The Bikeshite Thread

[hairnet]

https://www.bike-parts-royalenfield.com/royalenfield-motorcycle/assignment_spare_parts/RAH00704_K

[twosmoke300]

Another enduro race in the bag ! No pics sadly .

Up near Oxford . The Chairman’s Chase it was called . 3 hour hare n hounds . I rode brilliantly ( for me ) . One quick pit stop and managed to stay consistent for the whole 3 hours . Last lap was my fastest too I think .

Bumpy old track in places and some huge jumps ( I don’t jump ) as it uses some of Ashdown mx track . But also miles of twisty forest single track . Fucking loved it and the Honda was in its element again . Don’t even feel too ruined today . 

[hairnet]

Sadly its not @Six-cylinders scooter

Glad i didnt tho ( distance)

[Cavcraft]

21 hours ago, hairnet said:

Dri

Bble

That'd be too much power for you 😝

[Rustybullethole]

7 hours ago, twosmoke300 said:

Another enduro race in the bag ! No pics sadly .

Up near Oxford . The Chairman’s Chase it was called . 3 hour hare n hounds . I rode brilliantly ( for me ) . One quick pit stop and managed to stay consistent for the whole 3 hours . Last lap was my fastest too I think .

Bumpy old track in places and some huge jumps ( I don’t jump ) as it uses some of Ashdown mx track . But also miles of twisty forest single track . Fucking loved it and the Honda was in its element again . Don’t even feel too ruined today . 

Great event that. Did it take in the hills? They're the best bit of that mx track though like you say there's some great stuff around there. 

 

Edited March 23 by Rustybullethole
Found the pic a mate sent me.

[Rustybullethole]

Nice bit of Kent lanes today. Four of us at the start then another mate joined us on his enduro bike a bit further in. Thats was the point it got a bit silly when we made the fatal error of following him. More than once. 

Great days riding and nice mix of bikes.

Edit; Fork seals held out, may be a puddle in the morning we shall see. 

Done a fucking wheelie today. Off a bump though proper front up in the air jobbie. My Honda Melody 50 is easier to wheelie than the Himi. 

Mate Dan's 690 weighs about 30kg less as has 50 bhp more.

690 probably the best bike for the job though all had fun from Honda Dax 125 to 1000cc Africa twin.

Oh and my exhaust fell off. Lots. 

Edited March 23 by Rustybullethole

[twosmoke300]

1 hour ago, Rustybullethole said:

Great event that. Did it take in the hills? They're the best bit of that mx track though like you say there's some great stuff around there. 

 

Yeh we did the hills in your pic . Not done any mx stuff like that before tbh and the G out in the bottom took me by surprise 😂

[Rustybullethole]

13 minutes ago, twosmoke300 said:

Yeh we did the hills in your pic . Not done any mx stuff like that before tbh and the G out in the bottom took me by surprise 😂

Its great hey. The valley of the last hill used to be even more violent. Like spine crushingly so. Can also remember pelting down there one winters day and it being full of water. Fully committed by the time i saw it, far too late to avoid an ice bath.

[martc]

Any idea what this Honda is? The frame, suspension, wheels, mudguards and air filter look like a PC50, but it clearly isn't one. We're in France, mid 1970's.

[hairnet]

its a ps50 sports (chortle) moped

[mat_the_cat]

For the first time in 10 years I have a bike again! I'd been tentatively on the look out for the last year or so, but funds were usually the problem. For the first time in my entire life I've been able to put a bit aside each month, so when @Stinkwheel mentioned he had a late VFR750 for sale I was fairly interested!

It was exactly as described, and if anything he'd downplayed the condition, so the whole process was as buying a vehicle should be. I was thinking of riding it the 90 minute journey home again, but common sense and a leaking front tyre meant I picked it up in the iLoad last Saturday.

Despite not desperately needing to fix anything, the first thing I did on getting it back was to take it apart 😂 The side stand switch I already knew had failed, so swapped that out. But there was a bit of weirdness with the neutral light too, and whenever the clutch was pulled in, the light would come on even when in gear! This turned out to be the diode pack, but at nearly £50 I made my own.

