H242 autumn winter singlepages

HUSTLER H242 AUTUMN/ WINTER

Heritage 12 Northeast 18 Events 22 30 Years 26 2016 AGM 34

CELEBR AT 40 YEA ING RS OF MEMBE RSHIP

and more...

WWW.SUZUKIOWNERSCLUB.CO.UK 1

Front cover shot: Hedge Monkey

By Kev Close

H242 AUTUMN/WINTER Editorial

by Alan Hancock (Alan H) editorsoc@rocketmail.com

Deadline for issue 243 - 10th February 2017

Welcome to Hustler 242 I offer my apologies to all the members for the lateness of this issue I have always struggled with getting it out on time. I have been hampered buy many issues.

After a lot of thought i have decided to pass on the quill to a new editor who i am sure will have fresh ideas. Thank you to all of my merry band of submitters without you the Hustler just would not happen at all. I owe you all a cold one.I must say a big thank you to James for his help in the admin side of the editors role for this issue, he has saved me a pile of work. Dont forget that club members have access to the previous 12 issues via the club website. All of these issue’s are a wealth of usefull and entertaining articles. Please sit and write something and send it as an email or as a .doc or a txt please. with pictures attached as seperate jpgs. So settle down and have a read through with a coffee or beverage of your choice and enjoy.

Neither the Suzuki Owner Club nor its National Commitee are Necessarily in agreement with the opinions, views or suggestions expressed in this magazine. any such opions, views or suggestions are entirely the authur’s and publishing them does not imply the endorsment of the Suzuki Owners ClubCopyright.

Suzuki Owners Club 2007. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without permission of the Suzuki Owners Club.

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Chairman’s Report

by Pete Dibble (Bugman) chairman@suzukiownersclub.co.uk Season’s Greetings and welcome to your latest bumper edition of the Hustler.

Following the October NC meeting the decision was made to amalgamate the Autumn/Winter editions to bring the Hustler back in line with the club ‘s requirements, I hope you enjoy this edition.

Yet another year has sneaked past us, some have already experienced the first snow falls of Winter and we find ourselves going to work in the dark and returning home the same.

Firstly I welcome all new members to the National Committee who either volunteered or were conscripted into undertaking a role and a massive thank you to those standing down for the sterling work they have done in supporting the day to day running of your club.

If you our members feel you have something to offer then we are still looking for a Public Relations Officer and of course more volunteers to help Tink stage and promote the club at the many shows we attend.

I will actively continue with the goals we have set out with the National Committee on Tour continuing so we can engage with you, our membership, whilst keeping a watchful eye on costs.

Well, with the AGM out of the way and autumn has disappeared and winter is now upon us, the last of the Shows have been and gone and the Shows Truck is put to bed for the winter and will be out next year resplendent with the livery completed and minor maintenance works carried out.

Till next time ride safe.

Wishing you all a very Happy Christmas and Prosperous New Year.

Peter Dibble

Membership

by Pete Dibble (Bugman) membershipsecretary@rocketmail.com Hello to all our Members. Since the Last Magazine Publication.

New Memberships Renewals

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We welcome all our New members and look forward to meeting you at an event, NC on tour or rally soon.

(Numbers Correct as of 25/09/2016) Regards, Peter aka Bugman 4

Merchandising

by James Wiedenbruch (Rockhopper) merchandising@rocketmail.com

A very big hello to all our members once again as I find myself having to sit and write the report for what is the last quarter of the season for 2016. I and quite a few of the NC sit and think where the hell did that year go too….!!. Like all of us that contribute to the magazine it only seems five minutes since we were doing the spring issue.

Could I firstly send out a big thank you to all my friends who sent me get well messages and gave support during the period this year when I had some health issues to address and I was not as active within the club as I would have wished to be. Thankfully I am now back to full speed which is just as well as I have some fantastic news to tell you all.

That good news is that we have at last managed to get the SOC-Shop up and running and it is open for business as I speak. You can find it on the Forum and on our Face Book site at the following link: www.socshop.co.uk I am also looking to get a permanent slot within the Hustler such as the back page where we will have a shop advert showing what we have to sell. Please have a look round the shop and see what we have on offer. New stock will be added all the time so keep coming back and see what’s new. On the same note you may from time to time notice that things get changed or moved around whilst we find what works the best. If you do find anything that is not working or you think it could be done more effectively then please let us know. Quite often it’s the end users that come up with the best way to make things work. As I have said before keep a good look out for new items and things that you think will sell and send me the details in an email to my address. What really helps is if you could include a picture of the item and a contact address of where the item is made.

With regards to the NEC 2016 tickets that I was selling, well, I am very happy to announce that we have managed to sell every one of them which was a huge relief to all of us in the NC. We knew that we would be ahead of the game this year and making sure we did not slip up on the same mistakes from last year, but it’s always a nail biting moment until that last ticket is sold. The first thing I would like to do is pass on a huge thank you to all the members who supported the club in buying their tickets from us and also the NC and members who did the ground work in getting the word out amongst the membership. It’s the hard work that goes on behind the scene that makes the difference and I am proud to say we have a very hard working team that does just that behind the scenes to make things happen.

I know the feeling is to go bigger next year and go 200 tickets, but I think it would be wiser to stick with 100 again and build further on our success a bit more. As we have learnt from previous shows it’s better to watch the costs closely and spend our money wisely. One other very exciting bit of news is that Pete our Chairman has purchased an ex race truck for the purpose of using it as a SOC stand at the many shows and meetings we have up and down the country during the year. It has already attended the Brighton Burnup and the Super Sausage Café events where 5

I am pleased to say it was definitely a crowd puller as people came across to see who we were and what it was about. Over the coming winter period it is intended to re sticker the truck and work on the insides with storage, plus work out the best way to display things and what in. Plenty of good ideas came out of looking at what Suzuki GB had on their truck which we may pinch for sure, especially some excellent travelling show cases that opened, to not only make a display case but also a counter. The main thing is that it has the potential to become a one stop storage and display platform that we have never had before which should speed up the setting up of displays and more importantly provide a central storage space for all the club equipment and merchandise.

Finally, I would just like to say a very big thank you to all the membership for all of their support they have given the club and myself over the year. It goes without saying that a club is only as good as the members that support it and I for one think we have some great members.

Finally the bit that always feel strange to say in as I write this but, may I wish you all a very happy Christmas and an equally happy New Year.

Regards James (Rock Hopper) Merchandising Officer

Tech officer

by John Carr (jlcarr) techofficer@rocketmail.com Hello to All in Our Great Club, It’s been a very busy time since my last report as I have had to play catch up with the Dating Certificates as we have been doing a lot of shows and camping weekends Oh as well as our AGM. So after all the weekends away it was head down into my PC and emails sorting things out, I’ve had a few interesting bikes to date most of which have been imports from the good old USA, one of them was a T 400 Tiger and a lovely GS 400.

Quite a few of off roaders that they want to be used on the road, some have asked for dating certificates when the bike is only half done. If you do apply for a Dating Certificate please make sure the bike you are asking about is at least 90% finished.

As this is what the DVLA have asked for and also a Dating Certificate is only valid for 6 months from the date of issue. I’ve had a couple of T 350 Rebels that have come in the county most of the bikes seem to be coming from DK Motorbikes they seem to be the main importers of bikes at the moment. So don’t forget that it could take up to 28 days to get the return letter with your Dating Certificate and Confirmation letters.Till my next report to all take care and ride safe.

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ley Ber nard Crow Below is a photo of my dad with his beloved Busa & one of his five much loved grandaughters with his Busa.

