Any Motörbike riders here?

Dominic

Most days I ride a Superduke 1290 RR .....I like a super-naked because the riding position on anything super sports becomes uncomfortable for my old bones after 15 minutes and I'm quite large/heavy so the wrist pressure/ache becomes an issue until you're going fast enough for the wind to lift the bodyweight off the wrists .......I don't like pottering around with one arm crossed over on the tank for relief on the wrist.
 I spent 10 days last year riding a Duke V4S Streetfighter and the KTM back to back.......I seriously wanted a V4S .
It was a great bike ,205 bhp v the 178bhp of the KTM , more refined and better balanced and better finished/built. BUT , it's just not useable on the road .....to get the benefit of the engine it needs to be 6000rpm upwards for it to feel any more 'special' than the average sporty 900 .I got an afternoon on a circuit with it where it is an amazing tool but far too much bike for me to get to grips with.......I vaguely know what I'm doing .....used to race a CBR 400RR  at the same time I had a 916 ( 26 years ago ) and ,even then my lap times were always better on the little Honda.
 On the other hand the Superduke is still a beast with shattering torque but it's right there from the idle ,totally tractable but lazy if you want it to be and just so much more useable on the road .....you're happy to change up on the quickshift at 4000rpm without noise or fuss because it's pulling like a freight train .
I really can't see how the Pannigale V4 or the Streetfighter V4 is truly enjoyable on the road .....it's like having a Ferrari with a black box fitted but they look superb

elstoof

Dominic said:

elstoof said:

Sold my 899 a couple of months ago, I miss it. Nothing like a big thumping Ducati twin

Other than a big thumping KTM twin !

They’ll give you the best 3000 miles of your life, before shitting a piston

elstoof

Although tbf when I sold the Pani I was waxing lyrical over the phone over how trouble free its been, never missed a beat, totally opposite to the cliche of Italian bikes - the morning he came to have a look the bastard wouldn’t start

cruxiform

TheBigDipper said:

Here's me in 1995 navigating the Karousel on the Nordschleife (Nurburgring) riding my lovely and very much missed 916 Strada. I was on a 3-day Nurburgring Riders Club course. Closed circuit, 100 riders in 10 groups with an instructor each. 

https://www.dropbox.com/s/io897acemrl2cc7/NL at Ring - Karousel copy.jpg?st=k01jdt87&raw=1

And I've never changed my own tyres! :-) 

Nice! I did the Ring in 2012 on my old 929 ‘Blade. Was exciting and terrifying at the same time  

AK99

manicguitarist said:

Seeing the discussion on motorcycle helmets - I have what is described in the US as a "long oval" shaped head (like predator I guess). Anyways, the LS2 carbon fibre helmets fit perfectly. It should to be that some Arai would fit me (I had a quantum e way back when) but was generally a Shoei shape - however neither Arai nor Shoei seem to fit me anymore - if they are not right across the forehead then they are loose across the side.

Just back on the helmet fit thing for a moment - my last couple of helmets have been Arais. I think they're a good fit - comfortable at least. I find them bl00dy noisy though.

Does that mean they're not actually a good fit..or is it the case that a helmet both be a good fit and still noisy - or alternatively fit poorly but be quiet ?

JEM

AK99 said:

Just back on the helmet fit thing for a moment - my last couple of helmets have been Arais. I think they're a good fit - comfortable at least. I find them bl00dy noisy though.

Does that mean they're not actually a good fit..or is it the case that a helmet both be a good fit and still noisy - or alternatively fit poorly but be quiet ?

In my experience there's no correlation between noise and the fit of the helmet. My current Arai is much quieter than my previous HJC. Both were equally comfortable.

This is my first Arai and it does have a VAS-V style visor which has covers over the pivot points. I assume that is supposed to reduce noise.

Personally I'd just go for the helmet that fits best and get some earplugs.

