I now own a pansy girl's bike

[gijoe1313]

Velly goof meinf kamaraderen! Zat iz gut newz tu hearz! Ein thinkink zat you vill be making plannink vur zee new modifikationz ya ya?

Ve all vait vith baited breath mein kinder!

[nudemetalz]

I have a solution for you, Mr PansyGurrrlMan: seeing as you are talking about replacing the tank*, why don't you fit an XR500 donk in the frame? My XBR500RS was a CB250Rs with XR500 donk in it, and no compression release lever, so starting it was a ritual: fold up right-hand footpeg, find TDC, then Whumpah!

*The standard tank would need a "cut'n'shut" in any case, to accommodate the XR's rocker cover), so replacement would be a good idea..

You could keep going with the engine size increase to about an NX650 donk, couldn't ya?
XBR650RS...now THAT would make the poor frame & swingarm flex a little...

[more_fasterer]

Now?! Bloody bike starts first kick, hot or cold. I can even do it bare-foot. It idles happily away in traffic, despite roasting my legs, for as long as I can be bothered to sit there with arms folded.

I can feel my manliness slipping away quickly. My bike no longer causes people to call me `dedicated' and `a real biker'; no! now it's merely a gentle-natured Honda -- the sort of machine you meet the Nicest People on. It's now a happy little girl's bike, with no quirks at all apart from the oil leaks, vibration and ineffectual brakes.

I'm feeling rather depressed.

Sounds like you need to trade it in for a Bonneville T120

[vifferman]

Hell yes. the one that had the reed block fitted to help tame it in the starting area.

The reed block had already been ditched.

You could keep going with the engine size increase to about an NX650 donk, couldn't ya?
XBR650RS...now THAT would make the poor frame & swingarm flex a little...

Now yer talking!
Just weld a whole bunch of pipes and brackets and gusseting and stuff to the frame, chuck away the swingarm and fit summat beefier.
And some proper width wheels while yer at it.
And some USD forks!

[xwhatsit]

Don't go spending too much on the 250 Cafe start saving your pennies for the 750 with kick start might be coming up at the end of summer..............

Very tempting, can't believe you're selling it though! No, I'll be keeping the 250 for good, and can't really afford another bike at least until I finish varsity.

The 250 will be sticking with the 250 engine, although I now have enough spare engine bits to build one supahhh engine (while I keep the existing one in the frame); bore it out to 320cc, high compression piston, polished/ported head, 3-angle valve grind, lumpiest camshaft evar... Frame flex isn't too bad, but you can feel the swingarm and forks winding and unwinding in tight corners. Some sturdier shocks fitted to the back would help with that torquing feeling on the swingarm. Nothing to get worried about, it continues along the path you point it on in the `macro' sense.

The thing doesn't kick back often, and it's never particularly nasty. I heard somebody say `like kicking a wall' once and that's exactly what it is. Decompression mechanism fitted or not doesn't change things; in fact taking it off makes it easier to find TDC and get it started, but the kickstart lever is known to be very flimsy and crack (just like everything else on the bike), so I keep the decompression system fitted to take strain off the kickstart lever.

[90s]

Clearly was are not totally emasculated yet - you are thinking of hardware issues and solutions.
A proper girly-boy would be thinking behaviourally.
But there is a way out through this route - ride like a squid and you'll restore your masculinity - no-one will notice your pink tassells or sissy starting anymore.

The key - ride like you don't want to get to 25 ... 25 past the hour that is.

[FilthyLuka]

The 250 will be sticking with the 250 engine, although I now have enough spare engine bits to build one supahhh engine (while I keep the existing one in the frame); bore it out to 320cc, high compression piston, polished/ported head, 3-angle valve grind, lumpiest camshaft evar...

i can lend you a hand if you like, i can bring carbide bits for porting and a case of beer

Have some interesting ideas for intake porting that you might wanna hear too...

[buellbabe]

GIRLS BIKE???

What a load of crap... ha ha

so a reliable bike is considered a pansy girls bike?

Well fuck me! glad I'm a girl LOL

hahahahahahahahahahahahaha

[xwhatsit]

Strictly speaking, being a Honda, it's a homo's bike.

[ital916]

If your feeling so bad why don't you just flick it back to bein a kick start! Even though kick starts are a [ain in the ass they do grow on you.

[vifferman]

Strictly speaking, being a Honda, it's a homo's bike.

A ghey homo's bike.

[xwhatsit]

If your feeling so bad why don't you just flick it back to bein a kick start! Even though kick starts are a [ain in the ass they do grow on you.

Heh it's still a kick-start, just now it's actually able to be started using the kickstart, instead of doing a running race start Electric start?! Hell no. If I wanted an electric start I would've bought the ultimate in poofter bikes -- a Suzuki.

A ghey homo's bike.

Too right. Don't know why your bike needed the tank modified with the 500 conversion, nearly every other source I've seen only references some smaller top frame mounts. Would be tight, however.

Thing is, these days a 500cc motor is just as expensive as doing all the mods to the existing 250 motor, for probably similar horsepower (not torque though). 500 motor very understressed. GB500 will be acquired eventually so I need a small-pot screamer.

[90s]

I would've bought the ultimate in poofter bikes -- a Suzuki.

Thank you sailor,

[pritch]

Bump starting bikes takes me back.

Not that it's a place I ever want to go again...

Both my B50SS and B50MX had the kind of ignition system whereby the spark increases in potency as the revs rise. Tough shit when you're trying to start them.

Must've run miles beside that bloody SS. I'd have a heart attack if I had to do that now.

Also have not so fond memories of a boot filling slowly with blood as a result of a kick back from my RT360.

If God had meant us to suffer all that stuff he wouldn't have given us electric starters.

[vifferman]

Too right. Don't know why your bike needed the tank modified with the 500 conversion, nearly every other source I've seen only references some smaller top frame mounts. Would be tight, however..

I dunno neither.
But, apparently it was needed.
Bottom mounts (and engine cases) are identical, but the top mount was actually cut right off, and the donk just squeezed in under the rails. However, the tank had been relief cut underneath and welded up again, and there was very little clearance, so I guess it was necessary.

It was a nice little Project Bike, that.
I got it for nothing, and spent a grand total of $600 getting it roadworthy, including a complete disassembly, strip and paint, new chain'n'sprockets, new craparse tyres, a couple of different jets for the carb, and a valve grind (which was actually done for free by Waikato Polytech students).
Sold it a fewe of years later for about $800, IIRC, so after commission was taken out, I had three years of free motorcycling.