[swoop45acp]

Well I wish I were writing about a better topic but here's the deal.

I had my TW at a local shop in Raleigh, NC.

On Friday June 24 at 4:33 a.m. three men broke into the shop and stole three motorcycles one of which was mine. They were caught on video and local police are currently investigating.

On the positive side the owner is a close friend and he has assured me that his insurance will cover the loss. I'll keep you all posted.

I highly doubt it will surface here but for GP it's a 1989 TW200 with approximately 2200 miles. It has a blue frame and fork gators with black body work, hand guards, and tank. It also has a factory rack and a Jimbo windshield. I might post pics, VIN, and tag number later.

Generally I do the maintenance on my bikes but occasionally I'll take it to my friends shop if I'm busy with work. Consequently, I just started a new job on June 20th and I am training/studying so my time is limited for the next month.

The idea was since July 4th (three day weekend) is approaching I was going to do some trail riding/camping. So the bike was up there for new tires, brakes, new chain/sprockets, oil change... total maintenance package.

I'll probably replace it with another TW depending on what happens with the insurance. If not, I may have some TW parts to sell as they never made it onto the bike.

Anyway, for right now I don't have my trail bike/fun bike/grocery getter.

BTW anybody want to lend me a TW this weekend??? LOL



Swoop

 

[rtbuckingham]

Bummer, man.

 

[admiral]

Puts things in perspective. Here I get a case of the butt when dealing with not so knowledgeable DMV types, and you get your TW stolen! Sorry, to hear about that.

 

[lorddaftbiker]

Sorry to hear that, man, I hope they catch these guys and you get your bike back soon.



-Lorddaftbiker

 

[darnold87]

Sad to hear this man... Hope they find your bike or get you some insurance cash for another one... Good luck.

I would definitely post pics so we can keep an eye out for it though...

 

[qwerty]

I hope they don't find your bike. It's probably trashed by now.

 

[uktw125]

To who ever gave qwerty the -1.

I think he means you'd be better off with a full insurance settlement than getting a trashed bike back.

What ever the outcome I hope you get "a" TW again soon.

 

[lizrdbrth]

Previously it seemed as if no self-respecting bike thief would bother jacking a TW.



So many seem to be reported missing lately I guess we should view it as a sign that the bike is finally gaining some recognition?



I dunno. Just trying to make lemonade. I hope this ends well for you and you're able to recover/replace your TW.

 

[swoop45acp]

Hey guys,

Thanks for the all the responses. I just spoke to my friend/shop owner today about the insurance settlement. The adjuster told him that it would be about 30 days until anything would be settled. They need to do their own investigation and so forth. BTW I don't think I'm going to get a whole lot for that bike.

It is a bummer admittedly however...what you don't know is that I was planning on selling that bike about a month ago. Then I came back online here and decided to keep it after listening to some you guys talking in the forums. Beewerks and I also had a discussion about it earlier in June here in the forums. Well then I bought an o-ring chain, 15/50 JT sprockets, new tires/tw34/shinko front, etc. I just started a new job and didn't have time to do the work myself so I left it up at my friends shop and you know the rest...

I guess I had second thoughts as well because although I have more than one bike the TW has a lot of attributes not found on other bikes.

For instance:

Money. If I were to purchase the same aforementioned components for my VFR it would have been 2-3 times more expensive. Gas mileage. My TW was getting about 70 mpg consistently riding around Raleigh and in the country where I live. It is cheap and extremely reliable transportation. Period.

Durability. The TW is one of the toughest bikes I've ever owned. If you keep up with the regular maintenance the bike will last a long time but even if you missed an oil change or three you probably wouldn't hurt the "Little Beast". When/if something does go wrong it's an extremely easy bike to work on.

Versatility. The TW is very good at adapting to different terrains and environments. This is not the fastest bike I own but it is the one bike that would go just about anywhere. There are a lot of dirt riders around my "neck-o-the-woods" and they used to laugh at my TW until I started riding on the trails around here. They quickly saw that although I couldn't always keep up with there bikes I always made it to where I was going and I never laid the bike down. It also would go up the hills the other guys couldn't or were to scared too! This is relative to ones riding ability of course. Also, there have been many afternoons I would be riding the TW and stumble upon a side trail or old farm path and just take it.

This bikes only weak area (for me) is highway riding. Speed limits on most of the highways around here is 70mph. Even though I was going to install 15/50 gearing I don't know that the TW would have been much better. Yeah, yeah, I know, just get in the slow lane and do 60-65. It's still dangerous. Honestly, the TW is a relaxing bike to ride and it fits the demeanor of the bike to be on two lane back roads where you can find an adventure on some path or road you've never been on before. Highways are purpose driven, cold, impersonal roadways which are not the persona of this bike IMHO. As Neil Peart wrote "The point of the journey is not to arrive."

BTW qwerty is correct. If I do get this bike back it will more than likely be trashed. It would further piss me off to see that some jerk has destroyed what I worked so hard to create and maintain so I hope I don't see it again. The perpetrators stole the three bikes closest to the front door and ran like Hell. One of the three bikes stolen was completely trashed having been in an accident and wouldn't even run.They obviously didn't know anything about motorcycles and therefore their care and use as such will probably follow in suit.

Best case scenario is I get enough from insurance to buy another TW with no money out of pocket. Second best case scenario is that I keep working like I always have, save my money, and buy another TW because I'm an honest law abiding citizen and not a POS thief. Either way I win.

