Any Motörbike riders here?

Haych

Devil#20 said:

Haych said:

Anybody else thinking about reattaching the thermal liners in their jackets/trousers?

Yes. However, when it gets to that point there's only a few rides left in the year. I don't need or want to ride in cold weather anymore. My street triple is coming up for MOT soon so might lay it up in the garage and get it sorted when the weather starts improving again. 

Providing the weather is good and it's not brass monkeys outside I don't have any real issue with riding through the winter months.  I've had some quite good ride outs over the winter period before now.  It takes a bit more planning so you're out earlier in the day but other than that most good riding gear will keep you warm enough (and dry enough if the weather turns).

If I had a nicer bike maybe I'd think differently.  

Dominic

p90fool said:

Did a couple of hundred miles around Wales on Saturday and was pretty cold on the way home. I've already put the winter windscreens on the Interceptor and my wife's Bonneville yesterday as if the rest of this year is anything to go by it'll either be cold, pissing down or both from now on. 

At least you don't have to factor in the windchill..............20 mph and all that !

TheBigDipper

I've got a Keis heated jacket (body, arms and collar). Couldn't recommend it enough if you want to stay warm yet still get out in cold weather. It also has the anti Michelin Man benefit that it's really all you need. Rukka base layer, t-shirt, Keis and textile/armoured jacket. That's it. 

thebreeze

robinbowes said:

I had a rare ride out last weekend. A group of friends booked to stay in a large farmhouse and associated barns near Kirkby Stephen for the weekend, and I rode over on my bike. I was supposed to be going with someone else, but they pulled out.

The ride over went well, except I rode into low cloud going over a MoD range and couldn't see far enough to do more than about 20 mph!

The ride out was fine but It was raining when I set off on the return journey. All went mostly OK, but I had a bit of a moment. I came up behind a car doing about 45mph on a fairly windy road. There were plenty of places to pass though, so when one came up I opened up and rode by, I wasn't going all that fast - certainly no more than 60mph. When I was well clear and as I pulled back to the left, I hit a patch of standing water and the backend stepped out. I instinctively corrected (I used to do motocross, so I guess I just felt it), and had a bit of a handlebar wobble, then continued riding. The old ticker was racing for a few minutes after that!

The rest of the journey was uneventful and I got home in one piece.

R.

Thanks for sharing, I keep thinking about this and it’s helpful.  It’s so easy to get casual after a while so anything that reminds me to pay attention to everything is helpful.

I’ve had some nice rides recently up to Staffordshire, Stratford on Avon and down the estuary and through the Forest of Dean (hoping a deer or boar wouldn’t run out and kill me).

Been riding for a year now.  I’ve had the shittiest of shit years and ironically my bike and riding have been something of a life saver for me.

Dominic

I had a hairy moment last week .......going fairly quickly around a big roundabout well canted over........
I saw it at the last split second .......a thick ,oily 7m long diesel spill 
it was too late and a bit too quick to change line or brake so I just rolled the throttle forward and held my breath
about three-quarters of the way through it I felt the back slide out .......felt like a foot but was probably about 2 inches .
Fortunately the tyre seemed to bite again and on I went (gently ) 

TheBigDipper

Dominic said:

I had a hairy moment last week .......going fairly quickly around a big roundabout well canted over........
I saw it at the last split second .......a thick ,oily 7m long diesel spill 
it was too late and a bit too quick to change line or brake so I just rolled the throttle forward and held my breath
about three-quarters of the way through it I felt the back slide out .......felt like a foot but was probably about 2 inches .
Fortunately the tyre seemed to bite again and on I went (gently ) 

Didn't you see the marshals waving their oil flags? :-) 

Glad you got through OK.

Kittyfrisk

For wider distribution   https://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/255097/harley-davidson-fxdl#latest

AK99

^ Cool thing that - and decent value IMO.

On the subject of older HDs..

Took my own old Rhino over to an HD specialist in the next County across  yesterday for a quick once-over to scope some work I want done over the Winter. I know, I should do it myself...but things like changing fork seals and drilling out obstinate brake-nipples.. no thanks. Life's just too short.

Main reason for the visit was a general unease / concern about the general mechanical state of the engine - and in particular a subtle but very-definitely-there engine-speed related metallic rattle that was bugging me. The bike is over 30 years old at this stage after all. I'd already checked the compression and knew it was good, but was starting to have visions about worn lifters, a knackered primary-chain, excessive end-play in the crank etc etc.



The pro started her up, listened for 10 seconds and then pointed to a loose side cover...  Ffs..

Anyways, he proceeded to pull out a mechanic's stethoscope with the long metal probe, and went round listening carefully to the noises coming from the innards at about half a dozen different points on the big mill. Pronounced it fighting fit, and ready for anything I'd care to throw at it (until he saw the tyres that is..). Big weight off my mind tbh though - and nice to meet a really honest guy.