Haych

I've heard some people complaining about the Arai X4 as being difficult to put on because of the padding round the aperture.  Arai seem to have listened to feedback and corrected this with the X5 - now, though, people are complaining that the X5 is a lot noisier then the X4!

I use an Arai Quantic, it's ok, I wouldn't say it's quieter than my AGV K6 though, but not dramatically more noisy, opening some of the vents does increase the noise I find, so I keep those closed lol.

I use plugs anyway, so don't worry too much about noise.  I've just fitted the Pro Shade system to my Quantic so will have to see if that makes more of a din now.

The Arai does fit extremely well and is extremely comfortable, and it seems incredibly well made, so I'm happy with it.

Dominic

elstoof said:

Dominic said:

elstoof said:

Sold my 899 a couple of months ago, I miss it. Nothing like a big thumping Ducati twin

Other than a big thumping KTM twin !

They’ll give you the best 3000 miles of your life, before shitting a piston

Only the smaller KTM engines have had those problems ......I've had 9000 trouble free miles on the Superduke 1290RR as far as engine is concerned although the TFT screen had to be replaced because of water ingress .
The engine on this year's 1390 RR is even better with the variable valve timing

elstoof

I was just leaning into the cliché for the fun of it 

Dominic

I've not heard it ...............but I have heard ;
 KTM ; Keep Taking Money

TheBigDipper

cruxiform said:

TheBigDipper said:

Here's me in 1995 navigating the Karousel on the Nordschleife (Nurburgring) riding my lovely and very much missed 916 Strada. I was on a 3-day Nurburgring Riders Club course. Closed circuit, 100 riders in 10 groups with an instructor each. 

https://www.dropbox.com/s/io897acemrl2cc7/NL at Ring - Karousel copy.jpg?st=k01jdt87&raw=1

And I've never changed my own tyres! :-) 

Nice! I did the Ring in 2012 on my old 929 ‘Blade. Was exciting and terrifying at the same time  

That's an open day. Always terrifying, because you never know if you'll enter a blind bend on the right line and find a stationary bus of tourists taking photos. Or start to peel into the apex of a bend just as a much faster (and grippier) Porsche comes past on the inside to outbrake you. 

I can't do an open day at the 'Ring and use the motorcycle racing lines. I'm convinced I'll get nurfed off and die. Personally, I  have to ride it like a one-way road, including mirrors and lifesavers. It's still fun.

When I did my courses (I did two, 1995 and 1996) the long straight was still open all the way and didn't have the entry/exit gates that it does now. But, being honest, after a few goes at full throttle and flat on the tank, you start to go a lot slower and use it for a rest from concentrating on bends and track surface. We got onto the circuit at T13. One year, we also got a chance to ride from the Nordschleife onto the GP circuit and back to the Nordschleife again (a route used by the GT Sportscars). What a change in track grip!

thefez

And I've managed to drop it going way to slow in a sainsbury's car park. Not sure what happened but probably wheel turned, too slow and snatched at the front brake. Oh well, it's done now so don't have to worry about getting a scratch. My only concern is I'm gonna overthink dropping it again and it's a real pain to lift back up.

First service done for £104 at my local mechanic compared to the dealer wanting £200. Now I can open it up a bit more

cruxiform

thefez said:

And I've managed to drop it going way to slow in a sainsbury's car park. Not sure what happened but probably wheel turned, too slow and snatched at the front brake. Oh well, it's done now so don't have to worry about getting a scratch. My only concern is I'm gonna overthink dropping it again and it's a real pain to lift back up.

First service done for £104 at my local mechanic compared to the dealer wanting £200. Now I can open it up a bit more

Oh man, I feel your pain. I’ve done that myself on a previous bike and broke two ribs when I hit the ground. In front of about 50 bikers at a cafe. Wonderful  

manicguitarist

thefez said:

And I've managed to drop it going way to slow in a sainsbury's car park. Not sure what happened but probably wheel turned, too slow and snatched at the front brake. Oh well, it's done now so don't have to worry about getting a scratch. My only concern is I'm gonna overthink dropping it again and it's a real pain to lift back up.

