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Re: Commuter bike. If it's a highway commute, find something that can comfortably do highway speeds. It's nice to be able to overtake while still in top gear. On older bikes, take the effects of ethanol containing gasoline into account. Some bikes really don't like that. You don't wanna spend extra money on expensive low/no ethanol gas, if you ride lots and lots. That said, the Honda CB or CBF500 is a great, reliable bike. Available with ABS which is a great bonus if you expect to ride in the rain. Should also be fairly economical. Upright position does mean you catch quite some wind. I had a cb500f at my riding school, with carbs, but never had issues with those. The SV650s is also a great bike. Much more comfortable than the cbf500. Effortless overtaking in top gear, effortless pulling away when rolling along with traffic from 2000rpm. Fuel injection from the 2nd generation onwards, ABS available from the later 2nd generation -s model and the Gladius. But at least the first generation with carb isn't that economical. 5l/100km is my average, 6l/100km when riding sporty. The carb is pretty reliable, never had vague/unpredictable issues with it. I did have carburetor icing below 5 deg C, when riding in fog or rain, but i am aware of the cause - i don't have the automatic carburetor heating installed. But as much as i love that bike, i would not recommend a bike without ABS if you're forced to share the roads with tons of cars in rainy weather. I also rode a cbf600sa. That bike is regarded as a good commuter, but i didn't like it. Comfortable enough, but in slow corners (like in cities) it feels unstable and tippy. One bike that also feeled like a great commuter was the ducati monster 797. The little wind deflector works very well, it's comfy and everything goes effortlessly. No idea about the fuel consumption, though. Probably a bit too expensive too. Finally, i would try and find something with decent fairing or windshield if you commute on the highway. Wind is annoying imho.
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Dec 30, 2020 12:58
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Steakandchips posted:You said the SV650S is more comfortable than the CBF500, you mean ergo wise, or "comfort" as in you are more comfortable overtaking using the SV650? Your follow on sentence implies the latter, but best to clarify! Both the cbf500 and the SV are quick enough for easy overtaking, though the 500 is slower of course. If you are low in the revs in top gear, expect car-like acceleration on the cb500f. They were carb'd but with catalytic converter until 2007 or so. But i mean more that it's more pleasant to sit on the SV. The seat is plush (from the 1999 model), the ride is very smooth (up to the point that many people replace the stock springs because they want better handling). The SV -s has just a hint of sporty in the seating position which feels to me as a 'secure' seating position. The 2017 non-S sv650 is pretty upright, like the cb500. It's also narrower than the 1999 SV. I don't recall much about the seating comfort, but it is extremely chuckable and feels much lighter than the old SV.
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Dec 31, 2020 23:47
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Coydog posted:Outside of the cool factor of "organic improvements and an evolution directly linked to the original", how is that better than "in the last 90 years we realized how to make engines and it looks nothing like it started and that's ok" normal engine with a bunch of neato bits on it. Objectively? Not better. It's solely the cool factor, combined with habituation/knowing exactly what you can expect from the engine, and perhaps people who like simplistic technology. I love elemental, simple tech, because it makes me feel good if i understand 90% of how it works. I also like the feeling of mechanical things and their character. It's even better if there are no electronics involved aside from a coil and a distributor. I spend most of my days interacting with electronics, so when there are none, it just feels good to me. I don't like harleys though. But it wouldn't take much peer pressure to make me buy an Ural or a Royal Enfield. Oh god i so want a solo ural...
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Feb 12, 2021 20:59
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Gladius? The KTM SMC-R is the quintessential gay bike. I swear, every european gay biker seems to be getting a ktm/husqvarna supermoto, or a Duke 390 if they are power limited.
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Feb 22, 2021 19:56
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In the Netherlands, people who cycle around after midnight in a city, can be assumed to be drunk. There aren't many options to get around town or get home when you go out to the bars or a club or whatever - we don't really have proper night time public transport, though the biggest cities may have an hourly or two-hourly service to the suburbs that takes twice as long as cycling. Taxis are unrealistically expensive. Walking is often too big of a distance. So what's left, is the bicycle, unless you wait until 05:30 or so and take the first bus in the morning. But with many places closing at 01.00 on weekdays, 04.00 on weekends, most people prefer cycling home. Strictly speaking, it's illegal to be drunk on your bicycle. But in practice, it's no problem. Cyclists are never stopped for random breathalyzer tests. The only reason you'd get in trouble, is if you cause an accident.
