Motorcycle discussion

[durok]

I used to do a lot of fire roads in a Suzuki LS650 Savage, which is kinda funny since the thumper motor really belongs in an enduro bike...

Man, cruiser bars and raked-out forks suck for dirt!

Still think taking a wrecked one and getting a custom frame welded up and wrapped around VanVan 200 (or Yamaha TW200) wheels and tires would make a kickass end-of-the-world rat bike.

Keep the belt-drive and stick a SuperTrapp muffler on the end of a fiberglas-wrapped header...

Maybe I should do that with my hole-in-the-tank old SV650 so I could actually outrun the zombies, though...?

[JatoTheRipper]

Originally Posted by durok

I used to do a lot of fire roads in a Suzuki LS650 Savage, which is kinda funny since the thumper motor really belongs in an enduro bike...

Man, cruiser bars and raked-out forks suck for dirt!

Still think taking a wrecked one and getting a custom frame welded up and wrapped around VanVan 200 (or Yamaha TW200) wheels and tires would make a kickass end-of-the-world rat bike.

Keep the belt-drive and stick a SuperTrapp muffler on the end of a fiberglas-wrapped header...

Maybe I should do that with my hole-in-the-tank old SV650 so I could actually outrun the zombies, though...?

How'd you get a hole in the tank? Rust or something more exciting like getting shot at during a highe speed chase?

[durok]

When I bought the bike, it looked new - even though it was about 12 years old (it's a 2000 SV650 standard) - and the tank just mysteriously started leaking one day while it was parked.

I took the tank off and someone had patched a pinhole on the UNDERSIDE of the tank with a type of resin which had simply dissolved over time to allow it to leak again.

I have no idea what originally caused the leak - there was no rust or sign the tank had ever been repaired, the paint was absolutely perfect!

Anyways, various things conspired against me (my own procrastination being one of them) and the bike is in my brother's detached garage with dry-rotted tires, dead battery, rusted chain, etc.

Would probably take at least a grand and lots of labor to get it running properly again.

Someday, my brother and I will attack it with years of pent-up annoyance at the fact that it has sat unloved for so long...

I occasionally daydream of stripping it down and modifying it.

(what it looked like when I got it - it was my 2nd SV, my first was a 2001 SV650 S with some light mods and a Yoshimura Ti race pipe)

[JatoTheRipper]

I've always wanted an SV. It's too bad they stopped making them in that form. I don't know if the new SV disasters, whatever they are calling them these days, have the same motors?

[hpiguy]

The SV650 is thankfully still alive and well today, with the same great sounding powerplant onboard. The styling changed a little, but not much. If memory serves, it's the bike that spawned the supertwins racing class, can't remember if that was WERA or AMA though. I've always had a soft spot for the SV actually, and came close to buying one once.

[cmbscx10]

Yup Always wanted one just never had the chance. From everything I have read the 99'-08 were the ticket and then the 17' on. The 09'-'16' Gladius nearly wiped out an almost perfect motorcycle. Anything but the Gladius gets glowing reviews from noobs to professional level riders. Hard to beat if you ask me. Looked at them before I bought my Aprilia but they were never in stock from I guess all the followers of the old model updating to the new one.

[cmbscx10]

Poor little guy. Luckily there was a guy flagging me to go around yesterday and my dad was right behind me so would have flung it at him.

For you Euro guys, this is the wrong side of the road.

[JatoTheRipper]

Originally Posted by hpiguy

The SV650 is thankfully still alive and well today, with the same great sounding powerplant onboard. The styling changed a little, but not much. If memory serves, it's the bike that spawned the supertwins racing class, can't remember if that was WERA or AMA though. I've always had a soft spot for the SV actually, and came close to buying one once.

Good to know! I wasn't sure if they fixed them after the Gladius debacle.

[JatoTheRipper]

This is a great article celebrating the 20th year of the Yamaha R1. The R1 is 20 years old!!!

I'm still not sure which is my favorite looking R1. I know it's definitely not the current MotoGP inspired model. I'd say that's the worst.

https://www.motorcyclistonline.com/c...-yamaha-yzf-r1

[cmbscx10]

Could be in the Funny thread too.

Owner: Cmon man. I drop my $20k bike of for an oil change and this is my Fawkin "Loaner"

[cmbscx10]

I posted this in the Aprilia forum i am on. My Dorsoduro only has a dirt bike size 2.6L tank so the fun only lasts so long. It's RC related so thought i would share.



Long Range Fuel Problem Solved!!


**** Crossing my fingers for me anyway ****

Those that know me get a kick out of my short stories with my gadgets. Usually a long read with horrible grammar so be warned.


On my last ride my fuel light came on about 10-12mi from the nearest gas station. I was having so much fun i was not paying attention to fuel mileage, where gas stations were etc. Not liking that feeling at all and taking away from my fun of my Dorso i decided to do something about it.

