Blog of Hamlesh

Today is a good day, i’ve just been to pick up my motorbike from the workshop.  She has been fitted with turndown exhausts, and boy oh boy are they loud.  The bike is no longer called named The Monster, but is now “Thor’s Hammer“.

A little bit of fabrication work had to be done to get this to fit.  Some brackets had to be made up, the RHS foot peg and rear brake lever had to be repositioned slightly, and the control regulator had to be moved.

The end effect is perfect though  Still a few more little bits to do, biggest of which are the forward controls, but we are nearly there!

A couple of useful files for those of you that, like myself, own/ride the Yamaha Dragstar.

• Yamaha XVS 650 dragstar owners manual download – PDF (9.46 Mb)
• Yamaha XVS 1100 dragstar workshop manual download – PDF (6.95 Mb)

The workshop manual applies pretty closely for both the 650 and the 1100 – other than some obvious internal engine bits.

Hopefully by this weekend I’ll have the turndown exhausts fitted to mine – expect many pics

PS: If you find this download useful, please post a comment, or come talk to me on twitter.

As some of you know I recently had a little bit of a spill while pottering around the countryside on my motorbike.  It was a silly crash, that could have been avoided, but thats what lifes all about – experience.

Now, I wasn’t riding fast, honestly, and I think that was part of the problem.  Approaching a right hand bend, I slowed down too much and the bike drifted out towards the left – a crude way to explain it would be under steer… which you cant really do on a bike.  In any case I ended up on the verge along the road with the bike bucking and rocking around.  I almost had things under control, and the bike back on the road, when looming upon me, I spotted a large, thick, telegraph pole.

The choice was clear, ditch the bike off into the bushes, and jump off onto the road… where I landed on my face and right shoulder… quite hard.  Thankfully, being a sensible type of chap, I had my flip face helmet closed, and visor down.  Right now I’d have had no face had I been a MORON wearing an open faced helmet.  Yes, people that wear open faced helmets are morons… its a fact… don’t argue with me… you’ll just be wrong.  The impact of my face hitting the ground was so loud that the people in the house a few hundred yards away, came running out to help me.  The impact with the ground was also nice enough to break my arm – so off to hospital I went.

My humerus was broken in two places, but luckily not displaced, and has, three weeks later, fully healed.  My arm is still quite sore, but movement is returning slowly, the doctors have said it will take at least another 6 weeks for the soft tissue damage to heal.

Looking on the bright side, it could have been worse, if I’d hit that telegraph pole, that would have been it, game over, etc.

This hasn’t phased me, I will still be riding, when your clock runneth out, the reaper commeth – so theres no point worrying about it!  I had the bike out for a little bit for the first time since the crash today, mainly to scope out the damage properly, and take some pictures.

Bent right handle bar support mount - its not in-line - see?

Dent in the fuel tank

Dent in the fuel tank

Dent in the fuel tank

Minor damage, I don’t think I’ll repair the fuel tank, mainly as I don’t think its possible without simply replacing the tank.  Plus it will help to serve as a reminder, and add character to my bike  One of the mirror mounts is also bent, and the bike needs a general clean up, to liberate it from bits of grass and mud still clinging to it.

All in all, compared to how things could have gone, both the bike and I came away from it all very much in one piece

I am often asked what the difference between overstreer and understeer are.  Well, i’ve been working my way through all of Top Gear from season 1 recently, and I found this little snippet of a gem in season 2 episode 5.

So heres a very simple explanation from the one and only Richard Hammond.

If you follow me on twitter or we are friends on facebook, you would have no doubt noticed my childlike excitement of the last two days.  Here is a quick recap

I’ve been riding a motorbike for one and a bit years now, doing it, what I think is the “sensible” way – obtaining my CBT, riding around on a 125cc for a while, then taking the “proper” bike test off of my own steam – so no lessons (I felt it was a waste of money, considering I’ve been driving since I was 17).  Each to their own, but I personally think this is a nice gradual and sensible (shocking for me!) way to do things – rather than doing the direct access, getting a big bike, then getting hurt from lack of experience.

So, a few days ago, I passed my A2 bike test, and yesterday I went up to Milton Keynes to pick up my “new bike” – I say “new bike”, its second hand, but new to me (I think buying vehicles brand new is a silly idea).

I’m not sure if its a he or she yet… the names “big daddy” and “the monster” have come to mind since I’ve had it out on the road.  You can’t really call a “she” bike “big daddy”… or can you… any name suggestions? – post a comment.

I brought the 125cc out of the garage to take some pictures side by side – as you can see there is a noticeable size (and weight) difference between the two.  The 650cc also has so much torque,  as its driven by a shaft rather than a chain or belt.  Its hard to describe, but if I let the clutch out too fast at the lights I lift the front end up… on a cruiser… this just seems wrong.  Another little snippet, the 650cc Dragstar is also the longest cruiser under 1000cc

Amusingly the road tax on this is £66 a year, £31 more than my Smart Fortwo!

If you are reading this on a syndicated site, you can view the pictures directly here, on flickr.

Just spotted this in the car park I use in Mayfair, not seen one before.

Full size are on my flickr photostream

• http://flickr.com/photos/hamlesh/2731457576/
• http://flickr.com/photos/hamlesh/2730624527/
• http://flickr.com/photos/hamlesh/2731457944/

Ok, i’ve been banging on about the awesomeness of the Triumph Rocket III for a while, and although I prefer low rider “chopper style” bikes, this is definitely one that I want to add to my collection in the longer term.  A few days ago however a very foxy seductress caught my eye, while I was in a bike shop picking up some bits for my XVS Dragstar… the 1900CC Dragstar, its *HUGE*, huge like you wouldn’t believe, about the same length as a small car huge… made my Dragstar look like a dwarf had parked next to a goliath.

So I got home and started doing some research, the next bike I was planning (and still plan to get) is a 600CC Dragstar, in either black and red livery, or (custom paint job will be required for this) in orange and white livery.  It turns out that Yamaha have stopped making the 600, 1100, 1300 and now only produce the 1900… oh well, I wasn’t planning on buying it new anyway (I see little point of doing that).

Some more research, and I came across the Star Custom Raider 2008, which has now trumped the Rocket III from the top spot on the motorcycle wish list.  Star is Yamaha’s custom performance shop, think AMG for Mercedes, and NISMO for Nissan, and you’re along the right lines.

Just look at this thing, check out the rake on the front end, the tyre size balance is just right, 1900cc V Twin engine, those pipes… hmmmmmm!

I’m going to have to get one, in all black livery of course!

This is the new Ferrari California, a new member to the Ferrari range/family (which brings them up to four). Its set for release after the Paris Motorshow in September (which I will be organising a road trip to!). Set to cost a little more than the 430 Spider, its aiming to be a daily usable Ferrari for the ultra-rich.

It gets from 0-62 in just under 4 seconds thanks to a 460bhp at 7500rpm 4.3-litre engine. Which is actually slightly less than the same engine produces in the 430, but being a grand tourer, has a more sustained torque delivery curve. The seven speed gearbox might be a little too much choice through the power range though.

The usual carbon brakes you’d expect, the traction control system lifted from the epic 599 (which I’ve driven ). It has an aluminium body shell, and it’ll be both light and stiff as a convertible, given that the 430 has awesome handling even without a roof.

Personally, I dont like it, granted I havent driven it (yet), and someone I know will be getting one to play with in a few months, so it won’t be long

Ferrari’s arent supposed to look like the barstard child of a Lexus, Peugot and a Toyota Soarer… although if you squint a little it looks like a Maserati… what were they thinking…

(it looks ok from the back though…)