thesoapster
Member
Sounds like your Monster needs some attention haha. My bike turned 3 a little over a month ago and I have 18,200 miles on it (and I haven't ridden it nearly as much as I should have!).
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2 wheel GAF UNITE!
- Thread starter Flo_Evans
- Start date
Just bought today; 2001 WR 400f. thing is a beeeast!
From the picture it looks like you're in Phoenix. Do you ride tracks or trails?
PHX indeed! I'll be doing a bit of both actually - I've got speedworld around 10 minutes away and I go about every weekend trail hopping with buds in 4x4's, so hopefully while I'm stepping my off-road game up I'll be able to work on my MX skills as well. Never really ridden track before, so that'll be a whole new ball game.
Taking it up camping with a huge group next weekend in the Mogollon Rim, so that'll be a super sweet break-in ride.
Taking it up camping with a huge group next weekend in the Mogollon Rim, so that'll be a super sweet break-in ride.
Speedworld's a great track but it's far from me. I'm SE valley now but when I lived closer to your side I was there constantly. By far my favorite track in the valley. I mainly rode trails but a buddy convinced me to do some track time and man I stepped up my game big time in a very short amount of time over a single riding season doing track. Highly recommend it. I've mainly gone back to trails again but fuck it's nice riding where you can stick turns. I hate the constantly feeling your back end is going to slide out riding on the hard packed trails. Also, I need to get my bike regeared. Some of the rockier trails are absolute torture on my bike. Infinite stalls. (Florence Coke Ovens is a good example)
Ah, that's cool. I've been there a few times just to check it out and stuff and have ached to show those kids there what's up. None of them actually use their bikes. I never see anyone launching or anything, it's pretty sad.
We should get together sometime and go ride! I've got no qualms going long distances. I was on the TT forums and someone created a thread looking for AZ riders, so hopefully sometime I can ride with some peeps from the area, cus none of my friends have bikes.
I wanna take it out so badly right now! I'm right on the edge of civilization on Bell and in 5 minutes I can be in complete wilderness. Only thing is I don't have it registered in my name, an M license, or insurance right now.
Rode it all the way from 67th to 158th earlier though passing a couple coppers with no problem.
We should get together sometime and go ride! I've got no qualms going long distances. I was on the TT forums and someone created a thread looking for AZ riders, so hopefully sometime I can ride with some peeps from the area, cus none of my friends have bikes.
I wanna take it out so badly right now! I'm right on the edge of civilization on Bell and in 5 minutes I can be in complete wilderness. Only thing is I don't have it registered in my name, an M license, or insurance right now.
Rode it all the way from 67th to 158th earlier though passing a couple coppers with no problem.Foxtastical
Member
You should get a Buell still.Yeah, the Firebolt. I'll tell you guys when it's final. Still haggling over price at the moment. It needs some work, so I'm attempting to talk it down a couple hundred
/edit: Just talked to the guy. Sadly, he had already sold it for 3400 (euro), which is a little odd considering I almost bought it yesterday. He didn't have the papers and the backup key (those were at this parents' place), so we couldn't make the actual sale yet anyway. Guess he was miffed cause I lowballed him just a little too much.
Oh well, the upside is that I'm over 3000 euro ahead + I don't have to deal with that disastrous Buell engine and I'm still selling my YZF750. That leaves me with just my Ducati. Since I rented a secure storage space in the neighbourhood (which was planned for the Buell), I will be parking the Monster there. That way I'll get some actual miles on that thing. I bought it two 1.5 years ago, and it still only has 3500 kilometers on it.
So, it's probably for the best. Still, I'm kinda sad I won't have that glorious Harley Davidson sound to listen to, it was absolutely brutal.
Fallout-NL
Member
Yeah, definitely. It's barely broken in
.I think I will, at one point. Though it'll be a while before one reappears at such a good price.
