What did you do to your bike today?

tom_e · 13 Jul 2015 at 12:56

TallPaul_S said:
Quick question for those who have bought the new TOMTOM Rider satnav (I know there's at least a couple) - are the only options for powering it through the included cable that connects to your battery? I've wired in a USB/fag lighter socket on my handlebar so could easily power it from that instead of having to lift the tank again and wire in the cable - if only there was a short usb adapter to connect to the built in power cable...

You can power it through USB but it would not be waterproof unlike the dock connection. This is the Rider 400.
I suppose with a little bit of splicing and dicing of cables you might be able to wire a USB connector onto the end of the included dock charging cable.

Nomisf said:
Not strictly today, but cut the L plates off on Friday !

Then went to look at big bikes, via the motorway for a giggle, I can confirm that 1 junction on a 125 is more than enough for a lifetime.

Congratulations! You are also flipping mental, I can't think of anything I'd want to do less than take my YBR onto the motorway :eek:

Luckily I have no reason to ever subject myself to a 125 again

TallPaul_S · 13 Jul 2015 at 13:04

tom_e said:
You can power it through USB but it would not be waterproof unlike the dock connection. This is the Rider 400.
I suppose with a little bit of splicing and dicing of cables you might be able to wire a USB connector onto the end of the included dock charging cable.

Yeah that's a point - I suppose it's not that much trouble to lift the tank and wire it in properly. It's just the £300 price that's hard to swallow! Hopefully getting all the bits I need to do some euro tours on the bike, google maps just doesn't cut it.

wazza300 · 13 Jul 2015 at 13:05

Can't you use a car satnav? In a waterproof cover?

Those are only £50-£100

tom_e · 13 Jul 2015 at 13:07

TallPaul_S said:
Yeah that's a point - I suppose it's not that much trouble to lift the tank and wire it in properly. It's just the £300 price that's hard to swallow! Hopefully getting all the bits I need to do some euro tours on the bike, google maps just doesn't cut it.

The only thing that annoyed me is the charging cable comes with bare tails so you've got to stick a connector on there yourself, I don't understand why they didn't just stick a couple of rings on there like everything else made to be wired to a bike at least then you can hook it straight up to the battery and if you don't want to use them it's easier for them to be chopped off than it is for someone like me to have to go and spend money on getting connectors and a crimping tool.

TallPaul_S · 13 Jul 2015 at 14:41

wazza300 said:
Can't you use a car satnav? In a waterproof cover?

Those are only £50-£100

I don't think any car ones come with the ability to connect to a Bluetooth headset for voice instructions though, having to look down all the time would be dangerous IMO. The £200 premium over basically the same car model is daft though.

Tefal · 13 Jul 2015 at 17:03

tom_e said:
Something had absolutely pee'd Diesel all over one of my roundabouts this morning, luckily something told me to slow right down where I'd normally keep a decent pace so I managed to spot it all over my usual riding line or else my nice new bike would not have been so shiny any more!

i had a car driver warn me about a major spill on the round about i was about to join today by very politely proceeding to spin his car a full 180 in front of me lol

Tefal · 13 Jul 2015 at 17:04

TallPaul_S said:
I don't think any car ones come with the ability to connect to a Bluetooth headset for voice instructions though, having to look down all the time would be dangerous IMO. The £200 premium over basically the same car model is daft though.

got an old smart phone?

water proof case with ram mount job donbe can bluetooth or headphone socket.

TallPaul_S · 13 Jul 2015 at 17:24

Tefal said:
got an old smart phone?

water proof case with ram mount job donbe can bluetooth or headphone socket.

