Motor Cycle Monthly - August 2017

GET UP TO SPEED

August 2017

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L L A B O T O MORE M

Get yer thinking cap on and WIN this Valentino Rossi replica helmet in our FREE competition MCM is FREE in dealers, clubs and biker cafés #134

Loving life!

On a Versys-X 300

Loving riding!

Riding the MT-03

KTM KT T SUPER ADVENTURE R ✔ Brilliant chassis ✔ Loads of poweer ✔ Oodles of fun ✔ Want one

Met Police launches anti-theft campaign

More than 15,000 two-wheelers stolen in the capital in last year

1984’s GPz750

▲

Loving retro!

There’s a move to educate motorcycle and scooter riders in London after a spate of two-wheel theft that’s spreading like an epidemic.

The campaign launched by the Met consists of a video, leaflets, social media campaigns and more in an effort to get those of us who use motorcycles and scooters to ramp up the amount of security on our bikes.

Read more on Page 4

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NEWS 3

Royal Enfield unveils awesome ‘custom’ specials It’s not a production bike – but it really should be. This is the Surf Racer, a one-off custom creation for Royal Enfield designed to show what can be done to the pretty simple donor bike.

It came about when Royal Enfield showed off two new ‘custom’ creations at the recent Wheels and Waves event in Biarritz – and they have pretty much shot the firm’s next generation bikes in the foot because the two ‘project’ models it’s shown

are so bang-on-the-money for what’s shifting in big numbers around the world. And it’s a long way from the likes of the upcoming GT750 Continental.

First up is the Continental GT Surf Racer. Built by Sinroja Motorcycles (that’s why the bike gets a large S on the rear of the petrol tank) the bike is a stock Conti with major changes to key bits like suspension and engine and a complete overhaul for the cosmetics.

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Xabi Alonso swaps boots for bhp

A little Brat on the side...

The Surf Racer’s forks differ from the original machine’s units by changing to an upside down unit and the original’s twin rear shocks have been swapped for an underengine monoshock.

17in mag wheels replace the original spoked wheels and the bike gets lovely Pirelli Diablo Supercorsa SP tyres. The brakes (note the petal discs) and clutch lever are Brembo upgrades, too. Engine-wise the stock 535cc single-cylinder motor gets a

Next up is the Royal Enfield Gentleman Brat.

Again, built by Sinroja Motorcycles, this bike is based on the firm’s Himalayan adventure bike.

It gets 16in rims, new handlebars, fat whitewall tyres and raked exhaust chopped up behind the pared-down seat. higher lift cam, machined piston barrels for higher compression and a new inlet manifold.

There’s a Dello’rto carb conversion and a super-sexy under-set ‘jet style’ exhaust.

So, in short, RE could make this bike right now for little cash.

The ultimate biking selfie Tom Hardy on his test

Somersaulting right over an R nineT Racer...

What a good egg he is!

Hollywood megastar Tom Hardy gave fans a topnotch selfie while out on his motorcycle test in Nuneaton a couple of weeks ago.

Joanne Vowles was shocked when she spotted Hardy walking around a petrol station. The actor was dressed in a high-vis jacket with L-plates attached to his bike in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, on Saturday afternoon.

Vowles, a teaching assistant, said: “I looked over at this motorcyclist who had just taken his helmet off. I thought he looked a bit dishy and then I realised it was Tom Hardy.

He smiled at me and I asked

This is definitely not one to try at home, but it’s pretty impressive stuff.

Stuntman Olol Shestyarenko performed the somersaulting stunt in the paddock car park at a racetrack in Yekaterinburg, Russia.

If you want to watch the video footage of the attempt then go to: www.MoreBikes.co.uk and search ‘somersault’. When you’re watching to footage, check out how close Shestyarenko’s head and the head of the helmetless rider get in the middle of the somersault…

Motor Cycle Monthly, Media Centre, Morton Way, Horncastle, Lincolnshire LN9 6JR Tel: 01507 529529 Email: editorial@motorcyclemonthly.co.uk

Editor Tony Carter Editorial design Fran Lovely and Tracey Barton Publisher Dan Savage Picture desk Paul Fincham, Jonathan Schofield and Angie Sisestean Production editor Dan Sharp Divisional advertising manager Martin Freeman 01507 529538 Advertising Zoe Thurling 01507 529412 Kate Hayes 01507 529411 Advertising deadline for September issue Thursday, August 3, 2017 Distribution 01507 529529 Marketing manager Charlotte Park

if it was him and he said ‘yes’ and the next thing I asked was ‘well, what on earth are you doing here then?’

“He is the last person you expect to see in a small town in the Midlands but he told me he was taking his motorbike test. I asked him what for and he told me it was a secret.”

The Mad Max and Batman star posed with Joanne and her friends while wearing his bike test high-vis. Joanne said: “I really hope he passed.”

Well Joanne, he did. The Two Wheels Motorcycle School in Nuneaton added the big movie star to their list of motorcycle students getting through the legal stuff.

Commercial director Nigel Hole Customer services number 01507 529529 Telephone lines are open Monday-Friday 8.30am-7pm, Saturday 8.30am-12.30pm

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MCM recommends bikesafe.co.uk

Independently proven pick up: 67,717 copies

Spanish football superstar Xabi Alonso has just bought a custom BMW R 100 motorcycle from Madrid-based Café Racer Dreams.

The company has heavily customised the stock bike – modifying the suspension, handlebars, mirrors, front brakes, wheels, brake pumps and the seat too.

Sete Gibernau facing tax fraud charges

The Spanish ex-MotoGP rider and current advisor to Dani Pedrosa is accused of two counts of tax fraud, allegedly committed during his final full Championship season in 2006.

If he is found guilty he could be jailed for two and a half years.

Audiencia of Barcelona (the High Court) has decided to reopen the case that has been plaguing Gibernau since 2013. Sete has testified in court saying that he didn’t move to Barcelona until 2007.

Indian selling 50 Scout FTR bikes

Indian has now put the very limitedrun of Scout FTR750 flat trackers up for sale, at a cool $50,000 (nearly £39,000). With such a limited run, Indian is also allowing customers to customize their FTR750 with a variety of options.

Along with the bike, buyers will also be given a one-of-a-kind VIP viewing experience at an American Flat Track event where they will have access to the racing pits and a meet and greet with the team. The following morning, the VIP guest will receive their oneon-one flat track riding lesson with a factory Indian racer.

4 NEWS

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Dguard – the world’s first eCall system for motorcycles German electronics giant digades is rolling out the world’s first eCall system for motorcycles across Europe. If you’ve not heard of eCall technology before – it’s a European initiative that aims to bring rapid assistance to motorists involved in collisions anywhere in the EU. The dguard eCall system utilises advanced sensor technology to detect a crash and contact the emergency services in a matter of seconds. The sensor is a sophisticated bit of kit and works a bit like a magnetic field, detecting a rider’s presence, or lack of it, on the bike. The emergency services are given an automated spoken message, with the GPS coordinates of the accident. If the injured rider is wearing a Bluetooth headset and is able to speak, then the dguard will connect the emergency call directly.

There’s a Deutsch Mobile Sim built into the module – on a roaming data contract, so it’ll connect to whichever

Classic motorcycles

Sadly, the dguard is not suitable for classic machines, as the unit needs to be connected to a 12v battery to function. Battery drain is minimal when compared to conventional alarm systems though – as the unit only consumes energy when on the move.

provider is offering the strongest signal (which should minimise the risk of being caught out in a dead spot, without signal).

It functions throughout Europe, with the exception of the Netherlands – due to a law which does not currently permit automated calls to be made to emergency services, and it’s capable of automatically communicating in 18 individual languages.

It also comes with a handlebar mounted SOS button, which allows a rider to call the emergency services for another person. Importantly, an inadvertently placed emergency call can be stopped within 15 seconds by pressing the button twice (or more).

To ensure that the dguard can reliably distinguish an accident, digades undertook three years of research and development – doing over 50,000 miles of testing in multiple countries.

The manufacturer also had to ensure that their device would continue to operate even under the most extreme conditions – and undertook crash tests at speeds of 60mph. The unit is housed in an aramid case which is capable of withstanding 300G of force, so digades is confident it’s capable of withstanding a crash at higher speeds too.

It costs £499 including installation and two years’ SIM subscription – and you’ll get a module, a sensor, a button and an app for full configuration of the system. For more information, visit: www.bikeittrade.com

Preventing bike theft

The dguard also features a clever theft warning function, which will warn if your bike is moved without your presence – and you will get a message straight to your smartphone.

The app will also send you an alert when your bike is moving and provide updated GPS data while it’s on the move.

Motorcycle breaks through railway bridge

Head over to: www.MoreBikes.co.uk and watch what happens when a rider and motorcycle try to cross a rotten crossbeam on a railway bridge.

Don’t worry, nobody’s hurt.

But it will make you wince!

Suzuki launches new bike finance deals

As part of the new offer the V-Strom 650, which gets more power and torque for 2017 and an updated electronics package with traction control, low-rpm assist, and easy-start system, can be ridden away for £85 per month, over 37 months, with a deposit of £1,850.08.

The GSX-S750, which uses the engine from the iconic GSX-R750 and features the same three-mode traction control from the bigger GSX-S1000, can be had for £75 per month, also over 37 months, and with a deposit of £1,869.53.

Met Police launch ‘Be Safe’ motorcycle theft campaign Following the recent surge of motorcycle and scooter thefts, the Metropolitan Police is launching a ‘Be Safe’ campaign urging riders to use more security to avoid theft.

“The more visible the security, the less visible your scooter is to thieves: adding extra security makes it harder for them to steal” – is the message of the Met’s new short, hard-hitting film and advertising campaign, urging riders of scooters, motorcycles and mopeds to use more security to avoid the theft of their vehicles.

The campaign encourages riders to layer up their security to reduce their vulnerability to thieves. In many cases, owners have inadequate security or no security at all, making it easy for thieves to steal them and then use them to commit snatch and robbery offences. Security measures alone cannot guarantee a bike or scooter will not be stolen, but every step taken makes it less attractive to a thief.

The film (which you can watch at: www.MoreBikes.

co.uk) shows not only how easy it is for thieves to steal vehicles that have not been adequately secured, but that thieves are less likely to target bikes with two locks, put off by the time involved in stealing them.

Police Commissioner Cressida Dick launched the campaign in St James’s Square, Westminster – a key borough affected by the theft of scooters.

As well as similar events being held across London, the campaign will be advertised on buses travelling through some of the top scooter theft hotspots in London – Westminster, Wandsworth, Tower Hamlets, Lambeth, Southwark, Haringey and Hammersmith and Fulham. There will also be leaflets, a social media campaign and vinyl stencils printed onto dedicated parking bays in hotspot boroughs, reminding riders to use more security.

This campaign supports Operation Venice, the Met’s response to scooter, motorcycle and moped related crime, which has seen a rise in offences across London. Figures show that over 15,000 scooters, motorcycles and mopeds were stolen in London in the last year – more than half of all stolen vehicles in the capital – and scooters were used in the commission of over 14,000 crimes (rolling 12 months June 16 – May 17).

Op Venice is also working with industry partners and dealerships to introduce security awareness at the point of purchase of a scooter. Compulsory Basic Training providers, who run scooter training courses, will help promote security messages during training sessions.

Biaggi out of intensive care after track smash

SIX-time World Champion Max Biaggi has left hospital 20 days after a huge crash that nearly killed him.

Biaggi was in intensive care for 17 days whilst undergoing an operation on a torn lung and surgery to help his 11 broken ribs heal, he also broke his collarbone in the big crash. The accident happened during an ontrack Supermoto session in Italy.

He said: “I have not yet thought about if I will return to riding yet.

Maybe yes, maybe not. The important thing now is to recover.”

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6 NEWS

Check these out!

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The best and most ESSENTIAL motorcycle reading matters of YOUR biking month Three of the best motorcycle magazines are out right now, so make sure that you don’t miss out on this must-have collection of brilliant two-wheeled fun.

Motorcycle Sport & Leisure, Classic Motorcycle Mechanics and The Classic MotorCycle are packed with brilliant tests, red hot news and the most in-

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depth features so whatever your motorcycling tastes, you’ll find exactly what you need with these three.

Freshly on the shelves, you’ll need to be quick to grab one at the local newsagents – so don’t delay and get yourself a prime piece of motorcycling action.

Motorcycle Sport & Leisure has a huge amount of motorcycling going on this month – get it and you could win a brilliant Shark helmet, you’ll get a warts-andall How To guide on trail riding (it’s not for the faint-hearted), the guys have been out testing the sub-10K Suzuki V-Strom 1000, there’s acres of great touring articles PLUS first rides and Buyer’s Guides, too.

MSL is Britain’s longestrunning and best motorcycle magazine and gives you the real world take on real world motorcycling. It also likes to have a bit of fun on two-wheels – just like you.

This month’s issue of The Classic MotorCycle is a special ‘Get out and ride’ themed edition. The editorial team have been taking part in all

sorts of events – the Banbury s Run R (the world’s biggest pre1931 motorcycle event), the 1 pre-65 Scottish Two-day Trial, p Montlhery Vintage Revival and M even beech racing a BSA M20 e n Australia! Added to that are in features on the BSA Rocket 3, Norton’s 350cc FeatherbedN framed Model 50, while Steve Parrish’s Panther restoration P reaches its conclusion and r takes to the road. There’s lots more too, with interviews, a restoration guide, columns, news and some superb archive photographs.

How to get them All these magazines are in your local newsagent right now.

Go and grab them. But if you fancy having them delivered to your door (and for a bit of money off or some great subscriptions offer) then that’s very simple to do.

GET UP TO SPEED DAILY

Go to: www.classicmagazines. co.uk and you can find all the magazines there. We’ll look after you and then sit back and let the best motorcycle magazines you can buy land on your doormat without you having to lift a finger.

CMM is the BEST place to go for the biggest and most exciting bikes from the 1970s, 80s and 90s.

In this month’s issue is an incredible Kawasaki KH250/500, a terrific buyer’s guide on the iconic Yamaha TX750, Benelli’s 750 Sei six-cylinder and a special on legendary tuner Stan Stephens rebuilding a Suzuki RG500. And if you’ve ever fancied a mini-superbike then make sure you check out the VFR400 NC24 restoration.

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8 NEWS

WIN WIN WIN! It’s MOTOBALL time again!

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Fancy a gorgeous new AGV K3 Rossi Tartaruga helmet?

Then get playing and this brilliant lid could be yours WELCOME to our monthly Motoball competition where we've dived into the MCM archive and grabbed a football/motorcycle mash-up picture from back in the day.

Why have we done this? To give YOU the chance to win a superb Rossi-rep AGV K3-SV Rossi Tartaruga helmet, that’s why.

You know how good AGV helmets are and this is a particular favourite with three vents letting air in and two acting as exhausts for warm air on the back of the helmet.

There’s two shell sizes and four inner EPS options to ensure a great fit with the helmet coming in sizes 2XS to 3XL (there’s MS and ML sizes, too).

The wide visor opening gives great visibility and the helmet has a drop-down black inner visor to keep the brightest sunlight out of your eyes.

KTM is now offering a PowerParts ‘Touring Package’ worth over £1000 with every new 1290 Super Duke GT. All new KTM 1290 GTs bought from official KTM Street dealers in the UK, Ireland and Channel Islands from now until stocks last will come equipped with a complementary KTM PowerParts ‘Touring Package’ at no additional cost. Fully developed alongside the bike, the official accessories in the package include Ergo Heated Seats for rider and passenger, seamless Luggage System panniers key and colourmatched to the bike and a GPS mounting bracket.

Telephone: ....................................................................

Terms and conditions apply. For full terms and conditions, please see www.morebikes.co.uk. The winner will be the first name drawn at random as described above. There are no cash alternatives available.

.......................................................................................

✁

Here’s the address, details, closing date etc.

MCM Motoball Competition JULY, Mortons Media Group Ltd, PO Box 99, Horncastle, Lincs. LN9 6LZ The closing date for entries to be with us is August, 20, 2017.

.......................................................................................

So, here’s how you take part: 1: Study the old photo of the chaps playing football on motorcycles (Motoball, if you will...)

the winner picked at random from those entries judged to have been closest to the centre of the football on the original photo.

Phew, got all that? Cool. So pop off and get a pen then get your brain into full-on Motoball mode.

Good luck with the crosses!

Address: .......................................................................

This is a completely FREE-TOENTER competition and getting your entry into the upturned helmet from which the winner will be drawn couldn’t be easier.

There’s only one rule with this, and here it is: YOU HAVE FIVE CROSSES THAT YOU CAN DRAW ON THE PICTURE. That’s it. No more. If you put more than FIVE crosses on the picture then we’ll toss your entry into the bin.

Okay? Cool.

2: Using your skill and judgement – or just close your eyes and have a pretty loose stab at the paper with a pen, up to you – put your FIVE crosses on the image where you think the CENTRE of the football is on the original image.

We’ve removed the football. It is on the original and we’ll show you the original in the following issue of MCM. 3: Cut out your entry and send the ORIGINAL to us at the address below. That’s the ORIGINAL cut out of these pages. If you send us a photocopy or anything other than the ORIGINAL then we’ll throw your entry into the bin, too.

4: Sit back and wait for your sweet Valentino Rossi K3 SV AGV helmet to arrive – providing you’re

Name: ...........................................................................

HOW TO ENTER

Buy a KTM Super Duke GT and get £1000 worth of extras

Police pepper spray motorcycle thief Finnish police employed an unusual technique in an attempt to stop a motorcycle thief on the run. The video shot from the helmet camera of the thief, shows him speeding off on the stolen dirt bike with the police in hot pursuit. As the rider continues to try and make his escape, the police van pulls up alongside him. If you fancy watching something a bit more ‘Whacky Races’ than ‘Police Interceptors’ then go to: morebikes. co.uk and search ‘Pepper’.

Ducati unveils new XDiavel special Following two concept bikes based on the XDiavel (the XDiavel

by Roland Sands and the draXter by the Ducati Design Center), Ducati has now placed its cruiser in the creative hands of Belgian customiser Fred Krugger.

The result is Thiverval, named after a small race track on the outskirts of Paris.

The bike was shown to the public on July 1 at the Lifestyle Village during the 2017 Bikers’ Classics. Held at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium.

The engine has been left in full view, while the Trellis frame has been deliberately hidden to simplify the lines of the bike. The original headlight has been kept as a clearly recognisable XDiavel trait whereas the superstructures have been completely rebuilt, especially tank and tail, using alternating gloss, matt and chrome finishes. The tail incorporates the exhaust and the seat, with the latter, in turn, incorporating the rear light, a gem of craftsmanship that kept Fred busy for days.