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Apr 5, 2021 13:51
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I want a DR like that one so badly. But gently caress paying $4000 for it.
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Apr 28, 2021 16:08
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I'm thinking about buying this ugly bastard: Hyperpro suspension, R6 brakes, genuinely well maintained, fresh chain set. 650 euro. I've ridden on it a while back, it corners so nicely. Only thing is it needs a new clutch, which slips when the engine is cold, but apparently i get a pack of clutch disks with it. The rest of the mechanics are in excellent condition. i don't need it, but i've been lusting after a 90s 4 cyl sportbike for a while now... Already contemplating getting some fresh fairings and decals. Tell me this is a good plan. I want it. I can afford it. I've just gotten used to being really skimpy with 'expensive' things from being really poor for years, but this thing costs me less than half a month's wage... LimaBiker fucked around with this message at 14:41 on May 8, 2021 |
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May 8, 2021 14:34
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It's a 1993 Yamaha FZR600, just with its front fairing missing.
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May 8, 2021 15:09
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I did it! Now to train all the way across the country (a whole of 3 hours - the benefits of having a tiny country) to go and fetch it.
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May 8, 2021 15:39
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I know the guy, i've ridden the bike, i know the bike's history and there's a whole list of parts bought for it. There is an extensive write up on a dutch forum about all the things done to it, because it was a 500 euro forums challenge bike. Find and fix up a bike for under 500 euro, the best one gets a prize. So while not perfect, it's a decent ride. The 500 euro budget was excluding safety critical components like brake parts and tires. He has multiple SVs and a GS500 and this thing was gonna be his track bike, but it fell into disuse due to c19 and the fact that you can't ride 4 bikes at once... I trust it more than a random 500-1000 euro bike on Marktplaats/craigslist. LimaBiker fucked around with this message at 16:04 on May 8, 2021 |
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May 8, 2021 16:00
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Idk. The GS500 is pretty heavily modified too. I didn't ride that one, but it certainly wasn't stock. No idea if he still has it, it's been a year since i rode with him and got my brakes done at his place. My first bike almost became a cbr600 (jelly bean model) from a similar challenge, for a similar amount of money. But the owner didn't wanna keep it until i was done with my riding lessons, and in the end it was probably for the better. Would've been quite a jump in power from the 55ish HP cb500's i did my lessons on. LimaBiker fucked around with this message at 16:11 on May 8, 2021 |
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May 8, 2021 16:06
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Coydog posted:That frame looks soooo good. Clutches aren't usually hard to replace, since it's right there under the right cover. You might even get away with it by adjusting the clutch cable so it engages better. Anyway that seems like a good bike because it's dirt cheap and you know the PO/history. I got it because i've been lusting after early 90s dual round headlight sport bikes forever.  I'm gonna find some okay fairings for it. It's probably gonna stay black, unless i magically find a whole set in good shape with all original decals. Or perhaps i'll spray the whole thing bright yellow, if i can only find overpriced 'nice' fairings. The bike actually was originally gonna be converted to a streetfighter, before the current (well, now previous, i paid!) owner got it and decided 'nope' 
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May 8, 2021 19:37
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Slavvy posted:This conversation got me thinking: what are the absolute least painful bikes to own while still fulfilling a role that isn't Just A Bike? By least painful I mean a matrix of quality, reliability, idiot-proofing and cost + ease of maintenance, so forget 'character' or 'fun' or any kind of heart appeal at all. The 1st gen SV has 3 standard issues: - The voltage regulator fails between 35.000 and 50.000km. No idea if that's fixed in newer generations. - Some bikes aren't fitted with carburetor heaters, so if you ride in foggy, close to freezing weather, you get carb freezing on prolonged highway stretches. With carb heaters fitted, the carb is as close to maintenance free as it gets. Subsequent generations have EFI and don't have the issue. I can't be assed to fit them cause i rarely ride in conditions in which the carb freezes, and if it does, it's also not that big of a deal. - The SV325 issue. Rain splashed up from the road can enter the front spark plug hole, cutting out one cylinder. It seems to be fixed after a healthy dose of Holts Damp Start (a silicone sealant spray). Can also be fixed with a rubber sheet behind the radiator, or with a fender extender. Subsequent generations have an extra rain shield on the radiator and don't have the issue. These are all things you can fix on a saturday afternoon in an hour or so, but i'd say that people without any kind of feeling for mechanical things will be bothered by it. So i'd say the 2nd or current gen SV will be the absolute least painful to own. LimaBiker fucked around with this message at 11:37 on May 9, 2021 |
