My mates doing similar at Portimao (spelling) about a weeks time. Theres a big group 20+ going and one of the lads was doing a last minute bit of prep work...... oh dear! CBR1000R
I think I've heard of this happening before on Ohlins forks but these are standard fitment Honda 2005 forks. The two pinch bolts are just that, to pinch the spindle. People get carried away and the casting showed no reason for a previous flaw to cause this.
Ah the joys of wrench spinning. I'll just knock this out, and button it back up in an hour and then relax with a cold beer. 4 hours later you just leave your tools out a go to bed. Gremlin Bell for the tool chest maybe.
Took a rider training course that covers safety and works towards reduced registration costs. Was sooo lucky that the coach/trainer was Paul Pavletich, one of NZ top motorcyclists (current superbike champ in his 60’s) Was a silver level course which I had done before, but learned a lot of practical applications of things I knew but hadn’t tried or been game too. Plus 6 hours of riding on a great day is hard to beat.
The Speed Twin is small enough to go in the back of my Transporter SWB Kombi which as anyone who's had one knows is not as big as most white vans. The rear tailgate opening is the lowest point so I folded my wing mirrors down just in case having done a bit of measuring. First time I used one good ramp for the bike and its pair for me to walk up as I didn't fancy trying to step up. I enlisted my wife to keep an eye on the back wheel alignment and figured that her pushing wasn't going to work. So I had to use the engine and slipping the clutch, holding some revs and using the front brake was a bad idea, but it worked. Next time I had a lad push, much better. Then I saw a youtube ramp wide enough to get both feet down while sitting on the bike. So I picked up a used eBay triple folding ramp that had been used for loading a tuc-tuc! Basically just three ladders joined together with lots of potential for dropping a foot through a gap and breaking legs and bikes. So this is what I did and it worked a treat, well getting the bike out. There was just enough head room to walk it back on the front brake and I had it in gear so I could use the clutch as a hand brake if I stopped. I haven't yet tried loading it in on my own yet, but it should be safer than walking a plank.
Had it valued by We Buy Any Bike..... they're saying £6k.... I'm thinking it has to be worth over £7k it's only 27 months old. Think I'll get an ad up here and try sell it for around 7k (ish)
Yeah, a bad habit of mine harking back to a year spent wandering around the US on a motorcycle (many, many years ago), and any number of trips out there before and since. I have a very good friend who was born and raised in Texas and used to own the Harley dealership in Beaumont, Tx. He used to use a number of 'homegrown' sayings like "If we were there now, we'd be late!" and, in response to being asked 'how are you?' he'd say "I'm just finer than split silk!". The Texan drawl isn't universally liked and can sound rather staged, but it is characterful ... and a LOT easier to understand than colloquial Arkansan! Texas is nice but, depending on your definition of "kick ass" (an Americanism, Duck!), Wyoming has it well beaten.
