I was watching him do John O Groats to Landsend on a Norton Commando. I have to say Scotland looked lovely. But he didnt mention the Midges.
That was Henry Cole on the Norton I think. Watched that some time ago and really enjoyed it. Just cleaned the Thruxton properly after the NEC trip as whilst it was windy today it is still very mild. I gave it a brush over with soapy water, rinsed off with a watering can, quick leather to dry and then spent a while with an ACF50 soaked microfibre cloth going over all the frame, etc. Autoglym quick detailer on the paint and she's back to standard. I do like the naked bike style as it's so easy to get into all the corners. Just need to clean my riding gear now! Have just bought a Loobman chain oiler but not sure if I'm going to fit it as it took 5 minutes to lube the chain after cleaning. Useful on a longer trip in the rain though as it replaces washed out lube whilst on the go. Just not sure about all the tubing and cable ties at the moment so jury's still out.
Had an MZ250 and you're right the enclosed chain was brilliant. Did loads of miles on the bike and just kept pulling the gaiter back occasionally and adding a squeeze of oil. Good toolkit behind a panel in the seat, including a pump! And a measuring cup for 2 stroke oil built into the ally filler cap. I think the mudguards kept all the road muck off you as well! Bought it for £450 brand new!
I had a Bonnie, my mate a cb500, another a yammie rd400 and we all used to use the yam guy's MZ TS250 ( think it was) if we wanted to get bits for our own bikes when they were off the road. They were kinda basic but bloody good and his was very reliable to boot. I always thought the chain enclosure was a brilliant idea, so simple yet so effective,just amazed others din not copy.
I used to commute from the NEC (I used to work for a site based exhibition company) at weekends back to my parents home in Nottinghamshire and had a set of throw over panniers across the seat. On the way up they were full of all my my weeks laundry and on the way back they held clean washing and ironing, packets of bacon and a box of eggs to last me the following week - thanks mum! I wore an old leather jacket with an open faced lid and a pair of ex army boots and had to be back at the NEC for 8.00am so left at 6.00am rain or shine. When it was cold I'd wear a pair of pyjamas underneath my clothes with a set of waterproofs on top. About halfway down I'd stop to run up and down in a lay by to get warm and bring some feeling back to my hands. Once I got to work it took about an hour to get up to temperature and about 10 minutes to scrub my face clean and lose the panda eyes from my goggles! Happy days!
My mate had a C50 with an enclosed chain,had for about 18 months.I don't think he ever touched the chain.
I think we're likely to see more and more of these techno helmets, especially as the production of them increases. I would expect to see a complete screen/visor soon and one of the many advantages would be variable tinting of the visor.
