It's a bit slippery out.. :(

Yaayuh! · 24 Nov 2014 at 09:20

I've ridden in the wet, snow, hail and winter in general, i have generally been fine. Unfortunately this morning i was caught out.

It was about 2-3c this morning, and as always when it's cold i'll look at the road outside and gauge whether it's worth the risk. It looked fine and better than the other week when it was just as cold. So i decided it'd be fine.

All the roads were fine until this corner.. which is not even a mile away from my house.

It was one of those moments that i knew what was going to happen. Let off the throttle, didn't touch the brakes, just held my breath and clenched butt-cheeks in a hope it'll glide round.

Sadly not.

It was only 10-15mph so could easily have been worse.

I checked over the bike, suspension, brakes, steering, tyres and then started it before i rode it home in 1st gear with hazards on. It didn't ride very well, not sure if it's me or not, but something felt loose/wobbly.

Preliminary damage:

Fairing scratched to buggery.
Fairing mount to top fairing ripped off.
Indicator smashed
Rear brake lever bent.
Exhaust scratched.
Deep engine casing gouges, though no leaks and engine runs ok.
Bar ends scratched and bent.
Mirror scratched and possibly bent.
Pride has taken a beating.
Scuffed up trousers and jacket.
Laptop in bag is dented.

Not sure what to do from here. The bike is worth no more that £3500.

Fireskull · 24 Nov 2014 at 09:46

Oops sorry to hear that!

I think this sudden frost/ice is going to catch a few people out this morning, we have been so used to it being wet or warm!

Rossi~ said:
Not sure what to do from here. The bike is worth no more that £3500.

Get a new indicator, brake lever and Bar end, invest in some crash bungs and keep an eye out on eBay for second hand fairings.... profit?

Also check your handlebars arent bent or loose? could be why it feels weird riding? or could be in your head, always seems to be like that for me after an off "Bloody bike is broken!..... next ride it feels fine again...."

Yaayuh! · 24 Nov 2014 at 09:48

Fireskull said:
Oops sorry to hear that!

I think this sudden frost/ice is going to catch a few people out this morning, we have been so used to it being wet or warm!

Get a new indicator, brake lever and Bar end, invest in some crash bungs and keep an eye out on eBay for second hand fairings.... profit?

Indeed, other option is to turn it back into a bandit. Otherwise there's a complete fairing set for £290 on ebay, though not original so fitting would be questionable.
Need to find out what's 'wrong with the ride' first, in case it's either dangerous or expensive.

Fireskull · 24 Nov 2014 at 10:27

Yeah good plan, I would just get it up on both stands and spin the wheels and see if they turn straight etc, even if for just peace of mind

straight wheels and working brakes, the rest it just cosmetic

Yaayuh! · 24 Nov 2014 at 10:29

The bar end took a hard hit when it slammed down (it's bent, not just scratched) so i'm wondering if it's affected the headstock. Will take a look later.

wazza300 · 24 Nov 2014 at 12:06

rotten luck

I agree on fixing it up yourself if you can grab cheap second hand parts,ive even repaired an exhaust can that was worn down like that by drilling out the pop rivets and getting a new stainless still strip and pop riveting it back on,depends how deep its wore away the can underneath the strip,you'll bend the brake lever back into shape with a heatgun

Fireskull · 24 Nov 2014 at 12:08

Yep I have done that before also, and flip the whole bottom inlet to the other side so you can't see any damage

Woogie · 24 Nov 2014 at 12:41

Bad luck mate, At least it only seems to be cosmetic.

I have found myself taking corners so slow the last week and I can only see it getting worse. So worried about coming off, I may actually switch to the train for the next month or so as I simply cannot afford to fix my bike If I throw it down the street....but the downside to this is that I have to get the train and deal with people... ugh.

wazza300 · 24 Nov 2014 at 12:46

its very bad now,early frost and at night,put both your feet down and take it real slow on nasty bends

agnes · 24 Nov 2014 at 13:01

Ouch! Hope all is sorted soon chap, always sad to see an off, even a slow one is a pain in the arse.

