Ttaskmaster

Nothing of interest there...

The MOT is technically valid only at the moment when it was tested. You can be illegal five minutes after leaving the test centre. But OK, fine, your pipes are legal... Now let's go over your whole bike with a fine toothcomb, shall we? Plus there will be a hundred other things they *can* cite you for, if the mood takes them... But my point being, while your neighbours may not have any legal recourse over your pipes, they know where you live and have a thousand different ways of getting revenge...!!!

Well done - I'm proud of you, Foamy!!! Engine bars and belly pans on this page -> http://www.fjcatalogue.com/body.html

But do I get another like the one I already have, or a different model....?

I'm sure I could find you a nice one!! This thread makes me want another FJ!!

Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu................................................... Luckier still, as he was not exactly fully kitted, either...

Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu...................................................

Advice for the female biker - If you're in leathers and lid, I don't care what you have between your legs so long as it's got two wheels. Seriously, gender isn't really a thing. Either you're on a bike, or you're not. That's all there is to it.... Anyone tells you otherwise, have them fuck off and just enjoy yourself. Same for L-Plates. Everyone has to start somewhere and I went to plenty of rallies and meets on my 125, including a few Backpatch Club events. Not an eyelid was batted!! You might want to see if there's a local MAG (Motorcycle Action Group), BMF (British Motorcycling Foundation) or similar group/meet around your way. Always very good for those new to this world. Well, there are certain factors such as clothing cut for the female form and which bikes are best suited to the typical female build, but since every human is different anyway, we can usually find you a solution.

Wicked bad, my man!!! One helluva clean looking bike, too - Good job!!

Only the eBay ones. I'm finding a lot better at fairer prices on places like the FJOC, if not too cheap especially with club servicing (worth its weight in gold, IMO). A good one can be pretty cheap and often includes a shedload of nice extras. Never quite fell for the FJRs myself, though. The 13 Pans felt more comfortable to me, for some reason.

Hee hee hee!!!!!!

Fair play on the tassels but remember waistcoats can still be useful, either as Winter layers or additional external pockets - I wear one myself sometimes, although it was designed specifically for it. I will happily come round and hand-paint YAMAHA on your Harley, though!!!

Just remember to nod/wave at other bikes.

It's not an uncommon set of mods anyway, so you may well find one. I think the Owners Club has a couple available. If not, they can sort you one easy as! So avoid the models that have 300,000 clocked... and there are a few. 50k is barely broken in for these things. £1200 will buy you a pristine 3CV model (as in, there is one for sale right now) with touring screen, hot grips, Hagon shock, custom seat, engine bars, fancy exhaust, luggage rack, Scottoiler and all the trimmings. My own tatty, beat-up Battle Bitch cost me £950 and was professionally valued at £1800, FFS!! These things DO hold their value, parts are cheap and plentiful, they're a dream to work on, cost very little to run (even I can afford it) and if you don't stop flapping and just get one, I'mma kill you in the face!!

I've no real problem if it makes him happy... Just don't understand, especially as the bike still says YAMAHA all over it!

It's a case of reading the above links and deciding for yourself, mostly. The 1100 has some awesome features, but the 1200s have some considerable improvements over the 11. Generally, owners seem to rate the 1200 3CV as the favourite. I personally adore the 1200 3XW, particularly the paint scheme. Either way, you'll almost always get a great bike for a great price.

What Mervin said ^

No, that's the 1200 3XW, the one I have.

Hell, you're in Newbury - Come up to Reading (I'm off J11) sometime and have a play with my FJ. PM me and we'll arrange it.

FJs are wicked bikes and, despite their age, still put many modern models to shame. Several guys I know still race 1100s in the pre-injection classes and do rather well. Probably the best break-down of what to be mindful of: http://fjclub.co.uk/#/buying-a-fj/4546920434 http://fjclub.co.uk/#/faq-fj-models/4546869564 Cheap to run.... not that much. Mileage can range from 28-ish in town to lower 50s on distance (it's a Tourer after all). Cheap to maintain - Hell yeah. Parts are plentiful and low cost, especially on your favourite auction site. Simple - Every time I help a friend do something with their bike, I realise how easy it is on the FJ and love mine just that little bit more!! Reliable - I trust mine with my life. It's 23 years old, never failed to deliver and came up still running perfectly with just minor denting where some other bikes would have been a mess of pieces strewn across the road! If you're still not sold on this one, the Owners Club is a great resource for finding others in awesome condition for great prices.

Still waiting for my beer...

Short of giving you a bike, which I don't think anyone here can manage, I'm not sure how we can help... You could somehow coerce them into buying you one, perhaps make some kind of deal with them - Bike in exchange for, I dunno, becoming a doctor or whatever. Generally, I'd say wait until you're old enough to move out and then buy whatever the hell you like. That's what most of us do.

Owners Manual can often be found as a free PDF, or as physical copies sold on popular auction websites. The Workshop Manual is an official Yamaha product and can (sometimes) be purchased from them. However, it is a trade publication, intended for professional mechanics and thus quite expensive. Other versions are illegal copyright violations and thus we cannot link to them. I *think* there is a Haynes/Clymer Service Manual that covers the 125 Drag (and 125 Virago), but could be a bit of a legend...

Get them as a pair, as the right one will be different in order to fit over the throttle slider. Standard Drag grips comprise the rubber grips, inner chrome-plastic collars and outer chrome-plastic end caps. IIRC, the bars will probably be 22mm diameter (but do check first), so get grips that match the bars.

And something for them to hold on to.