pilninggas

If you could strip the dials down and get the clear plastic bezels out, you could go to a sign maker and see if they will laser-cut new ones out of clear acrylic? For rejuvinating the black binnacles, you could try to wet and dry the scratches out and then repaint (using plastic primer/acid etch primer to start). Some car interior renovation materials might be useful - has halfords got anything? I occasionally read the classic car magazines and there are often good advice and also suppliers for specialist stuff for these kind of jobs - do you know anyone who might have some you can borrow? good luck

not surprising really, as the old saying goes 'there are only two things certain in life death and taxes...'

this should settle it! "As a result, from the 1st of September 2008, those buying their vehicle tax online, by phone or by post will be able to legally continue to drive their vehicles for up to 5 days while they wait for their new tax disc to arrive. This will only apply where the new tax disc has been applied for before the current one expires and motorists should continue to display the expired disc on their vehicle, until the new one arrives." http://www.dvla.gov.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/280808_09.aspx http://www.avonandsomerset.police.uk/information/InfoCentre/ItemDetails.aspx?sid=936#4 ...oops these links have gone dead, i'lll see if i can find newer ones! this is it: http://www.dft.gov.uk/dvla/pressoffice/pressreleases/archive2008/280808_09.aspx

this really gets my goat!!! twice in the last year i have bought new bikes (im not rich, the 1st one got written off by a car driver), and in both cases when i have gone to the dealer to pick the machine up there has been no tax. In each case i have allowed 14 days from putting the deposit down until collection and have sent insurance documents in within 3 days of placing the deposit. In both cases the dealers made fairly lame excuses, but left me riding a bike home without a disc and without being 100% sure it was road legal. The pain is that you can't really enjoy the bike if the legality of it is unclear and parking on the highway is iffy. i'd love to know why dealers are so slack about this? both bikes were on 0% finance, i just wonder if it is so the spend out less until the finance company pays them the balance? the cost of the tax is always small compared to the deposit. either way the feedback the manufacturer gets is sh*t and so it could affect the dealers bonus etc.

thanks guys - i forgot it was my birthday until a colleague brought a cake in to work!

Ttask i am passionate about my nation as are many others, i just worry many in England are not, as its been made un-pc and children are educated to be British. In terms of smaller parties, i voted English Democrat in the last election (EU nonsense), and i think they got 800,000 votes in England and Wales (yes, some people in the marches and Monmouth consider themselves English, due to the history). With the whole Cornwall thing, i think they would love to have devolved power, but as a Cornish Royal Marine once said to me (as a passionate Cornishman) was that they would struggle to stay solvent even if they aligned themselves with the celtic countries. However national identity must be respected so they would have to be given a decide their own destiny. Labour still want to divide England up into devolve assemblies (their way of cutting the head off of the indepedence movement); John Prescott is a tosser! What gives me hope is that many Celts show empathy towards the English on this. I'm glad that whatever bad blood existed in the past is still not used as weapon against the English (when i go to Germany i don't keep reminding the Germans about the 2 World Wars).

It truly is a sad state of affairs; being English is abhorrent to the liberal-left pc brigade and as a result it has been crushed by mentality of being 'British'. I am English first, that is my nationality and my identity. I am British second, Great Britain is the name of the Island i was born on (much like some unionists, call themselves Irish, as Ireland is the name of the Island they were born in). The English have been let down by various governments - Labour don't want to be perceived as Anglo-centric and so try to make the English British, whilst trying to brown-nose the Celtic nations. The Conservatives full name is Conservative and Unionist Party and they try not over emphasise England as they don't want to sour already-weak grass roots support in the other nations of the UK. The truth is that most people in England are not really bothered, if asked in the street are you English? they would say yes; equally they would respond the same if asked if they are British. Maybe the apathy is a sign that most English do not have a chip-on-their-shoulder about nationality. It probably is because there is no mandate in England to reinforce nationality, unlike the other constituents of G.B. I can only see it getting worse; none of the people who can effect a change (organise the UK as a federation of states) will do so. It would mean many politicians being 'made redundant', and lets face it turkeys don't vote for Christmas. Imagine a Westminster that served England, a Holyrood that served Scotland, A welsh assembly that served Wales and NI assembly in Stormont directing policy in 'Ulster'. Equality taxes raised could be spent in the territory where they are generating preventing patently racist nonsense like the Barnett Formula; something i personally find very offensive. I really hope that at some point the UK will become a Federation or will devolve into individual states and England can begin to find it's own direction; no longer will we be accused of running Scotland remotely (to be fair Scotland is over-represented in Westminster) and real identity will be affirmed to all. Damn haven't type this much into a post in yonks!!!

lol

Having been a taxi driver (proper hackney), the last thing you want is anything that can be pulled around your neck.

Shocking Foamy; a car and worst still its a Suzuki!!!!!!!!! remove this filth from the interweb at once!!!!!!!!!

hi malthus even for greater london, at your age it seems high. when you get qoutes, bear in mind many insurance companies will not class it as an import if it has imported from within the EU or if it is to UK spec - you need to check this out. Good qoutes can be got from bikeinsurer.co.uk or google rampdale and phone them. Did you buy from an official yamaha dealer? if yes are you sure it isn't 'redirected stock' - ie yamaha europe didnt reallocate it to yamaha uk and that is all that the 'import' aspect means? hope this is of use. ps there is a yzf-r125 specific forum in cyberland somewhere.

this is the perfect blue peter pop performance, enjoy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kD02PU28NNw

george white tend to hold quite a bit of stock, however i have bought a new bike from there in the recent past and their customer service sucks. keep calling them.

nothing about a sproket here: http://www.vosa.gov.uk/vosa/apps/recalls/searches/search.asp however it might only be a yam recall. i'd phone a yamaha uk and enquire.

http://uk.video.yahoo.com/watch/6338139/16440695

u have pm

mine does this, it seems like road-noise from the tyre conducting up the front end, i just put it down to a trait of the bike, it isnt obtrusive.

i'm sure i could charm her with my west country charm!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ruddy hell, who would have thought it

the reply above this one threw me for a second, as i am also a merv!

barker google rachel grant

Rosbifs by the french. Limeys by the americans

well im picking up an xj6 on saturday, so im hoping its gonna be good. Gotta say its light and looks well made (well done yam). I think efi on modern bikes is the way to go(4 worn out carbs can be a total bind).yes i know it aint gonna be as quick as my old EXUP, but i think thats got to be good for my license and petrol expenditure. Best bit £4200 new - hell a GS500e was almost that in the mid nineties.

This is the banana boat song, the famous version is by harry belafonte. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jpg-KIKD5gU