steph g

Thank God!!!! Got it fixed. Wire from the negative was nacked. Replaced with a spare I had kicking about. Starts up fine now. No more train for me...till it turns really icy at least. Thanks for the advice guys (& gal). Much appreaciated. Ever in Glasgow look me up.

I'll not lie. I know F**k all about mechanical things. Without a service manual I'm lost. Don't even know half the names of things. Nice Katie. I once replaced half the electrics on my old scooter - on the advice of a mechanic I might add - only to discover if was just the rectifier (a £10 replacement fixed it). Just far too skint to get a pro to look at it this time and it's my transport to work. Got my wife bringing me a ohmeter from her work. Will run a few tests tonight if the rain disappears. Pulled out the fuses last night (quick check nothing more) and none were burnt out that I saw. Fitted a new screen yesterday (I know, I'm a wimp). Do you think when I did I may have buggers one of the cables when I put it on? It ran fine twice after that though.

Going to replace ALL the fuses just incase. Don't have a multimeter (to be honest, I wouldn't even know how to use one). If it turns out not to be the fuses I'll check the rest. The cables and battery looked good to me but I'm just a beginner when it comes to doing this stuff myself. Cheers.

Hey Guys, Taking a break from customising my Dragstar 125 since the bloody thing wont turn on today. Worked perfectly when I drove home from work yesterday and this morning there's no power. Turn the key, press the ignition - nothing. No lights on the speedo, nothing. The battery has charge (gave it a top up today just incase) and the fuses are ok. Any ideas? Having to get the train full of nightmare kids till I fix it. Save me from teenagegers. Much thanks in advance, Steph

I've got everything but the tassles on mine!

The bikes dry weight is 144.0 kg (317.5 pounds) - Ref'd from Bikez.com - so I'd take it the engine is maybe about half of that.

Bit the bullet and ebayed myself a screen. £40 used. Looks ok and will do for the time being. Mark 2 back rest is getting started next week. Making it a little lower and wider to hug the top of the seat.

I like it. Looks like it would take a bomb to the front and still stand. Love the link. Some ingenious bits of work on there. It's like the A-team on their. A cabbage and a pipe and they've got a new bike!!! It does seem that duct tape can fix everything. Nice to know that I'm not the only one that thinks this. I'm pretty much heading down the tank look for winter driving. Last year was a nightmare but with the trains constantly getting cancelled it was either bike it or walk for miles in the snow and wind. Can't afford 4 wheels as well as 2 so the 2 won.

Personally I don't trust dealers anymore. Back at the begning of the year I got a Suzuki Indruder from a dealer that got great review but on the way home it died. A month and a half later I'd only driven it for a week with it back and forth into their garage. Then told them to take the bloody thing back. Lost out on £300 in finance I'd paid up untill then and not even a sorry. They acted like I was the bad one. If you feel it's not right don't buy the thing. They just want to sell you the bike nothing more. Got a dragstar now (private sale) and am well happy.

I use a nitro Aikido and it had a 5 star sharps result the same ast the big boys but only cost £50. Fit's me and my pocket well as well as being a carbon fiber & pinlock lid. Sometimes you can just find one that suits.

Diving with your feet sounds just plain scary. Once had a boss that drove with his knees whilst on the phone. Needless to say he rolled his car. I agree with you about the back rest but that was my first attempt at one. The next one will be better. Got a bundle of the material left and an idea in my head. It's going to match the rack. Stripping back isn't my thing. It's all about comfort & convenience for me. If I can cart a load back from the supermarket on the thing then it's perfect. Don't care if a few extra Kg's slow me a little since I drive like a Granny anyway.

Thanks for the advice. Was getting hooked on adding stuff to the bike. Might leave the boards then.

What are you doing with floor boards? If your selling them drop me a line, I'm only in Glasgow.

Here's a few pics that I took this morning. Shows the back rest, solo rack and rigged panniers. The rack and shaped metal chair back (not shown) are going to the powder coaters shortly. I'm sneaking them in with another job. The panniers still need a little tidy but they are solid once on. A bit of tweaking is always going on with things though.

I'll upload some tomorrow. I have a cnc router and metal shaping machines at work, as well as a few fellas in the workshop that owe me a few favours . The problem is that when I see something I'm always wondering if I can do it myself. Recently converted a cheap set of sling over leather panniers to ridged back ones bolted to the side of the bike with a few off cuts of black ali.

I admit it...I'm wimp! Used to have a screen on my old suzuki and it made a hell of a difference riding during the winter. Would have it off the rest of the year but the Scottish winters can get bloody cold. I have a ready supply of high grade polycarb, the right stuff - I checked. I like making as much as I can myself (not tight, just skint!). Just finished making my solo back rest and solo rack (the wife wont get on the bike) and got the notion to do the screen as well. Have checked ebay but your still talking a ton for cheap screen. After that the bikes getting vinyl wrapped. Can't help customising.

Has anyone ever made their own screen? I work for a sign company and have access to all the materials and equipment I think I'd need to make one up. It's for my dragstar 125. Any pointers?

Hey Mike. Welcome mate.

Hi Reggie. Welcome to the club

Gonna do a bit of photoshopping to see what they'll look like. Not into the flame thing but we'll see how it turns out. I like the simple 2 colour stuff but open to new ideas.

Please say that's your bike! Since looked and think it might be black on the top (like a single strip all the way through from front to back) and a burnt orange (or bonze orange (metallic) on the sides. Going to use a wrapping vinyl that matches the colour so saves the hastle of painting and can do it myself. Thanks.

Hey all. Been personalising my XVS 125, solo rack/seat, light visor etc. Next step is to make a screen and 2 tone the colours (love that look). Currently the standard black with silver highlights. Was going to use vinyls for the colours. Thinking of keeping the black but use another colour on the sides?? Throwing it out there...what colour do you think for the highlight? Any examples you guys have done? Been able to do 90% myself since I have access to a CNC router and loads of leftover materials. Working in a sign makers has it's perks sometimes. Cheers, Steph

Every couple of weeks (if I can be bothered). I drive to work in all weather so it's gonna get dirty no matter what I do. Give it a wee safety check every couple of rides though. My 2 year likes grabbing a cloth and polishing the shiny bits every time she's near it, so who am I to argue with her.

The speedo and odometer all work fine it's just the trip meter. I've just been topping it up every couple of weeks and keeping an eye on the mile via the odometer. I'll try the WD40 and see what happens. Been like this since I first got it but looking to get a day away from the family and do a bit of distance. Would be useful at that point. Cheers guys.

Hey all, The trip meter on my XVS 125 is playing up. All the numbers turn at the same time & at the same speed so all I'm getting is a row of 1's, 2's etc. Any idea how to fix? Don't use it much but it would be handy when going distance. Cheers.