Motors Motorcycle Mayhem

Beanz means https://www.bikermart.co.uk/products/INDICATORS?filter=Heinz

 

Oof, they're not cheap... but I probably wouldn't be putting a £30-odd Oxford jobbie on that bike either

 

So, not long back from trying a mates bike, a Triumph Bobber of all things, totally different to anything I've ridden before. Very comfortable, surprisingly agile for a big 1200 as well, front brake was a bit meh but apparently theres upgrade kits about. Have to see, its a big investment.

 

Nice bike the bobber, it needs an angle grinder taking to the rear mudguard, but with the ape bare they look tidy

 

Yeah rear end is horrible, could halve the guard an it would be fine theres kits about for it which solve it while keeping the rear spray off you. Bare looks great just Mr Plod would't be so keen on the fully exposed rear wheel.

Position is very relaxed, that said last thing I rode was an R6 or a VFR400 so very different positions! Still rode nice didn't feel as big as it actually was

 

Time for a bump!

Talk me out of a Pan European.

My PCP deal is coming to an end in December, so I'm bike shopping. For a whole list of reasons which mostly boil down to paying >£100 a month for insurance, I'd really have to compromise on the style of bike I want if I carry on with PCP (adventure or touring, preferably something with a shaft drive instead of a chain). I'm thinking of jacking in the PCP to give me more flexibility.

I've read all about the 'wobble' and the only time that seems to have been an issue - based on evidence and not anecdotes - is for police-spec bikes where the radio gear severely unbalanced the bikes. Or if people are driving regularly doing >100/120mph. (Frankly if you're doing that speed then you're already in serious danger of having a really really bad accident; like... an accident that you won't walk away from...)

I mean... I really like the look of this beast, especially after seeing this exact bike in person today... It's not quite as mahoosive as a Goldwing but it's still a big ol' bike, this really isn't something for zipping through city centre traffic! But I could quite happily see me and the other half jumping on this to drive half-way across the country for a weekend away. Or heading up to Scotland to do the NC500 on it (something I really want to do in the next couple of years).





I did also take a good long look at an Africa Twin while I was there... It's exactly the kind of thing I was originally looking for and would be eligible for PCP, but it's very close to the max I'd want to pay on insurance.

Paintwork on this one is a touch garish for my liking, but it is a lovely bike...

 

That second bike looks a lot less chunky than the first one!

 

Don't be decieved, the Africa Twin is a big boi! The photos don't really do its size justice!

 

How much would either of those cost to buy outright then?

 

DON'T GET ONE. Did that work?

What is wrong with your current bike? (NC750X?) - If it is on PCP so 3 years maybe? Just looking for a change
or avoiding the last 'bubble' payment?
Such a nice bike.

I suppose a way of talking you out of either of those two bikes is, they're BIG. (As you already know)
Not that that is bad, but if you use them as daily communte bikes, moving those bikes is EFFORT - and personally
wouldn't want them as daily commute riders.
Both good for longer tours though. Pan Euro beats the ATwin for that I reckon, for comfort, ride etc. Which you say you're wanting to do, all depends on if you think
you could live with the daily size of it for general daily riding.
I couldn't. So i'm aiming for two bikes. Good excuse.
The ATwin not so comfy for pillions apparently. Not sure what the NC750X is like for that.


Seems like insurance is a sticking point for you, I don't know about that because mine is insane ;D

Disclaimer; I haven't even passed my test yet. ;D Passed Mod1 last week, Mod2 due mid Nov.
But I have ridden a few of the big bikes of friends of friends on private land. Including a Goldwing, now
THAT is a LOVELY bike. And the two you're looking at. I fell in love with a Triumph Tiger and really want
to try the bobber.
The ATwin was a bike I wanted until I realised the size of it. Might still go for it. But not as my first bike
after passing my test.
You're saying your insurance is >£100, I dream of that
Mine was £994 for a 125. Hoping a bigger bike will be a bit cheaper after a couple of years no claims.

 

He said £100 per month!

 

Oh Shhiiiiiiiiii-! Didn't see the month bit.
lol Wow, so much.

 

The Pan European is £6500 and the Africa Twin is £9000. But the latter is 3 years old and only has a couple of thousand miles on the clock, whereas the former is 9 years old and already has 44,000 miles on the clock! It's not unusual for Pan Europeans to keep going past 80,000 miles though.

Couple of weeks ago I was offered a brand-new VFR1200X Crosstourer on PCP for not much more than I'm paying now. Problem is that bike would cost me £125 a month on insurance. The bike I really wanted - a BMW GS1200 - would cost a similar amount. My NC750X is quite reasonable at around £60 per month, but it's got a very nasty £650 excess.

