The Bikeshite Thread

1,039 · June 27

1 hour ago, hairnet said:

mt07 tracer etc

do they have stick coils or are they separate

Looking on fowlers parts website yes.

11,399 · June 27

40 minutes ago, Bmwdumptruck said:

Looking on fowlers parts website yes.

They are good bikes. Popular ones to go missing too sadly.

21,110 · June 28

Ooh

Oh.

4,040 · June 29

After an on/off relationships with 50cc scooters since 1988, I have finally took the plunge into 'proper' motorbike ownership.

Got a new KTM Duke 125, tail-tidy and quickshifter options.

Yeah, I know it isn't fast but it's perfect for me for a couple of years to get used to a geared bike and see if I want to go ahead and take my A test and get something bigger.

Duke is good fun, albeit with a soft 6500 rpm limiter for 600 miles. I have been using it around the tiny lanes near where I live and even at 45 tops, it is a laugh. You could rarely go much faster anyhow on these roads.

Anyway, feel free to ridicule me 👍

2,310 · June 29

1 hour ago, face said:

After an on/off relationships with 50cc scooters since 1988, I have finally took the plunge into 'proper' motorbike ownership.

Got a new KTM Duke 125, tail-tidy and quickshifter options.

Yeah, I know it isn't fast but it's perfect for me for a couple of years to get used to a geared bike and see if I want to go ahead and take my A test and get something bigger.

Duke is good fun, albeit with a soft 6500 rpm limiter for 600 miles. I have been using it around the tiny lanes near where I live and even at 45 tops, it is a laugh. You could rarely go much faster anyhow on these roads.

Anyway, feel free to ridicule me 👍

No reason for ridicule. Enjoy yourself.

1,958 · June 30

Been having a low rpm fuelling issue with the bike stumbling and making low speed riding unpleasant. I’ve swapped back to the original can and it’s made a massive difference, obviously doesn’t look or sound quite as good but it’s nicer to ride. There’s still a hunting idle when hot, but it’s not as bad as before. I’ll strip and service the carbs over winter I reckon

139,248 · June 30

On 29/06/2026 at 13:10, brandersnatch said:

No reason for ridicule. Enjoy yourself.

Totally agree, it's also the perfect example of not having to have a fast bike to have fun. That Duke is a fantastic looking machine, too.

June 30

On 29/06/2026 at 12:02, face said:

Yeah, I know it isn't fast but it's perfect for me for a couple of years to get used to a geared bike

Anyway, feel free to ridicule me 👍

Once you get the hang of it, you might not last two years on the 125

Any ridicule would only stem from that person's own inadequacies, two wheels is two wheels and there's plenty of people who ride a 125 all year round who I would consider to be more hardcore bikers than me, who tries to only ride in fair weather.

Enjoy it mate, there's nothing else quite like riding a motorbike.

8,928 · June 30

Echo the sentiments above, when I was learning 125’s pah etc, getting older you remember the levels of fun per cc as a very much flat line after a certain point.

I personally would really like one. Good for you.

4,989 · June 30

As all have said before me, no ridicule required or needed. Any new person on two wheels is a damn good thing. Blimey if anyone deserves ridicule it’s me, maxi scooter AND a BMW for goodness sake I must be a glutton for punishment. ‘Scooters aren’t real bikes’ and ‘BMW owners are snobs, ignoring everyone else’ 🤷‍♂️🤷‍♂️🤷‍♂️🤣🤣🤣🤣

1,893 · June 30

3 hours ago, Liggle said:

Been having a low rpm fuelling issue with the bike stumbling and making low speed riding unpleasant. I’ve swapped back to the original can and it’s made a massive difference, obviously doesn’t look or sound quite as good but it’s nicer to ride. There’s still a hunting idle when hot, but it’s not as bad as before. I’ll strip and service the carbs over winter I reckon

Unlike injection that can self-adjust, even changing something like the exhaust can may require a small re-jet on a carb. Sounds like it may be running a little lean, but as you say, a strip and service and check of the float levels will probably sort the majority of it.