I initially thought like i used to do on my dual sport adventures which was to carry a small fuel canister like the MSR. With the limited carrying capacity of the Dorso aka me not wanting a giant tail bag, the biggest MSR i would carry would be the 1L. At 35mpg the 1L would get me around 8-12mi. That's a little more piece of mind but not enough for me. 1L of Fuel is roughly 1.625lbs/26oz. For my own piece of mind my goal was .5gln which is roughly 20mi. Where i live and ride 20mi from the nearest gas station is in BFE.

I never ride alone and who i ride with have 4-6gln tanks so i thought I'll just beg for some gas from them. The lightest, most compact, cheapest and no power needed way is to have one of those siphon tubes. I can use it or help another rider like me. I got one on Fleabay for $4, 3.1oz and 5.5" coiled up. Smallish, light, No power needed and No fuel in the mouth. Problem solved right? Nah! i am not that simple of guy.

I used to fly RC Airplanes and Helicopters. I had one of those hand crank fuel transfer pumps. It worked incredibly well to fill a 500ml fuel tank. After 4 tanks you had to ice your wrist down after a day of flying. Small form factor and light but keeping my .5gln goal this was not going to work.

When flying RC planes and helicopters there were a few guys running turbine Jets. I remember they had a super small fuel pump that was driven by a 540 sized 12v motor. Hmmm that got my mind thinking. Researching the Fuel pumps the size was perfect. 3-4" long and 1.5" wide. Heck i could fit that anywhere. Then came the $$ tag. $125+ so F-That. Plus i needed to power it somehow. OK let's try China to see if they have a knock off fuel pump. Nope. Cheapest was $75. Still to far away from $4 for a simple siphon. Plus i still needed to power it somehow. That's repeated for a reason.

Keeping the Electric fuel pump in mind i looked at SHTF scenarios. They don't like bulky stuff and needs to be fast. A lot of those guys use a small cheap $15-25 car fuel pump and hook it to a car battery. Very affective and transfers about 30GPH of fuel. I could use my battery tender port for power. That would be 1min to pump .5gln of fuel. The size though small is still about 6"L (with connectors) x 2.5"-3" wide. Basically a soda can. Then comes the weight at 1.3-1.5lbs for just the pump. Then you have the 6ft of hoses. That's pretty darn big and way too heavy for a motorcycle. In a car yes but not a bike.

Keeping the RC Fuel pump in mind and using my battery tender port for power i did a little more broad research. On Fleabay I found a $25 China RC Fuel Pump that runs on 4.8-6v DC motor, 2.5ft of lift and is metal geared so won't wear out anytime soon. 2.5ft of lift is not great but that is more than enough if i had to pull fuel from say a car in the worst case scenario. It is 4.5"L x 1.25"W and weighs 7oz with tubing and 2 filters. That is double the weight of the simple siphon but not nearly as cool IMO. Flows 15GPH so .5gln would be +/-2min and no need to be lower than your buddy who you are siphoning your gas from.

Problem solved right? No, Damn it. My battery tender port power is 12v so i can't use that for the pump power. I am a cheap bastard but don't mind spending $$ if needed. For my GoPro that eats batteries like PEZ i have an $8 Battery bank 5000mah 5.1v-1-2A output that is always with me. Yes, it is PINK and i could care less about that. Any other color is double or more $$ so LGBT color or not, i am about saving $$. Perfect power supply and i already have it with me anyway. The RC Fuel pump has a JST connector power port and my Battery bank is of course only USB output. So, i hacked up an old USB printer cord and soldered on a JST connector.

Did a quick test of the RC Pump with water and i could put out a small fire. Will try some gas this weekend and time it.

If i ever did Dual Sport riding again i would carry both the Siphon and the RC Fuel pump. I will more than likely just carry the fuel pump on the Dorso and make a riding partner carry the caveman Siphon as a backup.





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[Axial Rose]

When I was a kid, I remember Suzuki ran advertisements with Roger DeCoster (sp?) on his motocross bike - they put this advertisment in Boy's Life magazine - I wasn't just "in love" with motocross, I knew I had to do that some day - it was not just an urge - I was hooked on motorcycling before I ever took my first ride.

My parents were very "anti-motorcycle" so I had to wait until I was old enough to buy my own motorcycle. So I did exactly that. In my late teens I worked in cotton mills and earned enough money to buy a slightly used Yamaha 175 "dual purpose" bike and soon started racing MX with my Yamaha YZ125. This became my entire purpose in life - I loved it (state line mx, ranburn, georgia, 1978? was one of my favorite tracks - but I raced all in my area).

Later I began riding street bikes . . . fast forward to the summer of 2017 . . . I sold my last two motorcycles.

