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2 wheel GAF UNITE!

OraleeWey

Member
I've been riding with a gopro these last few days and it makes me feel like a wimp.

Everything that I think was a bit dodgy ends up not even being close in the actual video.

I hate using the GoPro now a days because all my incidents have happened while it's on.

On recording = incidents all the time
No GoPro at all = no incidents at all

I literally have all my close calls on video.
 

Dougald

Member
I had a damn Eagle fly in front of my bike last year, I was so pumped to check the footage and it just came out as a tiny brown blob

giphy.gif
 
That's pretty sweet. I may be biased as a Brit but I always loved the Belstaff/Barbour waxed cotton look (I actually own one but I'd never wear it on the bike, useless in a crash). You can get a leather version, but at £1000 it's more than twice the price of my Dainese.
I know what you are talking about. They have those like front pockets and are long in length and have a belt. I think that style is called "brainstormer." They look very WW1/2ish.

I love those as well. I'm super into motorcycle apparel in general.
 
Just doesn't ride it, claims he hasn't the time but as I said, if he really wanted to ride he'd find the time. No point having a severely depreciating asset sitting about

Yet weirdly now he's talking about getting a Guzzi, so I don't know! Maybe the Triumph just doesn't have "it" for him

i kinda get it. the thrux r is a drop-dead gorgeous bike, but it's also hard to grip the tank (and you burn your legs on the injectors on a hot day), requires a powercommander + couple hundred at the dyno to mostly clean up the fueling, and takes a lot of muscle in the hairpins. i rode it for one track day and about 3000 miles, and while i miss seeing it in the garage, the speed triple is a vastly superior backroad carver, commuter, and everything that's actually MOTORBIKE and not bar princess. ;-)
 
makes a barely passable adv bike, too! took it on about 10 miles of dirt track at the touratech rally (with pirelli supercorsas, oi), and i am SOOOO never doing that again. thank god for dirt skills because i was sliding non-stop, although i caught up with some terrified feller on his gsa. got a little WHOA on the throttle and shed dirt/rocks, and an old dude thought i was stunting. i didn't mention i'd hit a bump and dragged on the wick... :-(


5fuZX8t.jpg


not shown: remus x hexacone exhaust, airbox/filter upgrade, and a full tune. 133 hp and 80 ft. lbs of torque. it's no tuono, but it sure gets the biz done now and it is SOOO inuttterably smooth. also losing that 25+ lbs of pipes off the back turned it from a passable parking lot busker into a full on low-speed dancer.
 
Ahh yes, I think I know what the problem is. We need to stop aging. Hey man, congrats on your marriage! I don't have any kids but I do have an 8 year old brother, the youngest. That's why I wear my super bright gear, at the end of the day, I just want to come home.


Edit: @Watevaman

Sometimes I go back a few pages to re-read what the hell I posted.
I read some of your posts mentioning you had a few crashes and wanted to go dirt only... And that you wanted a TW200, well I'm not sure if you ever did end up with a TW200 or not, but, I remember you mentioned you were in Southern VA? Well, if you ever find yourself in a position where, you got lost riding your bike, and you made it all the way to Northern VA, don't hesitate to PM me. I'd let you ride my KLR if you want/never ridden one before. I guarantee after your first ride, you're gonna want one too. Just throwing it out there in case you're still shopping around for a dualsport/dirt bike. I know there's a huge difference between the TW/KLR, but at least the KLR can do highway better than a TW200. So there's that. Plus they can be found for damn cheap.

i'm in wa, not va. :) i do have an xt250 i stow out on the peninsula with the 'rents. great forest roads and single track. my brother has a klx and every time i'm up, we stow some beer and head out. i think we've seen maybe 5% of the logging and discovery pass roads, although we jump (read: carefully inch around) the gates for the former...
 

Haines

Banned
Woke up 3 hours sleep, and cant seem to get my brain to turn off.

Calling for 28 celsius and sunny and i dont work til 4pm

Maybe ill clean up the bike this morning and go for a ride :)
 

SatansReverence

Hipster Princess
Just got me a Sena 20s today. Bit difficult to install on my new helmet but I got there in the end. Definitely impressed by its sound quality for radio and music but I'm forced to wait till I can try it at speed :(


Who else is running one of these?
 

Dougald

Member
I've got a slightly older Sena unit (SMH10), so does my wife and a friend of mine. Absolutely awesome for bike to bike comms, really clear sound and long range (at least a mile line of sight, I reckon)
 

SatansReverence

Hipster Princess
I've got a slightly older Sena unit (SMH10), so does my wife and a friend of mine. Absolutely awesome for bike to bike comms, really clear sound and long range (at least a mile line of sight, I reckon)

I always hear good things about them.

Can't wait to give it a go on the road!
 

Dougald

Member
I've actually used it for phone calls once or twice (don't normally bother for obvious reasons), and the people I've talked to couldn't tell I was on a motorcycle at all, the noise-cancelling is excellent.
 

SatansReverence

Hipster Princess
I've actually used it for phone calls once or twice (don't normally bother for obvious reasons), and the people I've talked to couldn't tell I was on a motorcycle at all, the noise-cancelling is excellent.

After setting it up I did call a mate using it in my lounge room (Room mate probably thinks I'm nuts talking to myself with a helmet on wearing a bathrobe xD) and all he said was my voice was a little quiet.
 

Dougald

Member
By all accounts they're great bikes with nice torquey little engines, but I haven't ridden one. Apart from the headlight they look great too (something I think about all KTMs). I'd fancy a Superduke GT myself if I didn't already have a Monster...

