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Wearing leather chaps around was getting really awkward, buying a bike seemed a rational solution
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Nov 15, 2013 21:49
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| # ? May 17, 2024 14:33 |
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTAUV1Yj4NE&t=422s
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Nov 15, 2013 21:53
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MoraleHazard posted:I ride a motorcycle for the sheer thrill of my co-workers asking me "Did you ride a motorcycle in?" when I'm standing in the elevator in bike gear and carrying a helmet. "Hey, did you ride your motorcycle in today?" "No, I just live in a really bad neighbourhood,"
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Nov 15, 2013 22:03
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"OMG do you ride a motorbike??" "Nah I just fall over and bump into poo poo a lot." ^^^verbatim a conversation I've had IRL.
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Nov 15, 2013 22:12
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SaltLick posted:What's the allure for motorcycles? If it's because you like to go fast shouldn't you just drive a car instead? Four wheels is faster than two after all. I just like wearing tight leather all the time, but I'm still too repressed to go and buy the gimp suit I truly desire. That and experiencing the smooth, refreshing aroma of pure, all-American gasoline exhaust that isn't all shitted up with catalytic converters and other communist inventions.
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Nov 15, 2013 22:15
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SaltLick posted:What's the allure for motorcycles? If it's because you like to go fast shouldn't you just drive a car instead? Four wheels is faster than two after all. Surrogate penis.
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Nov 15, 2013 22:17
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Slavvy posted:I ride a motorcycle for the sheer thrill of having to carry a helmet in the supermarket at the same time as a basket, so I can ostentatiously put it down and pick it up again every time I want to put groceries in my basket. I just use my helmet as a basket. Works for most small items.
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Nov 15, 2013 22:21
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I ride a motorcycle because I don't have a car at the moment, it's "less restricting" in that I don't feel claustrophobic and can see more stuff, it's weird to me to haul a whole car around just for one person, and it's fun.
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Nov 15, 2013 23:06
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My Futura has been having electrical quirks all season. The big thing is weak starting and an eventually dead battery. I pulled it out and recharged it three times but especially the last time the charger just couldn't get the voltage up. It turned out my Battery Tender Jr had crapped out and was probably doing more harm than good - I dug out an old Craftsman jobber and it pulled the battery right up, and with a proper charged battery the bike cranked better than ever (a cold Rotax in winter is what the battery guys on ADVRider use as a stress test, coincidentally.) Unfortunately it still needs work. Multimeter shows 13.4V at idle but going down to 12.8-12.9V when I rev it - it should go up to 14-14.5. This is somewhat of a known issue with this model, with a reasonably understandable set of options to fix it - augment the spaghetti and table lamp-grade wire the Italians used for high current on this thing, or replace the regulator / rectifier with a modern MOSFET job. I'm leaning towards the latter, if not just doing both, but I still need to do a cursory check of the stator output to make sure there's no funny business there (stators rarely go on these things and when they do it's some 50,000 miles past where mine is at.)
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Nov 17, 2013 08:53
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Woo, finally got my bike back from the shop after a 3.5 week absence! All told it came out to the equivalent $450, although at least a hundred of that (don't have the invoice handy) was new front tire. Guy said it was really difficult to find other parts for my bike, it's a '96 Honda XLR 250 Baja so not rare (here) in theory, but so many of them have been shipped to Southeast Asia (true: I can remember seeing a number of Baja's in SEA years ago when I was there with JDM markings on the frames) that spares can be kind of dear. The main problem it had was one of the hardlines broke and was leaking copious amounts of oil when the bike was on, he apparently called around everywhere trying to find a replacement, trawled internet auctions, and eventually had to settle for buying a 1m, $50 length of metal tubing to replace it with instead (got to keep the other half, in case another one breaks). Guy also tidied up some of the PO (or more likely, grand-PO's) wiring job, replaced a headlight bulb (had no idea it actually needed one, just assumed one of the lights was normal and the other was the high-beams, both of which worked), replaced front brake pads, did something with the rear brakes, redid brake fluid, put some proper mounts in the bark busters rather than my temporary "1 loose bolt on one side, popsicle stick on the other", added a little filter thingie on the fuel line for free, and probably some other stuff that I'm forgetting. Only billed me at 2.5 hours, picked up and dropped the bike off in his big fuckoff van for free. Super-nice dude, have really to meet a motorcyclist I didn't like here*. Feels loving great to be back on the road again, saved myself an hour of bullshit messing around with the trains going to my mate's birthday last night. Coming back home I was tired (went to bed at 4am, in a sleeping bag on a hardwood floor) kinda cold, and decidedly hungover, but couldn't help but grin the whole way home. Feels good man. *note: have never spoken with a bosozoku, heh. Pompous Rhombus fucked around with this message at 09:22 on Nov 17, 2013 |
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Nov 17, 2013 09:19
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Crosspost from the Ninja 250 thread: Finishing up a valve adjustment on my buddy's 2010 Ninja 250 and hosed it up pretty badly. I was tightening the exhaust side cam cap in a star pattern when I noticed that it was getting pretty difficult to tighten the outer two bolts. I backed out the four bolts to find two crushed dowels. Both the dowel and the cam cap are damaged. I think the only option here is to replace the head. What's the best way to avoid this issue? Poke the dowels into the cap then seat the cap firmly onto the head by hand? Luckily, my buddy was already thinking about replacing the head due to the bad spark plug hole and the fact that heads aren't super expensive (about the same cost as a time-sert kit).