All-terrain BMW K 100 custom

Italian custom house Gessi Motorcycles has unveiled its latest creation – an awesome all-terrain BMW K 100. Boss, Mauro Gessi, picked the K as the base for his ‘Straßenbauer’, meaning or ‘Road Constructor’. The bike gets Kayaba front forks, an Öhlins rear mono shock, Tokyco radial clamps and Brembo radial pumps. The engine has been rebuilt, upping compression, while the final transmission was replaced with the one from a BMW K 75, offering a shorter ratio.

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10 NEWS

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Here’s the details on the little superbike

TVS Akula RR 310S (BMW S310RR) launch date confirmed and rumoured price revealed Following frequent sightings of the Akula testing over the last few months, TVS has finally confirmed that the bike will be making it to the Indian market this August – and it’s rumoured to be priced at £2150.

Showcased as a concept at the 2016 Auto Expo, the hotly anticipated TVS Akula RR 310 S (or BMW S310 RR) has been caught during testing in India once again. The snaps show the bike in its (nearly) finished form – with TVS confirming that they expect the bike to be on sale in India from August 2017.

The Akula is based on the 2017 BMW G310R naked bike, which was created as part of the BMW-TVS partnership, which sees the brands working together to create a range of sub 500cc machines. The Akula shares its 313cc single-cylinder liquid-cooled engine and six-speed gearbox with the G310R. The latest photos to emerge show the Akula in its fullest form yet, highlighting its upright riding position, combined with sport oriented foot pegs – which should help the bike feel just at home on the track as it is on the road.

Produced to compete with the KTM RC390, Kawasaki Ninja 300 and Yamaha R3 – we’re still waiting for confirmation from BMW about the existence of the S310 RR, so it’s presumably still a way off making it to market in the UK. But with the Akula set to hit the streets in India very soon, the S310 RR surely can’t be far away.

The bike features single 300mm disc, radially-bolted four-piston fixed caliper brakes at the front, and the single 240mm disc, single-piston floating caliper brakes at the rear – while the final incarnation of the bike will feature dual channel anti-lock braking system (not present in the images). The fully faired sportbike also has the same KYB upside-down 41mm telescopic forks, rear adjustable sport monoshock suspension setup and solid die-cast aluminium swingarm, as the new BMW G310R. Powering the BMW S310RR will be the same 313cc engine as used in the BMW G310R. However, this is expected to be de-tuned for higher fuel efficiency. In its stock state of the tune, this 313cc singlecylinder motor is capable of 34bhp while the peak torque is rated at 28Nm. A video we shared recently shows a Bajaj Dominar 400 unable to keep up with the Apache RR 310S test prototype, as it displays the motorcycle’s impressive acceleration and top speed (around 150kph) – so it should offer plenty of power.

Holiday with Hertz Ride

Following the successful introduction of a BMW rental scheme in Portugal and Spain, Hertz Portugal has launched Hertz Ride in France, offering high-end BMW motorcycles equipped with Touratech gear for rent from Hertz Ride in Cannes, Nice, Orange and Paris.

The BMW models available in France include the BMW F700 GS, BMW R1200 GS, BMW R1200 RT and BMW R NINE T Scrambler – and they are all equipped with paniers, topbox and engine protection from Touratech, plus you’ll get a helmet and lock thrown in too.

TomTom goes weekly

TomTom is now updating its global base of maps weekly – allowing users to access maps four times faster.

Available for all TomTom customers, the update of the MultiNet-R maps is the largest to be made available from TomTom maps so far.

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12 WHAT’S ON To get your event on these pages email jclements@mortons.co.uk

What’s On: the essential dates JULY 22 Kempton Park Motorcycle Autojumble. Kempton Park, Staines Road East, Sunburyon-Thames, Middlesex TW16 5AQ. Tel: 01507 529435 www. kemptonparkautojumble.co.uk 22-23 Ton Up Day. Jacks Hill Cafe on the A5 in Towcester, Northampton NN12 8ET. www.jackshillcafe.co.uk 22-23 Shakespeare Raceway Kawasaki Triples Weekend. Long Marston Airfield, Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire CV37 8LL. www. shakespearecountyraceway.co.uk Tel: 01789 720180.

23 Cheshire Classic Motorcycle & Car Show. Capesthorne Hall, Macclesfield, Cheshire SK11 9JY. Tel: 01484 667776 Email: info@ classicshows.org 23 LE Velo Lancs & S Lakes.

Roddlesworth Info Centre, Tockholes, near Darwen.

Tel: 01772 782516 23 Ace Cafe London. Flat Track, OffRoad, MX, Supermoto, Scramblers. london.acecafe.com 23 Autojumble. The Clitheroe Auction Mart, Lincoln Way, Clitheroe BB7 1QW. www.hoylespromotions.co.uk 23 Classic Motorcycle Show. Tile Shop, Buntingford. Tel: 07963 609143 26 Bike Night. The Plough Inn, Town Street, South Leverton DN22 0BT. Tel: 01427 880323 27 Taverners Section of the VMCC Founders’ Day Rally. Stanford Hall, Lutterworth. Email: pmonk83@ yahoo.com 28-30 14th Kingdom of Mourne Pre-31 Weekend. Newcastle, Co Down, N Ireland Tel: 07545 274883. Email:

adriansni@gmail.com. vmccni.org. uk/mournes 2017 28-30 International Bike Rally. Coupar Angus Motocross Track, Forfar Road, Blairgowrie PH12 8SX. www. motofest-scotland.blogspot.co.uk 29 LE Velo Northampton gathering.

Red Lion, Thornby NN6 8SJ Tel: 01604 499858 29 Dee Atkinson & Harrison Auctioneers. Classic Car, Motorcycle & Automobilia Auction www.dee-atkinson-harrison.co.uk or www.auctionhouse.uk.net/ hullandeastyorkshire 29 Leigh Food Fair & Vintage/Classic Car & Bike Show. Leigh Village Hall, Leigh, Sherbourne, Dorset DT9 6HL www.leighfoodfair.co.uk 29 TOMCC Berkshire Classic & Custom Motorcycle Show, Berks 29-30 British Bike Bonanza.

Jackements Lane, Tarlton GL7 6PN. Further details Julie Short 07961 012161.

Email. julieshort@tiscali.co.uk 30 VMCC (Dorset). The Jeff Clew Memorial Run, Haynes International Motor Museum, Sparkford, Somerset.

Tel: 01935 872528 30 Classics at the Castle.

Bodelwyddan Castle, Rhyl, North Wales LL18 5YA. Tel: 01484 667776.

Email:info@classicshows.org www.classicshows.org 30 The Kettle Autojumble. Church Farm, Kettleburgh, near Woodbridge, Suffolk IP13 7LF. Tel: 01728 724858.

30 Classic Vehicle Day. Coalhouse Fort, East Tilbury, Essex RM18 8PB. Tel: 01375 844203. www.coalhousefort.co.uk

30 Ace Cafe London. Sports Bike Special. london.acecafe.com 30 Classic Motorcycle Show. Royal Oak, 24 Walkern Road, Stevenage SG1 3RA. Tel: 07963 609143

AUGUST 3 LE Velo Lancs & South Lakes. Wyre Side Country Park, near Cleveleys.

Tel: 01772 782516 3 Krazy Horse Late Night – Salt or Sand Race Night. Krazy Horse, Empire House, Lark Valley Business Park, Bury St Edmonds, Suffolk IP32 6NU. www.krazyhorse.co.uk 4-6 LTTS Presents the 5th Annual Low ‘n’ Sleazy Bike ‘n’ Bands Weekend.

Slow & Easy Pub, Lostock Gralam, Northwich CW9 7PJ. Tel: 01606 42148.

4-6 Donington Classic Motorcycle Festival. Donington Park, Castle Donington, Derby DE74 2RP Tel: 01142 873885 www.crmc.co.uk/ donington-2017 4-6 Oddballs Rally. Abingdon Rugby Club, Lambrick Way OX14 5TJ. Email: oddballs.rally@aol.co.uk 4-6 TOMCC Meriden Bring it Back Rally.

Barkers’ Butts RFC, Warwickshire CV5 9AR. 5 Rufforth Autojumble. Rufforth Park, York. Tel: 01904 738620 www.rufforthautojumble.com 5 Classic Motorcycle Show & Cars.

The Coach & Horses, 95 The Green, Stotfold, Hitchin SG5 4DG. Tel: 07963 609143.

5-6 International West Kent Run. The Friars, Aylesford, Kent ME20 7BX Tel: 07761 005995 iwkrun.weebly.com

6 Ace Cafe London. Suzuki Bike Day. london.acecafe.com 6 Classic Motorcycle Show. The Hen & Chickens, 51 South Road, Baldock SG7 6BZ. Tel: 07963 609143 6 Garstang Autojumble. Hamilton House Farm (on A586, off A6), Garstang, Preston PR3 0TB Tel: 07836 331324 (day) or 01772 323654 (6pm-8pm). Email: info@ garstangautojumbles.co.uk www.garstangautojumbles.co.uk 6 Normous Newark Autojumble.

Newark Showground, Newark, Notts. NG24 2NY. www.newarkautojumble.co.uk 6 Broseley Bike Fest, following the route of the 1911 Coalport to Broseley Hill Climb.

Tel: 01952 475671 6 Dam Bike Run. Starts at The Leadburn Inn EH46 7BE. Email: embelleville@gmail.com 6 Autojumble and Craft and Gift Fair.

Sammy Miller Motorcycle Museum, Bashley, New Milton, Hampshire BH25 5SZ. Tel: 07926 807616 www.sammymiller.co.uk 6 Country Fair. Dover Transport Museum, Willingdon Road, Whitfield, Dover, Kent, CT16 2JX. Tel: 01304 822409. Email. info@ dovertransportmuseum.org.uk 9 Bike Night, The Plough Inn Town Street, South Leverton DN22 0BT. Tel: 01427 880323 12 VMCC Somerset Section Indoor/ Outdoor Autojumble. Royal Bath and West Showground, Shepton Mallet, Somerset BA4 6QN. Tel: 01297 32853 12 Classic Motorcycle Show. Leys Avenue, Letchworth SG6 3EG. Tel: 07963 609143

Get to Bexhill If you’re looking for a cracking day out on the South Coast then get riding to the Bexhill MotoFest. Held on July 30, the FREE to attend biking event is back on this year and is jam-packed with things to do.

Held at the De La Warr Pavillion car park and through out Bexhill on Sea, East Sussex, there’s loads to see and do. Fans of Italian metal can find mouthwatering motorcycles at the Zona Italia, there’s a dyno where you can get your bike tested, pubs, bars and bands (including Stoned, the Rolling Stones covers band).

A Harley Cavalcade and Gold Wing Cavalcade will be riding in at around 10.30am and there’s plenty of action from stunt outfits Motorcycle Stunts International and Stunted Reality.

Visit www.bexhillmotofest.com

13

14 FIRST RIDES

Dakar Hardcore And then some Take a top-performing Adventure bike and really beef it up. Use some old-school racing pedigree to make it the boss. The daddy.

And then launch it in real Peruvian Dakar territory...

WORDS: Alastair Fagan PICTURES: Sebas Romero and Marco Campbell Gazing down at the 1290 Super Adventure R’s snazzy new TFT dash, it reads 38ºC. And, dressed in full adventure clobber, it feels like it. I’m in the middle of the Peruvian desert awaiting recovery after a fellow journo suffered a puncture, inflicted by one of the perilous rocks scattered across the vicinity ty. y Sweating profusely, the fact that Sam Sunderland and the Dakar boys haven’t competed in Peru for several years wasn’t playing heavily on my mind. We’re miles from civilisation, shade or respite; the relentless sun, searing temperatures, dehydration and a diminishing CamelBak certainly was. This wasn’t just a press launch. It was a challenge.

We were in safe hands though. Kiwi Dakar rider, Red Bull Romaniacs victor and general off-road god, Chris Birch, was our lead rider, emphasising just what can be achieved aboard the R at any given opportunity tyy and making the Super Adventure R look more like a BMX than an über tourer. I’d given up questioning just how a 160bhp behemoth, that weighs 217kg before fluids, boasts authentic aptitude to absorb such rebellious terrain. Instead, I simply relished the ride.

Getting into it

We had two choices for the afternoon ride – take the easy route back to the hotel or tackle some genuine Dakar terrain with Chris Birch.

Having flown halfw fway w across the world for this, I chose the latter.

By now, the reason for KTM’s insistence on drinking plenty tyy of water and wearing CamelBaks was fast becoming clear, as was Chris Birch’s motto, ‘Say no to slow.’ We followed a ragged track that would have punished any vehicle, which turned out to be around 10km taken at a constant 100+km/h, and I was soon way out of my comfort zone.

Granted, the bike was occasionally throwing shapes below me, yet it never felt threatening and remained relatively in-line.

Arm-pump was now starting to rear its ugly head, as was fatigue, and my vision was starting to become affected – as soon we stopped, the relentless sun was almost unbearable. A smattering of coarse rocks meant we played out the opening paragraph’s scene before the real action began.

Miles and miles of dreamy, untouched dunes and deep, golden, Peruvian sand would await for as far as the eye could see. Sand requires a certain amount of commitment and a completely different riding sty tyle y to any other environment – weight to the rear of the bike and throttle held open. Stop and you’ll sink, particularly with such monstrous power on tap. Momentum is key. Again, the R rubbished its size and weight, holding my hand throughout the next few hours...

Back to real life

So what’s the R like on the road, in an environment that 90% of these bikes will call home? I’d love to be able to extol its virtues but, of the 200km we covered on the test route, only a fraction was Tarmac-based.

Stretching the 1290’s legs takes little provocation with 160bhp, but the core of the bike will

perform just as well as the less focused S version, though you’ll have to pay an extra £200 for the privilege.

FIRST RIDES 15 TECH SPEC 2017 KTM 1290 Super Adventure R Price: £14,499 Engine: 1301cc, liquid-cooled, 75° V-twin Power: 158bhp (118kW) @ 8750rpm Torque: 103.3lb-ft (140Nm) @ 6750rpm Transmission: 6-speed, chain final drive Frame: Tubular steel trellis Brakes: Cornering ABS (F) 4-piston radial calipers, 320mm discs; (R) Twin-piston caliper, 267mm disc Suspension: (F) 48mm WP fork, fully adjustable; (R) WP monoshock, fully adjustable Tyres: Continental Trail Attack II (F) 90/90 ZR21; (R) 150/70 ZR18 Seat height: 890mm Fuel capacity: 23 litres (5 gallons) Kerb weight: 240kg Contact: www.ktm.com/gb

I’ve ridden most of the big adventure bikes off-road and the 1290 Super Adventure R absolutely romps its rivals. Given KTM’s utter domination of the Dakar (16 races undefeated) and the importance of showcasing the R’s off-road pedigree, it was no surprise that so much effort was ploughed into this launch event. Not only does the R live up to KTM’s claims of being the most powerful extreme travel enduro bike, it’s also one of the most versatile.

With the exception of semi-active suspension (which would be pointless off-road), this is a bike that carries luxuries such as keyless ignition, cruise control and Bluetooth connectivity, yet it’s a machine that’s just as happy on highways as it is in mountains and extreme terrain. With the flick of a switch, it’ll transform from superbike hunter to supercross wannabe.

Genuine capability So what makes the R a potential off-road genius? Predominantly its butch WP suspension, plus a few clever electronic gizmos and ergonomic tweaks, although the core of the bike brags tangible ‘ready to race’ DNA. It certainly looks imposing, like a Dakar bike on steroids. In reality, once you get past the tall seat and ballooned, intimidating cosmetics, the R carries enough versatility to appease factory racers as well as factory workers, and it soon made me feel at ease.

There’s very little intimidation once the wheels are in motion.

As we edged away from our hotel and Paracas’ civilisation – the only true civilisation we’d see all day – it was apparent that a huge amount of work went into the ride-bywire and bottom-end of the 1301cc Super Duke R-derived engine for 2017. It was happy to pootle along at very low revs in tall gears – as low as 2000rpm without any lumpiness or hesitation – and the bike felt supremely balanced at dawdling pace. There’s a beautifully light clutch action to accompany a throttle that’s more like a conventional cable-fed tube, while the other controls are fluid and intuitive.

I decided to leave the buttons alone and remain in ‘Street’ mode as we cruised down a dusty highway. The motor thrives in its buoyant midrange and grazing on gears until reaching sixth, as power palpably curtails just after 7000rpm. It’s not often we can associate smooth with KTM gearboxes, yet 2017’s changes ensure a far slicker ’box action, which is made seamless with the new Quickshifter+ feature that allows clutchless up and down shifting. The bike feels stable and glued to the surface as we hit 70mph, although edging away from the centre of the tyres emits a dull sensation from the handlebars to remind me that we’re rolling on Continental TKCs. The adjustable windscreen – which is on the lowest setting due to impending dune action – is doing a half-decent job of shielding my helmet, and there’s a real sense of riding something substantial.

Within minutes, we’re finished with roads and enter Paracas’ National Reserve, with dusty tracks and sections of light sand.

160bhp in a desert is like bringing Semtex to a fireworks party, but thankfully, KTM has engineered an off-road mode into the Super Adventure R, which trims outright power to a more manageable 100bhp. A very quick toggling through menus with the throttle shut (far easier than previous KTMs) engages the

mode, which also allows full rider control of the rear brake and traction control set to its least intrusive.

There are often compromises when manufacturers use ride-by-wire to cull power – a loss of connection to the rear wheel is common. However, KTM’s execution is faultless, with a sublime relationship that inspires confidence in tricky environments.

There’s still little regard for humanity when opening the R’s throttle, exactly how a KTM should be, with enough grunt in off-road mode to rescue certain situations and drive us to the top of numerous coastal climbs.

As someone who has never ridden in a desert or visited South America, there was a delicate balance of understanding the bike and admiring Peru’s finest panoramas.

For much of the morning we tracked the stunning coast around Paracas and, although the relatively simple terrain was everyday fodder for the Super Adventure R, there were still hidden hazards that had to be respected. That said, the R’s beefed-up WP suspension and lashings of travel was chewing up anything, proving this bike isn’t just a brochure model or ‘fake’ off-roader.

Lumps, bumps, jumps and crevices were all gracefully absorbed, as was the minefield of rocks.

Nothing could fluster the R. I recall seeing 130km/h (80mph) on the dash as we meandered between dunes, both ends lightly cavorting across the surface. More importantly, the bike was flattering me and proved easy to ride, belittling its mammoth weight with toy-like dynamics. The R’s front-end feels submissive, ready to be bossed and permanently attentive, which allows the rear-end to shake and shimmy under power. With off-road TC engaged and a lean angle sensor, it’s a brilliant tool for newer riders, consenting a certain amount of slip before bringing on electronic intervention. More experienced pilots will become vexed by its intrusion, which hinders hill climbing on loose/deep terrain.

