Archive for Handling
Ride with Kent TRF
Posted by: | CommentsI went out for my first ride with the Kent TRF guys today. I took the TTR250 and had a great ride that covered 140 miles. The work that Perry Leask did on the bike proved its worth. The front end handled very well and the bike felt much more controllable.
Suspension work
Posted by: | CommentsThe TTR has been with Perry Leask at HM Racing for the last couple of days. Earlier rides had shown the front end to be a nightmare – bouncing all over the place so much so that I wondered if the forks were completely buggered. Well, Perry sorted it out perfectly. The work involved new seals, oil and adujsutments plus a lot of measurements but no great drama with new parts etc. Perry’s workshop reminds me of the suspension shop at Lotus – it has the necessary pressure vessel for nitrogen charging etc. and is very clean. I have aprintout of the various settings before and after and to my untutored eye, it doesn’t say a great deal apart from the fact that I could have messed around my self or ever without getting it right.
The service wasn’t especially cheap but it has turned the bike into a usable machine which it wasn’t really before and in my view it wasn’t just money well spent, it was vital.
Goldwing suspension
Posted by: | CommentsAfter riding the GS for the last few days, I took the Goldwing out this morning and it took me a couple of miles before I felt at home again on such a different machine – I even tried to switch the indicators in the stupid BMW mode! 
I think the thing that has most significance for me in comparing the feel of the two bikes is just how much better the GS’s front suspension is on rough roads. Now this is hardly a surprise in a bike designed for the rough stuff but the bit that is important for me is that it has started me thinking again about a front suspension upgrade for the Goldwing. I had grown used to its foibles before riding the GS but some roughish road this morning reminded me that it was one of the first things I noted about the bike when I bought it.
I see two options – one is to install Progressive springs which is the cheap option but one that some folk think highly of and the other much more expensive option is to go for the Traxxion system. I am pretty persuaded by the movie but it would be nice to talk to someone in the UK who has fitted it.
Another expense is on the horizon in the form of its 8000 mile service and a new pair of tyres to go with it. I could let them go further but the rear especially is looking fairly tired and I might as well get it done soon – before the suspension upgrade too if I decide to go that way.
Mileage and Spurious Maths
Posted by: | CommentsToday I racked up 3000 miles on the Goldwing – I have had it now for 59 days and allowing for the 8 days when I couldn”t ride it (waiting for the 600 mile service) that equates to 3000*365/51 = 21,471 miles in a year if I ride at the present rate. Putting aside all that”s wrong about this sum, it is still more than I have ever put on a bike in a similar period (that is when not on a continuous tour etc.). I think it says something about how much I enjoy riding this machine. In many ways, it is a wolf in sheep’s clothing – it handles like a sports bike in some circumstances (like flicking it through small roundabouts and in pure acceleration) but it also lets me relax and take in the countryside or listen to some music just as easily. As I get more familiar with it, I am learning to handle the weight better in tight slow speed turns although I also confess to dropping both feet at times when I have to make a sharp turn on a bad surface – worries about scratching all that Tupperware put me off countersteering and sliding the back wheel around…
Little Old Lady
Posted by: | CommentsWell that is a kind term for an elderly member of the female sex who nearly killed me on the M25 on the way home from Wales. I was in the outside lane, overtaking and abreast with her when she decided she needed to use the space I occupied to overtake the car in front of her. I slammed on the anchors and hit the horn – thank God it is better than the usual anaemic motorcycle jobbie and that she was not totally deaf, for she pulled back into her own lane with a look of surprised indignation as I waved my fist at her.
Apart from a slight swerve when I braked, the bike behaved very well. It was all so instinctive and over very quickly, so I had no real chance to evaluate the braking performance, it’s possible the ABS and linked brakes did their stuff but I was concentrating on the car and I don’t really know. Makes me realise I really do need a test in the safe environment of a large empty car park.
I have also thought about the horn – I am glad my thumb hit the right button amongst the mess of controls on the bars – I guess the designers have thought that one through! The horn itself sounds more like a car horn than any bike horn I have had and is therefore not bad at all but I did a quick bit of research on aftermarket horns and am now thinking of a Stebel Nautilus Compact air horn – I must try and find someone who has fitted one to a Wing. Many moons ago I had a Mercedes logging truck air horn fitted to a bike – these things are designed to be heard over forested mountains and the roar of 800hp diesels – it was a fantastic accessory – as long as you were wearing ear plugs!
Suspension
Posted by: | CommentsNot content with worrying about GPS before I have even taken delivery of the bike, I am now thinking about the suspension, especially after watching this video by Traxxion that basically condemns the stock suspension out of hand. I wonder if there is anyone in the UK qualified to install the Traxxion system should I decide the bike needs it?