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swingarm would be difficult as not possible to protect the wiring that well, as it is i can largely keep feeder wires out of harms way but yes that's something one might associate with a cruiser I suppose, low lights, hog style. My motivation is hearing about or seeing videos of bikers getting rear ended, so trying to attract attention or catch the eye might assist.

Yeah, not too bad... I suddenly had the stupid idea of fitting them on the ends of your swingarm, but I'm not sure if there's laws about having rear lights that low lol.

yep, bit on the marginal side but having put them on just flipping thewm back was easy and anything that may help..... bit obscured but Ok I think

I'm starting to sound like doom & gloom guy here... lol There's no way those red lights are going to be visible from behind past your legs! There's a possibility that they'll become visible as you turn, but that could cause other problems. There was a 'thing' years ago about the question of whether two bike headlamps close together looked like car headlamps further away. If you see what I mean. Gotta admit though, I quite like the spots!

amber/yellow flank led with red led facing rearward rear quarter view

re: Hey welcome back. Thanks Alex. I was off line for a bit, had problems with my thumb, now all good again, can ride and operate m/bike controls OK. Sorry to learn that you have had issues with the MT-09.

Sorry had a geriatic moment and was thinking of @Mr Bignel ! Yeah when I spoke to the local Yamaha dealer about a rough idea of time a few weeks back to fix it, they told me it might be cheaper to buy a second hand engine if it's gone. After looking into it more I can see why, having the split the gearbox and engine and then take the shaft out to replace the bearings it's pretty much overhaul time. Took into the garage this morning, hopefully there's no unexected findings.

Don't forget, you've got no weight on that frame, your suspension is happily sitting at full height! I suspect as you put more bits on, it will get better...

Are you sure that little 250 can carry you and all that Petrol? On the other hand, you could probably drive around the country with all that fuel! lol

What do you mean 'welcome back'? I never left! I check the site every day lol. After my version of your output shaft panic, a Yamaha dealer (I'll drop his name: Clive Padgett (ex racer)) told me that output shafts are pretty strong, and it's actually pretty hard to bend one. It's more likely to explode, which you'd be much more certain about! lol.

Hey welcome back. I've never been so pleased to be wrong!

I got this little heap and since I have the US custom as a stock bike, this one is getting altered a touch. Stripped it all down and just playing with ideas at the moment.

Stripped the engine out of the bike and put the rest in my new shed. Then I took the engine apart. Judging by all the oil hanging about on the non working side, I think it needs new gaskets and piston rings.

Told you it wouldn't be the output shaft!

Well, my whining output shaft noise had been getting worse, so I took the bike to the garage to get an idea of the cost. They did what I’d been too lazy to do, stripped the back wheel and sprocket cover. After removing the front sprocket, it was clear the sprocket had worn one side quite a bit, hadn’t been aligned properly. It was also quite worn, I didnt even think to check this as the chain and sprockets had only done about 5k km on it. Obv crappy material. Thankfully, the output shaft spun freely with no clicking, phew! That was great to see. Turns out the rear wheel bearing was the main culprit, followed by the front sprocket, which explains why I thought the noise was coming from the front. I’m honestly so relieved to be wrong, a wheel bearing, chain, and sprocket are a lot better than having to pull the engine and split the gearbox casing. Hate to think what that would’ve cost! It’s booked in for Monday for some much needed love and care, something I embarrassingly haven’t given it for a while.

No worries

thanks s/bite, nice of you to trouble, i'd like it to go through it's mot so i'll order the amber type LEDs, thanks, much appreciated.

This is what I've found so far... As it says, the first one is primarily to do with vehicles over 6 meters long... Side running lights should be amber unless they are at the rear of the vehicle, in which case they should be red. This rule primarily applies to vehicles over 6 meters long, such as trucks and trailers, to help other drivers judge the vehicle's length and width. Whilst this second one is specific to motorbikes, it doesn't really account for lights that aren't up by the headlight or down by the tail light... So I'd still go with amber... Motorcycle side running lights should be white or amber at the front and red at the rear to comply with most regulations. Front lights can be white or amber, while rear lights must be red. Blue lights are generally not road-legal for running lights as they are reserved for emergency vehicles.

there's these on ebay, might consider swapping over... eBay UKUniversal Car Motorcycle Mini LED Turn Signal Tail Lights...(Fit for Cafe Racer Motorcycle（DIY mini led light). Light Color: Red 、Yellow （optional). Housing Color: Silver. We must protect your interest as promsied.

good point - just what i had at the time lol.

Yes, ok, but... Why are they RED??? They should be amber, same colour as your indicators.

yes good point on the headlight situation - on the side lights i had a hairy incident where a lady motorist came out into a dual carriageway, i moved over as far as i could and got away with it, the guy behind me said that he saw her husband grab the steering wheel! Anything that promotes visibily, I'm getting distinctly paranoid about it now. Maybe west yorkshire is quieter but 40 miles from london is busy busy now with distracted and less than cautious motorists. If I can get further west, maybe herefordshire, things improve.

Well... The first question is: Why do you have red lights on the side of your bike??? And as for the 'pulling out on you' bit, meh, there's idiots everywhere lol My suggestion would be: Get uprated (but legal) headlight bulbs.

These are the running lights on my bike, two front, one either side and two at the back yet still i get peeps pulling out on me. changed the oil and filter today, book says oil change at 4K but i do 3K. next job is to wire in those spot lights you can just see down by the side lights, one each side. my thunderace is an early one 1997 with 50k miles, there's a later model on autotrader that i like: https://www.autotrader.co.uk/bike-details/202509226529043?advertising-location=at_bikes but now isn't the time despite low prices.

oh dear