Motorcycle and Scooter appreciation

Great choice. Good distance seats apparently.

The riders seat looks very comfortable, not sure the perch looks that comfy though. There's always the Gold Wing!!

They have comfort seat options for the better half:

Looks pretty cushy.

Thanks.

I had a Tracer 900 but it was stolen a couple of years ago. Replaced it with the MT09 which is an incredible bike but not in any way practical for more than 30-40 miles rides with the other half. Looking forward to going back to something I can rider for more than 2 hours.

My parents place is about 700 miles away so...

When I was learning, one of my instructors was telling me he had his missus on the back of his bike (she was also an instructor)
She passed out, he noticed and managed to grab her with one arm to stop her falling into the road, slowed down and got left with the dilemma of whether to bin the bike or drop her in the road.
He did the decent thing and saved the early Fireblade and unceremoniously dropped her.
I think she understood that OG fairings are hard to find and she'll heel up quick enough...

It's not me you have to convince bro :) It does look very comfy if anyone asks, nods as good as a wink etc.

It's just not a massive leather armchair though is it. I had to stop discussing it with the other half, we looked at Gold Wings and Harleys but ended up getting a dog instead so that's the motorbike touring conversation dealt with!

Ha. It's not and never will be a massive leather armchair.

We're probably moving out of London towards the end of the year so maybe something bigger to keep in the garage could be a possibility...

They don't appear to be too expensive used: https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201808139422062?year-from=2010&model=TOURING&colour=Black&make=HARLEY-DAVIDSON&postcode=br29sd&advertising-location=at_bikes&sort=price-asc&radius=1500&page=1

I'll never forget a spin from Fort William to Swansea on a GPZ900. Now, you'd think after your backside goes numb end of story ( passing Liverpool ). I didn't realize there's an additional chapter of extreme pain. Eventually I had to get off by leaning the bike against a high fence and hauling myself upwards.

I really really like those! I had a wee tour on a multistrada recently and it was a fucking hoot, so looking at one of those as it don't really need the brand name, just that instant torque. They look well fun to blast across a continent.

That's a really nice example. There's so many things wrong with those bikes on a fundamental level but quite a few perfect things from a touring perspective. Just looking at the pictures reminds me how heavy they are.

Tell me about it. Two up and a month of luggage was a nightmare.... Anything under 20mph and it just wanted to be on its side

Only ever ridden pillion twice, first was on the back of a mates hayabusa at the bottom of box hill , he floored it before I was barely on it and it’s my closest near death experience! Second time was on the back of a police pan European, the instructor was demonstrating high speed braking techniques- fucking horrible. So pillion is not for me, the Mrs fell asleep on the back of my varedero going down the a303 one morning though.

Sounds like we've had similar experiences of them. I dropped one on a petrol pump in rural NZ, still surprises me that the pump didn't topple over and result in a fiery death.

Ha. Only time I dropped in the whole trip was at a petrol station in rural oklahoma; wife for on the wrong side (I was bracing for the other side).

Two guys in a pickup truck came to help.

So. A win of sorts. 3rd party insurer have inspected my bike and are paying out market value which is thankfully a couple hundred quid more than I paid (knew I got a bargain). However, instead of being offered the chance to buy the bike back, I’m being given it and the value deducted. This comes in just over 500 quid. What am I going to do with a scrap bike? It’s Cat B which I believe means it shouldn’t go back on the road but I also believe this isn’t law and if I repair it, I can re-register it. Think I should just try and get my insurance to buy it off me and be done with it, get a new bike. Ideas?

Are they giving you £500 or deducting £500?

Deducting. In fairness it’s gone better than I was expecting after reading all the stories of similar claims but now I’m stuck with a not roadworthy bike, nowhere to store it off road and 500 quid short of its value. Anybody know of a breaker that’s likely to give me 500 quid for it? Or am I best trying to break it and sell bits on eBay hoping that the few GSR owners out there are looking for parts and can collect from London?

Ah right that’s better than how I first read it but still an annoying situation. £500 seems optimistic, have you looked into repairing it? I’m guessing the cracked engine/clutch/whatever casing makes it a spendy job though.

First point of call is to call up breakers and get quotes. Then decide from there.

Without understanding exactly what is wrong with it, it's hard to know if a fix is worth it. If the frame, wheels and tyres and engine are aok i'd consider repairing and running as a rat bike.

Edit: saw you said

Cracked one of the engine cases so it pissed out all it’s oil, fork is cracked at the axle end too.

In which case then forks will be an easy swap if the wheel/axel is aok. No idea on the engine case, I guess it depends on availability of parts. Would have thought there would be plenty of 2nd hand parts.

Is it definitely the engine case and not the clutch case/cover?

Post pics - if it's just a hole in an engine cover (clutch or generator) and a fork leg, that's an easy weekend fix with a couple of hundred quids worth of bits of EBay / breakers. Get it back on the road and pocket the rest!

Had a few days out like this, usually fowl weather and you just seize up. Long fast a road/motorways are the worst in anything but 30c.

Limits me as theres tonnes of legal off road stuff I want to do in northern England, but cannot tolerate the 3-4 hours on said misery road in order to get to the good stuff, maybe I should just admit that I'm 70 before i'm 30 and get a trailer for motorbike to tow behind my diesel estate car lol

I gave in and bought a trailer some years ago. It completely changes how you can use a bike away from home.
I am not yet 70, but do have a diesel estate...

I need a new rear disc for my triumph scrambler as the old one is Warped from careless disclock + riding away.

Two questions;

1. Any recommendations for a rear disc brand? Was thinking of these
   
2. Do I need to change the rear pads? From memory they are fine. Assuming it's not a chain and chainrings deal, but thought it was worth an ask.
   
   

Cheers.

Discs from here will be much better quality. Their prices are decent, and their products are made here in London. I run their discs on my Fireblade.

http://www.allbikeengineering.co.uk/

You'll need new pads as the warped disc will have made the braking surface of the pad sloped/uneven.