I used my smart phone on my wales trip, but for a few reasons it's a flawed way of doing it. Google maps because it needs data to even start navigating, (even if the maps are saved offline), and most of the offline map apps don't allow custom routes. I could buy the tomtom software for my phone I suppose - if that lets you create custom routes via the tyre software like the satnavs do... :confused:

Tefal · 13 Jul 2015 at 17:39

TallPaul_S said:
I used my smart phone on my wales trip, but for a few reasons it's a flawed way of doing it. Google maps because it needs data to even start navigating, (even if the maps are saved offline), and most of the offline map apps don't allow custom routes. I could buy the tomtom software for my phone I suppose - if that lets you create custom routes via the tyre software like the satnavs do...

co pilot gps app. can download all the maps and includes speed camera locations and warning.

Sin_Chase · 13 Jul 2015 at 18:15

Luckily my S1000R has an abundance of CANBUS optional accessories ports. I bought an official BMW OA 'repair cable' and crimped some proper automotive water proof ends on both the repair cable and the tomtom hardwire cable. Works a treat and is switched with ignition as a result.

The unit itself works well. It can get a little laggy when you fire huge tracks but when actually navigating it's buttery smooth. I've no major complaints at all with it, even the touch screen is largely accurate enough with gloves on.

Display visibility in direct sunlight takes a hit, but that's to be expected really.

Onua separate note, Motech Blaze panniers have started to wear away paint, which I expectedy. The sharp angled sections are impossibly to 3M up,I got some duct tape from a services and bodged some on to prevent further wear.

acemastr · 13 Jul 2015 at 19:01

Ordered complete projector headlights with HID and halos...

Dad keeps trying to get me to buy a 2014 R1, $700 more on insurance... grr

Sagalout · 13 Jul 2015 at 22:34

I'm using the new Tomtom Rider 400 at the moment. Currently in Germany after riding down the Mosel and then going down to the amazing technical museum at speyer. Doing the Dambusters tour tomorrow.

Overall I have mixed feelings about it compared to the old one - I've had a TT rider since 2007.

Good -
screen is better and easier to read.
Calculations are faster
The route sidebar removes petrol stresses from trips as you can see how many stations there are along the route and roughly how far they are away, making fillup decisions easier

Bad
Buggy - have had to restart it a couple of times, and on the move that can be tricky.
Itinery planning is a massive step back. You can't mark waypoints as visited, or easily add a waypoint mid route. It seems designed to just go somewhere, which it does well, but if you want to plot the route in advance on motogoloco or similar, that's where it's gets tricky. It's only just allowed, through a firmware update this week, to manually add ITN files - something that the old version was dead easy to do.
Rain drops make it think you've pressed the screen - that was very annoying after the 20th occurrence today!
Turning it into portrait mode is hit and miss - half the time it doesn't detect the change so it's just the wrong way around lol

That said we're having a great time. 3 days in, 4 to go

IC3 · 13 Jul 2015 at 23:08

acemastr said:
Dad keeps trying to get me to buy a 2014 R1, $700 more on insurance... grr

If you don't mind me asking, how much is your insurance for the R6? BTW is car insurance for your Scooby high as well or are bikes an exception?

Edit

BTW Not sure if I should ask this here or in the "Post Your Chicken Strips" thread, but what tyres would be recommended in those sizes: Front tyre size 110/70 R 17 | Rear tyre size 150/60 R 17

I asked for advice on tyres for 9-3 saab on here (Motors) before which was spot on, I was amazed how much of a difference tyres make.

Edit2

I tried to replicate the situation when the engine cut out, today it was going fine. When I hit 82mph today I was just going on the red limit. So when I was going 84/85mph it was definitely on the limiter...

TallPaul_S · 13 Jul 2015 at 23:26

Sagalout said:
I'm using the new Tomtom Rider 400 at the moment. Currently in Germany after riding down the Mosel and then going down to the amazing technical museum at speyer. Doing the Dambusters tour tomorrow.

Overall I have mixed feelings about it compared to the old one - I've had a TT rider since 2007.

