13th JUNE 2018 - BAGSTER TANK COVER

BAGSTER TANK COVER BAG-1734U

My tank cover arrived from Germany today and I installed it as soon as I got home. It took about 10 minutes to install because you have to feed two straps around the frame just under the rear of the fuel tank, so it meant undoing the fixing bolt and lifting the tank about 30mm.

Even with the back of the tank raised slightly, it's still a bugger to get the straps fed through and I recommend using some long-nose pliers to reach through to grab the strap and pull it towards you. It's all a lot easier with the side panels removed. Once that's done, the rest is simple. Bear in mind that the cover will go on a LOT easier if it's been sat in the hot sun for a while. The heavy leather will become a lot more compliant.

There's one thing for sure - it ages the bike, in appearance. One minute I have a lovely gleaming brand new bike and the next minute I have a dark, mean looking thing. This is always the case with tank covers - on any bike. They're not there for aesthetics - they're there to protect your fuel tank from scratches and dings, provide you with some knee-grip during more "spirited" riding and finally, to allow you to attach your Baglux Luggage.

I've always had these tank covers on my bikes. I keep the same tank-bag but obviously get a new cover when I change bikes. There's a HUGE range of bags available and the one I chose doubles up as a back-pack.

Here's some photos of my Tank Bag....

12 JUNE 2018 - SENA INTERCOM INSTALLED

SENA SMH10 DUAL - INTERCOM FITTED

After purchasing the new HJC IS MAX-II Helmets, it was time to install the Sena SMH10 Intercoms. I removed them from the Shark helmets and double checked everything before laying them out for fitting in the HJC's.

It was extremely simple to remove the internal padding of the HJC's and there was a nice deep aperture in which to fit the Sena speakers. I just had to slice a tiny sliver of the polystyrene off on each side to make the speaker sit perfectly flush. 

As with ANY modular (flip-front) helmet, there's always an issue with the microphone, but the SENA Dual Kit comes with flexible Boom Microphones which make it all that bit simpler. Needless to say, when the front of the helmet is brought down to the closing position, you need to pull the boom-mic close to your lips to avoid getting it trapped by the chin guard.

In use, the Sena SMH10 performed flawlessly (as usual). The audio was much clearer than it had been in the Shark helmets and we are both glad to be back in touch :-)

9 JUNE 2018 - RACK & TOPBOX

Today I went to Blackpool Honda to collect my Honda Luggage Rack and Givi Monokey Rack. Together they should have been £331 but they gave the kit to me for £145 to compensate for how poor they’d been during the handover of the bike.

Anyway, it took no time at all to fit it (the original grabrail stays in place). It looks fabulous in chrome and without the Givi plate, it enhances the look of the bike, making it look even more retro.

5th JUNE 2018 - STOP-OFF AT CROSTON

STOP AT CROSTON

We went out for a wee ride at weekend - not far because it was BOILING HOT and we couldn't stand to be in leathers for too long. We decided to go for a bit of lunch in Southport and enroute we stopped off at the gorgeous little village of Croston...

5th JUNE 2018 - GIVI TANK LOCK BAG

GIVI TANKLOCK BAG

Having sold my VFR1200, I was left with a Givi TankLock bag and assumed that the locking ring would be the same for the CB1100RS - it wasn't! The fuel filler cap is, in fact, much smaller on the CB1100 and I was unable to find anything on Givi's website :-( 

I’m fortunate enough to be able to get the guys at work to fabricate a new ring, so I started to lock the old one in place so I could determine the dimensions required. Having done that, I discovered that the whole thing was rock solid! And now I’m wondering whether to even bother having one fabricated from scratch or just leave this in place. There’s no way it’s gonna come loose! Well, not unless you purposely try to rip it off with full force.

It's not ideal, but if it works, why bother trying to fabricate something new. It's not a high security device or something!

5th JUNE 2018 - MIRROR EXTENDERS

MIRROR EXTENDERS (LHT)

As usual, the mirrors on the bike are pathetic!! All I could see was my elbows, so I ordered a set of YAMAHA Left Hand Thread extenders from ebay and WOW what a difference!! Just to note, you need 10mm, 1.25 Pitch thread.

4th JUNE 2018 - OIL COOLER GUARD

R&G OIL COOLER GUARD

That oil cooler was looking a little vulnerable to me and I hate to see rads with buckled fins. It's not just about stones hitting it either - there's some pretty weighty bumble bees around and they're more than capable of messing things up!

So I fitted an R&G Guard and I have to say, it was real easy to install. Great fit and it looks pretty good too.