I`ve been shopping.

[onearmedbandit]

Despite being unemployed and not knowing where my next pay cheque is coming from, I couldn`t resist the temptation over here in Japan. The bike accessories shops are amazing, well they are for a guy from Christchurch. Stuff I`ve only seen in magazines or on the internet is right in front of you, the staff are helpful beyond belief, and the prices are not bad either. Like I mentioned before, a top of the line Arai helmet costs about $550 for example (and sorry, I`ve got no room to bring any back!) Sidi boots once again max out at $500, for the very very best model.

Anyway, I`ve got all the gear I need in that way. What I was looking for was parts for my bike. Yeah I could just upgrade my bike, but like I said I have no job and I`ve put a lot of time, effort, and money into my current model. And I love it, and it does everything I want. And it`s mine freehold.

So here`s what I`ve picked up already.

Yoshimura GT Meter. Has many features including security alarm, speedo, odometer, time trial (ie 0-100km/h (adj), 0-400 meter(adj), and some other stuff that I`ll find out when I get my wife to translate the comprehenive instructions! Price was roughly $400. Here is a link for it. (http://yoshimura-shop.netmove.co.jp/ap/dtcat?p=6/7/8&s=135/234/239&l=en&t=/c_chas1/c_chas1_e/c_chas2_e/c_chas3_e&d=481)

Ohlins Front Springs. Have been to a number of shops now and always saw these for every model but mine, until recently when I walked into Shabon Dama (www.shabondama.co.jp) and not only found a set, but they were half price. So $115 later I have a brand new pair of Ohlins springs. Supposedly these will compliment my Ohlins rear shock well, at least that`s what the box tells me! Also had to buy a pair of anodized Yoshimura race stand bobbins, mostly because when I had my spill at the track the bit where they screw into got scraped, so it`ll cover that up nicely.

Brembo 4 Pot Calipers. Aparently the weak spot on the K1/2 model GSXR were it`s front brakes, suffering from fade after prolonged use. Now I`m no racer so it shouldn`t really affect me too much. However that didn`t stop me from buying a pair of these gorgeous calipers. Had to also buy adapter plates so they will fit. $420 for the calipers, $100 for the plates. This will be offset by selling the std calipers to a friend of mine.

Also picked up a pair of gloves for another friend, down from $140 to about $70. Not a brand name in NZ, but seem to be pretty good quality.

I`m going back to Racing World (www.racingworld.co.jp) tomorrow, just to kill some time while my wife has some friends over. I`m running low on both spending yen and space in my suitcase (mountains of baby clothes and toys given as gifts!) so I don`t think I`ll be buying too much more. But damn it`s been fun. Lucky I don`t have to worry about work at the moment, I can spend my time working on and riding my bike. Hope the weather is decent back home!

[u4ea]

good stuff oab......sounds like your living it up and youll be all set with swanky new bike parts when youre back in kiwiland!weather has been very kind to us over the holidays so I only hope its kind to you and family on your return....

[Gixxer 4 ever]

But damn it`s been fun. Lucky I don`t have to worry about work at the moment, I can spend my time working on and riding my bike. Hope the weather is decent back home!

Nice.............Good on you mate. Your bike must have all da bits on it now.
Nice to hear.
Bed for me as it's 12.46 in the dark here. Happy shopping Gixxer man

[onearmedbandit]

Your bike must have all da bits on it now.
Nice to hear.


Not all the bits, but enough to make me happy. I enjoy motorcycling, and I enjoy taking pride in my bike and adding my own touches to it. So far it`s got:

Yoshimura tri-oval carbon can,
Ohlins rear shock,
Ohlins steering damper,
Yoshimura engine management system,
Crescent Suzuki rear sets,
Lucky Strike paint job,
K&N filter,
TRE mod,
Woodcraft racing engine cover,
Carbon fibre frame covers,
Crash bungs,
Chopped rear fender,
Flush mount rear indicators,
Smaller front indicators,
No left clipon!
Steel braided lines,

Soon to be put on,
Ohlins front springs,
Yoshimura GT meter
Brembo calipers,
Yoshimura race stand bobbins.

Phew. Cost just over $5000. And I don`t regret a cent of it.

A while back I thought of putting it on a diet, had wild ideas of losing 15+kgs, plus getting some carbon fibre rims. After my crash when I started taking it apart I realised just how hard it would be to lose that kind of weight! Suzuki make everything so damn light in the first place. The entire nose fairing including headlights and instrument panel weigh next to nothing. And with the hit my wallet took getting her back on the road, along with making up the difference between what insurance paid for with my riding gear and what it cost to replace it, they were well off the shopping list, and still are. Although I`d love a set of Marchesini rims, exactly like these. Might be a while yet...

