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titanium posted:Here's something weird, Crouching Triumph hidden warning light. Do other Triumphs have the same rough instruments? Try checking the manuals for them and see if it's something that isn't supposed to be on your bike but is wired up anyway? It's really weird because it's obviously painted/printed over. I'd be sort of tempted to say from your description that it's a low fuel warning but I can't see that they'd wire it up, put a bulb in, and then paint it over. Well, not *modern* Triumph, anyway.
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# ¿ Jul 20, 2012 19:46 |
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# ¿ Apr 29, 2024 02:10 |
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titanium posted:I checked the manual and nothing shows up, I also posted on the triumph675 forums and a couple guys seem baffled by it. I might hit up an OReily and run a scanner on it to see if it actually logged it. Actually, stupid question - what colour is the backlight on that clock? It couldn't just be a bulb that's broken its mount or something like that?
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# ¿ Jul 20, 2012 20:29 |
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Mouko posted:I just passed my motorcycle test and soon I'm going to pick my bike up from my parents' place a couple of hours away! Erm, yeah, don't do it would be my advice. Not for safety but for sanity's sake. Motorways are dull in a car but like hell on a motorbike - find a nice A-road instead - almost all motorways will have good-quality A-roads either parallel to them or sometimes taking a more direct route to where you want to go. They're also generally quieter and give lots more opportunity to pull over and grab a drink or just a stretch, a couple of hours on a bike - especially a small one - can be much harder work than you're expecting. In fact on an aging 250 you might have serious problems keeping up with traffic even on NSL A-roads. Make sure you have a good bit of familiarisation - especially of the brakes and turning - before hitting traffic or a quick, unfamiliar road. Anyway the rules are the same on a bike as on a car, just times ten - leave plenty of room, be very aware of your surroundings (including what's going on 5 or 10 or more cars ahead and behind, and two lanes to the side) and - again, particularly as you're not going to be getting near the speed limit - shoulder check before deciding to change lane and then again just before you change. They're called lifesavers for a reason. Even if you are going slowly, make sure you properly own your lane, and be really loving careful overtaking trucks at motorway speeds - make sure you get a good look in their mirrors before starting to pass, stick to the outside half of your lane as you draw alongside, and be ready for the buffeting as you get to the front. Oh yeah, and have fun - and congratulations on the pass
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# ¿ Jul 21, 2012 23:59 |
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MonkeyNutZ posted:Wait, so you're telling me I shouldn't ride the Ninja 250 (I plan on getting) 125 miles to school only two days after I finish the MSF?! In fairness, from his language, it sounded like he was in the UK and our testing procedures are quite a bit stricter than yours - he will have spent at least some time, accompanied, on open roads and A-roads, albeit on a much more modern and more powerful bike (not sure what they use these days, it was CB500s and ER-5s back in the day) and would have done A-roads on his test, so it's not that hideous an idea. Like I said, my main concern would have been being bored and way too slow on a motorway, A- and B-roads are much more fun. Although, after a very dispiriting trip to High Beech this morning, I'm beginning to wonder if there's any fun left anywhere...
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# ¿ Jul 22, 2012 15:20 |
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Xovaan posted:I was in the same boat entering the MSF: The most experience I've had riding anything was a bicycle I owned when I was thirteen. Once you get the hang of it it's pretty straightforward though. She'll be fine on the next round. When I did my CBT (one-day course you legally have to take before allowed to take an up-to-125cc onto the road in the UK) I dropped the bike three times in the first hour. I'd been riding pushbikes almost daily since I was about 4 but my brain just refused to transfer the skill over, it was the weirdest thing. Mouko posted:Bang on, even to the bikes I learned on, haha. Yeah go for it. Just eyeball it on Google - find a road heading in roughly the right direction, follow it until it's not, then find another. You can find all sorts of weird and wonderful roads that way.
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# ¿ Jul 22, 2012 20:58 |
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clutchpuck posted:Michelin Pilot Road 2s are high-mile sport touring tires with phenomenal wet grip and a good combination of dry grip and longevity - probably more grip than a EX500 knows what to do with. I have them on my Ulysses that I ride primarily around western WA, haven't had any traction issues yet (on pavement). A friend of mine has them on his Uly and they look like they'll last about 13k mi. My wife commutes rain or shine from Everett to Sodo on them without any surprises, too. I just wrote a long love letter to my new Michelins in the What did you do... thread and they were my first thought but they don't do them in the rear fitment he wants.
