^^ trust me, the parts for the CI engine are not running out for the next 10 years atleast. Bullets have run for 25-30 years trouble free, jsut with regular maintenance and the needed overhauls. Ive seen some 62 models being used as a daily run about. so dont worry.

And spares are not that expensive.

Enjoy the thump, enjoy the ride and enjoy the aura.
There are too many cast iron bullets running around in India to be ignored. Parts will be available at least for a couple of decades more. You can run it for 15 years with the life time registration, and from then on as long as you can get a fitness certificate. FCs are given for 5 years, and as long as you keep the machine ok, and have some cash to bribe, never hard to obtain.
After a decade or so, you might not want to run it everyday, because CI bullets will be a cynosure on roads. Much like vintage classics these days. Enjoy your classic.

jd666 thank you for replying.

and thank you very much Mr. ashokrajagopal. as you say, 20 years to pakka we will be riding our bullet proudly.

great


i was really pissed these days. because my 1171 km old bull's battery was dead. And Exide dealer asked me give him bull's battery for a week so he can claim. and he didn't have any service battery. so no option to leave bullet at home for one week. and following week he told me that they don't have stock. battery will come in next lot in next week. i was like wtf .
i started calling each n every battery shop for new battery. but my bad luck no stock. even not a single service battery for rent from any local mech.
but again my good luck. my battery wala agreed to give me one battery on rent 50 Rs. a day and deposit 1000 Rs. i know its too much. but its okay. at least after one week i am back on bull.

so right now i have some battery named CHARGE in my bull. its new battery i asked him cost got reply 1800. i have no idea about the company, i am just wondering now should i buy this battery or should i just wait for exide one. and pay the rent for this one...

keep thumping...

Just a floater here ...

How much is a reasonable price for a 88 model 350 ? Cosmetically the bike looks very good - like its just 5 years old or so. Mechanically, I have no idea about bulls. I rode it - felt pretty good to me compared to the notion of a racketmobile I had in my mind brakes are good, front end was decent and the engine - very lazy but it go upto 70 without me noticing much. Torquey alright but I wonder if my judgement is right.

The engine has been rebored once (at least !)

What say ? The owner is my friend and he is quoting 35K - the price for which he bought it himself a couple of months ago.. I think thats a bit too high.

^^ high... should not be more than 25-28k...

STD 350 guy here, I mourn for the death of the CI .. yes , but hopeful that the newer aluminum engines come with better quality control , but I mourn more for the death of the right shift.

Guys,

Any idea for how many years the spares of STD 350 CI will be available? 10 years, 15 years, 20 years?

Spoke to my mech and he said that atleast for 10 years there is no worry.

Also will the selling price of CI come down once the spares are unavailable?

Thanks,
Subu.

Not to worry about the CI spares, you can fabricate any time....these had lived on this earth for long and is going to be there for few more decades...

Re: Death of the Cast Iron

Life comes a full circle.

I started with a Yamaha and started at XBHP.com

I bought a Bullet and posted this thread on the same year when cast iron engines were abandoned forever by Enfield.

Now from that April 2007 of my brand new Bull to today December 2014 the ride has been awesome. And I am back at XBHP to tell you about it.

All my ride photos at: Picasa Web Albums - Ujjwal

As ambition goes we all evolve and ride better or get into a 4 wheeled cage. I tried driving a Honda City this year, gave me a scare of a lifetime. Too much power to be handled from that tiny clutch and accelerator. I gave up. I let my Learners License for four wheeler expire. I am not made for this as yet. Not in Mumbai traffic for sure. Pedestrians walking in the middle of the road and abusing me for driving at 10 kmph on Honda City and bumping into them. Even broke the residential society's gate while trying to park the damn thing.

So TWO WHEELERS it is for me come rain or sun or cool Mumbai fake winter wind.

I am now no more enamoured by Enfield or Harleys or Triumph in particular. In the past two years I have been to only one highway weekend trip (to Bhimashankar). Time to look for practical maintenance free bikes that take a beating and still stay loyal like a true war dog. So Yamaha, Hero, Honda, Bajaj, KTM, I am looking forward to youse guys.

FOR SALE: I know admins there is a sale thread for bikes but this is my history here. So right here where I announced my purchase of Bullet I announce it is available for sale.

FOR SALE Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 4 s electric-start and kick start
Apr 2007 model. Cast Iron engine with right hand side gear shift and neutral lever. Black colour. TCI ignition. Rear gas shock absorber.
Brand new tyres front and back. Brand new in warranty 14 Amph Exide Battery. New Enfield Lock Set. New Speedometer. All parts in performance condition. Touches 110kmph with pillion and Cramster luggage.
Insurance till April 2015. MH03 AL148. Stock condition. No modifications.
Price: Rs. 95,000 plus buyer pays for RC name change.
Call: Ujjwal Dey on 9322005050

Remember that vehicle performance does not depend on colour and buffing work. Come and meet me. Feel the Bull. Hear it. Test Ride it. Make a call. You can come with your trusted mechanics and check the bike thoroughly at leisure.