He has always been a bike fanatic since he was a young lad, and even being thrown off his bike during an Isle of Man practice race in 1957 (sorry if we’ve got date wrong!) didn’t put him off...despite being in a coma for a few days!

That was due to his back wheel collapsing!

He’s now turning 80 on 29th May and is still enjoying many rides out on his pride & joy...which has now just over 147,000 miles on the clock!!

So a Happy Birthday to a special, adored dad and grandad...from all his family xxxxx 7

National Secretary

by Sue Carr (Gofer 750) ncsuzukiownersclub@rocketmail.com Hello to everyone, What a fabulous summer we have had! We have had some amazing events, camping weekends and shows, the highlight being celebrating 2 of our members reaching 40 years of membership in our club! We had a lovely trip to Hamburg and met Guenter and his wife Angela, you can read all about it in Guenter’s article!

Then we had the wonderful London Camping weekend with our guest of honour John Storrie, a wonderful man with so many memories spanning his 40 years of membership. A huge congratulations to Guenter and John!

Now on to the serious stuff, the Annual General Meeting was held on 28th August 2016. Thank you to all who attended and voted on the agenda items and nominations. A big thank you to those who returned to the committee for a further stint, your help and commitment to the club is invaluable. There are still vacant posts, Public Relations Officer and Membership Secretary. Although some of these posts are being covered it would be a great help if any members were interested in taking on a role within the NC. If you would like to have a chat about it or to see a role profile please let me know. We are always looking for help to lighten the load, a few hours a week can make all the difference, please lend a hand. We would like to welcome Danny Broughton as the new Heritage Secretary, a surprise volunteer at the Stafford Show, read his intro later in the mag, Thank you Dan for volunteering!

We are coming in to winter so please stay safe on the roads and for those whose bikes are winterised please ensure you follow the guideline to keep your bikes in tip top condition.

Wishing you a wonderful Christmas and a very happy new year!

Keep it sunny side up.

Sue (Gofer750)

Touring

by Mark Seager (DarkStar) touring@suzukiownersclub.co.uk Hope everyone is well, had a lovely day out in the New Forest with the South Coast Centre at Sammy Miller’s museum, always worth a visit. Next year looks busy with the club we are going to Mons in Belgium at Easter which is later in the year so fingers crossed it will be good weather. I will be going back to Loppem in Belgium which is the last bank holiday weekend.

We are planning a week long trip to Brittany but that is for later when I have the dates . Hamburg the return will be in July next year. Cornwall long weekend is in the planning stages plus back to north Wales in September. I have a few other ideas as well if I’m allowed by Julie! Bye for now.

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Treasurer

by John Carr (jlcarr) soctreasurer@rocketmail.com Hello to All.

This month’s report is to bring you some good news within the club; we, as in the club, have got a 25% share in a race/shows truck with Peter Dibble. This has cost the club £2000 but the good thing is if Peter goes to sell the truck we get back 25% of the sale price.

We first used the truck at the Newport show and we had some good feedback about, it did generate a lot of interest from the people at the show. Then it came up to our Invader Rally and the members attending showed interested in the truck and the shows, the next show was the Brighton Burn Up and boy we had massive feedback from the members who manned the stand that day saying that the public that walked past them came back to see what we were all about.

The next event was the Super Sausage Cafe, as we drove in to the car park we had some strange but positive looks. Later after we set up Tim Davies and John Reynolds came over and asked who does the truck belong to and we told them it belongs to the Suzuki Owners Club as it’s our new shows truck. We had very good feedback from them and I think they were quite impressed with it. All we now have to do is get our SOC logo’s on to the truck and we will look like a professional club.

Many of you may have seen the pictures on FB of the truck, but we will have the official ones done once we get our logos on there.

This is all thanks to Peter going out and sourcing the right type of Race/shows truck, now let’s get back to the other important stuff the accounts, figures correct as of 04/10/2016.

Current Acc: £607.51 PayPal: £730.46 Savings: £8781.00 Charity: £264.00 As you all can see our monies have stayed steady since my last report, all this is down to the hard work of the NC with getting things like advertising and the dating certificates coming in. As well as the members who come to help out at the shows, without people like you we would not be spreading the name of the Suzuki Owners Club to a bigger and wider public.

To me and a few others the club has gone from good to GREAT and we need to keep up the good work that we are all doing.

Till my next report, Ride Safe and watch out for the nutters out there.

Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Prosperous New Yea John Carr. SOC Treasurer.

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London Centre

by John Carr (JLCarr) techofficer@rocketmail.com

Hello to All. We at the London Centre have not done much in either meetings or with ride outs, as we have been busy doing shows, we had a great camping weekend and a Big Thanks to All who turned up at the George Hotel, Dorchester on Thames. We had a member who has 40 years service in our club, John Storrie as our Guest of Honour, he has put 40 years into this club in different ways either as a member or on the committee. The stories this man has about things within the club and how things have been done over the years and the memorabilia he has collected over the years is fantastic, we had quite a few people turn up for this, Shuto came over from Wales, the South Coast crew and members from the Staffs centre and of course the London centre members. Friday was the usual a few drinks and relax, unfortunately on Saturday we had a wet start to the day a few went out on ride outs while some stayed at the camp site and just chilled.

Tink and myself went to pick John up and bring him back to the Hotel so he could stay on Saturday night over to Sunday, as the club had decided to honour him with a glass tankard engraved with the SOC crest and 40 years in the Suzuki Owners Club on the other side, with a few other bits and pieces. I think he thoroughly enjoyed himself (I hope) and you can read his report later on in the magazine. We all had a lovely meal that night then a few more drinks in the bar it was nice to just sit back and relax this weekend, out then to the garden to present John with his bits and pieces, so we all sat out by the marquee and all had a great time.

Pictures of John’s presentation will be in the Hustler somewhere. So till the next camping weekend for the London Center keep an eye on the boards and the Hustler for the dates.

Till then, Ride Safe.

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Events Officer

by Laura Dyer (Laura d) events@suzukiownersclub.co.uk

As I said in my previous report there is not much to put on at the later end of the year except the odd event that pops up and change of plans. So centre secretaries please bear In mind the coming year and the events that you may be having, have a chat to your members and see what you are planning and let me know. Please remember the process for event advertising. This is to send your event to myself with as much detail as you can- event, meet time, meet point, leave time, and any links for the event that are direct from the event organising website (not secondary ad advertising as this can carry viruses).

I will try to post your event within a few days and return an email to you confirming it has been done and requesting you to check the details for errors. When this has been done you can then continue to go ahead and post on the boards. Please be aware that it is nice if someone from the club is at an event you are advertising as a representative should a new member turn up. If you have no intention of being there please let me know and I will advertise this appropriately or not depending on the event.

I hope this is clear and helps to make the process easy for you. It really is a very simple event advertising rule to follow.

So ride safe for the winter period and keep warm. Remember you bike checks before shooting off in the cold.

Laura.

Membership Rates 1 Year Single membership.............................................£25 3 Year Single membership.............................................£65 1 Year Joint Membership...............................................£30 3 Year Joint Membership...............................................£80 Forum only Membership....(non club member).............£10 International Membership..............................................£30 3 Year International........................................................£80 11

Heritage

by Danny Broughton heritage@suzukiownersclub.co.uk

Hello everyone, it’s an honour to have been accepted for the new role of Heritage Secretary for the club and I am looking forward to contributing to our heritage through the role.