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# ¿ Jul 24, 2012 00:29 |
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DJ_Ferret posted:The best/closest looking Michelin I'm seeing on Motorcycle Superstore in the right size is the Michelin Pilot Activ. According to the reviews it is worshipped by goldwing trike riders, and a few sport bike riders chiming in saying it's good as well. Opinions? Don't know that model at all but I'd be slightly nervous about putting tyres designed for a Goldwing on a lightweight bike - a fairly important aspect of tyre performance is the flexibility of the carcass (it's one of the reasons pressure is so important) and something designed to flex the right amount under 300kgs of load might not do so well under 150kgs. See if you can find someone who has used them on your bike or an equivalent and see what they think.
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# ¿ Jul 24, 2012 07:36 |
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PadreScout posted:OK! Simple Choice- 2012 Yamaha Super Tenere or 2012 Triumph Scrambler. They're like, seriously different bikes. The Yammy is like a foot taller and probably has 75% more power, and is a proper mixed-surface bike. The Triumph (and I love the modern-retro Triumph lineup) is an urban poser bike. I don't really see how you can compare them other than on what one makes you feel that funny feeling in your tummy.
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# ¿ Jul 24, 2012 15:53 |
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Splizwarf posted:Is this in the US? If so, more details please. Most insurance policies in the UK offer this too, it's a pretty standard thing. It's third-party-only insurance though so you still have to pay to fix it if you break it.
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# ¿ Jul 25, 2012 23:25 |
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I used to be religious about warming up my RS125 - idle on choke for 5-10 minutes depending on air temperature (noticeably the largest digital display was the water temperature, and it showed COLD in massive letters until it was at 40 degrees) then clsoe the choke and ride off keeping it below 6,000 rpm and 1/4 throttle until it hit 80, exactly as the manual said I should. That was a bike that had piston and ring replacement at 12k kms as an actual service item though. On modern bikes though, as many have said, as long as you're not bouncing it off the limiter the second you start it, you'll be fine riding off as soon as it starts.
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# ¿ Jul 31, 2012 07:22 |
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I'm a massive fan of Muc-Off - http://muc-off.com/en/ Not sure if you can get it in the States, but hose down bike, spray this stuff over it, hose it off, done. The only thing it can't deal with is really heavy, oily muck, that needs ten seconds with an alloy wheel brush before you hose it off. Spray it on a rag and it'll clean chains too. (When I had a faired bike I found normal furniture polish was surprisingly good at cleaning it and keeping it clean afterwards).
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# ¿ Jul 31, 2012 18:14 |
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Mouko posted:Thanks for the advice a couple of pages back, guys. Sounds about right to me - I mean you could probably get away with pulling away a bit quicker than that but you may as well use that time to get your lid and gloves on and give the bike a quick once-over.
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# ¿ Aug 2, 2012 21:23 |
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NipplesTheCat posted:A 500CC Ninja makes a fine starting bike. The difference isn't as substantial as some people will make it out to be. They are highly forgiving of mistakes and will not kill you with the slightest error. Depends, but yeah I'd second that assuming you're getting training on a bike that sort of size, otherwise that period of recalibration of how far you can open the throttle etc can be pretty painful if you have to do it on literally your first ride on the road.
