It is strange how unconfident I feel when not able to grip the bars/levers normally. It seems to be much more handicapping than I would have expected for a little finger. My knee remains somewhat swollen with fluid over the kneecap and immediately above the knee and the skin above the knee is still overly sensitive – like neuralgia. It is now four weeks since the accident and I had expected that things would proceed a bit faster than they have done – perhaps it’s a sign of old age that they are not? There is another month before the Slovenia trip so I am very hopeful I should be OK for that. I did give up the idea of Llangollen this weekend – sounds as though the weather may be crap so I am not totally disappointed but it is a shame nonetheless.

I’m still not sure if I need to buy another helmet – obviously I’d prefer not to do so but the traditional wisdom is that a fall necessitates one. If I get another it will in all likelihood be another Arai Tour-X. I’d like to try a Uvex carbon one on but haven’t found anywhere that sells them from a bricks and mortar store and I am not about to buy an unknown helmet online – the chances of it not fitting properly are very high!

The cost of the bits has reinforced in my mind the merits of looking at a small bike (a Pogo) that will be a lot easier to ride on the more challenging trails I’d like to try. It would also be a lot easier to pick up being lighter. The bike I am very close to ordering is a Honda CRF 230 F which has a very good reputation and although perhaps best known as a beginner’s trail bike is also apparently very competent in more experienced hands as some of the Youtube video attests. I am not that experienced but equally not a beginner anymore so I want something that will satisfy me for a while. Other possible contenders are the Suzuki DRz 400E and possibly the Yamaha WR 250R but I like the idea of simplicity too and the Honda has an aircooled motor and a spark plug that is actually accessible, so even if it gets drowned in a water crossing, it ought to be easy to sort out..

It doesn’t come road legal but I have found a place online that will convert them and ship them, so that is not a problem. More of an issue is understanding what mods I might need from the start, there are all sorts of possibilities ranging from stronger handlebars to a new front suspension. I shall do some phoning around next week and see what I can find.

Glove pictures aren’t too exciting, so here’s a shot of the Adventure-Spec bars I installed recently

]]> http://woodgen.com/wordpress/index.php/2008/12/warm-hands-arrived/feed/ 0 http://woodgen.com/wordpress/index.php/2008/12/out-and-about/ http://woodgen.com/wordpress/index.php/2008/12/out-and-about/#comments Thu, 25 Dec 2008 17:34:00 +0000 Chris Knight http://chrisjk.wordpress.com/2008/12/25/out-and-about/ Continue reading →]]> Fresh from the triumph of fitting my new crash bars to the BMW yesterday, I celebrated by having a short ride on it today. Having both been laid low by the flu for two weeks, dearly beloved and I have postponed our Xmas jollifications until New Year – assuming we (still) feel like doing so by then, so today there were no distractions like presents to open or any such nonsense – it was on the bike and off! More accurately, it was about 11 am when I dragged myself to the garage, determined to prove to myself that I was still capable of getting the bike off the centre stand and out of the garage, mounting it and riding it.

I accomplished all of the above, only to discover that far from the imagined peace and quiet that would be prevailing on the roads at this time, countless, godless, antisocial idiots were already abroad, cluttering up the place just like a normal weekday. I turned as soon as I could onto the byways and quiet country lanes but found them so covered in mud and water that even with my new TKC-80s, I felt a mite insecure and given my kitten-like feebleness, I reckoned that it would be quite beyond me to pick the darn bike up if I fell off so I headed for home a lot sooner than I planned.

Aside from anything else, it wasn’t that warm. The bike claimed 5 degrees but my thumbs were sure it was sub-zero. Ah well, time to look at Gerbings heated gloves I reckon..

My crashbars and bash plate arrived from Adventure Spec this morning. They were delayed apparently because the guys at AS had been unable to get up a snow-covered hill to their workshop on top of some god-forsaken moor and as a result were not posted until Monday. They arrived as shown in a rather unprepossessing bag but also as shown, were actually very well protected from the slings and arrows of Royal Mail by various bits of pipe insulating foam and carefully positioned brown paper.

First impressions are of a very solidly made bit of kit with nice neat welding and excellent powder coating. I just had time to fit the bashplate before it got too dark and cold.

