Adventure twins

[10bikekid]

This sums it for me.

I guess there is still some XTZ dna in the TDM cos it just gets on with things. No bad habits. It gets basic maintenance & no doubt used beyond it's design parameters. The km's keep mounting up & so far I have a bulb on the speedo to replace, some 60 odd thousand k's. On both tar & gravel it feels lazy, planted & comfortable but covers the ground deceptively quickly. Just got to make sure if I'm sliding into or out of a gravel corner that I leave plenty of room for error. Once the weight comes into play with not enough traction or room to compensate it's k'in scary trying to get it back on track. Pointless sticking a foot out, it will just get broken so I have to stand, well forward, & get my weight way out of the turn. Teeth & sphincter clenched.

The bike will scrape it's foot pegs on tar seal if I fuck up, tours two up with luggage effortlessly & does about 300km on a tank if I chance it. Love the sound, too.

No idea what I would replace it with and it's worth sweet FA.

TDM's go anywhere!

Nice, was quite keen on one of these a ways back, reckon they'd make a top all terrain tourer, never happened as you just cant buy everything, but you can live vicariously through others though

I think the foot out is as much for balance as stopping you from crashing and if Rossi and Marquez do it it cant be all bad

[Shadowjack]

I'm with GF on the matter of TDM's, being a 20%-er (in terms of ownership).
In nearly six years and 85k kms, I have replaced a starter solenoid, a brake light, and a speedo light (apart from maintenance stuff). It's been lightly modified to make it comfortable for a BFB. It's kms may go up significantly as I contemplate a move to the country and a commute - do I keep it and see how long it lasts? Probably. Toured into the dusty/muddy Canterbury interior, and all over the NI.
It's shod with BT023's at the moment, but I will probably go back to something gravel-friendly.
I like it.

[10bikekid]

Do twins struggle off road?

Depends a lot on the tires, if your willing to make your around the world ADV bike into a tractor there probable not to bad but they start to run wide on the road and slide the rear a bit, also the 160kph tire speed rating can be a bit of a drag (something most singles don't have to worry about)

PS, and they wheelspin a lot more, fun on the gravel, not so when crossing a grass strip between the wheel tracks in the middle of winter on a forest road

[george formby]

I'm with GF on the matter of TDM's, being a 20%-er (in terms of ownership).
In nearly six years and 85k kms, I have replaced a starter solenoid, a brake light, and a speedo light (apart from maintenance stuff). It's been lightly modified to make it comfortable for a BFB. It's kms may go up significantly as I contemplate a move to the country and a commute - do I keep it and see how long it lasts? Probably. Toured into the dusty/muddy Canterbury interior, and all over the NI.
It's shod with BT023's at the moment, but I will probably go back to something gravel-friendly.
I like it.

Ey up. 1 of 5. Next time your up here or when we get down there you can talk me through the speedo bulb change. I reckon you need fingers like ET to get the front apart. And x ray specs.
How you liking the 023's? I loved the 021's. Done about 30 km's on T30s but that was through the inundation.

The question about keeping it or not is what can tick more or as many boxes? If you do sell it, can I have your exhausts please? Lubbly.
I reckon it will double the k's on the clock before it becomes a liability. Especially if you keep attending fettle days to watch blokes fix there modern bikes.

I pushed the boat out the other day & checked my air filter. It's white. After years of gravel shenanigans, whats up with that then? I recommend doing this with an empty tank.

All the best D. Once the ice melts go get some Troots.

[george formby]

Depends a lot on the tires, if your willing to make your around the world ADV bike into a tractor there probable not to bad but they start to run wide on the road and slide the rear a bit, also the 160kph tire speed rating can be a bit of a drag (something most singles don't have to worry about)

PS, and they wheelspin a lot more, fun on the gravel, not so when crossing a grass strip between the wheel tracks in the middle of winter on a forest road

They focus the mind & senses beautifully. The twistie thing on the right of the handle bars separates fun & fear by just a few degrees.

[george formby]

Oh! I just seen your beach post 10BK. The pressure & fear mounts.

I love bikes.

[Gremlin]

Sounds like fun, were have you documented your American ride

Day 1: http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/en...816-07-2011%29

At the bottom of each blog above the comments you can navigate to the next page, otherwise, look under my blogs, Page 11 and forwards has those blogs.

