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Martytoof posted:Question for everyone who started on a 125 or 250: How long before you found yourself wanting to upgrade? How long before you actually upgraded? What was your next jump? Started on a 250, went for 18,600 miles... before it was stolen. Bought a second bike while I still had the first one, a 1978 750... had it for about 6-7,000 miles. Bought another 250, had it for 4,200 miles, whereupon it was rearended. Bought a 350, had that for about 12,000 miles before the header broke and I did not want to fix it. Bought a 125, still have it. It's been about 13,000 miles. (Also have yet another 250 again, +7,000 miles) But I live in the city, where it's more practical to own small motorcycles.
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Oct 8, 2019 19:42
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Had my 125 for a year before getting my full license and buying a 700. Tried riding the 125 a few weeks ago. It was fun, but I don’t miss it. It has enough power for a day to day commute in the city, but I found overtaking anyone going over 30 without a runway of straight to be a little troublesome. Do I suggest going straight to a 700, probably not. 250 or 450 would have been fine, and I’m slightly regretful I didn’t get something smaller.
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Oct 8, 2019 20:55
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Martytoof posted:Question for everyone who started on a 125 or 250: How long before you found yourself wanting to upgrade? How long before you actually upgraded? What was your next jump? About ten years riding 50-250cc bikes, and to be honest it was a mistake: I let the internet and friends opinion sway me into thinking I needed a bigger bike, and after putting a lot of time and money into it I'm finding that it's just not me. The acceleration is cool, sure, but the only time I really need the bike's power is on the highway, and the highway is the worst part of riding a bike (boring, noise, etc). I bought it in large part so it'd be easier with a pillion, but of course my partner hates the bike and has completely lost interest: it's big, intimidating, and loud. Aside from the initial "HECK YA" acceleration I find riding it to be tedious. I'm constantly having to check the speedo to make sure I'm not going 10-15 over (remember: it's more fun to ride a slow bike fast than the other way around). It is too heavy offroad - much harder to ride and it's to the point I won't ride trails by myself anymore because there are too many situations where I'd need a second person to extracate the bike. This is a KLR we're talking about, not a GS1150 or anything. "Big" bikes are just not for me. Ethics_Gradient fucked around with this message at 21:47 on Oct 8, 2019 |
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Oct 8, 2019 21:45
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A decent modern 250 probably has as much power as my old 400, so you can't just compare displacements.
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Oct 8, 2019 22:04
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Chris Knight posted:A decent modern 250 probably has as much power as my old 400, so you can't just compare displacements. You could never compare displacements, in 1989 Honda were producing air cooled 400 singles with about 30hp at the same time as liquid cooled 400 i4's with about double. But most learner bikes are broadly similar across the years because what's good for learning doesn't really change with technology, the r3/390/ninja400 trend of bigger faster learner bikes is a really recent thing.
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Oct 8, 2019 22:11
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Martytoof posted:Question for everyone who started on a 125 or 250: How long before you found yourself wanting to upgrade? How long before you actually upgraded? What was your next jump? I started on a 1979 XS400, which had the power delivery and top speed of a modern 250. I jumped to an XJ600 (power delivery and top speed of a modern 500 probably) after probably 2000 miles and put probably 25,000 miles on it, loving it the whole time until I really got into thumpers and dirt roads. That transition was probably a very smart thing for me to have done, because 1.) it was a pretty modest jump from a boring unreliable bike that I was slowly destroying as I tried to turn it into a cafe racer, 2.) the XJ600 was extremely reliable, needed nothing, and had comparatively miles better suspension and brakes so I could actually learn about riding rather than living a fantasy of being a scenester, and 3.) was just capable and powerful enough of a platform to learn maintenance and other wrenching on to keep me interested in it for years after. One way to extend the fun years of your bike, depending on what it is, is to start sensibly upgrading things like suspension and jetting/airbox/exhaust for little incremental bits of performance on a bike with which you're already familiar. Not dumping a shitload of money into it for bling, but actually tuning some things for you. Maybe also do some track days, I hear that's a good way to enhance the experience. Take a gymkhana course. Or the BRC2/ERC.
