The Bar

Hi all First time action. I have just bought a 1979 DT175MX in need of heavy tlc. I also have a FZS600, my first big bike. Glad to be here and hope yo have constructive conversations with yoy. As the rebuild on the DT175 progresses I will try and upload some photos.

Hi guys, This is actually the first time ever my bike has refused to start! So I stick choke on, start her up, she'll tick over fine for about 3-4 seconds then suddenly cut out.. Last night I was going to do a valve clearance adjustment - took all the timing caps etc off then realized my feeler gauge is all rusted and I can't see the numbers so I stuck all the caps back on and left her. Do you think this could in some way be related to my problem? All help grately appreciated. Happy riding, Louis

Some information before I get to the problem. So I crashed my motorcycle about 2 weeks ago. I hit a curb doing 40ish on a new road I wasn't used to. Got thrown from my bike, most of the damage was to the front and left side. Luckily I was ok. At the time I had a toggle switch on the bike, that came out when I crashed however. When I got it from the tow company the front brake lever had no resistance to it. So I took it off. My fairings were gone instrument cluster was gone. One of my exhausts was hanging off the bike. I got it home washed it up fixed what I could. I replaced the throttle tube and the start/kill switch (the old one was destroyed in the crash) I took t…

anybody know the sparkplug cap resistance should be on a 1992 xv535 2yl ive got used coils and leads and they tested fine but would like to know if the caps resistance is important the plugs are ngk bpr7es

I've been thinking about nearning to change my own tyres (why not, right?). But I have one huge issue, I lack an air compressor (or at least one with enough balls to seat the bead), meaning that I can get a tyre onto a rim but I can't seat the bead on the rim. But, I can do a tube tyre because the tube does the job for me once I inflate it. Now I need to know if I can put a tube tyre on a tubless rim, I can't really see any reason why I wouldn't be able to do it, but I could be missing something. (Also I SOMEHOW managed to put my shreaded engine back together again and it runs! Unfortunately my bank account hates me and the parts department of my local Yam dealer …

Hi all, I have a 96 Thunderace with a fairing that's a bit tatty. Are the fairings off Ebay any good? I figured if I repaired the one I have I'd have to get it sprayed anyway so wondered if anyone here had bought one and how it fitted / quality...? I have come across some with poor reviews and some with good. Is it just pot luck???

Hi, after 18 years in my garage I've decided to sell my beautiful bike. Starts every time and brake and indicator lights work. New battery installed but can't get the side and head lights to work. I believe they are supposed to work when the engine is running? The dash blue light (high beam indicator) not working so clerarly an issue which is beyond my knowledge. Could it be the regulator or coil? Checked all cables for cracks etc. Any help appreciated. Thanks Keith

Ok so my throttle cable snapped on my xv125 virago , I've got a new one and gonna fit it myself , is it just a case of putting it on where the other one is or is there some secret method I have to know about , or any other tips.

Hey everyone! So I purchased this bike and am not entirely sure on the exact model etc I have uploaded the frame number I found on the left hand side of the steering head, engine number and a general pic Any info would be appreciated!

i have decided to put new coils ,on my bike its a 1992 xv535 2yl what are the best ones to buy aftermarket ones

Hi all, I'm new here so apologies if I've posted this wrong, but I was wondering if anyone had any advice for me? My 125 dragstar has recently been playing up just after starting making it hard to get it running. it'll start okay, but then on giving it any throttle the front cylinder will bottle out and stop firing properly. this is a consistent problem and I've tried to remedy it by changing the sparks, oil, and a few other things, but none have seemed to work. It might be useful to say I changed the pipes to straight throughs when I got it and the mixture leaned off due to the decreased back pressure, but I rejetted the carb which fixed the problem- but now …

Hey guys and gals, hope all is well? Not been on in some time as been having a right old nightmare! Keeping a very long story short I managed to kill the bandit! All that effort down the pan after the bottom end going bang in the most spectacular way on the way home from work. So she has now gone to a new brave owner after selling it for spares n repairs. But not all is doom and gloom, today me and the wife just made a trip up to Swindon to purchase a rather nice 1998 XJR1200 for a not so bad price And will be delivered next Thursday. took it out on a test ride and to be fair I really didn't want to go back to the shop, just wanted to keep going and going! So ea…

Just paid the finance off the WR so I'm pretty happy for a change. A lot of people advised me not to do it and I could understand their logic. It was a struggle when I got made redundant but I scraped by. It's a nice feeling getting a brand new machine and I will be definitely doing it again, especially now with all the 0% interest deals. When I thought about it I realised it was worth it. The interest was 4.6% or something. The bike cost £4200 and the interest was £300 so all together £4500. I've had three years of problem free riding, apart from wear and tear. It was a god send after the whole XT nightmare. WR's seem to hold their value as well so after considering all …

Hi guys, have been having a bit of bother with a stiff front wheel for a while now - has been on and off. I'm looking at the piston and am wondering if it's meant to sit flush with the caliper or if it's meant to rise above the caliper by about 2-3mm. Cheers, Louis. Happy riding

Hi guys, another question for yous. I've changed the brake pads on my bike and bled the system. What could be causing a lot of play in the lever before the caliper activates as the lever is hitting my fingers when I pull back - I like to have two fingers still on the throttle when I go to brake.. Cheers for now, Louis

Hi all, My bike has a faulty CDI unit which is causing total loss of power every time I go over any kind of bump so it needs replacing, but I've been looking around and I'm confused by models and dates. Mine is from 1995 so does this mean anything pre-2003 when the new shape was introduced will work? Also how likely is the new shape to work in my bike, is it specifically for post 2003 models, as the new one is much easier to obtain and much cheaper. Thanks!

I keep my bike in the garden covered etc but it's still not good enough. Every time it rains I have to run out and cover it. I have been looking at sheds but I plan on moving house soon so it would be a waste. Also the only suitable place for a shed would block my outside tap and kitchen window. So now I'm thinking of alternatives. It doesn't have to be out fancy just a shelter from the rain and snow. I'm thinking of knocking a timber frame together as a starting point but then I thought about a gazebo type thing? Any ideas?

I've never used mirrors on my bikes before because I think they look stupid on my style of bike. I got some of those that stick into the end of your bars but they're pretty crap. I want some that screw into the mirror sockets but not with massive long arms. I don't know the word slimline? Anyway I can't find any. Has anybody got a link?

Right, my engine is fucked, the keeper on the cam sprocket snapped off and fell into the crank and mangled some shit that I haven't even bothered to inspect yet, along with putting scratches into my BRAND NEW cylinder. So I'm just gonna swap the engine out for another one whilst this one gets a rebuild. Now, onto the meat of the question: I've been offered a 2006 YBR engine for a decent price. The problem is that those have a carb and not EFI, but thats the only change, and I'm guessing that I can just swap the stator over to the 2006 model and be golden. As far as I can figure that's about as far as I'd have to go, anyone else have any thoughts?

Been pretty preoccupied with other stuff lately, so the bikes as a whole have taken a back burner massively, FUCR is still in the garage somewhere and I only recently dug out the DT125LC frame I had started to rebuild, so today was as good a time as any to actually do a few little niff naff jobs on it that were holding me back. Namely the shock absorber bushes, which had to be put under the hydraulic press to separate from the swingarm, the remains of the old ones put up a hell of a fight and ended up being dremmeled and pecked at with a chisel before the new ones went in. Ordered a lump of phosphor bronze and some grease nipples so will be spinning up s…