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Carth Dookie posted:
I absolutely love my internal sun visor.
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Oct 17, 2019 04:14
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Martytoof posted:"Sir, that's a colander with a belt" "and the masking tape with DOT written on it is not an official DOT sticker"
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Oct 17, 2019 04:26
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ImplicitAssembler posted:I absolutely love my internal sun visor. No doubt. Personally I'd rather have thicker absorbent foam because the most likely impact spot in a crash is the chin/forehead. Either is still way better than an open faced helmet/no helmet. I also wear glasses tho.
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Oct 17, 2019 05:04
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mewse posted:"and the masking tape with DOT written on it is not an official DOT sticker" And DOT is speller wrong.
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Oct 17, 2019 05:05
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mewse posted:"and the masking tape with DOT written on it is not an official DOT sticker" This reminds me of the time a car importer was bulk importing terrible Chinese tires to put on the cars he was selling. The transport agency thought they were fishy and suspended imports until he could prove DOT or similar compliance - we don't test things for regulatory compliance, we just take Australia/America/Japan's word for it. New tires with standards markings appeared shortly and business resumed. He got caught when he accidentally forwarded the email chain with his supplier, wherein they discussed the dimensions of the standards logos that needed to be incorporated into the sidewall mould, to the transport agency.
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Oct 17, 2019 05:09
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mewse posted:"and the masking tape with DOT written on it is not an official DOT sticker" No, actually I'm pretty sure that counts...
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Oct 17, 2019 06:34
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Something important to understand about helmet manufactures, Shoei and Arai only make top-of-the-line helmets, some Shoeis are DOT/ECE only, but that's because they have sun visors or are modular, SNELL pretty much only.counts for racing helmets, so they ignore helmets of this type. These helmets are expensive as gently caress because they have wonderful fut.and finish, and are very light, comfortable and aerodynamic. HJC and Bell, among other manufacturers, make a wide variety of helmets, Bell, for example, has complete worthless poo poo like the Rogue, then moves to decent, but clunky and heavy full-face, to loving rocket-magic custom-molded carbon fiber race poo poo. HJC has the RPHA line, which is about on par with all premium racing helmets. Manufacturers like these are your best bet for helmets that are both inexpensive and will keep your brain safe in a crash. Then there's AFX/Gmax/Nenki/randombrandonamazon, that are DOT only, and can't really be trusted in terms of consistent quality, veracity of testing, for the price it's safer to get an HJC from the discount rack. Also, Arai, Bell, and HJC make a pretty wide variety of head-shapes, so try them on before you buy, I've had HJC's that fit well, and ones that fit poorly in the same nominal size. FWIW, I've previously rocked nothing but Shoeis, because I know they fit my head, and will be wonderfully comfortable, although for dirt/ADV I've moved to Bell, because their fit and finish is pretty amazing for the price point, and they go in clearance, unlike the big names.
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Oct 17, 2019 06:59
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Yeah, it should be pointed out that Bell sells a line of helmets through Walmart and similar stores. While they may be SNELL certified, it's like wearing a hollowed-out bowling ball on your head. Very unpleasant.
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Oct 17, 2019 14:48
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Do you need SNELL even for beginner track days and lessons? My BELL is an ECE full face but no SNELL sticker. It’s a no SNELL BELL shell. I’m gonna start making a shopping list because I want to start doing track this spring. Looks like something that will hook me right in. I want to track because riding through curves is fun as poo poo and I want to get good at it without developing too many bad habits. Figured I’d just go to a track day when they offer beginner classes but, In the meantime, is there any recommended reading/watching on proper entry, lines, leaning, exit, traction, etc? I know the concerns of braking while in a turn but what about accelerating? How easy is it to break out the back end while leaned in and accelerating in a turn? What’s the deal with trail braking? Are there recovery techniques for the rear tire spinning? What about skidding while turning? My bike is very forgiving in turns but I also want to build good habits for when I’m on a 600-700 someday and have a little more connected to the back wheel. Also I want to not look like an idiot.