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# ¿ Aug 2, 2012 21:24 |
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Spiffness posted:I've owned and operated plenty of bikes that obliterate the speed limit at a moments notice. I'm specifically interested in the bandit because it looks like a comfy standard with a big engine (fun) but lovely suspension, weight, components, etc meaning it'll help me keep the fun stuff on the track. The sheer availability of aftermarket parts for the Bandit means that all of those things can be changed to your hearts content too. It's probably the most customisable non-Harley ever built, which is definitely a plus if you like that sort of thing. As an aside - in the UK, despite its popularity (it was easily the best-selling bike that wasn't a superbike (yeah we buy more superbikes as a proportion of the population than any other country despite our loving awful roads and weather - also more open-topped cars, for that matter) or a scooter for the entirety of its production run) the Bandit has a bit of A Reputation, not because it was a bad bike as such, but because it appealed to the sort of person who then promptly threw it under a truck while trying to wheelie through a city centre. They weren't called BinnedIts for nothing. This also means that second-hand ones tend to be viewed with suspicion because that sort of person is also the sort of person not to tell the insurance, bolt a shitload of new parts on it, then promptly sell it on despite the wheels not pointing in the same direction and the engine hanging on by a single bit of twine. Also, even among the non-loony owners, the standard solution for the top-end ticking noise that indicated imminent valve death was to fit a louder exhaust so you couldn't hear the noise any more. Add on a plethora of back-street "tuning shops" who would take 500 quid off your hands, put a straight pipe on it, and give you a dyno chart telling you that it now put out a billion horsepower, and you'll seriously struggle to actually find a good one nowadays on this side of the pond. (AFAIK you Yanks preferred the old high-top GSX1100 for that sort of behaviour so hopefully you won't run into the same problems with your second-hand market over there)
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# ¿ Aug 3, 2012 21:34 |
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Potentially dumb question - if there anything that can be done to improve the appearance of a header pipe that has had three years of gunk thrown at it by the front wheel? I'm tempted to just break out the polishing kit to see what's under the corrosion and gunk but a tiny voice at the back of my mind is telling me that the I don't actually know how much good metal is left under it, and I'm worried about shortening it's life just for some pretty shiny.
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# ¿ Aug 4, 2012 19:36 |
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KARMA! posted:That's not gunk, that's the header itself. Stainless doesn't colour as much, get one of those. Yeah, pretty much the only replacement headers (other than OEM) available are as part of a full titanium system, which is why I was hoping to be able to do it with stuff in my polishing kit (which thanks to the painted frame on the Shiver has gone tragically underutilised for a while now). I actually think they are stainless (the back header, collector and cat all started shiny and are now a sort of titanium yellowy-brown colour, which is what I'd expect to see with stainless steel with that sort of heat inflicted on them), but nobody (even Aprilia) want to say what they're actually are. I'd expect mild steel to be much more corroded because it's literally right in the path of water off the front wheel. Digging around revealed lots of positive reviews of this stuff: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtSK4Fxyerg which is imported into the country by Hein Gericke, who are going out of business and selling everything off cheap - this seems to be serendipity. gently caress it, if it rots a hole in the exhaust it's just an excuse to buy that titanium system...
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# ¿ Aug 4, 2012 23:02 |
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Armyman25 posted:Went to ride my Indian yesterday, pressed the starter button, it turned over a couple of times so I released the button to let the starter rest a minute. Tried it again and now all it does is produce a single "click," the headlight dims, and that's it. I've charged the battery, cycle the key and the kill switch, and made sure the bike is in neutral. Any ideas? Is my starter toast? Try putting it in gear and rolling the bike backwards or forwards a bit. Sometimes the sprag clutch on the starter can get stuck, and/or the starter motor can get stuck in a stalled position - turning the engine over manually like that can release it. If that fails, find the starter motor relay (the thing that clicks when you hit the starter), pull the contacts (one by one, don't want to get them mixed up...) and check for corrosion - if they're spade-type connectors just bend the prongs of the female connector in slightly with a pair of needle-nose pliers in case it's not making a good connection, then do the same for the connectors to the starter motor itself assuming it's easily accessible. After that you're into proper mechanic territory which is where my knowledge runs out...
