It's 2° here, so I removed my under bike heater, put the bike outside and it's still gorgeous. Let it run for a few minutes and the Leo Vince still sounds sweet. Waiting for the lockdown to end so I thought phukit I will treat myself to a K&N air filter. Why because I was using them before most of you were born, it is close to my motorsport rootes, I might get a slight induction noise, I will feel faster even if I'm not, the sticker matches my bike, I don't want to remove the battery every 12,000 miles or so to fit a new honda one at £35 english pounds, I have some bragging rights lol, that's all I can think of atm. P.s it was £53 english pounds delivered.
what did you do to your cbr500 today?
2321 - 2340 of 2411 Posts
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57 Posts
Look into a Lithium Ion battery they can sit for over a year without losing a charge. Probably about $30 to $40 more than lead batteries but you will spend that much on a quality trickle charger.
Rather than a new battery, I am hoping the Covid vaccine will help my bike from me able to ride it to keep the battery charged. And I am the same as ksandvik in not wanting to replace the battery until it goes bad.
However I did buy a solar trickle charger, £22 on Amazon (so just under US$20) which had good reviews. But between freezing weather and waiting for some vaccine immunity I have not been able to use it yet, as I would need to remove the battery to bring it in and properly recharge it first. Besides, although the panel is supposed to be weather proof, it is best not to challenge by how much right away!
However I did buy a solar trickle charger, £22 on Amazon (so just under US$20) which had good reviews. But between freezing weather and waiting for some vaccine immunity I have not been able to use it yet, as I would need to remove the battery to bring it in and properly recharge it first. Besides, although the panel is supposed to be weather proof, it is best not to challenge by how much right away!
Huum, you can't do that! All that chargen'll burn that battry plume up. I no that's right. cause I seen it on the enternets.
Has no one been doing anything with their bikes?
Apparently the government here will be extending the shielding programme to March 31st, although I am not due my second vaccine dose until early April anyway. So my bike is still not going anywhere for another couple months yet.
Apparently the government here will be extending the shielding programme to March 31st, although I am not due my second vaccine dose until early April anyway. So my bike is still not going anywhere for another couple months yet.
Sun has been out today, that's a first for 3 months. So I thought I would fit my 14T front sprocket. It wasn't listed for a19 but it fits ok, should be fitted the correct way round. It makes the chain run a bit close to the chain slider, so I will keep an eye on it. If I am happy with it I may consider changing the rear sprocket for a 44T but I don't think you can do that on the standard chain. The government are going to give us a calendar of events for the following months regarding freeing up the lockdown. My bikes on the stand ready with the engine running in gear so I can jump on and ride off into the sunset lol.
Mate, you'll have to translate that one for me.. in case I'm missing something I should be aware of. I get the tail bag part.. and I'm assuming you enjoy your drone and take it to different places to fly it. But, since I'm usually somewhere between lost and found... it's entirely possible I'm nowhere close to right.
My first tank bag was from Aldi, but after using it I was very disappointed because they have never sold a bigger version of it. It is a great bag, just sometimes smaller than I needed. And it stayed waterproof even without using the rain cover.
They used to always do a biker range in the middle of March, so I checked it every year just to see if they had a better bag. Nope. Not that it matters now I have hard luggage.
My second helmet, incidentally, was from Lidl, had an accident in it, and was fine. My first helmet was free with my C.B.T. ( the basic training you need to complete to ride on a learner's permit) but one day the visor was just covered in cracks on the surface. Strange. But as the Lidl helmets were so cheap I had bought one to keep as a spare. Despite the price it was ECE 22.05 certified, but it would have been illegal to sell otherwise. So I switched to using that and laziness (and that I was only riding a 125 slowly) meant I never bought a proper replacement until after my head it the road. Caught a patch of mud going ride a tight corner, so not too fast and the bike just slid over. Broke my elbow, but my head was fine! So overall I am happy to trust Aldi and Lidl products. That said, I guess the quality of helmets given away free by a training school were probably no better quality.
They used to always do a biker range in the middle of March, so I checked it every year just to see if they had a better bag. Nope. Not that it matters now I have hard luggage.
