Grover

i had a black merc pull out in front of me on the way out of bolton (it seems to be the only place i have problems with other drivers), after a ratehr good emergency stop (considering i'd only been riding a month), i moved on, only to do it again for a white van doing the same thing 200 yards later on ive not broken a wing mirror yet, but i've nearly punched a young teenage boy... is that road rage? or is it just getting annoyed by the idiots out there?

have you tried asking a yamaha dealer yet? if they build a few bikes they might even have a few lying around if you're lucky i onyl ask because my local dealer has always been helpful, even when i rocked up complaining about a faulty back brake... when id just not tightened the rear wheel up properly after adjusting the chain... the guy's probably thinking i should be dead already

i nearly killed a 12-14 year old kid last week, and i decided that children should not be allowed roads i was on my way out of Bolton, at the back end of the afternoon school run (slow traffic, but not stopping every few hundred yards) the car ahead of me indicated right, and moved over, leaving almost enough space for another car to pass to their left, so i just moved left, slowed it to 20 and cruised through the gap as i came level with the stopped driver, i saw a kid sprinting across the road, head DOWN, not looking for traffic, far too close for comfort (had i not hit the brakes, i would've hit him for certain) after a short slide (not my best emergency stop at all) i stopped with my front wheel a few feet from his legs, and the cheeky bugger had the cheek to call me a D***head i told him angrily that i could have just killed him, and refrained from smacking him, and started getting down from 4th to 1st (if you've tried this when stationary, you know that the gears are never in line, and it takes a while, at least on my YBR) now, considering that he was right next to a junction, on a main road out of a large city, and clearly didn't look for traffic (i wear "sorta" high vis stuff), could this actually have been my fault? clearly, i wasn't going too fast, since he's not in hospital, and the gap i rode through between the turning car and parked ones WAS wide enough for a small car sorry for the rant, just a little annoyed at what the cheeky bugger said

i originally wore walking boots for biking (it was summer, no rain, and they protected my feet a little), when i went to some light motorcycle boots (after the rain started) i found it difficult to feel my feet as well, but after a week or so i didnt notice the difference. a month or two ago, i bought some heavier boots, and had the same problem. you get used to it eventually, just keep at it, and remember to get off your back brake (dont want it wearing out do we?)

well, taking the visor out and putting it back it seems fine, but when it gets cold, the differential movement can make the two touch, and after a few minutes the insert starts to fog (not too much of a problem for me, since my glasses fog up anyway when i stop its not a huge deal, i just didnt want to break my visor or insert coz i didnt know what i was doing, and the Nolan instructions that came with the lid weren't too helpful either

the gloves work a treat, especially with some undergloves. thanks for al your input, riding through the cold and wet is now much more comfortable!

my HELD gloves just arrived, £100 plus undergloves for the really cold weather ill test them on the way to work soon, see if they're worth £70 more than y last pair

my pinlock visor was due a maintenance (fogging around the edges of the insert on the main visor). i have a Nolan N85 that came ready-fitted with the pinlock, and i haven't fiddled with it since i bought it (ive removed the whole visor to clean it, but thats all my attempt at cleaning and refitting the insert will get its test tomorrow, but ive also noticed that the insert is touching the main visor (not the silicon edging), which would cause the temperature difference, aiding anti fogging, to be reduced, as the cold from the outside can come straight across, without having to move across the air gap as well. i guess that this isnt normal, but is it something to worry about? or can i just ignore it. either way, is there any way to fix the problem, so that the insert works at its best again? thanks

i got a YBR with subsidised insurance, so it came out at a round £500 for a years fully comp, other than that, i was quoted as low as £450 for an 18 year old first time rider for 3p,f+t.

look nice! a little steep, but its better to have warm hands and a light wallet shame about 2 weeks for dispach though, ill see if anywhere else has any in stock

can anyone suggest a pair of reasonably priced winter gloves? ideally a pauir that has been tried and tested in the wet stuff thanks!

thanks for the replies guys! seems like some proper winter gloves are the way forward, and then muffs if that isnt enough. my current gloves are indeed bottom end, and seem to be designed to protect my hands if i crash, rather than keeping the rain out i also found another problem, which proofing my gear might worsen: the rain tends to sit on top of my thighs (good waterproofing on the trousers), but then the wind pushes the rain up my legs, under the jacket and into my clothes (a hoody at this time of year). my instructor also showed me his jury-rigging attempt, where he cut an all-in-one suit halfway up the torso, and he now wears that over his armoured trousers in winter to keep the rain off. now, i dont want to invest in an all-in-one just to cut it up, so are there any trousers (armoured or otherwise) out there that are high enough up the body to protect from the rain? and finally i didnt expect the heated grips to somehow keep my hands dry, but it might stop them going numb once the temperatures in the UK get below 5*... but holding them against the engine block at the lights sounds... interesting (YBR is naked, and i dont fancy turning round to reach the exhaust) thanks people!

