Glad to see this is up and running well for you! Awesome work!
Glad to see this is up and running well for you! Awesome work!
Are you still under budget if we want to do a "so unofficial we shouldn't mention GRM $1k GRM moto challenge"? Because with all the GRMers starting bike threads lately it's seeming like a possibility.
In reply to ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ :
I wish. I'm barely under normal Challenge budget at this point, but at least it got me to work today!
The front brake doesn't quite lock up, so I finally got around to replacing the pads and master cylinder. The only pads you can buy for this bike also cover other models, so the material is slightly too thick for the CB650 with single front rotors, which are like 0.26" compared to the dual 0.18" or so. I sanded almost 1mm off each new pad to get them to fit. The old pads look burnt up and contaminated, probably from the spray paint. The caliper, cylinder, and sliders are all in good shape so I just cleaned them up and regreased them. Unfortunately the Kawasaki-style brake MC interferes with the fork tubes, so I need to order a replacement Honda one. The original is rough and leaking.
In reply to maschinenbau :
From experience the front wheel locking up isn't a good thing. I wouldn't street test it.
Stampie said:In reply to maschinenbau :
From experience the front wheel locking up isn't a good thing. I wouldn't street test it.
Can confirm. Front wheel skids are bad mmmmkay.
New Honda-style MC fits perfectly and works much better. But it came with a chrome handle, and I ordered black. Works for now though.
I broke in the new pads. Smoky! No danger of accidentally locking up, but it brakes reliably strong now.
Over 1000 miles on my first bike. I ride it every chance I get and love every second of it. No real issues to report, just a bit of oil burning.
In reply to maschinenbau :
I'm sorry about the issues you had but glad you've pushed through them. Glad you're still happy with it.
In reply to ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ :
What what what? Sounds like fun...unofficially, of course. I'm already 95% of the way towards buying another bike anyway, and a challenge of sorts might be the final push I need.
I'm still riding at least once a week! Weather has been awesome so I've been riding to work primarily. This morning I met up with some old friends in the north GA mountains for twisty roads. With all the hiking trails shut down for the pandemic, the traffic was very light!
This was my first time on real mountain roads, as opposed to my usual urban commute. Summary:
2000 miles on this bike! Also first crash this morning. I'm fine, bike was fine, or so I thought until 50 mile later. Story once AAA takes me home.
Glad you're ok, interested in the story. If you conked your helmet remember that they're single use only!
Yes most important is that you're ok. If any doubt about a head injury get checked out.
Story starts last night. I gapped the plugs down from .040 to .030 because I theorize the spark is blowing out at high RPM. It seems much stronger in the upper power band now. This morning I headed up to the same mountain roads as last month. This time joined by a friend who is also new to riding, on his Royal Enfield 400 thumper. It's nice riding with similarly-skilled friends on similarly-slow bikes. Though mine is definitely faster :)
Blessed by beautiful weather that quickly dried up the roads, so we hit the curves pretty hard. Until one hit me.
Pretty textbook low-side on a slow, sharp hair-pin curve. I came in a little hot, and instead of leaning in more, I panic-braked which got me into the outer edge where some pebbles washed me out. Definitely smacked my head, left shoulder, left leg, and left hand. After this post I'm putting away screens and letting my head rest. I was able to get the bike out of the ditch with the help of some much burlier bikers. I drained the carb bowls, let them refill, and it fired right up because old Honda. She's definitely hurt though. Headlight bracket collapsed, mirror is toast, and engine case is badly scraped. I was pretty sure that was the extent of the damage after checking everythign else out, so I continued to ride.
I realized at this point I was VERY lucky for my body and bike to be so healthy, so I took it easy the rest of the morning.
One little thing I noticed was the chain seemed to be wobbling a bit. But I couldn't remember if that's how it always was. After finishing up in the mountains and heading home down the freeway about 50 miles, the chain suddenly pop-and-dropped at 70 MPH. Instantly had 5 neutrals, so I coasted off to the shoulder.
Again, VERY lucky that the chain didn't wrap around my leg, the wheel, or the frame. I think it simply fell out the bottom. Buddy was a few cars behind me and said he didn't see anything.
Trans case looks pretty hammered. But the engine was running fine again because old Honda.
AAA took me home on my semi-annual exercise of my membership.
Gear inspection - Helmet is definitely getting replaced with the exact same unit. Very satisfied with how it performed today. Left glove has a hole in the palm, but my skin palm is completely unscathed. Jacket left shoulder barely looks damaged. Even through leather-encased armor, I still have a big scrape on my skin shoulder. John Hoopes gave me this jacket at the $2000 Challenge last year and I'm very grateful for it.
Always wear your gear. Ride safe and within your limits.
So I guess I won't be riding for a while... I need to decide how much scope to creep with this bike. I would love to tear the engine open and reseal all the oil leaking paths, paint the frame, rebuild the front forks, put better brakes on it, possible triple-tree swap. But then I wouldn't have a bike for a while. I'm not going to think about it for a bit.
Glad to hear the extent of damages is not horrible. A recess to gather your thoughts and goals is not a bad idea.
Everyone crashes. Everyone. Good that this was relatively minor. "Ride within your limits" is good advise that was drilled into me hard. After my first real crash.
