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If you want some power i think you should consider buying an old NSR125 (might just be able to find one old enough for you to afford it, but do be careful not to buy a thoroughly trashed one). If you do, expect the (potentially major) possible 2-stroke problems though, especially likely if you thrash it around and for certain if you don't look after it properly. You simply aren't going to get power from a 4-stroke 125 very easily (and if you do mod them up you will only hurt reliability - may as well get a 2-stroke in the first place!) Then pass your test (not as hard as it sounds - see if there's any charities in your area that do motorcycle training/lessons - they charge next to naff all for it you see). Then derestrict the bike to enjoy some nice power. In that order!

Was your helmet £5 from a car boot sale voodoo? Lol, what I'm saying is sometimes a £5 helmet is safer than a £300 one. I think he's doing well and using his intiative to get himself on the road. I'm sure if he had loads of money he'd go out and buy an expensive helmet. If he rides safely and can work out exactly where the dangers are on the road then that'll be worth a lot more than any protection a helmet can offer. Just want to say that whilst i understand what your getting at Voodoo, i really think Bill is right to do all he can to encourage this guy to get a new helmet (it's one of the few things i agree is not worth skimping on, especially for an accident-prone newbie rider - e.g. it only took me 2 months from getting started to "test" the back of mine on the floor, at 20mph... Needless to say £120 of correctly-fitted helmet probably saved me from the reaper). £5 helmet for a £5 head, as they say

According to a guy in the local Bike Gear shop the trousers are "touring style" and so need a touring style boot, even with the padding out. Had a go with some Vortex ones, but wasn't convinced by the level of ankle protection (i.e. low), and found them a little too "tall" (they were "bunching"/crumpling downwards as i stood up straight - makes sense?). So am still none the wiser regarding good boots for these - the Aldi boots i have (badly worn and no longer waterproof) weren't the worst, but not available AFAIK!

Just a quick one guys - currently sitting outside on my CG tapping away. Have just put the bike back together having left it with the back wheel off for the last month. The bike has barely been used in 4 months so I immediately suspect old fuel to be the problem. Engine starts but the second I go to apply revs it cuts out. Have left it idling for ages then tried but no luck. What's the most likely solution to be?

+1. Try filling it up with water and running the engine, and look around (NB: Take care not to burn yourself of course!) for water leaking/dripping.

You're not going to get a decent condition CBR for under a grand because i think they only started making them in 04 (last i checked - a few weeks back - the Bike Trader prices placed them at £1300+ for even the oldest ones). I think slugworth1987 is selling a CBR for £500 (dirt cheap!), but it looks to me like it'll need quite a lot of work doing and parts replacing before it's rideable again (so unless you know someone who will do the work cheaply...) Here's the link anyway: http://www.themotorbikeforum.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=20389 And someone correct me if i'm wrong, but i'm sure the R125 only came out really recently - and that it's really expensive for a 125 to boot. For under a grand, i think you'll probably have to be looking at the cheap commuter 125s (not necessarily a bad thing imo, spend the bulk of your money on good protective gear instead!) Edit: Not sure where you're based, but i might be looking to sell an 02 plate CG125 over the next few months if it helps.

I'm considering buying a Loobman (cheap chain oiler), from this which i believe to be the official website: http://www.chainoiler.co.uk/ Has anyone got any opinions or used one before? Any good/worth it? It seems to be an excellent, money saving idea from the descriptions on the website - but i don't want to go throwing money away on a talked-up-waste-of-time.

I have a set of what i believe to be called "ARLEN NESS NP-6066-AN WATERPROOF PANTS". Piccy here: http://www.bigbikebook.com/ProductImages/fullsize/np-6066-an_black_f.jpg The trousers seem to have soft but fairly bulky shin pads in them that seem to prevent me from wearing boots over the top of the trousers. However, the zip on the lower leg of the trousers allows the fit to be loosened, but not fully opened, so it is a big struggle to get the trousers to go over standard motorcycle boots. Does anyone know if am i supposed to take out the shin pad material when wearing boots (which would seem to leave the upper shin unprotected?), or is there another way this armour is supposed to be worn with boots? Do i need special boots?

You should google for some reviews - there's loads about From what i've heard, they handle well for their class, but don't go very fast (which i guess is because of the restrictive government requirements for learner-legal bikes). It seems to be widely considered a good first bike if you don't mind spending more on your first bike (as it's not the cheapest option - things like older CG125's and EN125's and YBR125's and SR125's etc etc etc seem to fill the cheeep end of the market) One important thing to note, it's 4-stroke - so you can't "derestrict" it because it's not restricted. BUT, it'll be easier to maintain and more reliable.

Cheers for the informative answers guys. It's not annoying enough for me to throw the cash to get all that looked over, but i think i can safely rule out oil levels and drive chain tension / wear because it's recently had an oil and filter change, along with a shiny new chain and sprockets. And otherwise i believe the gearbox is fine - it's alot better than the CG125 gearbox i had to put up with for a year, anyway! I've got the Haynes manual though - so here's waiting for a warm day on which i can be bothered to take a gander (that is, when i get the damn thing back - it's been in the garage awaiting parts from the crappiest / most dishonest dealer in creation for the last week or so!)