My second helmet, incidentally, was from Lidl, had an accident in it, and was fine. My first helmet was free with my C.B.T. ( the basic training you need to complete to ride on a learner's permit) but one day the visor was just covered in cracks on the surface. Strange. But as the Lidl helmets were so cheap I had bought one to keep as a spare. Despite the price it was ECE 22.05 certified, but it would have been illegal to sell otherwise. So I switched to using that and laziness (and that I was only riding a 125 slowly) meant I never bought a proper replacement until after my head it the road. Caught a patch of mud going ride a tight corner, so not too fast and the bike just slid over. Broke my elbow, but my head was fine! So overall I am happy to trust Aldi and Lidl products. That said, I guess the quality of helmets given away free by a training school were probably no better quality.
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4 Posts
Today I added a set of T-Rex frame sliders to my 2016. My first time getting under the fairings and it’s safe to say my next bike, whenever that’ll be, is going to be a naked. It took my 2 hours of ginger handling to get them off and back on against the 10-15 minutes it took to actually install the sliders.
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1,696 Posts
Snuck out for a quick ride on Friday while working from home (alas, after a booked weekend here I am at 5 AM on Monday trying to catch up before the day really starts). It was a bright, Sunny day for a change here in the great white North. Snow was mostly melted everywhere. Roads were covered in deadly sand. I really had no choice.
Though the forecast promised to be a balmy 8 or 10 Celsius by 5 PM, it was like 10:30 AM and I already really wanted to get high because I'm still struggling with anxiety and depression and it can be unbearable at times sober. But I didn't want to risk riding high later and so if I was going to ride it had to be now. Besides, I probably wouldn't have time later. It was only 1 degree Celsius at this time (feels like zero), though the forecast promised to get warmer and not colder for hours.
It took a while to get geared up. I put on some extra layers of clothes and put my warmest riding jacket and pants on over top. I've lost a lot of weight due to depression so my old jacket fits (yay!), but my newer pants are too loose (aww). I still wear them, but truth be told if I ever go down at this weight they'll just slide right off of me because they're so loose. Money has always gotten in the way of buying a zipping pair.
I knew that the bike had oil because I had recently checked it. Though a cardbox box underneath it this winter proves that it is leaking, it appears to be a very gradual leak because there's still plenty of oil. Perhaps it was temperature related. Or maybe I didn't tighten the drain plug enough. No matter. I knew the brake fluid was ****, but I made sure I had brake pressure at least. My mind was and is foggy so that was pretty much the extent of my walk around at the time. I just fired it up, gave it 5 minutes or so to lubricate itself and headed off down the road for a Sunny adventure and hopefully a mood and focus/concentration boost! I immediately felt that the tire pressure was too far off and circled back home to check. Sure enough I only had something like 35 psi in the front and 30 in the rear. I topped it up to 43 and 38 psi, which is as I remember the spec. Then headed back out.
Feels better this time. Feeling good. Not far from my house I lock up the front wheel when a pickup truck changes lanes ahead of me. There's plenty of space and it should have been safe, but the road is covered with sand and I was boxed in by another car. My instinct was to grab the brakes, but my winter hand are out of practice and I guess I grabbed a little too much front. Thankfully my cat-like reflexes kicked in and immediate let up on the brakes, restoring the bike under control before braking again. The pickup was indeed a bit slow so it was annoying, but I was just so pleased with myself for handling the lock up so well that I didn't care.
It was a cold ride. In my fog I had underestimated how cold 1 degree Celsius would be. Though my body was pretty well bundled up, my hands were only protected by my riding gloves which provide zero insulation. The first thing to get uncomfortable was my hands. They were getting cold fast. It was stressful. I had to be extra careful because of all of the sand and debris, let alone the potholes and rough roads, and the distracted drivers overworked and overplayed and struggling to fulfill their families needs in the remaining hours of each day. I had big ambitions of going out onto the highway for a cruise to extend the ride and maybe relax a bit, but alas on my way out of town I realized that my hands were getting too cold for this plan. A few turns later I was taking the scenic route back home instead all the way around the city the long way. And by this time my hands were painfully cold. The best quality of the road that I'm on right now is that though it is a long way most of it does not have any stops, and most of the lights further up are synchronized. In my desperation I lay down over the tank and try to rest the palm of my gloves on the hot engine casing to warm my hands. I steered through this section of road by leaning the bike while my hands were warming. I had the cruise set to the leisurely speed limit of about 50 km/h. It was actually a lot of fun. I imagined turning it into a tourist event or something.