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Oct 17, 2019 15:00
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I recently bought an RHPA 11 from HJC on sale at Revzilla; paid about $360 for it. It's got all the bells and whistles of a higher priced helmet, comes with both a dark smoke and clear visor, and a pinlock screen. HJC's have always fit my head well. My only criticisms are that it's a little finicky with my glasses, but I think it's a break-in thing and one visor indent is a little squishy. The graphics are only okay, but am not going to complain when it's a $360 lid. For any new rider, I've always found this video from Fortnine to be a good one: https://youtu.be/lwwlvi1hf10 Almost all of his stuff is good. HenryJLittlefinger posted:Yeah, it should be pointed out that Bell sells a line of helmets through Walmart and similar stores. While they may be SNELL certified, it's like wearing a hollowed-out bowling ball on your head. Very unpleasant. I tried a Bell a few years back and I truly did not like it. Hollowed-out bowling ball is very accurate.
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Oct 17, 2019 15:02
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Elviscat posted:for dirt/ADV I've moved to Bell, because their fit and finish is pretty amazing for the price point, and they go in clearance, unlike the big names. I like fly a lot for dirt. MIPS for cheap and pretty nice quality.
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Oct 17, 2019 15:25
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Moral_Hazard posted:I tried a Bell a few years back and I truly did not like it. Hollowed-out bowling ball is very accurate. I bought a Bell Vortex before my MSF because my requirements were: Snell rating, fits my head, cheap. It’s loud as poo poo and I’m very much looking forward to replacing it when it’s time (or when I have money to burn).
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Oct 17, 2019 16:08
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I have an HJC CL-17 and to be frank I haven't ever thought about what I would like in a helmet that this one doesn't already have. This is 100% "ignorance is bliss" since I'm sure expensive helmets are quieter/cooler/whatever but I've never once thought about upgrading. Even my Packtalk's JBL speakers fit really well behind the inserts without any speaker cutouts.
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Oct 17, 2019 16:27
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Rolo posted:Do you need SNELL even for beginner track days and lessons? My BELL is an ECE full face but no SNELL sticker. It’s a no SNELL BELL shell. I’m gonna start making a shopping list because I want to start doing track this spring. Looks like something that will hook me right in. Twist of the wrist 1 and 2 (one is a book the other a film) and total control are good ones. Everyone is different but I think the best and fastest ways to learn are from riding instructors as they make the feedback loop much much faster. I personally got much better with technique as I learned more about how bikes actually work because I'm an autistic weirdo who has to know how poo poo works before I can trust it. For braking, accelerating etc IMO there are only two things that matter: look where you go and the throttle (and brake rule). Imagine your tire has 100pts worth of grip. You can use all 100 on braking/accelerating but you have to be upright. You can use all 100 on turning (maximum lean) but can't use the brake because you would exceed your grip budget. You can proportion turning and gassing/braking and do them at the same time (it is, in fact, mandatory to not riding poo poo) as long as you don't try to do too much of both at the same time. Where 'too much' is depends on your bike and tyres; this is yet another reason slow wobbly bikes are better to learn on than fat sophisticated bikes with mountains of grip and no feel. For example, you'll basically never highside a cruiser because they have enormous mechanical grip and run out of ground clearance before you can combine enough lean and throttle to get out of shape (you can do sick burnouts though!) Likewise it's very difficult to highside a 125 because they lean so far, and turn so fast, you'll be out of the corner long before the engine can build enough power to break the tyre loose. What it boils down to is: always take away lean angle when adding throttle or vice versa, and you always reduce braking as you increase lean. The best riders in the world are able to transition seamlessly between braking, turning and gassing by, for example, braking upright at the maximum then gradually releasing the brake in synchronisation with adding lean, then transitioning to the throttle the very moment they fully release the brake. And do it all so smoothly the bike barely notices. Once you implicitly understand the throttle rule, and commit with iron will to never chopping the throttle on and off in a corner, you'll find the right lines come automatically after that because there's only so many 'legal' lines you can take through a given corner on a given bike. Smoothness is super important, as is using the forward/back pitching of the bike to maximise grip. Goes without saying none of this stuff is possible if your bike setup is hosed. So you need to have everything working properly, the suspension needs to have a good-enough setup for you and the bike (a good reason to avoid learner bikes with lots of adjustability - less confusion) and you need to have good (not just black and round) tyres inflated properly. The bike is designed and tested with the aid of racers and other people who know how to ride properly and so responds best when ridden the right way. Different brands have different opinions on what the right way is; Japanese bikes tend to be more well rounded, everyman's machines while euro stuff tend to be more honed to a single approach.
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Oct 17, 2019 19:02
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Elviscat posted:Also, Arai, Bell, and HJC make a pretty wide variety of head-shapes, so try them on before you buy, I've had HJC's that fit well, and ones that fit poorly in the same nominal size. Do you know where I can go online to see what type of head shape each model of Arai is?