D33 was where I had the mother of adventures.

[10bikekid]

Oh! I just seen your beach post 10BK. The pressure & fear mounts.

I love bikes.

Decided to give it a go this morning, its a cool 2deg outside and if the old girl starts will have the picture proof later on (bit intrepid about the beach entry and the foggy visor though )

Anti fog on visor, check, heated grips on, check, far enough down drive to not wake family, check, choke on, check, push starter

[10bikekid]

Day 1: http://www.kiwibiker.co.nz/forums/en...816-07-2011%29

At the bottom of each blog above the comments you can navigate to the next page, otherwise, look under my blogs, Page 11 and forwards has those blogs.

D33 was where I had the mother of adventures.

Thanks Grem, will look at this once recovered from ride

[Shadowjack]

Ey up. 1 of 5. Next time your up here or when we get down there you can talk me through the speedo bulb change. I reckon you need fingers like ET to get the front apart. And x ray specs.
How you liking the 023's? I loved the 021's. Done about 30 km's on T30s but that was through the inundation.

Speedometer bulb - I couldn't remember off-hand how I did this, so went and perused the Haynes BOL. Yeah, it was one of those repressed memory thingies, as it involved more-or-less dismantling the front-end fairings (side-panels, windscreen, inner panel), and removal of the instrument cluster from the frame (disconnecting the speedo cable and instrument wiring harness connector) to get at the back of the cluster. Took about 30 seconds to replace the bulb.
The BT023's have been a revelation compared to the Anakee/Sirac combination I have run in the past. No effort at all to fire through the corners. Good in the rain. Like them, but a bit dodgy on gravel, hence the projected return to Anakees, or similar.
As for the trooties, well, if the plans I have come to fruition, the nearest trooties should be about a minutes walk from the front gate...

[george formby]

Speedometer bulb - I couldn't remember off-hand how I did this, so went and perused the Haynes BOL. Yeah, it was one of those repressed memory thingies, as it involved more-or-less dismantling the front-end fairings (side-panels, windscreen, inner panel), and removal of the instrument cluster from the frame (disconnecting the speedo cable and instrument wiring harness connector) to get at the back of the cluster. Took about 30 seconds to replace the bulb.
The BT023's have been a revelation compared to the Anakee/Sirac combination I have run in the past. No effort at all to fire through the corners. Good in the rain. Like them, but a bit dodgy on gravel, hence the projected return to Anakees, or similar.
As for the trooties, well, if the plans I have come to fruition, the nearest trooties should be about a minutes walk from the front gate...

Nice. Rods ready by the front door for the morning rise.

The switch from dual purpose to T30's made the bike feel as if it knew what I was going to do next before I did on the ride home.

[10bikekid]

Ride report (part 1)

Its Saturday and still dark, best gear up to the hilt as its 2deg on the coastal hill of home (sure to be colder on the flats)
Wheel KT down the drive to be svelte and try to jump start her just in case battery is reluctant, bike skids and burbles into life then stops,

O well kick her in the guts on the starter then, bam no problems, and wait for the temp gauge to register and allow the heated grips to warm up,
I pre warmed all my gear by wearing it for 10minutes before hopping on the bike which helped a bit but the tips of my fingers were still cold as cloves hadn't warmed up enough.

Off we go, Just as well the anti fog was working a treat as it was far to cold to have the visor up, stop at a low lying field to sample the frost, some nice sun-rises vista's on the way and a bit of fog, took it pretty easy in-case the roads had ice and finally arriving at the first stop to check that the beach is rideable

[10bikekid]

[clint640]

In early 1994 I bought this beauty off my cuz Damian - that's him in the pic.



1988 Yamaha TDR250 twin cyl 2stroke! Got the leather jacket in the deal too I actually hardly rode it on gravel, always had road tyres on it. It was stupid fun on tarmac though, had it out on the old Baypark circuit for my first go at road racing & a couple of mid pack finishes in C-grade Sold it for more than I'd bought it for 2 weeks before the notoriously fragile TZR based motor lunched itself - probably won't be that lucky ever again. I still have the leather jacket

Cheers
Clint

[george formby]

A TDR is prolly the bike I would like to own. Less and less likely as time goes by unfortunately. If I won lotto I would be off to France to find a minter. Seen a few with RD350 motors in them.