I pretty much hurried home at this point. My hands were so numb that I was struggling to work the clutch and throttle to pull out of a stop. I was only motivated by the knowledge that my house was only a few short turns away and I had cannabis ready to go when I got there. I rode quickly through one puddle that splashed up and couldn't be avoided. Slightly embarrassed I wanted it to look like I meant to do that, which I didn't expect to be deep enough to splash, so naturally I twisted my wrist and jumped through a few gears to accelerate up around the corner. I reached about 120 km/h before slowing down again. I hope there were no cameras on that road. Partly I also aimed to shake all of this bath off of my bike before storing it again in subzero temperatures.
I managed to make it home safely minutes later. Then I promptly got high as **** and went back to work developing software from home. I regretted going out so early because it was too cold. I might have gotten a longer and more fun ride later in the day. I had also hoped that the ride would wake me up and help me concentrate on work, which has been a struggle for the past year, but I think that the very cold temperature had the opposite effect. I really just wanted to go back to bed. I ended up taking our 16 month old puppy out of his crate to practice just being a good boy and learning to play by himself or lay down and chill. It was fun and good for both of us, but I didn't get any work done. We do seem to be making progress with his training though.
Though the forecast promised to be a balmy 8 or 10 Celsius by 5 PM, it was like 10:30 AM and I already really wanted to get high because I'm still struggling with anxiety and depression and it can be unbearable at times sober. But I didn't want to risk riding high later and so if I was going to ride it had to be now. Besides, I probably wouldn't have time later. It was only 1 degree Celsius at this time (feels like zero), though the forecast promised to get warmer and not colder for hours.
It took a while to get geared up. I put on some extra layers of clothes and put my warmest riding jacket and pants on over top. I've lost a lot of weight due to depression so my old jacket fits (yay!), but my newer pants are too loose (aww). I still wear them, but truth be told if I ever go down at this weight they'll just slide right off of me because they're so loose. Money has always gotten in the way of buying a zipping pair.
I knew that the bike had oil because I had recently checked it. Though a cardbox box underneath it this winter proves that it is leaking, it appears to be a very gradual leak because there's still plenty of oil. Perhaps it was temperature related. Or maybe I didn't tighten the drain plug enough. No matter. I knew the brake fluid was ****, but I made sure I had brake pressure at least. My mind was and is foggy so that was pretty much the extent of my walk around at the time. I just fired it up, gave it 5 minutes or so to lubricate itself and headed off down the road for a Sunny adventure and hopefully a mood and focus/concentration boost! I immediately felt that the tire pressure was too far off and circled back home to check. Sure enough I only had something like 35 psi in the front and 30 in the rear. I topped it up to 43 and 38 psi, which is as I remember the spec. Then headed back out.
Feels better this time. Feeling good. Not far from my house I lock up the front wheel when a pickup truck changes lanes ahead of me. There's plenty of space and it should have been safe, but the road is covered with sand and I was boxed in by another car. My instinct was to grab the brakes, but my winter hand are out of practice and I guess I grabbed a little too much front. Thankfully my cat-like reflexes kicked in and immediate let up on the brakes, restoring the bike under control before braking again. The pickup was indeed a bit slow so it was annoying, but I was just so pleased with myself for handling the lock up so well that I didn't care.
It was a cold ride. In my fog I had underestimated how cold 1 degree Celsius would be. Though my body was pretty well bundled up, my hands were only protected by my riding gloves which provide zero insulation. The first thing to get uncomfortable was my hands. They were getting cold fast. It was stressful. I had to be extra careful because of all of the sand and debris, let alone the potholes and rough roads, and the distracted drivers overworked and overplayed and struggling to fulfill their families needs in the remaining hours of each day. I had big ambitions of going out onto the highway for a cruise to extend the ride and maybe relax a bit, but alas on my way out of town I realized that my hands were getting too cold for this plan. A few turns later I was taking the scenic route back home instead all the way around the city the long way. And by this time my hands were painfully cold. The best quality of the road that I'm on right now is that though it is a long way most of it does not have any stops, and most of the lights further up are synchronized. In my desperation I lay down over the tank and try to rest the palm of my gloves on the hot engine casing to warm my hands. I steered through this section of road by leaning the bike while my hands were warming. I had the cruise set to the leisurely speed limit of about 50 km/h. It was actually a lot of fun. I imagined turning it into a tourist event or something.
