Mississippi Bullfrog

With a commuter you will soon appreciate comfort, reliability and economy more than sportiness. No one bike can do everything, which is why have two, but for the primary purpose you've got a good shortlist. I'd tend towards low down torque rather than an engine that needs to be revved. For a daily ride that makes traveling much better.

The guys I know with the NC750 don't find it boring. It's not all told by the numbers.

Saved you having to shower at the gym as well. What's not to like?

Ah, how did anyone survive those days? No helmet, no bouyancy aid, no safety boat, leaving contact with the shore before starting the engine, setting out on the water wearing boots that will fill with water in the event of a capsize....and the boat looks decidedly unstable.

Give a few months, if you still don't like it then change. But every new bike takes a while to get used to and if you swap it too soon you won't have given yourself chance to get to grips with it.

It's mainly leafy villagers who make the most noise round our way. The local lads seem to think they're the Dukes of Hazzard. There's one goes up the hill by our house and first time he did it I thought the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse had arrived. Needless to say it's not a big bike.

Boyd Tunnock, he who invented the Tunnock Teacake, has been knighted in the Queen's Birthday Honours list. I feel the appreciation shown on TMBF for the humble biscuit has been recognised. Hurrah!

I think it's a matter of experience and discernment. In busy traffic where you can see vehicles merging moving over early makes sense. In light traffic with plenty of space around you then you retain the ability to make space by speeding up or slowing down. It's all about anticipation, something I was taught when I learnt to ride a dinosaur but modern driving schools seem to ignore Just plan ahead according to traffic flow so you're not finding yourself needing to change lanes quickly. The other thing to watch out for on motorways is areas where lorries wear deep grooves into the surface of the inner lane. Sometimes it is safer to avoid crossing those if you can. You can't see them at night very well so be wary on motorways you don't know in the dark. It varies from bike to bike how much you're affected by the grooves. One of mine used to be very twitchy over them so I tended to take it easy and cruise in the left lane between the grooves until I got to a better surface.

The Tiger can look big but it’s a very usable working bike with quite a range of flexibility. It’s on my shortlist next time I replace the commuter.

Everyone has there own view on this but my experience with smaller bikes is that they are often over geared. The engine doesn't have the torque to hold top gear at high speed. Fitting a smaller front cog just one tooth less can transform performance. Not only increasing acceleration in all gears but enabling the engine to be at the right rpm to hold top gear better. In theory the overall top speed is decreased of course, but in practice I found it enabled me to hold higher speeds. I was forever revving it in fifth, then into sixth, at which point is slowed down until I was back in fifth again. With the smaller cog it could hold sixth against the wind resistance and even climb modest gradients. As factory my 125 rarely got over 60, with the smaller front cog it would cruise at 65 hitting the limiter at 68. Hence slipstreaming wagons made life more comfortable, if at times somewhat geographically challenging.

You're talking about your car here I presume , not Xena . Correct , I doubt i would take her on the m'way, even if i do get my full licence, would be suicide on a 125 When I had a 125 I found dropping one tooth on the front cog, lying flat on the tank and riding in the wake of a large truck worked on motorways. The only snag was when the truck wasn't going to the same place as I wanted to arrive at. I had few night time adventures that way.

Just because you have right of way doesn't mean you can't make space for someone to join the flow of traffic. If the van was at the end of the slip road and indicating where else could he go? If he slows down then he's on the hard shoulder and going slower than the traffic flow. What bugs me is when you slow down to make space and then they slow down as well. Or you pull out into lane 2 and then the vehicle joining won't let you back in again. But that's the risk you take sharing to road with some of the muppets who somehow passed their driving test.

Just seen that you have two threads going at once about this - and in the other thread you mention that the loom has been hacked around by previous owners, of which there have been many. I suspect you've already identified the issue. A bodged wiring loom is a recipe for all sorts of fun and games. You might be best seeing if you can source a replacement loom from a breakers.

