phil

Mmmmh... tasty! The bike wasn't insured, so it's going to start with a simple getting it back on the road solution before any cosmetic considerations can be made. Thanks for all kind words! Yeah, crashing sucks but it's part of what we do. I'm kicking myself most for tossing the 'bird down the road rather than the trackbike I've wanted to buy for months! Phil

Hi Guys, After a crash on the racetrack Saturday (turn 8 eastern creek for you who know this corner of the woods) my bird is reduced to an engine. The frame can be straightened, but front and rear end are most likely going in the bin. Forget about any plastic bits the bike had... The decision I'm facing is to either flog off the wreck and organize s/th new, or to try and convert the bird into a streetfighter. My idea was to fit 'Blade swingarm, subframe and forks. Has anyone any experiece with this? I got released from hospital tuesday and hope to be working on the bike by early august. Will post some photos of the crash when I get them. Phil

Come again :shock: I've puzzled over those c-clips (if that's what they're called) but hadn't figured them out. So what do I do with them??? Is this one of those moments when you've been shoving against the door for ten minutes only to find the 'Pull' sign near the handle! :oops: My bad for thinking Honda might have put s/th on the bike for no particular reason :oops: :oops: :oops:

Yo, have that one too. Have done 3500km on it so far and am expecting to do the same again. Have posted pics of these tires in a previous post to this group (search for Diablo). What I like about these tires: - have not developed handling disadvantages (no cupping front or flat rear) - Very sure-footed over bad roads (undulations, gravel!) - The best in the wet I've ridden ever - extremely stable at any speed, straight line or corner - Tyre not tacky, but rather has extremely high friction on the road. This has to do with the high silica content in the compound On the road I run 36 front and 42 rear. July 19th is the first trackday on these and I'll start off with 35 front 38 rear. Pirelli Diablo: My recommendation - if you can get hold of them!

I also got myself the Philips Vision Plus on Saturday. Can't say I'm too impressed - I had hoped for this massive illumination boost, but I guess there's only so much you can do by just replacing the bulb. Warchild's blackbird looks more like a bugeye :wink: but if it works I'm contemplating to do the same! Phil

You've got an SR71 parked down the road from ya? :shock: Have you taken it for a spin yet? That must be one hell of a plane to encounter. Phil

G'day Jason, Seems the bike you bought needs a once-over. If you're not mechanically inclined I'd take it to a mechanic who knows his shit about fast bikes (i.e. not hogs). When I bought mine second hand I had my mechanic look at it (free of charge) to make sure my ass wasn't going to skid down the road at 270kph! You don't want a wheel bearing to go when you hit the open road! Most likely he'll not onlyl tell you what you have to work on immediately but also how much life you can expect from tires, chain, pads, head bearings etc. Also he may give you some interesting performance tips (such as setting the right sag for your weight...). All the best, enjoy the bike and stay upright! Phil

The "new" Pirelli Diablo: Put 'em on yesterday (420$AUS special offer from MAW , ride in ride out!)- this is after 150km scrub-in (the halfway house - Putty Road). First impression: The Michelin Pilot Sports gave more feedback and confidence, but I was laid over quite far on these without loosing the line. I hope this sorts itself out within the next ride or two. The Pirellis turn quicker - notice the very high profile front tyre! The design is such that the front clears the water for the rear tire. That's how they get away with no grooves in the center of the rear. The 'half lean' section of the rear is heavily groove, the full lean section has very few grooves, as you wouldn't fully crank it over in the wet anyway. Can't wait to track-test 'em! Rear: Front:

Cheers guys! Anything to streamline the day, so I can ride longer

Paul - Fuggkk - missed ya at the Creek - I went to Oran Park on Sunday - flagging the BEARS race! You must have met Terry at the Creek (big guy, reddish hair, his bikes have RaceTech written all over them), he told me he'd be there. Mith - The beaches here (Oz) RULE - pity I can only do one thing and at the moment the Bird wins every time the sun comes out :wink: You planning to come back for a visit? Be in touch, we'll go for a burn! On the RaceTech suspension upgrade: WWWWWOOOOOOOWWWWWW - It cost me as much as a pair of tires and a serving of chain with sprocks and WHAT A DIFFERENCE IT MAKES TO THE BIKE! Don't go for less - and don't kid yourself that what you've got is good! You can only compare to what you know! (Whoops, whas that a speed hump? Where before the forks would clonk and complain, it's now soaked up like the nappies of the damn beaurocrat who put it there soak up his wet farts :cool: ) Anyhow, I've just wacked off over my lovely bike (again) and will now proceed to pick up my Pirelly Diabolo tires that are waiting at MAW in Castle Hill :grin: :grin: :grin:

Gidday fellas, The forum's fantastic fun, most informative, but also very BUSY. How can I keep track of certain threads without having to ferret through the whole lot every time I log in? Occasions I want to do this: - after posting a question to see replies - after posting smart-ass comments to see who's pissed off (or humored) - when lurking and listening into conversations dealing with sexx or speeding :wink: or was it sexx and speeding :?: Oh, and how will I know if anyone replied to this one :!: :?:

You're right: Two weeks ago my bike club bikers 'anon organized a ride up the Old Road. We met at Berowra mobil servo, and more than 70 bikes showed up! Anyway, we got intelligence about the EPA blitz on the Old Road, so took the Freeway up to Mooney Mooney - The cops had to watch 70 odd bikes roar past and couldn't stop a single one of us!!! You hail from this area? I'm living here for only 1 1/2 years now, but sure think the roads are great. Putty Road also one of my favourites!