Descending a small peak during a photoshoot was my first encounter with the off-road ABS. While there are mindboggling levels of mechanical grip oozing from the front-end that naturally promotes confidence, not even the best can cope with extreme terrain, but this is without doubt the best off-road technology I’ve sampled. There are no offensive lever movements or nasty digital surprises, instead simply tidying up overexuberant brake inputs, which allows the bike to continue steering or stopping.

158

That’s the KTM’s hefty power output in bhp

16 FIRST RIDES CHASSIS

The R’s chrome-molybdenum trellis frrame weighs just 9.8kg and the offset iss changed from that on the sibling ‘S S’ model’s spec so that the ‘R’ is more stable. Continental TKC tyres are fitted to 21in and 18in spoked wheels fi fo or off-road for this test although European bikes come with Trail Attack 2 rubber as standard fitment.

ELECTRONICS

DASH

The R possesses a plethora of electronic gadgets, ministered by a lean angle sensor to power KTM’s MSC (Motor Stability Control), cornering ABS, cornering lights, traction control, and Motor Slip Regulator – essentially engine braking control.

sh is housed in The iPad-lookalike TFT das scratch-resistant Gorilla Glass and now features an adjustable angle housing.

The buttons are now progrrammable for easier, faster toggling optio ons and are illuminated for greater nigh ht-time riding.

OFF-ROAD MODE

es: Sport, There are four rider mode Street, Rain and Off-road. Off-road mode reduces power to 100bhp and allows ABS/T /TC T more slip and less intervention.

ENGINE ERGONOMICS The R’s footpegs can be moved 10mm forward or further down for the ultimate personalised cockpit, and the handlebar clamping position is adjustable. The S model’s seat is ditched in favour of a 3D foam one-piece unit and the bike also comes with handguards.

The R shares the same 1290 Super Duke R-derived engine as the S model, featuring a new crank for a longer stroke and bigger, lighter (by 47g) 108mm pistons to deliver 160bhp and 103.3lb-ft. KTM claims it delivers 108Nm at just 2500rpm.

SUSPENSION The R is kitted with conventional WP suspension and features he dual piston a new PDS (Progressive Damping Shock). With th system there’s s an increase in spring weight over the old 1190 and damping has been altered to suit. A massive 220mm of travel at either end equates to 250mm of ground clearance.

18 NEW RIDER

GETTING ON TWO WHEELS Module Two Motorcycle Test Thinking about getting on two wheels? This step-by-step guide will cover compulsory basic training, the motorcycle theory test, and module one and module two of the (full) motorcycle test.

Alright? My name’s Ross and I’m a staff writer for Motor Cycle Monthly.

I’ve just passed my full motorcycle test – so I have a pretty good idea of just how daunting a looming test date can be. I wanted to try and break down the process, share some of my thoughts and experiences and hopefully ease some of your worries while I’m at it.

This time we’re looking at the module two test – the final step to getting your hands on a motorcycle licence.

Module two motorcycle test

During your module two test you’ll be judged on your ability to ride safely on the road, in accordance with the Highway Code – and it’ll take around an hour to complete.

The test is broken down into four separate segments, which are; ■ An eyesight check ■ ‘Show me, tell me’ vehicle safety questions ■ Road riding ■ Independent riding

Right, let’s get into specifics.

For the eyesight check you’ll be expected to read a number plate from a distance of 20.5m – and you’ll fail your test if you fail the eyesight check – and for the ‘show me, tell me’ part of the test, you’ll be asked a couple of questions relating to vehicle safety which test that you know how to carry out basic safety checks.

Now it’s time to get out on the road.

Your examiner will hook you up with a one-way communication system so they can give you directions – and away you go. Throughout the duration of the test, you’ll be asked to carry out normal stops, an angle start (pulling out from behind a parked vehicle) and a hill start (where possible).

You’ll also have to undertake about 10 minutes of independent riding, which is designed to assess your ability to ride safely while making your own decisions. Don’t worry though, if you forget the instructions, you can ask the instructor to repeat

PART FOUR

the directions if you forget them – and you won’t fail the test if you go off the route either, providing your react appropriately.

Throughout the test, your examiner will make a note of dangerous faults – these involve actual danger to you, the examiner, the public or property; serious faults – which are potentially dangerous; and riding faults – which aren’t necessarily dangerous, but could become serious if you keep making the same mistake.

You’ll pass module two if you make no serious or dangerous faults (or ‘majors’) and no more than 10 riding faults (or ‘minors’). Just remember that the test is simply about showing that you have full control over the motorcycle, while constantly assessing your environment for risks, and you should be fine.

If you’ve already been out on the road regularly (riding on a CBT certificate), you should already be pretty well equipped to deal with the module two test – but no matter your level of experience, make sure you put in the practice and get some proper training in (to ensure any bad habits are picked up and worked on in time for your test).

Learners Commuters Buying On Two Wheels

Riding

For more information on getting on two wheels, check out our NEW sister publication – On Two Wheels.

RIEJU Marathon 125 SM Pro

The Rieju MRT 125 SM Pro is undoubtedly a well-equipped (and good looking) machine. Its engine is pulled from the triedand-tested Yamaha WR125, and it comes with Keihin carb, Marzocchi 40mm Shocks, Galfer wavy disc brakes and an exhaust note that will bring a smile to your face with every blip of the throttle up.

Admittedly, it’s pretty pricey – but it’s well worth checking out if you’re in the market for well-rounded sports oriented If you pass the examiner will tell you what faults you made, if any, and give you a pass certificate which you’ll need to take with you to your module two test. If you don’t pass, you’ll have to book another test (at least 10 days later, and try again).

A couple of things to note: ■ Make sure you’re kitted out with the

machine that’s perfect for learners, commuters or fans of small capacity machines.

TECH SPEC Engine : Yamaha 4T 125cc, liquid-cooled, carburettor.

Power: 15bhp Transmission: 6-speed Brakes: Front Galfer 300mm (double piston) Rear Galfer 200mm disc Suspension: Marzocchi inverted 40mm, Rear Mono PRS system Weight: 107kg Fuel Capacity: 6.3 litres Contact : info@riejumoto.co.uk Price: £3945

appropriate safety gear. Although you are not officially being graded on what you are wearing, you need to ensure your gear meets your examiners expectations.

■ Make sure you’ve got your UK photo card driving licence, CBT certificate, and theory and module one pass certificates with you.

■ Brush up on your Highway Code – you need to know what’s expected of you to be considered safe on the road.

To book your module two motorcycle test at a specialist centre near your, visit: www.dvsa.co.uk – or, alternatively, ask your trainer to book you in. It’ll cost £75 if you take it in the week or £88.50 if you take the test on a Saturday.

Thanks

I’d like to say a huge thank you to Walt and Bill from WOLTS Motorcycle Training in Lincoln for their advice and guidance, and for helping to get me through my test first time. I opted for their Direct Access training course – and had two intensive days’ training before taking my test.

If you’re looking for some training in the area, I couldn’t recommend them enough.

For more information – visit www.webbsoflincoln.co.uk

20 FIRST RIDE

Kawasaki Versys-X 300 Who am I? I’m Ross – the new staff writer for Motor Cycle Monthly. A couple of months ago I passed my full bike test, after an 18 month stretch riding a used Yamaha XT125 on a CBT.

Why did MCM want me to ride the Versys-X 300? I’m exactly the type of rider Kawasaki is targeting. I’ve just passed my test. I love riding offroad, but I want a bike that’s capable of completing longer motorway journeys in relative comfort (while having the option to hit the trails and explore, too).

Kawasaki has revamped its adventure line-up for 2017, introducing the all-new Versys-X 300 – arguably one of the most exciting new adventure bikes to make it to the market this year. Versatile,

capable and confidence-inspiring, the Versys-X 300 is the latest entrylevel model from Kawasaki, which hopes to help a new generation of motorcyclists get into adventure riding, by combining big bike adventure styling with small machine running costs.

The Versys-X 300 is powered by a liquid-cooled, fuel-injected 296cc parallel twin (like the Ninja 300 sportbike) and boasts 19in front and 17in rear wheels, long-travel suspension, an upright seating position and wide handlebars.

These work together to help make it super easy to manoeuvre, no matter whether you’re picking your way through traffic or speeding down the motorway. Not only is it light and nimble, but with its narrow chassis and relatively low seat height, I think it could be the perfect pick for new riders. It’s also an ideal motorcycle for a variety of riding conditions; from light trails to the inner-city commute, the Versys-X 300 is a genuinely easy-to-ride motorcycle that makes adventure-style motorcycling more accessible than ever before.

I was really impressed by the power and torque pumped out by the 296cc four-stroke parallel twin engine.

Like the Ninja, the Versys features Kawasaki’s dual-throttle valve system, which helps the bike crank out 39bhp at 11,500rpm reaching a ‘reported’ top speed of around 100mph (to which I can testify). Admittedly, you’ll need to work it quite hard to get up to those sort of speeds, but despite the high rpm there’s surprisingly little vibration and noise. First to third gear are all pretty close together – but in the top three gears, you’ve got a much

larger rev band (from around 6000 to 11,500rpm) and an abundance of torque to play with, which again makes it perfect for adventure-style riding. The wet multi-disc, manual clutch is super light, and gear selection is a doddle too.

The suspension is really well set-up – perfect for motorways, narrow country lanes and the occasional light trail too (though I have to confess, it wasn’t particularly at ease when being pushed on some slightly more challenging trails). The brakes are excellent too, with the ABS proving more than capable on a range of surfaces (both wet and dry) – though I didn’t have to use them all that often (except on the tightest of turns), as I tended to make use of the high-revving torquey engine to slow me down.

The backbone, high-tensile steel frame offers a more relaxed and upright riding position (that I loved) – and it also makes standing pretty comfortable. It is still a small bike though, so if you’re over 6ft tall (like me) you might struggle after a few hours on the road. Thankfully, the basic geometry of the frame should make it pretty straightforward to lower the pegs and add handlebar risers to make it a little more comfortable for longer journeys.

FIRST RIDE 21 TECH SPEC ENGINE: 296cc, four-stroke, DOHC, liquidcooled parallel twin POWER: 29.3kW @ 11,500rpm BRAKES: Front: Single 290mm petal disc.

Caliper: Single balanced actuation dual piston.

Rear: Single 220mm petal disc. Caliper: Dual piston TYRES: Front: 100/90-19M/C 57S. Rear: 130/80-17M/C 65S SUSPENSION: Front: 41mm telescopic fork.

Rear: Bottom-Link Uni-Trak, gas-charged shock and adjustable preload SEAT HEIGHT: 845mm WEIGHT: 175kg FUEL CAPACITY: 17 litres COLOURS: Candy Lime Green/Metallic Graphite Grey or Metallic Graphite Grey/Flat Ebony CONTACT: www.kawasaki.co.uk PRICE: Standard: £5149. Adventure: £5899.

Urban: £5549

My only proper criticism is the seat – after a few hours on the road, it begins to feel like you’re sat on a plank of wood (and I found myself standing up to take the edge off ).

Admittedly, Kawasaki is offering a softer seat for taller riders that sits about one inch higher than the standard (which should also help to create a little more legroom for slightly taller riders).

There are three Versys-X 300 models to choose from – there’s the standard model (the one I was riding, with added handguards), an ‘Adventure’ model which adds panniers, a centre stand, hand guards, engine guards and a tank pad), and finally the ‘Urban’ which comes with a top case, hand guards, centrestand and tank pad.

In short, the all-new Versys-X 300 is a lightweight, nimble, adventurestyle motorcycle that is perfect as a multi-purpose machine. It’s more than capable as a commuter, tourer or offroad machine – and although you’re going to have to work it harder than you would a larger capacity bike, it feels more than up to the job. I loved it.

COCKPIT

DASH

ENGINE

SEAT

Small windscreen, wide handlebars and upright seating position help the Kawasaki Versys-X 300 command the road, offering comfort and (reasonable) wind protection.

The Kawasaki Versys-X 300 has an analogue tachometer and an LCD display that shows gear position, speed, clock, fuel level, trip/odometer and more.

The Kawasaki Versys-X 300’s 296cc parallel twin (pulled straight from the Ninja 300) makes pretty impressive power and torque for a small capacity machine. It’s capable of sitting comfortably at motorway speeds, and has a top speed of 100mph.

The seat on the Versys-X 300 isn’t especially comfortable, but for taller riders Kawasaki does offer a slightly higher seat with little bit of extra padding to help out on slightly longer journeys.

WHEELS The Kawasaki Versys-X 300 features spoked 19in front and 17in rear wheels – making it agile even on slightly trickier terrains.

BRAKES Superb stopping power is on offer from the ABS assisted front single 290mm petal disc with single balanced actuation dual piston caliper and rear single 220mm petal disc with dual piston caliper.

22

24

BRILLIANT LEARNER BIKE 25

Lightweight entertainment Based on Yamaha’s lauded R3 sportsbike, the MT-03 offers a more street-oriented ride in a light and nimble package…

Even when glimpsed from the seat of a high-revving MT-03 in the nearby hills, Benidorm’s mass of concrete skyscrapers is an ugly sight, evidence of what happens when the Spanish coast’s once beautiful combination of sand, sea and sunshine is sacrificed to provide low-budget fun with little regard for quality or design.

Thankfully, Yamaha’s aim for inexpensive thrills with the MT-03 has been much better thought out.

When you’re designing an entry-level motorbike, the perfect combination is lively performance, sweet handling and a competitive price. Up here on the twisty, smooth-surfaced roads of southern Spain the MT-03 is working well enough to suggest that the first two, at least, have been comprehensively nailed.

That’s not exactly a surprise, given that the MT-03 is closely related to the fully-faired YZF-R3 that has earned

plenty of praise and sales since its launch last year. It’s not often that a naked bike can truly be described as a sports machine with its fairing removed, but that’s practically the case with Yamaha’s duo, although inevitably, in this age of platform engineering, they were designed together and released independently for marketing reasons.

There’s absolutely no change to the 321cc parallel-twin engine, which is shared with the R3 even down to its fuel-injection system and exhaust.

The dohc, eight-valve unit has offset cylinders, over-square dimensions of 68 x 44.1mm, and a balancer shaft to control the vibes as it revs to its 13,500rpm limit, passing the power peak of 41bhp at 10,750rpm along the way.

The chassis is identical too and based on a tubular steel frame that uses the engine as a stressed member.

Front forks are non-adjustable KYBs, while the long steel swingarm works a near vertical, preload-adjustable KTB shock. Wheels, brakes and tyres are also unchanged, meaning the MT-03 wears Michelin Pilot Sport rubber on its 17in cast wheels, each of which holds a single brake disc.

Where the MT differs, apart from the fly-screen instead of the R-bike’s fairing, is in its new top yoke, whose bar risers hold the one-piece handlebar that replaces the sports bike’s clip-ons. This gives a slightly more upright riding position than the R3’s, with grips set 4cm higher and wider, and 2cm nearer the rider. Even so, at 6ft 4in, the naked twin felt quite sporty as I set off with my feet on its fairly high and rearset footrests. The MT-03 is very light, just a kilo down on the R3, at 168kg with fuel.

It immediately felt very manageable, helped by a slim seat, which at

780mm is low enough to let most riders get both feet on the ground.

The light-action clutch also helped the Yamaha deal effortlessly with the traffic, though the handlebar was close enough to tangle with my knees when making full use of the generous steering lock.

ways this light, quick and entertaining small-bore Yamaha felt like a modern version of the RD250LC that captivated so many learners back in the early Eighties, albeit without the screaming two-stroke exhaust note or midrange power surge. The four-stroke’s response strengthened more gradually as it revved harder, with no big step in the output, and a fairly muted rumble from the stubby silencer.

Respectably comfortable

That light weight also contributed to the MT’s straight-line performance, which was good enough to make it fun to ride, although there are a few rival A2-legal bikes whose larger-capacity, slightly more powerful engines get closer to the class’s 47bhp limit.

Yamaha’s engine wasn’t purpose-built for the A2, but it was designed to be produced in both 321 and 249cc, the latter (which has a smaller bore) to power an otherwise identical model for the Asian and South American markets, where most will be sold.

Not that I was worrying about that as I held the throttle open and flicked through the sweet-shifting six-speed box to keep the motor spinning.

The little twin didn’t object to low revs, pulling cleanly from as low as 3000rpm in a way that will help the bike feel utterly unthreatening to novice riders. But making use of its performance meant keeping the small instrument panel’s tacho bar flicking towards the red zone, and plenty of left-foot work with the sweet-shifting six-speed box, ideally to keep the revs above about 7000rpm.

That wasn’t remotely a problem as we followed the CV-70 that wound south through the hills from Benifato, where the need to rev the Yam to get the best from it just added to the slightly manic sense of fun. In many

On one relatively short straight the Yam just reached an indicated ton, with slightly more to come. It would cruise at 70mph or a bit more without trouble, though you wouldn’t want to do so for very long. The R3 would provide more protection but on a warm day in southern Spain the naked twin was comfortable, emitting minimal vibration, however hard it was revved. Its seat is thin and there’s not a huge amount of room for a pillion, who does at least get solid hand-holds rather than the sports model’s simple strap.

Given the similarity between the two bikes it’s no surprise that the MT-03’s chassis performance was pretty much identical to that of the R3, which was fine because the faired bike set a high standard with its blend of light weight and simple but effective cycle parts.

Perhaps the naked twin’s slightly wider bars gave an even more agile feel as it carved through the hairpins of the hills north of Benidorm, where the lightest of touches was enough to have it taking a new line.

Equally impressively, the Yam steered with a very neutral feel, and stayed reassuringly stable, even at pretty enthusiastic cornering speeds.

Its suspension was compliant enough to give a fairly smooth ride, and even to negotiate village speed humps without too much discomfort. Both ends occasionally felt slightly soft and vague when the pace picked up in the hills, but the Yam was taut and responsive enough to make it plenty of fun.

26 BRILLIANT LEARNER BIKE The rest of its chassis was well up to standard too. There’s nothing remotely fancy about the brake specification of single 280mm disc and twin-pot caliper, and for hard stopping the MT required a fairly firm squeeze of the lever. But for this class of bike the available stopping power was probably about right. And novice riders, especially, are likely to appreciate the ABS system, which cut in slightly earlier than the best set-ups but added a level of safety that would be especially welcome in the wet.

Talking of low-friction road surfaces, Michelin’s Pilot Sport tyres also did a very respectable job, although a couple of riders reported slides on roads that in places were dusty and more slippery than they looked.

Inevitably, the rubber is pretty slim, with a 110 up front and a 140 at the rear, which contributed to the bike’s manoeuvrability. Yet they gripped well enough, even on a few occasions when the bike was cranked over far enough to get a boot-toe or footrest feeler scraping.

