Unfinished Project [Part Two] Getting There.

 

Madagascan Vanilla Custard

A pleasant couple of weeks spent pottering around on the ‘unfinished project’ no major heartache just working through the boxes of bits that came with the bike and choosing what to keep and what to offload on EvilBay [first thing was the undoubtedly well made brown leather ‘brat style’ seat, me and ‘brat style’? Nah] I decided to keep the standard seat, just removed the pointless passenger grab strap, that’s more like it.

The standard silencers were removed but the catalyser was still present cunningly positioned between the down pipes below the radiator, radiator? yup, this is the first of the water/air cooled Bonnevilles.

It’s a bit of a faff to remove the [very heavy] cat involving the removal of one bolt-on down tube on the frame but a really simple job. The P.O. [previous owner] had spent a lot of money on aftermarket parts from Triumphs catalogue including the high-level Vance and Hines two into one exhaust pipe which in all honesty is a bloody lovely piece of kit. To fit it requires a new scalloped side panel and heat shield again an extra in the Triumph aftermarket catalogue. 

Everything fits lovely with none of the usual ‘massaging’ of parts to allow fitment and let’s face it so it should for a very salty £1500, [not long ago you could get a decent bike with an mot for that money!] Along with the exhaust the P.O. had purchased the ‘factory’ bash plate and cosmetic ‘side bits’ that hides the space when you remove the cat. Reading that back it sounds a bit ‘Shoreditch’ probably everything I’ve always hated in the past but I sat for a few hours with a brew looking at it with and without but finally came to the conclusion that it looks better ‘with’ so they are staying. For now. Unless I change my mind and take them off.

Amongst the other goodies that came with the bike were LED indicators, [nice, small, bright, winner, winner, chicken dinner] heated grips, genuine Triumph heated grips, none of that 1981 motorcycle despatch rider, CX500, Oxford, massive electrickery control box that looks like something out of Dr Who’s Tardis mounted with crosshead, Pozi-Drive screws on the left hand side of the bars.

Digging through the boxes I discovered Triumph bar-end mirrors which I didn’t like on first look but I’m going to try to see what there like as I have the Oberon’s off the KTM Duke if I don’t like them, there was also a horrible, piece of shit tailtidy which was the ultimate in cheap tat and discarded immediately and placed on said ‘Bay to be snapped up by an eager beaver with an EC2 postcode which was nice.

So, no major engineering, just a simple bolt it together job, everything was pretty clean, judicious use of my trusty torque wrench, a dab of Loctite here and a healthy coating of the dreaded copper grease and everything went together with the minimum of fuss. I had to replace the front brake pads, upgraded to EBC HH items as the standard items had inexplicably fused together, possibly damp? Why did I decide to change a light weight, fast 105 bhp machine for something that’s heavier and with half the power? Well, although the 790 Duke was an exciting machine it eventually proved to be a bit of a liability on the road, it encouraged hooligan behaviour and hands up time, I admit to indulging in it every time I rode it, in the cold light of day, sitting in the shed with a beer and reflecting I decided it had to go. It turned me into a knob and I rode it accordingly, it had to go. With hindsight, [a wonderful thing] I should have kept the Guzzi and traded the KTM but hey, I’m a bloke, big bollocks and all that, stay tuned race fans..............

 

Unfinished Project

 Unfinished Project. Shattered dreams and failure laid bare on a ‘well known internet auction site’ What starts out as a dream bike, more often than not, ends up desperately trying to recoup some money, trying to hide how much you have actually spunked, hiding those receipts from your better half and which is probably more telling, having to admit to yourself that you didn’t actually have the funds/acumen/skill/time/commitment to see it through.

     Hey, there’s no shame,there, I’ve had to bail a hundred times when I sat down in the shed, in the cold light of day and realise that I was in above my head. My ill fated dabble at racing bit me on the arse, I didn’t have the skill or funds to pursue my dream, my race MZ engines were £1400 a go. I blew,two at Snetterton one weekend. That’s big money. Keith Richard wouldn’t spend that much on coke. The BMW race bike was never going to be competitive, the bloke with the Laverda Jota, gixxer wheels, Brembo M4 calipers and wavy discs was always head and shoulders above a couple of wankers who liked engineering and building bikes, [to the rule book, which sadly seemed to get forgotten when the series ‘champion’ and all the money pumped in via sponsorship got the rules ‘massaged’]