Photos Attached as well.


----consecutive posts auto-merged-----

Life comes a full circle.

I started with a Yamaha and started at XBHP.com

I bought a Bullet and posted this thread on the same year when cast iron engines were abandoned forever by Enfield.

Now from that April 2007 of my brand new Bull to today December 2014 the ride has been awesome. And I am back at XBHP to tell you about it.

All my ride photos at: Picasa Web Albums - Ujjwal

As ambition goes we all evolve and ride better or get into a 4 wheeled cage. I tried driving a Honda City this year, gave me a scare of a lifetime. Too much power to be handled from that tiny clutch and accelerator. I gave up. I let my Learners License for four wheeler expire. I am not made for this as yet. Not in Mumbai traffic for sure. Pedestrians walking in the middle of the road and abusing me for driving at 10 kmph on Honda City and bumping into them. Even broke the residential society's gate while trying to park the damn thing.

So TWO WHEELERS it is for me come rain or sun or cool Mumbai fake winter wind.

I am now no more enamoured by Enfield or Harleys or Triumph in particular. In the past two years I have been to only one highway weekend trip (to Bhimashankar). Time to look for practical maintenance free bikes that take a beating and still stay loyal like a true war dog. So Yamaha, Hero, Honda, Bajaj, KTM, I am looking forward to youse guys.

FOR SALE: I know admins there is a sale thread for bikes but this is my history here. So right here where I announced my purchase of Bullet I announce it is available for sale.

FOR SALE Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 4 s electric-start and kick start
Apr 2007 model. Cast Iron engine with right hand side gear shift and neutral lever. Black colour. TCI ignition. Rear gas shock absorber.
Brand new tyres front and back. Brand new in warranty 14 Amph Exide Battery. New Enfield Lock Set. New Speedometer. All parts in performance condition. Touches 110kmph with pillion and Cramster luggage.
Insurance till April 2015. MH03 AL148. Stock condition. No modifications.
Price: Rs. 95,000 plus buyer pays for RC name change.
Call: Ujjwal Dey on 9322005050

Remember that vehicle performance does not depend on colour and buffing work. Come and meet me. Feel the Bull. Hear it. Test Ride it. Make a call. You can come with your trusted mechanics and check the bike thoroughly at leisure.

Photos Attached as well.

Re: Death of the Cast Iron

No offence to anyone but this is my opinion. I own a 1986 Std 350 CI so I do a little about what I'm talking.
I do understand the love some people have a love and passion for the CI Bullets. That does not mean they are superior. They are old, inefficient and extremely low tech. A 350 cc producing only 18 BHP is ridiculous. Add to that you have do deal with running to the mechanic every now and then, oil leaks etc. Same with the RH gear shifter. How the hell is that better than the conventional LH gearshifter?
And who says the new UCE is bad. Yea it's not as good as say a Yamaha or a Honda or even a KTM. But it's definitely better than the CI. The problem is the mechanics only know to work on the CI engines and thats why they say that the UCE's and AVL's are crap (I go along with this not because I believe it but because it increases the resale value of my bike).
Can someone answer the following questions (proper technical answers and not crap like heritage, thump, makes you feel like a man etc.)
1. The 350 CI and 350 UCE produce the same power. So in what way is the CI better?
2. The 350 UCE consumes less fuel to produce the above mentioned power than the CI. So in what way is the CI better?
3. The 350 UCE emits less pollutants than the 350 CI. So in what way is the CI better?
4. The 350 UCE leaks less oil than the 350 CI. So in what way is the CI better?
5. The 350 UCE has the gear shifter on the left like all other bikes in the world. So in what way is the CI better?
I guess the above points are also applicable to the 500 CI and 500 UCE.

Somehow I feel that the Bullet 350/500 CI bhakts (If I may call them that) are very similar to the Apple bhakts. The Bullet/Apple I own is the ultimate invention in the world. It can do everything that UCE/Windows can do (accepted to a certain extent but in a very cumbersome way). All other products are crap. You haven't seen anything until you have used a CI/Apple. BTW before you attack me, I'm posting from a Mac.

Question regarding CI Bullets

Hello y'all, recently one of my cousins acquired a '74 Royal Enfield Bullet 350. Naturally I did a small ride on it and one thing that struck me immediately was how vibration free it was. This was in stark contrast to the UCE Enfields I test drove at the showrooms. This particular bike felt like a 4 speed overgrown Honda Unicorn. Can some of the bullet gurus explain why it is so?


Cheers

P.S I only took her to about 65-70 km/hr

Re: Question regarding CI Bullets



Come on....someone help me out here please

Re: Question regarding CI Bullets

A very well maintained Cast Iron Bullet will sing to you at crusing speed of 65kmph. That is what you have experienced. The present UCe engines have a louder clatter which is very annoying and quite noticeable.

There is enough said and written about how good the CI is in absorbing the noise which the Aluminium barrels of latest generation are not capable, so wont elaborate much.

Cheers

Re: Death of the Cast Iron


Two handed standing salute for that post Sir!!! 😁