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Oct 8, 2019 23:53
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I started on a 50cc arctic cat dirt bike at age 7 
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Oct 9, 2019 01:34
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Question: Temps are dropping, but I have the need, the need for speed. I weigh 140 sans gear, ~155 with. Riding on a CBR300R, OEM tire pressure recommendations are 29psi/29psi, which is my current pressure according to two different gauges. Tires are Battlax S20 Evos with ~3 months and ~ 1500 miles on them, they're starting to square a little due to a lot of highway miles but still well over half of the tread remaining, and otherwise in good shape. Located in Maryland, so current temps are 50-70 F, 13-20 C (approx) I am thinking of dropping down to 26 psi or so to get the tires to warm up faster and to hold higher temps for more grip, since they only get kinda lukewarm even after sustained highway riding. Is this going to result in my untimely demise due to loss of traction and/or premature tire wear? Or is it a good and cool idea for smarties? (Are street tires even supposed to get hot? I know race slicks are supposed to go up to like 140F or whatever, but I assume that street tires aren't supposed to get that hot) DearSirXNORMadam fucked around with this message at 04:17 on Oct 9, 2019 |
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Oct 9, 2019 04:14
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Mirconium posted:Question: Temps are dropping, but I have the need, the need for speed. I weigh 140 sans gear, ~155 with. Riding on a CBR300R, OEM tire pressure recommendations are 29psi/29psi, which is my current pressure according to two different gauges. Tires are Battlax S20 Evos with ~3 months and ~ 1500 miles on them, they're starting to square a little due to a lot of highway miles but still well over half of the tread remaining, and otherwise in good shape. That's not going to do anything useful and probably accelerate cupping of your tires, leading to lovely handling down the road. Go with pressures listed on the swingarm or (told to me by pro racer/instructor) sidewall max minus 2 psi if it's just you and no load. If you want sticky tires, get new tires with a softer compound with a colder operating range. If you're a newish rider (<2 years, right?) riding primarily highway miles, there's no way in hell you're pushing the traction limits unless you're doing stupid poo poo. Someone will likely come along and give a better explanation of rubber compounds and operating temperatures and why racing slicks have such a high temperature range, but the difference in traction at start up temperatures and full operating temperature in regular consumer tires is not something the average goober on a biek will ever notice. Additional answer: A 3-psi difference is unlikely to do anything you'll ever notice under any conditions, BUT running under-inflated tires changes the shape of the carcass in ways that they are not designed to operate. With under-inflated tires, your steering goes to poo poo, things feel unstable in corners (in different ways at different points in the corner) because now you've introduced an additional z-axis of movement (side to side) that is not supposed to be there because the sidewall is now softer than it was designed to operate. Under-inflated tires have introduce slower rebound to your suspension, changing the amplitude and frequency of motion in the y-axis and loving up the feedback from the road to the operator. Don't intentionally under-inflate tires on a street bike, especially when "I have the need, the need for speed." HenryJLittlefinger fucked around with this message at 04:58 on Oct 9, 2019 |
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Oct 9, 2019 04:51
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I'm not a tire expert, but can't you just measure the PSI before you leave, then again once you arrive, and make sure it increased 3 - 5 PSI? That's what Dave Moss recommended, although he also wanted all of us to start higher than usual, ride around and see how it feels, the next day drop 2 PSI, etc, all the way down to a fair amount lower than usual, and see what feels best. But I don't think you'd want to commute on too low a pressure.
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Oct 9, 2019 05:23
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Probably should have posted before committing, but I wanna poll the goon hive mind. I've ridden a CRF250L for about 10k km's in the last 4 years as a real weekend warrior type just hitting local twisties. PO had Michelin siracs but they were getting worn down to close to legal minimum tread at my last inspection so I popped in to my local shop to get a set of pre-emtive new tires. The mechanic recommended some conti-go!'s for them since I asked for more or less a pure road tire since I haven't hit gravel in a long time since I moved to a more metropolitan area. I haven't thought too much about it before buying them but I'm not finding anything online in terms of resources. Any goons ran them and any thoughts? It might be a few more years before I get a new set but if I like them should I just go get some sumo rims and run more road biased tires?
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Oct 9, 2019 06:10
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Get a pair of TKC-80's, ride around the city with all manner of vibration, to remind you to go out and hit some trails. Buy a street bike over a marginal sumo/dirt bike if you're city oriented IMO, like an r3 or something with abs, they're getting cheap and miles better than your dirtbike, maybe not more fun tho.