I pretty much hurried home at this point. My hands were so numb that I was struggling to work the clutch and throttle to pull out of a stop. I was only motivated by the knowledge that my house was only a few short turns away and I had cannabis ready to go when I got there. I rode quickly through one puddle that splashed up and couldn't be avoided. Slightly embarrassed I wanted it to look like I meant to do that, which I didn't expect to be deep enough to splash, so naturally I twisted my wrist and jumped through a few gears to accelerate up around the corner. I reached about 120 km/h before slowing down again. I hope there were no cameras on that road.
Partly I also aimed to shake all of this bath off of my bike before storing it again in subzero temperatures.I managed to make it home safely minutes later. Then I promptly got high as **** and went back to work developing software from home. I regretted going out so early because it was too cold. I might have gotten a longer and more fun ride later in the day. I had also hoped that the ride would wake me up and help me concentrate on work, which has been a struggle for the past year, but I think that the very cold temperature had the opposite effect. I really just wanted to go back to bed. I ended up taking our 16 month old puppy out of his crate to practice just being a good boy and learning to play by himself or lay down and chill. It was fun and good for both of us, but I didn't get any work done. We do seem to be making progress with his training though.
So the moral to the story is I miss my motorcycle and I will ride it no matter what. Or I should have waited and enjoyed it more once the weather improved. Or maybe I should have walked the dog, and knuckled down to some work. Well if life was that easy you would have made the right decision, phuck how boring. 😉
Good to see you posting again bambams, and well done on rescuing the lock up.
It is about time I start thinking of getting my bike in working order again, as the government released the law for ending restrictions in England, which start with the stay-ay-home order being lifted next Monday.
Although they originally said that the no unnecessary travel requirement would remain until step 2 (April 12th at the earliest), and the National Motorcyclists Council says leisure riding should not resume until l at least May 17th (step 3 of the plan), there is literally nothing in the law about it at all.
Under previous legislation it was somewhat a grey area as the law allowing travel for recreation. Although against the spirit of the law, biking is technically recreation. Even the motorcycle law firm blogs could only advise you take your own risks. But as of next Monday the only restrictions on travel will relate to leaving the country.
And three days later the shielding programme will be suspended, that is where those of us at extreme risk of Covid are told to completely isolate, so it will once again be considered safe enough for me to go outside. Although there is an exception to shielding for medical appointments, so I am going out tomorrow for my second vaccine dose.
So in theory, next Thursday it should be legal and safe for me to ride again. Despite the bike being left out to the elements, it has seemed to be in good condition whenever I have looked at it. Though there was that time I went to put the rubbish out and noticed the light on the USB switch was lit, making me think the battery will at least needing brining inside to recharge. Partly my fault for forgetting about the solar trickle charger I bought, but did not want to risk using when the weather was freezing. It has a service shortly before I had to go into hibernation last year, so everything else should be okay save maybe tyre pressure.
And at least I should get a chance to get in some short to medium distance riding before visiting my dad, as that will not be allowed until step 3. I only got to visit him once in the last year, and then after a seven month gap in riding. Quite a contrast with 2020 when I was visiting for a few days twice a week when he was in hospital, and then back every two or three weeks until the Covid restrictions.
It is about time I start thinking of getting my bike in working order again, as the government released the law for ending restrictions in England, which start with the stay-ay-home order being lifted next Monday.
Although they originally said that the no unnecessary travel requirement would remain until step 2 (April 12th at the earliest), and the National Motorcyclists Council says leisure riding should not resume until l at least May 17th (step 3 of the plan), there is literally nothing in the law about it at all.
Under previous legislation it was somewhat a grey area as the law allowing travel for recreation. Although against the spirit of the law, biking is technically recreation. Even the motorcycle law firm blogs could only advise you take your own risks. But as of next Monday the only restrictions on travel will relate to leaving the country.
