Dav3y

Would have to be the GL1200 for me. Comfort first.

Had my front Pilot Road 3 fitted last week. Still have got to get the back done once my chain finally gets delivered but WOW , what a difference over the BT021 I had on the front. The bike has never felt better to ride since I've had it. I guess the only downside is if I sell the bike, someone else is going to get the benefit of this great rubber.

Hmmm, looks a bit like Pimp my Superdream. The fairing and engine look too big for the rest of the bike and as for those tiny panniers, I'm not sure they would be much use for anything. Not for me I'm afraid despite the fact I like retro looking bikes.

It's pretty common to do courses in towns where there are test centres as the instructors will pretty much cover most of the routes you are ever likely to take when doing your Mod2. Don't sweat it, enjoy the different roads and to be honest it's probably better you don't use roads you know as it will make you more alert and observant of everything from speed limits to positioning at junctions/roundabouts and take away any over confidence you might have from using local/familiar roads you might have grown some bad habits riding.

Might sound strange, but I'm sure there was someone talking about boots that I gather have a deeper sole on them that can also help a little.

Didn't go in the end. Glad I didn't as I went for a rideout in the afternoon and got about 10 miles from home when the heavens gradually opened. The fairing protected me from the worst of it but my mate on his GSX1400 got his trousers a little wet. No fun in this sort of weather. Looks like the only decent day for a rideout is likely to be Friday now during my week off

Don't know what your J&S is like in Maidstone, but there's a great one in Eltham. Should be fairly easy to reach up the A20. edit. Just noticed you've spotted it !!

Hmm, weather forecast says it should not be raining right now but it is Guess i should crawl out my pit and look out the window.

He's not 19, yet.....

You did explain you want to do A2 once you've turned 19 or has he got the wrong end of the stick and think you want to commence your training before you are 19 in which case his advice is correct ? If he's totally understood the situation and is still telling you you need to do A1 training/test once you have turned 19 then he's wrong.

Post your story up here. Keep it factual and let them know (and their prospective customers) just how rewarding buying one of their bikes will be. https://www.facebook.com/SinnisMotorcycles

What exactly is included for your £420 ? As much training as you need up to and inluding 1 shot at each test ? What happens if you fluff mod1 ? When i did my test last year,i did the theory and CBT seperately to give me a feel for biking and was advised by the guy that took me on the CBT that a 3 day DAS course would be the most appropriate for me as i'd been on a bike before(many years ago). My DAS was basically two full days of training out on the bike practising the local test routes and manouveres for mod 1 in a disused car park whilst getting tips on riding techniques over the radio while we were riding. My 3rd day was basically a quick practise for the mod 1 and then mod 1 late morning followed by mod 2 in the afternoon but did also include extra training but not test fees should i have messed up. Fortunately i didn't and passed both the same day. My 3 day course with the two test fees included was £500 and suited me as i took a few days off of work to get it done. I guess what you choose just needs to fit what time you have available and is going to give you the most benefit.

Tunnels won't be open on the 26th will they ? Besides it would probably be a distraction i guess as i gather it might be a bit like Hastings a couple of weeks back with stalls selling bike gear and lots of pwetty bikes to look at. I see the point though, could have given bikers a sneak preview before everyone else

Is this a rideout down there on the 1st as the website seems to suggest the tunnels are being opened on Tuesday the 27th ? Would love to visit them but feel what with the 26th being the bank holiday followed by the rest of the week a school holiday it might well be packed all that week. Last time i went to Ramsgate i parked right outside the old Casino opposite a chipshop while i sat opposite munching my chips and feeding the segulls. Is there any decent bike parking around ?

Thought i'd post this up as i've not seen much publicity around about it and am planning on riding down with my mate from NW Kent. Hopefully the weather will remain good. Starts at ACE Cafe, North Circular,A13, M25, A2, M2,Thanet Way. Linky

I think a lot of older british cars had no syncromesh on first gear which basically made it impossible to engage first gear with the car moving. I wouldn't have thought this the case with modern bikes being used for bike tests though

I wouldn't be too bothered about dodging raindrops to do the cbt. If it does rain, look on the bright side. You get to test your waterproofs and learn in a more testing environment which should set you up better for when it rains for real (because it will) Had absolutely amazing weather last summer when i did my cbt and das but as a result didn't get any wet weather experience until i was on my own. Seems you might be doing your test at the Gillingham centre unless there is another in Kent more local to you/your chosen school. I used a training company based in Northfleet. Found it quite intense, but he knew his stuff. Goodluck with it all.

I've heard some pretty idiotic claims from P.C. World employees in the past but the red laptop has got to be a winner. As for the 8 hour £50 backup for windows 8, I call B.S. on that as well. Nearly all pre-built computers these days running Windows 7/8 either come with recovery discs or a recovery partition from which you can either recover your P.C. or build your own recovery disc set so that should the hard disc ever fail or be upgraded by an SSD for example, it's a fairly straight forward process to return your machine to the way it was when it was taken out of the box. It wouldn't at all surprise me if P.C. world as part of their 'backup' process deliberately removed your recovery partition so you wouldn't be able to make your own disc set once you got your hand on it. Out of interest, what make of machine are your buying/did you buy as all ACER/DELL/ASUS machines as far as I am aware have the recovery partition and the program to make your own disc set ?

Well, job done. Used some surgical micropore tape. Just one layer was enough to tighten the grip up that I didn't need any glue in the end. Took a fair bit of twisting to get the grip on but it doesn't feel like it's going to come off any time soon. I guess time will tell.

Thanks for the ideas. It had crossed my mind to use some sort of double sided tape but then thought I might have trouble getting the grip on without ruining the tape. There is a little clearance but the grip is certainly not a friction fit nor does it flop around. I might try the wrap/tape idea first and make sure I wrap the tape anticlockwise looking from the bar end to at least tighten things up first and then maybe try the silicone idea as well if the glue still doesnt hold. I'm going to leave the melt type glue as a last resort incase I ever want to remove and refit the original grips which I managed to remove in one piece. I believe you can get a cloth type tape which might help it take up a bit more glue and increase the surface area for the glue to adhere.

Can anyone recommend a glue to use for my heated grips as the throttle side has come loose and i'd like to secure it properly. The original glue with the grips was like a rubber solution you get with bicycle puncture repair kits. It lasted a good few months. I have since tried a general purpose glue which was pretty useless and pretty much broke away after a few twists of the throttle. I guess the fact that both surfaces being a hard smooth plastic finish doesn't help much but i could rough the plastic up a bit with a rasp or file. Any ideas would be greatly received.

Head up, nice big wide turns, not too slow. Is the foot going down in the same place each time or randomly different places ? Try not to over think about what you're doing.

Congrats. Now for the fun part.........shopping.

The obvious choice due to your age is straight to DAS. As has been said, get the theory done, then when you do CBT all options will be open to you immediately. Not sure where you are in Kent but i could recommend someone if you're North West Kent. Once you've done CBT then decide what track you want to take depending on how well it goes/how comfortable you are on the bike ?

I don't think a skid alone should be reason for a fail tbh as a number of bikes have ABS which you can use to take your test on. Losing control of a skid and coming off would be an entirely different matter.