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May 9, 2021 11:32
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Slavvy posted:A miniature deltic would unironically be a phenomenal touring bike motor if you could figure out the packaging. Mister Millyard,, sir, would you please bless our roads with a Deltic bike, you absolute madlad? (if anyone doesn't know who Alan Millyard is, shame on you. He made a bike with 2 of the HUGE cylinders from a radial aeroplane engine, stitches engines together on the regular to make his own 6 in line, stitches multiple 2 stroke engines together to make a 4 or 6 cyl two stroke, and of course he has a V10 bike with Viper engine. Everything hand made, and extremely nicely crafted)
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May 19, 2021 22:05
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Step one: go to Amsterdam Step two: wait till midnight. Step 3: hang out in the city centre, wait for a guy riding around hissing 'Psst, fiets kopen?' Step four: offer him 100 bucks if he also 'has' electric bicycles. He should 'have' one, if you are willing to wait an hour or so. ??? Profit. That said, for €1500 you can get really nice 2nd hand ones, or a decent basic new one. Most are limited to 25km/h (so you don't have to wear a helmet with it).
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Aug 6, 2021 09:05
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Steakandchips posted:
I want it. gently caress that's a rad bike.
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Aug 17, 2021 12:22
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The r6 replacement kinda bike that is objectively pretty good, but will still leave you with a 'Sigh, i wish this had the 4 cylinder engine' kinda feeling i guess. Yamaha didn't bother with making the 600cc 4 cylinder engine euro 5 compliant. They did do that for the new R1, and the R6 is still available in a non-road legal version, but for the road legal "R6" replacement they just chucked in their parallel twin. Not that there's anything wrong with that, it's just... just...  Living through the end of the internal combustion age hurts a bit sometimes
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Aug 17, 2021 20:31
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That's a nice sofa. Why do you post it in the bike thread though?
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Sep 1, 2021 16:25
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Chiming in from the netherlands - lemme first tell something about our license system. TL; DR: Stuff is just REALLY strict here and if you are 24 and can't handle a fast bike, you won't get a license. We have 3 license classes: A1 with 11kw (>=18 years of age), A2 with 35kw (for >=20 years of age), and A with full power. The full power license you can get in 2 ways: you do your exam when you're 24 years or older, or you first get your A1, then your A2, and then you can do your A (full) at the age of 21 years old. Now, previously, the full power lessons (20-40 hours of training, times €60 per hour) were given on the 500cc class of bike which is quite sensible. However, with the introduction of the A2 class of bikes, most 500cc bikes are now downtuned to deliver exactly 35kw of power. Problem: you cannot do full power exams on a A2 class bike - you need a A-class bike. This means that today, all riding school bikes for the full power category, are already SV650 and ER6s. Occasionally you'll see some ancient ER5 or CB(f)500 which just about meets the criterium for 'full power' but those have almost all been taken out of service because of old age. The lessons themselves involve a lot of on-road time. If you don't use the power you have once in a while, you'll be encouraged by your teacher to send it on occasion. If you park it in corners and only gently accelerate out of them, you'll most definitely get a talking to. If you are 'afraid' of the bike on the exam, you fail. The whole counter leaning thing from F9's latest video, is very much used on the special handling parcours part of the lessons. In general, it'll take 2 or 3 months, before you are ready and/or allowed to do the exam (which is conducted by the department of motor vehicles, not by a for-profit organisation) So while i don't disagree that starting on a low powered bike is a good idea and can potentially help a lot to become a better biker quicker, it's also not as if you're taking a plunge in the deep, if you buy an SV650 right after you graduate riding school, because after all, you're encouraged to actually handle a 4 second 0-100km/h bike in a safe way in those lessons. 