Despite its ground clearance enhancing, highish pegs, the Yamaha also managed to avoid seeming particularly cramped, even though I’ve got long legs. It did enough to suggest that it would make a useful bike for everyday use, at least for most riders. The mirrors give a pretty good view, and the compact digital instrument console is informative and easy to use, although the info can’t be toggled from the bars.

The display includes a fuel gauge and a consumption reading that showed the twin averaging over 55mpg despite reasonably hard use; impressively economical, and sufficient for a range of over 150 miles from the 14-litre tank. The Indonesian-produced MT’s build

TECH SPEC Yamaha MT-03

quality seemed perfectly acceptable, too, although a few savings have been made with features including non-adjustable levers, and simple stickers for the graphics.

Even so, after a very entertaining afternoon’s ride, the MT’s simple specification seemed fine, especially when my thoughts returned to that entry-level motorcycle’s holy grail, the combination of engine performance, handling and competitive price. At £4499, it’s £300 cheaper than the YZF-R3, with which it shares so many components, and only £400 more expensive than the humble 15bhp, A1-compliant MT-125 single, from which a fair number of potential buyers are likely to graduate.

More to the point, Yamaha’s naked A2-class contender exactly matches the price of KTM’s 390 Duke single, its closest rival, and it undercuts Honda’s freshly revamped CB500F by a useful £600.

The MT-03 seems good value whichever way you look at it. It’s far from the two-wheeled equivalent of a cut-price package holiday in a Benidorm tower block – it’s a neatly styled, sweet-running, fine-handling, respectably versatile machine that looks set to continue the success of Yamaha’s MT family – and to deliver its brand of simple naked performance to a new generation of riders.

Price: £4499 Engine: 321cc, liquid-cooled parallel twin Peak power: 41bhp (31kW) @ 10,750rpm Peak torque: 29.6Nm @ 9000rpm Transmission: Six-speed Frame: Tubular steel Kerb weight: 168kg Wheelbase: 1380mm Tyres: (F) 110/70 x 17in; (R) 140/70 x 17in Fuel capacity: 14 litres Seat height: 780mm Contact: www.yamaha-motor.eu/uk

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TESTED 29

TomTom Bandit video camera

Tested by: John Milbank | £299.99 | www.tomtom.com

I remember my dad making me a large aluminium plate that went across the tank of my CBR600 when I was younger, to carry our family’s massive VHS-C camcorder. When I hit ripples in the road, the footage would shake as the tape left the recording head, and editing was a nightmare of cables to the video recorder.

Then GoPro changed everything.

The reference for action cameras, a whole host of others followed and now TomTom has entered the fight, and like its RIDER sat nav, the Bandit is designed to be as user-friendly as possible.

GoPros have moved on since the Hero 3 I’m using as a comparison, but the interface hasn’t changed much, and the mounting system is unaltered.

While there might be slight advances

in picture quality, for users like you and me, the high-end cameras all offer incredible HD video, but what sets units apart is their ease of use.

GoPros aren’t the most intuitive, with their small, basic display, and no idea of what the camera can see.

Some Drift cameras have a full colour screen that acts as a viewfinder, and makes setting options much easier.

The TomTom doesn’t have a digital viewfinder, but its menu structure is the most simple and intuitive I’ve used. The GoPro and TomTom can both be linked to smartphones or tablets, and while later versions should be a lot better, My Hero 3 is horribly laggy, the app displaying footage a few seconds behind the camera; not so with the TomTom, which is almost instant.

Versatile and simple The battery life is very good – I used the Bandit to shoot and edit video over a period of more than five hours. A full charge saw it last for over two and a half hours of solid shooting at 1080, and as the camera goes into a sleep mode automatically when it’s not used (and is easily woken with the button or remote), this is far more suited to a day’s riding than my GoPro, which runs out of juice much more quickly. Charging is simply a matter of removing the combined battery and memory card (Batt-Stick), and plugging it into a USB port or charger. Additional Batt-Sticks are available, but I can’t see myself needing one.

The innovative Bandit has changed the way I shoot video – creating even the shortest movie used to require too much commitment to sitting

in front of some rather complex software on the computer. Combined with the app I can now shoot and share superb quality video with little less hassle than taking a photo on my phone. If I want to get more involved with the editing, I still can, but I doubt I’ll feel the need.

I’d recommend the Premium pack, at £379.99, which includes the remote, a bar mount, waterproof lens, 360° pitch mount and a power cable that’s useful for long time-lapse shots.

I filmed one for eight hours, and the battery still showed 46%. The Bandit is not cheap, and it’s let down a little by the sound when fixed to a bike, but it’s still a system I expect to get a huge amount of use from – shooting video just got a whole lot easier!

30 TESTED Fitting it to your bike

Linking though the app allows the Bandit to be very easily updated, and as long as you have a tablet or smartphone, you need never touch a computer again. The app streams everything shot on the camera instantly, allowing you to mark favourites and edit your own videos to a basic level, before exporting them. Of course, you can just plug the combined memory holder (it takes standard micro-SD cards) and battery into your computer to edit the files, and while the app can’t offer the same level of control as ‘proper’ editing software, the ability to create little movies while sat on the sofa mustn’t be underestimated.

I have hours of previous footage that I’ll probably never get round to editing, but this morning I filmed our daughter riding an electric bike for the first time – I edited it on my phone in a couple of minutes and I had a fun little video that, while it won’t win any

Oscars, is a memory that my wife and I will treasure.

When I first started testing the unit, I thought I’d stick with Final Cut for editing, but now I’ve used it, I much prefer the immediacy of the app. It’s like stills – I’m a keen photographer with a collection of decent kit, but the photos my wife and I really love are the ones grabbed with our phones; technically not the very best they could be, but wonderful moments captured all the same.

You can very quickly add music from your own playlists, and as the TomTom has a built-in GPS, you can also add an overlay showing your speed, G-force, altitude or – if you have the after-market sensor – your heart rate. The camera automatically marks highlights based on this data, and you can mark favourites during the action with the large rear button, via the optional remote or while editing the clips.

It’s much simpler than a GoPro, and while it feels heavy at 192g, my Hero 3, with the case you need for bike use, weighs 216g. The mounting system is inspired, being very easy to clip on, and it is secure, yet removable, even with winter gloves. The camera rotates in its own bracket, so it’s easy to get a good position while keeping a low profile against your bike or lid. And with the optional 360° pitch mount, it can be positioned almost anywhere. Along with two adhesive mounts, a Go-Pro mount adaptor is included… the only slight omission for me is a tripod screw mount, though one is available as an option.

The video quality is great. You can shoot in 1080 at 30fps or 60fps, and 720 at 60fps or 120fps. Slow motion video is also easy (and retains the audio), at 2x in 1080, 4x in 720 and 6x in WVGA (800x400).

Timelapse movies can be created in 1080 or 4K resolution, with intervals of 1, 5, 10, 15, 30 or 60 seconds. Cinematic modes also offer 15fps at 4K and 30fps at 2.7K, though of course you can only shoot in the full wide mode, not the narrower ‘normal’ of the others.

Where the TomTom does lose out is in the audio – the microphone at the front is great for general use, but picks up all the wind noise when riding. The waterproof lens cover reduces this significantly (and is vital if you ride in the rain, making the camera waterproof to a depth of 50m), but it still suffers from a sharp ‘rattle’ when mounted on the bike, which seems to be caused by play in the brackets.

I tend not to use the audio when riding anyway, but an optional microphone can be easily plugged in to pick up sound from inside your helmet, or from elsewhere on the motorcycle. Personally, I find the ease of use in all circumstances outweighs the poor audio for riding.

One thing to note – as you’re using wi-fi to connect your phone directly to the camera, any other connections are lost. This means that if you upload a video straight from the app to Facebook, YouTube etc, you’ll be using your mobile data. To avoid this, simply save the movie to your phone and then send it when you’ve disconnected the camera.

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ICONIC METAL 33

Of a time:

1984’s Kawasaki

Not every bike can be a winner and Kawasaki’s mid-Eighties GPz-750 was one such near-miss.

Though well worthy of compliment, the superiority of its rivals relegated it to runner-up status.

Words: Chris Moss Photos: Mike Weston When the GPz was around I used to pay my rent by delivering parcels around London on a CX500. Today I settle my bills by judging bikes like the Kawasaki and this makes the idea of a quick spin on one a lot more appealing.

The 750 reminded me a bit of those darker dispatch days, with its slightly ‘used and abused’ look.

Battle scars on its black-finished engine, a cracked side panel and a tyy nuts and bolts give the fair few rusty appearance of a bike that’s seen a bit of action.

Maybe, like me, it had helped to

deliver the odd document or two during its time. The trademark engine-killing high revs greet the cold start, making me cringe at the mechanical self-harm. But once the choke can be flicked off, the air-cooled inline four soon settles down to a distinctly audible rustle and clatter on tickover. Warming the motor further reveals a slight reluctance to rev.

Restricted by just two valves per pot, the gas flow isn’t healthy enough to give such an immediate response to twist-grip tugging. The inline four doesn’t sound especially stifled, but so characteristic is its trademark noise and unwillingness to

increase its volume, I reckon I could have dated it while blindfolded.

Another historic reminder is the ‘sit up and beg’ riding position. It may well be from an age when a fair few sportbikes were back-breakers (Italian models mainly, but Jap stuff like GSX-Rs too), yet the GPz offers a comfy fyy enough perch to invite longer rides. The fairing, a fuller version found on the later spec models, fuel gauge, and air suspension, all add to the civility ty. y I took up the invitation to spend a few hours on board by brimming the tank, giving me what I expected would be around a 160-mile experience. Opinion on what level of enjoyment the trip would be likely to

generate was mixed. As it turned out, there were the usual highs and lows.

Though as with all things in life, it’s your attitude to things that ultimately dictates your final verdict.

The early miles revealed an advantage of the two-valve set up with the motor delivering a fair bit of flexibility ty. y You can appreciate why five gears are easily enough, and it’s not long before you realise dancing on the gearlever is not a prerequisite to making good headway. In saying that, progress can never be too swift, as the ‘Oh do I have to?’ reluctance of the motor becomes apparent whenever demands are too high.

Spin it above 7000rpm and the rewards do get greater, but the ‘rush’

is over by the redline at 10 grand.

And with just a claimed 85bhp to play with (and I’d bet that’s a lot less by the time it reaches the back ty tyre), y you need to readjust your speed ambitions and realise an Eighties’ sportbike (and a slightly second-rate one at that) shouldn’t be expected to trouble lap records.

Pragmatic assessment needs to extend to the Kawasaki’s chassis performance, too. As you might expect, it exhibits a long, lazy and weighty tyy feel. And though the steering itself is quite nice and neutral, you can tell the rest of the bike trails behind the prompt turning front-end a little.

Unsurprisingly, braking power isn’t (thanks to the basic spec of the single pot calipers) much to write home about. With fairly plush yet mushy suspension to float along on, if not depend on to deliver total control and feedback, you’re

34 ICONIC METAL reminded of the wisdom of avoiding 10 tenths riding.

Judging matters of dynamic ability on scores alone, I wasn’t initially rating the Kwack too highly. But as I’ve come to realise when riding bikes from bygone eras, you’ve got to be patient. Given time, they usually tend to become more endearing, compensating with virtues that dynos and stopwatches can’t measure. And sure enough, with the all-important appropriate attitude, I started viewing the 750 with a bit more optimism.

The passage of hours and miles might not have altered how well the bike actually rode, but it did change the context in which I rated it.

With a reconfigured scale of appraisal I got the chance to evaluate the GPz more fairly and fully. It was actually quick enough to thrill a bit, and though its handling may well have felt a bit lethargic when tackling back lanes, the stability and way it accurately tracked along offered useful compensation. Braking inadequacy only needed less speed,

The expert’s view Phil Alford of Kawasaki specialists Z-Power, 01942 262864, www.z-power.co.uk: “They’re not the most sought-after Kawasaki and we don’t get to see GPz750s very often at all if I’m honest. But the demand for them is growing slowly, as they’re a good alternative to the mainstream stuff like Z900s.

“They’re a good, solid bike and they can do big mileages if they’re looked after. But restoration can be tricky because the availability of some parts is very poor. Bodywork and exhausts are virtually impossible to source. If you’re dead patient you might find stuff, but it’ll take time. Most people are having to fit four-

into-one systems these days.

“More everyday bits like cables, filters, pads and the like are okay and some engine bits are available too. Mind you, getting something like a new crank would not be easy.

Rear suspension seizure is quite common, but not all the sleeves and bushes you need are that readily available. And they might cost you as much as £150 all-in if you can get them. You just need to be careful when you’re looking at buying one. It’s well worth paying for bikes in standard trim. The better the condition the bike is in, cosmetically and mechanically, the better. It’ll save you a lot of time, money and effort in the long run.”

“I forgot its shortcomings and focused on the positives...”

more anticipation and a firmer tug on the lever to put right.

Once in a more charitable frame of mind, I forgot its shortcomings and focused on the positives. The 750 works well enough, is sufficiently usable and practical to ride and is still a bit of a classic by virtue of its age. I found it refreshing to be given a challenge from a bike that requires

a more exact style of riding to get the most from. When I also considered its rarity and low value, I ended up giving it a firm nod of approval.

This example isn’t one of those precious ‘hide don’t ride’ bikes, and got my vote because of it. The GPz might not have been a winner in the 1980s, and it hasn’t climbed any higher up the ladder since. But it’s

not a loser either, and though it took me time to see it in a better light, in the end it let me do just that. It might not have been quite as good as the competition in its day, but when its rivals set the standard as high as they did, it didn’t really matter. The Kawasaki has the power to please, and surely that is the most important ingredient in any bike.

ICONIC METAL 35 TECH SPEC 1984 KAWASAKI GPz750

ENGINE TYPE: 738cc, air-cooled, eight-valve, dohc, inline four MAX CLAIMED POWER: 85bhp @ 9500rpm MAX CLAIMED TORQUE: 50lb-ft @ 7400rpm GEARBOX: Five-speed FINAL DRIVE: Chain FRAME: Steel tubed double cradle SUSPENSION: Front: telescopic anti-dive forks adjustable pneumatic preload; Rear rising-rate monoshock, adjustable pneumatic preload, rebound damping BRAKES: Front: twin 280mm discs with single piston calipers; Rear 240mm disc with single piston caliper TYRES: Front: 110/90 x 18; Rear: 130/80 x 18 SEAT HEIGHT: 800mm WHEELBASE: 1490mm DRY WEIGHT: 220kg FUEL CAPACITY: 19 litres

36 ICONIC RACING

The making of

a legend

Kerry Swanson shares extracts from her book, which tells the story of Mike Sinclair – crew chief for Kenny Roberts’ Grand Prix team…

I first became aware of Mike Sinclair’s quite remarkable involvement with both riding and building racing motorcycles after a number of interviews leading to a four-part history of the Marlboro Series (published in NZ’s ‘Bike Rider Magazine’ in 2014). Mike’s adolescent years were centred on motorcycles, and among his mates (off-track friends; on-track competitors) were individuals such as racers John Boote, Stu Avant and Dale Wylie.

Despite winning a New Zealand 250cc GP title (on a machine he had built-up and tuned himself ), as a result of racing against the best local – and the occasional overseas visiting – competitors, Mike came to the realisation that he was a good, rather than exceptional rider. This was a pragmatic decision that was to have a profound effect on motorcycle racing on the global stage, as Mike decided to focus on developing his mechanical skills.

For all he knew in doing that he

might be able to make a bob or two as well! This story covers one of the most significant periods in motorcycle racing history, from the early 1970s, when larger capacity two-strokes were beginning to give an indication of their potential, through to the Nineties, at which point they were the weapon of choice in almost all classes of road racing.

Mike’s story is, in his words, ‘a view from the shed’, a unique perspective on motorcycle racing in general and the GP especially. Writing this biography has been an absolute pleasure and I have to say it was with more than a little sadness that I realised the long interview sessions with Mike had come to an end. Mike remains as self-effacing as ever and although the words might be mine, the story is his…

A champion in the making

There is an unknown side to Randy Mamola that Mike feels needs to be discussed, something that

illustrates not only a willingness to share, but also something that is often underestimated with respect to being a top-class racer of any sort – a memory for detail. “Wayne Rainey had just started riding 250s in Kenny Roberts’ new team, and we were about halfway into the season. I’m sure we were at the Rijeka circuit for the Yugoslavian GP, a very interesting circuit and Randy really had it dialled.

Wayne just couldn’t get his head around the track, American Superbike hero and all, so he came in and started talking to Randy about it and they had a good hour of conversation.

“It was interesting to hear Randy relay the exact detail and approach for every part of the circuit – Wayne was really attentive, and the next day he went out and claimed pole position.

I thought, ‘man that guy is going to be good; he’s humble enough to take advice and then once that’s filed away, he can get on his bike and put it all into practice. This is a champion in the making. And only four years later, I’m working with him.’

“Randy was really generous giving that information. It is remarkable the level of detail about individual circuits that these guys can store in their heads. In 2015 I overheard

Kevin McGee telling Stu Avant about a front-end we did and how the feel was in different corners, all done 30 years prior!

“We lesser mortals would go and ride the track, whereas those guys are down to minutiae for each metre of the circuit. Here they are riding short three or four kilometre circuits, right on the limit of adhesion everywhere and they know what is on and around each corner. That really puts the demands of the 37-mile IoM course into perspective.

“They really can concentrate, that’s why so many of them are good at golf, a game that is miles away from the average person’s capacity, a real head-bender, but for the top level motorcycle racers that’s what they do for a living. I used to say to Carlos Checa when he was crashing his brain out, ‘you need golf, go play that game in the off-season. It will frustrate the

bejesus out of you, but it will teach you to focus and concentrate.’”

A new opportunity

At the end of the 1983 Grand Prix season, Mike had again returned to New Zealand with an uncertain future as to whether he’d have any further involvement in top-level motorcycle racing. Suzuki had withdrawn support for the now outdated RG500 and, at that stage, it had no alternative to offer. Once again he was unemployed.

By the time the first two races of the 1984 season had been completed, Mike was becoming resigned to the fact that he needed to look at other career options. A phone call from Randy indicated that he had leased a three-cylinder Honda to do three big Internationals, including the ‘Champion Spark Plug Classic’ and another at Assen. Would Mike join his team?

ICONIC RACING 37 “Mike flew to HRC in Japan, where he undertook a compressed course on how to tune and maintain the NS500.

The Mamola team of five then shifted to Belgium and set up base in the Honda Europe headquarters in Aalst.

“We did a couple of races and then Randy got second in one of the early GPs [Spanish] and suddenly we could keep the bike for the rest of the season, so we did both Internationals and GPs, I’m pretty sure it was a money per race deal.” Despite the rather unorthodox machinery offered by Honda, what became apparent was how quickly riders like Randy and Freddie Spencer could adapt and by the time they had arrived at the Nürburgring for the German GP, Randy had already chalked up second and third places, while Spencer had one first and one second.