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Nov 17, 2013 22:07
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Snowdens Secret posted:(a cold Rotax in winter is what the battery guys on ADVRider use as a stress test, coincidentally.) Not a coincidence.
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Nov 17, 2013 23:08
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XYLOPAGUS posted:I backed out the four bolts to find two crushed dowels. Both the dowel and the cam cap are damaged. I think the only option here is to replace the head. What's the best way to avoid this issue? Be slower and more careful next time? And don't just start whaling on it if it feels like there's more resistance than usual? I don't know Ninja 250s but unless there's a gasket in between the cap and the head, they'll have been lapped to fit each other, so yes you will need to replace the head as well.
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Nov 17, 2013 23:12
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It is confirmed: I totally hosed this one up. Cam cap and head are machined 'together', so yeah... If that's the case, why is it that people try and sell heads without cam caps? That just makes no sense.
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Nov 17, 2013 23:21
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Talking out my rear end, I'd imagine you could cut yourself an appropriately shaped fiber gasket if you needed to use parts that don't match perfectly. That's basically what the various engine gaskets are for wherever you see them, and there isn't a whole lot of stress on the cam cover. Gasket material is about $10 a roll at Vatozone or Amazon. This is assuming you have a clean surface on the head and you're using a new cam cover; gaskets won't help with gouges or deep scratches. You could also have the two surfaces machined back to where you want but that work alone would probably be more than a whole new engine, so Sagebrush fucked around with this message at 23:25 on Nov 17, 2013 |
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Nov 17, 2013 23:23
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Taught my buddy how to ride a motorcycle today. The TS400 is the lowest-powered and cheapest bike I have, so he got to putt around the local parking lot on that. He didn't drop it, which was great, just rode in circles and practiced shifting. He'll be taking the MSF in two weeks and he's looking at CB350s and cafe racers as a first bike. I recommended something that at least has a disc brake, but at least he's not looking for a Gixxer as a first bike. Anyways, glad I could help someone get into riding the right way. 
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Nov 17, 2013 23:29
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Slim Pickens posted:he's looking at CB350s and cafe racers as a first bike. I sense a gathering storm.
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Nov 17, 2013 23:34
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I suggested at least having a neutral riding position to begin with, but he can ride what he wants. I'm not gonna go full-on neckbeard autist on him about being impractical and ruining vintage bikes or whatever.
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Nov 17, 2013 23:40
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If he must have something retro at least see if you can push him towards something fuel-injected like a Bonneville. He can cafe those up all he wants without doing permanent damage.
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Nov 17, 2013 23:43
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Slim Pickens posted:I recommended something that at least has a disc brake, This. Front drums suck balls.
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Nov 17, 2013 23:45
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Slim Pickens posted:I suggested at least having a neutral riding position to begin with, but he can ride what he wants. I'm not gonna go full-on neckbeard autist on him about being impractical and ruining vintage bikes or whatever. Eh, a CB350 has a neutral riding position and frankly it worked great for me as a first (and continued!) bike so I think it's a fine idea as long as he's willing to keep up with the maintenance. Not everyone feels the same way, though.
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Nov 17, 2013 23:49
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So, moving to San Diego area in late May/early June and will be grabbing another bike once I do. Any good forums or sites for the area so I can start looking? Anywhere in California is fine, really.
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Nov 18, 2013 00:07
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Barf's got all you need. (I think it's got something for all major cities in CA)
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Nov 18, 2013 00:13
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Slim Pickens posted:Taught my buddy how to ride a motorcycle today. The TS400 is the lowest-powered and cheapest bike I have, so he got to putt around the local parking lot on that. He didn't drop it, which was great, just rode in circles and practiced shifting. He'll be taking the MSF in two weeks and he's looking at CB350s and cafe racers as a first bike. I recommended something that at least has a disc brake, but at least he's not looking for a Gixxer as a first bike. Anyways, glad I could help someone get into riding the right way. Sounds like he is the rider for which the TU250x exists.
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Nov 18, 2013 02:51
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Sagebrush posted:Talking out my rear end, I'd imagine you could cut yourself an appropriately shaped fiber gasket if you needed to use parts that don't match perfectly. That's basically what the various engine gaskets are for wherever you see them, and there isn't a whole lot of stress on the cam cover. Gasket material is about $10 a roll at Vatozone or Amazon. This is assuming you have a clean surface on the head and you're using a new cam cover; gaskets won't help with gouges or deep scratches.