ive been riding a YBR125 since April, through the rain and shine, but now, it seems more rain than shine yesterday, my instructor showed me some tricks to keep warm and dry when the wet stuff comes down. I liked the handlebar muffs, which would certainly keep my hands dry (im sick of having wet hands all the time, and drying my gloves with a hair dryer), and heated grips also seem to be a winter essential for some riders but before i go spending money, it would probably be worth checking that they ACTUALLY work, and that my little bike can cope so, first of all: is it sensible to fit Muffs to a YBR? and are there any brands that are incompatible with the YBR bars? (having moirror stalks is probably an issue here) and also is the YBR battery powerful enough to run the heated grips without degrading the performance significantly (the new YBRs dont have kick starts, and id rather avoid bump-starting it if i can, also, the headlamp on my YBR isnt the brightest thing out there, and i tend to do a bit of night riding, so i wouldnt want a dim headlight at all) also, is there any secrets to waterproofing my waterproofs? my pants and boots are just about ready for some spraying, but is it ok to just buy any old tin of waterproof spray, or is there more method to it? any other winter riding tips would also be greatly appreciated when im warm and cozy thanks in advance

ok, looks like a change in technique was all that was necessary, shifting how i naturally taught myself to between 1>2 and 2>3 keeps the gearbox from doing aything silly, only had one failed change today

you can check it yourself, i adjusted mine on my own, if you have the manual, you can't go wrong, just stick to the instructions and take it easy (dont wind the tension adjusting nut more than half a turn on each side without checking the chain tension after)

he did a later video expecially for downshifts, this viudeo was for upshifts (he's a career instructor, doub't he'd put people off for fun) @blackhat250 you mean i could be low on oil? the dealer checked it at the 600 mile service (only just over 600 miles ago), i suppose i'd better check it again then @Airhead so fi the throttle is properly closed the problem should no longer persist? ill try it out tomorrow thanks guys! im off to go tinker and fettle

the guide WAS for upshifting, im certain, ill get you the link: (copyrighted video, owned by Roadcraft Nottingham) AFAIK im doing exectly what he does, my gear shifter just hits something between neutral and second (possibly misaligned gears somehow, or perhaps the gearbox is cramped, one post i read mentioned one shaft being very close to the clutch housing)

im using teh same technique as described by roadcraft nottingham: 1) put a little pressure on teh gear lever, and prepare 2) "blip" the throttle, and move teh clutch in quickly at the same time, after a really short delay: 3) flick the gear lever up with a firm press 4) return back to your normal riding 2>4 should happen as quickly as possible this sometimes makes the gear changes as smooth as silk, a couple of times, i thought i;d put it in neutral it was so smooth, but i had in fact shifted up could i be doing it wrong perhaps? subconsciously?

i have a 2 year warranty i just feel bad for bugging them so much, ive been in every other week since ive bought it, but to be fair, they're £2400 better off because of my custom, so i suppose its only fair that i bug them, i might drop in tomorrow after university and see what the authorised mechanic thinks can be done, or if it can wait till my next service. is there anything i can do in the meantime? like a better way of shifting gears smoothly?

I know you guys have probably had this enough, a quick Google search brings up plenty of hits relating to people's problems with the gearbox on this thing, but i refuse to believe that a bike that's so well built everywhere else would have a gearbox as bad as it seems right now, and nor do i discount that it is also quite likely rider error (only been riding it two months) basically, my gearbox is getting stubborn, however hard i press the stick, it won't like going from 1st, through neutral, into 2nd. >> I don't have a problem getting it INTO neutral<< the bike seems to like neutral (guess its lazy like me ), recently, the gearbox has been sticking in neutral when going up to second, perhaps every 3 miles or so, and its rather embarrassing when your engine goes up to 6000 rpm without you going anywhere fast (its really bad for me on roundabouts) part of the problem may be my new technique for shifting gears, i watched a video by Roadcraft Nottingham, describing a smooth way to change gears (without clunking, or even clicking the gears), where you basically do the shift all at once, and really quickly, moving the new gear into place before either shaft of the gearbox has slowed more then the other, and getting back into drive quickly. now when i shift, the gear shifter always feels a little more stubborn, and when it does stick in neutral, I can feel the stick pushing against SOMETHING (possibly gears out-of-sync?), and even a good hard press won't move it into gear the first time, but there is little or no resistance on the second attempt (after i've made a fool of myself at low speed, looking like a chav with his first bike) the problem didn't use to be much of a problem for the first 1000 miles on the clock, it got a LITTLE worse between 1000 and 1300, and now, at just under 1500 its almost unbearable due to how frequently it occurs. is there any chance that its a mechanical fault? or is there a way i can change gears differently to make them less stressful for extra information: im not afraid to get my hands dirty, just afraid of spending big (i know its a 125 AND its less than 2 months old, so it can't be sucking my wallet dry just yet), and i also have a father who used to take his 50cc and 125cc Suzuki engines to pieces and put them back together again, so labour and skill shouldnt be a problem. its also a 2011 model (built 2012, by an authorised, reputable dealer) and has had its 600 mile service at the dealer (ill be booking the first 2000 mile service soon) thanks in advance for any help! Grover

hey there people! i passed my CBT in march, got my YBR 125 (BRAND NEW!) in April, and ive managed to do nearly 1500 miles in under two months, and im falling in love with bikes its good to live so close to a yamaha dealer (easy to druop the bike in when it gets "teething problems" in its fist few thousand on the clock hopefully ill put as much into the discussions here as i take away! see ya round!