“The threecylinder in the push start days was great because it just fired up so easily, the Yamahas on the other hand were firing like a big twin and were hard to get going. We arrived at the track for the German GP and Freddie was using the new four-cylinder NSR500. The track had a number of 180° corners, and getting round in 1min 45sec was a big deal.

Randy was on the three-cylinder and doing 1min 44sec but Freddie, on the four, just couldn’t get under those times.

“On the Saturday night before race day Freddie and his guys drove back to Aalst and picked up the other three-cylinder bike, and next day Freddie did 1min 42sec! Freddie was miles faster than anyone else and so, after the race, I measured the brake pads on the Hondas. Randy had used 4.5mm on the front brake and finished second behind Freddie, who had used only 1.5mm of pad – remarkable! I wanted to figure out what Freddie was doing that allowed him to be so easy on his brakes.

“I spent time just observing what he was doing at the next circuit, which was Le Mans,, another track

with constant-radius 180° corners.

In such circumstances Freddie was unbeatable. It then became clear; he’d come into view and in effect ‘V’ the corner, throwing the bike onto its side as he entered using hardly any brake but, instead, using the front to sledge the machine out to the apex, scrubbing off heaps of speed, then standing his motorcycle up to get it in line for a straight, full-throttle exit.

What he was doing was wonderful to watch, but it just seemed so illogical.

“I explained this in detail to Randy, saying ‘this is what you have to do, thee only dangerous part to his manoeuvree is the apex whereas for you, it’s the entire inner circumference of the corner. You have 180° of danger when you are canted over on your side. Anywhere he has that kind of corner he is going to blow you off!

Anderstorp and Le Mans were like that; if a track had three or more similar corners he could gain three quarters of a second per lap. Randy – don’t brake like you normally do’.

“Honda had used the old two back, one forward engine configuration, meaning a lot of the weight was set well back in the frame and they had a lot of steering-head rake. When they turned the NS500 into a production racing bike, a lot of those who bought it just couldn’t ride it because it was so light in the front. This alone destroyed the careerss of a lot of guys who had heaps of potential, but just couldn’t adapt theirr riding styles.

“Honda didn’t build bikes with a lot of adjustability, its attitude was ‘we build the motor and frame, now your job is to go away and race it.’

Even when Randy was riding the three-cylinder, we always used to try to come up with ways that we could change things – nothing was adjustable, the only options were springs and damping to try to make it work. Good riders like Randy got used to it, but they were never 100% because the front always felt so vague vague..

God that was horrible, I feel like I’m stopped in the corner...

38 ICONIC RACING

“Then we got to Sweden [Anderstorp]; another circuit with 180° turns and again I said to Randy that Freddie was going to blow his doors off unless he could negotiate those corners as Freddie did. After qualifying, Randy came back into the pits saying, ‘God that was horrible, I feel like I’m stopped in the middle of the corner’, I then pointed out how good his lap times were. He was doing really well in the race and then he had big trouble with the throttle sticking…”

A real understanding

Randy had the opportunity to ride one of the original, underslung fuel tank V4s in the 1984 British Grand Prix at Silverstone. In many respects that fast circuit was ideal for the machine, though the progressive lifting of the centre of

gravity as the fuel tank emptied was disconcerting. And Mike’s opinion?

“You don’t want a low centre of gravity on a motorcycle, especially in fast S-bends; you have to have the crankshaft and the gyroscopic effect in the right place. The V4 also fired one cylinder every 90°, instead d of firing like a twin. Randy always said he couldn’t feel what was goingg on, and when he was drifting on thee power it was disconcertingly smooth, h, the firing impulses one after the other making it difficult to drift – the necessary rear-end traction feel just wasn’t there. The British GP was the only race where we used that bike, and despite the criticism, we did manage to win!”

In contrast, the three-cylinder NS500 did have some redeeming features, not least of which was that it was so easy to push-start (clutch

starts being introduced to GP racing in 1987)… “By the time one of our four-cylinder motors (in effect a big twin) had fired up, the NS Honda was well gone.

“There was another advantage to do with rear-tyre wear; because of the relatively long period between each spark-pulse, the tyre has sufficient time to ‘recover’, which is essential to maximise the efficient transfer

of as much power as possible to the asphalt. With a smooth, turbine-like power delivery of the open-firing order (once every 90°), the demand for grip occurs around almost the entire circumference of the tyre; the result was less feel for the rider and a higher rate of tyre wear.

“You have a whole bunch of little pulses, which was completely wrong for a race-bike – too smooth and

very hard on tyres – power-sliding only works when the rider feels what the rear-end is doing; he must be able to predict what is going to happen when he gives the bike more throttle.” Despite starting his season with a two-race deficit, Randy ended with three firsts, three seconds and three thirds, clinching second spot in the World Championship behind Eddie Lawson.

ICONIC RACING 39 Read the incredible full story…

“My first contact with Mike Sinclair was initiated as a result of wanting to write about individuals from my home town (Christchurch) who had contributed to the success of the Marlboro Series in New Zealand 1973/74 – 1976/77,” says author Kerry. “Despite the fact that both Mike and I were from Christchurch, and that I had a real interest in motorcycling, it wasn’t until I began writing his biography that I became truly aware of the significance of his contribution to international racing.

“Mike is pragmatic and as self-effacing as they come, yet at the same time, he is an astute observer of the human condition. In writing the book I wanted to reflect that trait, which in my mind so characterises Mike, and this was also to be a view of the racing world ‘from the shed’. This story presents an entirely different perspective on motorcycle racing at the highest level, while documenting a period when two-strokes ruled, and Mike’s team initiated technological developments that not only won races, but influenced how most other manufacturers designed and built their bikes.”

‘Mike Sinclair; King Kenny’s spanner-man’ can be purchased from: Fishpond.com, AbeBooks. com, eBay or Biblio.com

40 KNOWLEDGE

Summer kit: What to know The summer brings challenges. Heat and humidity are draining. Dehydration is a threat, leading to loss of concentration... which is potentially lethal on a bike. There is kit designed for this. We looked at two price ranges: Words: Bob Pickett

Getting out in it

Out on the road, how did each set of kit get on? First we will consider the lower budget, followed by the more expensive option.

The Buffalo Coolflow ST jacket is a loose fit (arm straps prevent flapping) with mesh front/rear for airflow and additional arm vents to increase flow. I estimate that the removable quilted/waterproof lining makes for a 5° difference (keeping me dry in a light shower). Lining out, I felt chilly around 18°C! I found the Coolflow’s limit into the mid-30s and at that point even at 70mph on the motorway the air felt warm.

Very comfortable to wear, with two external pockets, a Napoleon pocket, mobile phone pocket and zippable inner ‘pouch’ pocket (inner pockets replicated on the detachable lining), my only issue is not being convinced that the elbow armour would be in the right position in an impact.

The Knox Zephyr jacket performs its core role – keeping you cool in heat – superbly. Into the 30s (°C), as long as I was doing as little as 15mph I felt cool, staying bone dry. The Zephyr is meant to be worn as a snug ‘overshirt’, over a base layer only. It has CE back protection and shoulder/elbow armour that I have 100% confidence will be in the right place should it ever be needed.

That snugness gave me an issue

as I felt constricted. Lots of people will feel fine, but ‘try before you buy’, trying a size larger than normal. Being so snug, it also held th he back protector close to the spine, so at (inevitable) stops theere was no gap, resultingg in me getting home with h a bone-dry torso and d arms, but a sweaty paatch on my upper back.

Snugness aside, I have one big gripe with the Zephyr. I am a practical soul, carrying a lot of stuff with me (a minimum of house, garage and bike keys, mobile phone and earplugs).

Two smallish pockets to stash this lot in isn’t great. The Zephyr does have a concealed rear pocket… but that means having to take it off to get at the contents.

The Spidi J-Strong jeans only come in regular leg length – a problem for those of us with little legs – but I was able to turn them up over the pre-stitched turn-up making them fit nicely. They’re a relaxed fit, comfortable from the off and very light. They are the jeans of choice for that retro image.

I get the feeling that there is more Cordura in the Cordura/denim blend of the Spada Rigger Selvedge jeans, as they have a real elasticity, the mesh lining making them easy to slip on and off. The messages on the waistband make me smile; having ‘ducks’ disease’ I appreciate the short

Lower budget:

■ Buffalo Coolflow ST jacket: 600 denier polyeste er.

Removable waterproof, windproof and breathable drop lining. Removable quilted thermal lining.

Armour in impact areas.

■ Spidi J-Strong jeans: 13oz Cordura/cotton mix, EN1621-1 CE knee armour..

3M Scotchlite reflective strip. Regular fit only.

and regular leg lengths. I did find them a little constricting at the crutch, but over time the fabric will give.

The RST Blade II gloves’ goatskin took some breaking in. For a time, the knuckle armour dug in when pulling on the clutch lever. The fingers felt tight. But I was always able to take them off, the three-strap securing system gave me 100% confidence that they would stay in place and I appreciated the mix of materials on the palm, meant to encourage the hand to slide in an accident, allied with a suede strip to wipe moisture off the visor during a summer shower.

What does another £44 buy you? In the case of the Wolf Kangaroo gloves, there is bags of feel. I hadn’t realised until I put on the Wolf gloves how much feel was available. Suddenly the levers and switches were intimate friends. Comfortable from first wear, nothing dug in and my hands stayed sweat-free in the hottest of weather. I did manage to pull off some decorative trim – and the blades on the thumbs make me think I should give them back to Batman – but they have become my ‘go-to’ pair of gloves in warmer weather. No suede wipe strip, though – a bit of an oversight.

I love the TCX Rush WP boots. They are so light that you hardly feel they’re on your feet and breaking in consisted of one evening wearing them around the house. Adjusted by tightening laces, I like being able to secure the bow with the Velcro strap. The tiny vents (you’ll miss them unless you look properly) supply a surprising amount of ventilation – when the temperature dropped I realised there were little jets of cold air shooting along my feet! My feet stayed dry in a shower and the soles were grippy.

How does TCX get its boots to be so comfortable from the off? The TCX X-Hero leather boots broke in after a day wearing them round the office (with praise for such good looking boots from non-biking colleagues).

The leather is supple, the soles grippy, and I love being able to adjust them by tightening/tying the laces… then never touching them again, getting them on/off via the lateral zip. I’ve worn these on really hot days and my feet felt fine, but long term I’m thinking of these as spring/autumn boots; choose these for that retro look.

My story Not long after starting biking I bought a set of textile kit, meant for cold/wet UK conditions. This came with a thermal layer, sealing tight at wrists and ankles.

There was a sudden heatwave. Riding home, one of my hands started tingling. As the ride went on the tingling moved up my arm, then my other hand and arm, into my legs and, scarily, my head began to do the same.

I flipped open my visor, undid the popper buttons on the jacket’s storm vent and got the inner zip undone a little. As soon as I could I stopped, stepped off the bike... and collapsed.

Tech specs

■ RST Blade II gloves: Goat leather, fixed mesh polyester, Double leather pa alm protection, carbon knuckle protection, pre-curved and out-stitched fingers. TPU ha ard finger tips.

■ TCX Rush WP boots: Microfibre combined with suede, air intakes in the ank kle, polyurethane toe slider and suede shift pad. Toe and heel reinforcement. Lacing system plus velcro band with micro-injected insert for eas sy band opening. All-use sole,, high-wear resistant.

Lower budget Jacket: Buffalo Coolflow ST £99.99 Jeans: Spidi J-Strong £138.99 Gloves: RST Blade II £65.99 Boots: TCX Rush WP £99.99 Total: £404.96

Higher budget: ■ Knox Zephyr jacket: Made from ‘tough, abrasion resistant’ fabrics, CE armour in shoulders, elbows and back.

Arrownet fabric front and rear for maximum ventilation.

Optional (i.e extra cost) chest protector available. YKK zips.

Concealed rear pocket.

■ Spada Rigger Selvedge jeans: Cordura, with CoolMax technology (fibres with channelling to move moisture when hot, hollow fibres to insulate on colder days). 100% polyester mesh lining, Aramid fibre reinforcement at impact points. YKK antique zipper, CR knee armour, available in short and regular lengths.

■ Wolf Kangaroo gloves: Kangaroo leather, mated with carbon fibre, SuperFabric and memory elastane armour.

Carbon-memory elastane CE hybrid knuckle protection, SuperFabric palm and finger reinforcement, carbon wrist-guard, thumb joint memory elastane protection, doublewrist closure, dual |layer leather palm. Out-stitched fingers and pre-curved shaping.

■ TCX X-Hero boots: Full-grain leather, waterproof lining, toe and heel reinforcement, extra leather pad on gearchange.

Lacing system + lateral zip and velcro band.

Sole tread designed to offer a ‘superior’ grip.

Higher budget The A&E doctor explained: “As the heat increased, your body attempted to deal with it. As you sweated you began to dehydrate. This wasn’t enough to maintain your core temperature so your blood vessels dilated as much as they could, but even this was not enough and you began to COOK inside your clothing.”

So within an hour of setting out, I was in real trouble. Thankfully I was able to stay focussed long enough to pull over and get off the bike safely.

But I am all too aware that the situation could have been much worse.

Jacket:: Knox Zephyr £199.99 (£249.99 with op ptional waterproof overlayer) Jeans s: Spada Rigger Selvedge £139.9 99 Gloves s: Wolf Kangaroo racing £109.99 Boots s: TCX X-Hero £169.99 Total: £619.96 (£669.96 with wate w rproof overla ayer)) – like-for -like difference £265)

KNOWLEDGE 41 Riding in the heat on a budget We came up with kit for two sets of budget, but we realise that even the lower one is the type of money a lot of riders – especially those starting out – may only have for the whole year. If you can’t afford specialist clothing, there are things you can do.

■ 1. All year kit? Make sure that it can cope Choose kit that has some form of venting that can be opened when it gets warmer. A lot of textile kit feature zippable vents on jacket and trousers.

■ 2. Don’t ride in T-shirt, shorts and flip-flops It is tempting to strip off the kit and ride in little clothing. But this isn’t a good idea. Ever seen gravel rash? It isn’t pretty, but it is permanent.

And aside from the risk of malignant melanoma, riding like this gives a false impression of being cool but the sun is beating down on your skin, dehydrating you without you realising. It also leaves you at risk of sunstroke.

■ 3. Create airflow In unbearable desert heat, the Bedouin are covered from head to foot. This seems illogical, but they wear flowing robes that make the most of airflow.

Get the air flowing. If you have vents, get them open. Open your helmet vents, loosen wrist and ankle straps. Undo the storm flap, loosen the inner zip, but don’t undo all the way. Do that and you’ve lost your accident protection.

■ 4. Keep hydrated Always carry a bottle of water – still, not sparkling (still water is easier to absorb) – replacing with fresh, cold water before you set out if possible.

If you feel hot, pull over and sip, not glug – don’t overload your system.

It isn’t a bad idea to pour water over your head before you go. As the heat builds, this will evaporate, keeping your head cool, at least to begin with.

■ 5. If you feel the need to stop, stop!

If you think the heat is affecting you, pull over, get in the shade and get fluids inside you. Newsagents/off-licences have fridges – though don’t just march in and stick your head in!

Explain what is happening (i.e. you are feeling unwell and need to cool down) and buy something to thank them for their kindness!

So, to sum up...

I thought this was going to be about “how much more do you get for your money”, but it turns out that the focus is how long you need the kit to be useful.

If you need your kit to be useful over a longer period then I’d say the Buffalo jacket, Spada jeans, and X-Hero boots are the choices. They’re all designed to work across a wider range (the Spada lining makes them warmer in cooler weather). Just ride in the warmest of months?

Then the Knox jacket, Spidi jeans and WP Rush boots are ideal, though in the case of the latter I reckon they’ll be okay for late spring to early autumn.

Both pairs will suit both purposes, but it is a case of what you get for your money.

At £65 the RST Blade IIs are great value for money, but for that extra (let’s face it, close on double the cost), the Wolf Kangaroo gloves’ extra feel makes a bundle of difference.

42 PRODUCTS

TomTom RIDER 450

RRP: £349.99 and £429.99 (standard and premium packages respectively) TomTom has just updated its range of RIDER motorcycle sat navs – overhauling and upgrading the software across its range of devices, while delivering its new flagship model, the TomTom RIDER 450.

The new sat nav allows bikers to discover the most interesting and exhilarating routes to liven up their journeys – offering the chance to choose between ‘Windy Roads’, ‘Hilly Roads’ and ‘Roundtrip Planning’ to help personalise your route and get the best out of your ride.

In addition, the RIDER sat navs now include a selection of 150 preloaded routes,

in addition to an abundance of biker specific points of interest. The 150 routes have been curated by MotoPlus, Adventure Bike Rider and Tourenfahrer in partnership with TomTom – and by tapping the screen, nearby biker friendly points of interest can be found easily. These include biker meeting points, restaurants and hotels, even biker museums – everything a rider needs for the perfect tour. And it also comes equipped with lifetime world maps, live traffic and speed camera alerts to help keep you moving when out on two wheels.

From an ergonomic perspective, the entire TomTom RIDER range has been upgraded to incorporate a touch sensitive screen that automatically adapts to light and heavy gloves, and is capable of detecting rain on the screen, ensuring easy use in all weather conditions.

There are a couple of RIDER 450 options to choose from.

Both the standard and premium packages feature lifetime world maps, lifetime TomTom traffic updates, Bluetooth

Weise Brunel leather jacket

hands-free calling and route sharing. The standard model is equipped with three months of speed camera alerts, black spot and jam tail warnings – while the more expensive premium TomTom RIDER 450 is equipped with a car mounting kit, anti-theft solution, protective carry case, offline routes and stops, in addition to lifetime speed camera alerts, black spot and jam tail warnings.

For more information on the full range of TomTom RIDER sat nav systems, visit: www.tranam.co.uk

Akrapovic pipes for Honda CBR1000RR

RRP: £239.99 // Sizes: 40in-50in // black/orange, black/red, black/cream Weise has just launched the Brunel, its new classic styled leather jacket for 2017. Don’t let its retro looks deceive you though; the Brunel features the latest impact-protection technology, offering safety and comfort in one great looking package.

The jacket is made from tough full-grain cow leather, that’s been waxed to help restrict and resist moisture absorption. The wax also helps the leather to dry much more quickly than normal unwaxed leather – but helps keep it in good nick too, mitigating the need for regular re-conditioning after a downpour.

It’s been fitted with Level 2 CE approved protection on the shoulders and elbows – and it also comes with a Level 1 CE-approved back protector, which you can upgrade if you fancy. The protectors are produced from a highly flexible material called Elastofoam, which allows the armour to be low-profile, curving to fit the wearer, without protruding from the back of the jacket.

There are leather overlays on the shoulders and elbows Th too, offering further protection.

