RantMachine Posted October 15, 2014 Posted October 15, 2014 Bicycle is looking a little sorry these days, all those countryside miles have roughed it up a tad To prove that I can find a silver lining in anything these days; it's forcing me to learn my way around the bike rather quickly I'm fairly certain that my garage is a motorbike hospice these days; the BMW's days are numbered, I'm just prolonging its life as much as I can while keeping it as comfortable as possible. Although there are plenty of other bikes that tickle my fancy, I know I'll be sorely tempted to go right out and get a brand spanking new Sertao when it finally dies! Be a shame to get a load of repair experience then get a completely different bike. At this rate I'll know everything about the bike that I could possibly need to know when I try to take the next one around the world Quote
al_stu Posted October 20, 2014 Posted October 20, 2014 Packed my lunch in a rush this morningForgot my monster munchf**k it Quote
nman1 Posted October 20, 2014 Posted October 20, 2014 feck it......not on one, out of three, bloody weather webs sites that I look at each morning does it say it will piss down this afternoon and whats is it doing...feckin pissing down and my waterproofs are tucked up nicely in the cupboard at home . Better getting wet going home I suppose. Quote
Stu Posted October 20, 2014 Posted October 20, 2014 I think you need to invest in another set neil and leave them at work just in case Quote
nman1 Posted October 20, 2014 Posted October 20, 2014 Good idea Stu, that`s next Saturday`s task sorted. Get ready for 4 months of winter riding. Here you go Al. Quote
Mr Fro Posted October 20, 2014 Posted October 20, 2014 Packed my lunch in a rush this morningForgot my monster munchf**k itI cried a little for you.Neil could eat loads of monster munch and tape the packets together. Presto, ad-hoc waterproofs. Quote
nman1 Posted October 20, 2014 Posted October 20, 2014 Prefer quavers mate, smaller packets so may need to eat a few more. Managed to stay dry though, it stopped about 5 mins before I left the office. Quote
RantMachine Posted October 27, 2014 Posted October 27, 2014 Well now I'm not actually 100% convinced this counts as a 'f**k it', because this sort of thing happens so often that I'm pretty used to it now... Not even 4 days after putting the damn thing back together, I'm faced with an unusable bike once again; overheating this time. Will try and troubleshoot it tonight, god only knows what has gone wrong this time... Did it at the weekend and I thought that maybe the fan was fecking up, seeing as I'd been stuck at lots of traffic lights on the way into town. When it did it again on a cross country ride at night time... FUUUUUUUUUUUCK IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT Quote
RantMachine Posted October 27, 2014 Posted October 27, 2014 Oh hey there coolant, whatcha up to? Having fun relaxing IN THE f**king OIL TANK AAAAAAAAARGHf**k it, I don't think I'm actually putting enough miles on my bike to identify as a biker. From here on I'm a hapless enthusiast motorbike mechanic, or something like that... Quote
RantMachine Posted October 27, 2014 Posted October 27, 2014 Working on the assumption that it's probably the water pump seals, it's known to be a worryingly common problem... I'll spill the guts over the garage floor and see what state they're in. Fingers crossed they're just ruined and that's all the problem, but... well, it's never the easy one, is it? Quote
Tango Posted October 27, 2014 Posted October 27, 2014 Angle grinder's at the ready if you need it Ollie..... Quote
RantMachine Posted October 27, 2014 Posted October 27, 2014 Hahahaha appreciated Bob Although I don't think it'd be my bike that I'd want to use it on... Quote
BikerMooFromMars Posted October 29, 2014 Posted October 29, 2014 Not bike related; I asked the dentist I worked for to file down some of my toof I had filled by my usual dentist (that I also used to work for) in Cambridge at the start of September. It's been sore and achey when I eat - I just assumed the filling was too high. Turns out there is a small hole in the filling (therefore a stagnation area - food would have been getting trapped there) and possibly decay underneath but was difficult to see on the x-ray. Need the filling removed and checked, any possible decay removed and re-filled. Takes 2 months to get an appointment with him in Cambridge though, and can't get the dentist I'm working for to do it cos we're too busy all the time. Bugger. Quote
