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While we're on the subject of tires can anyone recommend me some decent tires for my bike (1978 Honda Hawk)? They'll be used mainly for commuting so I'd like to find some with decent life. The original metric sizes, which are on the bike now, are 3.60-19 front and 4.10-18 back and they're some vintage looking Dunlop things that the previous owner had put on. I'd like something a bit more modern looking and performing. As far as I can tell I need a 100/90x19 front and a 110/90x18 rear. Searching google for these sizes pops up a ton of motocross tires, but very few road tires. OldBikeBarn gives me the following results: Dunlop GT501 Dunlop D404 Dunlop F24 Dunlop F11 Dunlop K627 Qualifier Bridgestone Spitfire S11 Bridgestone Battlax (battle axe? wtf) BT45 Avon Venom Bias Avon Roadrider AM26 Cheng Shin Marquis C833 Cheng Shin Hi-Max C907 Conti Milestone Kenda Kruz A bunch of these are front only, so I'm guessing that it's ok to mix front and rear brands. Any help on this would be great as I've never purchased motorcycle tires before. greg_graffin fucked around with this message at 20:12 on Oct 8, 2008 |
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Oct 8, 2008 20:08
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| # ¿ May 1, 2024 11:21 |
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It's a 1978 Honda Hawk. Does it matter if I get a bias ply vs. a radial tire?
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Oct 8, 2008 20:42
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From quickly reading some reviews, it looks like the BT45 is a winner. Gets good treadlife while still giving good traction, and they're cheap. Have any of you goons run this tire before and can vouch for it personally?
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Oct 8, 2008 20:51
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Simkin posted:I would not recommend the BT45s. They are just a terrible tyre, with uninspiring grip and feedback
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Oct 8, 2008 21:02
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The current tires I have are Dunlop Roadmaster TT100s, K70 in the front and K81 in the rear. They were apparently the first production tires to do the Isle of Man TT circuit at 100mph+  They are also tube tires. Will that be a problem if I move to a tubeless tire? Thanks for all the help guys. I'll have to read up some more before I can decide between the Speed Demons and the BT45s.
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Oct 9, 2008 00:10
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I was doing some parking lot practice stuff on the way home from work today and I noticed that if I don't give it some throttle while letting out the clutch the bike will stall. It feels like there's no friction zone to speak of. Letting the clutch out very, very slowly, the revs drop, drop some more, then the bike stalls. I'm unable to make the bike move by itself with just the clutch. Cable adjustment time?
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Oct 16, 2008 23:41
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OK, let me try this again. In the BRC I took all the slow speed exercises revolved around using the friction zone and the rear brake to control the bike. We didn't use the throttle at all. From a standstill I should be able to hold the rear brake and slowly let the clutch out into the friction zone until I feel the bike start to pull. It doesn't - it just stalls.
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Oct 17, 2008 03:48
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I'm probably just being stupid here but I still don't understand why the bikes we were using in the BRC (250 Nighthawks) would pull themselves from a stop using only the clutch but my bike won't. Couldn't I just turn the idle speed up to compensate for this? I understand that the bike won't pull away with the rear brake engaged, it's that it doesn't even feel like it's pulling. greg_graffin fucked around with this message at 04:38 on Oct 17, 2008 |
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Oct 17, 2008 04:30
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My MSF course experience ingrained some bad habits in me. I think I get it but I'm going to have to try it out tomorrow to be sure. The BRC bikes we were riding were: 1) lighter than my bike and, 2) probably had the idle speed set higher to aid in warmup and help beginners from stalling. Whenever I tried to use the throttle in the slow speed cone exercises or quick turns the fucker would take off, so I got used to just using the combination of friction zone/rear brake the control the bike. It looks like second gear, throttle, rear brake, friction zone and practice is the only way I'm going to get comfortable with this on what I'm riding now. Thanks for setting me straight.
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Oct 17, 2008 05:01
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Orange Someone posted:The idea I got from his post is that he was using the clutch (that's what the bit about the friction zone was all about), but only the clutch and the brake, with absolutely no throttle at all.
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Oct 17, 2008 17:20
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Nerobro posted:Why does that stop you from riding? I also have no rain gear and showing up to work soaking wet for a 12 mile commute just isn't worth it. I know, I'm a pansy.
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Oct 17, 2008 18:13
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Lawn posted:Getting bikes on the center stand is easy once you know how, but it's pretty tricky if you've never done it before. It's really nice for lubing the chain but most bikes don't have the option for them.
