Indian Brave 250

[leakinleana2]

i have a 1951 Indian Brave 250cc.   worth doing anything with?    charlie in Newark Ca.

[CaptonZap]

i have a 1951 Indian Brave 250cc.   worth doing anything with?    charlie in Newark Ca.

NO!

You should sell it to me for $50, and I'll come pick it up next spring. 
I'm 72, so obviously I have more time to restore it.
CZ

[leakinleana2]

i love it.

[R]

Depends on what it looks like. ?

These are li'l Indians, so will have a (limited ?) following among Indian enthusiasts.
As a riders bike, perhaps less so, a 250cc sidevalve won't set the roads on fire.
Probably won't make your fortune either, but they are an interesting bit of motorcycle history,
from when Brockhouse wrestled control of Indian over to UK ownership, and
tried to sell the 'smaller is still good' message...

File photo.
http://www.midamericaauctions.com/motorcycle/indian/indian-brave/

(Click the pic for a bigger view)

[33d6]

In their day they were considered at the bottom of the 'grey porridge' list but what was bizarre back then is perfectly normal now. For example it had a left foot gearchange when all the world (except the US) knew it should be on the right. It had an alternator and coil ignition. Very suss back in dinosaur days but well understood nowadays. It adapts well to modern electronics. It can now be made a reliable bike with good electrica at little cost.
Ok, so it's a 3 speed 250 sidevalve and it isn't known for performance. You'll be surprised at the interest it will generate wherever you ride and thank god it's not another bloody boring Triumph or Harley Davidson.
It's simple, cheap to run, no fuss and no one will expect you to spend a fortune on it to make it look good. Just keep it neat and clean and reliable.
You'll definitely stand out in any crowd.
Have fun.

[Rex]

I like them too. Well worth spending some time on, if only to p*ss off Indian Polaris owners about who's got the "real" Indian...

[murdo]

Any bike is worth restoring, but how much do you want to spend and how much time to spend on it. I got into restoring old bikes as a way of helping deal with depression, it has now turned into obsession with around 20 bikes. So do you want to get dirty and distracted, or is it something special that is worth a lot to you.
The fact that it is an Indian would make it worthwhile restoring, or just to make a reliable rider. It is your bike, so your call.