Two up

[capitano]

Do you still have the MZ Capitano ?

Therein lies a question. I still have the old log book (pre V5) in my name, but registered to an old address. The bike itself is in one of 7 or 8 sheds belonging to a near neighbour of my Dad's in Yorkshire, whilst I'm in Sussex.

The short answer is no.

Fond memories... I owned an MZ 250/1 Supa 5 and the ETZ 250. The Supa 5 didnt go particularly quickly which was a good job tbh as the brakes were shocking and with a tank designed to relocate your wedding tackle up somewhere around your neck you didnt want anything that stopped too sharpish , The ETZ although not as handsome had a proper front brake . I reckon the Supa 5 will gain a proper cult following in years to come ..beyond the die hard MZ fans that is.

Judging by the number of Supa 5s on the facebook small bike pages it already has that cult following.

As well as the TS150 (my favourite purely for nostalgic reasons) I have also owened a 4 speed TS250, an ETZ250, and ETZ125 and an ETZ 251.

Leaving nostalgia aside the best IMHO was the ETZ251. Brembo dsc brake up front, the low down torque of the Supa 5, 12V electrics and the tight handling chassis of the ETZ125.

Quite honestly, the '97 600 Diversion I have now reminds me of a slightly more powerful ETZ!

[Data]

Yeah, +1 concerning the TS250 bikes. I had the 5 spd TS250 Supa 5 bought new in 1978. I rode that thing 75 miles a day in all weathers and it never ever gave any real problems or trouble aside from a gear issue that almost left me stranded, and yes had to rebuild at the normal time that most of them needed to be done. Had it 4 years and racked up 72,000 miles. Needed new small end bearing at 30,000 and eventually a new crank, main bearings and seals, and piston and barrel at 60,000 miles. Nice gearbox but stripped it's teeth on 2nd gear. A well known failure on that particular model. It cost me almost nothing to fix and was as easy a job as you can imagine. Ran it on the best petrol and oils I could find at the time and was meticulous in mixing the fuel/oil ratio. Used to get around 80mpg if I remember correctly. Sold it to my dad who put another 20,000 miles on it. Needed wheel bearings of course, as the east German bearings lacked proper hardening. Again, very easy to fix.