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Nov 18, 2013 02:54
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Ooh. I heard "cam cap" and was thinking it was like the piece on the top of my engine that is literally just a metal cover over the top of the cam/rocker housing. Yeah, if it's two pieces that are split along the central axis of the camshaft then you're pretty certainly boned without some machine shop work. Gaskets would gently caress up the alignment. XYLOPAGUS, is this bike yours or your buddy's? I sure wouldn't want to be the one saying "yeah, I came over to help you do the valve job, but now you need a new top end" 
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Nov 18, 2013 02:58
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Yeah just buy a complete replacement head. No other reasonable option besides that.
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Nov 18, 2013 03:45
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Sagebrush posted:Ooh. I heard "cam cap" and was thinking it was like the piece on the top of my engine that is literally just a metal cover over the top of the cam/rocker housing. Yeah, if it's two pieces that are split along the central axis of the camshaft then you're pretty certainly boned without some machine shop work. Gaskets would gently caress up the alignment. It is most definitely his bike. It was my luck that this head had a badly stripped spark plug and he had thought about buying another head since a time-sert kit costed the same amount. I called him immediately and told him what happened. I feel like rear end, but at least I wasn't trying to charge him for it.
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Nov 18, 2013 04:51
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XYLOPAGUS posted:It is most definitely his bike. It was my luck that this head had a badly stripped spark plug and he had thought about buying another head since a time-sert kit costed the same amount. I called him immediately and told him what happened. I feel like rear end, but at least I wasn't trying to charge him for it. Forgot to mention it's a "race bike" he bought used for $1,200 that the PO had let sit for a while and a bunch of gasoline got into the oil. It ran like rear end partly due to being basically on one and a half cylinders.
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Nov 18, 2013 04:52
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Gay Nudist Dad posted:Sounds like he is the rider for which the TU250x exists. Haha, I actually brought that one up. It's too bad SR4/500's are so hard to come by. He's gonna keep an eye out for older UJMs and I'll give him my input.
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Nov 18, 2013 06:58
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Finally got to take my Ninja 500 out for the first longer ride after getting it running. It has a little bit of a flat spot coming off idle and lumpiness down low, but I'll dial that out and it's not bad at all as is. Anyways, cool little bike! Much more comfortable than I thought it'd be, plenty fast, handles pretty well, and the brakes are great. Feels more "planted" than I had expected. I think it'll work just fine for the next year or two until I grab an ABS Versys or something.
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Nov 18, 2013 07:47
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I believe you can line bore a head if you get mismatched or replacement cam caps. It's probably more expensive than getting a replacement head though, in this case.
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Nov 19, 2013 03:51
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James May has been tweeting Honda and motorcycle poetry lol https://twitter.com/MrJamesMayquote:Little Honda, little Honda, Among many others. Meanwhile Nicky Hayden can be interpreted a few ways 
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Nov 19, 2013 21:43
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Realize I weigh more than the Honda Grom's wet weight of 225lbs. Was a bit depressed. Then considered the idea that I could potentially wear the Grom as a backpack. *take off backpack, wheelie away*
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Nov 19, 2013 22:02
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Welp guys, my car is pretty much sold... $5k to find a bike. Anyone know of an 05+ R6, 03-06 / 09+ ZX6R, 06+ 675, 05+ 600RR, or 05+ GSXR600/750 within 1000mi of Phoenix, Az? 
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Nov 19, 2013 23:35
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Not in AZ, but, my BMW house has a Striple R for sale right now, like super low rear end milage, they want 8500 for it, but on my Striple they came down in price a poo poo-ton so they might do the same. http://www.bmwmotorcyclesdallas.com/new_vehicle_detail.asp?sid=02352869X11K19K2013J6I23I57JPMQ1158R0&veh=322041&pov=3394250
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Nov 20, 2013 01:24
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God drat. Those headlights. That will never look OK to me. It's not a bad looking bike otherwise but I just can't get behind them sticking 10 feet out into space.
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Nov 20, 2013 01:37
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Yeah, I like mine better, but you know, so moves the style.
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Nov 20, 2013 01:45
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For a company whose entire business is selling motorbikes, they sure do take some unbelievably lovely pictures of motorbikes they're trying to sell.
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Nov 20, 2013 03:54
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| # ? May 17, 2024 14:33 |
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For those of you who like On Any Sunday (which should be a lot of you), this month's issue of Dirt Rider is guest edited by Malcolm Smith. A good portion of the magazine is Malcolm's stories about racing and filming OAS. I thought it was a really good read. There's also a review of the Grom, where he says "It's the right size and I don't know why anyone would buy a scooter anymore." 
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Nov 20, 2013 05:42
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