Any Motörbike riders here?

Kittyfrisk

cruxiform said:

Haych said:

I couldn't tell you much about any other bike but I've become a bit of a nerd on the R1200R.  It's also convinced me to attempt to leave the top box behind and try to only take the pannier cases in a few weeks.  It remains to be seen how successful that will be.

Ha! I'm the same, I can tell you stuff about the K series that would send you to sleep in minutes  

I've fitted a SW Motech rack to have a top box for this trip. It kinda spoils the sporty look of the bike but I want practicality. I used to have a Lomo rollbag on the rear seat but I want something a little more secure. Also the sports panniers only hold 17L each.

Yeah, that's not a lot of wine on the homeward leg.

AK99

Didn't make the North West this year alas, but managed to listen to it on the radio, and then catch the highlights this evening there on BBC NI.

The racing was grid - really tight. Great to see. They also showed a phone-camera clip of what has to be the dismount of the decade. Frankie Dettori eat your heart out:



Chap was a bit bruised, but other than that fully intact and in one piece. I guess he's lucky he landed on the VW instead of the driveway. Some days your luck's just in

AK99

sinbaadi said:

Must admit I'm growing to love it, except the noise.  It has a shorty pipe, with no deadening material and a tiny baffle fitted. 

Those with the knowledge:  is it worth the 25-30 quid it would cost, plus my time messing with rivets etc, to pack it with material and fit a larger baffle? 

How successful is this approach?  My gut is that I'll faff with it for a morning, put it back on, and won't notice the difference at all.

I did it with the pipes on the FXR. Somebody had gutted the silencers completely with a hole-saw, and the boomy racket out of them was just unbearable after a while. Bought a little cheapie set of baffles off eBay, wrapped them with fibreglass mat and steel wire I picked up from a boat chandlers, and they worked surprisingly well. That was about a year ago, and they've held up without any bother ever since. A bit of testing seemed to show a longer baffle on its own will reduce the sound level (helps break up the flow, reduce the speed and energy in the exhaust gas - and the packing then absorbs much of the higher frequency elements, which gave the bike a nicer sounding growl / rumble on mine at least (YMMV of course)

(Can't find the pics at the moment, but posted some info back upthread if you want a look).

Dominic

Demon Tweeks sell a very good quality exhaust baffle wrap wadding .........worked well for me on a set of Rhinehardts

gubble

Thought i'd share the picture of my bike I took last night on the way home from Beaulieu

manicguitarist

gubble said:

Thought i'd share the picture of my bike I took last night on the way home from Beaulieu

Shiny!

manicguitarist

One of my bikes - on the way home from playing out last week.

Haych

gubble said:

Thought i'd share the picture of my bike I took last night on the way home from Beaulieu

Nice looking machine, a lovely part of the country, too!

Haych

Does anyone here use any navigation apps?

I'm looking for something that can do turn by turn directions AND which can import GPX files.  Also, I don't want it to cost the earth - I know there's stuff out there like Calimoto but for the little I intend to use it I'd be paying a lot - it's like $80 recurring per year, or $12.99 per week!  That smarts a bit!

I'm using iOS, if that helps.

I've been told that Google maps can import GPX files, but I have looked and have never been able to find an option in the app to import anything.

I've had limited success with Rever - it can do most of what I want but has a paddy if you import a GPX file with more than 25 (I think) waypoints, so not really much use.  I then have to start splitting the GPX files up into sections and it gets messy and time consuming.

I have previously also used MyRoute App and I find that so complicated I gave up, plus they are sneaky - for any decent features you need to subscribe and even then you don't get the decent mapping option until you choose a higher tier subscription.

I really, really hate the subscription model too, it seems to be par for the course these days, sadly.

TIA

cruxiform

I don’t use my phone on the bike at all, as it is my lifeline when on tour and if something happens to it then I’m fooked. It stays in my tank bag. I also hate the subscription model too.

I have always used a Garmin Zumo. My current one (350LM) I got for £100 from eBay. It has lifetime maps so is always up to date. Much rather that go flying down the road than my iPhone 14 Pro Max. Ironically I can use the MRA free version to transfer GPX files direct to the Garmin which is handy. 

JEM

cruxiform said:

I have always used a Garmin Zumo. My current one (350LM) I got for £100 from eBay. It has lifetime maps so is always up to date.

I too have a second hand Zumo I got for £100. My phone stays in my pocket as in the (hopefully) unlikely event of me and the bike getting unexpectedly separated I'd much rather have it with me.

Haych

If I need directions while on the bike I usually use Siri connected via my Cardo unit so I get audio prompts in my helmet.  Works a treat, I don't even need to have the phone on the bike, although I usually do have it visible on a quad lock mount which also keeps the battery charged.

As with Google maps, Apple Maps doesn't allow me to import GPX files, though, else it would be pretty much perfect.