[Leong]

Sounds like fun.... Last time i was in Singapore I visited a few shops but bought nothing - the $NZ was low at the time and prices weren't as good as what you're getting anyways. Any problems communicating with the sales people?

[gijoe1313]

Ahh Japan, the shopping gurus mecca for anything - they are so darn obsessive about their passions that the specialist stores are things we can only dream of here in ol'NZ!

Heavens, you've gone and opened up a can of worms for me now *sigh* Another trip back to the land of the rising sun is on the cards for sure now for me!

(but this time, I will be bike bits hunting! :woohoo:)

[Donor]

Ahh Japan, the shopping gurus mecca for anything - they are so darn obsessive about their passions that the specialist stores are things we can only dream of here in ol'NZ!

Heavens, you've gone and opened up a can of worms for me now *sigh* Another trip back to the land of the rising sun is on the cards for sure now for me!

(but this time, I will be bike bits hunting! :woohoo:)

Because lord knows a bike is a demanding enough mistress for any man :D

[Steam]

What's the deal with these Lucky Strike bikes. I've seen 2 in Wellington in the last week, or maybe the same one twice. Is it the paintjob of a famous racer? Or for people who REALLY love smoking?

[White trash]

What's the deal with these Lucky Strike bikes. I've seen 2 in Wellington in the last week, or maybe the same one twice. Is it the paintjob of a famous racer? Or for people who REALLY love smoking?
I think it's best you go back to bikers school sonny!

[White trash]

Fraser, if ya find some cheapish rearsets for an SRAD, gimme a PM will ya mate.

[Bruiser]

Hi Frazer, if you see any waterproof gps units (ie Zumo) for less than $200 I'll fly the dough up to ya!

Are you coming thru Auckland on your way back? Enjoy yourself mate and leave some $$ for my Duty Free's eh!

[quickbuck]

What's the deal with these Lucky Strike bikes. I've seen 2 in Wellington in the last week, or maybe the same one twice. Is it the paintjob of a famous racer? Or for people who REALLY love smoking?

Heard of these people? (http://www.motorcycle.com/mo/mcphotos/lucky.html)

[onearmedbandit]

What's the deal with these Lucky Strike bikes. I've seen 2 in Wellington in the last week, or maybe the same one twice. Is it the paintjob of a famous racer? Or for people who REALLY love smoking?

Tsk tsk tsk, just not good enough! :lol:


Fraser, if ya find some cheapish rearsets for an SRAD, gimme a PM will ya mate.

Will do Jimmy, off to Racing World in about an hour.


Hi Frazer, if you see any waterproof gps units (ie Zumo) for less than $200 I'll fly the dough up to ya!

Are you coming thru Auckland on your way back? Enjoy yourself mate and leave some $$ for my Duty Free's eh!

I`ll have a look for you as well mate. Did you get my email I sent a while back? Not coming through Akl this time, you get more shit at customs there then anywhere else. Last time I came through they wanted to confiscate my rearsets, only luckily one of them overhead and was biker friendly.

[onearmedbandit]

Sounds like fun.... Last time i was in Singapore I visited a few shops but bought nothing - the $NZ was low at the time and prices weren't as good as what you're getting anyways. Any problems communicating with the sales people?

Yup, the kiwi dollar is good at the moment. About 84yen to a dollar. Worst I`ve experienced was about 58yen to a dollar. Still only makes he top line Arai around $1000. Regarding communiction, I did have a contact at RW who spoke english, but he has left. What I do now is get my wife to drop me off, come back 2 or 3 hours later and ask the questions. Then I hit them with `diskownto deki maska`, they generally laugh and then give me a discount!


Ahh Japan, the shopping gurus mecca for anything - they are so darn obsessive about their passions that the specialist stores are things we can only dream of here in ol'NZ!

Heavens, you've gone and opened up a can of worms for me now *sigh* Another trip back to the land of the rising sun is on the cards for sure now for me!

(but this time, I will be bike bits hunting! :woohoo:)
Oh yeah, if you have an interest Japan caters to it, in ways you`d never believe. The hardest part is getting around.

[slowpoke]

Duuuuude, you posted a while back that you were unemployed (happily so!) and looking at spending some time in Japan.....sounds like you might have found a nice wee business for yourself: where do we place our orders?

