Archive for April, 2008

Ep 3: Sand, heat and nipples

Published
by
Waz
on April 28, 2008
in Episodes
. 4 Comments

In this episode, we dismantle a front wheel, removing the brake discs, spokes and nipples - and Trent brings out the blowtorch to free up some sticky bolts. Pete builds a sandblasting cabinet, mostly out of junk, and continues work on his KTM 950, while Rich is getting close to his BMW being back on the road.

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There was no way Pete was letting me put the new twin-disc front wheel on my bike without at least giving the shabby hub a paint job. That means stripping the hub, which means breaking down the wheel, which means removing the spokes and nipples, which means replacing any that are in poor shape or simply don’t survive disassembly … you can see how this job snowballed.

The first stage is to remove the brake discs. You do this with the wheel still fully assembled - because you probably couldn’t get the spokes out with the discs still on, and even if you could, it’s easier to remove the discs while you’ve still got the rim to hang on to. Continue reading ‘Ep 3: Sand, heat and nipples’

Motorcycle friendliness

Published
by
pete
on April 21, 2008
in Beer fridge
. 1 Comment

AT on the Shandur Pass Oh my poor Africa Twin (aka XRV 750, or just simply AT). Ever since the KTM 950 came on the scene the Honda has been neglected, abused and reduced to my daily commuter. It wasn’t always like this though; there was a time when it was the best bike I had ever owned and took me to far-flung places many other bikes couldn’t. Good memories, and with 120,000 kilometres on the clock it’s not worth anything to anyone but me.

One of the very few things to ever go wrong on my AT was the regulator/rectifier. It’s one of those electrical components you look at and think “I wonder what that does.” You don’t really find out until it fails. Continue reading ‘Motorcycle friendliness’

Monster: Bike of the decade?

Published
by
Waz
on April 11, 2008
in Beer fridge
. 3 Comments

The previous decade, I mean …

Got together with Pete, Trent and Richard last night, and Pete had the latest issue of Motorcycle News featuring Ducati’s reinvention of the Monster, the 696 (you’ve got to check out this Ducati promo, it’s a giggle).

Riding to work the same morning, I had been thinking of how, for me, the Monster would have to be the bike of the 1990s.

I remember when my mate Dave bought his. It was the year 1997, I think. I had a Cagiva Elefant 900 back then, and riding a bike with the 750 Ducati engine was a revelation.

The pig-headed, snatchy, lumpy low-end, dry-clutched 900 engine is fun in its way, once you get used to it. Dave’s Monster was fun right from the word go - a willing engine that pulled right off the line and a really flickable frame. My arms were splayed out to grip the bars, and my grin was almost as wide. The all-round nicer engine is the reason I have the 750 version of the Elefant these days. Continue reading ‘Monster: Bike of the decade?’