Lucifah

Have you tried here? http://www.jsaccessories.co.uk/stores/ilford http://www.jsaccessories.co.uk/stores/braintree Although not exactly Chelmsford, the Ilford store is right at the A12. Easy to find. Maybe give them a ring before hand to check which brands/sizes they have in store?

Away from the sun - Three Doors Down

Had a rather nasty dental surgery last week, which kept me off the bike since. And we had some awesome weather here lately! Tomorrow I have to go abroad for a week or so to attend to family matters. When I come back, the bike's battery will probably be flat. Want to ride! FUUUCK IT!

+1 for internal sun visors. Flip it down with one finger when the sun comes out, release it with the press of a button when the clouds take over or you are going through tunnels or indeed, if it's getting gloomy.

Sorry to hear you had so much grief with the bike. When I saw this video the other day, I thought that guy surely is exaggerating by quite some margin, but maybe he wasn't... "> (Warning, it's probably only fun to watch if you do NOT own a Chinese bike...)

This might be interesting with regards to "blipping" throttle: "> Probably and old hat, but explained nicely.

What exactly do you mean by that? Too fast? Running wide mid corner? Got yourself into hairy situations? Or just a case of "damn, I could have taken that bend much faster"? In which case, don't worry. That happens a lot, especially on unfamiliar roads, but it's not a race and margin for error isn't a bad thing at all.

For a daily commute you probably want to go for textiles not leathers. They are mostly waterproof, and allow you to wear normal stuff underneath if you have to. The only problem are trousers (they'll get wrinkly) and shoes, to be honest. Put them into a backpack, arrive 10 minutes early, go straight to the men's room and come out dressed and groomed as required I used to work in the City in a rather large company, and the men's rooms on all five floors looked like a dressing room of a football team in the morning. Some people arrived by bicycle, some by motorbike, some even ran to work and took a shower there on arrival. (one of the men's rooms had a shower) It can be done, and as long as you're ready before work begins, I don't think anybody will complain. Edit: Meant to add... Good luck with your new job!

I only found out about this at 4pm today.. http://www.bike1066.com Put it in your diary for next year.. Aye Sir!

Visor down? Nar, faster bike... General trend on this thread is for 125cc riders to be annoyed by other road users cause they Dont have the power to get away from them. I've never had L plates or a 125cc, but I can see how especially L plates achieve the opposite of what they are supposed to do. Instead of people being patient with learners, they harass them. It's a war out there!

Visor down?

Summer is just beginning. We should manage some day!

I'm not sure yet when I can be on the bike tomorrow, but I'm essentially your neighbour (E11, just a bit west on the A12) Might be available at some point after 1pm. If you know some nice roads and fancy a ride out (tomorrow or some time soon), we could meet somewhere along the A12 (like Shell Rise Park eastbound) and take it from there? It's only 15-20 minutes from here, and should be very close to you too? Feel free to PM to discuss! Cheers!

Which ever lid you buy, go to a decent dealer and try it on first. Proper fit is more important than 4 or 5 star rating, because if the lid comes off or wobbles on your head, it's not giving you good protection at all. Pressure points could be tolerable, but after a while they take away concentration or even cause headaches. A 500 quid lid that doesn't fit properly is worth less than a 100 quid lid that fits as it should.

Make: HJC Model: IS-17 Decal: Lorenzo 99, Angel & Demon, base black Weight: 1450g Price: £170 Features: - pinlock anti-fog visor with one spare (double glazing ); removable for cleaning - spring-loaded lock/lever to open visor - air inlet at chin (stepless) and on top (2 steps) - rear exhausts (they really call it that lol... creates a nice airflow within the lid when inlets are open) - integrated sun visor, removable for cleaning - removable and washable liner - double D-ring straps - breath deflector - ACU Gold approved I picked the helmet essentially because it just fit perfectly, snug yet comfortable. No pressure points anywhere, not even on the forehead. The helmet is surprisingly quiet and the vents and visors (sunvisor included) are easy to operate with gloves. I also like that the lowest opened setting of the visor is barely open at all. It lets in more air, but the gap isn't big enough for suicidal insects to find their way in. It stays in that position [strikeout]beyond[/strikeout] at 70mph without being closed by the wind. How waterproof it is, I haven't been able to test sufficiently yet. Two short downpours didn't cause any issues, neither with water getting in, nor with misty visor. The only downside I have found so far are the flimsy plastic knobs which are supposed to hold the liner in place. They don't look like they can cope with too many liner replacement cycles.

I've got factory fitted Immobiliser, Datatag, and Bike Trac (GPS tracker with SMS and email alerting). A disc lock is under the passenger seat, so that's available if I park the bike somewhere out of my sight. When I'm not riding, it's in my garage, which is in the backyard in plain sight of a number of flats and only accessible through a massive iron gate. But to be honest, these are all just deterrents to the occasional crook and measures to reduce insurance premium. A pro thief will get your bike, no matter what. I am rather worried about that too, despite all those measures, because my bike being new and apparently rather rare on English roads, seems to attract a lot of interest when I'm out and about. Or maybe British riders are just more curious and a lot more polite than what I'm used to

Haha love that one! Will we get some of the "can't be bothered to hunt cats" footage?

This looks like a real steal. Quality is sub par at 1080p, but for that price it's more than good enough! Thanks for sharing! Are all the different mounts included? Can you tell how long it lasts on its own battery?

I'd heard that's the worst you can do, as your screen gets a coat of water and your visor still will as well. As a result you end up looking through visor, water, screen, water and can seriously hamper your view. Never tried it myself, I've always kept my head in the clouds Depends on the windscreen I guess. On my Bandit I was able to peak just over the rim of it and still enjoy reduced amount of water on the visor. It wasn't a riding position I particularly liked but worked okay. I had much more trouble with my slightly too short trousers, which made all the water run straight into my boots, especially in a crouched position! As you said yourself, you'd normally avoid such weather if you can. Just don't let it distract you too much from what's going on on the road.

Rain can be a bit unnerving if you're not used to it. You made it back home safe and sound though, so it wasn't THAT bad Just make sure your visor is properly cleaned before setting off in bad weather, if possible. All the little dirt particles from suicidal insects just make it a bit worse (until they are washed off by the rain). Baby wipes and a piece of kitchen roll are all you need really. You might want to take a few with you as well, in small plastic bags so that the wipes stay moist and the kitchen roll stays dry. Especially when cars in front of you throw up some dirt from the road, it can help to have them at hand. On the go, if it's pissing down at higher speeds, use the windshield to your advantage (cower behind it), if you have one. It helps a little, but don't expect miracles.

My bad, you're right. Maybe give them a call and ask them if it's ACU approved, and if yes, why there's no sticker on it?

Cheers guys

Flip fronts, too? I noticed that some helmets didn't seem to sport the sticker, when I recently purchased a lid, and asked the dealer about it. What I took away from his lengthy explanation was that ACU and Sharp standards are very different (different impact speeds and scenarios) and flip fronts usually don't pass the ACU requirements, but are still perfectly fine for the (slower) road. The same allegedly applies to some strap mechanisms. Just repeating what the dealer told me, so don't hold it against me if it's not accurate. The helmet in question is a flip front.

Brilliant, thanks a lot!

Hi guys, This might sound like an odd question, but I'm wondering if it's okay in the UK to wash your vehicle on the street or in the backyard? I know it's not allowed (and actually quite expensive if caught) in Germany in most areas, for environmental reasons. What's the situation here? Cheers!