I have the worst luck in the world. So last year I made a deal with a guy, agreed when to meet and that morning before going there I called and he said it was sold.. right
Then few days ago I go see this bike all good, we talk and they're interested but end up asking for more then reasonable amount of money after 2 days of almost agreeing qq
Then yesterday we talk to this guy about bike, he's interested in deal and we agree to talk tomorrow and arrange when to meet. We call tonight so we can meet tomorrow and he says his brother changed his mind and some other bs excuse.
I don't know what to do anymore, it just ain't happening it seems.
I'll end up eventually buying new bike from shop once I sell some land I have or something because it's not happening normal way.
And now I'm depressed as fuck again. Happiness that it's all done and new bike finally and then all crushed qq
Then few days ago I go see this bike all good, we talk and they're interested but end up asking for more then reasonable amount of money after 2 days of almost agreeing qq
Then yesterday we talk to this guy about bike, he's interested in deal and we agree to talk tomorrow and arrange when to meet. We call tonight so we can meet tomorrow and he says his brother changed his mind and some other bs excuse.
I don't know what to do anymore, it just ain't happening it seems.
I'll end up eventually buying new bike from shop once I sell some land I have or something because it's not happening normal way.
And now I'm depressed as fuck again. Happiness that it's all done and new bike finally and then all crushed qq
Fallout-NL
Member
I wouldn't worry too much. There's tons of stuff on the market and there's bound to be a stand-up guy out there somewhere.
Since everyone loves Keanu Reeves and he loves bikes. Here is a great article about him test riding a Ducati.
thesoapster
Member
Fallout-NL
Member
That looks great, the Netherlands doesn't have anything resembling that .
.
I have a question. My seat is starting to come apart at one of the seams. How would I go about repairing it. Or am I going to have to buy a new seat? In that case, how much do seats usually run (Honda Shadow 600).
Time for an upgrade!!
Go look at Corbin, Mustang, or Sargent seats! You'll love the comfort upgrade!
Seconded!
Though if you can't afford a new replacement seat, check around parts brokers for an original replacement. Friend of mine got a replacement for his Bonneville for £10, and it looked virtually new.
ridethepiggy
Banned
Just sew it up.
I need to get some street tires for mine ASAP though. Luckily they were fairly new and had some good tread when I bought the thing, but now I've worn the knobbies down prettttty low. Not no-traction low, but judging by the fact I've only had it like 3 weeks and I've got them down this far already I'm quite certain it won't be too long until I'm needing new ones.
Thing is though I do a lot of trail riding -- like every day -- and I don't want to have to swap out my tires every time I want to go off-road. That'd be a pain, so I don't know. I could buy enduro tires, but I'd still need rims and wheels, but I could go get the whole shebang from a crotchrocket in a junkyard for cheap. Choices, choices!
I also need to fix my Lincoln LS that I crashed, and funds are limited as it is... ffuuu
pyrealnova
Member
Now i'm in a bad mood. I work in Manhattan and park my bike on a relatively quiet side street near NYU every day. After an hour at my desk I go outside to cover the bike (already learned the hard way about putting the cover on when the bike is still hot). As I get closer to the bike I realize that the right-side exhaust on my stock M696 is dangling slightly. I panicked at first, thinking someone knocked into my bike. Upon closer inspection I realize that some asshole swiped the bolt that connects the exhaust to the underside of the tail. I'm about to walk over to my local Ducati dealer and see about getting a replacement, but I'm concerned about whether or not I can ride it home. I hate this damn city sometimes.
Holy shit! Someone just stole a BOLT off your bike?!?
ClassyPenguin
Banned
maybe it was loose?
Upon further thinking about this, that's probably what happened. Those V-Twins are known to vibrate bolts loose fairly quickly.
My SV rattled a few out, I had a locktite several of them to keep them from from falling out. Luckily for me they were fairing bolts lol.
ClassyPenguin
Banned
I did a lot of freeway commuting on my ninja 250 and one time while downshifting, the bolt. of the shifting lever came loose. Thankfully, it was only a few blocks away from my apartment (had to ride it in first gear. That was fun). That's when I started to periodically inspect them.
pyrealnova
Member
Guess I'll look around the area to see if it happened to fall off after I parked. It does seem odd that they would only take the one and not the other. I don't give a shit about the bolt, I just hate the idea of someone touching my bike.