Good -
screen is better and easier to read.
Calculations are faster
The route sidebar removes petrol stresses from trips as you can see how many stations there are along the route and roughly how far they are away, making fillup decisions easier

Bad
Buggy - have had to restart it a couple of times, and on the move that can be tricky.
Itinery planning is a massive step back. You can't mark waypoints as visited, or easily add a waypoint mid route. It seems designed to just go somewhere, which it does well, but if you want to plot the route in advance on motogoloco or similar, that's where it's gets tricky. It's only just allowed, through a firmware update this week, to manually add ITN files - something that the old version was dead easy to do.
Rain drops make it think you've pressed the screen - that was very annoying after the 20th occurrence today!
Turning it into portrait mode is hit and miss - half the time it doesn't detect the change so it's just the wrong way around lol

That said we're having a great time. 3 days in, 4 to go

Thanks, I downloaded the (now free, but only for 50 miles a month of navigation) tomtom app and things have moved on since my old TomTom One v1

gives a nice idea of the software.

I see that tyre (also downloaded, seems easy enough to make decent routes) now lets you download straight to the tomtom, and you get a lifetime pro membership with the new tomtom riders.

In the end, as I'll probably end up doing multiple trips per summer to the UK and europe (maybe not much this year, just a couple of short taster trips to test stuff out) it'll be a decent buy, I think

Funnily enough, the Mosel valley is one of the trips I'm planning on doing - down to the ardennes, through Luxembourg, then link up with the Mosel at Trier, through Cochem onto Koblenz, then up through the Eifel region (via the Nordschleife and Spa) and a blast back to Calais through Belgium

tom_e · 14 Jul 2015 at 09:33

Ordered some nice new OEM style rear indicators, the ones on mine at the minute are all rusted inside from what I can only assume is the spray kicked up by the back end as the fronts are in perfect condition.
The rumble of the exhaust is enough to shake the bulb to stop it making contact with the no longer springy sprung plate so every now and again I'll have no rear indicator.
Planning on a good dose of ACF50 all inside the new ones once they're fitted.

Also need to do a test fitting of all my luggage to make sure it's going to last the trip to Brighton and back at the weekend.

Got the official lower seat coming in the next few days as well, only a 1cm drop but I think it'll make a worthwhile difference to getting my feet down, also means I can always butcher my original seat if I want it even lower.

Crimped some ring connectors onto my TomTom charging cable last night as well so that'll need fitted in the next couple of days.

Along with a general check over and lube so a busy couple of evenings before I get to put some proper miles on it over the weekend.

4T5 · 14 Jul 2015 at 14:51

Will there ever be day when I don't get soaked ?

Been looking around for bobber bits and found some right cheap options, found a rearlight/brakelight/reglight combined with a metal bracket I can bend into the shape I want, less than 11 quid on ebay and some tiny indicators for less than 20 quid. Only thing I need to find now is a cheap single seat that looks right a bit of tin for here and there a decent head light and I'm away.
I intend on bobbing it cheap then changing bits as and when i find better, reckon I'll get it done for quite a bit less than 150 quid. :cool:

IC3 · 14 Jul 2015 at 14:53

4T5 said:
Will there ever be day when I don't get soaked ?

Waterproof gear, we did around 90 miles yesterday in the rain and when I took of all the gear I was dry.

MowyTone · 14 Jul 2015 at 14:56

Nice work mate.

I saw an interesting one on the weekend. They took the whole tail section off an M1800 intruder and fitted a drivers seat with the back upturned a bit. Then just fitted the brake/signal combo to the back/underside of the seat. Changed the whole look of the bike

4T5 · 14 Jul 2015 at 16:19

IC3 said:
Waterproof gear, we did around 90 miles yesterday in the rain and when I took of all the gear I was dry.

I've got all in one waterproofs it still ***** me off, would just be nice to have a few days dry riding.

tom_e · 14 Jul 2015 at 16:22

I've started to just risk getting a bit damp rather than wrapping up in a condom, much nicer in this sticky weather to have some airflow even if you do get a bit damp.

My waterproofs stay in my bag unless it's properly peeing down.