There was also the regulator/rectifier I wanted to change for a MOSFET version, for greater reliability. The existing thyristor type runs fairly hot and is apparently a bit of a weak point, so had already been changed.

The MOSFET version was a touch bigger, so a tiny big of metalwork was needed before I could fit it and crimp on the new waterproof connectors.

My OCD wouldn't allow my to leave the fusebox alone either 😂 Looks like over the years various different replacements had been fitted, so I wanted to sort that out.

Some of them showed a bit of oxidisation too, so probably worthwhile doing.

Ah, that's better!

Last little job was to do what I always do with a new arrival on the fleet, and that is to inject it full of wax!

Only the seat support is steel, so a quick job to protect that from moisture. Next is fitting a USB charger, an LED voltage indicator, and the leak from the front tyre (which again I was made aware of).

[Rustybullethole]

Cross town traffic played with, time for a shit breakfast. 

[Stinkwheel]

10 hours ago, mat_the_cat said:

For the first time in 10 years I have a bike again! I'd been tentatively on the look out for the last year or so, but funds were usually the problem. For the first time in my entire life I've been able to put a bit aside each month, so when @Stinkwheel mentioned he had a late VFR750 for sale I was fairly interested!

It was exactly as described, and if anything he'd downplayed the condition, so the whole process was as buying a vehicle should be. I was thinking of riding it the 90 minute journey home again, but common sense and a leaking front tyre meant I picked it up in the iLoad last Saturday.

Despite not desperately needing to fix anything, the first thing I did on getting it back was to take it apart 😂 The side stand switch I already knew had failed, so swapped that out. But there was a bit of weirdness with the neutral light too, and whenever the clutch was pulled in, the light would come on even when in gear! This turned out to be the diode pack, but at nearly £50 I made my own.

There was also the regulator/rectifier I wanted to change for a MOSFET version, for greater reliability. The existing thyristor type runs fairly hot and is apparently a bit of a weak point, so had already been changed.

The MOSFET version was a touch bigger, so a tiny big of metalwork was needed before I could fit it and crimp on the new waterproof connectors.

My OCD wouldn't allow my to leave the fusebox alone either 😂 Looks like over the years various different replacements had been fitted, so I wanted to sort that out.

Some of them showed a bit of oxidisation too, so probably worthwhile doing.

Ah, that's better!

Last little job was to do what I always do with a new arrival on the fleet, and that is to inject it full of wax!

Only the seat support is steel, so a quick job to protect that from moisture. Next is fitting a USB charger, an LED voltage indicator, and the leak from the front tyre (which again I was made aware of).

Glad things are progressing with the VFR. Always good to see you, usually at Citroen related things though, so talking bikes was a nice change

I'd never even opened the fuse box, amazing collection of seemingly random fuses you had there 😂

And to echo your sentiment about buyers/sellers, was really good to sell a bike to someone who for once, I absolutely know isnt an idiot who will ruin it in 5 minutes. In fact exactly the opposite, it now has a chance of being properly looked after 👍

(as opposed to me just bypassing the stand switch when it failed kind of thing)

 

[Rustybullethole]

Arrived at my second home and tucked into breakfast number two. 

[Rustybullethole]

 

[Rustybullethole]

[Cavcraft]

Hey, @hairnet serious question: Was that you on the A55 this afternoon, heading east, probably around mid-day ish? Saw someone on a small/medium sized Honda that looked suspiciously.like you.

[hairnet]

nein

[mat_the_cat]

On 25/03/2025 at 08:22, Stinkwheel said:

it now has a chance of being properly looked after👍

 

You say that, but I confess we almost dropped it getting it out of the van

I'm enjoying just tinkering with it at leisure before the insurance starts in April, also a chance to 'get to know it' mechanically speaking. It feels like a long time since I've worked on a bike so have to get used to the scale of things!