And three days later the shielding programme will be suspended, that is where those of us at extreme risk of Covid are told to completely isolate, so it will once again be considered safe enough for me to go outside. Although there is an exception to shielding for medical appointments, so I am going out tomorrow for my second vaccine dose.
So in theory, next Thursday it should be legal and safe for me to ride again. Despite the bike being left out to the elements, it has seemed to be in good condition whenever I have looked at it. Though there was that time I went to put the rubbish out and noticed the light on the USB switch was lit, making me think the battery will at least needing brining inside to recharge. Partly my fault for forgetting about the solar trickle charger I bought, but did not want to risk using when the weather was freezing. It has a service shortly before I had to go into hibernation last year, so everything else should be okay save maybe tyre pressure.
And at least I should get a chance to get in some short to medium distance riding before visiting my dad, as that will not be allowed until step 3. I only got to visit him once in the last year, and then after a seven month gap in riding. Quite a contrast with 2020 when I was visiting for a few days twice a week when he was in hospital, and then back every two or three weeks until the Covid restrictions.
Joined
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157 Posts
20 degrees Celcius next weekend, but this is then again California, not that here in San Francisco Bay and going north it could get chilly during winters. Worst place I took my bike years ago -- multiple times -- was the coastline from Mendocino driving north on Hwy 1, especially from Forth Bragg north.The combination of cold and humid winds from the Pacific is brutal if it's otherwise chilly.
Then the last part of Hwy1 north turns inlands into forests and suddenly the chilly weather is gone.
Then the last part of Hwy1 north turns inlands into forests and suddenly the chilly weather is gone.
Removed the battery.
A few weeks ago I remembered that at the start of last year the end of my street was taped off, and for about 24 hours Sky News, CNN, and others stood just beyond it broadcasting live because of a terrorism incident 200 yards from my front door. And yet that became a forgettable event because less than two months later the country was locked down and I was in isolation for most of the year.
But now leisure riding is legal, I am fully vaccinated, the weather is bright sunshine and 71 °F / 21°C. Not long now until we can just pretend last year never happened.
The bike looks in good order, though a tiny bit of rust on the chain rollers. That will be cleaned off through riding, the plates are still gleaming and it all still seems well lubricated. Turning the key though nothing happened, I expected the battery to be a bit flat but not to that extent. So I have put it on the charger, which starting at 6.1V quickly rose to 7.4V and then slowed right down.
It could do with a bit of a clean, nothing major but to just wipe away nature, and the tyre pressure checking. But I can do that tomorrow when I replace the battery.
Sadly the Easter weekend will drop to highs of around 50 °F / 10°C, but it will be dry so hopefully I will be able to fit in a little ride just so the bike and I can both ease in gently.
9.2V
A few weeks ago I remembered that at the start of last year the end of my street was taped off, and for about 24 hours Sky News, CNN, and others stood just beyond it broadcasting live because of a terrorism incident 200 yards from my front door. And yet that became a forgettable event because less than two months later the country was locked down and I was in isolation for most of the year.
But now leisure riding is legal, I am fully vaccinated, the weather is bright sunshine and 71 °F / 21°C. Not long now until we can just pretend last year never happened.
The bike looks in good order, though a tiny bit of rust on the chain rollers. That will be cleaned off through riding, the plates are still gleaming and it all still seems well lubricated. Turning the key though nothing happened, I expected the battery to be a bit flat but not to that extent. So I have put it on the charger, which starting at 6.1V quickly rose to 7.4V and then slowed right down.
It could do with a bit of a clean, nothing major but to just wipe away nature, and the tyre pressure checking. But I can do that tomorrow when I replace the battery.
Sadly the Easter weekend will drop to highs of around 50 °F / 10°C, but it will be dry so hopefully I will be able to fit in a little ride just so the bike and I can both ease in gently.
9.2V
Made my bike ridable. Battery charged, though after installing the meter on the USB sockets said it was only 11.7V. And then the USBs just stopped working completely.
Other electrical still worked, pumped up the tyres, wiped down the essentials, though it still needs a proper wash underneath.
