Fender1515

Agreed, that would be my first check point, 2nd would be condition of chain for tight links, chain tension, alignment 3rd would condition of both sprockets, teeth rounded 4: Cush drive, are the blocks warn, any missing

I winertize my bike for a couple of months each year, too old to tolerate the cold wet conditions, also not happy with the extra risk of riding in winter conditions. I have a route in the North of the Peak district which is very technical and challenging, probably 4 mile section, on my first trip out of the year I head for this route, I will do the same section, perhaps 5 or 6 times until I feel I have dialled in, and I am riding light, not clamped onto the bars, toes on the pegs, when I feel I am dropping the bike into the turns, seeing and riding the entry and exit points and driving through them relaxedish, I feel confident and it's time to love the bike wold again! It works for me !

I owned a Narrow boat for 7 years, great experience, life style, I didn't live on it permanently, cruised for several months a year, very happy days. So the noise thing was the flock of Canadian geese that bombed the marina at 5am very morning, I can sleep through most noisy stuff, weather it it the pitch or the volume of their squawking I don't know, solution, we should eat more geese!!

I don't disagree with your comments and no offence taken. I am comparing the condition of MT09 with my previous Thunderace and my current BMW K1200s. I owned the Thunderace for 7 years, did around 22k miles on her and the bike at 20 years old when I sold her, was, in my mind, in better or as good as condition as the MT09 I viewed, I get that condition of a bike is down to owner care and maintenance, Likewise, my K1200s at 20 years, is in as good if not better condition than the MT09, albeit, with a few self inflicted dings. I am probably being unrealistic in my expectations of condition of a 10 year old bike, the purpose of the viewing was really to se if it fits and it it was bike I had to have, I didn't get that, As a result I probably played up my concerns of the condition. Appreciate your common sense comments.

I went to a localish dealer yesterday who had a 2015 MT09 in, I do like the style of the bike, I have previously owned a YZF1000R Thunderace for 6 years and loved it, clocked up many touring miles, apart from coil packs and fork seal never had any issues, well apart from the battle to bleed blue pot callipers, getting air out of the balance pipe, nightmare! The MT09 was showing worrying signs of wear on fasteners, rear shock, swing arm, down pipe, the engine sounded solid enough. dealer was a biker, we talked about my current bike, why I bought it and like it and my touring plans, two up with luggage etc, On standard seat I could get one foot grounded and one foot was on toes, he mentioned lowering kits, however, agreed this changes the geometry of the bike, may not be an issue but!! Only one foot planted, would not end well. He didn't try and sell me the bike. enough said. So Staying with K1200s until....

Hi All, I have been offered a Yamaha Tracer MT09 2016 model with 17,000 miles, at very little money. It has been owned by a pal for the last three years. The bike and Pal live in the South of England, I don't, having moved to God's country in 2017. I know the owner very well, he looks after his bikes, and is a reasonably sensible rider, although his pillion wife, may argue this assertion! So my question is, before I get the inoculations, travel permits and load up my wallet, do any forum members own and have experience of this bike. One of my concerns, is that the grand creator designed me with short'ish legs and long'ish body, worked well for rugby, not great on tall bikes. My BMW k1200s seat height is 820mm the Tracer is 840mm, with err on the back, I need to have two feet firmly planted, she has a tendency to start aerobic exercises when we are at stop. So in old money that's around 1.2 inches of air gap, I am not really into wearing heels on the bike!! Any thoughts, experiences of touring etc greatly appreciated.

I will need to change my Honda CRV in the coming couple of year, its a diesel, 75k miles, never had any issues service costs around £250 per year, long trips I can get 60 MPG, so sets quite a high bar. I am following the development of the Hydrogen collider vernicles ( I guess that's what you would call one that's been in a shunt,!) hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle (often abbreviated to FCEV) There are currently six hydrogen filling stations in the UK that are open to the public, so not running out of fuel would be a challenge. Strong money at present, Hyundai Nexo @ £60k, ouch, if, big if, the number of refuelling points increase, and manufacturing increases, I would expect that to drop to maybe £45k in a couple of years, crystal ball time. I am waiting for announcement from Kirklees Council to introduce Hydrogen charging points as part of the re-generation investment plan! But Never say Never I am guessing the Local Transport department will be flat out trying to come up with cunning plan to run an efficient train Network, not something they have sussed out todate,, mind, they have only had since the 1600's to figure it out, and I am sure they have been distracted by Moon Landings, Electricity, Telephones in the interim. I read an article recently from Northern Rail, they use FAX messages to schedule drivers, so clearly things are moving forward at a pace. wonder what's happened to all the carrier pigeons!,

Are you absolutely 100% sure you have got ALL the jets clear, and have you checked the fuel filters ?

For me Mileage is a consideration, but not No 1 on my check list, as said by Throttled, always check on the MOT certificates to corroborate. Overall condition of the bike will tell you a lot. Feel of the gearbox, condition of fork seals, sprocket/chain condition and shocks Do all the electrickery bits work are they tidy/stock What accessories have been added, if after market alarm, they can be a whole world of pain Does it look strait, fork alignment How do the breaks feel Is there troublesome vibrations, engine / transmission, normally noticed over mid rev range

As always, it could be as a result of a number of potential issues, but sounds like fuelling or timing issue. From your description of circumstances I would be surprised if it was timing. My starting points would be: 1: How low was the petrol when you filled up, it could have pulled crud from the bottom of the tank through, clogging fuel filters and restricting flow 2: Are you 100% sure you put the right fuel in, this sounds remarkably like a problem a pal had when he part filled up with diesel, luckily only put 5 litres into a 3/4 full tank, eventually ran it through, evidence is lot of white smoke from exhaust 3: Has the bike got a service record, when and what was done 4: Could be a failed coil pack, if you run the engine and test for temperature from the exhaust headers, if one is cold then that cylinder has an issue,. Other folks on the forum who know these engines better than I do will chip in to help. Good luck with the fix

So early frosty start for my ride this morning, down to my local bike garage, drank tea, talked back in the day bike stuff, love these times. Oh and bike passed the MOT, happy days.

I have a ME day on Sunday, weather is looking cracking, so I could, A:Wash the car B: Re-paint the front door C : Gardening D Take the bike out for some fresh air, as it appens, I seem to have found a couple of route options, Filey and Sea side no motorways route or Matlock, as I haven't been for a few years. or, I could do both and ask for forgiveness when ever I get back!! I think we all know how this is going to play out. Have a great weekend folks

These are the Days to seize and love, It's Bikers coming out time. Have fun and stay safe.

I must have been 42 once, but can't remember, sooo long ago, I am sure I have been through a time warp ting!

Nice one SD, I do like the V-Storm, I chucked a leg over one at the dealers last year, being a short arse, only one foot got to terra firma. Are you planning long trips in 2025 after the initial service is sorted?