Ttaskmaster

Don't worry - All the ignorant summer rider pricks will be out soon, to ignore your nods, whazz round at top speed and show you how a REAL biker rides...

I just use 10-W-40...

The only unkind thing I'd say is that you shouldn't be making phonecalls on yer bike - Car drivers do it all the time and kill us bikies far too often because of it. As an old sod, you're old enough to know better! Only reason handheld radios aren't illegal to use while driving, like everything else, is that would mean Cops and Taxis would be affected. As for technology - I only understand as much about it as I need to get the stuff I want. I know what a Blackberry is, for example, but I know enough to know that I'll never ever use one. Now... I have a TomTom SatNav, which came with a Cardo Scala-Rider headset. That thing Bluetooths to the SatNav but also to my phone and works pretty well. The holding bracket clips to your helmet rim (fnar fnar) on the left side and the main unit slots into the bracket, so you'd use your left hand to operate it. It has a wire that runs up into your lid, with a thin speaker that sits against your ear in an approriate lining recess. There's also a long, flexible boom microphone that tucks up under and reaches to the front where yer gob is. The unit on the outside has 4 buttons for on/off, answer and volume up/down. I've tested it a couple of times on rides and found no problems. You have to set your phone up to recognise and Bluetooth to the headset, or link it in with the SatNav. Comes with it's own charger and you don't *have* to unclip the unit off the bracket to charge it. But you can also do that, if you want. I usually just put lid on desk, plug in and leave a couple of hours. Despite the flashy blue 'on' light, I've forgotten to turn the thing off and the power seems to last a good few days between charges... which is pretty amazing! The Cardo unit I have is designed to work through my SatNav, but there are several other versions specifically for phone only, rider to pillion, bike to bike and combinations thereof. There's even ones that you can link in your music player things, I believe. http://www.cardosystems.com/scala-rider

I am NOT Drewpy!!! Looking again, I think it's a normal-sized bike. The reason it looks so small when he looks down... I think he's stood up on it!

Always, always change the crush washer every time you take the sump drain plug out. Always, always tighten it back up to the required torque. Always, always be very careful when changing the oil filter, not to bugger up the gasket seal. Always, always torque the other bolts up properly, too.

How come he binned it? Was he riding one of those mini-scooters or something, or did he just lose control?

I always wear a set of US style dog tags - One is stamped with my name, DoB, blood group, allergy info (none, in my case) and a couple extra bits to help ID me. The other has NoK contact details. The ONLY times you won't find me wearing these is either in the shower, or when I'm wearing my 1940s issue ones. I work on the basis that my phone will get trashed in an incident anyway and there is thus no ICE contact. I do like the idea of having ICE details in a specific location and with clear indicators as to where they are on me.

Actually, it's a 'Temporary Use Ban', as it covers more than just hosepipes.

I've never disconnected a breather hose from mine, either. AFAIK, the 650 Drag breathes through the fuel cap. I just looked at the manual myself. I do see the hose they're talking about in the diagram... but I ain't got one on my bike, and the Mrs doesn't have one either!

I went on the May Day run down to Hastings. They had a massive street thing, with something like 30,000 bikers. Guys pulling wheelies, stoppies and burnouts in the middle of the road, 2 cops looking on and knowing they can't do a fucking thing (unless they want the 600 Backpatchers next to them kicking off), etc. In the middle were all the stalls and local shops were flogging masses of stuff for absolute pennies!!

I think he meant how to fix the shed!

You need to put the key in the ignition and turn it on, followed by pressing the starter button. Only MY bike starts via telepathy!

Something Wemoto do, maybe?

I use both Frank Thomas and Halvarssons kit, Weisse and Hein Gericke gloves, Caberg lids, 1982 British Army issue boots (BCH mkII). Look for end-of-season sales, or early year sales of last season's kit. I got 2 jackets, brand new fully armoured, for £30 each. That's almost £400 worth for 15% of the original sale price!!

Yay, another 650 Draggie rider!! We do have the coolest bikes in town. We really do!!

Bored with the Drag? I must be doing something right!! There is a 950, 1100, 1300 and a massive 1900 still to go in the Star range, if what you want is more kick... Failing that, try a Rocket III - NOTHING is faster at 0-50mph, not even the Hayabusa!

+1 for doing CBT and learning on a 125. It's a bitch at times, but it teaches you valuable experience-only skills that DAS alone just cannot manage!

+1 !!