I RaceTech'd the Budgie yesterday front and back. For this I went to Terry Hay in Wallacia, some 50 km out of Sydney. He's raced with the RaceTech team in the States and knows quite a lot of shit about suspension - and I don't :wink: Here's what he did: Gold valve for the rear shock, and sag adjustment. Gold valves and springs rated 1.0kg for the forks. Apparrantly there's a new development he put in which reduces the nose coming up while on the gas. My front end still came up though :wink: I've only had it back since yesterday and am really looking forward to tomorrow's track day. But so far I can say it makes the ride more Plush Steady Accurate Fluid than on stock items. Just had to share this :grin: So long, Phil

Good one, I'll remember WaterWetter for the Australian Summer! My bird gets warm in the perpetual traffic jams of Sydney, with the fan coming on all the bloody time... Phil

I put another 1500KM on the rear and it's only good for a couple trackdays before it needs to go (legal limit, bla bla.) With that my rear Pilot Sports lasted some 5500 - 6000 km with some two-up and a lot of 200+kph runs. The front is still good, so I will most probably put another PS on the rear and leave the front. Next tyre of choice going to be either Avons (due to the list raving about them :wink: ) or Pirelli Diabolo, due to my mates raving about them. Must see if I get a good deal on any of these.

Cheers, Redbird! That sounds like quite a BIG task, are the results worth it? For now it's all a bit COSTLY as June budget is already allocated to RaceTech susp. upgrade. Phil.

I've experienced the rear locking up while breaking hard and downshifting, especially on the track. May have to do with inadequate throttle blipping to rev the engine on the downshift, but I'd also like to try de-linking the brakes. Anyone done it? How about a How-To? Is the mod reversible?

Pictures of your RD install would be great. I'll make some of mine too: It's hidden under the headlight, between the ram-air ducts with a cable for the earpiece coming out from under the seat, up inside the jacket and into the helmet. Here in OZ the cops aren't too happy when they find an RD, so I've got a cut-off switch on the dash (they've got RDD's here!). Also, the power relay is switched via the fan, so standing in traffic the RD will automatically switch off. I thought the place where the pilot light is on Euro models would be IDEAL to mount some IR diodes to blind LIDAR detectors. Any ideas how that could work? I've been doing some research but haven't got anywhere yet. Any suggestions welcome! The cops here in NSW are like rabid vermin when it comes to speeding motorcyclists!

Bloody Oath, is this what I think it is??? :shock: If it IS you LEGEND! :cool:

Which Avons do you use?

What do you guys do to get such immense mileage out of a chain? Did I hear s/o claim >30K miles :shock: ?!? From what I hear, 30K km's is good... Am I doing something seriously wrong, or are you never above 3000rpm? :wink: That said, the guy I bought the bike from must have been the worst chain luber around, I'm now replacing the chain on my bird which is a tad short of 24K km!

On my current set of Michelin Pilot Sports I've done 4000km and the rear needs replacing soon. The front has still half way to go. Compared to the BT020's I had on my VFR this is peanuts (I'd get 10K km out of those, front and rear), but the XX is much more powerful, heavier, more beautiful, etc, so no real comparison. Has anyone tried out the new Pirelli Diabolo on the XX? I hear good things about these tyres, am tempted to give 'em a go next time round.

I'm running Pilot Sports and just love the sticktion they offer. Longevity suffers... but that's also due to riding temprament. If you do track work I'd recommend the Pilot Sports or even Metzeler Rennsports, for Roadwork the Pilot Road should be good. I put 36 on the front and 38 on the back. Cheers, Phil

Hi Guys, been following the discussion, it seems that RaceTech is virtually without competition out there, though I know of guys who use Ohlins equipment to upgrade their suspension as well. I'm taking my bike to RaceTech to have it resprung/valved hopefully this week, which'll set me back $AUS1000 ($US620). On my bike with stock suspension I currently do 2:13 lap times on our local roundabout, hope to reduce to below 2:00 with the new kit. Phil --------------- 99 SuperBird 98 BMW F650

Hi Guys, I'm new to the forum, nice to meet y'all. Got a '99 Bird for about two weeks now, the first mod I installed was the Q4000 radar detector http://www.radar.co.nz Here in Oz we're not allowed RD's so I installed mine hidden in the fairing under the headlight. It's velcoed to the HL, as it's too heavy for the fairing to hold over time. Power comes via a relay, switch current from cooling fan (couldn't find any other spot with consistend voltage). RD switches off when bike gets hot, but that hardly happens when going fast I get the alarm to a earpiece in the helmet via a cable (under seat, up the jacket ...) Wireless would have been more elegant... Good to have a group like this around! Phil