40 hours of being chased by an instructor screaming into your ear via the radio doesn't even get you close to being fully able to exploit everything a high power bike can do, but it does give you the tools to need to become a good rider - without killing yourself in the process. Despite lots of 24 year olds riding high powered bikes, we are the 3rd safest country for bikers in the EU, and have about 80% fewer biker fatalities than the USA has, when measured in fatalities per 100.000 bikes registered. LimaBiker fucked around with this message at 18:39 on Sep 17, 2021 |
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Sep 17, 2021 18:07
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Gonna be even less freedoms in the nearish future because it seems like an MOT for bikes is gonna be required soon-ish. I don't exactly know why they want that, because apparently accidents caused by bad maintenance/neglect are pretty rare. Something in the 1% range. I wonder if bikes with remapped ECUs still can pass emissions, and if they finally gonna do something about bikes without type approved exhausts or with exhausts with removed dB killer. The state of noise regulations is really weird. On tracks, sometimes bikes are refused because they make too much noise, but they are barely ever pulled over when on public roads. Meanwhile, nimbys are managing to get nice roads along meandering rivers closed off to bikers because of the noise. We don't have a lot of twisty roads so the few that are nice, are very popular. In any case, i don't worry too much about it because my bikes are mostly bone stock, or built with proper approved parts, except for the front blinkers on my SV and those are pretty cheap and easy to swap out, if the tests are gonna include checking for non-type approved blinky bits. LimaBiker fucked around with this message at 11:05 on Sep 18, 2021 |
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Sep 18, 2021 11:03
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Honestly, i don't care about stricter enforcement of sound regulations on the condition that there will be no further road closures to bikers. It's really poo poo that although i adhere to all regulations, with my bikes making about as much noise as a 2cv or a Beetle (noisier than average machines, which are totally allowed on the closed-for-bike roads), i'm also banned from those. Let alone the rich guy toys like the ferraris and lambos, or boy racer Imprezas, which can be really bloody loud, but are also allowed...
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Sep 19, 2021 10:28
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Supradog posted:Hm, thanks for the info SV650s are awesome. The engine is rev happy (goes to 10500rpm), but it doesn't *need* the revs. I mostly ride it between 3500 and 6500rpm. If you're in slow traffic and barely cracking open the throttle, it'll just roll along in 1st or 2nd gear at 2000rpm. And that is one of the best things about it. It just never bucks or runs rough, unless you're really abusing it. It's super usable in standard traffic situations. Of course you can't accelerate like normal from 2000rpm, but it's smooth enough to crawl in traffic at those revs. Many other bikes i tried need a lot more clutch modulation in slow, crawling traffic. On the opposite end, it's also just easy to ride quickly. Up to 180km/h it's totally happy and it will get there quickly, above that it starts to get a bit labored and feels a bit more sloppy (stock suspension). Gotta say, at 180km/h you really do need the half fairing of the S version, and you gotta lie down on the tank. My best fuel consumption number is 4,5l/100km. I average about 5,5l/100km including the occasional 'Wheee, bikey fast' urge i give into, so range with the 15l tank is very usable. At continuous full throttle on the autobahn it does 10l/100km, and that equals exactly 202km/h (Hi Mallard!) on GPS on my 22 year old SV. Definitely check one out. LimaBiker fucked around with this message at 12:37 on Nov 13, 2021 |
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Nov 13, 2021 12:34
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I did my riding lessons on Honda CBF500's: https://www.motorcyclespecs.co.za/model/Honda/honda_cbf500_06.html I think the newest one was from 2007 and still had carbs. They never had carburetor-related issues. They also had ABS, and i can highly recommend it as a first bike. It's not that comfortable though. Excluding really old bikes is reasonable, but in such cases you should also exclude older fuel injected bikes. After 20ish years rubber bits can start to deteriorate. My SV needs new fuel hoses within 1 or 2 years, my FZR already has new (and apparently really hard to find) air intake plenum like things for the carbs. Original one was cracked.