I'd consider 60 miles quite a long trip on the bike and certainly worthy of decent kit! At -7ºC standing temperature (like it was here around last November) the wind chill factor of riding at 60-70mph puts you at something like -27ºC. If it's raining and you get wet, it drops another ten degrees to -37ºC. Exposed flesh will freeze in about a minute, you go hypothermic and fall off the bike. 60 miles in that? Good luck. See you at your funeral. Also, at 60 miles commuting even in good weather, I'd always go for the best protection possible. I only do about 10 miles each way to work and even still, thanks to the dickheads on the road, I'd never ride in anything but full leathers. Remember, it's not just about how well you ride that keeps you safe, but what measures you take to avoid becoming someone else's victim. I've known the absolute best of the best still fall to someone else's bad driving...

Ultimately, if they want it that bad they will have it. But that's what your insurance is for!

Sort of. It's what I regard as a misfire, since both plugs are firing, regardless of what the cylinders are doing. YMMV: "The classic Harley-Davidson engines are V-twin engines, each with a 45° angle between the cylinders. The crankshaft has a single pin, and both pistons are connected to this pin through their connecting rods. This 45° angle is covered under several United States patents and is an engineering tradeoff that allows a large, high-torque engine in a relatively small space. It causes the cylinders to fire at uneven intervals and produces the choppy "potato-potato" sound so strongly linked to the Harley-Davidson brand. To simplify the engine and reduce costs, the V-twin ignition was designed to operate with a single set of points and no distributor. This is known as a dual fire ignition system, causing both spark plugs to fire regardless of which cylinder was on its compression stroke, with the other spark plug firing on its cylinder's exhaust stroke, effectively "wasting a spark". The exhaust note is basically a throaty growling sound with some popping. The 45° design of the engine thus creates a plug firing sequencing as such: The first cylinder fires, the second (rear) cylinder fires 315° later, then there is a 405° gap until the first cylinder fires again, giving the engine its unique sound".

I always make sure I live and work somewhere, where everything is within easy walking distance. For me, that means less that 10 miles, though...

PMR446: Midland Alan PMR456 Midland G7 or G8 CB: Midland 42 Multi (this is the one I have) Intek H-512 Intek H-520 PMR's max range is about 1.4km. CB can reach to 10 miles! Both should have the option for 2-pin headset adapters and allow you to use handlebar mounted PTTs, etc. There are bluetoothy things as well, but they cost a bomb and I'm still not convinced. PMR is OK, but you get what you pay for. Pay low, get shite. I've had crap performance from some as close as 3 yards! CB is a bit easier. The rig is more expensive, but SO much cooler!!

I've heard about this before... and I'm gonna heartily disagree (what a surprise, Tasky!). I reckon it's still just counter-steering. I love counter-steering. I think it's a great concept. I also love proving it to people that know better than me and swear blind that such a thing doesn't exist. Get them riding straight and upright along a nice 40 or 60mph road, have them push the right bar (ie turn the bars toward the left) just a *touch* and promise them the bike will lean right. Then ride behind and watch them doing this time and time again in disbelief!! Anyway... When I was first riding, doing DAS on a variety of more uprighty street bikes, I was trying to lean and do the footpeggy thing. Then I realised that in order to transfer your weight, you push off on the opposite peg and go to lean. The first thing to move in a lean is actually your shoulders, which affects your arms, especially if they're straight. So the first thing you change on the bike is the handlebars and you are thus into counter-steering. It only feels like you're steering with your feet because your weight then has to lean in and follow the line of downward force to avoid falling off and thus presses down into the inside peg. It's more noticable on the sensitive bikes, but even going from the 125 Drag to the 650, the shallower rake angle meant tipping into corners faster than I was used to. I now consciously counter-steer and flip the bike left to right to left as fast as a hulking beast like that is able, which ain't very fast, but I'd probably be dead amazing on a 'Blade.... or amazingly dead! Sometimes it still feels like I'm loading the pegs and my knee goes out when I'm cornering, even though knee-down on a Drag means you're already off the bike and sliding... Now I could be wrong (yes, I really did say that) on all this sciencey stuff but I'm in a chatty mood and I'd love to open this debate up, so please - tell me stuff. You think that's right? Have I missed the mark?

One little trick on rusted/seized bolts is to turn it right a touch, ie tighten it. This sometimes cracks the crap and loosens it up. Other than that, I'm a big fan of hammers. Use a screwdriver or something to reach the ones in awkward places. What is a 'wrench', though? Is that like a spanner?