[onearmedbandit]

Good idea slowpoke. Unfortunately I`m leaving Japan in two days, but I will be back. Rather than making money of kiwibikers I`d rather pass the good deals on directly. Went out to lunch with a friend of ours yesterday, he`s offered to let me use his services to set up a car exporting business over here when we come back. To give you an idea of what an opportunity this is, we were sitting in his dealership`s showroom (he has 3) surounded by Porsche 911`s, Ferrari`s, BMW M3 CSL. Outside were more Porsches, couple of Ferrari`s etc. I felt like a fish out of water, having only ever been involved in used cars. But that`s all I`d be doing again anyway, buying from auctions over here and the odd trade-in from his yards. We have a very good relationship with this man, he comes to Christchurch 2 or 3 times a year to play golf and we always catch up. A once in a lifetime opportunity, but it does mean fully committing myself to living in Japan, which is a BIG step for me. New culture, new language, the heat, it`s a lot coming from little ol` NZ!

[slowpoke]

Good idea slowpoke. Unfortunately I`m leaving Japan in two days, but I will be back. Rather than making money of kiwibikers I`d rather pass the good deals on directly. Went out to lunch with a friend of ours yesterday, he`s offered to let me use his services to set up a car exporting business over here when we come back. To give you an idea of what an opportunity this is, we were sitting in his dealership`s showroom (he has 3) surounded by Porsche 911`s, Ferrari`s, BMW M3 CSL. Outside were more Porsches, couple of Ferrari`s etc. I felt like a fish out of water, having only ever been involved in used cars. But that`s all I`d be doing again anyway, buying from auctions over here and the odd trade-in from his yards. We have a very good relationship with this man, he comes to Christchurch 2 or 3 times a year to play golf and we always catch up. A once in a lifetime opportunity, but it does mean fully committing myself to living in Japan, which is a BIG step for me. New culture, new language, the heat, it`s a lot coming from little ol` NZ!

Yep, it certainly would be a life changing decision.
I spent about eight months working on a project in South Korea and absolutely loved it. Sure it was an exciting time of the project with direct rewards for your efforts rather than same shit different day kinda stuff I'm on now, but every day was an adventure. Just going too and from work everyday was an eye opener. I'd go back in a flash.
Hopefully you'll be looking back in a coupla years saying the same thing about Japan....and offering me a good deal on that now used used M3CSL.....

[Bruiser]

Went out to lunch with a friend of ours yesterday, he`s offered to let me use his services to set up a car exporting business over here when we come back.

Errrrr is this the friend we spoke about, the one in the pic?

Sure sounds like you may have to seriously consider this one, if its who I think it is, those kind of connections are not easy to come by in any country.

Looking forward to catching up when you get back.

[Grub]

Despite being unemployed and not knowing where my next pay cheque is coming from, I couldn`t resist the temptation over here in Japan. !

That's ok, as soon as you get back you can register for the dole and let the nana state pay for your biking

[onearmedbandit]

Yep, it certainly would be a life changing decision.
I spent about eight months working on a project in South Korea and absolutely loved it. Sure it was an exciting time of the project with direct rewards for your efforts rather than same shit different day kinda stuff I'm on now, but every day was an adventure. Just going too and from work everyday was an eye opener. I'd go back in a flash.
Hopefully you'll be looking back in a coupla years saying the same thing about Japan....and offering me a good deal on that now used used M3CSL.....
Yeah, it would be an adventure alright. I definitely not against the idea, just stepping outside my comfort zone. Once I do it, I`m sure I won`t remember what all the fuss was about (moving). I`ll have to either bring my bike over or buy one here though. Can`t go that long without motorcycling! I was drooling over the CSL, serious piece of kit that is.


Errrrr is this the friend we spoke about, the one in the pic?

Sure sounds like you may have to seriously consider this one, if its who I think it is, those kind of connections are not easy to come by in any country.

Looking forward to catching up when you get back.

No, different friend. I was hoping to catch up with the Toyama friend this trip, but haven`t had the time.


That's ok, as soon as you get back you can register for the dole and let the nana state pay for your biking

Ha ha, might be an option!


Just saw a piece of home I didn`t expect to see, in fact I was thinking about the very thing the other day. You don`t see many utes on the roads in town, not like home anyway, and I thought to myself I wouldn`t see one like we have at home. Then today an HSV R8 ute rolled past, couldn`t believe it!