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Oct 17, 2019 19:24
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RevZilla documents head shape.
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Oct 17, 2019 19:30
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Steakandchips posted:Do you know where I can go online to see what type of head shape each model of Arai is? Revzilla will list each helmet shape. Arai's website will also have each helmet shape listed on the helmet's spec and features page.
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Oct 17, 2019 19:32
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Slavvy posted:I am not a riding instructor: Good read, makes a lot of sense. Thank you. I’m there with you on wanting to know how poo poo works and I love talking to others about it. I’ll definitely check out the resources you posted.
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Oct 17, 2019 20:01
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Just remember, there's no 100% 'right' way. I spent a long time trying to figure out the 'correct' way to do things, only to find out 'correct' is a fuzzy amorphous cloud even at the very highest levels of riding. Confidence and understanding the bike/tyres are all that really matter. Every man and his dog thinks they've found the right way of riding and it just so happens to be their way, instructors and other smart people aren't exempt from this - in reality all corners and bikes are different and the same approach won't work every time. I try to keep in mind that there are a few core principles everyone has to abide by, but most techniques are like tools in a toolbox - you might love the hammer, be brilliant at hammering and spend most of your time hammering nails, but you can't use the hammer all the time on everything. The more tools you can accumulate, the better you can tackle any given situation. Learn as much as you can, keep an open mind, try different stuff every time you ride. Don't just bumble around, rather try to thinkingly approach each and every corner entry with an aim to perfection, try to rationally assess what you could've done better on every exit.
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Oct 17, 2019 20:34
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The way to ride a motorcycle fast on a track also evolves over time. Your traction/breaking budget is always true, but the other details evolve as bike design evolves. There's a big difference between how bikes got ridden in 1949 and 2019. Knee down used to be strange and foreign until everybody did it, then elbow, then backing the bitch in on the brakes in a very big way when Marquez came along. It'll be interesting to see how things get done in the future, particularly as electric bikes become more powerful and lighter.
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Oct 18, 2019 03:08
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Carth Dookie posted:The way to ride a motorcycle fast on a track also evolves over time. Your traction/breaking budget is always true, but the other details evolve as bike design evolves. There's a big difference between how bikes got ridden in 1949 and 2019. Knee down used to be strange and foreign until everybody did it, then elbow, then backing the bitch in on the brakes in a very big way when Marquez came along. It'll be interesting to see how things get done in the future, particularly as electric bikes become more powerful and lighter. It does, and it evolves in sync with technology. If Marc Marquez had to ride Freddie Spencer's 500 he'd be shoulders up, bum down unicorn style too because that's how you don't die of highside on one of them. I think ebikes being able to run scooter style rear brake levers, like the ones currently being played with in motogp and motoE, will have a big effect. 'Engine' braking will become even more seamless and tuneable thanks to no gears and total control of motor back torque.
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Oct 18, 2019 04:01
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Rode on the highway for about an hour today, >100km/h the whole time, mostly straights and gentle curves but it let me get used to the buffeting and wind pressure, getting passed, not hitting rough patches and potholes, and crossing train tracks at high(ish) speed. Bike goes 105-110km/h into a fairly high headwind flat out in 5th, and was passing 125 with a tailwind when I ran out of nerve and slowed down. Helmet still sucks. Wore earplugs and it was still too loud. Somewhat alleviated the lifting by fixing my posture. Did not solve fogging issue. Still getting a new one, hopefully tomorrow or Sunday. Anyway, I went 2 towns over and stopped at the general store then came home and it was loving cool. Talked to an old dude (or rather, was talked to by an old dude, I hardly got a word in) who was riding a big honda cruiser (vx1300 or something?) who said he'd done about 500km already today and was detouring from the main Melbourne-Adelaide (~10 hour trip in the car) highway because he was bored of it after doing it too many times. I told him my helmet was poo poo. He said his is a Bell Eliminator and he loves it. Anyone here got any opinions on that helmet? I also noticed that the bike is way harder to tilt at that speed than even at 80km/h. That's normal, right? Because of how gyroscopes work?
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Oct 18, 2019 04:01
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After your suggestions, this is the helmet I have: NZI Symbio, which is thermo plastic and apparently its the worst of the worst. My Jacket is a Joe Rocket something. Know that I know some stuff it looks like it is poo poo too. Probably will need to do some upgrades on that now ..