The PCP on my NC750X is finishing soon, and to be honest I want a bike with more poke in the engine. The NC750X is great, it's been an absolute trooper - I ride throughout the year, including in howling wind and pouring rain, and it's never missed a beat. It's fuel efficiency is hard to beat: I get about 70-75mpg on dual carriageways and motorways, and I get around 65mpg in towns & cities. As a daily driver it's been outstanding. But it does only produce 54hp despite being a 750cc engine... It just needs that little bit more grunt; I'm not a track day kind of person and I'm really not a fan of twitchy supersports bikes that'll flip you over backwards when you touch the throttle... but I just want that bit more power!

 

Damn son.
I thought my insurance guys were taking the wee wee when they quoted me £300 fully comp for a brand new 1800cc Harley

 

Got my full bike license and went to pick up an NC750X on the very same day. Two and a half weeks later and some little scrote tries to nick it. They snapped the steering lock and destroyed the ignition barrel in the process.

The dealer could have got it back on the road for about £900 - although the steering lock couldn't be repaired and there would have been no guarantee that the frame didn't suffer any other damage without pulling everything off the bike.

So I ended up getting the insurance involved... and they wrote the bike off. Hadn't even done 200 miles, wasn't even a month old, and it got written off. Of course, that claim is gonna follow me around now like a bad smell and absolutely ruin insurance premiums for years to come.

Also doesn't help that I don't have a car license - I've just got motorcycle entitlement on my license, that's it.

So... yeah, insurance sucks for me

 

Ouch.
Yeah I know the feeling, I'm in the middle of my five year period for declaring accidents and claims for 2 non fault accidents.

 

Man, the fork mounted indicators here are gorgeous. Super pricey but I can see me splurging on em for a bike I really want to make my own (normally quite happy staying stock).

 

Question for the gurus here -- I'm looking for a glove to ride in Indian winter conditions, so that's dry/no snow and typical temps of around 2-6 C.

The issue is "winter gloves" are heavily padded and frankly too warm, plus cumbersome as hell. And everything else I've looked at has some sort of ventilation that sends icy air into my hands... so I'm looking for something gauntlet style (to stop air going into my sleeves) and more "windproof" than actually warm. The more basic/discreet (all black!) the better, but really anything will do.

 

Have you ever thought about handlebar muffs instead of gloves? https://www.ebay.co.uk/p/619948372

They're not particularly discreet, but I've met a lot of moped delivery riders who swear by them.

 

I went into a bike shop and asked for their frankest, least-BS winter waterproof glove suggestion, my exact wording was "a glove that is ACTUALLY waterproof and warm, not an oven mitt that becomes a sponge after 6 months". The chap had recently done some long distance and suggested Halvarssons. For £90 I took a punt. They have a million tags and brand names all over them boasting about scientifically engineered layers and new technologies. To my surprise, it works: they are very thin and flexible, good tactile feel, and they are relatively waterproof too. Not 100% (gave up on that pipe dream years ago) but enough, with occasional maintenance undoubtedly becoming necessary, as it does with all fancy textile waterproof gear. But in your situation that's not even a stated priority, so. Yeah, they're very well fitting and comfy and they are plenty warm enough above freezing.

I used these for years on a CG125, on which they were outstanding and the only genuinely dry, warm long distance solution: I went between Lancaster and Grimsby area on the 125 in December/January, and without the muffs it was excruciatingly painful but with them it was a doddle.

However, two important caveats:

1) they are a safety concern if you aren't fully competent with them. You can't see your hands, so you need thin enough gloves and a good enough tactile familiarity with your bike controls to operate blind. If you need to suddenly remove your clutch hand to deal with something, the muff drops slack and can tug on the clutch lever if you have full length stock levers; it can also then be tricky to get your hand back into it. This is surmountable, but requires practise. You need to get used to quickly getting your hand back into the muff, get used to timing when you remove a hand from the muffs without losing control of some aspect of the bike, and you need to adjust them correctly and test them in a car park to ensure you have it all right. If you can do that, you'll have a fantastic time with them that no heated or lined glove can rival.

2) they don't fit all bikes. In fact most faired or semi-faired bikes with forward or sports-style handlebars will just not work. The muffs need a lot of free room, so only upright, classic style bars positioned up away from the bike - adventure, off-road, standard, etc. - will work. They also can press on the clutch lever and slip the clutch slightly if you have long levers and a far-forward biting point, even with your hand inside the muff: this happened to me occasionally on the cg125 before I adjusted them to prevent it. Not sure about cruisers, I now have a cruiser but not the muffs. I suspect the angle of the bars and levers would result in the clutch lever problem again.