Nineties Niceties

Bikes from the Brit Pop decade of the 1990s are often the cheapest and offer the best bang for buck in the broad spectrum of CMM-approved classics.

Because, while the 24-carat gilt-edged classics from the 1960s and 1970s are often rare or beyond the pockets now of most of us and the machines from the 1980s are even heading for silly-money’sville (RD350LC anyone?), the more we look at the cream of the 1990s the more we see what bargains we can enjoy today while making a few quid tomorrow.

Think Honda CBR900RR FireBlades, Yamaha YZF-R1, think – in fact – of any of the popular bikes from the 1990s. Yes, most were sportsbikes as that’s what we rode back then, but the choice and strength in depth is mouth-watering. Our friends Bruce Wilson and Mike Booth at our sister title Fast Bikes recently rode two classic machines from the 1990s. Best of all, these amazing bikes can still be found for peanuts.

Aprilia RSV-R Mille

Just look at that frame: beefy, sculpted and unpainted