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Nov 14, 2021 22:04
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The good thing is that you don't randomly need to replace a carburetor. Get it professionally cleaned once, when you get the bike (1 or 2 hours of labor). Then forget about it for the next 10 years. It won't randomly do weird things. Unless you do a dumb and let the gas go gummy in the float bowls or let the gas tank go rusty. Some folks claim you absolutely need to reflash ECUs to change the engine mapping on an EFI bike on certain models because they run like rear end. That doesn't mean that EFI per definition is a hassle.
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Nov 14, 2021 22:17
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It's mostly a niche bike problem. Japanese bikes and appliance bikes are not usually that unreliable. BMW's flying bricks are well known for high odo readings, though electrically they can be really finicky. But keep in mind bike engines have staggeringly high power to displacement and power to weight ratios, so they do wear out quicker than your average family car. Example: a run of the mill SV650 has 75ish HP from a 650cc engine. A Lamborghini Huracan has a 780hp from a 6.5l engine. Extrapolate the power from the SV to 6.5l, and you end up with 750hp. One of the most ordinary bikes on the market has almost the exact same power to displacement ratio as a loving Huracan. SV/Weestrom engines last for a decently long time too. I'd dare say they catch fire less often than lambo's too! Do the same for a GSXR1000 and you end up with 1200hp. Those aren't exactly known for being unreliable, right? Bikes are amazing. I now want a gixxer just for the amazingness of the engineering. How can you have extreme car tuner levels of power:displacement, and still have a bike that just works?! LimaBiker fucked around with this message at 19:15 on Dec 1, 2021 |
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Dec 1, 2021 19:12
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Slide Hammer posted:Do Europeans still have the unfortunate circumstance of paying the exact same figure that people in the United States pay, just in Euros? Hard to compare. It varies per country too. The Netherlands has huge penalties on fuel inefficient cars, so a Corvette or a Mustang are six figure cars. Vehicle specific tax sits around 50 percent on those cars. On the other hand, list prices include sales and vehicle specific tax, and at worst you get just a few hundred in dealership fees tacked on. Belgium does not have this very strict emissions related tax regime. So while an average family in the Netherlands drives a VW Golf or Kia Ceed, in Belgium they typically drive a BMW 3 or Audi A4 diesel. Many workers from Poland or other eastern block countries, drive their east europe registered Merc's and BMWs here and it's very odd to see, that the people making quite low wages drive cars that are here pretty much reserved for the petit bourgeoisie. One thing that differs very strongly is how good 2nd hand cars are over here. Older cars have mandatory yearly tests. So even if you get a 500 euro car (and there are lots of them) you will get a car that has properly functioning brakes, doesn't burn so much oil that it starts to fail the strict emissions tests, doesn't have structural rust that instantly fails them etc etc. Bikes don't have MOT (yet) but it's quite easy to buy sub 1000 euro big bikes and still have something that's totally functional, though it will probably have a sloppy chain and old tires. It's a great country for bangernomics, though if you have one, you really can't skimp on maintenance or you'll fail the MOT. So you tell me, i guess. All figures include sales and vehicle tax, at worst a dealership tacks on a few hundred bux extra but in general the prices are very close to MSRP. All vehicles are base models with manual transmission unless unavailable (like in the Prius), the absolute cheapest you can get. Financing is available but i have no idea how much that costs. Not a whole lot of people use it, although private lease is getting more popular. If you can't afford the list price, you most often simply buy a 2nd hand car with the amount of money you *can* save up. For 5899 you get a Royal Enfield Himalayan. For 6.899 you get a Ninja 400. For 7899 you get an SV650. For 13.000 you get a brand new KTM SMC R 690, a Kawasaki Ninja ZX 6r, or a Mitsubishi Space Star (Mirage) For 15.500 you get a Citroen C1. For 23.000 you get a BMW R 1250 GS. For 32.000 you get a VW Golf For 33.695 you get a Prius. For 61.000 you get an Audi TT For something between 150.000 and 200.000 you get a Corvette C8. Base price in Germany, however, is 100.000, again because of fuel economy or emissions tax reasons. LimaBiker fucked around with this message at 11:16 on Dec 17, 2021 |
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Dec 17, 2021 11:07