Was hoping someone could tell me how to reduce/stop an annoying noise on my CB500 of what i believe to be clutch rattle. Clutch out, moving along, and its rattling (most noticeable at 40mph in 2nd gear). Pull lever in, rattling mysteriously stops. And i hear that clutch rattle on the CB500 is common, so i've jumped to the logical conclusion (that its clutch rattle). Could be wrong, as i'm very much a newbie. After a quick google, i've read carb balancing may help, so i plan to give that a go (well, pay someone i know to do it, as i'm not at the stage where i think playing with carbs is a good idea). Any other suggestions? Am planning to have valve clearance done too, as the bike is old with no service history. And out of interest, what causes "clutch rattle"?

+1 to that; Me neither Colin, i honestly think you get better value for money with an older bike. For example, I recently bought a perfectly good N-reg CB500 with 45K on the clocks for £795, from a dealer. Yes, it is the bike i've been having loads of issues with. OK, possibly not a good example for that reason (thing to note though, is that almost all the issues WERE present at the time of buying and i was just a mug for not checking it before putting my money down (put down deposit before looking, oops) - if i'd been more careful/knowledgeable i could've found a good bike for a low price).

... to change the fork seals (currently weeping)? AND also: ... to change the sprocket and chain? With reference to a CB500 if it makes a difference.

Interestingly enough as part of restricting a CB500 you replace the standard #122 jets with #125 jets (i believe this is upjetting, no?)

Just an update: Gave the radiator abit of a clean (no jet-washer, just with mitt and shampoo etc). No effect. Had it looked at, and basically 2 faults: 1) The radiator has indeed stopped working properly (must've been recent as i did hear it going a while back). It can be made to work if done manually, it just doesn't come on automatically like it should. 2) Coolant level was indeed low, in fact it had practically all gone, because it's A) Leaking out of a pipe and B) I accidentally let the bike overheat leaving the engine running for a few minutes, so some coolant spurted out of the overflow pipe thingy before i had chance to kill the engine. Refilled the system with water for now (no coolant around), and it'll be sorted out properly soon. When the original dealer bothers to send out other parts i need. If he can be bothered. The sod.

Not trying to intentionally put anyone off backpacks here but.. I was told they were dangerous to wear whilst on bikes, because if you come off the impact will majorly screw up your back? I've intentionally avoided using one for that very reason, and keep ramming my panniers full of stuff instead - anything to avoid a back pack. Is this right? Wrong? Any back packs where this is not the case? I'm also considering a top box, but have been put off substantially by the story on here of the guy being rammed by a car from behind and his back smacked straight into the top box first - he was wearing a back protector so he was OK, but i don't, so i don't want to chance it. Again, anything that can be done to make the top box thing safe? (it would be really convenient to have one)

Funnily enough you should say that - because i just found and read that a short while ago (after the original post of course) My bad Not sure why showing off the plate is a good thing? (unless in my case because an N-reg isn't going to seem very desirable )

Have just gone and bought a £7 Lidl motorcycle cover so i can leave the bike outside every once and a while. It's got two little "rings" (for want of a better word) which are clearly to help you secure it. Question: How/what should i use to secure the cover when it's over the bike? It's also got a transparent "sight window" (again for want of a better word) so you can see through part of it. Question: Why? Yet another question: Which way should i be putting the cover on - sight window at the rear of the bike or at the front?

+1 to Almax. But only if you can secure your bike to something equally secure. Alarm and chain attached to bike frame and secure street furniture - is probably the most cost-effective solution. Obviously the ideal solution (in order of priority imo) is: Big+heavy Chain with minimum 16mm links (e.g. Almax, Series IV ideally), attached through the frame of the bike, with no slack, to something very secure (maybe like a good ground anchor). Bike cover / garage. "Talking" alarm (people are more likely to respond to a human voice). Tagging system (e.g. Datatag/Alpha-Dot). Immobiliser. Alarmed disc-lock (just for good measure). Random linky: http://www.maxmoto.co.uk/motorcycle_security.shtml 80% is indeed the figure bandied about for % of home thefts.

For cleaning: http://www.visordown.com/articles/view/ ... /1412.html Says it all really.

The Haynes manual says to use 10W30 oil for my CB500. However, the mechanic that changed the oil used 10W40 and said it's fine to use on everything. Can anyone tell me the difference, and if there's a downside to ignoring Haynes? And if/why it could matter?

Not sure of the relevance but here goes: Rear left indicator stopped working on me CG. So therefore the front one was flashing really fast. Water had got in the bulb holder. Cleaned it out, then tried replacing the bulb, thinking it had blown, but nothing. Noted that the holder was very rusty. So today i replaced the whole indicator unit with a shiny new pattern part. And it works like a charm

... Just stopped working today (yet another problem with this bike ) I got to work, and found i couldn't lock the steering lock (the key would push in as normal, but wouldn't turn). The spare key didn't want to work either. The keys work fine to switch the engine on etc, it just won't engage the steering lock. After fiddling for 5 I left it and came back later, and found that by positioning the bars not quite at full lock, i was able to lock it. Having got home however, i found after lots of attempts that nothing i could do would lock this damn steering lock! I've recently sprayed inside the ignitional barrel with WD40. What's happened?

Is anyone able to link to an illustrated guide on how to do the above task? Having looked at my Haynes manual - i'm still clueless as to what to do.

Oops my bad - got my CG and my CB confused lol. And cheers both, will check the coolant/water tomorrow.