First service done for £104 at my local mechanic compared to the dealer wanting £200. Now I can open it up a bit more

We’ve all done it.
but essentially don’t use front brake at slow speed except in a straight line. Cos the forks compress, change the bike’s geometry and off you get.

Kittyfrisk

thefez said:

And I've managed to drop it going way to slow in a sainsbury's car park. Not sure what happened but probably wheel turned, too slow and snatched at the front brake. Oh well, it's done now so don't have to worry about getting a scratch. My only concern is I'm gonna overthink dropping it again and it's a real pain to lift back up.

First service done for £104 at my local mechanic compared to the dealer wanting £200. Now I can open it up a bit more

Ouch! We've all been there.
Picking it up is the same as not dropping it. Learn the technique/ knack for both & you'll be good.

This valuable information is brought to you from the Ministry of Bleeding Obvious Retrospective Ideas... 

Dominic

Yup we've all done it 
I've had a big Harley Street glide on top of me ,lying there calling for help like a little old turtle turned upside in his shell !

Haych

Went out for a bit of a blip this afternoon.  The first proper ride since I changed the front wheel bearings and the first ride since I change the tyres last weekend.  I've also rerouted some electrics and tidied things up under the seat as it was a bit of a rat's nest!

I was a bit nervous, as I always am after doing work on the bike, in case I got something very wrong, especially with the tyres since it was my first time changing them myself, and fully expected them to either fall off the rims or be so catastrophically out of balance as to make the bike unrideable.

I shouldn't be so hard on myself, everything was fine.

The tyres though, what a difference!

When I bought the bike it had Metzeler Z8s on which I changed as a matter of course because I didn't know their history.  I put on a set of Metzeler Roadtec 01SE, which at the time were apparently about the best tyre available.  I can't say I noticed a difference at all although I felt better knowing I had brand new rubber connecting me to the road.

Perhaps it's unfair to compare a worn out set to a brand new set of tyres, but as I said before, when I switched from Z8s to the 01SEs I couldn't tell.

So, when I put on the Michelin Road 6s I didn't think a Heath Robinson-esq Luddite like me would notice any difference at all - it's not like I'm pushing the limits of grip or anything with my riding style.

But immediately I noticed a huge difference.  Initially the bike felt quite twitchy which was unnerving at first but once I had a few miles under the tyres I quickly became used to that.  I can't say I've noticed a massive difference in grip - like I say, my riding style wouldn't ever factor grip as a significant attribute needed from one tyre over another in this sector or price bracket.

But, I did notice a huge difference in how quickly the bike changes direction and how easily the bike now tips into a corner, it's like the bike is doing all the work for me!  Given the fact that I'm still scrubbing in the new rubber I wasn't expecting to be on the limit, so to speak, but even from straight out of the mould these tyres lend the rider a lot of confidence in their feel and ability. 

On the way home I popped in to see a mate of mine who has just bought a Kawasaki Z650 from 1977.  It's gorgeous, and fairly mint!

Now I have a hankering for something a bit older too, maybe another older BMW airhead.  If I had a garage to keep one I'd probably already be looking.

elstoof

My dads old KH250 is in various boxes in his shed, I’d love to get it back running

AK99

Nah - you'd hate it, total POS even back in the day I'll take the boxes out of his road to give him space if you like. No charge ..

AK99

Closer to home..felt a bit of a patter coming through the front end in the FXR last time out and noticed the wheel was shimmying up and down the fork legs by about an inch at higher speed.

Jacked it up to do a crude check on the wheel balance and noticed it was a bit out. Made a bit of a b@lls getting the callipers off and back on so the wheel would spin freely on the axle  Sorted the balance, but then couldn't get the piston on one of them to slide back in after squeezing the brake lever by mistake. So now the bike is still sitting in the air, with two dismantled callipers on the bench needing a full set of seals for a rebuild.

Some days you're the hammer, others the nail.