thanks for the replies,I'm currently looking at purchasing a 2002 Deluxe and was wandering if a latter year would be any better -- am I right than that the 2002 will only be 4 speed gear box . Its an eBay deal and info is scarce, I thought it was a 5 speed--New to this board so I will rely on yall --Been wanting an R E for some time and I quess nows the time 
2002 is a good year Bullet, but it was a transition year, so it could be Imperial threads or metric threads in the engine, depending on what time of year it was made.
No problem either way. You just have to know when you begin to work on it. Later ones were metric, but I don't know the exact time of transition.
It will be a 4 speed, as a 2002 model.
Quality of the 2002 models is quite good, and they did get better as they went along.
But, they also did some "not-so-good" things as they went along too, in the years starting with 2004, and later.
I would really strive to get one with the older style engine breather on the left side of the crankcase, under the cylinder fin area. That's the correct breather for this engine. The later ones moved the breather to the top of the oil tank, and unfortunately that CANNOT EVER provide the correct breathing needed for the Bullet engine, unless you plug it and restore the older type(which involves an engine tear-down). The new type can "limp by" and be made to not blow oil out, but it will never give the low pressure zone inside the crankcase that a correct breathing system needs to do.
A 2002 model will have the correct breather on it.
While the 2002 models were available with an electric starter, I would strongly suggest avoiding that, unless there is some over-riding necessity for it. They are nothing but trouble, and there are plenty of threads going on this forum where they are exhibiting costly breakages quite commonly. It's best avoided, if you can live with a kick-start-only Bullet. IMO, the e-start is a problem waiting to happen, and it can totally be eliminated as a trouble source, if you just buy a kick-start bike. There were plenty of kick-start-only Bullets made, all the way up to 2004, and the e-start was optional. You can buy a 2002 or 2003 Bullet with kick-start-only, but you might have to look around a while. They are out there. Of course, anything earlier than 2002 will be a kick-start-only Bullet.
If you find a Bullet that you just "have to have", and it is e-start, you can get it and live with the e-start until it breaks. Then you can convert the primary side to kick-start-only for a few hundred dollars, and that will solve that.
So, basically, we have a set of changes which were made over time, some of which are good, and some of which are bad. The engine breather being the most egregious bad one. And the E-start being the one most likely to cause you a major repair problem.
The 5-speed tranny is very nice, and is worth having, but the 4-speed is not horrible at all, and it works fine with a bit of breaking-in and maybe some "sorting out". The 5 speed box can be put onto that bike/engine, but it will REQUIRE that the gearbox be changed to right-side shifting, because the engine made for a 4-speed does not have the tunnel thru the oil tank and CANNOT be made to work with left side shift with the 5-speed. But, it will go right on there, if converted to right side shift. It's pretty pricey to do that, but it can be done.
Generally, if you find a 5-speed bike, it also has the later breather on it. So you get some bad with your good.
Most of the 5-speed bikes also came with the improved front brake plate, for better braking with the TLS drum brake.
Here's what I decided was a good way to go.
Get the bike that you like. Then, over time, work on converting the factory bodges back to correct, as you go along.
My idea of the "best Bullet" is a kick-start, 5-speed gearbox with right side shift, early type breather, no pollution equipment, later(post 2004) front brake plate, premium cables, and a good free-flowing intake and exhaust system.
It's probably easier to get an early 4-speed bike to get the right breather on it, and then convert to the right-side-shift 5-speed gearbox later, than it is to tear down the engine and re-do the breather system.
I have the 4-speed gearbox on my road Bullet, and it works quite satisfactorily. I know that the 5-speed is better, but the 4-speed is not destroying my Bullet riding experience in any way. I enjoy my bike with the 4-speed gearbox, and when I can afford to do it, I'll switch over the the 5-speed right-side-shift. Many people keep the 4-speed box forever, and it will do fine. It's the original Bullet gearbox design from the old days, and it is more "period correct" anyway. Yes, the 5-speed is better in every way, but the 4-speed can provide enjoyable riding, and probably shouldn't be a barrier to purchasing a bike you like.
So, to sum up, no matter which Bullet you pick, there will be some things that will need to be changed to get it "just right". Some of these things are easier to overcome than others. Any Bullet you buy will give good enjoyment as soon as you get it, and may need some initial "sorting out" from the condition you buy it in, but typically can be done relatively quickly and inexpensively after you get it. You might get lucky and not have to sort-out anything.
Any of this other stuff could be looked-at as "optimizing" it for the way you like it, and the best overall configuration, and can be done as you go along.
To me, getting the right breather is important, and that's one that doesn't have it on the oil tank. Anything else is just a "bolt-on" type of change. The later type breathers on the oil tank work(if sorted correctly), but will never be a really correct-working breather.
Topic: year to year changes (Read 5700 times)