To help ensure a good fit, the jacket comes with zip fasteners on the cuffs and adjustable tabs at the bottom of the jackets – and there’s an 8in zipper that allows the jacket to be attached to compatible Weise jeans. It has also got three outer pockets and a couple of zipped internal pockets.

For more information on the product visit: www.thekeycollection.co.uk

TCX Rush waterproof sneaker RRP: £99.99 // Sizes: 36 – 48 // Colours: black, black/fluo yellow These brand new Rush waterproof sneakers from TCX are the latest sporty styled sneaker to emerge from the Italian footwear brand which claims that they offer top quality comfort and protection.

The upper of the boot is made from matt soft-touch micro-fibre and suede to help improve griip – wh hile the colllar is mad de off a sofft mesh h

for comfort, and the internal lining has been waterproofed. They’ve also got air vents on the ankle – which help contribute to the boots’ sporty looks, and should help keep your feet cooler in the warmer weather. The boots are fastened using a typical lacing system, accompanied by a Velcro band.

The boot also features reinforcements in the toe, ankle and heel – meeting new EN regulatio ons and holding CE Certification. The replacea able footbed is anatomic, offering extra supportt for the heel and rear – and the sole is wear-rresistant too.

RRP: £502 – £2094

Akrapovic has just released a massive range of exhaust pipework for the 2017 Honda CBR1000RR – thanks, in part, to its official association with the Honda WSBK team.

There’s a titanium Evolution system and stainless-steel Racing Line system, which both feature titanium silencers and carbon fibre heat shields. There are also slip-ons available – either as a WSBK-style, road-legal Euro-4 version or MotoGP race version. Plus, there are titanium or stainless steel header sets.

For more information and a full breakdown of the options, visit: www.performanceparts-ltd.com

Draggin Revz jeans

RRP: £219.99 // Sizes: 30in – 44in // Colour: indigo blue

Draggin has just launched its latest pair of motorcycle jeans for 2017 – and they’re packed with hi-tech features to help keep you safe out on the road.

Draggin is renowned in the motorcycle world for producing top quality bike jeans that are at the forefront of safety technology – and these jeans aree no different, with protection provided by Draggin’ss Roomoto MR7+ fabric, that offered an impressive minimum of 7.46sec abrasion resistance during CE testing. You can also fit Draggin’s own CE-approved armour to the knees and hips (available at an additional cost).

The slim fit jeans are made from light-blue stretchy denim, and feature a low-rise waistband at the front that is slightly higher at the rear to offer increased protection. The Draggin Revz jeans also feature a silicone coating that allows them to ‘wear in’ over time. The stretchy denim means that the jeans can be worn either outside or inside riding boots and, as with other jeans in Draggin’s Next-Gen range, there are no visible panels or external seams. Draggin has worked to improve their comfort by providing a soft sports liner that draws moisture away from the skin to the breathable outer layer.

For more information, visit: www.thekeycollection.co.uk

PRODUCTS 43

Tru-Tension Chain Monkey RRP: £24.99

Chain Monkey by Tru-Tension is an inn novative chain tensioning tool, designed to enab ble precise chain tension for motorcyclists.

It’s a clever tool that is designed to hellp you set the tension on your motorcycle’s driive chain – allowing you to set chain tension n quickly and easily, no matter your level mechanical knowledge.

For more information, visit: www.tru-tension.co.uk

Furygan Aron jacket RRP: £159.99 // Sizes: XS – 4XL The new retro-styled Aron textile jacket from Furygan doesn’t look like a summer jacket, but it is designed to keep you cool and comfortable when the weather warms up.

The Aron is made from coated polyester, which has windproof and water resistance properties and, most importantly, it is CE approved. The jacket also features Furygan’s Skin Protect lining – a technology developed

by Furygan – which claims to reinforce resistance against tearing and abrasion. It’s equipped with D3O protectors at the shoulders and elbows and there’s a pocket on the back into which you can slot D30 Level 1 or Level 2 back protectors (available at an additional cost).

The internal lining is made from Polymesh and Coolon – a clever material that is designed to maximise breathability and moisture absorption. It’s got five pockets – two on the outside and two on the inside – and there are two on the chest too, which can be used as air vents. The jacket can also be connected to compatible trousers using the Furygan ‘snap claws’ and there are adjusters to help get a great fit too.

For more information, visit: www.nevis.uk.com

HJC IS-17 Deadpool helmet RRP: £249.99 // Sizes: XS – 2XL

HJC has just released its latest Marvel superhero helmet – this time, it’s Deadpool.

It’s undeniably an awesome looking lid – with its textured, matte-red finish replicating Deadpool’s suit with large black eyes blanketing the face of the helmet and an iconic Deadpool logo on the rear.

Underneath the brilliant design, is a HJC IS-17 lid, with an additional inner, drop-down sunshield. The helmet is made from an advanced fibreglass composite shell, meeting current CE safety standards.

It has an advanced channelling ventilation system that allows full front to back airflow, a removable moisture wicking interior lining made of anti-bacterial fabric – and a micro buckle with retention strap to allow quick release.

The lid comes with an anti-fog lens, and a rapid-fire shield replacement system that allows straightforward, tool-less removal and installation – while the aerodynamic shell features a large eye port for even greater visibility.

For more information, visit: www.oxfordproducts.com

44 TRIED & TESTED

RST Aramid Wax II 2205 Jeans Tested by: Ross Mowbray RRP: £99.99 // Colours: Black // Sizes 30-42in

Despite naysayers suggesting that leather is the only way to stay properly safe on the road, personally I’m partial to a pair of bike jeans. I love the versatility and generally wear them dayto-day, on and off the bike – and over the last few months, I’ve been wearing my pair of RST’s Aramid Wax II 2205 jeans pretty much nonstop.

Now, I do recognise that the level of protection offered by motorcycling jeans can sometimes struggle to compare to leather – but these RST Aramid Wax II 2205 jeans are a technologically advanced piece of kit, employing Aramid lining across the knees and rear to help you keep safe

in the event of a slide. If you’ve not heard of Aramid material, it’s the same material used in bulletproof vests and has high abrasion and cut resistance, while still remaining supple and soft. It’s perfect for use in this type of fashionoriented riding jean – and I have to say, these jeans are really comfortable, if not a little on the thick side.

They are thick for a reason though, as they’ve been impregnated with wax to help make them waterproof. In practice, that means they’re capable of keep you dry in a downpour, to which I can testify – but in the very worst of downpours, then they’re going to soak some of that water up – even if it doesn’t quite make it all the way through the denim and aramid lining. It’s worth mentioning that they don’t really look that waxy – in fact, they look just like a normal pair of jeans (sans wax).

Back to their ability to keep you safe, and complementing the Aramid lining are CE level 1 knee protectors. The Contour Plus CE knee armour fits in an adjustable pocket, allowing you to get the armour in the right place really easily, no matter your leg shape. They also come equipped with removable pockets for an optional Contour Plus CE hip armour upgrade – which I would wholeheartedly recommend. Of course, once the armour is in you’ll have a little bit of a bulge on the knees and hips – but if you wanted to, it’s straightforward enough to whip the armour out (providing you can go somewhere private to drop your trousers, of course).

Ultimately, the RST Wax Aramid II 2205 jeans are well-equipped, stylish and reasonably priced – and if you’re planning to take the plunge and buy some new denim that’ll stand you in good stead all year round, I’d definitely encourage you to take a look at the range of RST wax jeans.

For more information, visit: www.moto-direct.co.uk

Richa Daytona 60S Jacket Tested by: Dave Bell RRP: £259.99 // Sizes: XS-2XL // Black, Cognac I’ve recently got my hands on this retro-styled Richa Daytona 60S jacket. It’s new for 2017, celebrating 60 years of the Daytona jacket, but the original design has been spiced up with some fancy stitching on the shoulders and elbows, which complements the handcrafted distressed vintage high quality Buffalo leather.

The soft leather and internal cotton lining allows easy movement – in spite of its removable polyester thermo liner and the CE standard EN16212:2014 (level 1) D30 back, elbow and shoulder protectors, which will help to keep you both warm and safe out on the road. Some leather jackets can feel a little stiff and restrictive – but I found the Daytona was spot on, which is probably thanks to the soft buffalo leather used.

Sadly, the jacket does not have any ventilation, but neither do most other leather jackets – and considering how infrequently we get properly scorching weather in the UK, it hasn’t been an issue at all up to this point.

Ultimately, I absolutely love this jacket.

It is one of the comfiest leather bike jackets I have worn – plus, I’m pretty sure I could get away with wearing it on a night out with the lads, and I’d get to reap the benefits of the CE protection should I fall over on the way home.

For more information, visit: www. nevis.uk.com

TRIED & TESTED 45

Hedon Hedonist Helmet

Tested by: Chris Knight RRP: £299-£500 // Sizes: XS-XXL // Colours: Huge range of colours and designs The first time I ever went on a motorcycle was in 1976 I was almost nine years old. Our neighbours consisted of a family of three brothers and two sisters plus mum and dad obviously, who had relocated from Newcastle to Lincolnshire.

The brothers were bikers, the oldest, Bret, was 19 and owned an R65 BMW among other bikes. I pestered him for months to take me on the back and he always said no, of course I didn’t

realise that it was my mother who was actually saying no and not him.

When I finally twigged I pestered my mum and eventually she relented and agreed, to say I was excited was a total understatement. This was a seminal moment for me, it was not a long ride, maybe 10 miles and it was not the most comfortable ride as I didn’t have any goggles or glasses but it was the most important ride of my life because it was the moment I became a biker.

So what has this got to do with Hedon helmets and why am I telling you this story?

The ride on the back of Bret’s BMW was the first time I ever wore a helmet, and surprise, surprise, it was an old open face lid – it was very heavy and obviously too big for me. It was noisy too, and had a distinctive smell which I can still recall to this day, a pungent combination of sweat and Brut.

Those early experiences shaped my opinion of open face lids, and I haven’t been able to shake it for years – and then I got my hands on a handcrafted Hedon Hedonist, and all was forgotten.

The British-made Hedon helmet has set a new standard for me – offering a superb mixture of function and form. The attention to detail is really impressive, from the alcantara-like calf leather lining to the perfect paint finish, right through to the chin strap with a leather tab. But what impresses me most about this helmet is its functionality. It’s lightweight, comfortable and somehow manages to reduce wind noise, which for an open face helmet with such a narrow

profile is unusual and should be lauded as a real achievement. Of course, it is a very cool looking lid too, with its retro styling harking back to the 1970s – but most importantly it’s equipped with all the necessary technology to keep you safe out on the road.

Of course, there are a lot of open face helmets available on the market and the Hedon Hedonist certainly doesn’t come in cheap – but, if you’re looking to buy a new open face helmet, and you want something retro styled that promises to keep you safe, my advice would be to try a handcrafted Hedon Hedonist on for size.

For more information, visit: www.hedon.com

46

THE INSIDE LINE TO CLASSIC JAPANESE IRON WITH STEVE COOPER FROM THE VJMC 47

The engine part 5: rebuild Words and image: Steve Cooper With the bottom half of the motor assembled and validated in terms of its freeness to turn over and select gears we’re now going to install what is colloquially termed ‘the top end’. If the power unit is a four-stroke chances are you’ll have a cam chain around the crank sprocket; this will need to be pulled up the cam chain tunnel of the cylinders or block and secured in some way to prevent it falling back inside the lower half of the engine. A piece of wire is often used for this and fixed to either a convenient part of the workshop or somehow otherwise retained. The trick here is to remember you’ll need freedom to manoeuvre the top half of the engine onto the pistons and then downwards so don’t paint yourself into a corner. Two-strokes make life easier… but only to a point.

Always fit new gaskets, it’s a basic rule of engine building that will stand you in good stead. And it’s a rule that pays dividends at this particular stage.

No one wants a leaking base gasket once the engine is up and running or you’ll be lifting the motor out of your newly restored frame. Buy genuine gaskets from a main dealer if possible;

they may be more expensive than pattern ones but are guaranteed to both fit and work properly. If you have to use aftermarket gaskets ensure they’re decent quality.

With a cylinder block running three or more pistons to contend with it makes sense to invest in some form of piston ring compressor. As the name suggests, these devices hold the rings into their grooves (or lands) so that you can fit the cylinder(s) over them. Practicing on a free piston is a good way of grasping how to use the ring compressor but know that you’ll always need loads of clean oil on the piston and rings along with the bore of the cylinders. Four strokes generally run three piston rings and the convention of their positioning is normally with their ends 120 degrees to each other; this ensures the maximum levels of compression with the minimum of blow-by or leakage.

However, always check with a manual or accurate source of data in case the manufacturer has a different set up.

We’ll assume it’s a four pot motor we’re working with and move on.

With the engine firmly seated on a bench, two oiled pistons are pulled to top dead centre (TDC) and the rings and pistons carefully introduced to the bores. With a little wiggling and

cajoling it should be possible to install the piston/rings and then gradually work off the ring compressors. An extras pair of hands makes this job so much easier; one of you can work the pistons home while the other manipulates the block/cylinders.

With a pair of pistons now resident it’s time to turn the crank over bringing the other pair of pistons to TDC or close enough that you can gain sufficient access. Now repeat the process but without evicting the first pair you just installed. This entire process will either work like a dream for the first time you do it or will turn into a nightmare… this is the nature of the beast unfortunately.

Sometimes it’s incredibly difficult to fit the pistons in from the bottom end of the bore; short stroke motors can make this job almost impossible.

In these instances the pistons are not fitted to the connecting rods but are pre-ringed. With a circlip installed to the least accessible side of the pistons they are fed into the top of the bore (again using ring compressors and copious quantities of oil) then carefully tapped downwards. Then the gudgeon pin is installed along with the second, new, circlip. If all this sounds like a right faff that’s because it is… once again, no one said it was easy!

“TThe home of the Japanese classic”

Air-cooled two-strokes, singles and twins in particular, are often much easier to sort out. The key point here is to ensure the rings are correctly positioned with their ends either side of the ring pegs. If you don’t two things are almost guaranteed to happen; firstly you’ll get the cylinder jammed on the piston and secondly you’ll break at least one piston ring.

After all this you’ll probably want to enjoy the results of your handiwork and rightly so but just be careful.

There’s normally no reason why you

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Visit www.classicmagazines.co.uk/cmm87 Expiry: 31/12/17 Call: 01507 529529 and quote code: CMM87 *UK only offer

shouldn’t turn the engine over but there are a few caveats. Make sure the cam chain won’t get snarled up around the crank and find a viable way of holding down the cylinders… you really don’t want the pistons making a bid for freedom right now!

The VJMC – run by motorcyclists for motorcyclists.

For membership enquiries only: Tel: 01454 501310 Email: membership_vjmc@yahoo.co.uk Address: PO Box 1949, Yate, Bristol, BS37 0BX Office hours: Monday-Thursday,10am- 4pm (please leave a message)

48

Biker Friendly Guide

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FIRST RIDE 49

Honda’s CMX 500 Rebel: there’s no pigeonhole here

There is a German word ‘gestalt’, meaning “an organised whole that is more than the sum of it’s parts”. Say hello to the CMX500 Rebel.

Words and pictures:

by Bob Pickett The Rebel adds a ‘cruiser’ option to Honda’s A2-friendly ‘family’ alongside the CB500F commuter, sporty CBR500F and adventure-styled CB500X. All four bikes share the 471cc parallel twin engine, tweaked here with maximum torque up from 31 to 32ft-lb (coming in earlier in the piece), traded against losing a couple of horses at the top end. The Rebel has a new tubular steel frame

TECH SPEC Price: £5399 Engine: 471cc liquid-cooled, 4-stroke, DOHC 4-valve parallel twin Power: 33.5kW/45bhp @ 8500rpm Torque: 44.6Nm/32lb-ft @ 6000rpm Transmission: 6-speed chain Chassis: Steel tube diamond Suspension: Front: 41mm non-adjustable telescopic forks. Rear: Showa with pro-link system, preload adjustable twin shocks Brakes: Front: Single 264mm disc, twin-piston calliper with ABS. Rear: Single disc, single piston calliper, ABS Tyre: Front: 130/90-16M/C 67H. Rear: 150/8016M/C 71H Seat Height: 690mm Tank Capacity: 11.2 litres Kerb weight: 190kg www.honda.co.uk

plus the lowest seat height (just 690mm) of any ‘big’ bike.

What none of this tells you is just how much fun it is to ride. Sit it up and the lack of weight strikes you.

Pulling away it feels nicely balanced, possibly aided by those big tyres, making town work easy.

But the fun begins when you crack the throttle, that parallel twin belying the seeming lack of capacity and punching forward. Overtake? Look, dip, twist and go. It’ll build numbers on the digital speedo respectably until it runs out of puff at the top end (riding into a headwind on the M11, motorway pace became a chore).

I loved the riding position. Starting out quite upright, it didn’t take long before I was leaning into the narrow bars, balls of my feet up on the midplaced footpegs, looking for corners to test the handling. It handles really well. Before I got on the bike I imagined this was going to be a potter round urban roads with a spot of big A-road riding, taking corners at a gentle lean... nah.

At least half the 100 miles I shared with the Rebel were spent on ‘country’ roads. And it was grin-inducing fun, being easy to chuck around the corners, that little engine enjoying

being worked. This was where the suspension showed its limitations however, with the little Honda shaking its head at times.

The brakes are spot on. Friendly enough for the first big bike riders the Rebel will attract, they have bags of feel, confidence-inducing ABS and enough power to stop the little Honda with ease. The simple single digital clock gives great ‘at a glance’ feedback (though the grey display was faint in tunnels).

There was a surprise. My wife Laura is 5ft ½in tall with 25in legs. Ideal Rebel market? She felt cramped and the peg placement meant she had to put her feet behind them when stopping, leaving her leg less than an inch from the exhaust heat shield. At 10in taller, with four more inches of

inside leg? I found the Rebel roomy.

After 100 miles (stopping to put some petrol in the tank plus photos), I felt fresh and invigorated.

I’d say drop any ‘cruiser’ references.

The Rebel really is more of a – if you want to put it in a category ‘box’ – ‘roadster’. It is light, friendly, far more flickable than those big balloon tyres suggest with an engine that – until you reach its limits – is perky, responsive and punchy. Ignore the spec sheets, ride and be surprised just how big a grin it plasters across your face. It is definitely more than the numbers suggest... oh look, ‘gestalt’.

