| Lightfall at the Cranbourne Botanic Gardens |
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| No, we haven't been robbed by an organised crime gang. |
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Our fabric supplier has dramas and will not be able to supply us our Charcoal (black) CS12 canvas until at least the end of the month. We are still taking orders to me made as soon as it turns up.
The good news is that we have a few sets of the Camel coloured 28 year Anniversary bags left. |
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Despite crackin' weather, attendance at this year's event was down. Saturday usually sees the bike park chocka block but it was only a short ogle this year.
This year's event was not run by Motorcycle Australia, or Motorcycling Victoria. It was funded and brought to you by Mick and Rachelle Pettifer from the Event Medical Team. It seems there's been some sort of upset and fracturing that's happened, and Mick and Rachelle picked up the baton and pulled this year's event together.
It was relaxed, smooth and friendly. Be there or be Square Four next year! |
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The Dr is finally back in one piece, the process of ironing out a few teething issues and sorting out the set-up begins.
Just a recap, the bike is sweet as a nut, I'm in the process of setting it up as my Old Fart bike when the Kato gets too big. The joy of a lightweight mount was really pressing my buttons but it was just too 'Enduro' to be a travel bike.
All the other upgrades required to get it over the line were done... I was in deep. The last job was the big one. Spend half the value of the thing on a motor upgrade. So off it went to Skinny's Garage for an Athena 440 top end and wide ratio down the bottom. |
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| Purv stepped up and generously helped shoehorn the donk in |
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| Not a job for the faint-hearted was the task of re-installing the motor. There is a huge amount of kit jammed into a compact space. If things aren't done in the right order it is not happening. |
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| The connector is just not going through the gap, more fk'n about, back tracking required. |
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Like all jobs, the next one will be a lot smoother sailing. The motor was transported in a crate bolted to a frame on the base of it. Through the swing arm pivot they place a spacer. We didn't notice the spacer and tried to install the motor with it in situ. When taking it out the swing arm shaft was binding and let go with a rush flying out the right side, dropping the swing arm and all the relevant spacers in a pile on the bench... Faaaark!
The oil drain plug was only in finger tight and oil leaked into places that needed some backtrack dismantling to clean it up. It was off with the bashplate again when a leak in the right side crankcase cover caused by a couple of loose bolts, smeared bike blood around. |
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| Following my Dad's sage advice, I booked it into Byrner's, the local Suzuki dealer's workshop for a checkover. He used to say - "If you do your own mechanical work - you have a fool for a customer". |
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What's the verdict? The first finding was that that gearbox is, no surprises, W I D E ratio. With Supermoto front sprocket it wasn't going to be happy in top gear below 90kph. Back home it went and got the original 15 tooth unit replaced. Life is full of compromises, Adventure bikes more. |
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| Where the bike used to stress and rev uncomfortably out of the highway, now it snaps past slower-moving traffic with ease. Forty CC isn't a big increase in capacity but it does have a crisper 'feel'. It's taking a while to learn to ride the gearbox but it's coming to me now that I have the motor nearly 'run-in'. It's a barrel of fun on the twisties and inspires confidence when the road turns to ruts. |
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You may remember that last issue I asked the question of whether I had a product or a brain fart after a flash at making myself a small packable BBQ.
Stuff me if it proved that it was the former. We were shocked at the response.
If you'd like to have a pup out of the second litter sing out.
They'll set you back $93 plus post.
CLICK here |
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Why on earth do the Japanese factories move at a glacial pace?
A picture of a DR650 RS from 1990 on timewaster.com stirred up my ire once again!
From Tenere to V Strom, DR to XR, I've been constantly and consistently amazed at the opportunities the Japanese marques have let slip through their spanners. |
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Here's a good-looking, simple bike that somehow morphed into, granted the much-loved cooking model DR650. Why undertake development to file it under too hard?
Yamaha leapt into the TRX 850 in the late nineties with a cracking motor and a sweet handling package as the world bemoaned the stillbirth of the 750 Super Tenere, the natural progressing from the XT 600. By 1996 it was all over. |
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After a solid procrastinatory, nervy delay the world had the TDM foisted on it. Don't get me wrong I like the TDM to ride. What wasn't to like? That cracking motor, R1 brakes and a comfy ride. But to look at... yuck! And, it had the dirt road credentials of a Commodore.
So... they had a stonking motor, an iconic name and hands glued to a seat which are in turn stuck to their bums.
The next step was surely a Super Tenere with the 850 motor! |
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| By this time, BMW was up to its third generation GS with the 1100 domination era, leaving their air-cooled twins behind. |
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Similarly, Honda had a cult bike by the mid 'naughties' and packed it in the back of the shed for 13 years. They then seem to get struck by a big idea - release another bike, one that uses the same name, even catchphrases like 'Adventure Sports' slapped on the plastics. In the interim, we had the bland but functional Transalp.
For years the Australian market was pleading for electric starts on XR400s, despite the engine casings being ready to accept the electric leg, Honda point-blank refused. Cockies from Cunamulla to Cockburn changed to DRZ400s.
I know that Aussie execs end up with handfuls of their own hair as a result, and of course, they need to keep that feline in the sack.
It makes my brain hurt! |
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Much like the TDM (in our usual Aussie way, it became - 'Tedium") the venerable V Strom of 2002 was a cracking good bike, the TL V twin motor was strong and reliable but I always thought the front and rear of the bike was designed by two different departments.
When the 650 variant hit the roads it became a steady seller with a strong reputation. But... compare the 2002 version with 2023's offering.
Sure, when you're on a good thing stick to it but... Essentially the same package for 20 years, with cosmetic (and mandatory like ABS) and 'keep up with the Joneses' updates bewilders many.
Sure I hears ya, the DE800 was a different model but (lots of buts here)... It turned out more conservative than a meeting of the House of Lords.
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| The rise of the Chinese brands is surely putting the Japanese factories on notice. Innovate, and get on with it! |
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Travel Tip
Post a bag of clean socks, undies and T-Shirts to a mate's place (or Poste Restante), part way through the ride.
Include a return post bag and send back the stinky stuff. Make sure you have a gas mask when you open the parcel on your return home.
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A Potentially Useful Find |
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In preparation for retirement, I needed to have a crap cull at Strapz HQ.
In the course of chuckin' out stuff (that may one day be useful... which never prove to be until a month after they end up at the tip), I came across a cache of my late Mother's stuff. |
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| Maybe there's a role for me if I head for Rome? |
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That's about all I have to write at yer this month, get back to work!
Copyalater |
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