Any Motörbike riders here?

TheBigDipper

p90fool said:

I got sick of sales reps asking me "how much is your head worth?"

Mine's worth £24.99, give or take, in a lid which has passed exactly the same safety testing as a 500 quid one. 

Your tyres are six inches wide and the road is eighteen feet wide. If that's a tightrope you don't think you can walk today you don't need a "better" helmet, you need to stay in bed. 

Me too. Price is no indication of suitability. But we both know a helmet won't do it’s job if it doesn't fit properly. Inexperienced riders need help working out what is or is not a good fit. Which is why it's in the CBT syllabus. Not that anyone is paying attention at that point. They're usually worrying about actually riding the thing in a few minutes time...  

My bugbear when buying a helmet is there's no way of confirming how quiet it is until after you've bought it. It's always hit and miss for me. Too many variables to be able to use anyone else’s opinion. One mans noisy is another mans quiet. 

roundthebend

p90fool said:

I got sick of sales reps asking me "how much is your head worth?"

Mine's worth £24.99, give or take, in a lid which has passed exactly the same safety testing as a 500 quid one. 

Your tyres are six inches wide and the road is eighteen feet wide. If that's a tightrope you don't think you can walk today you don't need a "better" helmet, you need to stay in bed. 

I agree to an extent. The more expensive helmets tend to have better features - ventilation, airflow channels, sun visors, lighter materials, better comfort, removable/washable padding, aerodynamic blah blah.

I got an HJC helmet for £50 in a sale, instead of £150. It fits beautifully but I don't like the design.
When I'm being vain I have a Viper helmet which cost £85 on sale. It has a retro look to suit my bike and the fit is pretty good. That's enough cost for me.

cm01

Cheers all - will get to a shop and try a load on / get a fitting ... I’m looking at getting this bad boy

https://i.imgur.com/AZ1gw38.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/w3NlWbh.jpg

Dominic

I think there is no doubt that full face is more "safe" and protective but I just can't use them......I feel hot and claustrophobic but more importantly my peripheral vision isn't great and I just can't seem to find one with a really wide slot -I don't like the lack of awareness out the corner of my eye when riding in the middle lane or anywhere that there is a possibility of somebody coming up my outside including faster bikes....no matter how many mirrors or rear observations.

PC_Dave

p90fool said:

I got sick of sales reps asking me "how much is your head worth?"

Mine's worth £24.99, give or take, in a lid which has passed exactly the same safety testing as a 500 quid one. 

Your tyres are six inches wide and the road is eighteen feet wide. If that's a tightrope you don't think you can walk today you don't need a "better" helmet, you need to stay in bed. 

What an utter load of shite 

Its not just about a safety test - it’s about comfort, wind noise, and more importantly, looking cool. 

Revolting1

To sus through manufacturers bullshit its worth checking if a lid is racing approved- higher quality testing than government

approval .

  In blighty thats ACU approved or similar, not sure in oz.

  If you're determined to get an open face -check out flip face/chin locking full face lids-

     when riding slowly or through town flip it open for better ventilation / vision.

     When going quick lock the chinpiece down for extra safety to stop your chin / teeth getting battered by bugs n grit.

   Nice looking bike-is that an old Wes Megaton on the back?

cm01

Nice looking bike-is that an old Wes Megaton on the back?

I have no idea what that is, I’m completely new to this bike malarkey ... it’s a Braaap 250 that the guy has had customised ... I’m going to take a look at it on the weekend 

TheBigDipper

Revolting1 said:

To sus through manufacturers bullshit its worth checking if a lid is racing approved- higher quality testing than government

approval .

  In blighty thats ACU approved or similar, not sure in oz.

  If you're determined to get an open face -check out flip face/chin locking full face lids-

     when riding slowly or through town flip it open for better ventilation / vision.

     When going quick lock the chinpiece down for extra safety to stop your chin / teeth getting battered by bugs n grit.

   Nice looking bike-is that an old Wes Megaton on the back?

Just a word of caution on this...  On the surface, it sounds like great advice, but... Using US standards as an example, (and from memory, so please accept the principle even if I've misremembered the names) there are two standards of testing - Dot (for road use) and Snell (for racing use).

The received wisdom was that Snell must obviously be better because it's for racing (and the other standard wasn't deemed good enough). One of the US magazines ran tests on helmets with both stickers and their conclusion was that Snell-qualified helmets were too stiff and not as protective for road use (and road speeds). The qualities that meant it was safer in a 150mph crash on a track meant it increased the risk of brain rotational injury at road speeds of 30-60mph. 

Sometimes the obvious is not, obviously! 

Here in the UK, an ACU helmet may well be better than one that meets EU road riding standards, but I'd be interested to see a similar exercise between ACU testing and EU testing. I've no idea if the conclusions would be the same as Dot vs Snell. Helmets that are legal on the road may not even get submitted for ACU testing because the manufacturer doesn't care if they sell 100 (or whatever) extra helmets per year in the UK just to racing customers. Getting the ACU to approve your helmet in the UK costs the manufacturer money, and they've already done that once to make it legal everywhere within the EU. 

Revolting1

If it is a megaton; they were made for racing- it will make the carburation leaner if not properly adjusted-check the plug colour after a test ride.

 Too lean might melt the piston or put a hole in it.

  Happy riding.

robinbowes

octatonic said:

cm01 said:

Ok, so it looks like I’m going to get a bike next week... so can someone educate me on helmets (fnar fnar!) ...I’m on a budget and thinking open face with a visor ... it’ll be all dry weather riding cos I’m in QLD where it hardly rains!

Find one that fits your head shape.
I wear Shoei because Arai and other brands simply don’t fit me as well.

This.

For me, it's Arai - they just fit my head.