Couple of minor fairing cracks, which I bonded first with super glue before backfilling with epoxy.

I used a bit of tape on the outside, so once cured it follows the contours reasonably well.

And once touched up, is absolutely fine given it's not going to be a pristine bike which I'd be afraid to use.

I have a bit of OCD regarding mismatched fasteners - I absolutely hate having to change tools to undo what should be identical fixings! A lot of the fairing screws had already been replaced, and more came with the bike so spent a little time continuing this (and a few quid with David Silver spares getting more!)

The standard fasteners I just replaced with stainless ones I already had, at least the low stressed ones.

Electric wise it's had an alarm and heated grips fitted but no longer present, so I've tidied up the loom and protected where needed.

Replaced the fuel filter whilst the panels were off.

Then fitted a waterproof USB port for charging...

...as well as an LED indicator for battery voltage.

(Yes the weather is being typically Welsh!) This is quite a neat thing, as with the engine off it will flash red, orange or green depending on battery voltage - so appearing like an alarm indicator. But when charging it will be a solid red, orange or green depending on alternator output, but changing to a green/red flash if the voltage goes too high.

Last job was to reseal the front rim, so it all looks good for making the most of this weather in the upcoming week

[93fxdl]

Since my daily decided to spit out its injectors, have had to use bike to get to work. 

Last Monday, took the kat to work

By the time i got home, it had decided it only wanted to run on 3 cylinders and i discovered that the headlight is rubbish. 

Now using my Rex to commute would have given the gpz some exercise but one of the plug threads decided to leave the chat, so that needs fixing

Ttfn Glenn 

[Snake Charmer]

On 29/03/2025 at 09:03, Rustybullethole said:

 

Oof! 🤩

[andy18s]

Well,after some shady government dealings over here in BG,it looks like I'll going to end up breaking the xt for parts..

For many years the Kat agency (DVLA) had a system in place where if you weren't using a vehicle for some time,you could put a temporary halt with it's insurance and vignette.Be it for a few months or longer like over winter ect.

Then as long as none of the owners details had changed you could simply restart the insurance,sort the MOT and a week or two later the vehicle would be "legal" to use again.

But it seems like 18/24 months ago the rules got quietly changed so the Kat has the power to fully de-register a vehicle..

So anyone who has been caught out by this has to fully register their vehicles which means a full import inspection,a full years insurance up front,new plates paid for and all the other hidden costs.

So it's going to cost more to get the Tenere legal to sell than any difference in the price to actually sell it for..

Arse,..

[Rustybullethole]

18 hours ago, mat_the_cat said:

You say that, but I confess we almost dropped it getting it out of the van

I'm enjoying just tinkering with it at leisure before the insurance starts in April, also a chance to 'get to know it' mechanically speaking. It feels like a long time since I've worked on a bike so have to get used to the scale of things!

Couple of minor fairing cracks, which I bonded first with super glue before backfilling with epoxy.

I used a bit of tape on the outside, so once cured it follows the contours reasonably well.

And once touched up, is absolutely fine given it's not going to be a pristine bike which I'd be afraid to use.

I have a bit of OCD regarding mismatched fasteners - I absolutely hate having to change tools to undo what should be identical fixings! A lot of the fairing screws had already been replaced, and more came with the bike so spent a little time continuing this (and a few quid with David Silver spares getting more!)

The standard fasteners I just replaced with stainless ones I already had, at least the low stressed ones.

Electric wise it's had an alarm and heated grips fitted but no longer present, so I've tidied up the loom and protected where needed.

Replaced the fuel filter whilst the panels were off.

Then fitted a waterproof USB port for charging...

...as well as an LED indicator for battery voltage.

(Yes the weather is being typically Welsh!) This is quite a neat thing, as with the engine off it will flash red, orange or green depending on battery voltage - so appearing like an alarm indicator. But when charging it will be a solid red, orange or green depending on alternator output, but changing to a green/red flash if the voltage goes too high.