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# ¿ Aug 5, 2012 18:25 |
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JP Money posted:Really? Most tracks make you tape over wheel weights or prefer you don't even run them. I'd imagine GP wheels are balanced well enough that they don't need them as they'd be a real liability flying off at 200mph. Yeah, I'd also imagine the tyres likewise are made to high enough tolerances that balancing them isn't an issue. FFS they use nitrogen rather than air in the tyres because it expands more predictably under heating and titanium valve stems to shave a couple of grams off the unsprung weight. The idea they'd slap some random gunk from Halfords in the tyres is pretty strange. (I also don't understand the mechanism by which this is supposed to work, even at best you're just going to get the stuff evenly distributed around the tyre, how that is supposed to balance the wheels I don't know)
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# ¿ Aug 6, 2012 15:39 |
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Tamir Lenk posted:If it's had the opportunity to charge, but doesn't keep that charge, you may just need to change the battery. Batteries that get too low don't seem to recharge well via a stator or trickle charger. So your stator/charging system may be OK, but it won't maintain a battery that's hosed. Instead of a trickle charger, everyone should just have an Optimate - http://www.tecmate.com/ seem to be the US importers. It's paid for itself in bringing back three batteries (one bike, one generator, one emergency charger) from the dead in the last couple of years, and also works perfectly well as a trickle charger. (Oh and if it's an older, non-sealed battery check the fluid and pH levels too and top off with distilled water or fresh acid as needed)
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# ¿ Aug 6, 2012 22:31 |
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Ola posted:I don't get how USD forks reduce unsprung mass. My fork lowers are unsprung and made from light aluminium, my uppers are sprung and made from heavy steel. The sliders are shorter on USD forks, and all the fork oil, springs etc become part of the sprung weight. IIRC that was only a marginal difference, the bigger advantage of USD forks is less flex under braking and cornering forces.
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# ¿ Aug 7, 2012 15:49 |
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Ola posted:Ah ok, that makes sense. Ovi Maps on the old Symbian Nokias is ridiculously better than Google Maps for actual navigation. You can pick up a 5800 for basically the cost of a PAYG SIM (at least here in the UK) and it has a resistive touchscreen which means it will work with gloves and a battery life measured in days even with GPS and Bluetooth turned on. It'll also work without a SIM in and you can preload the maps from your desktop PC (but having a SIM in lets it use AGPS so sync-up can be much quicker especially in urban areas). Then just buy any of the many cheap GPS covers/mounts available and you're sorted, although the turn-by-turn voice instructions are good enough you can just leave it in your pocket if you want.
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# ¿ Aug 7, 2012 21:37 |
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dogpower posted:Are there any cheap alternatives for GPS if I don't have a smart phone? I've already mentioned it but last-generation Nokias are cheap as poo poo and have great GPS, good battery life, and touchscreens that work with gloves. As others have said the weight transfer means that it's very easy to lock up the rear brake under heavy braking. The technique I was taught, and always use, is to brake front wheel first to about 50%, then hit the back, then the front the rest of the way. Ultimately though, in the dry, in an emergency situation - unless you're on a cruiser or something really heavy - don't even worry about the back brake. If you're in that situation you've got a lot more things to think about.
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# ¿ Aug 9, 2012 07:36 |
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VTNewb posted:The whole rear brake hilarity is solved by a couple solid years of dirtbiking. Don't fear the rear brake! (though I agree, if you don't know how to panic stop with it, avoid it, else you'll go back to front) Well a lot depends on the dynamics of your particular bike. I've only ever owned two bikes where the rear wheel stayed on the ground under maximum braking in the dry, and even on relatively sedate bikes like SVs the rear brake is pretty much cosmetic if you're working the front as hard as possible. I also don't actually see much of a problem with either just locking your back wheel up or ignoring it and concentrating on what the front is up to, because ultimately that's the important one both in getting you stopped and keeping you upright. A locked back wheel is pretty controllable unless something else really bad happens, so why divert attention from keeping your front wheel turning? Personally, when I have to make an emergency stop, I'll just stomp on the back brake while I wait for the forks to fully compress, then at some point it'll register the back has locked up and I'll let it off and not think about it again. (Everything is of course completely different in the wet, and that's where you should be really practicing your emergency stops. Even then a bit of back-wheel lockup is good for helping you gauge where the limit of adhesion is)
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# ¿ Aug 9, 2012 16:15 |
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Tamir Lenk posted:Also, remember that downshifting also acts as a rear brake, since engine braking affects the rear wheel. So engine braking reduces the need to hammer the rear brake, and downshifting alone will push the weight forward and off the rear wheel. That increases the chances for a lock up, as the back end gets lighter. Of course, in an emergency stop, you want to use as much braking power as you can without locking anything up. In normal, even hard riding you should be using both brakes *and* engine braking. In an emergency situation things are very different.
