The Bikeshite Thread

[Dave_Q]

Post went missing so...take two.

I stand corrected! But as other now missing posts had reminded me, the damn thing started out life with approx 7hp, and a few of them had departed, so yes, there probably are more powerful fifties!

But, right foot gear change for hilarity. Like when yours truly was belting along* behind Texas Home care and a car came the wrong way round the one way system...

 

An acquaintance on Facebook (Scotland's biggest Guzzi nerd) posted a video of a Benelli Sei 900 racer being awoken from its slumber. What a noise...!

The Kwak Z13 I reckoned had the best engine noise of the transverse sixes. Sounded like a Jag to me.

 

Maybe not entirely shitey (it was newish), but I hadn't seen a Honda monkey bike in the wild for a while, so I was tickled to come across this today. MSX 125 I think it is?

 

MSX125 aka Honda Grom. 

 

Our Ultrawomble had one for a bit, some lads at work have them, I had a quick blezz once, they're GR12.

[strangeangel]

Is the gaffa tape an OE feature?

 

 

The old boy I bought it from rode around London for 10 years with the front stoved in like that, until his tester retired and the new bloke told him to 'do something about the front bodywork'. The gaffa tape and builder's mesh were his interpretation of that instruction

 

I paid £35 for it, and dragged it home from Fulham in my old C15. It was a long old day and I was knackered; it was freezing, and the ground was covered in snow. It wouldn't come out of the van, so I'm ashamed to say I ratchet strapped it to the gatepost of djimbob's lock up and drove the van forwards. The Helix fell out, breaking its one remaining intact indicator.

 

I dragged it upright, and stuck a fresh battery on it, whereupon this complete wreck started up and ran like a Swiss watch. I'd only bought it for spares, but at that point I knew I was going to have to fix it. How could you scrap something that had so steadfastly refused to die?

[strangeangel]

Is that carb actually jetted correctly for your application in the first place - Jets are simple to make compared to casting up a carb body correctly, in a emergency you can redo them with solder and a correctly sized drill rolled between your fingers

 

It's supposed to be an exact copy of the carb fitted to the CN250; the Chinese even built their own (God-forsaken) version of the Helix. None of the few sold here survive AFAIK.

 

I was just guessing as to which bit of a carb is the most important - it's probably all crap!

[CreepingJesus]

MSX125 aka Honda Grom.

 

Our Ultrawomble had one for a bit, some lads at work have them, I had a quick blezz once, they're GR12.

Just seen that (belatedly googled it). Seems like an indecently cheap way to buy a new bike, but the first road test I found, put it against the Suzuki VanVan 200, which I definitely wouldn't say no to either.

[UltraWomble]

MSX125 aka Honda Grom. 

 

Our Ultrawomble had one for a bit, some lads at work have them, I had a quick blezz once, they're GR12.

I'd still have it now if it wasnt for two things - slow ( topped out at 58) and a c*nt / thief magnet - couldnt leave it anywhere without some chav having a go at trying to pinch it.

Rather put me off riding it. Which defeated the point of owning it

Now Im the proud* owner of a CG125 for commuting duties ( still slow, but not as much of a thief magnet).

[Aston Martin]

I'd love an MSX... And a bike licence.

[John F]

strangeangel, on 11 May 2017 - 10:43 PM, said:

This is what the black one looked like when I bought it in 2009:

 

 

Why is it wearing a niqab? lol

[Guest Hooli]

Why is it wearing a niqab? lol

 

Girl's clothes for a girl's bike

[strangeangel]

It's amazing what you can do when you haven't got a sofa taking up your garage... motive power has been achieved with the Mobylette, simply by shoving a litre of fuel in it!

 

Some of it got burned, but some leaked out. The fuel lines are TINY, and had no clips, and all my stuff was too big. A couple of vac hose clips were robbed from a dead Helix carb which was lying on the bench:

 

 

I had a quick run round, everything seems OK apart from the brakes not really working. And there's no evidence of any lights or horn. But then these spare* wires will probably hold the key to that:

 

 

I'm sure there's a wiring diagram in one of those manuals...

 

[Dave_Q]

Great news on the mobylette.

 

In vaguely related news, does anyone out there in the northish of the country with a shite motorbike, scooter or moped fancy a (slow) run out to the seaside sometime in the summer?

[John F]

Great news on the mobylette.

 

In vaguely related news, does anyone out there in the northish of the country with a shite motorbike, scooter or moped fancy a (slow) run out to the seaside sometime in the summer?

 

Yep possibly, in a month or two. Depends how slow though, I wouldn't want to go below 40-ish.

[strangeangel]

In vaguely related news, does anyone out there in the northish of the country with a shite motorbike, scooter or moped fancy a (slow) run out to the seaside sometime in the summer?

 

Excellent idea, always up for anything like this!

[bub2006]

Gives me a kick up arse to build a skelly I guess

[UltraWomble]

Anybody fancy that Aprilia Pegaso?

Bike roulette strikes again....

[hairnet]

no.

[groovylee]

Anybody fancy that Aprilia Pegaso?

Bike roulette strikes again....

 

Id love that pegaso, but my impending eurojolly, and the purchase of the ZX6R means no more funds

 

EDIT - just realised you bought it UW!  top bombing sir

 

Lee

[Eddie Honda]

[hairnet]

Did this

[Guest Hooli]

Pretty numbers on my 14 when I got home yesterday

 

[LostnotFound]

I'd love an MSX... And a bike licence.

 

No need for a licence sir, just £100 quid and an afternoon wobbling around cones for a CBT.

 

They appear massively popular in the states, loads get customised in various degrees of wtf. Yanks seem to love them as a small second bike given they don't have as many 125s knocking around due to not having our learner laws.

 

 

 

 

 

 

In general bike news, I'm just awaiting a call back to confirm an 'assessment' next week at the local training place to see how many days they think they need to get me a full licence. My only regret was saying, I'll do it on my bike, given it isn't currently running I think I might need to call them ask if I can hire one of theirs for the hour of wobbling around.

[CreepingJesus]

They appear massively popular in the states, loads get customised in various degrees of wtf.

I remember that magazine Grey Bike having a massive article on Z100 customisation in Japan. The original Monkey could be made into just about anything: Brit café racer clone through to a Fonda special, complete with stars'n'stripes peanut tank. Performance parts too, including tiny superchargers and nitrous kits. People spent silly money on them, but it was still cheaper than importing anything from Europe or America.

That magazine also had me counting the pennies for the reissued 1100 Katana and the Gilera Saturnos too!

[strangeangel]

Well, that Chinese carb has turned out to be utterly bargainous... not only is the black bike back in business, but I've got another of the occupants of the plastic box known as Helix Carburettor Hell working again by replacing the badly worn and sticking vacuum piston with the one from this. RESULT.

[strangeangel]

I've found a load of old photos on an SD card I thought I'd lost!

 

 

[twosmoke300]

Might have bought a 1981 super wet dream today !

[jonathan_dyane]

400? Nice work if so!

[strangeangel]

Another of my former rides...

 

 

[strangeangel]

And another...

 

[strangeangel]

Voskhod 175 collection mission:

 

[strangeangel]

You can get a Helix in a C15... just.

 

[twosmoke300]

400? Nice work if so!

250 superslug im afraid but super original