Why me? Well that’s the same question I asked as my so-called mates “guided” me towards the club stand at the recent Stafford show. I’d seen the invitation in Hustler of course, and did actually consider volunteering at the time, so not much persuasion was really needed!

I’ve been a member (this time around anyway!) for a few years now, although the first taste was in the late seventies as the bug bit.

My preoccupation with our favourite marques stems from a lot earlier though and all the fault of a chap I saw every evening whilst earning a princely sum of 10p an evening delivering the Coventry Evening Telegraph, (Well it was 1973!).

Said chap had a gorgeous Candy Lavender (K/L model?) Kettle that was always glinting in the sunshine, that was it…...Hooked!! It took me 30 years to get a kettle of my own, not so much a basket case as a “cardboard-boxes case”. Cost?.......two bottles red wine. I’ve been a Suzuki man (and boy!) ever since. Road bikes, trials bikes, mx bikes etc, i even co-own a Beamish trials outfit with another mate that’s still undergoing restoration.

Anyway, enough of me. I plan to be at a lot of the shows we attend and to meeting lots of the members. I will need your help though please, as my first task is to try and locate examples of past memorabilia for the club’s archive as it’s a little sparse at present sadly. We are particularly keen to find early Invader Rally badges, early copies of the club’s Hustler magazine, plus pretty much anything else of interest please.

Any other ideas that you might have to help the project along would also be well received. I’ve already managed to pick up a couple of pieces, but more about those in the next issue.

Any help, offers, donations of items, etc, can be directed to me at heritage@suzukiownersclub.co. uk Looking forward to hearing from you all.

Best Regards Dan B 12

South Coast

by Laura Dyer ( Laurad) southcoast@suzukiownersclub.co.uk

Hi all, I hope you have been having a good summer and getting out and about on 2 wheels. Firstly a few things to say, I would like to thank Angela for tirelessly supporting PK at all the south coast and national events that she has taken him too over the last few months since his little off.

I would like to wish PK a speedy recovery (when he finally get his op date sorted.)

A few of the south coasters made their way up to the National Invader Rally at different points over the bank holiday weekend in August. Our thanks for the hard work put into this weekend. Our most recent ride out to Sammy Millers Motorcycle museum in the new forest saw a lovely start to the day.

Arriving on time we were met by Roger, who started the morning on his bike, but unfortunately was forced into his car with his walking stick. PK and Angela were waiting for us having arrived early enough to sample Sammy’s special cake and coffee. We all chatted and caught up over a coffee for a while then went for a look around the museum. We were met a little later by Mark Seager Sammy Millers Museum is absolutely full to the brim with motorcycle history.

Not just Sammy’s personal history of his racing, competitions and a trophy wall. Its also full of so many motorcycles of all makes and types building up a true history of motorcycling. When we had all finished we sat down discussed a few events and a future meet up for ride to the wall and we were all off.

Looking forward to the usual late summer sun in September October affording us some more pleasant rides. Remembering Loomies cafe on the A272 West Meon on the first Sunday of every month 10 til 12 (however we will be doing the Toy Run in reading on December 4th.)

Please see the club boards for future events, a few late dates to be put in.

Ride safe.

Laura and Alan.

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Metzler Roadtec 01.

UPDATE

As you all know I was asked to try out a set of tyres by Metzler their new RoadTec 01, these were fitted in the lovely weather in February and as usual whenever I get a set of tyres fitted it rains.

So here is what I think of these after a few months of using them backwards and forwards to work and the odd ride out for pleasure.

These tyres work well in all weathers including our lovely summer showers we have had (not), I think the biggest test of these was one day coming home from work and we had a massive downpour. The road home from work became a river and 2 of the 3 lanes were closed because of the amount of water that came down, eventually got myself on to the M1 to swim the 30 miles home (joke) so off I set up the M1. That was a task in itself but there was no other way, the road was well flooded by the time I got on it fully, so there was no turning back.

The tyres did not bat an eyelid, they stuck to the road like it was a dry day, none of the usual movement you sometimes get off the bike wanting to go from side to side. It carried on as normal all the way up the motorway, but possibly the biggest test was the country lanes where I live, as these are not used as much as the main roads around the area. These were well flooded but yet again the tyres did not let me down, even on the twisty bits they stuck to the road, so it looks like my love for Bridgestone has wavered to these tyres.

I would recommend these tyres for my bike (DL 650) as it’s a fair lump of a bike, but I would like to try them out on a different bike to see the comparison as to how they handled. But in my mind these are worth getting, I do around 66 miles per day to and from work and as you can see by the picture they have not done to bad. I will do another report later on to let you all know as to how they are going, till the next time.

Stay safe.

John Carr.

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Shows

Trevor Trueman (Tink) shows@suzukiownersclub.co.uk

Hi all, Can I just say what another fantastic time we have had with the shows this year.

We have just done a new show in Manchester which was held on 25th September and what a brilliant time we had. There was a lot of interest with new members joining and also the possibility of a new centre being set up.

A big thank you to all that came and helped out on the stand that day. Our next show is the Carole Nash show Stafford i’m hoping for a good turn out there and will let you all know how we get on in the next Hustler. Can I just remind people that we are always looking for new shows and that if any come up in your area send me details and I will look into them.

Kind regards Tink shows coordinator

A Sad farewell from the NC We regretfully announce the resignations of Alan & Laura from their respective roles as Editor & Events Secretary.

They have made the tough decision that now is the time to move on and concentrate on other ventures including the South Coast Centre. This is a great loss for us but we can only respect their decision and wish them all the best. Since joining the NC they were valuable members of our team.

Their contribution was essential to our success, which we very much appreciate. We thank them for their hard work and support and wish them all the best in their future endeavours.

Peter Dibble Chairman On behalf of the National Committee

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Website advice Some members are having issues with connecting to the club’s website. Sometimes this is caused by how the Internet security is starting to be handled to improve security for those using it and to assist in keeping the nefarious at bay.

You probably know that when you connect to a website it has to be prefixed with either http:// or https:// . So what’s the difference? The “s” in https stands for secure and that means that the site has what is known as an SSL/TLS certificate supplied by an authorised Certificate Authority. This certificate enables the end to end connection to be encrypted whereas the http is not and means that it could be subject to what is known as “Man In The Middle” attacks. This is somebody sitting on the Internet harvesting transactions at one of the ends or in the middle and getting all the information in that transaction. The web browsers have a list of Certificate Authorities that are recognised built in so that they know what certificates they can accept and trust. Most browsers also display some sort of lock icon either in the browser’s address bar are at the bottom of the page when it is a secure encrypted connection Google and many others including some of the web browsers and

some antivirus or other anti malware software producers are pushing for all website traffic to be secure. They are now detecting ordinary http traffic and marking it as being an issue. You may see something like “this site is incorrectly configured” or “there is an issue with the sites security settings”. These may be due to the fact that it is http traffic and then that can be allowed in your browser for that site, but it is not always that so you should be very careful when accepting a site as it may not be what you think it is. It appears that at least one producer of anti-virus software is blocking non https connections though it should be possible to edit it’s settings to accept specific sites.

So why is the “Suzuki Owners Club” site not currently https? First of all you need to ensure that the whole site is configured properly. That means that some things such as templates, extensions, forum, etc completely comply if not you may find that the site does not function properly or the end user keeps on getting error messages popping up. It takes more processing power to handle the site’s https traffic.