Thanks to Johns of Romford for the loan of the bike. To arrange a test ride of the bike we rode/get more information/talk about buying one: Johns of Romford Honda 46-52 London Road Romford, Essex, RM7 9QX Tel: 01708 746293 Email: sales@johnsofromford.co.uk www.johnsofromford.co.uk/

50 ACCESSORIES

EXHAUSTS

PARTS AND SPARES

MOT AND SERVICING

PLASTIC REPAIRS

BRAKE HOSES

CHROMING

SEATING

NUT & BOLTS

TYRES

WEB WATCH

SERVICES

TRAINING COURSES

CLOTHING & ACCESSORIES

PAINTWORK

TRAILERS

DYNO

YAMAHA EXHAUSTS

TRACKDAYS/RACE SCHOOLS

WHITE DALTON 51 Th he MCM legal column is compiled by y managing artner pa Andrew ‘Chef’ Prendergast and P his bike-riding barristers and ssolicitors at White Dalton W Motorcycle M Solicitors.

S The firm deals with personal w injury claims and its sister a company, company Motor Defence Defenc Solicitors, deals with all the motoring offences.

White Dalton lawyers have a vast knowledge of bike law – and they have full bike licences, too. They don’t act for insurance companies or the prosecution. White Dalton is Britain’s premier specialist motorcycle law practice, and if its professionals don’t know the answer to your question there probably isn’t one. Don’t rely on the advice from your insuranceappointed solicitor, get proper independent advice.

For road traffic offences call the Motor Defence solicitors on 0800 280 0912 For non-offence cases call White Dalton motorcycle solicitors on 0800 783 6191

Need advice If you need advice on a biking-related legal question or query, email mail@whitedalton.co.uk The best Q&A will be published in MCM, in confidence, of course.

Q&A

Our specialist motoring solicitor Andrew Prendergast guides readers through their legal trials and troubles...

Q

I work for a company in their sales team.

As a result of our team winning an internal competition we went on a works ‘fun day’. One of the activities was riding an off-road motorbike.

We attended a safety briefing and I and two other colleagues told the instructor we had never ridden a motorbike before. He laughed, said it wouldn’t be a problem and that if we fell off it wouldn’t hurt as the track was on mud. I was literally given two minutes’ tuition and told to pull away on what I now understand to be a 400cc motorbike.

At this point I lost control. I don’t really know what happened but I ended up speeding across the muddy track and crashing into a tree. I smashed my sternum and broke my neck. I have now been off work for six months and will not return for at least another year. I don’t know what to do. While sympathetic, my employer has said it’s not their fault and I went along and undertook a “risky activity” voluntarily. They are stopping my pay next month as I’m not at work and if I have no money I and my family will lose our house. I’m proper scared. Can I bring a claim or not? If the answer is yes, who against?

A

On the face of it, your employer owes a duty to make sure you are safe at work. It is arguable they still owed you this duty as you were on a work ‘fun day’. Then there is the ‘instructor’ who sounds like a proper muppet. What an earth possessed him to put a complete beginner on a 400cc motorbike with a tree next to the track? And then let you loose after two minutes’ tuition! That said, you knew you had never ridden a motorbike but got on anyway.

It could be likened to a man who has a go at boxing but then complains when he gets his nose broken. However, I do think that is a harsh view and I suspect you may be able to bring a claim against your employer or the instructor or both. However, you need some specialist legal advice as each case turns on its own facts.

Q

An old piece of scum drove straight out of a petrol station and into me while I was on the main road. He smashed my left leg to bits. I’ve had three operations. Not happy. Even worse, the police have told me they are not prosecuting Mr Scum because he is “old.” My view is they should send him off to Switzerland with a one way ticket for an injection. However, it’s probably good I’m not the law. What can I do to help him get prosecuted or at least taken off the road?

A

The police’s job is to gather the evidence. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) then makes a decision whether to prosecute. The CPS should look at The Code for Crown Prosecutors. There are two main considerations: 1. Is there enough evidence against the defendant?

2. Is it in the public interest for the CPS to bring the case to court?

If you want the driver considered for prosecution I would read the guide then write to the police with your reasons and ask for the matter to be reviewed with a view to prosecution and go from there. I would also ask the police to consider whether the DVLA need to be contacted so this chap’s licence can be revoked if need be.

For more info, go to:

SOLICITORS

www.whitedalton.co.uk

New Suzuki GSX250R arrives in the UK

The new GSX250R has finally made it to the UK – and the A2 friendly, 248cc parallel twin pocket rocket is now available at Suzuki dealerships, at a price of £4299.

The engine has been designed to give optimum performance at low to midrange revs, producing 17.21lb-ft of torque at 6500rpm and peak power of 24.7bhp at 8000rpm. Intake valves are designed to optimise airflow into the combustion chamber, which should help to further improve performance while reducing emissions – and a new two-into-one exhaust system further enhances performance in the midrange.

If you put down a £1500 deposit, on a Suzuki hire purchase deal, you can pay £90.22 per month over 36 months and own the bike at the end of the term.

52

Classified FREE Selling your bike is

for private readers

For sale APRILIA HABANA CUSTOM 125cc, 15,701 km, serviced, MoT till Jan 18, £800; 2002 reg, also another one, no MoT, runs ok, 2001 reg, £400 or £1000. for the two. Tel. 07936 569510. Kent.

ARIEL RED HUNTER NH 350 1955, all original with handlebar fairing and rear rack, first kick starter, all mechanics are excellent, 27,956 miles, original Kent registration number which is transferable, £4000. Tel. 079200 18229. Cumbria.

BMW F800ST 2009, with factory lowered suspension, seat height 765 mm, 19,500 miles and just serviced, blue, Givi top box and panniers, fitted with higher screen and a lightweight silencer, both original items inc, h/grips, onboard computer, main stand fitted, vgc, £3400. Tel. 01752 408297. Devon.

BMW RT1150 1150cc, red, 40k miles, full BMW s/h, MoT Sept 2017, alarmed, new pilot, 4 tyres, new disc pads, panniers, top box, tools, spares, extras, ready to tour, £3000. Tel. 079410 44692. Essex.

BMW K100RS 1984, owned 25 yrs, 54k, taxed till Feb 2018, MoT March 2018, exc cond, recent new tyres, battery and service, some spares, Clymer manual, helmet and gloves, any trial, lovely bike shaft drive, RT bars, very reluctant sale, garaged, bargain £1100. Tel. 01737 762487; 07478 651506. Surrey.

CAN-AM 250 Rotax Enduro, 1978, 5,561 miles, ex-military, owned 30 years, MoT 2002, not used since, needs recommissioning and registering, £1000. Tel. Neil 07836 208050. Herts.

CUSTOM HARDTAIL CHOP/ LOW RIDER show quality, CB900FC Honda engine, MoT, custom paintwork WWI themed, billet yokes and risers, new tyres, Goodridge hoses, two-pack: engine, wheels, handlebars and parts. Suzuki SRAD 750 forks, Tokico 6-pot calipers, Yamaha R1 wheels, Marving 4-1 custom Zorst, much mirror polishing, £6750.

Tel. 07790 177352. Norfolk.

HARLEY-DAVIDSON Sportster, reluctant sale due to moving home, blue, 7,300 miles on the clock, a brand new MoT, extras include Screamin’ Eagle II Stage One (sounds gorgeous!), Harley h/grips for those cold days, forward controls, crash guard and quick release tall screen, alarm and immobiliser, black oil tank cover, spare foot peg, single seat and rack, it’s wired up ready for Optimate type battery charger, c/w orig Harley owners manual plus Haynes repair manual, £5000 ovno; cash on collection. Tel. 07717 206857. E Sussex.

HARLEY-DAVIDSON 1200cc, 1996, red/silver, MoT Apr 18, have standard silencers, standard foot pegs, 15,030 genuine miles, fully serviced, new belt, ride away, £3200.

Tel. 07831 342418. Grantham, Lincs.

miles (dealer serviced 5k miles), MoT issued 24 Feb 17, currently taxed (i.e.not Sorned), excellent condition, garaged (with Optimate to maintain battery), 17 ltr tank, Harley removable rear rack, Fehling pannier frames, with Givi panniers, datatag security installed, screen fitted for longdistance comfort, £5650. Tel. 01522 811161. Lincs.

CHOICE OF HONDA SUPERDREAMS 1981, red, heated grips on this one, 1979, black, £1800, both MoT’d, all good working order, good runners, good tyres, nice clean bikes, £2000. Tel. 07799 813523 or 01689 891345. Kent.

HERALD CLASSIC 125 2014, MoT May 18, 2,400 miles only, one mature owner, not learner, £899 ono. Tel. 01244 312816.

Chester.

HONDA CB100N 1980s classic, p/coated, new rims/spokes, new tyres, mirrors, MoT’d to 2018, learner legal, appreciating classic, lovely condition, professional paint, only £1595 ono. Tel. 01302 855370 (leave message). S Yorks.

HONDA CB250TE 250cc, type MC05, red and chrome, custom, in excellent condition, £800.

Tel. 01380 870419. Wilts.

HONDA CB500 2003, 8,700 miles, one previous owner, top box, screen, RG bungs, Smartwater, always garaged, MoT March 2018, Haynes manual, retiring, £1400 ono.

Tel. 01782 953511. N Staffs.

HONDA CBR125 RW-9 Vgc, new parts inc brand new front fender, battery, mirrors, front tire. Rear tire has only done few hundred miles also chain and sprockets have only done about 500 miles, only 9,023 miles on the clock, fuel injection model with starter switch, MoT and tax until April next year, no advisories, £1495 ono. Tel. Matt on 07586 444851. Hants.

HARLEY-DAVIDSON Superlow XL 883L Sportster, black, single seater, 2013 model, reg 1 Mar 14, one owner from new, 5,887 HONDA CBR600F 1998, full MoT, 16k miles, immaculate condition, £1475. Tel. 01249 814129; 07400 623679. Wilts.

HONDA CD175 Earlier, restored, new exhausts, new tyres, rare single seat model, low mileage, new MoT, lovely little bike, 1972, first to view will buy, £2495. Tel. 01302 855370. S Yorks.

HONDA HORNET 600 F2 faired model, 2002, very low mileage, I am the second owner, 2,400 miles in first 13 years now on 6,200, some marks on engine cases due to previous owner otherwise very clean, see photos.

Giving up due to arthritis in both wrists at age 69 reluctantly, can supply photos if needed, to include Abba stand, £1950. Tel. 07572 155700. Spilsby.

HONDA NSC 50R 64 reg, 2015, 850 genuine miles, vgc, full REPSOL livery as Honda model supplied when new, CBS braking system, £1100. Tel. 07842 774822. .

HONDA CBF 500cc, 2005, ABS, MoT May 18, 18k miles, recent chain and sprockets, good tyres, Puig screen, Pipeworx end can, great bike, £1500. Tel. 01480 453790. Cambs.

HONDA PAN EUROPEAN 1100, 1999, 32k miles, vgc, s/steel exhaust, wax oiled, swinging arm, workshop manual, sat nag, two seats, LED lights, big fast comfortable bike, £2000 ono.

Tel. Paul 0151 678 8883. Wirral.

HONDA SHADOW VT750 2009, 10,076 miles, new battery, new screen, engine bars, alarm, carrier, tool kit, 2 sets keys, s/h, accessories, shaft drive, very comfortable cruiser, £3500. Tel. 01383 830838. Fife, Scotland.

HONDA VF1000F GAVIN this bike has your name on it! reg no.

D394 GAV. 1987, Italian import in 1998, 52,000 miles, has had new front discs and pads this year, new plugs, oil and filter, new air filter, nos bottom radiator last year and replaced top rad, with good second hand tyres are Conti-go, about 3 years old but only done 2,500 miles at most! Selling because it is too big and heavy for me now (heart condition), engine makes a lot of clattering when cold, but once hot runs smooth and quiet, I would like somewhere near £700 open to offers. Tel. 01787 462702. Halstead, Essex.

HONDA VFR400 NC24 1989, G reg, 30k miles, Repsol colours, single seat, new tyres, pads, battery, braided hoses, long MOT no advisories.Recent service and carbs tuned, new ABE chrome stanchions, have also dual seat and cowls, £1450 ovno.Tel. 07969 418942. Fife.

HONDA VTR1000 Firestorm, 37k miles, full Remus high level s/s exhaust system, braided hoses, adjustable levers, d/b screen, hugger, fender extender, seat cowl, MoT at point of sale, £1995. Tel. 07714 692795. March, Cambs.

HONDA CB500FA 471cc, black, 7,500 miles, serviced, MoT, one owner, £3200. Tel. 01750 20818. Scottish Borders.

HONDA INNOVA 2007, 18k, red, full screen, rear carrier and detachable top box, indicator bleepers, very smart, on Sorn, selling as I tend to use my C90 which is lighter for me at 74, £695.

Tel. 01723 515546. N Yorks.

HONDA NIGHTHAWK 250cc, 1995, 46,356, blue, MoT/taxed, nice condition, £850. Tel. 01527 836644. Worcs.

HONDA SH300 300cc, only 4,150 miles, showroom condition, £2050; 08 Zontes Tiger 125, silver, delivery mileage only, can’t ride medical reasons, £1300. Tel. 0208 4028557. Bromley, Kent.

Choose one of the following methods:

1 2 3

ONLINE www.motorcyclemonthly.co.uk EMAIL freeads@motorcyclemonthly.co.uk POST MCM Reader Adverts, Media Centre, Morton Way, Horncastle, Lincs LN9 6JR

HONDA SILVER WING 125cc scooter, black, 9,500 miles, MoT March 2018, good condition, very reliable, £1200.

Tel. 01476 562923. Lincs.

HONDA TL 125cc, Sammy Miller Hiboy, 1976, immaculate condition, runs like a Swiss watch, new barrel and piston just fitted, £2500. no offers. Tel. 01322 275022. Kent.

HONDA TRANSALP 2007, 39k miles, high screen, c/stand, crash bars, top box, running lights, recent service, stainless steel ‘fuel’ end can exhaust, 12v socket, 9 mths’ MoT, bargain £1800 ono.

Tel. 07704 343331. Stockport.

HONDA TRANSALP 600cc, 1996, complete bike in boxes, garage shed! some new parts, exhaust, high screen, seat etc, for rebuild, been Sorned 4 years, £400 ono. Tel. 01789 740802. Warks.

HONDA VFR 800cc, silver, 1998, R reg, Remus exhaust, Givi top box, 41,000 miles, two owners, datatag, MoT to August, very good condition, £1200. ono; offers. Tel. 0121 6031782.

West Midlands.

HONDA VFR750 green, 1996, completely rebuilt except for engine, 32k, £2000. Tel. 07976 736253 for more details.

Cambs.

HONDA VTX 1300S original exhaust, only done 2k miles, £250. Tel. 07447 946170.

Stafford.

PAIR HONDA SUPERDREAMS CB400S 1981 and 1979, one red, one black, MoT due 27/03/2018, heated grips on one, just passed MoT, overhauled, nice touring bikes, classic electric start and kick start, £2500. Tel. 07799 813523 or 01689 891345.

KAWASAKI EX250 Ninja, 2010, black, fuel injected, two owners, recent Hagon mono shock plus bushes, rear disc, throttle cases, been riding 60 years, now buggered, giving up so bargain, £750. Tel. 01293 410976. Surrey.

KAWASAKI GPZ1100E 1100cc, 1995, N reg, recent tyres, discs, silencers, was Cat C, 2008, runs/rides well, tested Apr 2018 ,tidy condition, £895. Tel. 01709 322206. S Yorks.

KAWASAKI Z250 250cc, 1980, 4-stroke twin, complete running, many new parts including brakes, master cylinders, lines, ignition components, tyres and panniers, workshop manual, silver blue fairing, £750 ono.

Tel. 07931 204726; 01423 565388 for details. N Yorks.

KAWASAKI W650 1999, parts to list, p/tank, blue/silver, £350.

Tel. 01446 790157.

KAWASAKI ZZR1400 2007 model, brilliant condition, only done 26k miles from new, I’m the third owner, I have it booked in tomorrow for it’s MoT which I am sure it will pass with flying colours, bog standard bike with no mods whatsoever apart from the Optimiser charger lead which I fitted and a 12V socket with an adaptor bracket for a sat nav, no test rides sorry until I have payment in hand but it’s fully road legal and I can always take you on the back for a trial blast, I’m sure the first to view it will buy it, asking £4200 open to sensible offers. Tel. 07515 406787. Wrexham area.

KAWASAKI EN500 1990 model, MoT Sept 2017, new front tyre, £650 ono. Tel. 02476 335966.

W Mids.

KAWASAKI GPZ A1 900cc factory workshop manual (not Haynes), £20; also Haynes manual for GPZ900/GPZ1000RX, ZX-10, No. 1681, £10. Tel. 01502 538922. Suffolk.

KAWASAKI GPZ1100E 1100cc, N reg, tested April 18, recent tyres, front discs, Motad silencers, Cat C write-off due to age and panels, 2008, MoT history since then, looks and goes fine, £895. Tel. 01709 322206. S Yorks.

KAWASAKI Z1000 CHOP 1978, professional build, full MoT, ready to ride away, sounds and runs awesome. Offers over £3000. (no silly offers). Tel. Colin 07720 374212. Cumbria.

KAWASAKI ZX9R E1 2000, very good condition, full s/h, very quick bike, nearly new Dunlop tyres, MoT’d, green and very clean, you will not be disappointed, carbs overhauled, £2250. Tel. 07973 114305. Cumbria.

LEX-MOTO VIXEN 125cc, low seat, custom style, 2 1/2 years old, owned by 70 year old male, approx 3,800 miles, in showroom condition, black/cream, learner legal, good commuter, very economical, £575 ono. Tel. 01509 413426. Leics.

MATCHLESS G3LS mint, 1957, 7,864 miles, all paper work to prove, just had service 2 wks ago, 350cc, black and gold, got green card and V5, collect only. £3595.

Tel. 07528 704174. Wales.

MOTO GUZZI NEVADA CLASSIC 750IE, 07, 4,500 miles, superb condition, many extras including Guzzi screen, panniers etc, £3000. Tel. 07790 830525. Leics.

NANCHANG CJ750 749cc, 1959, 9,500 kms, horizontal twin side valve, electric/ kick start, 12v, side car with windscreen, locking boot, spare wheel, screen available, some tools, £2500 ono or why?. Tel. 01427 616450. Lincs.

CLASSIFIEDS PIAGGIO MP3 250cc, 2007, blue, 18,000 km (under 12,000 miles), MoT Jan 2018, most MoTs, new parts fitted, receipts for £843, both keys, V5 in my name, immob, clock, fuel gauge etc, handbrake, handbook, boot and under seat storage, vgc, £1795 possible p/x bike and sidecar or Moto Guzzi?. Tel. 079130 32864. Yorks.

ROYAL ENFIELD 350cc, Pre65 Trials bike, this machine has been rebuilt using a 250 Crusader lightweight frame, new alloy rims, stainless spokes, engine rebuilt, new forks and rear Falcon shocks, full details ring Dave £3000. Tel. 07583 532153. Leek, Staffs.