 So, scanning the ‘net one night and I chanced on the fabled ‘unfinished project’ a Triumph Street Twin, the original owner bought the bike new and rode it for a thousand miles before deciding to build his ultimate machine, endless nights on the web, buying parts, stripping the bike doŵn to large component parts, a big stack of bits sitting in a [ may I say, a very, very nicely appointed manspace/garage/clubhouse] filled with expensive four wheeled exotica and classic motor racing ephemera]

 The bloke had stripped the bike down to component parts, four boxes of bits, but soon lost the impetus to to make his dreams real. He showed me the receipts for the bike and parts he had bought, bloody hell, serious mullah! He’d realised he was in above his head and decided to bail, unfortunately he’d already offloaded the Brembo brake conversion kit but the sum of the parts was more than I had into the 790 Duke so a simple swap deal was my offer which he jumped at. He gets a complete, running, mint bike and I get?well, I get a bunch of bits that needs bolting together.........

Disco From A Space Show

 So, sat in the shed listening to one of the excellent Numero Group compilation albums of rare soul/funk/disco, [must admit buying a lot of the vinyl records from this imprint but that’s by the by, trouble is they are quite rare in the UK, so postage from the States adds a whole lot of mullah to the bill, they are also limited editions and finding copies sees me searching EvilBay and Discogs almost every day for listings] Sorry, drifted a tad there, back to motorcycles. Anyone notice anything missing in this photo?

    

Moto Vloggers

 Moto Vloggers. YouTube is inundated with opinionated, free loading tossers posting downright boring and may I say embarrassing reviews on motorcycles, some are downright amateurish, cringeworthy and in some cases actually dangerous with the ‘advice’ that they post and laugh out loud errors when getting into the more technical aspects of the machines that they are critiquing  Then there’s the slickly produced almost cinematic Vlogs, brilliant photography, great music and slickly produced but sadly lacking any ‘soul’ and definitely aping the turgid ‘Top Gear’ style of presentation.

    So, dear readers, who or what are my recommendations for good YouTube motorcycle Vlogs? Well first up is the brilliant 44 Teeth, starring Al Fagan [Statham] and Baron Von Grumble [Sue Perkins]  and new boy Mike Booth [Boothy] These lads are seriously talented riders, [Fagan and Boothy have both raced in the TT and various classes in British Superbikes] the bike reviews are honest and informative as well as outrageously funny, it really is like having a laugh with a couple of mates, lots of swearing, farts, belches and references to Jizz as well as some stunning onboard riding footage. 

    The 44 Teeth Budget Bike Battle is legendary, they buy a bike for a couple of grand and proceed to tour across Europe and complete a trackday or two on what are basically a couple of knackers, hugely entertaining but the boys are up for anything from endurance racing on a 125cc Suzuki to riding across the deserts in Morocco. Definitely my number one channel, catch it quick before it goes behind a paywall.

     Also up there for me is Chris Northover who sometimes presents on the Bike World channel. Chris is another ex racer, stuntman and demon mx racer and up and coming flat track rider who is a ridiculously talented rider and his reviews are excellent, when he chuckles when he’s doing wheelies and skids on bikes [see the FTR 1200 picture above] it really is infectious and I know when he shouts ‘Weeeeh!] when cresting a rise and the front wheel comes up that he somehow embodies the joy and fun of riding a motorcycle without pretension.

     My final choice is one of the smaller channels, Rarified Road, the presenter, Tim, by his own admission isn’t a vastly experienced rider, [give him a break, he’s only a young guy!] and he doesn’t try and make out that he knows everything about the inner workings and mechanics of the machines that he tests but his reviews are charming and filled with dry self deprecating humour which is sadly lacking in a lot of the other tripe out there, well worth checking out. 

     So, gentle reader, what are your own recommendations? What hidden gems are hiding out there that I haven’t discovered yet? Answers on a postcard, send a carrier pigeon or just comment below.....

Quick update, just realised that the YouTube links don’t show on the mobile version of the blog, click ‘view web version’ to see the links........

King of the Baggers

https://youtu.be/BOFDCnA7zb8

So, the season of fruitful mellowness descends on us once again, the clocks have gone back, it’s getting dark at five in the afternoon, the leaves are falling from the trees and we continue to lurch into civil disobedience, lockdowns loom on the horizon, [too late for Wales, it’s ok to buy a bottle of vodka but you can’t purchase a birthday card as it’s a ‘non-essential item’] but anyway onto more important matters.