1,958 · June 30

30 minutes ago, robt100 said:

Unlike injection that can self-adjust, even changing something like the exhaust can may require a small re-jet on a carb. Sounds like it may be running a little lean, but as you say, a strip and service and check of the float levels will probably sort the majority of it.

I’m hoping so, carbs are unfamiliar territory for me other than the tiny C50 carb!

6,123 · June 30

1 minute ago, Liggle said:

I’m hoping so, carbs are unfamiliar territory for me other than the tiny C50 carb!

I’d suggest balancing the carbs as well. If you can get hold of a set of vacuum gauges (or know a tame bike mechanic)

VFR’s are horrid at low rpm when out of balance (ex owner of 2 different RC36/2)

1,958 · June 30

33 minutes ago, Stinkwheel said:

I’d suggest balancing the carbs as well. If you can get hold of a set of vacuum gauges (or know a tame bike mechanic)

VFR’s are horrid at low rpm when out of balance (ex owner of 2 different RC36/2)

This is not happy below 3k rpm once warm and idle is fluctuating between 1.4k and 1.7k rpm

Is perfectly happy in the rest of the rev range and pulls strongly to the red line

1,893 · June 30

If you havent got the kit, a very basic 'thereabouts' way of doing it is balancing the carbs off the bike. Have a couple of known diameter objects (two 5 mm drill bits are usually good.). Open up the throttle, gently slide one drill bit into the 'main' carb that the others adjust from, and gently release the throttle until the butterfly clamps the bit in place. Then use the other bit as a bit of a feeler gauge, try and place it into the other carb butterflys, should be either a snug fit, or stop but not have any discernable overlap with the butterfly. Adjust each carb till they are all at the 5mm gap. Should give a rough balance to the carbs. A bit like tuning a guitar by ear, it can be in tune but maybe not in key.

1,893 · June 30

1 minute ago, Liggle said:

This is not happy below 3k rpm once warm and idle is fluctuating between 1.4k and 1.7k rpm

Is perfectly happy in the rest of the rev range and pulls strongly to the red line

Sounds lean and a bit gummed up to me. MrsRobt100's ZX6r was similar, carbs were gummed up and it wouldn't rev at all, just stall/splutter. New jets sorted most of that, but was still a bit lumpy, did the bench balancing I just posted above, along with checking float heights (which were way out!) and its 99% there, maybe a slight bit lean still, but we are talking 1%

6,123 · June 30

25 minutes ago, Liggle said:

This is not happy below 3k rpm once warm and idle is fluctuating between 1.4k and 1.7k rpm

Is perfectly happy in the rest of the rev range and pulls strongly to the red line

That sounds like a combination of dirty possibly leaky and out of balance carbs, it’s always the low speed running and initial pick up that’s suffers when they are out of balance

1,958 · June 30

2 hours ago, Stinkwheel said:

That sounds like a combination of dirty possibly leaky and out of balance carbs, it’s always the low speed running and initial pick up that’s suffers when they are out of balance

Good to know, thanks

19,042 · June 30

On 23/06/2026 at 21:44, Bmwdumptruck said:

1100s didn’t have the servo, they came in later on the 1150 upgrades. The early abs is usually pretty reliable.

My R1100S had the stupid brakes..

21,110 · July 1

oof

was looking at a forza 750 that colour

till i saw how heavy

also wanted a 1150s but clip ons

4,040 · July 1

17 hours ago, Iamgroot said:

Once you get the hang of it, you might not last two years on the 125

Any ridicule would only stem from that person's own inadequacies, two wheels is two wheels and there's plenty of people who ride a 125 all year round who I would consider to be more hardcore bikers than me, who tries to only ride in fair weather.

Enjoy it mate, there's nothing else quite like riding a motorbike.

Plan is to take stock next summer, if all is well and finance allows then I will take my A license. If I pass, then potentially upgrade.

If not, then perhaps the year after.

July 1

When it comes to it, if you decide to do it, you can get insurance that will cover you while under instruction on a bigger bike, so you can do your tests on your own/a borrowed bike if the right capacity, you just can't ride it to or from the test (unless you pass your mod 2)

This makes it a lot cheaper if you don't feel you need any professional instruction to pass them, mod 1 you can watch online and mod 2 is more or less an observed ride.

