What did you do to your bike today?

[Fiddlesticks]

Was all set to finally change the clock on the XJR, but it seems to have fixed itself. Another of life's little mysteries.

[Trooper74]

Got it wet and dirty after a morning run out. Home to Ollerton, Newark, Kelham, Ollerton Green Hut Cafe and home.

The bike came out of servicing Saturday morning 4kg lighter than it went in .... they took the belly pan off at my request ... thats right 4kg of steel ... The only time i will ride the VSTROM off road is if i have crashed through a hedge !!

 

 

And £6 for a coffee and a bun at the Green Hut Cafe .... ?!? ..... I can get a cooked breakfast for less ...

From their menu;  

"Small Breakfast £5.50

One Bacon, One Sausage, One Egg, Beans, and Tomatoes. One Toast or Bread and Butter."

 

 

Edited March 26, 2023 by Trooper74

[Gerontious]

Never been to the Ollerton cafe, there used to be a fantastic chippie on that junction next to the shell petrol sadly now one of those overpriced coffee places that serves coffee in the sort of cup you could easily use to wash the dishes in. I usually go to the McDonald’s for a coffee. But it’s now a tedious ride up to there with more cameras than sense, though the back roads are more interesting aside from those with fords (obviously).

[Pie man]

Went out for a little ride on Sunday, shoulder still not right, so tonight I finished off cleaning the MT07 ready for it to go soon. The replacement search continues, I am swaying towards a KTM 890 adventure, smaller, lighter but with great luggage capacity. Will see how this week pans out, currently speaking to a couple of dealers to see what I can get for the dosh 

[Joe85]

Well, my riding season ended before it started. Binned it the rain on an autobahn just outside of Cologne. 
 

Think it aquaplaned; was only doing 80km/h and the back just drifted out and sent me sliding down the motorway. 
 

Riding gear protected me for the most part (sore wrist and hip). 
 

Bike handlebar is bent, but she still rides. 

[Joe85]

First assessment of the damage this morning and it seems “fairly” minor. Crash bar ruined, exhaust side pannier ripped off, and handle bar is bent slightly on one side. Incredible really.

Edited March 29, 2023 by Joe85

[Fiddlesticks]

50 minutes ago, Joe85 said:

First assessment of the damage this morning and it seems “fairly” minor. Crash bar ruined, exhaust side pannier ripped off, and handle bar is bent slightly on one side. Incredible really.

Maybe a bit of diesel in the road? Glad you're all in one piece, and hope you get the bike sorted soon.

[JRH]

2 hours ago, Joe85 said:

First assessment of the damage this morning and it seems “fairly” minor. Crash bar ruined, exhaust side pannier ripped off, and handle bar is bent slightly on one side. Incredible really.

Glad that you are generally OK. Hope the bike is sorted soon.

[Joe85]

1 hour ago, Fiddlesticks said:

Maybe a bit of diesel in the road? Glad you're all in one piece, and hope you get the bike sorted soon.

Agreed mate, think it was diesel. The bike seems ok to continue riding, so, whilst im cutting the trip short and coming home, i'm going to detour through Luxembourg and the Ardenne forest on the way

[Pie man]

Damn, glad you're ok tho, that's the main thing, at least you can limp home and get sorted, hopefully for the next trip. 

[S-Westerly]

Ordered tyres. Michelin Road Pilot 6. Last two sets have been metzeler roadtec but I am lucky if I get much more than 6k on the rear wheel. Son in law reckons he's getting more out of his P6's but most of his riding is commuting whereas mine isn't and is generally longer distance and on faster roads. Not cheap though. Over £300 for a set. Ouch.

[Pie man]

15 minutes ago, S-Westerly said:

Ordered tyres. Michelin Road Pilot 6. Last two sets have been metzeler roadtec but I am lucky if I get much more than 6k on the rear wheel. Son in law reckons he's getting more out of his P6's but most of his riding is commuting whereas mine isn't and is generally longer distance and on faster roads. Not cheap though. Over £300 for a set. Ouch.