The bashplate makes the BMW supplied bashplate look really poor. Mine had split a weld somewhere on the trails of deepest darkest Wales in September and when you compare the welds it is easy to see why. The black AS plate on the right is welded inside and out whilst the BMW plate is welded only on the outside. Where the split occurred I can see only very limited penetration of the weld metal. Also, the AS plate is made from 4mm ally whilst the BMW plate is only 3mm thick. Also, the BMW plate has a welded seam running up the middle, whilst the AS plate is a single piece of metal at that point.

I hope to fit the bars tomorrow and if they go on as easily as the bashplate, it should be a doddle. All the nuts are in stainless steel and the five spaceers that come with the kit are in balck anodised ally.

I also got a phone call from Chris at Adventure-Spec from whom I ordered crash bars and a bash plate. He says they were being sent off today so with a bit of luck I should receive them tomorrow. I ordered these as a replacement for the SW Motech bars that I had so much trouble with when trying to fit them ( and which I sent back to Nippy Normans for a refund). I sure hope the new ones fit! I do have a bashplate already – the BMW one but that has cracked as a result of some darn rocks jumping out at me and in any case I wasn`t sure if the new bars would fit around the BMW bashplate. Also the Adventure-Spec plate looks more robust than the BMW one. I shall try my hand at welding that up with my little MIG welder, it’ll make a useful spare for someone.

All in all it has been a pretty sour experience and at no time did I get any explanation as to what the root of the problem was. Having some experience in the manufacture of jig assembled components, I am sure that it is a case of an inaccurate jig-set up at SW Motech but I never got to first base in discussing this with them. Suffice to say, I`ll be looking elsewhere for my bike bits in future.

I wanted it because I had strained my back during one of my off-road exploits and I just could not find a non-painful way of lifting the Goldwing onto the centre stand, plus I figured that as I am not getting any younger, it would become increasingly attractive as old age wreaked its havoc on my muscles.

It does take a little practise to get comfortable with using it but I have to say it`s very nice in use and getting the bike on the stand is now a doddle – plus it`s a ride-on/ride-off stand and that is nice too.

The only drawback is when wanting to turn the wheels, front or back, for e.g. cleaning. As both are in solid contact with the ground, you need to insert a couple of bits of one inch thick wood under each leg of the centre stand – accomplished by rocking the bike from side to side and kicking the wood as you do. The first rock is the easiest but with one leg on a piece of wood, the second is a lot harder and the bike needs a really good shove. I think a couple of suitably tapered wedges might make this job a lot easier

Ian quickly diagnosed the fuse problem with his continuity tester (note to self, must get one of those..) and having fixed the fog lights in short order, turned his attention to the centre stand. It`s an easy enough thing to do in principle but in practice it is quite difficult owng to the restricted access to the holding bolts – I am frankly glad I didn’t try it myself.

With that installed, the fork springs were next. Once I saw how these were done, I realised I could easily have done this job myself but as usual, it`s the old adage of knowing “where to hit it.”

One thing I had wanted Ian to fix was my cruise control that had stopped working a while back. The main light, indicating it was active would come on but I simply couldn’t set it. Apparently there are four microswitches (front brake, clutch, rear brake and gear shift) that can be the culprit for this problem. Ian reckons it’s the rear brake that is mostly the one to blame. However, in all the Irish rain, mine had started working again, so I can only conclude that perhaps some dirt had been washed away from a switch and that allowed it to operate again. I am glad to say that it is still working after my return home.

Ian finished up at about midday and after refusing his kind offer of lunch, I set off home. I noticed the difference the fork springs made in the first hundred yards – they are truly a fantastic improvement over the originals. No longer is a minor roughness in the road surface a cause of irritation – the Progressives simply iron it out. Equally I can ride harder into the corners than I ever felt comfortable doing before, the front seems so planted. I shall definitely go for the Progressive rear spring (and probably shock) if Honda don`t introduce a Japanese `09 model of the Wing – in which case, I could be tempted to go for that..

Our guides were all local to the area and knew the plains like the backs of their hands, including the ranges and when it`s safe to cross them!

The rain ensured we had some nice puddles to play in..

We also forded one river that was quite deep and I wondered if the panniers would lifet the rear of the bike high enough to reduce traction! Evidently not enough to prevent me getting through and the panniers stayed totally dry inside. However, the topbox was a different story. I had put a full bottle of water in it and all the bouncing around destroyed it and all the stuff I had really wanted to keep dry and had therefore carefully put in the topbox, was suddenly not so dry! A valuable learning experience. Another was the fact that a road atlas made with a spiral binding can become a loose collection of pages as the spiral unscrews when subjected to a lot of bouncing around!