The Enfileds with electronic Ignitions will run. My Electra (2003) ran and ran without a working battery for a good two years.

Hijacking this thread for a small question...my friend is interested in going for a new Bullet Electra due to low maintainance, but is intimidated by the weight. He went to test ride a pal's Electra 5S and couldn't take it out of the parking lot without help. Plus, this dude has a bad lower back. He's on a P200 right now.

DD and Yamtrooepr: would you recommend the bike?

@diffuser911 see I am small framed bloke I am about 5'8" and weigh 60 kgs and duiring a period i had the Electra my substance abuse levels were rather high and was even skinnier and used to be very comfortable on the Electra. Once you start riding the bike you dont feel it's that heavy in fact the weight is very confidence inspiring. I even found And putting the bullet on main stand is a very easy job whilst on the bike itslef you need to bring down the satnd with the extended fulcrum on the stand make sure both the stand points toch the ground and slight pressure on the fulcrum the bike would get mounted on the stand. The only trouble your friend might have is if the bullet has a flat then it s best to leave the bike whre it is cos i think it's next to impossible to wheel a punctured bullet. Atleast for someone with my frame and body type.

bullets are not my cup of tea ...
and neither do i find anything amazing in that thump ...

anyways best of luck for your find .

Hey buddy,

Yours would have as it as you might have had the one with CDI ignition.

Happy thumping,
Prakhar

Thanks YamT.

I understand that the Bullets come with a lot of pain in terms of maintenance and breakdowns. That's why I am going for a ZMA myself. My friend is riding a P150 now and with the Bullet, he intends to tour alongside me. I tried to discourage him saying I would be flying at a 100 kmph constant, but he has not intent to give up. He has found a '88 350 Std for 29k and soon gonna finalize the deal. How potent would the bike be as a tourer?

Also, it would be helpful if you can list down the common problems with the bike and how to eliminate them. One would be the points system, which would be replaced by the Auto Escorts part. What does it do? Implement the same TCI coil ignition as the Electra/Machismo has, or at least more reliable than CB points? Leaking oil, can be lived with after sometime. Are tappet noises present in the old Bullets, and can they be adjusted by self? A disc setup can come up in near future, but right now we would be looking at making the bike more tour-worthy. Are there any tubeless tyres available for the 19" size?

I own a 11 month old Fz, done 9K kms on that bike.

Two weeks back a friend of mine who has a 2 month old 500cc Machismo asked me to keep his bike with me for 10 days. Initially I was a bit aprehensive cause I weigh only 60 kilos and stand 5'11". I went to his place, took charge of his bike... boy! it was sooo awesome, just loved the torque and the ride quality due to its weight and the shocks. Its simply fantastic. Too good a bullet, Its very quick and has a great top end. Just perfect for city condition or long rides, Also if there is a slow race, then the 500 will win easily, you just can cruise at any speed on 500.

Now two days back I had another friend on mine who got had to go for an urgent visit to Canada for 4 months, he brought a brand new Standard 10 days back. For my surprise he asked me to keep his bike for 4 months. Its brand new standard with gears on right side. The bike is so very smooth, it feel so light after riding 500. There are false neutrals, but then there are so many positives that you tend to ignore the gear part.

I say to all Bullet wannabes, Just go for it... there is nothing on this earth that makes you feel like a Alpha male but bullet.

LB500 Production Stopped? :S

"He has found a '88 350 Std for 29k and soon gonna finalize the deal. How potent would the bike be as a tourer? "

It depends on the condition of the bike the engine espcially the state of the bearings now way to tell with out a proper inspection of the bike in question. But a Bullet in good condition is a great tourer. Once it warms up or catches the wind on a highway it can comfortably gun at 90 - 100 kmph but an ideal cruise speed would be 80 kmph. But the post 2000 bullets are way ahead in terms of build quality. An ideal buy acording to me would be a 2003 - 2004 Electra at around 40 - 45 k. It s got the classic cast iron mill, the CDI makes life very easy, and around this time Enfiled came up with gas filled rear shox for the Electra and it s a very comfortable ride on long rides.

" One would be the points system, which would be replaced by the Auto Escorts part. What does it do? Implement the same TCI coil ignition as the Electra/Machismo has, or at least more reliable than CB points? "

Not too sure on this one as I had a CDI ELectra and never had worry about CB points.

Are tappet noises present in the old Bullets, and can they be adjusted by self?

A good and expeirenced bullet mechanic should be able the adjust the tappets where the noise is almost eliminated and a little bit of the tappet noise can be lived with like a drop or two of oil leak. I would always leave my Tappet adjust ment to Mr Dharmaiah my mechanic and never messed with them.

Thanks a lot YamT. It seems that we need to change our target for the hunt. I've check online and found a few Electras of the later years up for sale. Will be informing you guys, with a ZMA + RE photoshoot.

All the best @diffuser911 looking forward to the photoshoot.

I am still confused, should I go with 2nd hand Bullet to start my ride and then move on to new bullet like bullet classic / machismo or directly get brand new.

Spending 1lac is not a problem but spending on regular maintenance is (ie if I get used bike). Now that Bullet classic is about to launch, it looks more cheesy :P

@BudhaSource my suggestion would be to get a new bullet either an Electra or a Machismo once and for all. That way you stay in control of the run in and you will know what is wrong on what is right from day one. As you are saying you have the money! The bullet classic will sport a new engine so it s total new entity cannot really comment on it at this stage.

YamT: Is it really very difficult to change the rear tyre in case of a puncture for someone who can change them on CBZ/P150?

It s a lot heavier to bend the bike and all. Otherwise it the same as any bike, simpler actually.