As the blogosphere disappears at an alarming rate to be replaced by TikTok videos of narcissistic morons singing on the toilet, throwing children over the sofa and licking food in Walmart I must admit to trawling YouTube for entertainment. One of the channels I’ve subscribed to is MotoAmerica, it’s a bit like BSB with similar support classes, 600 Supersport, LiquiMoly Talent Cup, etc, some hard and fast racing from iconic tracks, even before lockdown there wasn’t the same crowds as BSB but some good racing nevertheless. 

When the idea of racing ‘baggers’ was muted I must admit to being down with it straight away, I mean what could be more improbable than the thought of massoof overweight Harley and Indian lard arse touring bikes being ragged mercilessly around a track especially as the rules allow turbo charging, wheel, brake, suspension and fork changes? A true ‘silhouette’ class, [harking back to the ‘original’ AMA Superbikes] so long as it looks ‘standard’ you’re good to go. 

So, I’ve been looking forward to the inaugural ‘King of the Baggers’ race for some time and been following the Vance and Hines Harley build and the Roland Sands Indian bike builds with interest, throw in the Indian Factory bikes and the amazing Trask turbocharged bikes and some very talented riders and I wasn’t disappointed with the race! I’ve posted a link to the full race, I really hope this takes off, it’s the most innovative thing I’ve seen for years and hugely entertaining. Kudos to the riders, anyone who can wrestle one of these monsters around Laguna Seca’s corkscrew has massive cojones......

Sudden Awareness Of Now

 

Yma Fod Yn Ddreigiau

 

If I Should Fall To The Field

 This time of year usually sees me getting my kit ready for the annual pilgrimage to the Island for the Classic TT/Manx GP, unfortunately during these strange times that’s not happening this year. So, after a particularly sad week in which I lost another dear friend to a motorcycle accident I started to question if this obsession is indeed worth the heartache. I put off riding for four days, not wishing out of respect or perhaps fear of putting my loved ones through the same feelings of loss that my friends family are going through at this time. 

 I can’t articulate the sensation of riding a motorcycle, many more talented people have tried before, it is, without wanting to sound like a walking [riding] cliche something that if you have never experienced it you really wouldn’t understand, [told you] 

 We are basically a big soft bag of muscle, tissue and blood, it’s not speed that kills it’s stopping abruptly, usually through hitting an inanimate object. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve played out this scenario in my head, both consciously and in my dreams, is this my ultimate destiny? Some stranger turning across my path? [‘I didn’t see him’] our lives intertwined by fate, perhaps a misjudgment as I enter a bend, a trail of diesel from a careless trucker over filling his tank? The track day where circumstances go against us? The ‘racing incident?’  I don’t know, no one ever really knows, we have two important dates in life, the one when we are born and the one when we finally shuffle off this mortal coil. 

   What I will say though is that I’d rather continue to experience the feelings that I get riding my motorcycles, whatever the risk, than succumb to the humdrum, boring, tartan blanket wearing existence that non-riders have. Richard ‘Nobby’ Newbold. Love you mate.

True Love Will Find You In The End

 As much as I love my FTR1200 and fair play to Indian Motorcycles for marketing it as a race oriented machine it’s got nothing in common with the pukka race bikes other than the name on the tank, [all the other manufacturers are on the same kick, your Honda/Kawasaki/Yamaha/Ducati/BMW isn’t the same as the bikes that are winning Moto GP/TT/BSB/MotoAmerica] Winning races counts. It sells bikes. Always has done but a road going bike with all the road going compromises isn’t the same as a full-on Factory bike that’s sole purpose is to go fast, handle well at extreme angles of lean, brake with the ‘g’ force of a fighter plane and win races.

     The two main protagonists in the American Flat Track series are Indian and Harley Davidson, same as it ever was, [but fair play to Yamaha giving the big two a run for their money with JD Beach taking time out from the Moto America super sport series to race the very special, very rapid, MT07] 

So, where’s this going then? Well, the nights are drawing in and I’m hankering after the possibility of a new project to keep me busy over the long winter nights. Enter the Harley Davidson 750 Streetrod. Yup, you heard me right,  the unfashionable, water cooled, ‘entry-level’ budget, not-made-in-the-USA target of mucho hilarity amongst the chap-wearing, lardy arsed H.O.G. wankers who think camping is mincing around the local bike night wearing mirror shades and looking tough and have no knowledge of the  racing heritage between these two famous manufacturers. I must admit to not actually realising the history until I saw the memorial at Daytona Beach. A feeling of real humility, same as I get when I go over to the Isle of Man.