However there are also other costs involved. There’s the cost of the certificate that has a limited life, the cost of using a dedicated IP address, and for the site’s hosting 16

company to install the certificate and run it. (The dedicated IP address is similar to an office block that uses one street number for all the offices or each office having its own dedicated street number.) However we are working on this with a new site that should be tested shortly and endeavouring to minimise those additional costs.

However all of these will not help if a user’s computer or mobile device is not secure and free from malware.

The easiest way to grab or infect other computers is at the users end.

This is why it is so important to have real time anti-virus and other antimalware software running and at least ones a week run a full scan.

As a member you have direct access to the inner site and forum and that means when uploading items it is possible to infect the site or upload to the site files that are infected that then infect other users.

Even though Android (Linux), Mac and iPhones devices are not prone to viruses they can pass it on unknowingly so it is important that

they also have anti-malware software operating. We take precautions to try to prevent issues on the site but that only goes so far and you will recall that the site got hacked earlier this year and we had to take it off line for some considerable time while we got rid of the malicious code, beefed up the security, and undertook a remote check of the site from a security perspective.

Though the club’s site does not look that big it is far larger than it appears so needs lots of input, configuring and checking that everything works properly and inter-operates.

We trust that you have found this information useful. If you have an issue or want to raise something to do with the site then there is a section on the forum for this.

Safe riding The Web Team 17

Northeast

by Kev Close kevclose253@gmail.com

Well here we are at the tail-end of the year.

Where has the time gone ?. As usual we’ve been to all parts of the compass, north to St Abbs, west to St Bees on the Cumbria coast and south to Matlock Bath in the Derbyshire Dales. As well as these we had our infamous camping weekend at the Heather Lad and a few bike shows. Durham police Bikewise event, Stanfordham bike show and the motorcycle festival at Chester-le-Street.

The monthly runs have been well attended especially the St Abbs run, but as always I welcome all riders and pillions to come on our runs and see what the centre is all about.

The camping weekend was a great success, held earlier than usual on May Bank holiday weekend. The winter was hanging on for grim death and patches of snow were to be found on the moors above Hawes weren’t they Rockhopper !! on our Saturday run down to the Yorkshire dales. On the Saturday night we had a great band and everyone had a great time.

Sunday brought poor weather and a few people headed out in a car to Bowes museum and few did get out to seek sunshine which was found in Northumberland at Newbiggin where a superb cafe can be found. A future favourite.

Durham Bikewise show was a great success for the club with Kyle and Nikki Grimwood getting a runners up award for their superb A100 in the classic category, he was piped at the post by a very nice Honda 400/4. We also presented the Northumberland Blood Bikers with a cheque for £75 for a fund raising at the camping weekend.

Stanfordham show was another great day out with a fine array of bikes, old and new on show. A Suzuki X7 won best in show, sadly not a members bike but still nice to see a very nice Suzuki winning and I did give the owner detail of the club.

In September we had our presentation night and this years AT winner was Steve Goth, the 18

ladies trophy was won by Mary Hall and the junior award went to Lewis Williams. Well done to all the winners and a special thank you to the Heather Lad who very kindly put a very nice buffet on for us.

We also had a wedding in our centre, long term club members Gary Stockill and Alison Carrs tied the knot on Saturday September 3rd and I would like to take this opportunity to wish the happy couple a long and happy marriage.

Now all that’s left for me to do is wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a happy new Year Kev Close (N/E Centre Sec)

Llandudno

By Mark Seager

We arrived in Llandudno Saturday afternoon as I don’t finish work until 6 pm on Friday so it would have been to much to get there as I live in the south of England, after we arrived at the Grafton b&b we met up with Gordon and Lois.

We decided to go for a wander and something to eat,we ended up in the whetherspoons originaly a lovely old theatre, food was ok cheap and cheerful . After we went to the Cottage Loaf pub for a couple, nice old pub with a good selection of real ale . Next morning after a good breakfast we took a long stroll along the sea front to the pier. We watched a few fishermen for a while seeing what they had caught then Julie and I went up the great orme on the tram. The weather was clear but very windy ( no it was not the chilli I had the night before), we had some refreshment in the Randolph Turpin named after a famous boxer.

We came back down to the oldest pub in Llandudno where Gordon and Lois caught up with us, the sun was out and it was quite warm sitting outside as the wind had died down. We had a wander around and had fish and chips for dinner which was quite nice. We visited a couple of pubs on the way back to the Grafton it was a very nice night by the sea. Next morning Gordon and Lois were going home after a leisurely breakfast so after we said our goodbyes. Julie and I went to Conwy to visit the castle, very impressive, it’s a very good place to visit we had a look around a couple of 2 very old houses and had a good look around the shops. Back to Llandudno for the evening, we went to the Cottage Loaf for some food I have to say it was very nice and tasty .The next morning we strolled around until it was time to head for home. Big thanks to Gordon and Lois for making it a great weekend . We will be going back there next year in September see you there?

Mark

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Riders Rights

Mike Griffiths (Griffo) ridersrights@suzukiownersclub.co.uk Again this is not the easiest subject to discuss as many things come to head that seem (to me) to have political overtones. One thing we must all be aware of is the increased theft of motorbikes and sadly a Mr. Hayden of the London area lost his life when he confronted some yobs stealing his bike.

Condolences to Ricky Haydens family. It s a very sad thing. We must pay more attention to securing our bikes to try to prevent theft .With over 200,000 riders in the London area alone it is imperative that bikes are well secured and all theft proof equipment is fitted. MAG is now working with riders, police and local authorities and government departments to try to prevent further thefts and harm to riders. Please keep you’re eyes open.

On a good note the North East riders seem to have an excellent record of riding and not a great deal of accidents. This is reflected in the North East Combined Authority’s work in the road safety field. NECA are well aware of road repairs and other facts that make riding safer for us all. Though I could get ‘Close’ to naming a few that run off into the ‘Brown’ areas of the road.

Keep up the good work lads and lassies and keep the bike rubber side down.

MAG’s Director of Communication and Public Affairs, Lembit Opik, is working hard with Department of Transport officials to try to get better action to help the two wheel transport in the city areas. This includes the delay in banning older bikes from the city centres. Though this could be hard as many older vehicles cannot now enter certain areas and this includes older motor caravans using many city centre camp sites. Thus you have to park outside the limits and use other transport if you wish to travel into a city centre.

In the off-road world please keep you’re eyes peeled for the idiots out and about. Many areas have a 20 mph limit and ask riders to be well aware of walkers and horses on the same routes. Also be aware of the idiots in 4 x 4 vehicles that wish to churn up a green lane and use their winch just to mess up a perfectly usable route to other people. Motocross bikes are also used on the lanes and cause mayhem with their rough riding and aggressive tyres. Try gently suggesting to them to refrain from breaking the laws of the road. The worst thing I have seen recently were some 4 x 4 drivers dismantling a stone wall so they could fill in the holes so they could carry on with their journey....... They were photographed and are due in court..

All of you ride safely and be aware of the other idiots . The green lane riders, please let me know if you see any ‘lanes’ with temporary closure notices on them. Please do not ride with a camera attached to you’re helmet as this is not a safe thing to do. Many helmet manufacturers and police authorities are trying to have this very unsafe practice banned.

Griff 20

Having some fun at Motorcycle Live Martin Crooks, Michael Le-Flay and Tim Davies

The Vintage Parts Wise Monkeys!