TallPaul_S · 24 Nov 2014 at 13:08

Ouch

It's always the first and last mile of your journey, I stayed bolt upright until I get onto the main roads this morning.

Dogbreath · 24 Nov 2014 at 13:56

Rossi~ said:
The bar end took a hard hit when it slammed down (it's bent, not just scratched) so i'm wondering if it's affected the headstock. Will take a look later.

Bent bars can make a bike feel very odd to ride, so it could be as simple as that. OTOH it's possible for even a low speed drop to put a twist in the the forks which makes the front end feel quite odd, though it should be visible.

As long as the forks are still straight you can fix this by slackening off the yoke clamps.

Yaayuh! · 24 Nov 2014 at 14:10

Going to give it a good check over tomorrow, hopefully just cosmetic. Regardless, i'm still really annoyed

1. When i came off, 3 people drove past and didn't even stop to ask if i was ok. My bike was in the road on it's side! 2 others stopped though and helped me with the bike, luckily, no chance of getting it on it's wheels on my own. Especially on ice lol.

2. This bike has done 3K miles and was mint condition for a 4 year old bike.

3. I'm a careful rider, should've just a got a lift in.

Participant · 24 Nov 2014 at 18:34

Unlucky

.

I rode to work this morning and had a slight wobble on a tight bend out of a junction. Could feel the rear slide a bit and I was just coasting. I thought at the time, 'is this wise?'. Problem is I now can't stand the car compared to the bike! The car feels so restrictive by comparison.

scottomus0 · 24 Nov 2014 at 18:43

Sorry to hear that ! Worst time aswell at christmas, as though it isnt expensive enough. Im not risking it this year, staying in the garage for the next few months!

Hope you get it sorted.

VoG · 24 Nov 2014 at 19:06

Unlucky dude, I chickened out this morning & took the bus, I just did not fancy it at all.

As far as damage to the bikes concerned it's all fixable, either by repair or replacement, the most expensive damage being the respray for the fairing, but even that might not break the bank if you shop around.

Personally I wouldn't bother the insurance, ide just do it myself in my own time, but that's just me, the bent rear brake you can sort out tonight just sling it in the oven, get it nice n hot & straighten it back out again, have at the engine case with a fine file, then polish out the marks before investing in a can of engine paint.

spp · 24 Nov 2014 at 19:45

Gutting! I too came across some pretty slippery surfaces this morning. I had to slow right down to about 10mph to take a bend safely, and wasn't helped by the mum on the school run up my arse.

Hope you get it sorted soon

Yaayuh! · 24 Nov 2014 at 20:40

VoG said:
Unlucky dude, I chickened out this morning & took the bus, I just did not fancy it at all.

As far as damage to the bikes concerned it's all fixable, either by repair or replacement, the most expensive damage being the respray for the fairing, but even that might not break the bank if you shop around.

Personally I wouldn't bother the insurance, ide just do it myself in my own time, but that's just me, the bent rear brake you can sort out tonight just sling it in the oven, get it nice n hot & straighten it back out again, have at the engine case with a fine file, then polish out the marks before investing in a can of engine paint.

I wish it was just a fairing respray. Unfortunately I need replacement front and right side. The mounts have snapped and the panels are cracked.
So either find a matching set, original or Hong Kong gamble. Or what's most likely, remove fairings and turn back to bandit.

Engine case scuffs will be tidied and I'll get some r&g case covers.
Exhaust can be tidied.
Everything else just cheap replacements.

It's just the fairing that's the pain.

wazza300 · 24 Nov 2014 at 21:01

they can plastic weld the mounting tabs back on,spray paint it,its roughly £150 per panel though when I got some quotes in not long ago

best/cheapest way is to try and grab some off ebay or ring round any bike breakers for spare panels

car respray places can be cheaper than bike fairing repair places aswell,

Griffo · 24 Nov 2014 at 23:35

Agh, sorry to hear Rossi. This was the first morning I've though 'ah' in quite some time! I hope it's just cosmetics anyway!