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Oct 18, 2019 04:06
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Elector_Nerdlingen posted:I also noticed that the bike is way harder to tilt at that speed than even at 80km/h. That's normal, right? Because of how gyroscopes work? Yep.
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Oct 18, 2019 04:29
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Elviscat posted:Then there's AFX/Gmax/Nenki/randombrandonamazon, that are DOT only, and can't really be trusted in terms of consistent quality, veracity of testing, for the price it's safer to get an HJC from the discount rack. Good generalization, but I feel like mentioning that I have one of AFX's ECE helmets and I love it. The FoV, both horizontal and vertical, feels very nice.
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Oct 18, 2019 06:46
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Martytoof posted:I have an HJC CL-17 and to be frank I haven't ever thought about what I would like in a helmet that this one doesn't already have. This is 100% "ignorance is bliss" since I'm sure expensive helmets are quieter/cooler/whatever but I've never once thought about upgrading. Even my Packtalk's JBL speakers fit really well behind the inserts without any speaker cutouts. I crashed in one of these and it did a great job saving my skull and face. I ended up getting another one. Now I have a Bell Race Star bc they were on sale and I always wanted one; it's got some kind of MIPSy head torsion fancy protection system that is supposed to protect your brain AND skull in different types of low- and high-speed impacts. It's v. nice
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Oct 18, 2019 21:42
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captainOrbital posted:I crashed in one of these and it did a great job saving my skull and face. I ended up getting another one. Weird I did the exact same thing with my HJC. Brand loyalty due to not getting splattered when you clip into a transit
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Oct 18, 2019 23:07
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Slavvy posted:Just remember, there's no 100% 'right' way. I spent a long time trying to figure out the 'correct' way to do things, only to find out 'correct' is a fuzzy amorphous cloud even at the very highest levels of riding. Confidence and understanding the bike/tyres are all that really matter. Every man and his dog thinks they've found the right way of riding and it just so happens to be their way, instructors and other smart people aren't exempt from this - in reality all corners and bikes are different and the same approach won't work every time. I try to keep in mind that there are a few core principles everyone has to abide by, but most techniques are like tools in a toolbox - you might love the hammer, be brilliant at hammering and spend most of your time hammering nails, but you can't use the hammer all the time on everything. The more tools you can accumulate, the better you can tackle any given situation. Learn as much as you can, keep an open mind, try different stuff every time you ride. Don't just bumble around, rather try to thinkingly approach each and every corner entry with an aim to perfection, try to rationally assess what you could've done better on every exit. That makes sense. Thanks again for the effort posts. They’re great.
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Oct 19, 2019 01:27
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I can't help it anymore, I've had so much yellow vest exposure IRL at this point that I'm hopelessly infested. All I think about is the crash stats for the demos posting ITT, so if you aren't an idiot and try to ride less poo poo, then you might tell other people, and they might tell other people and when you do, you should tell them to check their tire pressures, what pressures you running? cause that could save your life drat that chain doesn't look good buddy, hey have you thought about a fetching yellow reflector vest.....
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Oct 19, 2019 02:20
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For those who know your brand and size already and are in the US, Cycle Gear is having a bunch of closeout sales on some really good helmets. Lots of Arai especially, which I could never find a good fit with, but some pretty big price drops with those. And they do have the Shoei X-14 Laverty edition which I fell in love with and bought a mere couple years ago, so I am hopefully set for a helmet for a while yet. No picture I've seen online has done justice to the detail and color on that helmet in person  and stepping up to that from a bargain bin HJC I got just before my first bike was a revelation. https://www.cyclegear.com/gear/shoei-x-14-laverty-helmete: and I always forgot Revzilla is basically the same thing and they always have the same sales
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Oct 19, 2019 03:16
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All the big US online gear stores clearly ship out of the same warehouse, they'll have the same selection, I shopped Revzilla, Motosport, and Rocky Mountain today, and all three have exactly 1 pair of blue/hi-viz Tech 7's in a size 14, on sale for +/- $10 of each other.
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Oct 19, 2019 19:59
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Ok so on the subject from a few pages ago I got my dry bag and cargo net and I think this is totally gonna work for camping. It’s not going anywhere and I got the bag down to just 13 lbs.