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Events December 4th Reading Toy Run. Biggest South Coast Santa Charity ride in the south. Meeting at Kevin Mosley House in the AM for a bacon bittie and then on to the start point. Thousands of Bikes all with a toy or gift on board for charity. Riding into a Barnardos. contact laura 07980114208 4th Staffordshire Centre Monthly meet. The Old Smithy 8-10 Castle street, Ecclesshall, ST21 6DF Meeting 12-2pm. 3rd Sunday of every month. A friendly welcome awaits. Contact Gordon Flash– socstafford@ rocketmail.com 4th North East centre Monthly Meet. Heather Lad Quarrington. DH6 4QD See details for Nov. Contact Kev Close – kevinclose253@gmail.com 11th London Centre Monthly meet. The White House Pub, Uxbridge London UB11 1AA Details see Nov. Contact John Carr – 07768797125 18th Staffordshire Centre Monthly meet. The Old Smithy 8-10 Castle street, Ecclesshall, ST21 6DF See details for Nov. Contact Gordon Flash– socstafford@rocketmail.com.

26th South Coast Wickham Square wander and meet up for a hot drink. Vehicles arrive at the square from 8am and start leaving around 12.30pm. We will be meeting 11.30am at the Kings Head. Squeeze in and find us. Contact Laura – 07980114208

January 2017 7th North East New Year Party Fundraiser.

Join Kev and his team at the Heather Lad for a great New Years Party and fundraiser. 7.30pm. All welcome. contact Kev Close 07949035419 8th London Centre Monthly meet. The White House Pub, Uxbridge London UB11 1AA Details see Nov. Contact John Carr – 07768797125 8th South Coast Centre Monthly meet. Loomies Cafe, Petersfield Road, Alton. GU32 1JX Details see Nov Contact Laura 07980114208 15th Staffordshire Centre Monthly meet. The Old Smithy 8-10 Castle

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street, Ecclesshall, ST21 6DF Details see Nov Contact Gordon Flash– socstafford@rocketmail.com

21st South Coast new year get together. Rowlands Castle - Harvester. meeting at Rowlands Castle 1pm- 5pm Get Together, celebrate, eat, drink, raffle and trophy giving. Contact Laura 07980114208

February 5th North East centre Monthly Meet. Heather Lad Quarrington. DH6 4QD See details for Nov. Contact Kev Close – kevinclose253@gmail.com 5th South Coast Centre Monthly meet. Loomies Cafe, Petersfield Road, Alton. GU32 1JX Details see Nov Contact Laura 07980114208 12th London Centre Monthly meet. The White House Pub, Uxbridge London UB11 1AA Details see Nov. Contact John Carr – 07768797125

18th London bike show. Come along and enjoy the bikes at the show and then meet up with other members at The Fox Pub. outside of the NEC building http://www.foxbars.com/foxexcel/excel-bars 1pm-2pm 19th Staffordshire Centre Monthly meet. The Old Smithy 8-10 Castle street, Ecclesshall, ST21 6DF Details see Nov Contact Gordon Flash– socstafford@rocketmail.com

Future events.

Belguim for Easter 2017 Mons 14th / 17th April Staying at the Congres Hotel Mons Van der valk. Ave Melina. Mercouri 7Mons 7000. Join in with other members on the clubs longest running trip..Over to Belguim. See Forum for details.

North East Camping 26th/ 29th May. At the Heather Lad Quarrington Hill Cassop DH6 4QD Fun, frolics, friends, fancy dress, Karioke, band and ride outs.

South Coast Camping 2nd /4th June Fox and Goose Greywell. Hook. Great pub, good food Ride out Simply great fun.

Quimper France 2017 Week away.

1st / 8th July. Space is limited to 8 rooms. Luxury self catering farm house with swimming pool, bbq and gardens. Rest and relax, lots of sightseeing.

See forum for further details.

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Winterizing your motorcycle With the first big storm out of the way for this year and with the first signs of winter all around us it’s time to start thinking about putting the bike to sleep for the winter. How you do it and what you forget to do at this stage is critical to what you will find waiting for you when the first signs of Spring start to warm up the black stuff once more.

Miss a few basic steps here and you could find yourself with a hefty repair bill come next year. Get it right and your new season will be a smooth transition back into the seat. The following steps are not exhaustive and are laid out in a logical order.

Ideally the storage area for the bike should be inside, heated (if possible) and importantly free from damp and be well ventilated.

Next, follow these simple steps: 1. Pick a nice dry day for one last ride out.

2. Fill up the tank with petrol adding a correct amount of fuel stabilizer to the mixture.

3. Complete your ride out and then thoroughly wash and dry the bike.

4. Do a complete oil and filter change.

5. Top up all fluid levels.

6. If water cooled, ensure the radiator coolant is at the right level and is at winter strength for the anti-freeze.

7. Inspect the bike for damage and repair and make good any paint work damage.

8. Check and fully inflate tyres.

9. Wax and polish the whole bike and apply a light non petroleum lube coating to chrome.

10. Drain the carburettors and float bowels.

11. Support the bike off the ground if possible so the tyres are clear.

12. Remove the battery and store in a dry frost free well-ventilated area.

Trickle charge the battery every month or connect to a continuous charger such as an Optimise.

13. Wash, dry and then lubricate the chain.

14. Lubricate all cables.

15. Apply oil or storage spray in the cylinders.

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16. Do the same to the exhausts pipes and cans.

17. Wedge oily clean rags into the ends of the exhaust cans.

18. Cover the bike with soft cloth sheets, such as old flannel bed sheets.

Using nylon or other man made materials against the paint work could scratch the surface.

19. Complete the cover up with a waterproof tarp or sheet.

20. Ensure the covers are well secured.

21. Check the bike from time to time and where it is stored, is still free from damp or wet.

All simple steps, but all important to bring your bike out of hibernation for the Spring in tip top condition.

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30 Years Membership Of The Suzuki Owners Club by John Storrie.With a 1976 GT 750 30 years! A member of the SUZUKI OWNERS CLUB What has happened to all that time? It seems just like yesterday, the old cliche rings good but true.

I never in my wildest dreams would have thought that I’d still be a member of this club when Ijoined on that sunny Thursday afternoon at Silverstone along with our most illustrious member, one Barry Sheene, and John Newbold plus a couple of others.

I’d gone along as in past years to get my various passes for the weekend, (working for whoever needed a spare pair of hands on their race bikes) and a wander around the market place, when I came across the Suzuki Owners Club marquee, I’d met some of the lads at various other race meetings over the preceding years, and they had been persistently been trying to get me to join the club from 1973 when it was how shall I say? . . . Reformulated from the remnants of the original Suzuki club, known as the SUZUKIKAI CLUB which ran from around 1968/1969 time up to 1971/1972 (I’m not too sure of the dates now but. . . ), in which I was also a member from 1969 to the 1971/1972 period when it disappeared without trace! I’m sure someone will correct me if I’m wrong but I’ve a feeling it was run by SUZUKI GB at the time?

At that time I had my first SUZUKI, a brand new 1969 T200 INVADER And in 1972 a new T500J, it was with this bike I got pestered the most in late 72/73 by some guy from Wales mainly, he had a mass gingeriest curly hair, never could remember his name then! But in 1974 he got a new GT75OL in blue and became an even worse pest to anyone owning a Suzuki, (I don’t mean these remarks in any demeaming way I must point out!). I wonder if he’s still about as the majority of the lads trying to promote the club were either Welsh or from the London area (which later proved about right when I took on the post of membership secretary in 1984 looking at the old membership data books and files, sadly no longer in our possession, destroyed by a later mem-sec.)