Scope creep is real, but I'd take some time to reseal the engine and clean everything up while you take some time to heal up and get some time between you and that crash.
Glad again that you're ok. The bike will be fine because as you say, old Honda. I still really dig cafe bikes, love old Honda stuff. Clean it up a bit, you'll be happy you did.
So glad you came out of that with only minor scrapes. Hopefully the aches and cobwebs go away soon and you can start calculating the next step. Glad the jacket helped!
That bit of road rash is great for a first lesson on how quick E36 M3 can happen. My friend at GT back in 90 was hurting for months learning the same lesson. Hoping that's it for your injuries. Put the bike in the corner and come back to it later after you're good.
Glad you are able to tell the tale. If you haven't already, take an MSF safety course. The one by me is offered at the local community college every weekend, cheap too.
Get some time on a dirt-bike on some fire roads, learn how to wheelie over obstacles, dirt track it a little if the rear hangs out, and make as many mistakes as you can there riding with a buddy knowing that you aren't going to get run over by a texting driver.
Every other driver, and fate, are all trying to kill you ALL THE TIME. Always be thinking about what the drivers around you are doing, how they could screw you over, and what you would do in that situation, before it happens. Think it through, position yourself out of the way before it happens and then watch like magic as the monkeys do dumb stuff in cars just like you predicted.
Imagine an infinite corkboard in you mind with open envelopes tacked to it. For every problem you perceive and act on before it happens, file away those instructions in an envelope for that situation. It will happen again. And again. And again. Eventually reacting to dangerous situations becomes automatic because you aren't just riding along like a blob, you are thinking about what you would do if things turn ugly. When it happens, you are not going to white knuckle panic, you're going to do what the instructions say. You've already thought this through. Front wheel blowout on the highway? My envelope said DO NOT touch the brakes (especially the front), weight over the back wheel, arms loose and let it drift where it wants to go, ease in a little correction on the bars to keep it in your lane, ease up on the throttle. Steer it like a boat to the shoulder. nudge nudge...drift drift. Get off and change your pants. I didn't have extra pants, but every thing else went according to plan.
Countersteering: Push right to go right, push left to go left. Whichever side you push, the bike will fall toward that side initiating the turn. you can also tighten or loosen your arc in a turn by just adjusting your pressure on the bars. If you haven't done it, it will blow your mind. Also if you hang your weight inside the turn, the bike doesn't have to lean as far to carve the same circle. Weird, but true. If you get in trouble in a turn, get your weight inside and low and hike it over.
My first real street bike was a 1972 CB750K. Weisco 811 pistons, Kerker 4-into-1, accel coils, Barnett clutch, jetted carbs, 3 angle valve job , cams, tapered roller bearings in the steering stem, low rise GP bars, progressive fork springs and revalved dampers inside the front fork legs. I rode it to high school in 1983 & 84, even a few times in the winter with chains on the rims. Mental patient. Any way, the center stand and underside of the pegs were all worn away from dragging them in turns on pure E36 M3e for tires. The point being, when you get in trouble in a corner, dial in more lean angle and get your weight inside the turn. Try to get most of your braking done in a straight line, you can trail brake into a corner, but that takes practice. Your tires have a finite amount of grip. You can ask them to brake, accelerate, or turn, just try not to ask for more than one thing at a time if you can help it.
If you can find the video, you really want to watch Keith Code's Twist of the Wrist movie based on his books, Twist of the Wrist volumes 1 & 2. It used to be kicking around on you tube, but that was a bootleg copy. The acting is terrible, but entertainingly goofy.. Think or it like you are watching an educational after school special.
Glad you are on the mend. Sweet ride. Good luck with it. Remember, sticky side down.
There are three types of riders...those who have been down, those who are going down, and those who are going down again.
I lost a lot of skin on my first down on the street. I was wearing a t-shirt, shorts, and loafers with holes in them. I lost my shoes in the off. Road pizza from my pinkie toe to my pinkie on my left side.
ATGATT.
Glad you're okay.
Recovery was quick and I feel great. This weekend's weather had me itching to ride again...even searching for an "interim" bike.
But here's some more damage pictures. I can't tell from eye-balling if the sprocket is aligned to the rear wheel. Lots of aluminum shavings. Not sure they happened all at once from the chain break, or if there was contact before. I'd think I would hear the chain hitting something. I also can't tell if any engine mounting brackets are bent, or if the frame itself is bent. I need to figure out how to check sprocket-to-sprocket alignment, because that's my leading theory and probably what needs to be fixed. For now I drained the carbs and tank so it can sit for a while.
Sorry you tipped over. 
Glad you were wearing gear. That little thing was the difference between a bit of a boo boo, and some serious injury and pain.
How easy is it to source a new side case?
New chain and sprockets are installed, just waiting on some chain cleaner/lube and a new helmet to try it out. I took good care to align the rear wheel, using a straight edge to check angle between the sprockets. Either the frame or the swing arm is definitely bent, due to how much I had to angle the rear wheel. Check out the 1/4" to 3/8"difference in the adjuster bolts. I did rip around the block and it seems to ride smooth, but only high speed will tell if the chain slaps like it did before it failed.
I think I can "un-bend" the frame by laying the bike over on my engine hoist, strapping the the frame to the hoist legs, and pulling on the engine in the opposite direction I crashed. But I think it's ride-able for now.
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