SUZUKI BURGMAN 200cc, 2009, just like the 125cc model but much faster! Huge storage space under seat, just 3850 miles from new, in lovely condition, heated grips, nearly new tyres, new MoT, £1300 ono. Tel. 07866 622196. Yorks.

SUZUKI GS1000 1982, G (shaft drive), reg WPR568X, 83,737 miles, recently rebuilt with many new parts inc, piston rings, valve seals and clutch plates, all receipts available, MoT until May 2018, £3995 or sensible offer. Tel. Allen on 07806 530510. Somerset.

SUZUKI GSX-R 1100L 1127cc, 43,259 miles, 1991, original condition,. Tel. 01325 311982.

Durham.

SUZUKI GSXR WR 95, 24,000 miles, vgc, owned since 2004, MoT 03/07/18, mature owner, Metz tyres, £2950. Tel. 07592 855060. Derbys.

SUZUKI INTRUDER VZR 1800 Boss, 2015 reg, 3,419 miles, Cobra swept pipes - looks and sounds amazing, black, genuine Suzuki engine bars, Holeshot aluminium grips and passenger pegs, T-Rex extender (tank dash), cost $200 from Mean Cycles, serviced by dealer and service book stamped at around 800 miles, drive oil changed by me at same time, 3,419 miles at time of writing, stored in dry garage from new, battery kept on Optimate charger to maintain, £9300 ono. Tel. 07894 078815. Notts.

SUZUKI K1 2002 track bike, V5, Sorned, Race bodywork, Arrow race exhaust system with baffle, braided hoses, quick throttle, crash bungs, K-Tech suspension, carbon front mudguard, Wavy rear disc, Power Commander, c/w spare set of wheels with wets and discs, tyre warmers, box of spares (levers/filters/sprockets), all you need for a foray into track days, £1300. Tel. 0121 250 4014 (leave contact message).

Birmingham.

SUZUKI SV650 2005, 55 reg, 6000 miles, 12 months’ test, one previous owner, very original condition, small area of flaking paint on engine, reason for sale, very little use, £2100.

Tel. 01302 570841; 07980 536006. Doncaster, S Yorks.

SUZUKI VX800 805cc, 1997, £1100 ono. Tel. 01372 787566.

Leics.

SUZUKI GS750T 750cc, Canadian import, ‘X’ reg, runs and rides well, just serviced, new 12v battery, YSS shocks, GSX 16v engine, electronic ignition, 1982 reg, stainless Allen bolts, £1350 ono. Tel. 01708 531917. Essex.

SUZUKI GSF K8 650 Bandit, 08 plate, ABS, genuine 2,870 miles, totally standard bike, new MoT, vgc, one mature owner, always garaged, dry use only, reluctant sale due to health reasons, £2950 ono. Tel. 07779 181616. Somerset.

SUZUKI GSXR/K7 carbon tank cover, rear hugger, standard tail unit, rear no plate, front brake clutch levers, rear seat unit, bar end weights, £150. Tel. 07906 959791.

Walton-on-Thames, Surrey.

TRIUMPH 3TA 349cc, historic classic, 1958, matching frame and engine nos H1463, blue/ silver, reg no 265 DTJ, ready to go, be quick, classic bargain, £3500. Tel. 01366 383941 or 07500 148900. Cambs.

TRIUMPH TROPHY 1200 4 cyl, 2002, one owner, MoT May 18, many extras, ideal tourer, £1995.

Tel. 07929 630103. Oldham.

TRIUMPH TROPHY 650 time warp 4,030 miles, 1968, sweet running bike, MoT extensively A1 condition, matching numbers, starts first kick, this

Subscribe to Motor Cycle Monthly: www.classicmagazines.co.uk/MCM or call 01507 529529

bike is an investment, a classic, £9500 ovno.Tel. 01189 734072.

Berks.

TRIUMPH AMERICA 865 EFi, pair chrome silencers, good condition, genuine Triumph, to clear garage, £50 ono. Tel. 07887 379560. Wakefield.

TRIUMPH TROPHY 1200-4 used front and rear wheels, new forks, rear shock absorber, screen, grab handles, side stand and front mudguard. Tel. 07929 630103. Oldham.

YAMAHA MT-09 Tracer, an MRA screen for a Yamaha MT - 09 Tracer, excellent quality screen is a grey tint and in vgc with no major marks or scratches, maximum height is 36cm and maximum width is 32.5cm, direct replacement for original screen, equally effective as original screen and enhances the look of the bike, selling due to change of bike, £40. Tel. 07952 883720. Solihull, W Mids.

YAMAHA MT-07 65 reg, Lava ref/black, 4k, ABS, data tag, full dealer s/h, remaining manufacturer’s warranty, over £1000 of extras including: Yamaha h/grips, Puig sports screen, gel pad seat conversion, c/stand, Neoprene shocker cover, mirror extensions, Yamaha cigarette/power outlet, battery charger socket/power outlet, 30mm handlebar risers, Intaride bike mounted 2-way radio system, including second radio and spare battery, carbon fibre hugger, mudguard extensions front and rear, immaculate and unmarked, probably one of the best equipped bikes in the country, health forces sale, £5100. Tel. 01922 375555 or 07831 643825. Tyne & Wear.

YAMAHA TDM900 2002, perfect working condition, some cosmetic problems, 68k (1500 done by me), very well taken care of, perfect engine sound, perfect gearshift, everything working as it should, doesn’t need even one penny invested, you can ride it away, new set of tyres fitted one month ago, MoT until August 2017, c/w box and heated grips as seen in pictures, £1400. Tel. 07456 018249. London.

YAMAHA YBR 250cc, my bike from new, well looked after, 2009, 29k miles, screen top box, new stainless front pipe, nearly new tyres, well looked after, overall in excellent condition, £1500 ono. Tel. 07964 196949. Lancs.

YAMAHA DT-175-MX 175cc, wanted for restoration project, parts for Yamaha DT-175-MX, may consider full bike,. Tel. 01709 361365 anytime. S Yorks.

YAMAHA FJR1300A Sports Tourer, 2010, vgc, 36,170 miles, ready for a tour, full s/h, ABS, panniers, c/stand, e/ screen, h/grips, mushrooms, fender-extender, large top box, £5200 ono. Tel. 01694 328253.

S Shrops.

YAMAHA FJR1300A Sports Tourer, 2010, vgc, 36,170 miles, ready to jump on tour, full s/h, ABS, panniers, c/stand, e/screen, h/grips, mushrooms, fenderextender, large top box, £5600.

Tel. 01694 328253. S Shrops.

YAMAHA FZR GENESIS PreExup, 1988, 16k miles, one owner 26 years, JMC swing arm, new disc, braided lines, Micron full system, blue/white, must be seen, Sept MoT, £2895. Tel. 07836 251850; 01664 565778. Leics.

YAMAHA SR 250cc, M registered, sold as a project, very little to do, running, needs tlc and good owner, offers invited, can deliver for small charge. Tel. 0208 450 6543. London.

YAMAHA TDM/XJ looking to p/x 600N Diversion for clean low mileage TDM 900, or XJ900S, or purchase outright, all calls appreciated. Tel. 07952 257485. Mids.

YAMAHA TZ 4 l/s brake, new linings, new 19” rim, only done 1 1/2 laps Jehonville, POA. Tel. 07786 716774. London.

YAMAHA XJ600N 600cc, 1997, very good condition throughout, MOT to June 2018, new tyres, smooth reliable bike, mature owner, £900. Tel. 01487 711333; 07555 586954. Cambs.

YAMAHA XJSA DIVERSION 600cc, 09 reg, 12k miles, 9 months’ MoT, newish tyres, recent oil and filter change, books, three keys including red one, repair kit, owned for last 3 years, good condition, £1900.

Tel. 07971 378406. S Wales.

Parts for sale AFTERMARKET DUNSTALL SILENCERS for new Triumph Bonneville T100, British made, sounds great, just like the bike was meant to sound, cost £238 new been on bike 12 months good condition, £80. Tel. 07951 69569. Blackpool.

BIKE TRAILER for sale, single spare wheel, lightboard and loading ramp, £200 ono. Tel. 01446 790157.

BMW K1200 AND R1200 driver’s seats for sale, as new condition, BMW R800/1000 boxer pannier lids, Haynes manual No. 4598 BMW R1200 Twins, sensible offers accepted, buyer to collect. Tel. Dave on 01329 505109. Hants.

BRIDGESTONE TYRE new 120/70/18 BT54 tyre, brand new, £65. Tel. 01664 852758.

CB1300 SLIP ON Akropovic titanium exhaust removable baffle, no dents or scratches all fittings excellent condition, £120. Two cargo panniers with rain covers, good condition used twice, three tank bags used good condition, panniers and bags £50 no offers. Tel. 01424 425856 or 07773 084372.

CG125 PARTS, front mudguard, £20; chrome headlight brackets, £20; rear shocks, £20; battery box, £10; air filter and box, £10; rear foot pegs, £6; rear brake pedal, £10; clocks bracket, £5; rear mudguard under tray, £15.

Tel. 07752 443794. Wales.

CRASH BARS to fit pre-2015 Hinckley Triumph Bonneville, good condition, with fittings, £65; also rear rack for the same machine, good condition, £55 or £100. the pair. Tel. 01271 343790. N Devon.

GENUINE ALUMINIUM Honda cross tourer top box with fixing plate, brand new with key, can post or collect in person, £450.

Tel. 07833 155885. Bolton area.

GIVI MONO LOCK top box, in Swadlincote Derbyshire, to fit Honda 600CBF, as new condition as only 3 months and 200 miles old, silver/black to include base plate and side fixing rails, box plate and rails total £280 new, will accept £170. Tel. 07923 930119.

Derbys.

HARLEY-DAVIDSON Screaming Eagle Tuner - Part Number 32109 08C, £195 ono. Tel. 07894 078815. Notts.

HARLEY-DAVIDSON Men’s El Camino II biker collar, black leather jacket - mid-weight, vintage, genuine cow hide leather with polymesh lining; zip-out, removable, polytwill vest liner; two front vertical vents and two back exit vents; body armour pockets at elbows and shoulders, biker collar, zipper front, slightly pre-curved sleeves, zipper cuffs, removable belt at waist, snap-tab epaulets, two zipper hand-warmer pockets, snap pocket on left side, two interior pockets and one MP3 player pocket, size: medium, unworn, £199. Tel. 07700 706215. Guernsey. gjv@ cwgsy.net HONDA CB500F 2016 on, Puig sports screen, as new, in box, £45; Givi rear rails, £45. Tel. 07880 903174. Worcs.

HONDA CBF1000 hard panniers and stays, mint, £250; Vetter fairing, £50; despatch gauntlets, £20; lots GL1200 spares, rear section silencers, Speedmaster/America boxed, mint, £300; Thunderbird/ Legend chainguard, £20. Tel. 07434 513161. Lancs.

HONDA CBR600 fuel tank, circa J reg, (95), purple/yellow, good condition (used), £40. Tel. 01296 720626. Bucks.

HONDA VFR750 screen still in box, £15. Tel. 07402 223755.

Surrey.

KAPPA 48 top box, £15. Tel. 07711 655592. W Mids.

KAWASAKI ZX-6R F1 ENGINE with starter motor, cylinder head fully overhauled, valves reground and reskimmed to within tolerances, £240. Tel. 0161 6069983. Cheshire.

KREIGA R35 Backpack hardly used, £65; Harris s/steel rear paddock stand (bobbin type), as new, £35; mens Dannisport 2 piece leathers, grey/black/ silver, size Euro 46, excellent condition, £165; ladies Belstaff black leather jacket, size 14, as new, £90. Tel. 07881 997630.

Lancs.

KTM 390 DUKE PARTS:-. Tel. 07580 130388. S Cumbria.

LEATHER M/C JEANS - lace up sides, size 32” waist and 32” inside leg, vgc - no damage, £25. plus p&p if required. Tel. 01604 905850. Northampton.

MANURHIN, DKW, SPARES Durkopp parts, Triumph scooter rack, CZ Enduro front sprockets, new, Lambretta brake linings, Fibrax, Malagutti frame, forks, s/arm, ETZ rear mudguard repainted, tons more to clear.

Tel. 07951 173316. W London.

MOTORCYCLE BIKE TRAILER single, very good condition, spare wheel, light board and loading ramp, £200 ono. Tel. 01446 790157.

MTC S/S SILENCER /muffler for Kawasaki ER6 N/F with baffle, £80. plus p&p. Tel. 07968 248587. Bucks.

MV AGUSTA F4 750cc tank, red, £250; air box cover, (small chip), £100. Tel. 01554 777209.

S Wales.

ONE-PIECE LEATHERS unused, with armour, mostly black with anthracite shoulder panel, 44”, 5ft 10/11”, bought for thwarted competition comeback, never been on a bike, £125. Tel. 01293 410976. Gatwick.

PARTS FOR SALE:- Kawasaki W650, year 1999, front fender, petrol tank, carbs, hand bars, head lamp, £350 ono. Tel. 01446 790157.

R1200GS LC 2013 onwards, front engine guard, cylinder guards, Puig hugger, £110. Tel. 079320 47132. Chester area.

SINGLE BIKE TRAILER h/duty, silver/black, powder coated, 10” mini wheels, spare, new tyres, steel mudguards, 4ft lighting board, jockey wheel, brand new, ready to go, £400 ono. Tel. 07944 518704. W Mids.

SUZUKI 1250 BANDIT aluminium chain guard, £15 ono. Tel. 07894 078815.

SUZUKI M1800R full exhaust for B.O.S.S, been on bike for 800 miles only, £275 ono. Tel. 07894 078815. Notts.

SWONA SILENCERS for Yamaha FJR1300, excellent condition, £150; w/screen for Honda CB1300, £25. Tel. 07948 757784. Edinburgh.

TRIUMPH DAYTONA 675 2006, end can, never used, £100. Tel. 07787 525198.

TRIUMPH SPEED TRIPLE 1050cc, standard exhaust, full system, 2006, good condition, £100; front discs, £25 each; Triumph Bonneville, 1972, silencers, T120, £30 each; seat, £30; BMW LT110 clocks, £35; fairing, £90. Tel. 01785 851977. Staffs.

TRIUMPH SPEED TRIPLE low level, MIVV carbon silencer, road legal, fits 2011-2016, cost £300, excellent condition, offers; also Triumph pillion grab rail, fits same, cost £105. Offers. Tel. 07974 385213. Shrops.

TRIUMPH SPEED TRIPLE 2002, silencer, new, still in box, £55.

Tel. 07402 223755. Surrey.

TRIUMPH SPRINT 1050ST mirror and flasher units, new/ unused, £75; TriumphT160 workshop manual and parts catalogue, £10; Triumph T140V/ T140E/ Tiger TR7V workshop manual and parts catalogue, £10; Givi 50 ltr monokey, top box complete with backrest and top rack, 2 keys, as new, £100; Over 400 motorcycle magazines, including: Classic Bike, Classic Motorcycle, all in good condition. Offers. Tel. 07944 518704. W Mids.

TRIUMPH STREET TRIPLE 675cc, 09, rear sets, levers, brake clutch, seat, hardly used, £40. Tel. 01268 699718. Essex.

TRIUMPH TIGER 800 Leo Vince LV one stainless silencer and link pipe, carbon strap, unmarked, little use, £100. Tel. 01242 678949. Cheltenham.

UNIVERSAL F/FABBRI WINDSCREEN slight tint, 16 1/2” wide, 17” deep approx, brackets etc, £35; Demon full-face helmet, medium, £10; Shark fullface helmet, med/large, £10. Tel. 07984 352539. Worcs.

WINDPROOF MID LAYER SUIT comprising long sleeve top, leggings, socks and gloves, two suits for sale, one size large and

one size extra large, £40. per suit (plus p&p if required). Tel. 01604 905850. Northampton.

YAMAHA MT-09/RACER ACCESSORIES: Yamaha fly screen, £40; stainless air intake grills, £10; comfort seat with MT09 logo, embossed, £100; aluminium side rad guards, £30; Gillies aluminium chain guard, £40; Gillies billet adjustable levers, £70 pair; front and rear Gillies crash bobbins with red anodised aluminium detail, £50; Gillies chain adjusters, £30; Gillies locking safety titanium rear axle nut, £25; Maxton rear shock with tool and instructions, £200; carbon fibre dash/tank cover, £30; Akropovic full exhaust system, £500; all to include p&p, all items sold as used and as seen, all items in very good condition. Tel. William 07813 108139. Tyne & Wear.

YAMAHA XT1200 MRA SCREEN I have two screens 2010 to 2013, £60 and 2014 to 2017, £60. Tel. 01664 852758. Leics.

Wanted ANY CLASSIC MOTORCYCLE WANTED in any condition from basket case to one in nice condition, cash waiting. Tel. 07811 189755. Staffs.

BMW TWIN WANTED any model or condition, up to 1996, genuine enthusiast. Tel. 0151 2608612. Merseyside.

BSA C10L 250cc wanted?

Books, bits and photos of BSA 1955 C10L side valve, cash offered by OAP biker. Tel. 07904 421059. Merseyside.

SUZUKI T20 OR T200 1965 to 1969, prefer usable bike, but anything considered,. Tel. 07581 177445. Chester.

WANTED EARLY 1970S HONDA 450, DOHC, engine complete, why? Can collect. Tel. Paul 078130 77665. Worcs.

WANTED LEXMOTO MILANO or AJS Modena 125cc scooter, must be in good condition and recent model,. Tel. 07983 062684 (if no answer please keep trying - nurse).

WANTED XT YAMAHA 350 parts would consider complete bike if cheap. Tel. Brian 01909 721563; 07748 726102. Notts.

Miscellaneous ADVENTURE BIKE RIDER magazines, issue 1-36 in 6 binders, buyer to collect, £40; Motorcycle voyager, issue 2 to final 15, buyer to collect, £15.

Tel. 01603 868368. Norwich.

BOOKS: GREEVES by Carrick & Walker 1st Edition, £60; The Scottish 69-89, £25; 1900-62, £25; Four-stroke Finale - The Honda Trials Story, £45; Sammy Miller - The Will Tow In, signed, £25; all books in mint condition.

Tel. 07984 352539. Worcs.

BSA A65C SPITFIRE Mk II Clubman spec, rare MDL comprehensive rebuild, orig docs/ receipts, run in, peony red, 65/66, £13,750; Buffalo racing leathers, new, black/red, 5ft 10”/44-46, £195; (340);n Boots leather Alpine Star, vgc, 10/44, £55; fabric jacket, black/red, £29. Tel. 07759 607498. E Berks.

BUCKSKIN FRINGE JACKET Hein Gericke, size M, faun, excellent, £70 ono; Hein Gericke calf-length black boots, size 7, hardly worn, £70 ono; waterproof pants, reasonable, thermal lining, hip and knee armour, new, 30”, £25 ono. Tel. 01793 855055 (answerphone). Wilts.

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