Due to the increased price of fuel oil we are going to be installing a wood stove in our home over the summer. Due to insufficient cash flow, we will be selling some of our musical instruments. If anyone is interested in a G&L SC3 or Harmony Bobkat H15V let me know. They will be selling for $550 and $350 respectively. Both are in great shape, play well and come with a case. The Bobkat’s case is a hardshell although it is missing the handle.
I’ve successfully repaired (and have been compensated for) a guitar amp for a local music shop. This isn’t a big deal as far as the technical aspects go since I have been repairing amps for several years and have even built a handful from scratch. It IS a big deal though because now it is a plausible source of income outside of my normal work.
I’m becoming a true Jack of all trades…or should I say, “Joe” of all trades?
As a proud American I am always striving to purchase products made here in the US by our own people. Harley Davidson is THE company when it comes to motorcycles. However, as it stands right now there isn’t a bike in your lineup that appeals to my current needs. The closest thing would have been the, now defunct, Buell Blast. I’m starting to look at the Royal Enfield line of motorcycles at this point. I want something in a single or twin cylinder, light weight, relatively inexpensive and gets 75+ mpg. It can’t be a real wimpy bike either, it needs to be able to sustain 70mph if necessary without being pegged on the throttle.
I would love to see (and would consider for purchase) a 500cc fuel injected single cylinder bike styled after the old 1940’s Harley XA bikes. These would compete very well with the Royal Enfield Bullet C5 and best of all they would carry the Harley nameplate and be built here in the States. I would gladly pay $7,000 for a bike like this as I’m sure many others would as well.
I’ve long thought that somebody could save a lot of money by riding a motorcycle during the warmer months as opposed to driving their cars. Heck, bikes get as much as 100mpg depending on how small you go. Well, I’ve been doing some math and the results are a bit sobering.
I drive roughly 12,000 miles per year in my Ford Ranger averaging 20mpg. That equates to 600 gallons of fuel per year. At $3.60 per gallon that is a bill of $2,160 per year to drive. Assuming that 5,000 out of the 12,000 are driveable on a motorcycle (due to weather, what I’m carrying etc) I would be able to save:
– $450 riding a bike that gets 40mpg
– $600 riding a bike that gets 60mpg
– $675 riding a bike that gets 80mpg
As you can see, it is a reverse logarithmic curve. The more mpg you get on the bike, the lower the incremental savings as compared to a bike with lower mpg. For instance the difference between 40mpg and 60mpg bikes is $150 in savings but the difference between 60mpg and 80mpg is only $75. For me, the sweet spot appears to be about 60mpg. I’ve been eyeballing a Buell Blast for a while and they get 70mpg average but I will use the 60mpg numbers to play it safe – especially since it will be within $40 anyway.
Assuming the current gas prices I would save $600 per year riding 5,000 of my 12,000 miles on a bike as opposed to in my truck. Consider $2,000 for a used bike, $200 per year for maintenance and $200 per year for insurance of the bike. That would mean it would take 10 years before I would “pay off” the bike and start actually saving money. If fuel costs were to double and go to $7 per gallon, I would save roughly $1,200 per year and it would take just 2.5 years of riding to “pay off” the bike and save money. This is of course assuming insurance and maintenance didn’t go up considerably as well.
Due to the current rate of gas price rises, I’m thinking we’ll be in the $5 per gallon range in a year or two and that would make the bike riding pay off in about 5 years. What it comes down to is unless you are given a bike, it will cost more than it will save. At least for the first handful of years – even with a very conservative bike.
Here is a link to an excellent calculator to compare driving your motorcycle vs your car and how much you will save: http://www.obairlann.net/reaper/motorcycle/mpg-calc.html
As much as I’m a Ford guy, Chevy is the last to offer a small truck with a 5spd transmission. The Colorado can be had with a 2.9 I4, 4×4 Extended Cab and 5spd stick with a 24mpg highway rating. That’s even better than my 3.0 V6 Ranger gets (22mpg)! The current 4×4 Ranger only comes in a 4.0 V6 (20mpg) and automatic trim and all of the F150s are automatics now. Dodge is in the same boat as Ford. If I look back to a 2007 or older Ranger I can still get the type of truck I want, but by the time I’m done with my current one (I’m expecting another 8 years) that would be a 12 year old truck. So, I’ll probably be seen in a Colorado at that point.
2011 Chevrolet Colorado WT 4x4
The Colorado has similar specs to my current Ranger in it’s other attributes. Payload is 1,422lbs whereas my Ranger is 1,640lbs. Towing is the same 5,500lbs max. Gas mileage is better at 24mpg highway compared to 22mpg highway. With the engine rated at 185hp @ 5,600rpm / 190tq at 2,600rpm it does better than my Ranger at 150hp @ 4,750rpm / 190tq @ 3,650rpm. So the same peak torque but it comes in 1,000 rpm lower – a HUGE deal. The horsepower is 35 better but comes in 1000rpm more. I’d say 0-60 should be about the same but driving with a load will be better with the Colorado.