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Oct 20, 2008 19:41
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OGS-Remix posted:I went to a local store to try out some different helmets, and from what I tried on the Arai helmets were a better fit but the Shoei ones seemed to have better features. Arai and Shoei are both high end helmets and I don't think you'd be disappointed with either of them. What's most important is that it fits well and is comfortable. I have a Shoei RF1000 and absolutely love it, especially the venting system. No Shark, HJC, or Arai helmet in the store fit me like the RF1000. I initially balked at the price, but I figured if it wasn't comfortable I wouldn't want to ride. Which Arai model were you looking at? greg_graffin fucked around with this message at 21:54 on Oct 27, 2008 |
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Oct 27, 2008 21:50
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My bike has been squeaking/squealing terribly the past week or so. It only does it when the wheels are turning so I'm thinking it's either the wheel bearings or something with the brakes. I know squeaky brakes are a common thing, but this sound occurs whether I'm braking, accelerating, or coasting. It's most noticable when I'm putting around a parking lot and gets quieter the faster I go. Yesterday in traffic it felt like something was holding the bike in place, as I could hold the clutch in on an incline, let off the front and/or rear brake and the bike would sit in place and not roll back like it usually does. When I went to accelerate the back would squat down for a moment, which makes me think the rear brake is sticking somehow. When I get home tonight I'll put it on the centerstand and spin each wheel and let you know if I can isolate the sound. The front brake is a disc, the rear is a drum. Anything else I should check that could be an easy fix? greg_graffin fucked around with this message at 17:57 on Nov 6, 2008 |
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Nov 6, 2008 16:27
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Bugdrvr posted:How dry is your chain? A really dry chain will sound like a big box of mice squeaking when you are rolling at slow speeds.
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Nov 7, 2008 00:45
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I bought a battery for my bike a month ago and it has sat in the box on the floor of my room since then, as I usually just kickstart the bike. I don't have a trickle charger. Can I put the battery in and just use the kickstart and ride around for a bit to charge it, or do I need to buy a charger and charge it fully before putting it in?
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Dec 18, 2008 20:51
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Nerobro posted:You "should" charge it. Bikes live on the edge of killing batteries. Typically below 3000rpm they're discharging the battery. So your battery may never charge. Spend the $20 on a charger, you won't regret it.
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Dec 18, 2008 21:05
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The front brakes have been dragging on my 78 Honda Hawk for awhile now. I tried to put new brake pads on the bike this weekend only to discover I can't get the piston to push back into the caliper which leads me to believe either the caliper needs to be rebuilt or the master cylinder has a blocked bleed port. I'm tempted to rebuild the master cylinder first and see if that fixes it before tackling the caliper. Problem is I can only find rebuild kits for 79-80 Hawk, not the 78. The 79 and up Hawks have a square master cylinder while mine is round, so I'm not sure if a 79 rebuild kit will work. Does anyone have any good links to vintage Honda parts before I flush $40 down the drain? I know that this isn't the only bike that has this master cylinder, so if I can find a compatible rebuild kit I'll be set. greg_graffin fucked around with this message at 18:49 on Dec 22, 2008 |
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Dec 22, 2008 18:44
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Two problems. 1. The front brake on my 78 Honda CB400T Hawk has been giving me trouble lately. At first it would stick every once in awhile in the middle of a ride but would release eventually. After a couple weeks of this the (single) piston was completely stuck and the front wheel wouldn't rotate at all. Goon Aflicted and I rebuilt the master cylinder and cleaned out all the crap that was in there, bled the brakes, and everything seemed to be working fine. I took the bike out for a ride and stopped for gas after 10 minutes. I start the bike back up and the front brake locks up again. I limped the bike home and was only able to get the front wheel to move freely again by bleeding a bunch of fluid out of the bleeder valve. I was able to get the piston out of the cylinder by pumping the brake lever and refilling the master cylinder with fluid a couple times. The fluid that came out was a filthy black color with a bunch of crap in it, despite the fact that I've bled the brakes on the bike 2 or 3 times recently trying to figure out what was going on. Will rebuilding the caliper resolve the problem? I can't imagine anything else that could go wrong in such a simple brake system other than a collapsed brake line. I'm moving in a week and HAVE to get this fixed by then so I can ride the bike to the new place. Do I need or should I have to replace the brake line, can I just go by Cycle Gear and pick one up, or will I have to special order it? 2. After riding the bike for the 10-15 mins. until the brake locked up, anytime I stopped I noticed a bunch of smoke coming off the bottom of the crankcase, which is just what I need right now. We're thinking that at least one seal has shrunk from all the cold weather we've had recently. I really would like to avoid tearing the motor and transmission out of the thing and replacing all the seals, is there anything else I can check? greg_graffin fucked around with this message at 21:42 on Feb 9, 2009 |
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Feb 9, 2009 21:22
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Nerobro posted:That's not a caliper problem, that's a master cylinder problem. Get a new/rebuild your existing master cylinder. edit: before the edit.
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Feb 9, 2009 21:25
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Nerobro posted:Then you didn't rebuild the master cylinder right. It's not bleeding down the pressure like it should. It's not a caliper problem. you can buy new master cylinders for almost the same price as the rebuild kits, I'm apt to push you in that direction. I forgot to mention that after getting the piston out of the caliper I tried to push it back in to see if it would go in without any brake lines or anything else attached and it's extremely difficult to get back in.
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Feb 9, 2009 21:30
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| # ¿ May 1, 2024 11:21 |
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Some oblivious old bastard backed into my bike this morning (1978 Honda CB400T). Luckily I was about to leave for work when he did it. Everything on the bike looks ok aside from the fact that the steering lock is now stuck. I'm guessing that when the bike fell over the impact from the handlebars hitting jarred something inside the locking mechanism. Since the lock is there as a security measure, I'm sure it's gonna be a pain in the rear end to remove and/or fix. Has anyone here had an issue with a broken or stuck steering lock?
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Mar 16, 2009 16:02
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