[SpeedyTide]

I'll always remember mine, and wonder how many others have a little story behind theirs? So, let's hear them!

I'll start with mine....below is some of my very first post in June 2018 (I've edited it some) after purchasing the tractor .

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
New to the forum 👶, and was bitten by the TW200 bug! Started looking at'em, and reading up on them (here & Youtube, etc.) over the last 2 months, and am now a TW owner!!

Guess I'll always have a little story behind it. I'd left Jax, FL., early on a Friday morning to Moorsville, NC. to look at an '04 w/4k+ miles. I'd felt good about it, so I had rented an enclosed 4x8 U-haul trailer - hooked up behind my torque monster of a ride (Prius .... don't laugh.... they pull quite well ).

Well, it wasn't quite what I was expecting..... the bike, not the Prius . So, I pull up bikefinds.com on my phone hoping I find something on the way back home to FL..... negative! The closest 2 for sale were Pennsylvania & Indiana. I call the guy in Indiana, and he still has it. I explain that I'd just looked at one in NC, but it didn't pan out, and that I was from FL, and currently in NC, and what cash I had (which was $3k*), and asked if would he take it.......he said yes! So, me and the Prius, w/trailer in tow, head over and through the mountains of NC, TN, and KY for Indiana. After a looong day I'd stayed the night just outside L'ville KY. Got up early, and headed to small town Indiana and purchased the TW that Satty morning. Loaded the tractor up, then drove back to FL. It was a looong, unexpected "detour", but well worth the purchase!!

2009 w/2,800 miles for $2,994* < that is correct, I'd forgotten that I'd bought b'fast that Friday morning out of my bike funds )!
Luckily, the fella didn't fret over $6! Only took 1,700+ miles, and 27 driving hours to get it, but I'd finally got one !
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Post up your stories!!!

 

[BuddyMack]

After birthing two TWs (09 and friends 03) and "giving them up for good" for real road bikes in about 2012, I remained a TW200 Forum member. Then in 2016, I felt the hankering again. Being experienced, I found a 33k mile 02 in KY 250 miles away for the right money. Road trip. Flurry of activity when I got it. Ignored it for 2 years. Finished it. Still nobody wanted to ride dualsport. Finally sold it off in Sept 19. Gave them up for good.....but here I am still lurking around on TW200 Forum. But not buying another one!

Sent from my LG-TP260 using Tapatalk

 

[Willys714]

Both of my purchases were thru persistent searches and immediate response.
On craigslist/ OfferUp you gotta be quick.

My 1st Tdub was listed 2006 with 30 miles $2500, I thought it was a scam. Turns out legit and he is a Yamaha exec and rode it 1 time to work at Yamaha Corp in Cypress. He hated it and said it was a terrible street bike. Didn’t look good in with his Duc’s and ct-70s. I was glad to buy It but wonder if all of Yamaha Corp look down on the dub?

2nd TW was from some rich kid in Encino. Daddy bought it for him to ride to school and he stunted/crashed his way to and from daily. The entire very rich neighborhood wanted him or IT gone.
The ad said 2010 with 4K miles $3200. I went racing up there thinking low rent Encino and instead went back in the hills with homes that make Coto de Caza blush. This guy had a looong polished white marble drive way that I was afraid to walk on, crazy rich.
The bike was rashed and scratched, perfect for the Dez and makes for better bargains.
Dad produces receipts proving they paid too much, but I just kept asking how much would this cost to be fixed, all the way down to $2500

The bike is much happier too, a new owner to treat her better and getting off the streets and into the great outdoors

 

[Fred]

Wilys714, I think your photo may be the best TW picture ever!
I'ld enter it in a competition and call it "Tired But Happy Mule Take A Trailside Nap"

 

[SHAG]

Couldn't find a used one so I bought a new 2013 on Holloween of the same year. $3995 plus 6% Pa sales tax and $60 for Title and Reg fees!

 

[Ken]

Years ago: I had first considered a jet ski, dirt bike, street bike or dual sport, I was looking for a bike, thinking about a 250. I was looking for used and most were $2k-$5,000 when I was looking. Used seemed very high so I questioned the price for new bikes. Not much more so I started looking at the dealers. I called a dealer and told them what I was looking for and the size. They told me they had a 200cc so I went to look. It turned out to be the TW200 with 200 miles on it. They got ready for financing and I told them I was just going to pay with a check. The dealer was very happy since it was the end of the day and they were ready to go home. I told them I would pay but would have to come back the next day to get it. The boss asked an employee where he lived and it was close to me so the bike was delivered to my house. In 1995 my 1993 TW with a helmet and TW Service Manual was $2,200.

 

[SpeedyTide]

Willys714....last part of your post, then seeing the pic.....