After an adult lifetime of motorcycling I have given it up completely - I have owned 48 motorcycles and I have had numerous crashes (most were on the MX track or trail riding but two involved on-road events)

My decision was mildly based on many factors such as the perceived growing probability of getting tagged by someone texting but the main factor in this decision involved my declining health. Ultimately, this forced me into the decision to close the book forever on the sport I enjoyed for many years - both on road and off road.

First of all - I am not telling anyone to quit riding - but in my situation, with declining health, continuing to ride was not a very smart option - that's life and I'm not bitter - not at all (but at first the decision was very difficult) - instead, I'm truly grateful because I lived the life of kings, riding machines in dirt, on the road, seeing phenomenal places, enjoying incredible rides, over and over again - it was never boring or dull (except getting stuck in traffic, especially when it was 95 degrees - ha).

My only point: y'all need to ride as much as you can, while you can, and if you're on the road, then crank up your "defensive riding" skill setting at least one or two notches (but you already know this - ha).

Until the day I die I will always want to ride again and, even with the crashes, break downs, torrential rain, getting lost, riding home so tired I literally napped on picnic tables at 3:30 a.m., and even those rare situations when dealing with cagers who considered me a target for their demented display of power, yep, overall, it was awesome, totally awesome.

No exaggeration, no regrets.

Ride safe, ride often, enjoy!

[hpiguy]

^^Yep, I had 36+ good long years starting as small boy on a Honda Z50. I don't have declining health, at least that I know of, sorry to hear about that man. But tourist season here is just nuts anymore, combined with how distracted drivers are, and how we liked to ride it was just a recipe for disaster. It still took many close calls and gentle warnings before I finally decided it was in my own best interest to hang up the leathers last year. I'd love another dirt bike, but there's nowhere to ride dirt here anymore anyway. I miss it a LOT though. When you've done it for that long, it becomes not only a hobby, but a part of who you are. Here's to safe travels, sunny days, and keeping the rubber side down for those of you that still ride!

[wings_of_fire]

Originally Posted by hpiguy

^^Yep, I had 36+ good long years starting as small boy on a Honda Z50. I don't have declining health, at least that I know of, sorry to hear about that man. But tourist season here is just nuts anymore, combined with how distracted drivers are, and how we liked to ride it was just a recipe for disaster. It still took many close calls and gentle warnings before I finally decided it was in my own best interest to hang up the leathers last year. I'd love another dirt bike, but there's nowhere to ride dirt here anymore anyway. I miss it a LOT though. When you've done it for that long, it becomes not only a hobby, but a part of who you are. Here's to safe travels, sunny days, and keeping the rubber side down for those of you that still ride!

For the next part of your life you should try adventure touring.

[hpiguy]

Originally Posted by wings_of_fire

For the next part of your life you should try adventure touring.

I have zero desire to be on the street again to be honest. For the next part of my life, I'm focusing on getting out of this area, and less on toys and more on retiring early. Adventure touring did always seem really cool though.

[JatoTheRipper]

I'm admittedly stubborn, but I refuse to give up my motorcycle because of other drivers on the road. I just try to be more alert and stay on less traveled back roads, although that's becoming much tougher since the scumbag local politicians think it's smart to shove some shitty condos in every open field.

My problem is that I like speed and police from upon that. Putting around at the speed limit all of the time is no fun to me even in my more "mature" age.

[Sneetches]

I stay off the main roads as much as I can, or I'm usually riding during off hours anyways, but nothing is as annoying so far as the tar and chipped roads with random piles of gravel everywhere.

[hpiguy]

I avoided main roads at all cost. Hell, those of you that know me know that I live 20 miles past podunk and hang a left. But the area has become a moto mecca thanks to the photographers at Deal's Gap that then started giving away all the good local stuff as well. I like speed too, but my favorite backroad we could ride all day long at or below the posted speed limit having a blast until the tourist traffic ruined it for us. Just too many close calls, even riding super offensively. General society is just composed of idiots these days that are too busy messing with their phone, ipad, GPS, or the multitude of gadgets that the cars themselves come with. Be safe out there folks!

[cmbscx10]

Quick Test of that Micro Fuel Pump


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[JatoTheRipper]

Have any of you ridden a Ducati Scrambler? I've had interest in them since they came out. And then I saw the new Cafe Racer model that's coming out (silver and blue below) and I fell in love.

I think the Scrambler would be a fun play bike that's a blank canvas for customization. I'd be worried it wouldn't have enough power for me and then I'd quickly get bored with it. I also really can't justify the $10K price tag either. But there are some lightly used 2016 Scrambler Icons locally for under $7K.

The stupid license plate mount would be the first thing to go for me.

2019 Ducati Scrambler Cafe Racer





Ducati Scrambler Icon (Considered the "standard" model of the Scrambler line)