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 This seems like a really bad choice to ride with a pillion. According to Google it has a max payload of 150kg. It looks small and has relatively little power. For city use it will be sufficient, but if you have 2 people on it and you wanna get on a trunk road between different city parts (with 80km/h speeds) you'll probably be going full power all the time. With a 2,7kWh battery and 5kW of power consumption, you'll get a range of about 30 minutes. Half power will get you about 50km/h and an hour of range, judging by how fast 50cc scooters here are going with 2 people on it (those are limited to about 2kW of power) With a single person, you'll get acceptable range and acceleration. Reliability is a big question mark. It's chinese, you never know until you try. I'd rather compare it to a 50 or 80cc scooter than compare it to an 125cc motorcyle. My advice (and this is assuming you are looking for an A1 class bike because you don't have a license, rather than being too young for a more powerful class): don't do it. Use this money to get your normal motorcycle license, and then see what you can buy with what's left over. For city use you'll be able to find something in the 250-500cc range that will be economical, but also totally happy to carry a pillion. Give it a few years, and electric bikes with more normal levels of power should start to get affordable. Especially if you ride with a pillion, having proper control (cornering and braking techniques, being able to ride slowly without losing balance) over your motorcycle is very important. Being scared of high speeds is a bad thing and you'll get rid of that fear after just a few lessons on the highway. If you are looking for A1 class bikes because you're too young for something more powerful and you want ride with a pillion, just try and find the most powerful 125cc out there. The Missenden Flyer on Youtube has reviewed a couple of A1 class bikes and while they seem a lot of fun, the lower powered ones are so low powered that they will have a hard time keeping up with a lorry in hilly terrain if you carry a passenger or a lot of luggage. LimaBiker fucked around with this message at 16:07 on Jan 9, 2022 |
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Jan 9, 2022 15:28
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My SV heats up quite quickly but i don't see that as the ideal city bike at all. It produces a shitton of heat idling on a warm summer's day. The lower the fuel consumption, the less heat it produces. Perhaps a CBR125rr would be both nice and smol for easy city use, as well as fun to use on your days off? Never tried one of those, no idea if they're manageable at all for commuting but they look fun. Or perhaps one of the A1 class supermotos? Scooters are indeed the ideal use case, but i'd personally would still go for a small bike rather than a scooter. Just because of the fun factor. LimaBiker fucked around with this message at 21:24 on Jan 17, 2022 |
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Jan 17, 2022 21:16
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If you go for a big bike, an SV really is one of the best choices. The engine has usable power down to really low revs. The carb'd bike also is impossible to make surge in low engine speed/low engine load conditions. It's so incredibly easy to ride that bike smoothly, whatever your speed or revs are. The newest version is childishly easy to ride in city traffic with pretty decent throttle mapping (though crank it open and it'll still be really fast in acceleration) However It does take some time to heat up simply because it's a big bike. On such short trips you'll effectively be riding half of the time with a lukewarm engine. Only at the end of the trip will it be close to thoroughly warm. But in winter you might not even reach that state. And that's just a bit sad. Conversely, if it's hot outside it will roast you. Not as bad as a ktm duke 790 does, but still, just because it consumes a lot more fuel than a small bike it gets hotter. Filtering is no longer optional if it's a nice sunny summer's day, traffic lights are hell. The bike can handle that just fine, i've never overheated mine ever, but it's really not comfortable. It consumes close to 6 liter per 100km in the city. For practicality and rationality, get a 125cc 4 stroke scooter. For fun, an 125cc bike. Perhaps a ninja 250 or similar if you also wanna occasionally traverse a bit of highway. But for city riding, i would kinda shy away from heavier stuff than that. LimaBiker fucked around with this message at 20:36 on Jan 18, 2022 |
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Jan 18, 2022 20:33
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I have no experience with just showing up at a dealership and asking for a test ride, but Ducati's test ride events in the Netherlands are really accessible, provided you register for a time slot the second the registration opens. I wanted to ride the Panigale but on every single day that week it was already fully booked on the day the registration opened. I rode a 2020 monster in 2020 (lovely) and a 2021 Supersport SS in 2021 (meh) that way. In 2020 they just gave you the bike (because of c19 reasons no group activities), sign a waiver for damages and speed tickets and asked to be back in 45 minutes. 2021 was a group ride, and that's what they usually do. KTM did exactly the same. I am tainted now because SMCRs and Dukes are hella fun.