 

[SpeedyTide]

Wilys714, I think your photo may be the best TW picture ever!
I'ld enter it in a competition and call it "Tired But Happy Mule Take A Trailside Nap"

Or...."TW lands on the moon!!” 😁

 

[Scooterbrained]

Years ago: I had first considered a jet ski, dirt bike, street bike or dual sport, I was looking for a bike, thinking about a 250. I was looking for used and most were $2k-$5,000 when I was looking. Used seemed very high so I questioned the price for new bikes. Not much more so I started looking at the dealers. I called a dealer and told them what I was looking for and the size. They told me they had a 200cc so I went to look. It turned out to be the TW200 with 200 miles on it. They got ready for financing and I told them I was just going to pay with a check. The dealer was very happy since it was the end of the day and they were ready to go home. I told them I would pay but would have to come back the next day to get it. The boss asked an employee where he lived and it was close to me so the bike was delivered to my house. In 1995 my 1993 TW with a helmet and TW Service Manual was $2,200.

And that my friends, as we all know, is a bike that has paid for itself many times over!
For the most part, seems to me these things are an investment.

Marty

 

[elime]

First TW I found on Craiglist. Retired cop bought it at an insurance auction hence a salvage title. He put it all together but couldn't get it to run right and gave up and sold it to me for $1000. It was an '87 with 2300 miles on the odometer. After playing around with it I finally opened the idle mixture screw and it ran beautifully. It now has 33,000 miles on it.

The second TW I also found on Craiglist. My original intention was to use it as a parts bike keeping the parts I wanted and selling the rest to offset the cost which was $400 or $450. It also was an '87. After looking it over I decided it was to good for a parts bike and started working on it. $200 or $300 later I had a good running machine which a good friend of mine used on the NorCal Nutjob rides / get togethers until he got his own TW. Nowadays I use it as a test / experimental vehicle. 19,300 when I bought it and 24,300 miles today.

 

[Terk]

I bought my tdub 2 years back as my first bike. My mom absolutely hated motorcycles so the derpy look and the fact it "couldn't" go over 60mph made for the perfect case of why it would be a harmless bike. After she gave moderate approval I found a 2006 with 6kmiles a couple hours away for $2,500. After looking at it and chatting with the guy we came to an agreement of $1,700 with a 3 bike motorcycle trailer thrown in for free. Currently at 12k miles and has proven to be an absolute tank in every trail and weather condition I've thrown at it.

 

[martianone]

Had been thinking about getting a TW for a number of years.
Four years ago, went to closest Yamaha dealer,
They had one in stock, ready to go.
Rode it around the parking lot once,
Haggled on price to include a 5 year service plan,
Wrote out a check and rode home.
Happy since, not needed the service plan.

 

[Apolloha]

Decided I wanted an on/off road bike to explore dirt roads in the NC mountains with the wife. 50 years of dirt only bikes and only on the streets (not legally) to get to another trail. i was at first looking at the XR600L. Years of rock solid reliability and no changes except colors. Had to be a good bike. Well we went to sit on one. I could barley get on and my wife literaly need something to step up on to reach the seat. Moving on. Started looking at other dual sports. Nothing low enough for both of us to get on comfortably. Keep in mind I'm thinking I needed a big motor for the street. Finally stumbled on the TW200 on my internet research. Years of rock solid reliability and no changes. Only one thing, 196cc. I was thinking with the two of us it would maybe do 45 mph. Barely above a moped I thought. So we went to sit on one. That pretty much sealed it. Easy to get on and off. Looked at a VanVan also. Great seat. Just didn't strike me as sturdy enough. So I get the TW home and start easing into street riding. Seemed like it would really move along. Put the wife on and took it to some 4 lane. This little thing would actually do 55 mph with both of us on it. Gave it a little more. 65 mph and still had some left. Wow! I rode it around doing the hard break-in. Checking everything and changing the oil. Nothing came lose and it ran perfect. Along came the mods. Rack, saddlebags, rotopax, backrest, mirror extenders, SC seat, phone mount, oil cooler, and a Jimbo. It is the absolute perfect bike for what we do. Riding on dirt roads for hours. Keep up with traffic on the paved roads. Ability to go any where if needed. I have 2900 miles on it now (a 2018 bought in Dec of that year). Best money I've ever spent.

 

[Michael Bryce Winnick]

The story is too long for its own good. The week I turned 40 (May 9, 2004) I was in line at the post office. I live in a small town. The guy in back of me says "Hey Mikey (you better know me really MF well to call me Mikey)...getting your bikes out for the summer?" I put my bikes away with clean oil and then put them back on the road with clean oil. I said I did not have the time yet, but after a moment of reflection I thought to myself..G-d plays a cruel trick on us...as a younger rider my reflexes got me out of any situation my stupidity or sense of humor got me into. As I hit 40 I was now depending on experience, skill, and ability...which is not as good as reflex and every guy here knows that. I then took a moment to reflect on how G-d was good to me as I was 40 years old and I finished all of my motorcycle rides with the same amount of arms and legs as when I got on it. I told the guy that effective this minute all of my bikes were up for sale. My voice carries. I got to the front of the line. I did the postmaster's divorce. He immediately says..."I will buy anything you have built or owned...what is it and how much?" I told him I had a 1979 CB 750 K 10th Anniversary and a KZ 700. I never met a Reagan bike I did not like. He says how much. I tell him I hate selling things. I do not have time for tire kickers....haggling...test rides. I tell him 2 bikes for the price of 1. Be at my house tomorrow with cash.(Saturday morning). At 8:00 he and his wife (She worked at the post office too...I did her divorce...her son never came home from Afghanistan) pull up in my driveway with a truck and trailer. We greet. I say the bikes are cold. I want you to have real world experience on cold starts before you buy. He sneezes on the starter button on the KZ and it starts...20 seconds later shuts the choke...I hear the bike go down the road with someone else riding it. Now I know how a guy in an open marriage feels. He comes back, looks at the CB and it starts by itself, idles, pushes the choke in, leaves for a test ride. After a half hour, his wife says "that is that." She pays me, I load the KZ on the trailer, give her service manuals for each bike, a case of oil filters, and a spanner wrench and she starts to cry. She does not know how to back out of my driveway with a trailer. I get her on the road and home she goes.