Last job was to reseal the front rim, so it all looks good for making the most of this weather in the upcoming week

Found a good home that bike. If you'd like to borrow any of mine for a bit you're more than welcome. 

Long way back from the south Cotswolds today. Wiggled to Wantage then linked up some cracking green lanes to Streetly.

Mostly dry though found some water and deep mud. Bit further on from the pic below was a proper river crossing. Strange really as its been dry of late and this lane was far less moist when i rode it after wetter weather. 

This one turned into a lovely bit of single track. Then a restricted byway so did it twice. Joy.

Nice day for it. Chatted to a few walkers and a cyclist on the trails. Everyone was in a happy mood. 

Jumped on the M4 just passed Pangbourne to get some miles in. Motorway was busy so lane splitting the teslas and wank panzas was the order of the day then straight through town. Dodging trees, dodging traffic. It's all the good fun. 

[Rustybullethole]

8 hours ago, andy18s said:

Well,after some shady government dealings over here in BG,it looks like I'll going to end up breaking the xt for parts..

For many years the Kat agency (DVLA) had a system in place where if you weren't using a vehicle for some time,you could put a temporary halt with it's insurance and vignette.Be it for a few months or longer like over winter ect.

Then as long as none of the owners details had changed you could simply restart the insurance,sort the MOT and a week or two later the vehicle would be "legal" to use again.

But it seems like 18/24 months ago the rules got quietly changed so the Kat has the power to fully de-register a vehicle..

So anyone who has been caught out by this has to fully register their vehicles which means a full import inspection,a full years insurance up front,new plates paid for and all the other hidden costs.

So it's going to cost more to get the Tenere legal to sell than any difference in the price to actually sell it for..

Arse,..

Shite!

Got a load of pals with various xt's. Whats yours and where are you? 

[MT606]

that background looks familiar.......

loving the caravan shelter.....

[Stinkwheel]

10 hours ago, MT606 said:

that background looks familiar.......

loving the caravan shelter.....

 

It would, I've posted it up enough times (let alone any previous times it may have been seen here and other places for different reasons)

I also marvelled at the caravan shelter, i'm guessing it needs a little help being watertight?

[doug]

Been looking at MZs. Is this guys name real??

[andy18s]

13 hours ago, Rustybullethole said:

Shite!

Got a load of pals with various xt's. Whats yours and where are you? 

It's an 87-88 Xt600 Tenere 1vk, basically a Swiss market 1vj.

Currently sat in a barn in not so sunny Bulgaria..

[mat_the_cat]

15 hours ago, doug said:

Been looking at MZs. Is this guys name real??

My first bike was an MZ ETZ 125 Wilf Green special...so I have fond, and some not so fond memories of it.

Happy days today with my first proper ride in over 10 years  It's so natural to ride, I thought it might be daunting compared to a 50bhp R65 but although it's easy to go quick, it's also easy not to if you know what I mean? Brakes are a lot better than I expected given the reviews; fair enough I don't have a particularly high bar to compare them with but certainly no problems shrugging off speed. Absolutely the only problem was the temperature gauge which didn't seem to budge, although there's always a chance that I've disturbed the wiring for it in my tidying. It certainly seemed to be running at a reasonable temperature anyway, so will do a bit of measuring.

[mat_the_cat]

Just now, mat_the_cat said:

My first bike was an MZ ETZ 125 Wilf Green special...so I have fond, and some not so fond memories of it.

Happy days today with my first proper ride in over 10 years  It's so natural to ride, I thought it might be daunting compared to a 50bhp R65 but although it's easy to go quick, it's also easy not to if you know what I mean? Brakes are a lot better than I expected given the reviews; fair enough I don't have a particularly high bar to compare them with but certainly no problems shrugging off speed. Absolutely the only problem was the temperature gauge which didn't seem to budge, although there's always a chance that I've disturbed the wiring for it in my tidying. It certainly seemed to be running at a reasonable temperature anyway, so will do a bit of measuring.