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Feb 24, 2022 13:45
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It's all a usage case thing. If you keep everything stock, it'll all be fine. If you ride your bike at least once a month in winter, you're gonna be fine. Let it sit in winter, that's where things go wrong. Rejet stuff and things go wrong. Put performance air filters and exhausts on it, and things go wrong. Buy something from an owner who has screwed around it it, and you're hosed. My ugly FZR600 hasn't had carb issues for 2 years despite only seeing light use. It's sat for most of the winter, except for one short trip a month to keep the fuel in the floats fresh. My SV's carb had a revision set 4 years ago and hasn't given any issues since, except for an 'user error' thing: i ride it in winter, but i am too lazy to install the carb heaters it's supposed to have in cold climates. So occasionally when temperatures are near freezing and it's very humid or raining, it'll act up. I kinda avoid riding in those conditions so for that one time i gotta ride in wet almost icy weather... yeah. Even when i got water into the fuel for a few days and didn't discover it until the water was sucked into the carbs on the next ride, it didn't need any special maintenance except for getting the water out of the system. So in short: ride it once a month in winter and you won't have those 'carburetor issues' at all. If you insist on parking your bike for 5 months on end and do absolutely nothing with it, then just go for fuel injection.
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Mar 7, 2022 11:15
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It is very simplified yeah. But i think it kinda makes sense for folks who are 'afraid' of carbs, who either have bad experience with previous owners screwing with things, or who have done stuff wrong themselves and then didn't manage to unfuck it. Leave it stock, and provided you ride it regularly it'll be fine. I gotta admit, my FZR is slightly screwed. It lacks the exup exhaust valve thingie that is supposed to give more exhaust backpressure at low revs or whatever, idk. It makes the engine surge at low loads below 4000rpm, like when you're trying to quietly putter around a residential area at 30km/h. But that's well into the category of 'the PO tried to be smarter than the manufacturer but failed'.
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Mar 7, 2022 18:56
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I think that if it was that simple, that the previous owner would've already fixed it. The FZR was a forums challenge, 'who can get the best bike for 500 euro in total' (excluding safety critical parts). The PPO did the horrible street fighter conversion that consisted of ruining all the electronics, putting on supermoto style handle bars, and removing the original exhaust and the exup valve. And ignoring the cracked rubber inlet plenum that it had. The PO unfucked most things. He's pretty drat good, on the level of 'able to repair his GF's SV650 that had a broken cam chain tensioner in a foreign country, on the side of the road, with just some tools he had with him. So if something as simple as different needles was the solution, i think it's very likely that he already did that, or already tried that. I could try it some day, but it's not a priority for me. It's gonna get its fairings back first, but in order to do that, i gotta put on a different front brake master cylinder (the current one is from an R6 and won't clear the fairing).
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Mar 7, 2022 20:59
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And with that i mean 'The guy who unfucked everything' and already spent a bunch of time getting it running in a useful way at all. It doesn't have pod filters, that's for sure. Just a big plastic box that connects to the rubber manifold like thingy, which is an absolute BITCH to get back onto the carbs. The ram air system is missing, because there are no fairings for it to connect to. Gonna put that back in its place once i got the fairings In any case, not gonna touch it. I'm no carburetor tickler. I'll unscrew the plugs to see if they foul.
