lucky

I can come! excellent news. not been out much at all this year. Lucky

Cancelled the run. Sorry guys. Should my bike and couldn't get a spare. How much are tickets at Santa pod?

Yes, quite a small group though. See you Sunday

I'll be up for a Sunday meet up, haven't been out much this year

At the moment cats and emissions aren't tested. There is note about excessive smoke some where but don't worry about it. I assume your going to or have fitted one, which exhaust system did you pick?

Hello everyone, Long time, no post. A lot of talk about MoT test regulations recently, so being a tester thought i would share this link with you : http://www.transportoffice.gov.uk/crt/d ... guides.htm It s all up to date and is what I work from when testing. Just remember the MoT test is the bare minimum standards at the moment of test. Hope this helps Lucky

Hello, I'm an MoT tester and here we go: Does it need indicators? If fitted they must work front and rear. However if they are completely removed including switch its an advisory Mirror? You don't need them but if you have one it must be on the O/S. again an advisory Working indicators? As above Working bulbs in the dash display thing? Not part of the MoT What tests does the exhaust go through? - I did my own little repair using a bake-bean tin so would that be okay? As long as the noise it makes isn't excessive a small blow is a pass an advise. Working fuel sensor? not tested Does it need a stand? No, funny enough All the bolts in the crank case? - The mechanic didnt put them all back!! Nope just an advisory Horn? must be fitted and working. Tax? no What condition does the break pads have to be in? above 1mm in thickness and not contaminated by oil Full details of the MOT manual can be found at : http://www.transportoffice.gov.uk/crt/d ... guides.htm Hope this helps the MOT guide is the current one from what i have seen. Lucky

Garmin units are lovely to use great features clear maps good to use. Maps are constantly updated (at your cost) TomTom rider has better maps, you can reveiw your route before hand, the map data updates quicker its a better A-B nav. Ive used TomTom rider, rider 2 also Garmin quest, street piolet, zumo 550, 450 660 and 220 and the BMW navigator range. Fav unit has to be the Zumo 660 like i say the map could do with updating a bit quicker round town. Also when directing off route the garmin units give distance as the crow flies not road distance like the Tom Tom Hope this helps Lucky

Hello everyone, I just want to put forward the otherside of the argument. I work in a Franchised bike Dealership My bike (A BMW R1100S) had a 48,000 mile and 12year Annual service done at the dealership I work at to the manufacturers specification when that bike was launched. The service schedule has now changed to make ownership more affordable. They did everything (including lubricating the clutch splines). Changed all consumables, stripped cleaned and lubricated everything. And adjusted what was left. They also MOT'ed it and cleaned and valeted it. This took nearly 16 hours of workshop time and £221 in parts (this was parts at cost). If i had had to pay for this service it would have been £1021 + vat. So £1225 at our lower labour rate for older bikes. Would you pay this kind of money every time you go in for a service? I wouldn't (and don't). And thats before anything they found wrong was put right. Tyres, brakes, batteries, ect..... Now when a customer comes in we can't expect them to pay that much, Especially for a £1650 bike (thats what i paid for it) So some of the service parts don't get done either by customer agreement, the manufacturer taking items out of the service schedule or past knowledge tells us what needs to be done and what doesn't. We are of course completely open about all of this, and agree the work that is going to be done before hand. If we didn't do this no one would come back to us. But equally by the dealership not giving you the option or informing you that items are due is just stupid they are throwing money away. Also some manufacturers (ducati, BMW, Harley) are better at keeping to the service schedules than others in my experience, but equally it also depends on the dealer network. Others seem hopeless. Mainly bikes sold on price with heavy discounting the dealerships anticipate that you don't want big bills and try to live up to this expectation. They are also competing for work against each other. how many people phone round for quotes? the difference on a 4 year 16,000 mile service on some kwaks a few years ago varied between £250 to £1061. one is a full service (brake line and coolant hose change,ect) the other is for a run of the mill valve clearance check. who would you go to? So basically it comes down to the normal things Cost, benefit and wanting to do the work (or picking other work that pays better). And just remember that even if it has a FSH that parts still could be knackered. A service doesn't include a chain and sproket replacement or tyres even if they're completely worn out. Dont know that any of this helps, but I hope it gives an idea of the thought processes that dealerships use. The only way you can ensure of the work they are going to do is to use a garage you trust and talk through with them what you expect.

Phil, PM sent. Mainly its logo's but drop me an email and you will see what I mean.

Thanks. Just prefer to give work to people I know (on the forum anyway), rather than a company i haven't dealt with before.

I wanted some stickers made for my bike, so thought i would PM Deej. That was a while ago. Just checked his profile and he hasn't visited the forum since Feb anyone know where he is? Or can anyone else help me? Thanks everyone. Ben

Hello all, I used to know a guy that worked in South African mining. He said there attitude to health and safety was a sign on the wall that read "The stupid will suffer". Never has that statement felt more appropriate.

I'm in Scotland and currently still in plaster. So I'm afraid i cant come, shame to miss it though.

You can re-use the wheel bearings you remove provided that they aren't worn, notchy or damaged. They are normally under a tenner from a bearing supplier new, unless you have a R1100S then the RHD bearing is stupidly expensive. I'd always use new seals though. Are they masking the wheel for you? the disc mounting points and bearing houses. £48 is a bargain though, if thats blasted and coated.