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Oct 12, 2019 06:47
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SHAQ4PREZ posted:I need some winter storage advice. I have a non running '82 Katana I need to put away for the winter and I'm not sure which option is better. Do not store ANYTHING in a structure that floods, everything will get coated in mold or mildew, they literally never loving dry out, any bike can live uncovered for years outside, grab a cheap cover or tarp, and fasten securely once you've drained the carbs and put the battery on a tender and you should be good to go.
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Oct 12, 2019 06:50
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My bike's fixed now but because I bought my coil cheap from a breaker it now has HT leads labelled 1, 1, 4, 4  I just know some time in the future when I service it there's going to be explosions. Azza Bamboo fucked around with this message at 18:27 on Oct 12, 2019 |
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Oct 12, 2019 18:23
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Carb jetting vs exhaust backpressure questions! Before going any further cosmetically, I need my 96 cbr600f3 project running right. I'll be the first to admit that my understanding of how fuel and air is metered via carburators is weak but improving. I've come to the conclusion that in order to get my bike running right all the time, I need to match my jet sizes to the exhaust I'm going to be using. Higher flow exhaust requires higher flowing jets. Also I have a clean and lightly lubricated k&n intake filter that came with the bike. Currently I've been running the previous owners hand made muffler which is horribly loud and lovely sounding. My driveability issue was this: great power delivery until cruising in the ranges of 55-75 mph, where the exhaust note becomes inconsistent and throttle response disappears until you kick down to third. I took the carbs off, removed the Jets(keeping track of their locations of course) soaked in gum cutter, used no tools to clean them, but was disappointed to find they weren't that dirty. Everything goes back together, replaced the dead fuel pump, go for a ride and find my problem is still present but actually a bit worse, leaving me to wonder if by cleaning the Jets, I've made the problem worse. Something else I noticed, the cylinder 1 umm intake flap,please excuse me , the thing that is attached to the diaphragm with the long needle on it does not open with the rest of the gang when revving it. It's possible I pinched the gasket that goes around that diaphragm, but I'm wondering if maybe I need to pull the cylinder head and check the valve seats(I've been asked if I've had the valves done on this 50k mile bike). Can one do a cylinder leakdown test like I would on a car to determine if I have a poorly seating valve, or is it just so common for valves to wear out that they are due every 20k miles? Should I replace the valves or can I regrind them if they look ok? I have to get this thing 100% operational before I let myself get into another bike, as I'll never look at the f3 again if I replace it, meaning it will just sit around collect dust, and I'll be out the $1500 or so I have in it. What do you say guys? I know someone has a quick fix for me, for example: go get the stock muffler off eBay, buy this jet kit, check compression, enjoy. Please advise Edit: I was able to get a few excellent rides in this year(central Ohio goon) but I want to be the guy that rides to work every day starting next spring, it's that time of year again  . So here's a photo of how she sits right now, please help a fellow good live his budget motorcycle dream!interwhat fucked around with this message at 17:37 on Oct 13, 2019 |
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Oct 13, 2019 17:24
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 Edit: Bonus KUZTOM muffler. Look at this monstrosity!  Thought: would it make sense to get an oem muffler and oem jets? Would I be ok then still with the k and n? interwhat fucked around with this message at 18:13 on Oct 13, 2019 |
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Oct 13, 2019 17:40
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interwhat posted:Carb jetting vs exhaust backpressure questions! This reads like a classic case of multiple problems about to be exacerbated by random fiddling, your bike and approach and everything else is extremely typical of the sorts of inquiries I deal with daily. A dumb noisy pipe + air filter won't drastically affect the bike. Yes you would theoretically need to rejet but the changes would be very small, like one jet size bigger on the pilots and mains and maybe a shim under the needles, and that's on the optimistic assumption that the horrible pipe does anything to improve efficiency at all. Your k&n will make a miniscule difference; I'm assuming it's a panel filter in the factory airbox, if you have pod filters or a cut up intake, all hope is lost sorry. But that's not where your problem is. Do a compression test and check the valve clearances if it'll make you feel better, you might find something, but probably not because it's overwhelmingly more likely that the carbs are just tuned wonky as gently caress atm. First thing is you need to find out why that carb diaphragm isn't moving like the others, your have zero chance of achieving anything while that's going on. Either the diaphragm has a tear or the slide mechanically jamming, or there's insufficient pressure difference because the little air passages going to the slide are clogged or you have an enormous vacuum leak. Keep in mind the slides won't operate properly with the airbox not on the bike, but you should see similar amounts of movement on all four and they should all have similar resistance when moved by hand and return smoothly to shut when you let them go. Once that is corrected, and only then, you need to set them up correctly. Start by setting all the pilot screws about 2 turns out as a baseline (hope they all have a spring, washer and o-ring in the correct order!). Then synch the throttles with a manometer. A home made one is equally effective as a decent bought one but fiddlier, if you want to just buy something good that works well get a carbtune pro, google that poo poo. The goal is to get all four cylinders the same at correct idle speed; you'll find that as you synch them the idle will increase, this is a good thing and means you're heading in the right direction, just keep turning it down to 1500 or whatever until you get them balanced. At this point you should have a good enough running bike that you can start CALMLY and METHODICALLY working out if you need to alter jetting etc. If you get that far I'm happy to explain how to go about this. Making multiple changes on a bike that barely runs at all is just introducing more error and making it harder for yourself. A factory manual would be very helpful to you right now. Good luck!