Sitting down now to work out the wish-list for the Winter rebuild - what I'll do, and what'd be better left to him. Actually looking forward to it for once 

Dominic

I think the best bang for the buck on an Evo has got to be a Mikuni flat slide( or an Sand S ) carb and an exhaust change so that it can breathe /induct a bit better........thet will give you 20 % enhancement then think about a Cam Change for Andrews Cam

AK99

^ It's a tough one.

One of the PO's fitted a slightly bigger throated Squawkin' Chickin brand carb and filter and the straight-through silencers, but it definitely isn't what you'd call quick. It is tempting to go down the performance upgrades route but am a bit conflicted about modifying it engine-wise. Part of the appeal of the thing for me is the fact that it's a big lazy old thumper of an engine that I can scoot about on with less risk (hopefully..) of running out of road and luck and ending up wrapped round a tree or in a hedge somewhere.

 I have been looking at exhausts though. I'd definitely like something which gives it more of that deep-throated growl it has when you take the baffles out, but without the associated  ear destroying racket. Replacement pipes for the FXRs are a bit of a niche market with the bikes being so long out of production. They all tend to cost a fortune, around a grand upwards usually, and they're nearly all 2 into 1 systems, which aesthetically suffer a bit (imo).  A couple of bigger volume replacement silencers might be the answer, but they're similarly not exactly plentiful on either the new or used market.

On the carb front, again not being overly worried about the performance, I'm torn between keeping it orignal(ish) and just getting a rebuild kit for the Keihin and making sure it's jetted and set up properly - or - going down the full big bore Mikuni route.

Probably will ultimately come down to the cost - a toss up between spending a little sorting it out as is, or spending c.£1500 on the well-trodden carb & pipe upgrade route. That may ultimately force the issue as to whether it's going to be a real long-term keeper or not.

First world problems I know

thebreeze

How much difference does tightening the chain make?  

I took my bike in for its first service since I’ve had it and it’s come out like a different bike.  I’m not sure I really like the change tbh but maybe it’s a matter of getting used to it?

It feels much more responsive but that also includes “twitchy”, I’ve just got to touch the throttle and it’s off.  Feels faster too, which I didn’t really need at this stage as it felt fast enough as it was.  Has he retuned it or is this the result of the chain tightening?

I’m making it sound worse than it is I think.  It’s manageable but I’ve just got to pay more attention taking off and at slow manoeuvres.

Dominic

AK99 said:

^ It's a tough one.

One of the PO's fitted a slightly bigger throated Squawkin' Chickin brand carb and filter and the straight-through silencers, but it definitely isn't what you'd call quick. It is tempting to go down the performance upgrades route but am a bit conflicted about modifying it engine-wise. Part of the appeal of the thing for me is the fact that it's a big lazy old thumper of an engine that I can scoot about on with less risk (hopefully..) of running out of road and luck and ending up wrapped round a tree or in a hedge somewhere.

 

Dont worry, it's a Harley ......it ain't ever gonna get that quick !

robinbowes

thebreeze said:

How much difference does tightening the chain make?  

I took my bike in for its first service since I’ve had it and it’s come out like a different bike.  I’m not sure I really like the change tbh but maybe it’s a matter of getting used to it?

It feels much more responsive but that also includes “twitchy”, I’ve just got to touch the throttle and it’s off.  Feels faster too, which I didn’t really need at this stage as it felt fast enough as it was.  Has he retuned it or is this the result of the chain tightening?

I’m making it sound worse than it is I think.  It’s manageable but I’ve just got to pay more attention taking off and at slow manoeuvres.

What other work was performed as part of the service? I'd be surprised if tightening the chain made *that* much difference.

R.

sinbaadi

Maybe the technician has put it into a different riding mode?  

Not sure what the bike is but in my experience sorting a loose chain helps make things a lot smoother.  

jaytmon

@thebreeze what @sinbaadi said - check which mode it’s in (I believe there are two in your bike) though they only affect TC by the sounds of it. Still worth checking, could impact how keen the bike is to take off. 

My experience is a too loose chain is more snatchy. Tightening smooths it out. 

I guess there’s a slim chance a software update was done, but I’d imagine that would be listed on the service invoice. 

thebreeze

Thanks everyone.  It’s in the same riding mode that it was before.  I’ll keep an eye on things, I think it might be just a case of getting used to it.  It’s funny how quite a bit of this boils down to feel and I’d got used to it feeling a certain way.

manicguitarist

Mothballed 2 of my bikes for the winter. My Ducati is due its desmo service. The doing of the service itself isn't that difficult, just need to take the bike to pieces before. The forks and radiators need to come off for the front cylinder and the rear subframe for the vertical cylinder. Should be done by Spring. So far I've taken one fairing panel off. 

Still got one bike till it starts to snow.

thebreeze

What’s a desmo service @manicguitarist?

manicguitarist

thebreeze said:

What’s a desmo service @manicguitarist?

Ducatis use desmodromic valves : on a normal engine the cam opens the valve and a spring pushes it closed. On a desmo engine they have a cam to open and a cam to close. 

So like a valve adjustment service but fiddlier and 2x as many things to check 

Dominic

They are chainj driven and make a clattering sound that is unmistakably Ducati