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...It's about bikes... and travels... mostly on bikes!
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Smiling In The Rain
It's a soggy wet day through France for Andy, but that won't dampen his spirits. He stumbles upon 2CVs and climbing walls, straight roads and twisties.
A Day Out From Marlborough
Another easy rest day for the not so dynamic muppets. Sharon's happy with trees, Ren's happily mansplaining locks, and there's Curry for tea. What's not to like?
A long Ride to Gien
Big miles already on Andy's first day on the road. He's just getting settled into the ride and making his way south through France.
To The Southern Tip Of Europe
Title page for Andy Gray's Facebook posts following his trip across France and Spain - and back.
The Rhins Of Galloway
It's another grand day out for 5 fools in Kilmarnock. There's sunshine, forest, hills, a lighthouse, and a harbour. There's also guilt, a lack of tea, and all kinds of strange places.
An Easy Ride And A Woodland Sprite
It's a short ride today for the Dynamic Muppets and the accommodation transforms Sharon into an ethereal being. Ren is happy because he gets to be grumpy. Business as usual.
The Last Days And Words On The Polish Adventure
It's the final 2 days of the otherwise massive Polish Adventure on small bikes. After all that there's not a lot to say save for a few notes, thoughts and another ridiculously long day on the road.
It Was Going OK, Until It Wasn't
With only 150 miles to cover the threat of rain is only a minor inconvenience really. Sharon makes some new friends en route and they both enjoy the countryside riding. It's the last few miles that are a problem.
Back When I Almost Quit
Back in the past Ren had his doubts about continuing to ride motorcycles. Turns out he's crap at riding motorcycles, no news there then. Or was something else afoot?
An Even Longer Ride Homewards
There's more big miles today, and not to anyone's surprise - more chaos. Traffic jams and sheer foolishness means some folks are having a REALLY bad day.
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Smiling In The Rain
Upt'North ¹ said :-
And at all other times not previously accurately described.
17/10/2025 11:05:32 UTC
Smiling In The Rain
Ren - The Ed¹ said :-
I agree Upt', it NEVER rains in France, ever. Except during the week. Oh and at weekends. Especially when you're on holiday.
17/10/2025 07:58:50 UTC
Smiling In The Rain
Upt'North ¹ said :-
I had to googley Cahors....pffffffftttttt.
Got ya fella.
Rain in France, it never rains in France!
Upt.
16/10/2025 16:34:57 UTC
A Good Start To Heading Saaaf
Ren - The Ed¹ said :-
Bros Steve - you'd best ask Ian Soady and Bogger whether meeting me is a good idea or not. Ian Soady is still in counselling even after 10 years, Bogger is still trying to get the oil off his driveway and recover his biscuit stocks. His wife has been diagnosed with PTSD too. If you're deranged in the head then drop me a line - ren@bikesandtravels.com
16/10/2025 08:01:16 UTC
A Good Start To Heading Saaaf
Bros Steve said :-
It is the end of this years opening for the cafe at Darley Moor this weekend 18/19th October if anyone is thinking of going.
You keep passing near my Gaff Ren it would be nice to meet up sometime.
15/10/2025 16:17:49 UTC
A Day Out From Marlborough
Ren - The Ed¹ said :-
You're right Bogger, I am beyond redemption even at my grand old age. That's because I'm still a webel and a wascal.
15/10/2025 12:59:44 UTC
The Last Days And Words On The Polish Adventure
Upt'North ¹ said :-
RM...
It wouldn't.
15/10/2025 12:12:04 UTC
The Last Days And Words On The Polish Adventure
Rev. Mick! said :-
Bogger,
Always love your trip reports, you are a man after my own heart.
The SH mode sounds like it ticks all the long touring boxes.
Off to India next month I will keep that in mind when at the scooter hire place. Looking at if we can go on hand luggage.
Herself is not really getting the vibe, she has just pointed out we get 25kg of luggage wether we use it or not.
Not sure how a mode would cope.
15/10/2025 08:50:02 UTC
A Day Out From Marlborough
Bogger said :-
So did I. But I was just wondering, misguidedly so, if you has redeemed yourself.
Alas you are beyond redemption methinks.
Bogger
14/10/2025 19:00:01 UTC
A Day Out From Marlborough
Upt'North ¹ said :-
Oh, I read it!
14/10/2025 16:19:58 UTC
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Ian Soady¹ said :-
Yes, short 35 mile run yesterday morning and it worked very well. Started with the device rotated about 90 degrees then backed off after a few miles giveing a good idle but I still have to sort out the slow running mixture. I'm very pleased so far. The bike is performing well and another run without calling on the helpful chaps from Britannia!