Kittyfrisk

cruxiform said:

I have always used a Garmin Zumo. It has lifetime maps so is always up to date. 

Until Garmin decide that your Zumo is 'obsolete' or cannot handle the latest updated map download... 

cruxiform

Kittyfrisk said:

cruxiform said:

I have always used a Garmin Zumo. It has lifetime maps so is always up to date. 

Until Garmin decide that your Zumo is 'obsolete' or cannot handle the latest updated map download... 

By that time I’d probably just buy another tbh, the one I’ve got replaced a 15 year old Zumo 220. 

On the subject of apps, I think Tom Tom Go on iOS accepts GPX files. Not sure if it’s a subscription service though. 

TheBigDipper

Haych said:

If I need directions while on the bike I usually use Siri connected via my Cardo unit so I get audio prompts in my helmet.  Works a treat, I don't even need to have the phone on the bike, although I usually do have it visible on a quad lock mount which also keeps the battery charged.

As with Google maps, Apple Maps doesn't allow me to import GPX files, though, else it would be pretty much perfect.

BMW Motorrad Connect on iOS does what you want, but it seems to need a TFT dash (which I have) or swap your quad lock for a BMW cradle (which I suspect is not cheap). Maybe it will work without either, I haven't tried.  The small TFT (mine) gives turn by turn on the screen and voice prompts. The big one (and the cradle) gives maps, too, like a Garmin. Maps can be downloaded so it works using the phone GPS even when there's no data service. 

Dominic

manicguitarist said:

One of my bikes - on the way home from playing out last week.

oooh ,you wanna be careful on that gravel with that Panigale thing ........have you off in no time 
204 bhp and gravel .....feet down when turning round 

Haych

TheBigDipper said:

Haych said:

If I need directions while on the bike I usually use Siri connected via my Cardo unit so I get audio prompts in my helmet.  Works a treat, I don't even need to have the phone on the bike, although I usually do have it visible on a quad lock mount which also keeps the battery charged.

As with Google maps, Apple Maps doesn't allow me to import GPX files, though, else it would be pretty much perfect.

BMW Motorrad Connect on iOS does what you want, but it seems to need a TFT dash (which I have) or swap your quad lock for a BMW cradle (which I suspect is not cheap). Maybe it will work without either, I haven't tried.  The small TFT (mine) gives turn by turn on the screen and voice prompts. The big one (and the cradle) gives maps, too, like a Garmin. Maps can be downloaded so it works using the phone GPS even when there's no data service. 

Thanks, at face value the BMW app looks really good, but it’s no use for me sadly as it requires a bike that will connect to the app via Bluetooth. 

My bike is thick end of 20 years old now so predates the connectivity stuff by quite a few years I imagine. 

Good suggestion though, thank you. 

sinbaadi

Decided to take a cheap punt on a DB killer.

Had a lovely ride this morning, it's not short of power and the gearing is really nice and close so you can keep it singing very easily, but it's still too rowdy.  I also noticed that the link pipe has a dent in it, so now I'm looking for a new link pipe and a nice long silencer.

I'd put the OEM system back on but they're flipping expensive.

breezytele

Haych said:

Does anyone here use any navigation apps?

I'm looking for something that can do turn by turn directions AND which can import GPX files.  Also, I don't want it to cost the earth - I know there's stuff out there like Calimoto but for the little I intend to use it I'd be paying a lot - it's like $80 recurring per year, or $12.99 per week!  That smarts a bit!

I'm using iOS, if that helps.

I've been told that Google maps can import GPX files, but I have looked and have never been able to find an option in the app to import anything.

I've had limited success with Rever - it can do most of what I want but has a paddy if you import a GPX file with more than 25 (I think) waypoints, so not really much use.  I then have to start splitting the GPX files up into sections and it gets messy and time consuming.

I have previously also used MyRoute App and I find that so complicated I gave up, plus they are sneaky - for any decent features you need to subscribe and even then you don't get the decent mapping option until you choose a higher tier subscription.

I really, really hate the subscription model too, it seems to be par for the course these days, sadly.

TIA

It’s probably already been said, but I’ve read that smart phones ( iOS especially ) are prone to damaging the camera image stabilisation circuits, through vibration, when handlebar mounted..

it’s a real bore. But I’m glad I read it before actually experiencing that..

shady

Man, been ages since I last had a lurk on here.  I got my licence last September (at the ripe age of 48) and it's more or less taken up all my spare time since then and kinda killed the guitaring a wee bit.  Went and got a very stock 2015 KTM Duke 690, done a few things to it - booster plug to cure the annoying fuelling issue, decat and a K&N filter.  It feels like a different bike now...planning to get it dyno'd and the ECU flashed down at CJS Racing near Bristol hopefully before the summer ends.