Toutsuite

I must admit that for short journeys around London, there will be days when I'll wear ordinary trousers on the bike. In traffic, with a 30mph speed limit, there are many bad things that can happen to a rider, but a prolonged slide is not very likely. Think about it: in traffic you can be knocked off your bike by e.g someone coming out of a side street without looking, or by a pedestrian crossing the road wherever and whenever they fecking well please, or a sideswipe, or even a head on collision (flying-spaghetti-monster forbid!) with some other vehicle. As long as any of the above doesn't happen at great speed, i.e. above the speed limit, a good helmet and armour on your jacket are more important, as the issue in such instances is broken bones, not road rash - you just aren't going fast enough. Let's face it, who here would bother with all the expensive protective gear if you were riding a 50cc moped? Would you buy leathers for the legs? Or a power ranger suit? Well, in London traffic, a draggie isn't necessarily faster than a moped! On the rare occasions when I might ride to work (a 4 mile journey, 30mph speed limit all the way), when the weather is too good to resist, and possibly too warm, I might risk just wearing my work trousers. However, for any forays onto roads that allow you to go faster, it will be either the kevlars or the leathers. And for motorways, the leathers only.

What's that like for noise tasky?

I picked up a pair of leather jeans from a shop in camden lock, plain black (no laced sides or any of that Village People crap!), £75. They had a pair of armoured riding leathers for £40, but it was about 2 sizes too small for me. I'm still going to get some kevlar jeans/combats for the 30mph pootle round London's streets though.

Erm, anybody know why the two carbs don't have identical jet sizes? Just curious, I know next to nothing about mechanical stuff.

I have both full face and open face helmets which I wear depending on how cold it is. But as we're nearly in spring you can start with an open face one. Have a look here: http://www.ghostbikes.com/categorylist/Helmets-Open-Face-Helmets/ I don't see the point of an o/f helmet being too expensive (say above £50) Ride safe.

Yes, I'd still have a pair for short trips. I'm sending the Hornees back because they resemble clown pants, as the legs are too long and wide, not something you can wear off the bike (which you can with leather jeans - variations in taste permitting!). The images on the website are far more em, flattering! Thinking about getting a pair of these: http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00630ROIC/ref=s9_simh_gw_p193_d2_g193_i3?pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_s=center-2&pf_rd_r=10TP93HA7529F0YZSHZS&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=467128533&pf_rd_i=468294

Hmm, thanks for the info tasky, I might have to send these back then...

Just ordered a pair of Hornee kevlar jeans (well combats actually), and was wandering what you chaps think of kevlar jeans? Anyone here had their skin saved by them? I got them mostly for motorway use. Last summer and autumn I was riding wearing just ordinary jeans or combats, and If I'd had a spill at 70mph that would have been very painful until my skin would have grown back! The other option is of course leather, which I could find at a decent price, about £65ish on amazon, but only in black (my leather jacket and boots are brown). So went for the Hornees instead.

Sounds like that bike has had 10 years of serious abuse. 36K is not all that much. Probably not been serviced much in that time and been ridden by someone with not much love for it. Too bad... Good luck with fixing it, but it might be cheaper to just find a used engine on ebay and do a swap...

Hi Draggie, have a look at this site: http://www.smartpartz.com/index.html They provide bolt-on baffles that go on exisiting baffles. See if they can do a pair for your highway hawks.

Well according to the mechanic, the leak is due to the the pressure seal going between the gear housing and engine (I think). Would require an engine strip to fix. He say's he'll try and patch it up with some sealant under the bike instead. The bike is also being serviced and MOT'd. Should know by tomorrow morning.

first thing I did when I got my bike was put the pegs back on after the prevous owner had installed boards. Simplest change so far. What on earth is your dealer going on about? No need to remove anything else as there is nothing else in the way. Pics might clarigy things?

What's the tank capacity on the 125? Half a tank for 35 miles sounds like a lot for a 125.

The only way to know for sure if you've done it right is to have the bike Dyno'd. Cost me about 45 quid.

Thanks for the responses guys. I meant I checked the drain plug and there was no oilyness on or around it, the oilyness is a bit further back on the underside of the bike, bottom of the sump I think. Plus I remember there was some minor oily spattering on the side of the engine, (the front of the bottom chromy bit where the shaft comes out of). I wiped it off and did a bit of riding last week, but haven't checked to see if it's still clean. If I get a chance I'll check again sometime later in the week as she's sitting round the back of the block of flats where I live under her covers until this cold spell blows over.

Noticed this a couple of weeks ago, a small spot of oil under the bike where it's parked. Recently had the oil changed so I wondered if the drain plug had not been screwed back on properly, but having checked I don't think that's the case. The sump under the bike is a bit oily to the touch so I'm thinking some seal / gasket? The bike is due its MOT this month so it's going for a service anyway, but oil leaks ring alarm bells. It's service history shows it's had the sump seal changed once a year from 2005 to 2008. Time for another one I guess?

Yep, can't complain, the guys are great. Got a speedo cable and a couple of mirrors from them, delivery to my place of work, very fast! The next thing I'll be getting from them are some replacement allen bolts for my rear header exhaust, as the original ones are quite a bit rusty. Just got to figure out the size...

Looking good man! Though I would suggest you put the front fender back on. You don't live in Baja California where it rains 3 times a year do ya? No, you live in sodding (literally) Yeovil!

Nooooo, way too cold for riding to be a) anything other than an ordeal or safe (ice patches on the road, or cold numbing the brain). Nope, it's the cage for me for the next few days!

Lookin' real good Keith! Can't wait to see her complete!

Wind blew the bike cover right off my bike... that, or some bastard thought they'd have a look to see if there was anything worth nicking...

Hey Noise, check out this thread I started: Very happy with the new oil! Mike

Aye, but the draggie has better handling than anyhting else in its class. I find my custom is fairly planted on the road most of the time, but yes, roundabouts cannot be taken at silly speeds with yer knee down!

Gorgeous! What year is she?

Yes, a garage, wish I had one of those as well!