The times I told that guy I wouldn’t join another club until it became well established or I’d decided whether or not I was going to stay with the Suzuki marque, as I,d always fancied a BMW, well in the spring of 1976 I fancied the change, went to the local BMW dealer for a test ride on one of the new R90/6’s, but we couldn’t agree a part-ex price on my T500, so I went straight down to W.Faulkner & son in Oxford and got an offer nearly a hundred pounds more against a GT75OA costing about 2 to 300 pounds less!, so I went away to think it over, and decided almost a week 26

later to go back and take up the offer from W.F&son. And so it came to pass that I decided to take the afternoon off work on Friday the 3Oth of April 1976 and go and buy one. Obviously W.F & son were delighted to see me! which one do you want they enquired red or blue? The red I said, oh dear said the boss, we,ve only got the one red one in the front window come cubby-hole that’s on show, that’s the one Iwant, so they had to partly dismantle it to get it out, up some stairs, down some stairs and into the workshops to P.D.I it And so it was that on that Thursday afternoon of the l2th August I became a full member of the SOC. Number 2088. I had finally succumbed to the pressure to join. I still have and run the old GT750 more commonly known as a “Kettle” and together we have done in excess of 140,000 miles! Who says two strokes don’t last?

In these last 30 years the club has run many successful camping weekends as many of you will know from what happens at present, but I think more were on in the late 70’s and particularly the 80’s, and more so a lot more were at the seaside which I think seamed a lot better at the time, particularly the ones on the south coast, one such venue springs to mind only too readily, down at Bracklesham Bay, near Chichester, it may have been different years between the events but, at one, there was someone “talking on the big white telephone” i.e. over the hedge in the middle of the night, I swear I have never heard the procedure done quite so reservedly or politely, with a definite sense of decorum.!!

And on a similar vein my late mate Kev (RG5OO used £30.00 worth of petrol and oil to get down and back- only a 200 mile round trip Petrol and oil was a lot cheaper then, I suppose by comparison I only used about a tenner’s worth of both.) Got up in the morning or rather crawled out of the delicate fragrance of what was a new tent to join the rest us down in the town for breakfast, a place we had used many times before so a good fry-up was always to enjoyed had there, as soon has he saw his placed in front of him decided he wanted to go for a paddle in the sea first,.

How strange?

Still we “smoked” the rest of the gang out on the return to the campsite, nothing beats not one but two, two-strokes being given some. . . . Ah what a fragrant cloud behind, I dont think that we couldn’t help which way the wind was blowing could we!.

Still on this weekend the return back to Oxfordshire wasn’t uneventful, Steve our GSX 1100 EFE rider had an almighty tankslapper going down a twisty road through some woodland area, to the point he told us later he was preparing to bail out such was the ferocity.

INVADER RALLIES, now here hes some really juicy tales, (here come the parts where no doubt some reading this will be breathing in deeply, contemplating would I dare. . . . You bet yer life I will, at least as much as I can remember.)

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Back in the late 70’s early 80’s the rallies were held mostly down in the Forest of Dean, for a couple of years it moved across to near Hay on Wye, where the then club captain was noted for climbing the marquee poles in the . . . well I can’t bring myself to describe it, not a pretty sight dear reader, so use your own imagination.

Getting into the middle 80’s it moved upto just north of Ashboume, Derbyshire to a what can only be described as a semi derelict hotel. Called the Newhaven House Hotel Some rooms were so bad the plaster was pealing off the walls and roof inside!

And the camping area was not much more than a load of sharp stones with an inch of dirt thrown across them, I think this was Dave Gearhart’s (our Californian member) first Invader Rally, the first night we couldn’t get much sleep, from the sound of said Californian teeth chattering, poor old boy wasn’t used to the cold ....

The second night was somewhat different, a bottle Baileys and an incident inside keep him warm and amused. And from what I remember many of the women folk too! As they were all smiling in the morning It was at the second year of the rally being held here a young man made his first appearance at a “Club National Function” on a somewhat sombre little GP125cc Suzuki, he’s now well grown up, and during the rally games later on the Saturday evening was fully initiated from being a “Rally Virgin” Standing in the room in all his glory, which again kept the 20 or 30 ladies amused, many times over the years I’ve reminded him, but he still hasn’t crossed my palm with beer vouchers. . . so to all those who know who I’m speaking about you’ll realise who it is when I say its more or less guaranteed I can choose whatever speed I like travelling through the West Midlands and Staffordshire.

(So to all those who know him and see him about.. . please don’t be too hard on him. . . he wasn’t that night!) If memory serves my right this all came about from the ladies having a “Wet T-Shirt” compaction and they wanted a “Wet Y-Fronts” one to balance things out so to speak!This reminds me of one Invader down at Glasebury, near Hay on Wye, where a ladies wet -t-shirt took place, as usual 4 or 5 buxom beauties entered along with one of the N.C, s wives, now this particular lady was how can we say. . . .

Past her prime! I’ve never seen so many blokes leave their beer and make an exit for the doors, in all my life, me included!

To be continued.

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SUZUKI BULLETIN

Suzuki will celebrate the 40th anniversary of Barry Sheene’s maiden world title by showcasing an extensive collection of Sheene memorabilia at this year’s Motorcycle Live, including his championship-winning bikes and FIM winners’ medals.

Seven of Sheene’s race bikes will be on display, including the two XR14s that took him to world championship glory in 1976 and 1977. Also forming part of the display will be the XR05, which used a Seeley chassis and TR500 engine, and the XR14 Sheene raced the season before his championship-winning years in ‘76 and ‘77.

The Heron Suzuki XR27 that Sheene was racing in the British Grand Prix at Silverstone when he made the famous gesture to rival Kenny Roberts in 1979 will feature, along with the XR35 and XR45 Sheene rode in 1983 and 1984.

Sheene’s two FIM world championship medals will make a rare public appearance, alongside seven sets of leathers worn by the twice 500 Grand Prix champion, and two helmets that don the famous duck graphic“The Tour Edition means that customers that are considering using it for that purpose, can do so with even more comfort and practicality.”

For more information on both models, and the rest of Suzuki’s on-road range, visit www.suzuki-gb.co.uk.

Suzuki GB aftersales marketing coordinator, Tim Davies, said, “We’re all incredibly excited to see this display pulled together at Motorcycle Live this year. It’s going to be really great way to celebrate the achievements of arguably Britain’s greatest world champion, and on such a key anniversary, too.

“On top of the seven bikes that we’ll have on display – including some really rare examples – it’s going to be very special to see the genuine winners’ medals that the FIM handed to Barry when he won his world championships, as well as the leathers and helmets we’ll have too.

“Sheene is still a hero to many motorcyclists and we feel privileged to be able to put this feature together at the biggest bike show of the year.”

Suzuki’s Barry Sheene celebration display can be found on stand E20 in hall 3 at this year’s Motorcycle Live, where Suzuki will also be display its full 2017 model range, including the all-new GSX-R1000R, as well as its Vintage Parts stand and the returning Suzuki hospitality area.

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Limited by Guarantee At the 2016 AGM one of the agenda items was regarding the SOC becoming Limited by Guarantee, Geoff Goode very kindly explained the meaning of this and the benefits for the club, one of which is ensuring the committee and club members are safeguarded financially. Below are some points that explain a bit further about this matter, please read and research as this will be presented as a full member vote in the near future. If you have any questions that Google cannot answer then please contact a member of the NC and we will all do our best to assist you.

What is private company limited by guarantee?

A limited by guarantee company is a type of incorporated business structure that is predominantly used by non-profit organisations, social enterprises and charities.

