mr-ym

Yeah its only done 400 miles, so hopefully its all OK. Yes i think I'm getting very lucky, just gotta take it easy to start with and get used to the extra power, weight etc. How long can petrol safely sit in a tank before it causes issues? I've heard that it can mix with the moisture in the air and if you then run that through your engine, it can cause big issues

Hey After finally sorting out the steering on my 125, a guy from work is getting rid of his Ducati Monster 696, and I'm thinking of taking it (blasphemous i know, i'm really sorry). He bought it about 18 months ago brand new as his first bike but basically rode it for about 400 miles and was too scared of it, so has barely used it. He's giving it to me real cheap, but I'm just wondering what the main things I need to look out for are. I presume I should change the fuel in the tank (not sure if he used a stabiliser) and I have bought a trickle charger as the battery is dead (I guess that might need to be replaced having been used so little), but what other things are there? He's kept it covered at all times, but it has been outdoors not in a garage. Cheers Yus

Thankfully it's all sorted. The guy stripped it down a bit and apparently the chassis at the top next to the steering lock was slightly bent and was catching, hence the stiffness when turning to the right. He asked if anyone had tried to nick the bike as someone trying to turn the steering with force when the steering lock was on may have caused that. Sorry I don't know the technical terms for the parts that were damaged, but hopefully this may help someone else at some point! I'll try to get some pictures up so I can explain better what I mean. Thanks for all the help!

Also, just taken to some guy to have a second look, and he reckons it could be the steering stem (?) As its v stiff to the right but fine to the left. He's gonna look at it later today and call me back, could this be the case or is he trying to fleece me (I've never used him before so have no idea what he's like)

Hi guys As expected it seems like my head bearing have gone. Bit of history; my steering is very stiff when turning the bars to the right, to the left it's fine. My bro has been borrowing the bike, so I suspect it's that he hasn't been covered and he's left it parked up with the steering to the left, and it's rusted the head bearings. Now that I have it back, it's up to me to sort it. It seems like the cables aren't overly puling, and tyre pressures are fine. It's just been in for MOT and failed, obviously, and the guy confirmed it's the bearings. I was thinking of doing it myself, and reading up on here it seems like it's not the most difficult job. However I can't get hold of bearings from M&P or Wemoto, both said I probably have to check with dealers. Anyone know where else I can try/if I'm asking for the wrong thing. I assume I just need the bearings (do they come with the racers?), and do I need to do the lower bearing inner race as the Haynes manual says only remove that if it needs replacing. Any other bits I need/info I need to know? Thanks for the help! Yus

Hi My name's Yusuf, I have a XT 125 R which I've had nearly 4 years. I've been a member on here a while, but never actually got round to saying hi. Being honest, I'm on here now as just need a bit of advice about my bike (bit stiff when turning handlebars right) which I'll stick in The Bar (correct me if it's the wrong place!). Hopefully I'l get a bit more active on here, and look forward to learning a lot.