Fuses okay and the wiring under the seat all okay, jiggling the connections there did nothing. So jiggled the connectors behind the headlamp and the USBs came back to life. The connection was fine, though, so I am wondering if it was a lose cable inside the sockets which benefited. Which would not be good, so I will have to keep a close watch on them.
Although the main value for them would to try the wrap around USB heated grips I bought at the start of the year but have yet been able to use. Only I have no idea where they have gone! I know where I put them at the time, but I tided up since then, which is always a mistake.
As of today I am no longer required isolate, the bike is now ready to ride, tomorrow is a holiday, so now just to decide whether I want to ride tomorrow. Which will probably depend on how I feel at the time.
Other electrical still worked, pumped up the tyres, wiped down the essentials, though it still needs a proper wash underneath.
Fuses okay and the wiring under the seat all okay, jiggling the connections there did nothing. So jiggled the connectors behind the headlamp and the USBs came back to life. The connection was fine, though, so I am wondering if it was a lose cable inside the sockets which benefited. Which would not be good, so I will have to keep a close watch on them.
Although the main value for them would to try the wrap around USB heated grips I bought at the start of the year but have yet been able to use. Only I have no idea where they have gone! I know where I put them at the time, but I tided up since then, which is always a mistake.
As of today I am no longer required isolate, the bike is now ready to ride, tomorrow is a holiday, so now just to decide whether I want to ride tomorrow. Which will probably depend on how I feel at the time.
Joined
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3 Posts
Nothing - I'm in saudi, my bike's in Thailand, not happy!
A mixed day for the bike.
I did not want to get out of bed and the weather was dull and horrible this morning, so I decided against riding. Then the sun started to come out and I thought I would got for a ride this afternoon. So I went to get the bike ready, which mainly meant restocking the top box with the essentials. Unfortunately I encountered a problem there.
The power supply to the box was intermittently failing, which would not be a problem (I was not used it) as it included the stop lights on the box, which are important because of how the box hides the bike's tail light. With no obvious electrical fault, I removed the box to check the contacts, and they were rather corroded looking. Cleaned them off, and all was good.
But the G.P.S. was also not always turning on with the bike, meaning not always getting a power connection. This is an old problem, and the main reason I decided to rewire everything last autumn. Again the wiring looked okay, so I wondered if it was the cradle at fault. Got out the multimeter and nothing I could do would stop the contacts reading around 5.5V, so I can only think the cause is either a design fault with how the TomTom connects with it, or with the actual device itself. But if it is intermittently connected long enough to not drain the battery then I guess it does not matter, so I decided to take the risk.
Also, although the charged battery showed 11.7V yesterday afternoon, today it was 11.9V thanks to the solar trickle charger. Despite the bike being in shade, and most of the time it was connected being overnight. Hopefully with that I will never have to worry about flat batteries again.
With bright sunshine as I worked my way through south London to the M25 for a section of Highway riding it was rather enjoyable. Then the highway ran out and turned into a standard A-road so the riding became more interesting, and slower traffic in front more annoying. It was, though, just super enjoyable being back on the bike, and it feeling like it is just flowing.
I reached my destination, Hastings, but having set off so late I did not have any time to spend there. But today's trip was just for me and the bike to get a feel for riding again, besides it was dull and cloudy anyway. It had not felt too cold, except for my hands where my fingers felt a little cold. Luckily I did find the USB grips so got to try them out. My verdict on them is inconclusive.
The grips looks fine, but I, was not sure how effective they could be at just 10.5W (being 5V and 2.1A). When I tested them indoors they felt good and warm, but that was without a cold wind. And in real world conditions, I am not sure the hottest (red) setting is any different to the Honda grips. They were too hot! The coldest (blue) was too cold, but the middle option (green) seemed about right. I am incredibly impressed.
The problem is that although they did not look that thick, the added width to the grips is very noticeable, and honestly a bit too much. And I used to use Grip Puppies (which I only removed because they were reducing the heat from the O.E.M. grips). A bit of repositioning helped, but I did end up with pain in my left thumb.