If you decide not to do it for whatever reason, so what, keep doing you.

1,039 · July 1

On 30/06/2026 at 23:37, Barry Cade said:

My R1100S had the stupid brakes..

Yes they did but we were talking about an 1100 RT, for some reason they never developed the S into 1150cc so in about 02 it got the servo along with all the 1150’s at that time.
The guy I bought my first Blackbird off had bought a servo’d S and within weeks had two major brake failures which seriously messed him up to the point he returned it, rejected it and got his lawyers to persue a full refund. Never heard the end result though.

1,958 · July 2

On 01/07/2026 at 09:20, face said:

Plan is to take stock next summer, if all is well and finance allows then I will take my A license. If I pass, then potentially upgrade.

If not, then perhaps the year after.

I did two CBT's and theory tests (in 2022 and 2026) before going for the full A license, it was expensive but worth it. And the training was genuinely good fun. I did CBT, Theory, CBT+, Mod 1 and Mod 2 in the space of 8 weeks

All I'd say is commit and go for it, 125's are great for experience and I've still got my old 50cc for bumbling about on but a proper big bike is another kettle of fish in a good way

4,989 · Friday at 11:08

This arrived this morning! My first BMW after wanting one, or at least try one, for a very long time.
First impressions? Without stating the obvious it’s totally different to any other bike I have ridden, the front end will take a bit of getting used to. Thanks to @garycox for a smooth transition. Really looking forward to riding this and ticking off a couple more bucket list trips before I emigrate.

6,123 · Friday at 11:18

8 minutes ago, andyberg said:

This arrived this morning! My first BMW after wanting one, or at least try one, for a very long time.
First impressions? Without stating the obvious it’s totally different to any other bike I have ridden, the front end will take a bit of getting used to. Thanks to @garycox for a smooth transition. Really looking forward to riding this and ticking off a couple more bucket list trips before I emigrate.

Used to ride these 1100's and the slightly later 1150's when they were new. Seriously underrated machines. If you want to 'scratch' as they used to say, on these they will easily keep up with much more sporting bikes of the time. Although the front and rear suspension is different to most other things, they are very capable. Enjoy.

139,248 · Friday at 14:25

3 hours ago, andyberg said:

This arrived this morning! My first BMW after wanting one, or at least try one, for a very long time.
First impressions? Without stating the obvious it’s totally different to any other bike I have ridden, the front end will take a bit of getting used to. Thanks to @garycox for a smooth transition. Really looking forward to riding this and ticking off a couple more bucket list trips before I emigrate.

That looks like the sort of bike you could ride through Europe non-stop and it'd feel like you'd just been to the shops and back.

4,989 · Friday at 14:33

5 minutes ago, Cavcraft said:

That looks like the sort of bike you could ride through Europe non-stop and it'd feel like you'd just been to the shops and back.

The plan (hope) is to do Normandy and a trip from Santander through a bit of Spain. Things I have wanted to do for maybe 30 years, life got in the way.
Just rode around today, nowhere special and I did 50 miles without even thinking.

19,042 · Friday at 16:51

2 hours ago, Cavcraft said:

That looks like the sort of bike you could ride through Europe non-stop and it'd feel like you'd just been to the shops and back.

My daily best was 1038 miles on an R1100RS. Had a kip and did it all again, for 2 weeks. Brilliant machines.

21,110 · Saturday at 17:57

for all you off road gods @twosmoke300 @Fat_Pirate @willswitchengage @Rustybullethole

21 inch wheel

took a bike for a test ride today and in a straight line fine

soon as tipped it in (3 degrees) it felt like the front was falling off

90 section tyre - my enfield is 120 - would that be why? surely not

are they all like that or should i try another from somewhere else?

bike is a demo - im upset cos my local place isnt open sunday - if id known this was gonna happen i wouldnt have come here on the way home this morning

very confused and upset (crush a grape - no i want to involve bridge or razor blades )

fuckit - please save me from myself

fannnnks maaaan

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