07/10/2025 10:00:11 UTC
Ren - The Ed¹ said :-
Did you get to test it Ian?
07/10/2025 09:29:03 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
Yes that's right Ren. I'll be testing it in real life later today hopefully. As far as EFI systems are concerned, they use the idle air control valve to maintain idle speed. As its name implies, this allows more or less air into the engine at idle speed by monitoring the actual RPM and opening or closing accordingly. The electronics then regulate the amount of fuel supplied - and of course ignition advance - by monitoring ambient temperature etc etc. But of course you know this. I think you're like the helpful detective sidekick (Dr Watson, Lewis etc) who asks questions they know the answer to so that the audience is given insight into various arcane subjects.
06/10/2025 09:54:28 UTC
Ren - The Ed¹ said :-
It is then "set" in the warm idle position when the pointer touches the carb body - giving you a solid reference point. For the cold start you will rotate it as you see fit depending upon the temperature etc.
I was rather teasing you about automating it Ian. I too recall the "auto choke" systems on cars of the past. Various bimetallic strips, levers, coolant pipes, and fudges that never would work. It has been my experience if you have 2 engines of the same make, model, year, and mileage one will need choke even if it was just run 10 minutes ago whereas the other will never need choke even in the depths of an artic winter.
Lord only knows how the electronic FI systems cope with this variability.
06/10/2025 08:06:56 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
Thanks Glyn, not that innovative as based on a pre-war Amal item! I assume your carbs are CV type - usually they have a separate cold start mini carb arrangement that both enriches the mixture and raises the idle speed a bit. I agree my solution would be a bit fiddly for you....
05/10/2025 10:30:18 UTC
Glyn said :-
Nice innovative design that Ian. Strangely, I have a similar issue on the Intruder. That is; perfect tick over when hot but it’s only too happy to die when cold. My issues will be different to your though as I have twin carbs which are probably out of sync causing the problem. I’ve bought new rear shocks as the old ones don’t seem to have any damping and the bike jumps up and down on the springs. However, most of my time is being spent repairing a friend’s fairing off his TZR. I must be mad it’s so time consuming!!
04/10/2025 20:44:01 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
Possibly I haven't made myself quite clear. Not for the first time. There is an enrichment device which is a simple air slide which runs inside the main throttle slide. This does confuse many people as it operates when the handlebar lever is closed. This gives the rivh mixture - assisted on some bikes (not the Electra) by, as Upt' suggests, a tickle. It is crude however as once it os slightly opened it only works at larger throttle openings and does nothing at idle.
But when the engine is cold the rich mixture on its own is not enough to run the engine fast enough to stop it dying. Hence my device. Essentially it allows me to set the idle speed when the engine is hot, with the pointer / stop touching the carb body to the left and the screw at its most extended position hence the throttle slide at its lowest. The whole arrangement is rotated clockwise thus slightly raising the slide for a cold start - the exact amount to be determined by experience / ambient temperature. The device does work as hoped but haven't yet road tested it.
And why would I want to complicate it with electronics or even a cable control? It's only used once per run after all. I once had an Austin Maestro that had a bimetallic choke and it was a nightmare. Hot or cold was fine but warm you had to get out and jiggle the SU's damper rod to get it to go. Actually, SUs also had a little cam arrangement which when the choke was pulled out - which lowered the jet - a little cam also opened the throttle butterfly a small amount. Like my device essentially.
03/10/2025 15:19:01 UTC
Ren - The Ed¹ said :-
Help me out here Ian. Am I correct in thinking what you've created is a throttle stop screw with a pointer? The idea being with experience you learn to start the bike put the pointer to position X then when it's warmed up turn it to position Y. Position X And Y are learned from experience. If it works - it works!
Now - a man with a lathe and your skills should be able to engineer some kind of automation for this surely. I'm thinking bimetallic strip attached to the engine such that as the engine warms the bimetallic strip curls or uncurls, automatically adjusting the throttle stop. At the absolute minimum a remote operation lever...
03/10/2025 14:41:53 UTC
Upt'North ¹ said :-
Ian, looks a job well done.
But.....there's always a but.....why didn't British carburetor manufacturers think it might be a good idea to fit a choke for our inclement climate.
Do we just like a tickle?
Upt.