RantMachine Posted October 29, 2014 Posted October 29, 2014 FUUUUUCK IIIIIIIIT f**k IT f**k IT f**king f**k f**k f**k IT ALL TO HELL AND BACKDrained the oil reservoir a couple of nights ago but couldn't drain the sump - Cambridge Motorcycles fitted a new sump plug earlier this year because a previous owner had knackered the old one. Very kindly, they fitted one that requires a 10mm hex bit - making this the only item on my entire bike that doesn't require a torx bit. So, naturally I had to cycle to Halfords in the rain tonight to get one. Bearing in mind that the sump plug is supposed to be torqued up to 40nm, I bought a 3/8" drive bit, to fit my 8-60nm wrench. Got home and tried to open it up... they're torqued it past 60nm, so it's not coming off with this wrench. Completely wasted an evening, and now I've got to cycle back to Halfords again tomorrow to get the 1/2" drive version. And pray that they didn't f**k the thing when they overtightened it. So:* Wednesday evening wasted* Thursday evening plans out the window* Freezing cold and wet and my not-so-great knee is killing from the cycling* One day further behind on getting back on the roadI swear to god, it'll take a miracle for me to ever let someone else touch my damn bike ever again. I'm honestly so very close to just packing it in and going back to cycling everywhere, it's just driving me utterly nuts. Every damn week there's something new and I'm going off the deep end and buying this bike was meant to be the one good thing that happened to me this year but I swear to god some days it's the reason I'm falling apart at the f**king SEAMS and if I could go back and never buy the f**king thing then I wouldn't think twice any more Quote
Joeman Posted October 29, 2014 Posted October 29, 2014 You dont need to use a torque wrench to undo the bolt. Just get your t-bar on it and give it a gentle tap with a hammer. No need to go buy another tool... Quote
RantMachine Posted October 29, 2014 Posted October 29, 2014 Not got one. My tool collection is expanding gradually as the bike gradually dies. Plus I think the thing I'm most pissed about is that once again I've been f**ked about by people I paid good money to look after my bike for me. That and the fact that I barely get to ride the damn thing. Quote
Stu Posted October 29, 2014 Posted October 29, 2014 just because its tight it doesnt mean its been over tightened ollie! threads can swell and nip it up tight and as above you dont use a torque wrench to undo a nut/bolt also save a bit of wonga and buy a decent tool set from halfords with your discount card saves all the little trips Quote
RantMachine Posted October 29, 2014 Posted October 29, 2014 Ok, so maybe my frustration is a little misdirected. Deep breath, don't get pissed off at garage yet. Remain pissed off about terminally ill bike.Sadly I'm kinda limited to buying little bits here and there as I don't really earn enough to buy tools in bulk! Just the bare minimum that I can get away with. Hell, the constant steam of faults has meant that I haven't actually managed to get myself out of the £1500 debt I racked up by having to move house at short notice and then that first shedload of servicing the bike needed. Quote
RantMachine Posted October 29, 2014 Posted October 29, 2014 Maybe I should just accept that piss poor wages, Cambridge living costs, piss all mechanical knowledge, and biking just don't mesh well Quote
Tango Posted October 29, 2014 Posted October 29, 2014 It really shouldn't be that tight Ollie.....even with a bit of nipping due to expension/contraction...... If you need a hand mate, just shout out......I can get over tomorrow after work with a breaker bar......and an angle grinder.......and I recently found in the garage my big f*ck off angle grinder...... Quote
RantMachine Posted October 29, 2014 Posted October 29, 2014 Always with the angle grinder, Bob Cheers for making me laugh, I really needed that right now.Really appreciate the offer, but I don't want you to have to go out of your way for such a little thing - I'm thinking that tomorrow evening is down the pan either way, gonna have to do tonight's jobs tomorrow either way, so another trip to Halfords for the 1/2" version isn't the end of the world. But thanks again for forcing me to crack a smile Quote
Tango Posted October 29, 2014 Posted October 29, 2014 The offer is always there Ollie......no probs.Pop into Screwfix while you're over that way and get yourself a therapeutic angle grinder Ollie.....it'll make you feel much better..... Quote
Grumpy Old Git Posted October 30, 2014 Posted October 30, 2014 Ollie,I can loan you anything that Bob has not got - You have a lot of folk on this forum willing to help a fellow biker. Don't get steamed up, just ask and we'll pitch in.PS. I also have an Angle Grinder as well as a decent 'lump' hammer and a cold chisel! Quote
RantMachine Posted October 30, 2014 Posted October 30, 2014 Thanks again Yep, I know I'm never stuck for help when I need it thanks to the wonderful folks of TMBF - and I feel particularly lucky to live slap bang in the middle of East Anglia where there are so many of us!Now if only I could stop being stubborn about it Quote
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