Gerontious

Honda Not a chance. as an "africa four" But a toned down Africa twin 'scrambler' probably not either... because the label is too precious to dilute with what is effectively a road bike with scrambler style. They just wont do it. Perhaps a standalone scrambler. based around a discrete engine. A big single perhaps.. but a four? I dont think so.

Although it doesn't have ABS it still has what are erroneously called ABS rings. or more correctly called speed sensor rings.. with the usual hall sensor. but without the 'plumbing' and other (expensive) gadgetry that forms a full ABS system. data from the hall sensors goes to the ECU and from there is split between the Speedo and software that fiddles with the engine.. usually by cutting power when wheel spin is detected. However it has a side effect. it measures and compares the speed of rotation of the front and rear wheel. and its primary focus is on matching these. if the rear wheel is spinning faster than the front then it will cut power momentarily until they match again. when the front wheel goes in the air, the same thing happens. the rear wheel spins faster than the front. cuts power and the wheel drops. the various levels have a greater or lesser effect on this. It doesn't 'know' you are performing a wheelie.. it 'thinks' you are having a bad wheel-spin. its all about "wheel-spin" In theory on normal roads in good conditions.. like a warm sunny, dry day. you should not need any TC at all. It only becomes advantageous when the conditions deteriorate and effectively mean you dont need to be quite so careful with accelleration in the 'wet' for example. And they give various levels so you can match the way it interferes, with your riding style and road conditions and end up with the ideal (for you) "condition" for the bike.

you hope who produces em?

That assumes the bike has cornering ABS. My bike does not.. but it does have lean angle sensors which are specifically designed to prevent the bike changing gear when leant over in a bend. The manual version does not have these sensors.

Fowlers have them at £15 each... but these will be genuine Honda. It wouldnt surprise me at all if Pattern bearings were less than half price of the originals.

The speed sensor rings on a modern motorcycle send their data, in the most modern bikes 3 ways. Speedo. ABS Traction control. (Honda call it Torque control) Traction control is effectively ABS in reverse.. Kinda.. (ABS releases the brake pressure for however long is necessary. Traction control cuts the engine power.) It operates at millisecond level speeds.(just as ABS does) so fast there is no need for a tilt switch. The instant wheelspin starts to occur its over. dependent on the Level of intervention you have it set at and mostly.. you might not even be aware that it came on. its so fast. Traction control is always optional.. or at least should be. there is no legal requirement. so, if you don't like the way it interferes. Turn it off. The 'anti wheelie' part is just a side effect of traction control. but again, if you want to wheelie then just turn it off.

Trust me to underthink what I thought was a simple thread about repairing a puncture... and post as such. fortunately my bikes are generally reliable and so I have no need to carry tools. Serviced on time, yearly or by miles. problems addressed before they can escalate. If something were to go badly wrong with the BMW. then that would be a rescue job. And if it was the Honda.. then I would call Honda assist.

pair of needlenose pliers... because I need some way of easily removing what caused the puncture in the first place. I have a leatherman 'wave' which is a great multitool and includes pliers. I wouldn't even waste my time with CO2 cartridges.. these are only good as a 'get you home' or to the garage and the air pump. OK if you have limited space to carry 'stuff'' And a Stop&Go puncture kit. which they now sell as a complete kit with compressor. but i have the stand alone kit. "> I like this type of kit because there is no messing with glue.. Ive found that everytime you use glue you might as well bin it afterwards as it will go off and harden and be useless next time round. Sods law dictates.. and I have many years of experiencing this, that if you carry a puncture kit like this with you. You will never need to use it. Every single puncture i have had has been discovered and fixed in my own back yard. The only time it became obvious was when it happened last ime, on the final aproach to my house and I heard a 'Knocking' sound which was a huge nail in the tyre hitting the hugger.

The most common cause of a random breakdown isn't a breakdown at all. Its a puncture and these are easy to repair on a tubeless tyre. you just need the kit and preferably a pump to re-inflate the tyre and be on your way in about 15 minutes. The other major cases are a flat battery.. so a battery tender might be worth having so the battery is always in tip-top condition. And being a little more careful about running out of fuel.

Using the Bus lane is entirely dependent on where you live. Some places its allowed, in others you are taking a risk of an NIP dropping through your door as some areas are more than happy to place a camera on the lane to catch people out. Hitherto its been illegal to use Bus lanes here in Nottingham and i know of two stretches that are monitored by cameras. But.. finally this may be about to change as there is currently a 2 year experiment in force on one arterial road. Just a case of waiting and seeing how that pans out.