I wish I could draw as well as that.

First thing is that battery voltage of itself doesn't mean it's holding charge. Check the voltage with a bit of load, like a headlamp bulb across it. Next thing I'd check is the fuses. Check power from the battery to the fuse holder and then on the other side. If everything is dead there's likely to be a reason early on in the system. No chance of checking with the vendor?

Are those from Triumph at that price? - I'd have thought somewhere like DSFasteners would have them cheaper. Triumph won't make them, they must be available from alternative suppliers.

Of course if it isn't you in the photo your post here would be along the lines of....This isn't me, how do I put this right? Otherwise you'd be somewhat unwise to make a public admission of guilt over the internet with the intention of producing evidence you know not to be accurate. Just in case the long arm of the law keeps an eye on such things, which has been known to happen. Just sayin'....

I've used airless tyres for years.....on my boat launch trolley. Wonderful things. Never need to pump them up, they last far longer than pneumatic tyres and they're bright green. The thing I don't see is how bikers could tinker with the pressures as most of us find that the recommended pressures don't always work best.

I have to meet a Tiger owner who is unhappy with their choice of steed. When I replace my work bike that's probably what I'll go for.

No. The arrows point in the direction each wheel rotates as the bike moves forwards. The front wheel has the arrow marked front going in the direction of rotation, and the rear wheel has the arrow marked rear going in the direction of rotation. The tread patterns will then work according to the major forces each wheel is dealing with. Primarily the front does most of the braking force and the rear does the driving force. If you're not sure get a tyre fitter to do it for you

When fitted the arrows should point the way the wheel will rotate as the bike is moving forwards. That covers the different forces the front and rear wheels are dealing with.

A while back I had a 125 for my daily commute. Since I lived in a city centre the size of it was brilliant for traffic. But then I started working at another office which meant riding on busier roads. I found running the smaller bike at its limits was tiring and frustrating. You have nothing in reserve when you need it. So I bought myself a cheap 500 which will cruise easily at 70mph, is light enough to be nimble in traffic and is cheap to run. There are plenty of good older bikes available and often the older bikes have better build quality. If you want to save for something nicer why not buy a cheaper mid sized commuter to see you through. I ended up liking an older bike for days when the weather is grotty so I've kept it and keep the new bike for dry days.

Since the original train has already been derailed....I was told, by a copper, that on smart motorways once you pass a sign saying the speed limit is back up to 70 the cameras are still active. They just trigger above 70 rather than the lower temporary limit. Apparently quite a lot of drivers slow for the reduced speeds due to the cameras but once they pass a NSL sign they're back up to 80+ because they think the cameras aren't operating. Until a brown envelope drops through the door. So I was told. I'd never know because I never go that fast.

I think the fact that you're asking this question says you've lost confidence in the bike. For long runs at anything above 55mph I'd suspect the 125 may (repeat may) be running a bit hot. You can buy oil temperature gauges that fit into the oil filler cap orifice (I know that's a dangerous word to use on this weird place but I can't think of anything else that won't cause mirth and mayhem). I'm guessing you're really wanting to get shut - in which case better to bite the bullet now if you're not happy with the bike. If you do keep it I'd look into keeping an eye on how hot the engine is running during prolonged high speed runs. It may just have been a dud valve but the fact that it needed the clearances doing so soon suggests something in the way you're running it is pushing it beyond what it's really capable of. Valve wear shouldn't happen that quickly. The alternative is that they buggered up the valve settings when they adjusted them which could lead to premature failure. But who can ever know?

Ok , a bit of guesswork here ( ) but assuming that your engine is a knock off based on a Suzuki GN 125 I recon it goes together like this . I bet you put the spring in first . What a lot of people do is to seat the 'top hat' bit so it sits inside the spring, which looks like it is meant to. It isn't - the spring sits underneath it so the upper section engages when you go for neutral.