xMachina

Yellow wires, black wires, green wires, doesn't matter as long as they are all the same thickness.

If you are already thinking about moving on to bigger bikes I would say buy used and buy something popular so that when you shift it on you aren't going to lose too much. You also say you are open to different styles of bike, you may find that a sports bike style one doesn't 'fit' you or a supermoto's hard seat is just too uncomfortable on longer rides, you don't want to spend big bucks on a bike only to find riding it causes you issues and you are stuck with it for 2 years or face a big hit in depreciation.

As bender says, I wouldn't buy a 1 or 2 star rated either, but equally I'm not convinced the tests are particularly good. Lots of the big manufacturers don't get 5 stars yet off-brand plastic ones do. There has been criticism that the tests are flawed from the start so i tend to go with bigger manufacturers who will have done their own testing, research, and development.

100% this. Idiots like this get lanes TRO'd never to be opened again. Makes me wonder if he's there legally in the first place as I generally would know if a lane was gated half way up and given the fork right before it that's a pretty good landmark.

Parking etiquette + central London = does not compute. I spent 10 years as a driver in London, just when you think you've seen it all someone amazes you with their stupidity!

HPI doesn't mean jack, if someone trashed it but not gone through insurance if they had any, and went and nicked one identical and just swapped reg plates wouldn't show on an HPI report lolwut?

You should definitely be trying to kick the habit. Unfortunately the front brakes on 125's are often disproportionately strong for the power and weight of the bike which tends to give them a quite 'grabby' feel when applied with anything but a light touch. You may get yourself into trouble when you do need to stop quick, either by locking the rear or panic grabbing a handful of lever and locking the front when you aren't used to how it responds to lever pressure. You also need to be aware when using engine braking that unless you are also applying a bit of (either) lever you are not displaying brake lights so people behind may not be prepared for you to suddenly drop speed. Getting it right now is much, much easier than trying to fix bad habits later and if/when you decide to move on from a 125 that front brake is going to suddenly be a hell of a lot more important! Have a look at this as it seems to explain it quite well: https://www.motorcycletesttips.uk/motorcycle-riding-tutorials/motorcycle-braking-techniques/

Is there going to be a build thread and are you doing a battery delete?

If its the one you want buy it. Even f you ride something that's 'better' and end up getting that you will always have that nagging doubt that you bought the wrong one.

Chinese bikes are great until it all goes Pete Tong and the parts/manuals aren't available to fix it and the forums are full of 'serves you right for not buying Jap' comments on all the help threads. Seriously, buy Jap and buy sensibly and you can get your money back if you change your mind or want to upgrade. I bought a WR125X, rode it for 3 months and sold it for more than I paid and it covered tax, insurance, fuel, etc and enough left over for a pack of biscuits - and we love biscuits here!

This is well out the cities thankfully so little danger of undesirables nicking your bike while you take pictures! Just in case anyone wants to know: Eaton Socon Graffiti Wall, Duloe Rd, Saint Neots PE19 7GQ

Weather wasn’t too bad today and after being dragged to Ikea I thought I’d make the most of it! I figured I’d take the new toy up to the graffiti tunnel, as it turned out there was 2 new pieces as well, a big Pac-Man themed one and ‘Hope’. All in all a nice little trip out.

Man, that's not a pretty sight!

No offence fella but I really don't think you are grasping this. a 15 litre tank could stick up more than a 17 litre one, the volume has little to do with its shape or the position it is mounted in.

Lightweight, Bandit is 225.

This, and forget arbitrary measurements like tank capacity, its a 3d object and bears no real relevance to the distance to the bars - a 17 litre tank could be short, narrow, and tall or long, wide, and flat or anything in between! Not much of an issue on a 125 though is it, given they weigh about as much as an empty tissue box.

You may have to have a bit of a rethink as to what you can get. Most sports bikes put you in a 'jockey' position so you are going to be lent forward and if that's a issue for you it will pretty much rule them all out. As said, sports tourers are going to be more upright but are generally going to have a higher seat height and be more bulky/wider in the saddle and have lower pegs. You may have to find something that 75% fits and lower it or fit different bars to make it fit you better, but you are probably going to struggle to find something that works out the box.

Hard to answer, a 20k miles bike that's been ridden gently and look after well is going to be better than one that's done 7k at the redline with a rider that didn't give a damn. Obviously more miles = more wear but without see either its impossible to say if the lower mileage bike is worth more.

New to the fold.

This is really good and it’s super expensive, I did the online learning: https://www.dvsalearningzone.co.uk/shop

Yes, because the more you sell of an item the further it goes up the 'best match' (default search setting) suggested list. If they end the listing for no stock and then restart it again when they get more in they go back to the bottom.

Ok chief, you keep believing that. I’m done feeding the trolls.

Surely it’s all going in the ‘Six for mod’ campaign funds?

Trust you to be related to a wang.