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# ¿ Aug 9, 2012 16:18 |
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Tamir Lenk posted:True. Indeed, if you are just going to hold in the clutch, there is no point to down shifting at all. Well there sort of is - if you spot an escape route around whatever you're emergency-braking to avoid, then it would be handy to have yourself somewhere near the right gear. Again though that could be a distraction... PadreScout posted:Theres a plastic one you can just slap on the grip that you rest your palm on. I like that style personally. A thing to lock your throttle in place? In the middle of a conversation about emergency braking. Hmm.
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# ¿ Aug 9, 2012 20:33 |
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schreibs posted:How long do you guys usually wear a helmet before replacing it without crashing on it? My helmet is coming up on its third year of use and I don't exactly know how long its suppose to last. 3-5 years. Less if you're out in the sunshine a lot or expose it to a lot of quick temperature changes. The general rule of thumb is if the helmet is starting to feel loose, or has any visible discoloration, it's time to consider a replacement. Polycarbonate lids generally age quicker than composite ones too, but at the same time are more resilient to little dings or drops. Some manufacturers do clinics at dealers where they'll doublecheck it for you (AGV even ultrasound their lids), might be worth checking if there's one near you, although obviously they'll tell you to buy a new one at the slightest provocation.
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# ¿ Aug 9, 2012 22:23 |
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schreibs posted:Mine has removable liners that can be washed but I have washed them quite a few times and that fresh smell only stays for 15 minutes then the entire thing smells like old sweat again. Try spraying it with that stuff for cleaning the inside of shoes? Smells are normally caused by bacteria and fungus, so you're probably not killing them off with washing.
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# ¿ Aug 10, 2012 06:59 |
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Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester posted:The metal things inside the rubber things? Dealer or bikebandit. They'll probably call it a spacer or a sleeve or something. Probably won't have it in stock so you'll have to wait a while to get them. That's a cush rubber isn't it? By the looks of it one of the splines have snapped and caused that damage, possibly because of the cush rubbers being hosed?
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# ¿ Aug 12, 2012 23:27 |
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dwoloz posted:What worries me is that the parts I need are not in the exploded diagram, they are just part of the hub assembly Isn't it part 18?
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# ¿ Aug 12, 2012 23:28 |
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For the main cleaning job I like Muc-Off - two minutes with this and a hose and the bike is like 90% clean, it's certainly good enough for the weekly wash. For the monthly OCD-wash the best thing in my cleaning kit (apart from a shitload of microfibre cloths I got from a pound shop) is an old electric toothbrush that, with a touch of swarfega loaded on it, will get grease and oil off of just about anything and get into spots your bike didn't know it had.
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# ¿ Aug 19, 2012 00:42 |
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MotoMind posted:This is quite possibly the least erotic thing I have ever seen. I found it quite arousing then I realised it was a Multistrada and not a Dorsoduro and went instantly flaccid.
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# ¿ Aug 19, 2012 21:21 |
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MotoMind posted:Hypermotard. Hey no need to get personal now.
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# ¿ Aug 20, 2012 08:21 |
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Saga posted:It won't hurt your bike. You're fairly likely to miss a shift if you do it from less than full throttle, so save it for when you're really in a hurry or you'll just slow yourself down. If you're not smooth you'll see a slight increase on wear-and-tear on the gearbox, chain, and cush rubbers but only a tiny amount. If you do them well then it probably causes less actual wear and tear overall (but as you point out, they only really work under hard acceleration so that itself can cause more wear). The only real problem I've heard is that a really badly botched one can bend your selector forks and leave you with false neutrals or worse, stuck in gear, but on most bikes those are the most solid part of the transmission so you'd have to be doing it pretty badly for a pretty long time.
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# ¿ Aug 24, 2012 23:27 |
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Corrupt Cypher posted:I apologize for starting another one of these classic CA back and forths, but what do you guys do when you tour and have to adjust the chain? Bring a torque wrench? And my post wasn't suggesting that one should replace the head bolts by feel, but a pretty routine maintenance item that has a fail safe on it. How often do you have to adjust your chain? I check mine weekly and it's only ever needed adjusting once (although admittedly I'm averaging <1,000 miles per rear puncture, thanks London roads...). I think you'll be better off investing in a Scottoiler than carrying a torque wrench on holiday with you, unless you're literally going cross-continent.