03/10/2025 10:53:56 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
I thought you folk might appreciate this. Modern carburation / injection systems generally have some sort of mechanism to slightly raise the tickover speed when the engine is cold. Simple slide carbs like the Amal fitted to my Norton don't, so you either set tickover to be correct when it's hot which means it tends to die until it's warmed up, or correct when cold in which case it races when it's hot.
Some pre- and just post-war Nortons and Velos had what they called an easy start device. This was very simple and was merely an extended throttle stop screw with a stop which abutted the carb body. You rotated it clockwise, hence lifting the slide, to increase idle speed when cold then back to the stop when warm, obviously setting the stop accordingly.
So I thought why not make something similar for the fake Amal on the little Norton. It was simple to find a spare throttle stop screw in the Amal pile, bore the outer end 3mm diameter then make a stepped component out of a bit of scrap phosphor bronze. A Schrader / Presto cycle valve adaptor provided a nice knurled knob for the outer end. A pointer was made from 1.2mm alloy and secured to the adaptor with a valve securing nut. All was then soft soldered together. I have to eport that it works very well although for various reasons haven't taken the bike on the road with it yet. The picture shows the Mk 1.0 version - version 1.1 has the pointer / stop made out of thicker material to be more robust. If I were to bother with V1.2 I'd make the whole lot a bit longer as it's almost colliding with the float chamber edge.
02/10/2025 16:51:03 UTC
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Upt'North ¹ said :-
Jeff. It was probably the weight of the pie and gravy brain fog. It happens.
I'm no stranger to gravel and riding off road but I wouldn't dream of doing it on a road bike.
You're a brave/foolish pie filled upside down fella.
I've got an urge to make a pie!
Upt.
17/10/2025 11:23:52 UTC
said :-
You need sidecar outfit Jeff! My Steib should be arriving next week - can't wait.....
17/10/2025 09:40:05 UTC
Ren - The Ed¹ said :-
Good heavens KiwiJeff! Have you considered stabilisers. It's one thing to mess up on gravel on the Bandit, we all make mistakes, but forgetting to put your feet down "due to covid"? Anyhoo, hope the Mrs recovers well from whatever the quacks are doing to her.
17/10/2025 08:03:10 UTC
kiwiJeff said :-
And just to prove I didn't get the picture off the interwebby thing here is a picture looking the other way with me rocking my wife's colorful helmet. I need to wear her's a bit as it's tight on her head and she is making noises about getting back on the back of the Bandit after the next op has healed up.
17/10/2025 00:22:19 UTC
kiwiJeff said :-
Not the Dordogne in the below picture but still quite pretty for a sheep farming area. The gravel roads have finally dried out enough for me so got the Inazuma out for a slide around. I need the practice after parking the Bandit in a wet roadside ditch leaving one of favorite country cafes last week! In mitigation, the carpark gravel was deep marbles, the gravel access road had a highish camber, I approached the exit road at a 45 degree angle from the carpark so had to turn to straighten up, but lack of attention was probably the main problem because I complaining to my mate on the intercom that the steak and mushroom pie had gone up in price by a pound since my last visit 3 months ago! Apparently all our beef is going to the USA to make burgers! Lying down under the Bandit laughing my head off as it was all so stupid I did remember to turn the bike off. Lifting the bike up was a drama as the grassy ditch was full of water. No damage just mud here and there on the bike and very muddy boots. The rest of the fairly quickly ridden 280 km ride was without drama so a good day. My last bike lie down was stopped outside a cafe 5 years ago when I forgot to put my foot down to hold the bike up, but I had had covid,it was a cold winters day and I'd been riding for 2 hours so maybe Covid is a legitimate excuse! Cafes they are a hazard!!
17/10/2025 00:12:55 UTC
Ian Soady¹ said :-
I liked the earlier generation 650 V-strom I had a lot. I think they're undervalued.
11/10/2025 10:03:54 UTC
Ren - The Ed¹ said :-
It certainly looks like a lot of bike for £600! You should buy it as a spare Upt'.
11/10/2025 08:58:04 UTC
Upt'North ¹ said :-
Your wish is my command.
10/10/2025 12:43:36 UTC
Ren - The Ed¹ said :-
If it's the one for £600 - as non members we can see the conversation but I can't see any of the photos.
10/10/2025 12:24:19 UTC
Upt'North ¹ said :-
If anyone is after a cheap winter bike check out the for sales on Vstrom.co.uk, check out the Greybeard offering.
But be quick.
10/10/2025 11:06:53 UTC
Random Link - The Perpetual Summer Problem