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Mar 8, 2022 08:46
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They look pretty cool. But they're strongly related to the ktm duke 390 which you should only buy if you live close to a dealership, have a good warranty package, and offers free loaner bikes. That's kinda what i picked up from everyone's troubles. I really wanna try a ktm duke 390 but with the reputation it has, i'll never buy one.
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Mar 25, 2022 17:33
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Can't say anything about the most recent models, but the 2017 SV650 (so the first one after the gladius) has a very smooth throttle pickup. It's also very light and flickable.
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Apr 2, 2022 10:48
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Jim Silly-Balls posted:I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again. The SV650, in my opinion will eventually be remembered in the way that we think of the original CB750 today It's a really good bike. Rev happy yet really comfortable to use in slow traffic. Flickable, yet relaxing. Even my 1999 one holds up quite well compared to more modern bikes. It's the Miata of bikes. I've tried some new bikes, but not a single one i tried i'd like to have as a replacement for the SV. Some handle a lot better and are more fun (Duke 890r) but are not comfortable enough to be a replacement. Some are more comfortable and smooth (Ducati Monster) but are not as fun and alive as the SV. Maybe Suzuki should start calling it the Sviata in the USA. Sv Is Always The Answer. I've never ridden a CB750, only a 2007 CB500. Can't say i was that impressed by the cb500, except for the very sturdy feel. But i haven't tried it since i got my license. LimaBiker fucked around with this message at 20:06 on Apr 26, 2022 |
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Apr 26, 2022 19:07
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The piaggio can only, and absolutely only be used in the city because of the quoted 60km/h top speed. That's not even enough for provincial roads. Be aware of that. The Ninja will do everything, however i don't trust it because it's been doing less than 500 miles per year. Personally i'd still get the ninja if it runs well and isn't on too old tires, because my use case includes hopping onto the highway on occasion, to get to different cities. If you only have to ride within a single city, and only for commutes/groceries/whatever, the piaggio could very well be the best option.
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May 26, 2022 14:54
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The scooter is by far the best option for short commutes, as long as your commute route has a speed limit no higher than 60km/h. There truly is nothing that can make an 'i have to ride' ride more chill than a scooter. But it does limit your possibilities to ride elsewhere. If you really want to ride a bike for the enjoyment of riding a bike, is there any chance you could have the scooter and the ninja 250, for instance? Or get the scoot first, save up, then later get a more day trip suitable bike? LimaBiker fucked around with this message at 17:23 on May 26, 2022 |
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May 26, 2022 17:20
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| # ¿ May 15, 2024 06:45 |
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There are some nice chinese bikes out there, but reliability is hit or miss. If you have proper dealership warranty and you live close to it, you could consider it. Otherwise i'd be really afraid to catch a lemon. Anyway, if you get a Ninja 250 for not too much money, then you are highly likely to be able to sell it next spring for exactly the same amount of money if you don't like it. It doesn't work that way with chinese bikes. With a brand new electric scooter, you're also gonna take a big depreciation hit if you sell it. But seriously. Do not buy anything without a test ride. Not even brand new stuff. Unless it's a 500 euro saved from the scrapyard special. If that ninja has been sitting for 3 out of those 6 years, it might have all sorts of issues from that. Or you get stuff like someone who puts on 10 year old tires that have perfect tread, but you won't be able to notice it (happened to me with my SV, but i just was too dumb to look at the date code). Just get a 50 or 80cc moped/scooter, and while you have that, start saving up, looking at and test riding nicer bikes. 50cc stuff should be dirt cheap in maintenance and insurance, and those can get around cities just fine. Or just buy a Honda CBF125. Can get onto the highway in the slow lane if you really have to. Will do fine on 80km/h roads through the countryside. Honda, so should be reliable. Small and lightweight, so a fine commuter. There are plenty of those in Europe because of the A1 license requirements. LimaBiker fucked around with this message at 20:54 on May 26, 2022 |
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May 26, 2022 20:49
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