The F800ST... a bike I recommend a lot, having owned its stablemate the F800S weighs more than the RT, However.. you will find that it 'feels' much lighter.. as the petrol tank is under the seat and all the bikes weight is also below the seat, excluding the battery which is under the 'fake' petrol tank. It is also a maintenance free Belt drive. And has now been superseded by the F800GT. Weight isn't all about 'feel' its also about the effort involved in 'Lifting' the bike upright off its side stand.. and Im someone who knows all about that as i also own a R1100GS. You can very easily organise a test ride on the new GT which will give you a very good idea of how the ST will perform. The two bikes are practically identical. Mint STs with very low miles are easily found.. they appear for sale all the time. A nice and very torquey smooth parallel twin engine that doesn't have any nasty surprises. ABS is virtually standard and they can easily do 60+mpg. And sit at 80mph all day long. Second handers often come with full luggage... and if not, because the bike existed as a model for 7 years, there are a great number of after market parts and model specific accessories available.. Personally I think its as near to ideal given your requirements as possible and well worth investigating. I would strongly suggest you try out its replacement the F800GT at a local BMW dealership which will allow you to at least rule it out if you don't like it. And if you do.... Keep your eyes peeled for a 2010 - 2013 model. as these were fully 'sorted'. From my perspective its biggest.. or one of its biggest plus points aside from the 'light feel' is the Belt drive. which once fitted is completely maintenance free.. needing only a regular visual check for damage. and when the belt wears out and needs replacing, 24000-34000 miles a replacement costs under £130 and can be fitted in about 15 minutes. here is a source for a replacement belt. Identical in every respect to the BMW original. from the same Manufacturer (Continental) but without the BMW logo and £200 price hike. https://www.onlinecarparts.co.uk/contitech-7004352.html

How much do you want to spend? thats usually the best place to start when looking at a different bike. follow that up with any "Musts" or "Must nots". For instance coming from an older Beemer.. would you be happy with a chain driven bike.. or is that out of the question? If the answer is NO. then that means either another Shaft drive. or a Belt. which narrows down the choices somewhat.

I wear full protection for any 'proper' ride out.. which usually means heading out of the city and onto NSL roads and/or an unfamiliar area. I do not wear all the gear for a very local ride.. maybe a short errand. But, Im very aware of the risks and ride far more cautiously. Im fairly cautious anyway but that goes up a few steps when Im a little more 'exposed'. No.. Im not scared or worried but it is in the back of my mind at all times. as it is regardless. In those situations the only item I dont bother with are my 'proper' bike trousers. Always, Helmet and gloves (obviously) and jacket every ride as well as proper footwear. I think its a mistake to ride without the full gear if you cant at least adjust your riding style to suit, or if you are heading onto an NSL or worse... a motorway. Likewise if its very cold or the weather is threatening. Thats my choice and I wouldn't presume to tell anyone else what they should or should not do.

When mounting a bike on its side stand you're better off.. And it reduces strain on the side stand pivot. Getting on from the other side. The RHS. There is a knack to it which is mainly about getting your body weight on the LHS of the central line and on the clutch side handlebar before putting your full weight on the pedal. Easier to do than describe. Very common question on the Africa a Twin forum, especially since the 'Sport version appeared with its rather high seat position. I'm not exactly a shorty but I find this method much easier. Oddly enough I'm also rather keen on not causing excess wear on the side stand to the point it eventually (could) fail.

Well.. its not my fault if you don't understand just how keen Americans are on suing any company/website whose advice might result in prosecution. The embarrassment of an 'on the spot' fine from a gendarme is worth Millions.

I did say that Germany requires one. But France does not. I got that list from an American Travel site subsection on hiring a car in the EU. It made sense to me to go outside of Europe to a country where if they were giving out false information they are going to be sued into bankruptcy. It also made sense to go to a country whose nationals are treated exactly as we will be assuming we leave without a deal. We will effectively cease to be Europeans. That USA site does recommend that US drivers take an IDP, simply so the french officials have a translation of their license. Why do we need that? we dont... our photocards arent going to be withdrawn overnight. They will remain the EU standard for the foreseeable future. As for the Post Office having a longer list... that doesn't surprise me at all. They're covering themselves by applying a comfort blanket by copying the advice from the Gov... and if they sell 1,000s of IDPs to people who don't need them then thats a bonus. I also note that nowhere on the gov.uk page that deals with this issue do they use the word "must" instead they equivocate with "You may need an IDP..." in every single "no deal" scenario. But gain, this will only become relevant if we leave the EU without a deal.