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# ¿ Aug 27, 2012 22:54 |
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clutchpuck posted:I am often dense, but doesn't a scottoiler make a huge mess lubing the chain and does nothing for adjusting the slack? Seems like we're talking about 2 different problems here. Well it doesn't make a huge mess if it's set up right, that's one of the points of it, and lack of proper lubrication is one of the main reasons a chain will stretch. I've not used one myself, but people who do have them swear by them and claim it doubles or triples the life of the chain compared to manual lubing.
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# ¿ Aug 28, 2012 07:21 |
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Linedance posted:It does occasionally, but they tend to salt the roads her any time there's a risk it might drop below 5C. I usually avoid riding when it's around zero and drizzling though because it isn't much fun and I can take the tube to work when it's poo poo out. You're probably better off properly weather-proofing the bike, tbh. If you're in London they don't go mad with the salt - the general year-round grime is going to eat your bike much quicker than the three days a year they bother to salt the roads and like you say it's not exactly riding weather when they do. As dorky as they look stuff like extended mudguards will keep the poo poo off your engine, WD-40 or MucOff bike spray will do a pretty good job of protecting the rest of the metal (and can be used to drive off salty water if you do get caught out). As to general washing, the pressure washers in garages are fine as long as you keep your distance and don't go mad - basically if you feel an increased push-back from the lance when the water his your bike you're too close). Also don't use their detergent or wax, take your own and use the cheapest programme available. That little sprayer thing is probably fine for a weekly rubdown though. (Some of the hand car-wash guys do a specialist bike wash - the ones near me do a really good job but it costs a tenner, and of course you don't get the deep zen-like satisfaction of doing it yourself, as well as the opportunity to check if any bits are about to fall off)
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# ¿ Sep 3, 2012 21:39 |
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Linedance posted:Something wrong with your charging circuit, so your battery is running all your electrics which is draining it. A new battery won't fix it but you might need one if you find the fault. What bike do you ride again? Check the the wiring and connectors from your stator to your regulator/rectifier and from that to the battery for corrosion or arcing. If they look fine it'll probably be the regulator/rectifier that needs replacing. If you've got a multimeter and know how to use it, it'll make troubleshooting a whole lot easier. This only applies if all your other lights are also dimming at the same time - otherwise it could just be a dodgy connection to the bulb. Always eliminate the silly (and cheap to fix) options first. (Also does the full brightness come back at full revs or just randomly? If the lights come up with the revs it probably is the battery on the way out, but it could be a regulator problem that has caused that)
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# ¿ Sep 8, 2012 10:04 |
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babyeatingpsychopath posted:Sounds fine to me. This is also fantastic practice for dealing with ice or indeed a broken throttle cable.
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# ¿ Sep 9, 2012 01:04 |
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theperminator posted:I'm hoping someone can help me out here, Can you localise where the sound is coming from? Is it louder on one side than the other (and do you know which side your camchain is on)? Does it get quieter once the bike is warm? To my ears it sounds a bit high-pitched and a bit loud for camchain rattle (because that tends to come from the centre of the top end it's normally a bit more muted and deeper) but obviously it's hard to tell from a recording, and sounds more like something in the valvetrain, or possibly the water or oil pump cavitating. You might want to invest in a stethoscope or you can use a socket extender pressed against your engine and your ear to help localise the noise but frankly if my bike suddenly started making that noise i'd get it to a garage ASAP. I say suddenly because my bike *already* makes a noise like that, it has the loudest loving water pump in the world as demonstrated by this video (not my bike, but same year and even the same colour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RgFQZMmB0Sw (ignore the comments saying it's a cam problem - the Shiver can develop an (allegedly non-terminal) camchain rattle but it comes on the left hand side of the engine, the noise is really obviously coming from the water pump on the right)
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# ¿ Sep 11, 2012 07:29 |
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# ¿ Apr 29, 2024 02:10 |
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n8r posted:Why do you need to soak it? Just wipe off most of the oil and it'll be fine. Alternative answer - take it up to the ton for a while. Anything left on the chain is enough oil. Anything on the rest of your bike is just protecting the metal.
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# ¿ Sep 11, 2012 21:34 |