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Oct 13, 2019 19:08
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That's an excellent bit of direction I desperately needed, I will be in touch. I have been working with the manual as well, just not sure where to start.
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Oct 13, 2019 20:01
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when you say "flap thingy" do you mean the throttle valve? Oh nah I just looked at a picture of carbs like yours and the slide does look like a flap yeah. It's the slide. Azza Bamboo fucked around with this message at 04:44 on Oct 14, 2019 |
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Oct 14, 2019 04:26
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Reminds me, I never did do a carb synch on the Rex. With the Wee sold, I should grab one of them carbtune things. I'd thought about building a manometer but why gently caress around setting up your tools when you can gently caress around setting up your bike
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Oct 14, 2019 05:50
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Slavvy posted:This reads like a classic case of multiple problems about to be exacerbated by random fiddling, your bike and approach and everything else is extremely typical of the sorts of inquiries I deal with daily. Do all this. Anecdotally, I had a sticky slide on a carb and went nuts trying to figure it out. Finally tracked it down to the needle being ever so slightly out of line with the emulsion tube/needle jet. Check your needle and see if the brass is worn off a bit along one side of it. Sometimes they can be brought back in line by just flicking and wiggling. Mine took disassembly and iirc some very light rubbing in a rag with a bit of grinding compound, and a good scrub on the inside on the emulsion tube with a pipe cleaner soaked in solvent. You can save a chunk of time with your carb synching by doing a bench synch with bb’s before putting them back on the bike and doing a vacuum synch. Basically what [url= https://youtu.be/oVlLitzF38I]this guy is doing[/url], but with a bb in each carb, slowly opening the throttle so you can see which one falls through 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, adjusting the carbs until they all fall through at the same time. HenryJLittlefinger fucked around with this message at 06:34 on Oct 14, 2019 |
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Oct 14, 2019 06:29
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Why not just use a feeler gauge  but yeah bench balancing can definitely be helpful if poo poo is really out of whack.
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Oct 14, 2019 09:47
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Phy posted:Reminds me, I never did do a carb synch on the Rex. With the Wee sold, I should grab one of them carbtune things. I'd thought about building a manometer but why gently caress around setting up your tools when you can gently caress around setting up your bike My fazer's EFI but the throttle bodies need synching and man the carbtune is so nice. I used to just stick individual pressure gauges on the hose ends but they weren't mine. I bought my Carbtune and just seeing the bars next to each other is so much neater.
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Oct 14, 2019 13:51
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Slavvy posted:Why not just use a feeler gauge I find that my flat feeler gauges are kind of a bitch to use when checking clearance between two curved things, and the tin of bb's is easily on hand.
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Oct 14, 2019 23:07
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I'd like to go ahead and replace the diaphragms but I am having a hard time finding rebuild kits that include them. eBay/Amazon are hit and miss, fuel pump came leaking from the case right out of the box, and OEM is OUTRAGEOUSLY expensive. Anyone have any reputable carb sources?
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Oct 15, 2019 16:36
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For specific parts I always see if there's a breakers yard around breaking a bike like mine. Then give them a call and ask if someone has already taken the [part]. Sometimes they just put all the parts up individually on their ebay page. Chances are they'll want you to take the whole carb, though.
