Howdy Howdy

[colonial]

Hi Folks

I have been a regular lurker on here for some time since I decided to get back into scootering. I have always wanted a Suzuki Katana 1100, since the very first time I saw one being thrashed down the main road in Zimbabwe in the early eighties. A couple of my mates from school got their hands on them in the late eighties, and some of them are no more as a result. One chap who shall remain nameless refused to leave his bike wedged between the tracks, and was hit buy a shunting train still wrestling with it by all acounts...

There are no functioning 1100s in zimbabwe at the moment, although I understand there are two very tatty ones lurking somewhere in the light industrial sights of Harare. It seems the combination of a very fast heavy machine, open roads, and bad driving saw to the end of many of them. On joker even painted his bright Pink, but he always had a hotness on the back so he can be forgiven.

I went round to a fellow pilots house looking for some rotax parts for my aerie, and saw what was clearly a katana peeping out from under a tarpaulin in his garage. Sadly it was only a 550, but I just had to have it. It had 12000M on the clocks, and was 100% original except for the exhuasts for obvious reasons. Paid USD2000 for it, which he though was not enough, but turned out to be spot on as it cost $500 to get running - breaks, carbs etc. It runs very smoothly, and can do 110 with a bit of shaking and wobbling, but is definitely not powerful enough. It got me back into this game after a 15 year layoff..

I now have two 1100 Katanas, one of which I intend to bring up to scratch over time. Right now, I am so excited that the suns out, it never gets a moments rest!


Will post a few pictures in due course.

[callyboy]

Hi and welcome. Nice intro.

Pete

[Pedda]

Hi 'n' welcome, you enthusiast!

[bobster]

Yep, cool intro!


So a BIG welcome to the forum from me too!

..............your tale is very familiar!

[nokatanayet]

welcome and enjoy

[colonial]

Thanks all, I have enjoyed the website, and found it very useful for the work I am doing on my machine. I will get my lazy arse in gear and put a few pictures up soon. I picked my reasonably stock 1100 from Guernsey. That trip on the ferry with a beast of a hangover is another story...

I am really enjoying riding it, even though the carbs need stripping and complete refurb before it will perform like it should it still runs as smooth as glass up to 5k.

Its good to be back on a bike over here, bikers are a friendly bunch.

[Cat]

Hi

[kraptanaman]

there must be some serious ferry routes to Zimbabwe as they also run a Guernsey one ;)ha!ha

hallo

[lpoolkat]

Hi and welcome aboard.
Great intro.
Sounds like riding in Zimbabwe is interesting.

[johnr]

ahhhh, you bought the one in guernsey! iirc we discussed that bike on here.