Acquired my RS50's Little Big Brother

I was in college when Aprilia first started importing the RS50 to the USA. I dreamed about how cool it would be to have one and ride it back and forth to class. Alas, I was a poor student and all I had was a bicycle to get around campus. But I never forgot about that RS50. Fast forward to 2013 and I was finally able to acquire that dream bike, a little jewel of a Grand Prix replica racer, my RS50. During the riding season I try to take it out at least once a month for a quick blast to make sure everything is still in tip top condition and working the way it should. I enjoy riding it, the pleasure of owning it and sharing my enthusiasm with the rest of you here on the Aprilia Forum.



Well this weekend I acquired my RS50's Little Big Brother. I was fortunate to purchase this rare 2000 Aprilia RS125 (black/ fluorescent red) to go along with my 2000 Aprilia RS50 (gray/ yellow). The two bikes were built just one month apart from each other, the RS125 was built in March of 2000 and the RS50 was built in February. I estimate it to be one of less than ten 1999-2005 RS125s in the country as they were never officially imported here as far as I know. It used to have the rare OEM Identikit body that mimicked Tetsuya Harada's 1999 Aprilia RSW-2 500 Grand Prix bike but it's looking a bit worse for wear now.



















I plan to do a mild restoration and will have to decide which look to choose as this bike was available in so many different color schemes. The long term goal is to one day get a 2000 Aprilia RS250 to complete the collection. Perhaps something like this in a year or two from now.



All 3 bikes are visually very similar but radically different mechanically. Based on my market observations, the RS250 and RS50 are about equal in terms of availability and this generation RS125 is the most difficult to find here due to scarcity. It is much easier to find one of the newer RS125s that Aprilia officially imported for off-road use only from approximately 2006-2009, but I really wanted the earlier body style that matches my RS50. The bike is mechanically very similar from 1999-2012 with many parts (other than cosmetics) being interchangeable. Thankfully many parts are still available through AF1 Racing and through suppliers in Europe where the RS125 was a very popular bike for 17 year old riders working their way up through the graduated licensing scheme. I couldn't imagine owning an Aprilia without the great support of AF1 Racing. Those guys rock!

Anyhow, it's somewhat of a running project bike or rolling restoration. The trick is to not get too carried away with the restoration. The nice thing about this RS125 is that it's a rider and not a show bike. One downside of my RS50 is that it's condition is really too mint and I'd like to keep it that way, which means it's a constant source of worry and I don't let anyone else (outside of a very select few privileged individuals) ride it. The RS125, on the other hand, is much less worry. I've already started a list of tasks to accomplish and parts to replace as I go over the bike with a fine tooth comb and makes sure it's safe and sound to ride. Unfortunately the engine is too big to race it at Sandy Hook or NJMiniGP and I think it would be hopelessly outclassed against the Honda RS125. But still, I like it and it's fun.

I found some pictures online of what the bike used to look like back in 2012. If anyone recognizes this bike and is a previous owner or knows more history, please contact me!

 

This is Tetsuya Harada's 1999 Aprilia RSW-2 500 Grand Prix machine that the OEM Aprilia Identikit was trying to replicate.



One the best parts about the adventure to go purchase this bike was getting to spend the day with my friend, the legendary Johnny Roadmap himself and organizer of the British & European Classic Motorcycle Day. It had been more than a year since we last hung out. Life has a funny way of getting so busy that before you realize it a few years have passed by. I told myself that this year I would make more of an effort to reach out to friends and family more often. So I roped John into helping me rescue this RS125 with his van and enclosed trailer and then forced him to take me to his favorite Chinese food restaurant for Peking duck. Thank you so much for the help! To be honest I think he quite enjoyed being the enabler of bad decisions. More motorcycles is always the right answer.

 

nice!

but the RS125 will always be a tad slower than the Mito

 

I love the little 50's and would love to get one eventually. Funny story about one.....We live in a very rural area,mostly farms. Well one day we are outside and I here the little swarm of wasps,and passing in front of our house on the shoulder,is an old country fella with bags of trash tied to his bike,and heading for the landfill.It couldnt have looked more 3rd world if he was carrying another bag of trash on top of his head. I yelled to my wife and daughters.."HOLY SHIT!! Look, its a little rs50!!!!!" and the guy was just chugging along not knowing what he had or even gave a rats ass about. We eventually got to know a relative of that guy and we asked about the bike. They said "He locked up the engine,so he done threw it in the landfill"........Up until that point it was his trash hauler, since he had his license revoked for multiple DUI's,so he used it as a "moped". He somehow got it on trade and never gave a 2nd thought on what it was......all that mattered was he could haul bags of trash and stop at the local liquor store on the way home from the dump.....ON AN RS50!!

 

this thing is awesome and i would love a genuine 125 also to fit in with my 50’s (two of which that have been converted to 125) and my 250’s!!


also, check out the zeeltronic ecu’s for these bikes... excellent power valve control and ignition control.. makes a huge difference in them

 

FYI

https://atlanta.craigslist.org/eat/mcy/d/2-stroke-greatness-road-race/6570528933.html

 

Oh snap

 

Ha! The RS125 vs. Mito debate is endless. Kind of like Ford vs. Chevy. I think it'd be cool to have both a Cagiva Mito Evolution I and a Ducati 916 in the same collection to show them side by side.

 

Man that's wild. Shame the bike got scrapped. But such is life. I think many motorcyclists probably look down their noses at the lowly RS50 as being nothing more than a child's toy or cheap, disposable weedwacker with wheels. But like enthusiasts of the diminutive Honda HRC Dream 50R, there is a real cult following for these RS50.

 

Your collection is partly what inspired me to get more Aprilias! Not sure how much I want to modify this bike as it can quickly become a slippery slope and before you know it I've spent 3x the bike's value on hop up parts. But I'll take a look at the Zeeltronic. I have some experience with Megasquirt on 4 stroke inline 4 cylinder car engine. But I've not played with programmable ignition on a 2 stroke before. Quick shifter, power jet, etc. are all nice to have (especially on track with a built motor) but also unnecessary luxury items. Goal is to get this bike to Stage 0 first by taken care of all deferred maintenance and safety issues.

 

Thanks. I'm not in the market right now. This RS125 and taxes have me tapped out for the moment. I told myself I was going to sell some stuff to fund the necessary improvements for the RS125.