RantMachine

Yeah, ok then - I'll be there. Will take me a little while as I'm on the little'un but I'll be there before too long.

In other words... project time!

So... anyone bothering this week? Or should I just go straight home from work?

Can i pay extra so hoggs can't have a green one? With HUFFS instead of Hoggs on the back? I'm wearing my 2013 rally shirt today, by coincidence

I just got a set of Knox jeans, and they seem awesome so far! Really good tapered fit, better than most of my non-bike jeans, very generous kevlar distribution (ie. all encompassing down to top-of-boot level), and the CE armour pockets are accessed from the outside via very well hidden zips so you can convert them to 'normal' jeans once you arrive at your destination without having to strip in public Hopefully won't be crash testing them, though!

Challenge accepted. NO! NO, BAD RANT! NO CHALLENGE! I'm thinking something along the lines of a sandwich board with a fake Daily Mail cover story on each side with a headline saying "WORLD GRAVY SUPPLIES RUN OUT FOREVER" And I'll wear my special suit underneath it, of course

I think Neil M's may be coming but they're Northern so shockproof Challenge accepted.

Dont cut anything away as an alteration........ I already have a big old rip in the crotch - right next to the zip

Is it happening at specific RPMs?

...Forum so desperate for funds that you're shifting dodgy bikes to make ends meet?

Still need to sort a costume! Having to downsize, my original plan was based on making Crystal carry some of the crap... need to travel light now that she's not going! Maybe I should just make some minor changes to my costume from last year

When my old Lexmoto went wrong on a weekly basis and needed warranty repairs, I used to insist on bringing it to the stealership first thing saturday and them being done with it by the end of the day... no excuses, they knew I needed it for my commute and if they couldn't provide a replacement while it was in the shop then that's their own fault.

Can't recommend anywhere in London, but can safely say that if you end up buying them online you should avoid dirtbikebitz like the plague! I've never known a company to screw up an order as many times as they did with my Acerbis handguards

Happy birthday! Hope court doesn't take up too much of your day

Yeah, the name isn't just for show But amen to that. I've had a Lexmoto and I've now got a CG as an about-town bike. My CG is one of the limited edition 4-speed race gearbox models (yes, they did that... Honda Japan thought it would be fun, apparently) and it really doesn't move much slower than the Lexmoto did, runs out of puff at around the same time. But it goes wrong a lot less often, the service intervals are VAST in comparison, the parts are still cheap and readily available even though the limited model is based on the old pre 1985 model, and of course it's easier to work on... You name it, the CG is better. Look at it his way: Your CG is a first world bike designed specifically to withstand the punishment of third world ownership. Chinese bikes are second world bikes designed to a budget.

http://memesvault.com/wp-content/uploads/Hahaha-No-Meme-11.png 1. Lexmoto lie. For one thing their speedometers lie, usually read anything up to a good 10% higher than actual speed. And their advertised top speeds must have been measured downhill in a favourable wind, because my old Lexmoto was advertised as a 70mph top speed and it managed 60 on a good day, if you ragged it all the time. I think it hit 70 once... going downhill, wind on my back,slipstreaming a lorry. Also, it's a naked... so wind resistance isn't going to do your top speed any favours. 2. Resale value on Chinese bikes tanks, no exceptions as far as I'm aware. Korean stuff like Hyosung holds value a tiny bit better, but a Lexmoto or a Sinnis will be worth less that half what you paid for it pretty much from the moment you ride it off the forecourt. Selling up when you do get a bigger bike will be a harrowing process. 3. If you want to maintain the warranty on a Lexmoto, you can look forward to ridiculously frequent dealer services compared to a Japanese bike. Roughly half a dozen wearing in services (first one after 100km!!!). Even after wearing it in, you can be looking at as little as 2000 miles per service. And you'll need that warranty, because part failure isn't exactly rare. In a year I went through three solenoids, a front brake caliper, a set of clocks, two fuel gauges, an inlet rubber, and assorted other little bits. 4. They're badly built. Again, in that first year: one of my headlights FELL OFF while riding, had to tie it back on with some ribbon from a nearby florist. My CDI unit fell out the bottom of the bike, thankfully while on the approach to my house so only the corner of the outer casing was ground down. The cables were wrapped too tightly around the headstock and subsequently tore free from the clocks. The bodywork didn't sit flush and subsequently rubbed through one of the wires, killing the lights. The brake caliper didn't distribute force evenly across the pad, which wore it unevenly, and later seized. The rear axle wasn't greased and so rusted in place and took god only knows how much penetrating fluid and brute force to remove. When I changed the chain and sprockets, I found mystery bits of metal and a bolt inside the front sprocket cover... no idea where they came from 5. The parts availability isn't actually all that bad when the bike is a current model, but the second they discontinue it you're screwed. My bike was introduced in late 2012 and discontinued in early 2015, and when I did the chain and sprocket change I ended up having to bodge on parts from a Suzuki DR125. When an old dear decided to crash into me, the bike was a write off despite generally surviving quite well because it was impossible to source a new right hand fork leg. 6. Rust is a problem no matter where you keep it or how hard you try to keep it clean. I cleaned mine after work EVERY DAY - no exaggeration - and the subframe, headstock and swingarm still rusted like crazy. One time I cleaned it thoroughly then rode to the seaside - joked that it would be visibly rusty by the next day. And it actually was! And it was always covered, and I even had a towel to dry it off after wet runs. That bike was endlessly pampered and it still rusted. Tl;dr Chinese bikes are shit, buy a second hand Jap bike. Anyone that tells you otherwise with all the "Chinese bikes are getting better" or "Japanese bikes were bad once too" is just a Chinese bike apologist who spent too much time trying to convince themselves that their own Chinese bike was actually money well spent and ended up believing their own crap The only notable exception would be the CFmoto/WK 650 models, they don't seem to be too bad. But that's a whole different ball park to a mass produced sell-and-forget 125.

Crap TMBF turnout once again!

I'm going to be there, along with a few others. Just waiting for one of them to have dinner before we head up, probably there from 6:30ish. If Bonio is reading this, I've got that book for you.

I've got something very similar fitted on mine (but the folding kind with not-so-easy adjusters), £18 for the pair and they're sound! Colour is still looking strong, and they're nice and solid. I wouldn't buy many Chinese made bike parts, but I'm 100% happy with these things.

It puts the lotion on its skin...

For what it's worth, I'll probably get to Royston at about 13:40 at the earliest, based on travelling straight from work.

Data nothin'! I'm just busy doing my job while the rest of you lot change the plans constantly on company time

You missed AndyPF04 who is meeting up with us somewhere around Bikers World in Daventry!

Single cylinder... Remind me what brakes are, again? If I'm below 6000rpm I just drop a gear and up the throttle a little to maintain my current speed then roll off slightly juuuust before entering the corner, much smoother having it in high revs in a lower gear. It's a bit too snatchy if it drops below 5000rpm on a bend.