Didn't mean to drone on about it but as you can see the TW meant something to me.

In the meantime I get to do one of the coolest things ever......go shopping for a new motorcycle!

The good news is that I've narrowed it down to the TW200!



Swoop

 

[qwerty]

That's seeing the silver lining!



Maybe save a little boot to go with the insurance, and your friend with the shop can maybe hook you up through professional connections with a better TW than you lost.

 

[wrench-puller]

I hate to hear of this kinda theft as it is totally pointless, they are most likely just doing it for kicks as this isnt a high dollar bike on the black market. Also TW's make a poor choice of get-away machine as most anything can out run it. This was a fear I had when I first got my TW, that if I left the bike someone would just lift it into a truck and it would be gone. I still lock the bike and chain it up when I go out of town, but around here I have started to leave it out in the open when I am out of sight (like the coffee shop, other coffee shops, more other coffee shops).



I hope the insurance people come through for you as this is why we have insurance in the first place, to protect against loss of personal items. They normaly only pay book value on items so most likely not even enough to replace the year of bike you lost let alone a newer model. Keep us posted on what happens as I am sure everyone on here wants to see you back on a TW soon. I would even chip in a bit to help out if the $ differance is too great, as I am sure others would as well. Best of luck with your TW woes, but remember there is always a silver lining - just takes awhile to find it sometimes.

 

[GapRunr]

... stole three motorcycles one of which was mine.

That really sucks. Don't forget to tell his insurance company about the rare PandaSkin seat cover you had, and the Unicorn blood optional oil cooler. That should help make the claim more worth while!

 

[swoop45acp]

All good advice!

I realized early on that the insurance probably wouldn't cover the replacement value of the bike so I'm already getting pics, receipts, and bills of sale for work I had done.

wrench-puller I appreciate the offer to help get me back on a TW. I really am grateful that you guys would do that for me having never even met me before. I'm not being ungrateful AND maybe I might take you up on the offer later! However the TW wasn't my only bike and I think all of this will work out to my benefit in the end. Things always have a way of working out.

On that note perhaps qwerty can make a new t-shirt design that reads,"TW200 riders...not the fastest but the best". Or something like that!

I repainted the bike last winter and to my knowledge nobody has a 1989 TW using this color scheme. I got the idea after looking at the red/black color scheme from around the same year:

As you can see I had put some time and effort into this machine. I had your usual mods like the hand guards, Jimbo windsheild, I put on the larger foot pegs but it was after these photos. Here is what the bike originally looked like:

I bought the bike in Oct. 2010 so I had it less than a year. That did not stop me from riding it through winter:

It had about 1500 miles on it when I bought it and about 2300 when stolen so I thought it was a good candidate for restoring/customizing. A friend in GA had this bike around after buying it for his wife to learn to ride. She obviously lost interest and so to keep it up he would once or twice a month ride it up to the grocery which was a round trip of 6-7 miles. He cut me a really good deal on the bike so I bought it.

Here are pics when I was repainting:

I really like the tuning fork emblem so I decided to use it on the tank I put the standard "yamaha" on the front and rear fairings.



Here is the plastic being repainted:

I also had future plans for the TW. I have three Pelican cases I was getting ready to mount once I got it back from the shop. I have all the material to manufacture a rack I designed that would hold all three cases but allow them to be removed individually. My design also negates having to drill through the cases which obviously voids Pelicans warranty as well as causes a possible weak spot.

So there you have it! If anyone sees this TW200 you'll know it was mine.

Hope you guys enjoy the pics and see the work I put into it for what it's worth.



For the record I actually had the 1989 Special Edition Shinji Kazama baby fur seal seat cover, tyrannosaurus rex fossil brake pads, an original vintage Nikola Tesla stator, and I had a liquid cooling system installed that used the tears of a gypsy!

That's got to be worth something!?! LMAO!

Thanks again everyone.



Swoop

 

[motorhead]

Your bike, according the pictures, is way more nicer than average condition. Stand firm with them in case they try to give you "1989" average bike values. Tell them to supply you with a bike that is EXACTLY identical with yours or NO DEAL.



I had a '57 VW about 35 years ago that some guy on the freeway pushed me into the center divider. The guys insurance only wanted to give me $200. I said to them..."You replace it then to pre-accident condition for $200.00 and I will take it. They aid that they couldn't. It took several months but they finally agreed to $750.00 and I kept the car.

 

[qwerty]

Good advice, motorhead. Your bike was above average, you should be justly compensated.

 

[srs713]

Previously it seemed as if no self-respecting bike thief would bother jacking a TW.



So many seem to be reported missing lately I guess we should view it as a sign that the bike is finally gaining some recognition?



I dunno. Just trying to make lemonade. I hope this ends well for you and you're able to recover/replace your TW.

I blame the high gas prices. People want 70+MPG rides these days. Even scooters are getting stolen more often around here.

 

[shocker]

It is easy to see that you enjoyed the TW from the upgrades you did to it. Perhaps your passion will carry into another. Good luck.

 

[Beewerks]

Hey Swoop, I just got back from my trip. That really sucks, especially since we were just talking about it like you said. Are there usually several TW's for sale over in your neck of the woods on CL? Hopefully you won't have too tough of a time finding a replacement. Best of luck!