A non-profit business is typically a community group, voluntary organisation or a type of enterprise that generates income for social, charitable or community-based objectives. Profit-making businesses can also set up this type of company, but a limited by shares company structure is more suitable for commercial businesses, because profits can be distributed to members (shareholders) as dividends.

Companies limited by guarantee have to be incorporated with Companies House, but they do not have any shares, nor do they have any shareholders. The owners (‘members’) of limited by guarantee companies are legally bound by financial guarantees rather than shares. This is because surplus business income is not usually distributed to guarantors. Instead, it is normally retained by the company to achieve the non-profit or charitable aims of the organisation.

Similar to a limited by shares structure, a limited by guarantee company is a distinct entity in the eyes of the law; therefore, the company is responsible for its own assets, surplus income and debts. The company members, known as ‘guarantors’, are protected by limited liability, which means their financial obligation to the company is limited to what they have guaranteed to pay in the event of insolvency. Members have no legal responsibility for the debts of a business above and beyond the sums stated in their guarantees.

Who owns a limited by guarantee company?

Limited by guarantee companies are owned by members. These members are referred to as ‘guarantors’. No shareholders are required in this type of company. A company limited by guarantee can be owned by one guarantor or lots of guarantors, so you can register the company on your own or with other members.

To become a guarantor, you must promise a certain amount of money to the company. This financial promise is known as a ‘guarantee’, and it is payable if 32

the company cannot pay its bills. Each guarantor will sign a guarantee statement during the company formation process (or agree to the statement if the company is registered online). In most cases, a guarantee is simply a nominal sum of ÂŁ1 per member.

Who manages a limited by guarantee company?

A company limited by guarantee must appoint a minimum of one director to manage day-to-day business operations and finances. It is commonplace for guarantors to be directors; therefore, a company can have just one director and guarantor, or it can have lots of directors and guarantors.

The NC wishes all our members and their families a very

Merry Christmas and a Happy New year.

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2016 AGM

Attendance Trophy The minutes of the 2016 Annual General Meeting are available upon request to the national secretary. Please email secretary@suzukiownersclub.co.uk or write to the club address and a copy will be sent out. Thank you.

Male Winner 3rd – J Carr – 27 events – 1827 miles - London 2nd – G Thompson – 29 events – 1601 miles – Staff’s 1st – S Pranchevicius - 34 events – 1778 miles – S Coast

Female Winner 3rd – Elaine Constable – 7 events – 635 miles – E Mids 2nd – Alison Carrs – 11 events – 457 miles – North East 1st – Laura Dyer – 26 events – 1484 miles – South Coast Pillion Winner 3rd – Linda Atkins – 16 events – 752 miles – Staff’s 2nd – Lois Thompson – 21 events – 1133 miles – Staff’s 1st – Sue Carr – 25 events - 1694 miles – London Junior Winner 3rd – Mariah Trueman – 7 events – 317 miles – Staff’s 1st – Jeenna Trueman – 8 events – 358 miles – Staff’s 1st – Richie Trueman – 8 events – 358 miles – Staff’s

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Highest Mileage Male 3rd – P Dibble – 1658 miles - London 2nd – S Pranchevicius – 1778 miles – South Coast 1st – John Carr – 1827 miles - London Highest Mileage Female 3rd – Alison Carrs – 457 miles – North East 2nd – Elaine Constable – 635 – East Mids 1st – Laura Dyer – 1484 miles – South Coast Highest Mileage Pillion 3rd – Julie Seager – 899 miles – South Coast 2nd – Lois Thompson – 1133 miles – Staff’s 1st – Sue Carr – 1694 miles - London Highest Mileage Junior 3rd – Mariah Trueman – 317 miles – Staff’s 1st – Jeenna Trueman – 358 miles – Staff’s 1st – Richie Trueman – 358 miles – Staff’s Active Centres South Coast North East Staffordshire London East Midlands

= = = = =

23 events 22 events 18 events 15 events 1 events

Trips abroad AGM and shows

= =

1 4

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There were a total of 92 AT events over the year attended by 140 members.

That equated to 804 AT attendances by members covering a total of 49,473 miles for the year.

My 40th Birthday as member of S.O.C. UK

by Guenter Wagner.

Sunday 17th July, 2016 Angela (my wife) and me met Sue and John Carr and Peter (chairman) for lunch at the Trude in Hamburg.

I had been looking forward to meeting people from UK!!!! We had a great conversation about cycling both ways.

Suddenly, Peter lifted a bag saying there was more to come. I was in for a big , a very big surprise. To celebrate my 40th birthday I was given a tankard with the SOC logo and my name engraved, an SOC pen, hat and scarf. Never did I expect such a SURPRISE!! Angela was got a very beautiful bouquet! Both of us were thunderstruck!!!!

Next day afternoon Sue and John and Julie and Mark Seager came over to our house for cakes and coffee.

Pictures of my T500J went around and I had the time of my life telling about my travels to UK! I had grown up in Kiel (British Zone) and for most of us motorcyclists UK had been the place to go. I can not tell why.

I had bought the T500J in 1972 even before I had my rider-licence In summer 1973 I set off for UK taking the ferry from Hamburg to Harwich. The trip was pretty boring for a long time a lot of water and nothing else to see but sea. From Harwich I headed South into Kent and stayed for a few nights in a pub/hotel. From there made trips through the countryside to Hastings, Brighton etc. Once I stopped in a lay-by up on a hill when the driver of a car noticed my licence plates and let the brakes squeal and tyres smoke, reversed to the lay.by.

We had a very nice conversation!!! I had been watching the planes during the Blitz and told me about the dog-fights and where German planes crashed. A big THANK YOU to the RAF for such a great job they did: Saved Europe!

After Tonbridge I headed west via Winchester, Salisury and Stonehenge to Lyme Regis. I did not pre-book any room as i had in mind to tour the whole of UK in three weeks to get a feeling of the county. The hotels I asked for at least a night were fully occupied. So started for the more expensive places. When I was told at this hotel ( can not remember the name) bein fully booked I asked owner where I could find a place for just one night. He had a free room for the staff, small but with a nice bed!

I went straight to the beach to swim in the Atlantic Ocean!!! After a nice dinner I visited the bar. I had very little luggage with me and was wearing my boots. As soon as people knew I was from Germany and motorcycling in UK, their motorcycling 36

stories poured out and the beer into us!!!!! What a nice bunch of people and whakt a great time we had!

So next day to Tavistock and along the coast to Cardiff. It was here I heard peacock cock raise his voice I sounded like children were being hurt and nobody did bother, until I notice the cock. On to Fishguard where I took a day`s rest. Along the coast (what a beautiful stretch) to Conwy and Castle. I had spent more time than anticipated and was rushing to Chester passing everything in sight...... A sharp left-hander finished the day. The rear-wheel slid and we parted. Luckily next to the road was a fence which stopped us from somersaulting a meadow down for a few 100 metres. A guy going home picked me up and drove me to the hospital in Rhyl.

He had a dealer pick up the Suzuki.

I had to stay a week and had great company with the the other patients. Everything had been distorted and loosened nothing broken. After that week I stayed in the area having a look at my mc. The tank had a ding or two, loosened all the screws on the fork pumped it down and up a few times retightend: Straight!

Because of the accident I had to travel home right away. The rest of UK had to wait for another day.

In autumn things started to get wrong with the T. First one head split from the sparkplug to the rim, was rewelded at the factory I had been working as an electricalmechanic.

