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As a non Rat biker I could be talking rubbish here, but it seems to me that there are two basic schools of rat biking.
The first is where a bike slowly drifts into rat status over the years as a number of improvised repairs, fixs and bodges are used to keep a bike on the road. There is a 1988 CBR600 ridden to where I work that falls into this camp. It still sounds sweet despite looking truly rough, with dull black finish and most of the fairing missing a taped up seat etc.
Then there are the created rats, when a bike is converted to this spec relatively quickly. I think GSX Rat CB250RS falls into this catergory and looks great.
For me I like the bikes that have evolved to become a rat bike as you can sense the bike has stories to tell.
Anyway enough rambling.
rat bike – first cateogary, bodged etc etc…
survival bike – second cateogary… ,although usually with a load of bodges here and there too which makes it a rat/survival mutation….
and dont forget the ratfighters!
even the survivals are continually evolving, personally i just like the feeling and the knowledge that whatever the problem is with a bike, you can sort it out without having to resort to main dealers/rip off bike spares prices. Whatever bodges this may entail to save a few quid make it more interesting, both from a problem solving and aesthetic point of view.
Plus it pisses off the plastic sh!te rocket brigade when you park up next to them at a bike meet, mabbe think all the dead flies and rust are going to jump over to their bikes….
Ah a topic close to my heart [
]I tend to build rat bikes when ive got a big pile of bits left over from other projects & i avoid buying anything where possible so there’s usually some inventive use of parts but i dont do it to get a look i just use whats available free or very cheap as long as its safe i dont care tbh
i’m not sure if that makes them a proper rat a survival bike or whatever at the start but the do usually mature to truly ratty status fairly quickly through use
i really dislike the adding of useless tat to make a rat but each to his own eh
For me there can be too much snobbery in biking, running all ways. I ride bog stantard Jap bikes and rarely deviate from standard spec, partially through cowardice!! However a bike is a bike and I love them all, even if I wouldn’t own that particular type of bike myself. The glitzed up Harley thing has always eluded me for example, but the guys/girls who ride them are generally fine.
The evolving Rat bike does appeal to me, I suppose this would fall into the “survival” catorgory?
quote:
Originally posted by GSX Rat[/Plus it pisses off the plastic sh!te rocket brigade when you park up next to them at a bike meet, mabbe think all the dead flies and rust are going to jump over to their bikes….
When i parked up at the raven for a cuppa on the way home on sunday a guy actually came rushing out to move his zx10r a few spaces down just in case, me the mrs & our mate found that very funny [
] i found it even funnier when i went blasting past him on the A41 half an hour later cos he was really really trying to keep up [:o)][][]
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] i found it even funnier when i went blasting past him on the A41 half an hour later cos he was really really trying to keep up [:o)][- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.