You can pick up a late model of the 750 for around four grand. A little bit of whoo, a little bit of wah a sprinkling of fairy dust and a healthy dose of hacksaw should sort it out...../

Considered Thoughts - The Indian FTR1200

So, why did I choose the Indian FTR 1200 as my new whip? There are more powerful, faster, better handling machines available but my decision was purely based on how it made me feel and the sheer ‘fun-factor’ rather than any ‘practical’ reasons, I don’t have to ride a bike to and fro from work everyday like back in the day, I’m not touring on it, I don’t need luggage capacity, [although I can bungee my 50ltr Oxford Dri-Sac onto the pillion seat with ease] I don’t need ‘adventure bike’ capability [and whilst we are on the subject my choice would be a Royal Enfield Himalayan over  any massive, plastic encrusted GS/Multistrada/Triumph Tiger any day ]The FTR is a heavy beast at 225 kg dry, it packs 123 bhp and a staggering 80 ft torque, to put it into perspective my KTM 790 Duke weighs 169kg, has 105 English Pony’s and 66 ft of torque, that, by my reckoning equates to the Indian being 56kg heavier! But, it’s not all about figures, I can assure you once on the move the extra weight isn’t apparent at all. The riding position is the most comfortable I’ve ever experienced on a motorcycle, the bar/seat/foot peg ratio is spot on, the seat is plush and comfortable [ hey, remember your talking to someone who’s ridden hard tail choppers with conveyor belt rubber for a seat and quarter inch rubber on my race bikes as a consession to comfort!] The Pro-Taper bars fall easily to hand with a great rise that immediately puts you in control, they are just right, not too high or low and nice and wide to give loads of feel, the foot pegs are aluminium dirt bike inspired items, I’ve seen some people moaning about them being slippy but I’ve had no problems with them. The clutch is a cable item and is super light in operation, front brake is a Brembo radial mastercylinder, span adjustable and provides more braking power than you will ever need on the road. Twin 320mm front brake discs are semi-floating and mounted directly to the hub to save the extra weight and complexity of a disc carrier, calipers are the excellent four-pot Brembo M4 items late of this parish and found on Aprilia/Ducati/KTM superbikes. There is, of courseABS fitted as standard. And that is the sum total of rider aids on this bike. Yup, no wheelie mitigation, no traction control, just your throttle and brake input to save you from headbutting the scenery and that in my book is all you blinking well need squire!I could of course go on all day about the excellent Sachs suspension, the meticulous attention to detail with deep, deep paint, nice fasteners and excellent fit, finish and general all-over quality of the bike but I’d rather talk about that engine. It’s a torque beast, any sign of dampness and you are spinning up the wheel in fourth and fifth gear, the thing does it in the dry too, never lairy in a bad way, it just makes you come over all Jared Mees, the back-end steps out and gets squirrely but never in an ‘oh shit’ way, the bike has a way of making you feel like a hero, the standard exhaust is quiet at town speeds allowing for stealth-mode but give it the berries and you are met with a raucous noise as the induction noise rises and it sucks greedily for air. This thing is fast but more than that it’s FUN! And that for me is what it’s all about. I heard a great comparison recently, this isn’t a Ferrari or Lamborghini, this is a brutal, raw Ford Mustang or Dodge Charger, yes it goes around corners but it’s never going to compete with a sportsbike around the turns, that’s not to say it doesn’t handle because it does, but jumping off a sportsbike onto this is a totally different experience and it needs to be treated with a little respect [cue 80’s Erasure tune]So, bad points? The filler cap is a lovely, billet Indian ‘I’ icon item, non-hinged that you have to remove before refuelling, first time I filled up the bastard rolled off the pump and bent my key at 45 degrees! not good. The fuel tank isn’t a fuel tank, it’s actually the air box and the tank is under the seat to keep the weight low slung. You need to be really careful when fuelling, the tank will belch raw fuel all over you, the bike, the car at the adjacent pump, the kids hanging out of the window of the car at the adjacent pump, the two people walking the dog past the local garage, you get the picture? Ball-ache. The standard mirrors are shit. Replace them with bar-end items, preferably Oberon, problem solved. Tyres? The Dunlop DT3-R’s are specific to the FTR, a blocky tread pattern, they move around and take a little getting used to but I’ve ridden supermoto’s on Dunlop Mutant’s and they feel very similar. If you are used to a more sporty profile you are going to be in for a surprise but they are not as bad as everyone says they are, that being said I will replace them for something more street oriented when I’ve worn them out. [which won’t be long, ahem] And then there’s the fuel economy, [or lack of] listen, the tank is small, the best you are ever going to see is 130 miles from brim-full to empty and that’s riding it sensibly, which, let’s face is never going to happen. Get over it, if you want a bike for fuel economy this isn’t for you. If you want a practical, do-it-all bike then this isn’t for you, if you want a raw riding experience, shits and giggles bike then step this way........

