Hello from West Yorkshire UK

[zontes rider]

Hello there

My nane is Leon and live in West Yorkshire UK. I have spent most of my life around two wheeled transport (bicycle and motorcycle) swapping back and forth between the two. I have had a meriad of machines over last 30yrs to mention and had many an exiting time at the Isle of Man TT. I had a thirteen year spell away from motorcycles because of work and family issues and in that time commuted to and from work on the bicycle.

In the past thirteen years I have unfortunately had a lot of verbal abuse, near misses and nearly written off on a few occasions cycling. In March of this year I was nearly written off by an articulated lorry which prompted me to a change of vehicle. I trolled the web to see what was about with a budget I had in mind and to cut a long story I ended up purchasing a Zontes Monster. I only needed a 125cc for the distance I travel to work etc. As luck happens, just around the corner where I live there is a motorcyce service/mot centre that is a dealer for the said bike. I used to deal with him 25yrs ago when I had the MZ motorcycle.

I have already jouned a similar website (Chinariders) so the welome there is same as this more or less (too lazy to re-write). The consensus I found with a number of people on the mainstream motorcycle forums were that the chinese bikes in their eyes were cr@p and not worth buying (not all though). So this is why I have joined this forum and the other one. Here is a photo of my bike.

http://i1284.photobucket.com/albums/...ps67b042f2.jpg

Regards

Leon

[culcune]

Hello Zontes,

I guess people are a lot slower on some threads here (the welcome one mainly) so I am saying "hi" to you here as well as chinariders! I have the same nickname on both.

Simon

[ZMC888]

Hi Leon, sorry for the slow response, I cycle about 6000 miles a year in China (but as much mtb as commute) and motorcycle twice that, and I'm originally from the UK, so I think you need to get a bit more angry/militant on the cycle and not allow yourself to be pushed onto an internal combustion bike unless its for warp-speed weekend fun, but that's just my opinion.

I had a look at your bike online, not sure about it, but looks like a Honda 125 clone engine maybe a Zongshen. Keep it away from salt or be more vigilant than you would be with other bikes, these Chinese bikes are cheap and can corrode quickly, but they do vary, and nobody has owned everything to be able to compare them. The bike should serve you well enough, with Chinese bikes the wheels, engine and seat are normally OK, but you need to keep an eye on the rest, particularly overall assembly bolt torque, electrics, corrosion, welds and bolts.

I wouldn't say Chinese bikes are crap per se, but to be honest I prefer a boring Jap/Thai Honda or UK/Thai Trumpy, if you feel the need for something bigger later. Who knows they might start making middle-weight Hondas in China in the next 5-10 years.

[zontes rider]

Hi there

Cheers for the reply

CULCUME; Howdie again ! Its an introduction and appreciated.....

Regards






ZMC888; Hi there,

My cycling is for leasure now not for commuting, you cant mess with 20T of metal no matter how much you swear at them !
It has made me feel sad with the situation but the cycling provisions in the UK is absolutely pi@s poor. I am having a lot of fun on the Zontes and will be well serviced and looked after. I used to be a MZ enthusiast for a good decade and for a simple 2 stroke engine they served me well. The Zontes is my first chinese purchase and I think I have made a decent purchase. For commuting to work and back it fits the bill and I can get my cycling fix at weekend away from traffic !

I liked my BMW bikes in the past and have a K100LT 1983 which is up for sale so I can purchse something more modern and smaller and easier to service etc. Horses for courses I suppose.

Regards
Leon

[culcune]

I am not sure of the other countries in Europe, but from the several British member here and on chinariders, it seems that a few brands have established themselves, and have quality and customer service, with Zontes being one of them. They even have the 'boring' part down seeing as their bikes aren't the most exciting designs (not an insult Leon, just an opinion). Meaning, I believe, that they will attract people like you, Leon, who tend to be more mature riders looking for the fun of the ride, without the flash and perceived high-performance which might be important to someone who is late teens or in his twenties. I am a big fan of enduro-styled bikes, but at 44 years old, I like the simplicity and 'basic-ness' of the Zontes, and would consider one, or one like it, if offered here in the US.