I had them on the 1290. Brilliant tyre, wet or dry. Travelled to Normandy last year, 2K and never looked like they had touched tarmac. Pity I never got to do anymore miles on them. I am a Michelin fanboy though.

[bonio]

22 hours ago, Joe85 said:

Well, my riding season ended before it started. Binned it the rain on an autobahn just outside of Cologne. Think it aquaplaned... 

Mental note: never ride with Joe - the bloke's got his own personal bad weather system following him.

 

11 hours ago, Joe85 said:

I'm going to detour through Luxembourg and the Ardennes forest on the way

Good on you, getting back on the machine. You'll enjoy Luxembourg. 

[Steve_M]

23 hours ago, S-Westerly said:

Ordered tyres. Michelin Road Pilot 6. Last two sets have been metzeler roadtec but I am lucky if I get much more than 6k on the rear wheel. Son in law reckons he's getting more out of his P6's but most of his riding is commuting whereas mine isn't and is generally longer distance and on faster roads. Not cheap though. Over £300 for a set. Ouch.

I’m about to re-boot my GS. I currently have Michelin Road Pilot 5 Trails on which have done a little over 7,000 miles, with some tread left. That distance includes a tour of the French Alps, ambling around here, and a day hurtling around Cadwell Park. They’re squaring off following lots of A road and Motorway / Autoroute miles but are still not causing any handling issues (unlike previous tyre/bike combinations). 
 

I’m dreading the cost… 

[John Metcalfe]

1 hour ago, Steve_M said:

I’m about to re-boot my GS. I currently have Michelin Road Pilot 5 Trails on which have done a little over 7,000 miles, with some tread left. That distance includes a tour of the French Alps, ambling around here, and a day hurtling around Cadwell Park. They’re squaring off following lots of A road and Motorway / Autoroute miles but are still not causing any handling issues (unlike previous tyre/bike combinations). 
 

I’m dreading the cost… 

I fitted pair Bridgestone Battlaxe's to K1100 before leaving UK for Tunisia and so far have done nearly 10,000 miles with the front looking like it still new and the rear has still got over 3mm of tread left. Nearly all the mileage has been two-up and fully loaded luggage with no signs of squaring off either. 

Cost not too bad either £200 for the pair fitted and balanced with National Tyres. 

[Yorky]

I've started looking for a new set of tyres yesterday. Jeez!!!, what's happened with the prices????.

Best price I can find for a pair of Michelin Road 6GT, locally, is £335 . And I'm not sure whether that includes fitting, but I'm assuming it does.

The only saving grace is a £30 cashback offer from Michelin which runs until the end of April.

[Gerontious]

Next tyres for me will be the old faithful Metzeler Tourances. £200 a pair or less. The only reason to go for pilot trails is if you habitually ride in the wet. I don’t. So they are expensive overkill for my purposes. 

Edited March 31, 2023 by Gerontious

[S-Westerly]

I don't go looking to ride in the wet but very often end up doing so because I have to be somewhere and the bike is the only option. I liked the Metzlers a lot but I felt the mileage I was getting on the rear tyre could be better and they are very prone to squaring off over longish motorway rides. They seem to go very quickly from being pretty good to past it which can be disconcerting. 

[Joe85]

Got spat on by a French farmer. 

[Guest]

9 minutes ago, Joe85 said:

Got spat on by a French farmer. 

Deliberately? Greeny? 

[Yorky]

12 minutes ago, Joe85 said:

Got spat on by a French farmer. 

This holiday isn't turning out too good is it??

 

[Joe85]

22 minutes ago, Yorky said:

This holiday isn't turning out too good is it??

 

Haha, no. Had a nice ride Weds, and was going so well until i encountered the farmer in his tractor.

[Joe85]

26 minutes ago, goat said:

Deliberately? Greeny? 

Yes to both

[Guest]

52 minutes ago, Joe85 said:

Yes to both

[Joe85]

£700 of repairs. Not too bad considering it was a slide at 60mph. doesn't include replacement Rukka gear.