 

Dusting For Smoke

 Saturday night. Post-ride comedown.

What Comes Back

Big Steve’s brilliant homage to the OG, ‘80’s super bike racer done with a twist. Get yourself an Ed-u-macation as an old mate used to say. Original frame, strengthened by the addition of bracing so subtle you wouldn’t have even noticed it if I hadn’t told you, [did the same on my GS thou and Katana, right-way-up Ohlins  forks to keep the period correct look but twinned with Ohlins twin-shock loveliness to suspend the rear end, that swing arm is an original Harris item, commissioned by Big Steve and looks very spindly compared to my FTR but look at it, eccentric chain adjustment and a rose jointed torque arm, pure 80’s bike-porn! Exhaust you say? Moriwaki seamed aluminium item with welded seams, bodywork is standard including the take-the-piss grabrail, decals aren’t decals, they are sprayed on but look like stickers. I love the whole juxtaposition of this bike, standard clocks but the 1170 [forget what it says on the sidepanels] engine is twin-plugged and running two separate ignition systems,  [Steve tries to explain it to me but I’m fucked, he is a development engineer at Rolls Royce working on mind blowing shit, he turned up with a model that he got his apprentices to develop involving 3D printers, gears, bearings, just amazing stuff, I’m an old-school wheel turner, using rulers, gauges and bits of string cut to length!] anyhoo, Dymag wheels but not stupidly oversized, the CR carbs look like they grew there, ISR brake lever and mastercylinder, blacked-out barrels and heads, polished casings, Brembo calipers and titanium fasteners. Feast your eyes brethren, praise the Lord and pass the ammunition.......

Nathan Fake

Bastard

Friday, hottest day of the year, Bob the Dog walked early doors, home before seven in the am and it’s already twenty-two degrees, quick shower and warm up the FTR as I sort out my riding gear. Where to go? The Rollright Stones beckon, the ancient stone circle bordering Warwickshire and Oxfordshire, a 120 mile ride, not been here for around ten years, Chuck a sandwich and bottle of water in my bag and off we bloody well trot, it’s good to be riding at this time in the morning, too late to miss the work traffic/school run/ granny shopping trip, still warm though even though I’ve unzipped my jacket liner, I’m wearing Daneise armoured jeans and my ubiquitous greasy Doc Marten  boots. Out through rural Leicester, past Mallory and into the Home of Triumph, {or ‘Inckley as we know it] on to the A5, [how many times have I travelled this road? Memories of the Hells Angels Kent Custom Bike Show and British GP races at Silverstone] I stop to re-fuel and grab a can of cold coffee before turning onto the Fosse Way and head south. As I walk back towards the bike I can see something glinting in the full sunshine, closer inspection reveals a Pozidrive screw firmly imbedded in my rear tyre. Deep fucking joy. It had all been going so swimmingly until this point.

I walked away and sat in the shade of the only tree for miles, chugging my ice cold coffee and laughed. It’s a beautiful day, sunshine beating down and I’m riding a great bike, something as inconvenient as a puncture shouldn’t ruin it. 

Finishing my caffeine fix I return to the bike and push my fingers into the still warm compound, it’s still firm, I fish out my knife and carefully work the blade under the head of the screw until there’s enough to grasp between my thumb and forefinger and gently prise it out. PPPPSSSHHHH! The tell tale sound of air escaping from a tyre. YOU BASTARD! I’d hoped hope against hope that I’d collected a pop rivet or short screw, no such luck. The full Bangladesh, English Breakfast, All you can eat, full on two inch, [or 50mm if you are metric] twin taper screw. 

I pushed it straight back into the tyre and decided to just ride as far home as I could without resorting to calling the very nice man, the very, very nice man. 

Ten minutes into my ride home, telling myself to behave and take it steady I’m still riding like a twat and continued to do so until I got home. Bike up on the paddock stand and I work the trusty blade under the screw head, flat within seconds. Today was a good day.......

Wordy Rappinghood

Question. Is the blogging format dead? Is it time for me to start posting video? Would anyone out there like video format rather than rambling?