Find a good shop, try a few and pick one to match your budget.

R.

roundthebend

Dominic said:

I think there is no doubt that full face is more "safe" and protective but I just can't use them......I feel hot and claustrophobic but more importantly my peripheral vision isn't great and I just can't seem to find one with a really wide slot -I don't like the lack of awareness out the corner of my eye when riding in the middle lane or anywhere that there is a possibility of somebody coming up my outside including faster bikes....no matter how many mirrors or rear observations.

My Viper F656 is full face and has a really big visor opening - I'm amazed and the view from it and how the chin section is out of the way.

Dominic

That's very retro-style for a full face......cool

guitargeek62

@Roundthebend nice lid - I had the similarly styled Bell Bullitt for about a year too (before dropping it badly!!!) and really appreciated the extra visibility. However, the thing was too damn noisy and leaked water like a sieve - no good for all seasons and/or touring! I’ve since replaced it with a DMD open face for around town & fair weather, and a Schuberth C3 for anything more adverse 

roundthebend

@guitargeek62 ;
I liked the Bell Bullitt but they're expensive and don't fit me properly. The Viper is a pretty good physical fit, and a superb finance fit! I tend not to ride in crap weather unless I get caught out. In which case, I'm at the mercy of the elements and will just deal with it.

guitargeek62

So I’m going to be test-riding the Triumph Speed Twin and the Scrambler 1200 XE soon with a view to swapping in my T100. I’m after something a little more suited to touring/long rides (i.e. 300+ miles per day) but still fun enough around town, and narrow enough to easily filter in!

Ignoring the usual GS options, what else should I consider? I like the look of the KTM Adventure too but that might be OTT for my needs.

Also, I’m 6’3 so need plenty of space between the seat and pegs!

octatonic

guitargeek62 said:

So I’m going to be test-riding the Triumph Speed Twin and the Scrambler 1200 XE soon with a view to swapping in my T100. I’m after something a little more suited to touring/long rides (i.e. 200+ miles per day) but still fun enough around town, and narrow enough to easily filter in!

Ignoring the usual GS options, what else should I consider? I like the look of the KTM Adventure too but that might be OTT for my needs.

Also, I’m 6’3 so need plenty of space between the seat and pegs!

Triumph Tiger 800 or 1200.

I've had a Tiger 800, KTM1190 and GS Adventure.
In reality you can filter on any of them up to a point, but it isn;'t as easy or relaxing as on a smaller bike.
Also IMHO GS is just a better bike and the others and it is the one I am going back to next week when I pick up a new 1250 GSA.
I'm about 6ft 1 and I found the Tiger 800 a bit cramped, although I did Dijon to London in one day on it (500 miles).

Also look at BMW S1000XR or Superduke GT.
More sporty, less comfy but easier to commute/filter on.
XR is a bit buzzy.

Also check out Yamaha MT10.

p90fool

guitargeek62 said:

So I’m going to be test-riding the Triumph Speed Twin and the Scrambler 1200 XE soon with a view to swapping in my T100. I’m after something a little more suited to touring/long rides (i.e. 200+ miles per day) but still fun enough around town, and narrow enough to easily filter in!

Ignoring the usual GS options, what else should I consider? I like the look of the KTM Adventure too but that might be OTT for my needs.

Also, I’m 6’3 so need plenty of space between the seat and pegs!

I'm 6'3" too and haven't found an adventure bike (hey, aren't they all?) which doesn't buffet my head like crazy at speed, so don't forget to pay particular attention to that in your test ride. 

There's something about the riding position and distance from the screen which just doesn't work for me on that style of bike. I've had plenty of Electraglides and an Aspencade, and they were fine. 

octatonic

p90fool said:

guitargeek62 said:

So I’m going to be test-riding the Triumph Speed Twin and the Scrambler 1200 XE soon with a view to swapping in my T100. I’m after something a little more suited to touring/long rides (i.e. 200+ miles per day) but still fun enough around town, and narrow enough to easily filter in!

Ignoring the usual GS options, what else should I consider? I like the look of the KTM Adventure too but that might be OTT for my needs.

Also, I’m 6’3 so need plenty of space between the seat and pegs!

I'm 6'3" too and haven't found an adventure bike (hey, aren't they all?) which doesn't buffet my head like crazy at speed, so don't forget to pay particular attention to that in your test ride. 

There's something about the riding position and distance from the screen which just doesn't work for me on that style of bike. I've had plenty of Electraglides and an Aspencade, and they were fine. 

GSA with Puig screen works for me.
The KTM 1190 was a disaster.

guitargeek62

@p90fool oddly that’s one thing I’m not too fussed about - I have no protection at all on the T100, and unless I’m at >80mph I never notice any buffeting! Still, I’ll be making sure any new bike doesn’t have any worse an effect on me!

@octatonic - fair points but the Tigers don’t really have any appeal to me cosmetically, they might be good bikes but I still want to have something I like the look and the ride of! Good call on the Superduke though

octatonic

guitargeek62 said:

@octatonic - fair points but the Tigers don’t really have any appeal to me cosmetically, they might be good bikes but I still want to have something I like the look and the ride of! Good call on the Superduke though

Fair point- The Tiger 1200 is a particularly ugly thing.
Check out the Multistrada then- they do two models.
A word of warning though, I know 3 people with them and they have all had electrical issues, especially sensors.
Can be expensive to service too.

Or the Honda Africa Twin if you want a proper off-roader with road ability.

Z1000SX and BMW R1250 RS are less upright, more traditional sports tourers, but it is a class worth considering too.

I resisted the GS for as long as I could- my opinion was they were 'old man bikes' and they might be but they are really, really brilliant.
The new 1250 is especially awesome.