What motorcycle(s) do you ride

[kidicarus13]

Yessir! We're "essential" under the State order.

As you should be!

[TFOGGER]

There were a lot of businesses open a couple of months ago that are currently ?closed until further notice?.

Just saying.

Hoping Tfog is open for business. I could use a set of tires soon.

Gimme a call Ray. Dunlop is running rebates on American Elites, as is Michelin on the new Commander 3, through the end of the month.

[ray1970]

Will do.

I'll try and give you a ring at the shop sometime during the week.

Thanks.

[SouthPaw]

Well I decided to keep the Porsche. I really do like the bike and changed a few things on it. New exhaust, new muscle headlight fairing with LED light, LED lights all the way around and some new handlebars. I did pick up some drag bars too but I?ll try these for a bit to see how they feel. Need a little more butt dyno time to get the power commander dialed in but it?s running pretty good right now.

[Irving]

Don?t let the age of that 400 fool you. That?s not necessarily a great ?learning? bike - it?ll likely have some ridiculous power.

Especially the IT400: Primitive suspension, nearly nonexistent brakes, questionable carburetion, and no powervalve,so it has the power delivery of a shotgun trigger. They're an absolute hoot to ride!

Okay, so I got that DT400 running and rode it around for about an hour today. The power band is definitely different than the TTR 225. It feels faster, and I'm pretty sure is faster, but it's not quite a Honda CR500 or anything. On paper we're talking 30 hp (DT400) vs 15hp (TT-R 225). It's just enough more powerful that I was on the edge of getting myself into trouble (I'm a very inexperienced rider), but not enough that I couldn't get out of it. Basically, if I rolled into the power band in first or second while turning, it'd pick up the front tire and go straight. I know that's like day one stuff, but I didn't grow up on bikes. That gets your attention real quick. I need to take these bikes down to TFOG to get run through. Then I need to go ride in the dirt instead of putting around my neighborhood. The power band kicking in on the DT400 is fun and addictive, but it runs out of breath too quick to get into any real trouble. I wonder if I should make that one a street bike though. Might be fun, even though riding on the street makes me super nervous.

[ray1970]

Just my two cents, but two strokes don?t make the best street bikes. Having to deal with mixing oil in the gas is going to limit your range unless you want to carry oil everywhere you go. Also, my experience is you?ll likely be rebuilding the top end of it more frequently than you?d like, especially the older air cooled two strokes.

[Irving]

That's probably true. I know next to nothing about bikes. Whenever I start looking at ads for bikes, it seems like they need rebuilt every few hours. This bike is nice in that it has a separate oil tank and the bike mixes it for you, but you're right about it limiting range. From what I was told a full tank of 2-stroke oil lasts about two tanks of gas.

My original thinking wasn't that I should try and mod these bikes to be anything they aren't. More that I got them for free and if I don't ride them, it won't be a big loss or anything. I'm just a sucker for projects and the draw to learn about motorcycles is pretty strong at the moment. What I really want is a nice dirt bike I can tool around on and will be less likely to kill myself in traffic. That's basically what I have now. I also secretly want to understand how to ride a wheelie without killing myself.

[buffalobo]

That's probably true. I know next to nothing about bikes. Whenever I start looking at ads for bikes, it seems like they need rebuilt every few hours. This bike is nice in that it has a separate oil tank and the bike mixes it for you, but you're right about it limiting range. From what I was told a full tank of 2-stroke oil lasts about two tanks of gas.

My original thinking wasn't that I should try and mod these bikes to be anything they aren't. More that I got them for free and if I don't ride them, it won't be a big loss or anything. I'm just a sucker for projects and the draw to learn about motorcycles is pretty strong at the moment. What I really want is a nice dirt bike I can tool around on and will be less likely to kill myself in traffic. That's basically what I have now. I also secretly want to understand how to ride a wheelie without killing myself.

Practice. Just like you did on your bicycle.

I practice out behind the shop where Mrs bo can't see.

[Irving]

Yeah, once I bring it out to the dirt, that will happen. I think the TTR needs a new clutch. For having as little bike experience as I have, I did once replace a head gasket. What does a DIY clutch replacement rate on the difficulty scale?

[ray1970]

You could handle the clutch rebuild easily.

Also, I never trusted the oil injection system. Run it out of oil or it malfunctions and it?s game over for that engine. I had one older bike that had it and I bypassed it and just mixed the oil in the gas like a normal two stroke.