A bloke rode down my road on an SMC earlier, sounded awesome.


Edit: just so you know, the KTM dealer in Didcot has moved a bit closer to Oxford now, so they're not in the same place any more.
 
By all accounts they're great bikes with nice torquey little engines, but I haven't ridden one. Apart from the headlight they look great too (something I think about all KTMs). I'd fancy a Superduke GT myself if I didn't already have a Monster...

A bloke rode down my road on an SMC earlier, sounded awesome.


Edit: just so you know, the KTM dealer in Didcot has moved a bit closer to Oxford now, so they're not in the same place any more.

Yes I also found that out last weekend. I was keen to make a turn there this weekend depending on the weather and found that they moved. Would like to go and check the bikes out.
 

Dougald

Member
RJ lives near here, though I am glad he doesn't live too close by..!

Then again I live within shouting distance of a motorway, a train line and a Harley dealer, so it's not like it's peaceful here
 
Went on a nice ride Saturday and visited the BMW dealer and then went out to find the relocated Premier Bike (KTM) in Abington. Great ride and a bit of a pain to find as I did not take a gps. So stop check map on phone and drive till my memory fails haha.

Service was great, have a nice coffee and the guy walked me through the whole range or bikes. The even sorted out a test ride on the spot. One happy customer and oooooh I am liking a bit of orange

Test rode and got lost on the KTM 690 Duke
PS6M6y4.jpg


Also had a look at the KTM 1290

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Also had a look at the KTM 1290 Duke GT. Oh my word what a beast in real life. Small and compact. I rode the BMW XR and was not very impressed. This thing looks like a comfortable rocket.
 

OraleeWey

Member
How is KTM in terms of reliability? Those are some beautiful machines IMO. I like the headlights in the the last picture. IIRC I believe it has a radiator to help cool it off?
 

Dougald

Member
KTM is Austrian, I think they're pretty much as reliable as any other European marque. The Japanese are still the gold standard...

What did you think of the Duke max?
 

Dougald

Member
OraleeWay, you asked me if it was possible to get to France from where I am, so now I'm proving it by going for the day

If my bike wants to prove its worth as a Ducati by breaking down, this is the perfect opportunity

 

OraleeWey

Member
OraleeWay, you asked me if it was possible to get to France from where I am, so now I'm proving it by going for the day

If my bike wants to prove its worth as a Ducati by breaking down, this is the perfect opportunity


Me: Dougald, can you get to France from the UK?
Dougald: Hold my beer...

When will you be going?
 

Dougald

Member
It's made my military historian friend buck up about doing a trip to the Normandy battlefields again... but we've been talking about that for years
 

OraleeWey

Member
Damn, well @Dougald, should be a nice little fun trip. When the time comes, don't forget to snap some pictures! As for your friend, you just have to nudge him a little more. He'll come around.
 
KTM is Austrian, I think they're pretty much as reliable as any other European marque. The Japanese are still the gold standard...

What did you think of the Duke max?

Oh man I did enjoy the 45 min ride I did on it. Even on motorway speeds its rock solid for a 690cc.
Things I liked
- small with loads of punch
- sound good even with the stock exhaust
- have enough punch for having loads of fun for UK roads
- brakes and suspension has a solid feel to it.
- the instrument panel that has everything on
- the look of it. Also the dealers service was awesome.

Not so nice
- hard seat
- I have to wait for my pcp deal to finish to go back haha
 

Dougald

Member
Is it a proper container? My only worry if not is what happens in an accident

If it's meant to carry fuel then seems like a good idea for longer distance riding
 

OraleeWey

Member
Is it a proper container? My only worry if not is what happens in an accident

If it's meant to carry fuel then seems like a good idea for longer distance riding

Yup, it's one of those MSR bottles. Meant to carry fuel.

I can't keep it inside the boxes because those black boxes get hot. It makes the fuel bottle expand. You think it's a bad idea where it currently is?
 

Dougald

Member
I guess it's probably fine there, as long as its sturdy enough. I mean, a bunch of Ducati's had plastic tanks and you're basically sat on a load of fuel anyway....

I thought about doing something similar when I had the Bonneville with its awful 90 miles before I had to flip to reserve range.
 

OraleeWey

Member
I guess it's probably fine there, as long as its sturdy enough. I mean, a bunch of Ducati's had plastic tanks and you're basically sat on a load of fuel anyway....

I thought about doing something similar when I had the Bonneville with its awful 90 miles before I had to flip to reserve range.
I guess if you want to get technical, all we basically do is dangerously carry fuel around.

BTW, I still haven't mastered it yet, but it's getting easier putting the bike on the center stand. It helps a lot if I actually stand and put all my weight on the center stand leg(?) to lift the bike.


Edit: Anyone know what I can use on some of the bolts to help prevent rust? The ones that came with the pannier system tend to rust.
 

Dougald

Member
Rust? ACF-50 is your friend there, best thing the Americans ever invented. If it's good enough for US air force planes, it's good enough for your bike!

Unless you're talking about the threads on your bolt, then I'd give them a good smear with copper grease before you put them in. I normally do this anyway.
 

OraleeWey

Member
Rust? ACF-50 is your friend there, best thing the Americans ever invented. If it's good enough for US air force planes, it's good enough for your bike!

Unless you're talking about the threads on your bolt, then I'd give them a good smear with copper grease before you put them in. I normally do this anyway.

Threads are fine, I hope. I have to use blue strength thread locker on em. Otherwise they'd probably all fall out. ACF-50 you say? Thanks. Will purchase some.
 
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