myself. I found a 175 of that vintage but would prefer a 250. Wouldn't be a second thought for me if it's a runner.
It looks virtually complete, so having to find body work is not a required. The tank is fiberglass, it will need coated to avoid the swill that is called gasoline these days. Make sure it runs for that money. Bul parts really aren't difficult to find. Hugh's Bultaco in NY has lots of bits as do several others. A fair number of parts are being repoped in Spain. Down side, some parts are pricey. One nice thing about a Bul....they used standard size bearings and seals almost everywhere, so finding that stuff is easy and cheap. The 5 speed engines post M68 250 (69 - 71 time frame) all share a lot of common bits. Worst case, you can use Alpina parts to keep a Pursang going...... :eek1 There is a lot you can do to a Bul to make it better, especially the clutch and trans. And most of that does not involve money, just your labor to polish, smooth, etc to improve clutch action and shifting. If the engine has not been ruined by a moron with a Dremel, the engine, even on a Pursang tends to be a bit if a torque monster. If some moron with a Dremel has left the ports alone, then a lot can be unleashed with simple port matching and smoothing. Bul usually did a terrible job with the ports fit and finish. There are other tricks too.....buy it first. If it is all there, has all 5 gears, and starts/runs reasonably well, for an unrestored bike $1500 may be a touch high...but then I am a cheap bastard For the record, I have 4 Bul's - Late Astro, 2 M68 Pursangs, and a Champion Astro (106 Astro motor in a Champion frame)
Thanks for all the great advice. I realize i could buy a more modern bike, but i like the old stuff. I had a klx250 and it was just too boring. Plus, im not going to put many hours on it so most of the fun would be actually riding a cool mx bike. I've been looking for an elsinore but they fetch a huge price and when this came up locally it peaked my interest. We shall see...
FWIW, I have been racing VMX and vintage harescrambles over the years, and a high strung Pursang in the woods would be a handful. Clutch modulation and having the power hit at the wrong time would not be much fun. On the other hand riding in open fields or dirt roads would be a blast. If you are leaning towards the Bultaco..try to find an Alpina or Frontera. You get a headlight and a capbale enduro bike. Here's a picture of my Alpina that I sold for $1400. Here is the one I raced vintage hare scrambles with:
I'll ask you that question. I raced Pursangs in the amateur class. When I turned Expert I had to give them up due to reliability issues. We didn't call them "Spanish hand Grenades" for nothing. I still love Bultacos and have one that I ride regularly, but let's be real.
you should get it just for the cool factor!I think Its missing the engine brace from the rear of the head to the frame. But 73 is the best year. I have a 72 but wish it was a 73, I'm a low level rider.
Let's face it, any bike is as good as you make it or want it to be. I have a bunch of Bultaco's, some that I even race on a regular occasion, with success and ultimate dependability. They are as good of a bike as their mechanic's and riders. Take any bike and poorly maintain it and beat it like a rented mule and it will treat you the same way. It all depends on what you want to get out of the ride. I'm lucky enough to live in a rural area with plenty of riding. If 6-8 friends stop by and want to hit the trails and dirt roads hard, yeah I'm taking my '02 KTM EXC 520. If it's a nice spring morning and there's not much work to do that day, me and my original un-restored '68 Yamaha DT1 is going to cover over 100 miles of dirt roads that day. If I need to get in shape from lack of excersize or need to let off some steam, a couple hours on my Champion MX framed YZ360A Yamaha on a vintage friendly MX track is surely the cure. You can have fun on all of them. If you are lucky enough to have the wearwithal to have more than one, then you're in. If not and you choose to ride an old bike, so be it. Enjoy it to the utmost, whatever bike it may be. It also doesn't hurt to have something different at the end of the ride, if you need a conversation starter. I can stop at a local establishment on my KTM and no one takes a second look. Wheel up on a '68 Yamaha and the conversations can go on for hours. What does hurt is staying 'till after dark on the KTM isn't a problem, on the Yami, you want to be home before dark, 'cause there's a good chance of no lights.
For what you say you want to do you should really be looking for a Frontera. A Pursang is an MX bike pure and simple as they get. Also Fronteras come with a street title and can be plated. Hughes has lots of parts for them all.
The "cool" factor is what keeps me looking at the vintage mx bikes. Im not going on 1/2 day + rides. Just an hour here or there on trails or logging roads.