ClassyPenguin
Banned
that's definitely understandable.
Yeah, I'm the same way. I came out from the mall once to some lady attempting to sit her son on my bike. I tried to be as nice as possible, told her "Get your son off my bike, it's hot and could easily burn him" and "You wouldn't want me sitting in your car would you?"... yeah, don't touch my bike.
Not sure I would be that nice..............no I definitely wouldn't
My bike seems to be a magnet for people who think they can just stroll up and take a seat. After a few times too many of coming back to find my mirrors have been messed with, I just bought the most hyperactive alarmed disc lock I could find. I haven't had any problems since..
That's awesome. I was thinking about something I could program my own voice into.
GET THE FUCK OFF MY BIKE BITCH!
Although, that might cause them to want to kick it over...
Maybe just hook the handlebars directly to the battery?
To be honest even an alarm won't help if someone just wants to screw with your bike. I'm just glad I managed to get a place with a garage, a guy I know had his ZX6R kicked over in his car park in the middle of the night several times, alarm didn't seem to deter them one bit.
pyrealnova
Member
That scares the hell out of me. Luckily I have a garage underneath my apartment building, so it's locked up and safe when I'm at home or out of town. Unfortunately there are no other options other than street parking around my office.
Depends on the area you are in I guess.. I know I wouldn't like to leave my bike there
The best you can hope for is to cover it up, that seems to render bikes invisible to anyone out to screw with your bike. At my last place I used to block my bike against a wall with the car and cover it over, never had a single problem, even though my neighbours lost a few car badges!
Luckily I now live down a dead-end road connected to another dead-end road in a reasonably quiet area. It helps that the entire area is flats with garages and as a result almost entirely populated by bikers (I think 3/4 garages must have at least one bike in them).
On another note I just picked up some panniers for my trip in the summer. Being the cheap guy I am I found up a couple of army surplus bags for £5 each, they are surprisingly big... the only problem is they aren't waterproof, but I also managed to get hold of some surplus waterproof bags to go inside too. All I need to do now is get the cheapest pannier rails I can find to stop them bashing into my wheels and I'll be all set..
The best you can hope for is to cover it up, that seems to render bikes invisible to anyone out to screw with your bike. At my last place I used to block my bike against a wall with the car and cover it over, never had a single problem, even though my neighbours lost a few car badges!
Luckily I now live down a dead-end road connected to another dead-end road in a reasonably quiet area. It helps that the entire area is flats with garages and as a result almost entirely populated by bikers (I think 3/4 garages must have at least one bike in them).
On another note I just picked up some panniers for my trip in the summer. Being the cheap guy I am I found up a couple of army surplus bags for £5 each, they are surprisingly big... the only problem is they aren't waterproof, but I also managed to get hold of some surplus waterproof bags to go inside too. All I need to do now is get the cheapest pannier rails I can find to stop them bashing into my wheels and I'll be all set..
Fallout-NL
Member
Glorious_Paradox
Member
Gah, I was negotiating with an owner of a 2008 KTM Superduke I was really interested in buying, then all of a sudden he went quiet. I asked him what was up, and apparently he sold the bike a couple of days ago I'm really bummed out, because it was a great example at an unusually low price, and there's nothing else available at the moment that even comes close
Anyway, I'm starting to look into alternatives now as well. I'm going to try out the Yamaha TDM, Kawasaki Z 750 and Honda CBF 600S this weekend, and see if any of them click with me. Anyone here have any experience with these bikes, or could suggest some decent alternatives?
I'm really bummed out, because it was a great example at an unusually low price, and there's nothing else available at the moment that even comes close Anyway, I'm starting to look into alternatives now as well. I'm going to try out the Yamaha TDM, Kawasaki Z 750 and Honda CBF 600S this weekend, and see if any of them click with me. Anyone here have any experience with these bikes, or could suggest some decent alternatives?