Admittedly, that could just be my arthritic joints and would have happened anyway. And with my right hand it was more difficult to cover the brake with the throttle open. I also had to remove the palm rest to put the grip on, which is a shame, Although a positive was I had more feeling in my hand than with the padding of using heated glove liners. Proper grips are clearly best, but the slip on ones are a useful backup until I can get my fixed or replaced.
Whilst I just took the main road out, the return direction was more rural and an uneventful journey through the Winnie the Pooh forest until the sun gave way to clouds again. And a shooting pain in my left thigh, which is not new and certainly arthritic, but thankfully it did not last too long. Whilst I may not have got to see any sights in Hastings, I did eventually get to see some British history.
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Dull day tomorrow, and I have things to do, so that is out. But sunny though cold on Sunday so maybe a proper trip then. But today was a reminder of many of the things I hate about riding, and all the things about it that are awesome. Overall, I missed it and it was fantastic to be back on the bike again.
I did not want to get out of bed and the weather was dull and horrible this morning, so I decided against riding. Then the sun started to come out and I thought I would got for a ride this afternoon. So I went to get the bike ready, which mainly meant restocking the top box with the essentials. Unfortunately I encountered a problem there.
The power supply to the box was intermittently failing, which would not be a problem (I was not used it) as it included the stop lights on the box, which are important because of how the box hides the bike's tail light. With no obvious electrical fault, I removed the box to check the contacts, and they were rather corroded looking. Cleaned them off, and all was good.
But the G.P.S. was also not always turning on with the bike, meaning not always getting a power connection. This is an old problem, and the main reason I decided to rewire everything last autumn. Again the wiring looked okay, so I wondered if it was the cradle at fault. Got out the multimeter and nothing I could do would stop the contacts reading around 5.5V, so I can only think the cause is either a design fault with how the TomTom connects with it, or with the actual device itself. But if it is intermittently connected long enough to not drain the battery then I guess it does not matter, so I decided to take the risk.
Also, although the charged battery showed 11.7V yesterday afternoon, today it was 11.9V thanks to the solar trickle charger. Despite the bike being in shade, and most of the time it was connected being overnight. Hopefully with that I will never have to worry about flat batteries again.
With bright sunshine as I worked my way through south London to the M25 for a section of Highway riding it was rather enjoyable. Then the highway ran out and turned into a standard A-road so the riding became more interesting, and slower traffic in front more annoying. It was, though, just super enjoyable being back on the bike, and it feeling like it is just flowing.
I reached my destination, Hastings, but having set off so late I did not have any time to spend there. But today's trip was just for me and the bike to get a feel for riding again, besides it was dull and cloudy anyway. It had not felt too cold, except for my hands where my fingers felt a little cold. Luckily I did find the USB grips so got to try them out. My verdict on them is inconclusive.
The grips looks fine, but I, was not sure how effective they could be at just 10.5W (being 5V and 2.1A). When I tested them indoors they felt good and warm, but that was without a cold wind. And in real world conditions, I am not sure the hottest (red) setting is any different to the Honda grips. They were too hot! The coldest (blue) was too cold, but the middle option (green) seemed about right. I am incredibly impressed.
The problem is that although they did not look that thick, the added width to the grips is very noticeable, and honestly a bit too much. And I used to use Grip Puppies (which I only removed because they were reducing the heat from the O.E.M. grips). A bit of repositioning helped, but I did end up with pain in my left thumb.
Admittedly, that could just be my arthritic joints and would have happened anyway. And with my right hand it was more difficult to cover the brake with the throttle open. I also had to remove the palm rest to put the grip on, which is a shame, Although a positive was I had more feeling in my hand than with the padding of using heated glove liners. Proper grips are clearly best, but the slip on ones are a useful backup until I can get my fixed or replaced.
Whilst I just took the main road out, the return direction was more rural and an uneventful journey through the Winnie the Pooh forest until the sun gave way to clouds again. And a shooting pain in my left thigh, which is not new and certainly arthritic, but thankfully it did not last too long. Whilst I may not have got to see any sights in Hastings, I did eventually get to see some British history.
Dull day tomorrow, and I have things to do, so that is out. But sunny though cold on Sunday so maybe a proper trip then. But today was a reminder of many of the things I hate about riding, and all the things about it that are awesome. Overall, I missed it and it was fantastic to be back on the bike again.
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