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Oct 19, 2019 20:55
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ah, the v strom packing method
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Oct 20, 2019 01:32
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Rolo posted:Ok so on the subject from a few pages ago I got my dry bag and cargo net and I think this is totally gonna work for camping. It’s not going anywhere and I got the bag down to just 13 lbs. gently caress yeah man. That’s all you need for a short trip. Go have fun rather than putting it off till you get the “right” gear. Get a tank bag though, so you can get poo poo out of your pockets and don’t have anything you might really need to get to in your roll top.
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Oct 20, 2019 02:53
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HenryJLittlefinger posted:gently caress yeah man. That’s all you need for a short trip. Go have fun rather than putting it off till you get the “right” gear. Yeah! Also keeps me from waiting until I have the “right” bike. I want to get as much use out of this as I can without anything pushing me to upgrade too early. My next bike will be something 600-700 which I can do adventure things and track day with. Not sure what that is but I’ve got a good while to look. HenryJLittlefinger posted:Get a tank bag though, so you can get poo poo out of your pockets and don’t have anything you might really need to get to in your roll top. This is next. For the time being I have a very low profile Osprey backpack that secures well without any flaps or dangly bits. Probably what I’m gonna keep my water bladder and down jacket in. Rolo fucked around with this message at 03:32 on Oct 20, 2019 |
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Oct 20, 2019 03:25
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After about 2 hours in the shop this morning, I ended up with a hjc rpha 90. It feels much tighter than my other helmet, but it fits and isn't uncomfortable, just... very snug. I'm told the cheek pads will break in, hopefully that's the case because it's gonna suck if they don't.
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Oct 20, 2019 08:39
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Elector_Nerdlingen posted:After about 2 hours in the shop this morning, I ended up with a hjc rpha 90. If you can get it onto your head in the right position without ripping your ears off, it’s the right size. Wear it around the house while you do dishes and vacuum and poo poo, if you clean your disgusting goon nest. Or while you play video games. If you can’t chew gum in it without biting your cheeks after a handful of 30-minute wears around the house and a ride or three, look into getting thinner cheek pads. They’ll probably break in though.
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Oct 20, 2019 15:28
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Today at church, someone asked me if I was still interested in getting a motorcycle. He said he was working a job for a lady that was looking to sell a 2001 Honda Shadow. She told him, it hasn't run for a couple of years. It has 7900 miles and she's looking for $500 to just be rid of it. That is literally all I know at this point. I'm not savvy enough with bikes yet to go alone, but I have an uncle I can probably persuade to go with me to look at it, should I go that far with this, but I have some concerns. How long is "a couple of years"? And if it has sat for that long, aside from whether it'll start or not, what else should I be looking for if it has been sitting as long as she says? It'll need fluids, a battery and probably tires. My intention was to go through a dealer for my first bike, so I'm hesitant to go through some rando, especially if it has been sitting for a long time. $500 seems really low for a bike in good nick, so I'm just assuming that it has a ton of issues. I'm seeing similar bikes sold at dealers for $2k, so I'm interested to see if this is a good enough price to deal with the potential hassle or if I should stick with my initial plan of just looking at dealers. I'm not particularly picky at this point, since this will be my first bike, just looking for a cruiser as they are comfortable for me, and I really like the style/noise. Should I avoid it or is it at least worth it to get more info? Here are some pictures he took for me: (I'm not sure if the wet spot under the bike is something leaking from the bike or not)  
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Oct 20, 2019 17:24
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That is a bad idea for a first bike and means to get into the hobby. You will end up paying a bunch to get it running in a way that a new rider needs (zero issues, very reliable so you can concentrate on learning to ride). You will likely have to pay so much to get it in good working order that you could take the same eventual cost and buy an identical bike that is already in a turnkey state. Shadow 650s seem to be about $1500-2500 around me depending on trim. Do you want to actually be a motorcycle rider or do you want a toy with “style and noise?” Have you taken the MSF course? Have you budgeted several hundred bucks for proper gear? How serious are you about this?
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Oct 20, 2019 18:03
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| # ? Jun 10, 2024 22:34 |
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HenryJLittlefinger posted:That is a bad idea for a first bike and means to get into the hobby. You will end up paying a bunch to get it running in a way that a new rider needs (zero issues, very reliable so you can concentrate on learning to ride). You will likely have to pay so much to get it in good working order that you could take the same eventual cost and buy an identical bike that is already in a turnkey state. Shadow 650s seem to be about $1500-2500 around me depending on trim. Yes, I have taken the safety course and have my license. Yes, I'm well aware the cost of decent gear.
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Oct 20, 2019 18:35
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