Gah, I was negotiating with an owner of a 2008 KTM Superduke I was really interested in buying, then all of a sudden he went quiet. I asked him what was up, and apparently he sold the bike a couple of days ago
Anyway, I'm starting to look into alternatives now as well. I'm going to try out the Yamaha TDM, Kawasaki Z 750 and Honda CBF 600S this weekend, and see if any of them click with me. Anyone here have any experience with these bikes, or could suggest some decent alternatives?
Triumph Speed Triple? Not sure if it's exactly what you're looking for, but I just like the Speed Triple
Fallout-NL
Member
Gah, I was negotiating with an owner of a 2008 KTM Superduke I was really interested in buying, then all of a sudden he went quiet. I asked him what was up, and apparently he sold the bike a couple of days ago
Anyway, I'm starting to look into alternatives now as well. I'm going to try out the Yamaha TDM, Kawasaki Z 750 and Honda CBF 600S this weekend, and see if any of them click with me. Anyone here have any experience with these bikes, or could suggest some decent alternatives?
TDM: I hear it's comfortable enough. Parallel twin, so plenty of torque. The 90s models can tend to burn through oil. Also look for the TRX, a sportier version with the same engine. Yamaha's version of the Monster, sort of.
Z750: Can't go wrong with this one. I4 tuned to have a little more on offer lower in the power band. Looks great. Haven't ridden one, but I guess it's popular for a reason.
CBF600S: My girlfriend once had to ride one for a week when her 796 Monster was in the shop. She said it was painfully boring. Probably very reliable though.
Other options:
Honda CB600 (F?), the Hornet. Naked, nimble, fun version of the CBR600f.
Ducati Monster 620, 696 or S2R800. The Monster is incredible to drive. Truly effortless and lots of fun.
Suzuki SV650 (also a small twin, but with 4 valves instead of the above Monsters' 2. Little quicker therefore).
Yamaha FZ6, now sold new as, I guess, the XJ6. But I think it looked better when it still was the FZ6. The FZ is now sold only as an 800cc model.
Don't know what your budget is, but there's more for me to recommend looking at.
José Mourinho
cocknose
Looking for a bike on a low budget sucks balls. Particularly when you have expensive taste.
It really does, though the way I got around that was just to break the bank with double my budget...
Kyle, did you ever manage to test ride anything? Wondering how you got on.. I had the opportunity to try out a Triumph Tiger the other day, but all it did was ruin my dreams of owning an adventure bike (I'm too short)
Kyle, did you ever manage to test ride anything? Wondering how you got on.. I had the opportunity to try out a Triumph Tiger the other day, but all it did was ruin my dreams of owning an adventure bike (I'm too short)
José Mourinho
cocknose
No test rides yet. I have to buy private because dealers are far too expensive. As you can imagine though, not to many private sells folk are too keen to let people test ride. I have however found a guy who is willing to go with me and have a look at the bikes and make sure they're up to scratch. Just called about this '05 Bandit. Guy was asking £2500 but said inthe ned he'd take £2000, gonna have a look next week.
AS for shortness, I have the opposite problem. I', 6'2" and find a lot of bikes feel tiny.
Fallout-NL
Member
No test rides yet. I have to buy private because dealers are far too expensive. As you can imagine though, not to many private sells folk are too keen to let people test ride. I have however found a guy who is willing to go with me and have a look at the bikes and make sure they're up to scratch. Just called about this '05 Bandit. Guy was asking £2500 but said inthe ned he'd take £2000, gonna have a look next week.
AS for shortness, I have the opposite problem. I', 6'2" and find a lot of bikes feel tiny.
Hard to tell if the frame/forks/rear-arm aren't bent (due to being in some kind of crash/slide) when you can't drive the bike.
Odd, here in the Netherlands it's usually no problem if you leave behind an ID or something of equal value. Though I admit, it does surprise me how most sellers here don't clearly outline what would happen in terms of paying up when I crash the bike during test-drive.
José Mourinho
cocknose
Just spoke to my father. Seems I can borrow some money and am there for thinking of going for this 2008 Yamaha FZ6, 10,000 miles on the clock. Guy was looking £2,950 but got him down to £2,500.
The ball is rolling now.
The ball is rolling now.