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Oct 15, 2019 16:45
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interwhat posted:I'd like to go ahead and replace the diaphragms but I am having a hard time finding rebuild kits that include them. eBay/Amazon are hit and miss, fuel pump came leaking from the case right out of the box, and OEM is OUTRAGEOUSLY expensive. Anyone have any reputable carb sources? Should keep diaphragms unless they are torn IMO. Doesn't seem like chinese spares are expensive: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Membrane-Diaphragm-Carburetor-Vacuum-For-Honda-CBR600-F3-1995-1996-1997-1998/183962005337
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Oct 15, 2019 17:00
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I like Amazon, since they'll usually refund you while you run the Chinese QA gambit, expect maintenance intervals to go up sharply if you go the Chineseum replacement route though.
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Oct 16, 2019 03:40
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Normal behaviour: tail light comes on when key is turned to on (before engine start). Current behaviour turn key to on, no tail light. Brake light still works prior to engine start. Post engine start, still no tail light. Jiggle the wiring harness around my handlebars, still nothing, no flickering, it just stays unlit. Ride 30 miles home, dismount, tail light is on now. gently caress knows when that happened. Further jiggling of harness doesn't induce any flicker, so it doesn't seem like a broken wire. Hit killswitch, engine dies but light stays on. Turn key to off, lights go out. Turn key back on, tail light doesn't come on. Restart engine, still no light. How do I even begin to trace this 
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Oct 21, 2019 21:28
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Renaissance Robot posted:Normal behaviour: tail light comes on when key is turned to on (before engine start). Does the tail light come on if you sit on the bike?
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Oct 21, 2019 21:30
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It didn't the first time, no.
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Oct 21, 2019 22:29
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interwhat posted:I'd like to go ahead and replace the diaphragms but I am having a hard time finding rebuild kits that include them. eBay/Amazon are hit and miss, fuel pump came leaking from the case right out of the box, and OEM is OUTRAGEOUSLY expensive. Anyone have any reputable carb sources? These guys should make diaphragm replacements for the F3: http://jbmindustries.com/ This is just the diaphragm itself and not the slide. Protip: when reassembling carbs, especially when the rack is 2 or more, bench test the carbs for leaks: 
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Oct 21, 2019 22:47
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Renaissance Robot posted:Normal behaviour: tail light comes on when key is turned to on (before engine start). LED or incandescent bulb? If its a bulb a broken filament can sometimes weld itself back together when its flailing around while you're driving and you get a little more time out of it.
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Oct 21, 2019 23:05
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Incandescent. I assumed it was a broken filament at first but seeing it lit after I got home has thrown me. I'll pull the bulb on Wednesday anyhow, see what's up.
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Oct 21, 2019 23:07
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echomadman posted:LED or incandescent bulb? If its a bulb a broken filament can sometimes weld itself back together when its flailing around while you're driving and you get a little more time out of it. This is what I'd put my money on. Sooo many number plate lights can be fixed with a quick whack.
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Oct 22, 2019 00:34
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Was also gonna say bulb. Take it out and put it back in.
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Oct 22, 2019 03:12
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Tested again this morning, same behaviour, but at the end of the ride after switching it off and on again I tried revving it up a few times and that brought the light back on. So yeah, seems like a dodgy filament that got vibrated back together probably. Thanks!
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Oct 22, 2019 08:35
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Renaissance Robot posted:Tested again this morning, same behaviour, but at the end of the ride after switching it off and on again I tried revving it up a few times and that brought the light back on. So yeah, seems like a dodgy filament that got vibrated back together probably. Thanks! That seems odd that the filament has broken and spontaneously welded it self back multiple times. And your bike doesn't vibrate so much that the filament is flailing around by a few revs, does it? But the charging voltage goes up when you do. So my money is on "one of the innumerable, strange symptoms of a battery going bad".
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Oct 22, 2019 10:45
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Yeah I'm back to not knowing what the gently caress, pulled the bulb just now on my lunch break and it looks fine? Also it came straight on when I turned the key, so who knows. Mildly dirty contacts maybe?
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Oct 22, 2019 13:17
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Renaissance Robot posted:Mildly dirty contacts maybe? That can cause problems yeah. Or the bendy leaf contact engaging only a very tiny point. Sometimes it helps to bend it around a bit so you get a bigger contact surface.
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Oct 22, 2019 13:30
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