It depends somewhat on the countries own laws. The requirement for an IDP is down to individual states within the EU to decide upon. If we depart the EU without a deal we will become a 3rd country and treated like any other country in the world when visiting the EU. and so we will be subject to local requirements the IDP being one of them. Of the EU countries the only ones that require by law an IDP are: Austria, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Greece, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Italy, Slovenia, and Spain. So.. not something I will need for travelling through France, Belgium and Luxembourg en route to our base in the Eifel. And I tend to think that the Germans wont suddenly care about this. They tend to be really quite pragamtic. Thats assuming we were to ever spot one. But.. we'll see what happens. its not something Im going to worry about.

If it only takes 10 minutes at a post office then there is even less point in doing it now. we will have a clearer idea of what is actually happening in the lead up to the 12th of April and probably before then. as that is the next 'crunch' date. If there is a deal then brexit is due to happen on the 22nd May. Im not going to hold my breath that this shower of nincompoops will be able to sort it out by then. reach a decision. pass the required laws and so on. What i actually see happening is ... Nothing. a bit of passing the buck with a general election. or another referendum. Fortunately none of this bothers me in the slightest as our planned trip to the Eifel isn't until September. and i fully expect nothing to happen by then either.

This assumes there is "No Deal" I see little or no point in doing anything until the final act. until "Brexit" actually happens. if it does; this year.

I did 'above' and 'below'.. so as the chain goes over the chain guide towards the rear sprocket. and then 'below' as the chain comes away from the rear sprocket. so both top and bottom of the chain is done. I put a small dab of white paint on one link so i can see where Ive done from and to. The chain doesn't have a split link. The outside and inside of the chain are lubed at the same time.. as the brush is a tad wider than the chain itself. And when riding the oil will tend to 'thin' and 'spread' as it warms up. Im looking for a thin coating without any drips.. if i see drips i just spread it even more. A little goes a long way. I'm doing it perhaps every 200 miles or so. having the bike on the main stand makes this a very simple and quick process. No need to be overly fussy about it. just don't allow any drips to form. be sparing. only a couple of dips in the oil is required with a paint brush. i do the chain and then one more brush over with the paint brush to spread it further.

yes. I do. I found the spray on lube approach ineffective and expensive. I bought a litre of gear oil last week and have been using it since. I did thoroughly clean the chain first to get rid of all the 'spray' first as that made sense to me. Im using an old paint brush. and the chain now looks great. almost back to 'as new' unlike with the spray where I was getting surface rust. Oiling it is an absolute doddle. takes just a couple of minutes and there is much less 'waste'. its less hard work because there is no need to cover anything to stop the oil getting where it shouldn't. unlike the spray. Im happy. Its come as a bit of a culture shock for me to have to think about a chain after so many years with a shaft bike. but, this way is so simple. The chain looks a lot cleaner and there is zero surface rust. Ive not noticed much, if any 'fling' as yet... but Im very sparing with the oil. the chain doesn't need much.

If it is anything like my grom, it is much easier to clean the crap from under the seat than trying to clean a close fitting fender. How on earth does crap get under the seat from the front wheel? And it's no effort cleaning an extenda.. Just wipe it down.

I can fully and permanently repair a puncture in less than 15 minutes, from finding the hole to being on my way again. It takes longer to re-inflate the tyre than to repair the actual puncture.so long as the puncture meets a few criteria. It's within the central portion of the tyre and is nail/screw sized. I have never had a sudden decompression, that's something you only get, as a matter of course, with tubes. In a tubeless tyre the air is lost slowly, if at all and the handling becomes increasingly heavy. But 99/100 the tyre doesn't lose much if any air at all until you pull out the nail or screw. Which hitherto I have discovered at home. It pays to check your tyres frequently. At least weekly. The worst type of puncture is a tear, from riding over metal debris or sharp rocks left in the road. A tear usually means the tyre has to be binned and I would doubt that anything would help. You'll be calling rescue.

First priority should definitely be a fenda extenda. It's so short on the back of the wheel it looks like it's missing!!!