I now have no bikes and tell myself that part of my life was pleasant, but over...sort of like any girl who left my house with a kiss and a cup of coffee to go. Neil Young's "Long May You Run" was going through my head...just like it did with the girls, but that is not the thrust of this story.

Fast forward...I am now 50 years old...I have been in a committed relationship for some time...she has 2 grandchildren. Irish twins...one is 4 and one is 5. They start riding 4 wheelers in my back yard. I am sitting on the porch watching feeling like I am starring in a Boost or Ensure commercial. I start thinking dirt bike. Then the analysis of 2 or 4 stroke. Then I ask myself if I want to marry a gas can or oil jug. I then start thinking enduro which is another word for underpowered street wheezer or dirt bike that may not get me away from a rumble fast enough or allow me to jump as many school busses as I am used to.

I was 10 years out of any bike discussions with no familiarity of what is out there. I start with the idea that I want the most cc's on an enduro that a 30 inch seat height will allow me to buy. I end up on this forum and decide on this bike. I wanted to back into the deal to make sure I would close the deal. I bought a kick starter from Placerlode and spoke to him once or twice over the phone. I had a few exchanges on line with Borneo as I found out that we were law school alumni.

This was 2015. The day after Thanksgiving I was driving into the office I decided at 51 I should not have to work on the day after Thanksgiving. I got on the freeway instead of heading into town to the office and headed for southern Michigan. I called the biggest dealership I knew of and they had a 2015 in stock. I drove down there "just to look at it.." 5 hours to Grand Rapids. When I get down there I also see a 2013 next to it. It has 7 miles on it. The story is that they have an eccentric customer who buys many bikes from them and a trades them in on other bikes like a cash reserve of motorcycles.

The deal was $3,642.00 out the door with $50.00 towards a Michelin T63 front tire per Borneo's instructions, a set of bark busters installed, the kicker installed, tax, registration included . I get home, it is 11 degrees, but I can see pavement. No gloves, but helmet and jacket I go for a ride.

I always kept my cycle endorsement as every time I was considering letting it lapse I felt like I was giving myself an administrative vasectomy.

Next comes the Bonneville and the Springer, but that story is for a different day.

 

[Scooterbrained]

The story was not too long, Mr. Michael. That was quite the fun read!
Looking forward to The Different Day.

Marty

 

[Wickedcoolname]

I was reading some posts on a local firearms forum where the topic was about guns you wish you didn't sell. The conversation then turned to anything else you regretted selling and I posted that I wish I never got rid of my last TW. I'm still not sure why I sold it. I had a Ricochet skid plate, Jimbow screen, Kate oversized pegs, a nice rear rack, brush guards, etc. Even a custom painted Pelican top box. It was perfect. Anyway, I sold it a few years ago and regretted it immediately.
Then one of the gun forum guys said he was trimming down his bike collection and one of the bikes he was selling was his 09 TW. The condition was OK and the price was right. Now I have a TW back in the fleet.
I painted it matte green, added two new tires, a pair of ammo can panniers, new pegs, and a bunch of other normal mods.

 

[conzfc]

I have a 2006 TW200 with about 4500 miles on it that I got six years back from a buddy, he got it from the original owner his dad. Apparently his dad accidentally dropped it off the bed of his truck and it creased the gas tank and tweaked the rear-fender section of the frame rendering it worthless. To them, not to me. I have already straightened out the frame and I don't care a bit about the crease in the tank, didn't even break the paint. I paid $400 for it with title - his proposed price, not mine - but that was obviously a friend-to-friend deal, not a fair-market-value deal, as he just wanted it gone. Currently in the process of down-gearing it and upgrading the suspension as I mostly use it as a ranch/trail bike up in the Pike National Forest in Colorado.

 

[Willys714]

I paid $400 for it with title ....

Lemme know when you find another one like that. I wanna strip one down and shed as much weight as possible.
Crashed,bent or broken no importante, just something to build light.

You might wanna research leaner jetting as I was recently up in Silverton and constantly above 8000 feet and there’s not as much air up there. Bikes all ran rich and way down on power.

 

[Workingman]

I took a cab to the dealer
Payed to much.
Drank a few Cold ones while we did the paperwork
Rode it home 2o minutes later
Done deal..

 

[boreaking]

Walked into the local dealer 5 weeks ago, pointed it out, paid with cash. And picked it up the next day.

Wish I had done it sooner, ain't never selling. Already have 1400 miles from 0 lol..