As you may be aware a friend and I, decided that we wanted to raise some much needed money for Cancer Research UK. We decided to take 2 (very) secondhand Piaggio scooters around the BMW dealer network in 5 days. The Journey took us across three countries, 2296 miles and over 65 hours on the road. So with thanks to everyone for your time and generosity we have so far raised £2416 well above our £2000 target This summary doesn’t really do the ride justice, Log on to the website for a full report and pictures. This is what happened.... Day 1. We started the day early as we had to get to our start point for 7.00am, With 8 dealership’s to visit before we hit the hotel in Edinburgh we needed to be punctual. We left Balderston on time and on schedule, In fact the whole day ran on time. As the day unfolded we coped well with my top box falling off at Pidcocks,2 hours in. The scooter also showed the first sign of its Italian heritage. We got to Astle the indicators stopped working, must have been the damp in the air! We were joined then by the first of many people that would join us over the week. By the time we had counted off three more dealership’s, including Rainbow who due to my excellent planning were shut. This was to be the only oversight in my planning of the whole trip. we had started to get the feeling that all the support people had promised had been quite hollow. But we reached Barrie Robson York who had waiting for us on the counter was a fully completed sponsorship form and packet of biscuit. What a star. With one last stop off we headed across the border to our overnight stop. It was at that point my temperature gauge started playing up. This was going to be a long list of mechanical hiccups at this rate. We arrived at the hotel at 21.40 after an unplanned detour for an accident on the A1 Day 2 Another early start but with the closing of Motorrad Central West, we only had 3 dealership’s to visit today. At least my temperature gauge worked for the morning. We left Motorrad central east to have the throttle cable on the other scooter fall off in the fast lane of Edinburgh’s ring road. One quick fix and we Arrived at John Clarke we were met by Andrew and the team holding out the largest single donation we would receive and chocolate chip muffins. We said our goodbyes and fixed a coolant leak and set off to Inverness the furthest point north we would travel. We topped up with fuel yet again, but being Italian even this isn’t easy with the centre stand bending on my scooter. What a pain this was becoming. We turned on to the A9 and all i can say is what a pretty road, even in the rain. It’s just as well really as our sat nav said 110 miles to next turn. After a quick coffee we then headed back down the A9 ended up in Carlisle for the night. Day 3 The nightmare. Previous breakdowns couldn’t compare to what was about to come. After witnessing an accident on the way to Southport, the second scooter broke down on the M6 it snapped its drive belt meaning recovery. Olly was sent back to Peterborough to collect the reserve bike. I continued on to Manchester when the scooter overheated because the fan didn’t work any more. One hour in the workshop and a depressed feeling in my head i made it to Chester to be greeted by a whole hoard of people. They followed me and the stricken scooter all the way to Benham 90ish miles away. Thanks guys. One short (16 miles) wing mirror clipping trip across town and i arrived at Clark’s. A quick chat and I headed off hoping to catch someone at NOG after hours. It wasn’t to be and I headed off in blinding fog to Cardiff via Cotswold. At least the Fog cleared to be replaced with monsoon rain once across the boarder. Day 4 Ollie met me at Riders after leaving at 5.00am from Peterborough. As the doors opened he pulled into the car park. Apart from the big miles of boring motorway the only one real thing to note one the scooter fell over in Bristol . I just happened to be on it at the time. The only other thing was my BMW sat nav decided it would be better if we took a 40 mile detour on the way to Alton. Day 5 The last day what a relief. The day started well with Brighton, and Tunbridge wells ticked off quickly. As we arrived at Caterham the choice was made to avoid London with my poorly scooter as we wanted one of them to finish the trip. So off to Guildford we went. Upon arrival the team handed us a carrier bag full of change, thanks. So round the M25 to SBW now ahead of schedule for the first time. With Cannon ticked of swiftly afterwards we headed to Norwich. Now a 250 scooter nippy as it is cant keep up with an R1100s at the best of times let alone ridden by a dispatcher through traffic. I can now say that its impossible as the last hiccup of the trip happened in rush hour traffic i lost a wing mirror filtering through rush hour traffic. After this we headed back home to Balderston to cake and a welcome back party. . We also have to thank Balderston motorcycles, teddytums, Cambrian tyres.

I'll be there, going on the bike need to take it out.

happy birthday !

Paint job belly pan exhaust gps heated grips ABS stickers revised suspension power points panniers centre stand Some were options does that count as a modification. Maybe i should swap the stickers for Nitrous?

Thanks Guys and Girls, Lucky did indeed live up to his name i made it back in one piece. More than can be said for the scoot. Day one: The topbox plate snapped, the indicator didnt work, the temp gauge went intermitant. Day two: the centre stand arm bent, and i had a coolant leak from a hose. temp gauge still intermitant Day three: the temp gauge failed, the bike overheated, there was a coolant leak Day four: dropped the bike in bristol the centre stand arm fell off at brighton Day five: durig a spot of filtering i smashed the O/S wing mirror off Day six: the scooter had a rest

Add another one i dropped the Piaggi-go at bristol, Well it actually fell over and i was on it. The front wheel just slid side ways and it was there lying between my legs. I just remember thinking hows that happen? 0mph no brakes just opps! Add that to the long list of previous exploits.

I would love to have come but i'm working. so sad

I just want to say thank you, this is such a friendly forum. I have been organising a ride as you all know. As part of this i have been visiting all the refering traffic to our website. All i can say is that this is the most friendly, welcoming, and fun forums i've visited. The whole place feels great there isn't any real negitivity and its filled with great people. So pat on the back all round, Just thought it needed saying.

Love my bikes, but on my scooter I laugh out loud more often, have more fun and travel more quickly (or is that badly). Just miss the power. Cant wait to see what the BMW 650 scoots like next march though.

Chains??? Shaft drive, BMW owning, means chains are used to lock the bike up at night. or worn round the necks of rappers, heard gold plated is the best for most in this situation.