Made a trip to Kassel some 400 km South of Kiel. Rode back home Sunday but frost on the autobahn so everybody was taking it easy. I had about 70kmh on the clock and this funny pinking noise. I had told the dealer about it: piston-slap of a 2-stroke I was told.

Suddenly lost power stopped and checked the plugs, one was covered with a grey matter, a screw-driver found a hole in the piston. I continued to the next parking place to look for a truck with a hydraulic rear to take me North. Lucky me, a trucker gave me a lift all the way past Hamburg to a place where some guy may be able to give a fix to make it home (dealer had told). What a fix: A carriage bolt sealed the hole and I continued the last 80km slowly home. The noise in the engine started to increase and on the autobahn in pouring rain (no cats and dogs but pigs and horses) the engine stopped. Had a friend called in Kiel and he trailered me an the T home.

A few days later (a bicycle is alway my back-up) I took the motor apart. The bolt had hacked away the piston-crown just the skirt left and ball-hammered the head.

On the other side the piston had holed. Took the ruins (barrels, pistons and heads) to dealer demanding replacement as a warranty. After 8 months the parts arrived.

I had taken the rest of the engine to my workplace for cleaning and checking. The rods were fine as were the bearings. Back on the road again!

In the meantime the UK bug had bitten me and I wanted to see London around Christmas!

Because of winter I went for a mc with a side-car. Got a BMW R26 cheaply. It was cheap as I found out later!!!

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Waterproofs and a bloody good satnav Hedgemonkey

It has become apparent to me after reading through back issues of “The Hustler” that there is an interest for touring in the Emerald Isle.

So I’ll take this opportunity to share some of my touring tales in the land of my family, which means that when the weather gets too wet, I can cheat and head over to my Mums and swap the bike for the rowing boat and yes we have rowed down the road before now.

So this particular year I had managed to persuade Sharron that a motorcycle tour of the Northern half of Ireland would be far better, than sunning herself with a cocktail in hand on some sun drenched beach somewhere exotic.

With promises of Glens, Lakes, Mountains, Coastal roads and the odd large mural painted on the end of terraced houses, now the last bit was to be a surprise so I didn’t tell her about the murals.

I had planned this trip with the art of a Military Campaign, with ferries, accommodation and routes, in order to keep it all hassle free, this included a leisurely ride up to Holyhead from the Midlands and an overnight stay on Anglesy to catch an early-ish boat to Dublin the next day, because a silly o’clock start to catch a ferry and then find a hotel in Dublin was never going to fit into the relaxed tour remit.

The Google search had popped up several options and I chose a nice looking little bungalow near Pentre Berw, which has it happened was a cracking choice, the stunning bungalow was just far enough away from the A55 to be quiet and the host’s treated us like long lost family, even letting me put the bike away in his garage after parking their car outside for the night.

In the morning, fully refreshed and a slight plumper from a massive breakfast, off to the boat we went, now as most of you all probably know, ferries are one of the occasions that us motorcyclists get preferential treatment over other vehicles, so straight to the front of the queue and on the boat first.

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No matter how many times we use ferries ( so many times, I feel I should have shares in Stenaline )when one of the deckhands comes wandering over to the bike with a truck size ratchet strap, I always start to get nervous, I know they do it a hundred times a week and if they didn’t do it any damage claim would just be laughed at, but all the same, I stand there and offer advise about Gel inserts and the other delicate parts of my pride and joy, mostly ignored as the seat deforms under the straps tension, but the upside is, if the boat “turns turtle” my bike will be hanging safely upside down from the car deck.

While all this is going on, the other vehicles are only just starting to board, so we still get the best seats in the lounge and very quickly turn it into what looks like a “bring and buy sale “ with helmets, waterproofs, normally causing puddles on the carpet and other detritus that we all seem to think necessary to lug around, all scattered on the backs of chairs, on tables and the floor, with the owners grabbing something to eat or a coffee, once settled back among the jumble, the conversations with other riders always starts easily, comparing routes ridden, roads that really should be ridden and places to stay.

With all the good company and the Craic, we very soon dock in Dublin Port and its off back to the bikes and off out into the rain, well it normally is, but this time it was sunny..

Normally on leaving the port I’d head down into the City centre and then follow the river Liffey westwards towards Galway, but this time its North, in the direction of Belfast, over the past 20 years the road infrastructure in the Republic has benefited from a lot of EU money and the motorway network is second to none and although tolled, on a bike its really cheap and if its and A to B journey you want, they are the option to take, nice road surface and empty compared to the UK. There are still plenty of the National roads with good surfaces and the EastWest route Dublin to Galway, the N4 and N6 are a dream as they are empty and still provide such delights as Mother Hubbards truck stop at Moy Valley and travel through the old towns still. For those with a perverted sense of adventure get an Irish OS map of the area and you’ll find thousands of kilometers of grass covered and loose gravel back roads, that require a GS or similar and a good sense of direction.

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On these smaller roads the habit of waving to folks by the side of the road or in the fields is still prevalent and I’m more than happy to keep this simple but meaningful gesture alive and well.

But I digress and we head up towards Carlingford, for our first night in Ireland, Carlingford is a very picturesque little town on the banks of Carlingford Lough, the town’s history and charm is very carefully maintained, so it still has little tiny backstreets with alley’s leading to great little bars, family coffee shops and trendy outdoor clothing retailers, we stayed at the Carlingford Adventure Centre and Hostel which is perfectly located right in the middle of town.

Breakfast the next morning, was at one of the little coffee shops, we sat at a table on the pavement, eating croissants and drinking superb fresh coffee, while Carlingford woke up started to get on with its day, around us, all very continental and a great way to start our day, which got delayed because of the free coffee top ups and Sharron wanting some more cake, yes !!!! cake for breakfast.

While the sun was still shining we said said our goodbyes to the lovely little town and headed north on the Tain Way, to pick up the A1 into Belfast, ( a route avoiding Belfast can be planned), as you may recall from earlier, Sharron knew nothing of this part of the trip and so we dropped off the arterial roads and into town, she started to fidget on the back and as we rode down past old fortified police stations and onto some of the more infamous roads and streets, that were forever headlining the evening news of the 1970’s, the likes of Falls, Crumlin and Shankhill roads with their huge murals depicting the armed struggle, from both sides of the religious divide, so either everything is Red, White and Blue or just around the corner all Orange, White and Green. Sharron found it all very oppressive and couldn’t leave fast enough.

Belfast is now a different world since the days of the troubles and as any other big city it still has its problems, but the peace agreement has worked wonders and there are great attraction like The Titanic Exhibition etc to be seen.

But Sharron was still shaken and needed a McDonalds to make her feel better and after a few miles and in North Belfast, I spot one and pull into the full car park, the place was rammed as it was lunchtime, but I grabbed a table, just being vacated at the back and Sharron went to order, this turned 40

out to be a mistake as the love of my life is useless with regional accents and has a loud cockney accent, which most of you will have heard over the din and hubbub of many a Rally.

I had only just got my jacket off, when this loud Cockney voice shouts across the packed McD’s, “ ANDY, YOU’D BETTER COME AND DO THIS, I CAN’T UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY ARE SAYING. I THOUGHT THEY’D SPEAK ENGLISH HERE ” it was at this moment that McD’s suddenly changed into an old Cowboy film, when the baddy walks into the packed bar, hands hovering over his holsters and everything goes quiet, while the pianist hides behind the Piano the bartender moves the whiskey’s off the bar and the ladies vanish into the backroom. Have I painted a clear enough picture of the scene.

Up to the counter I go, with every step being watched, I whisper into her ear, shut the f*ck up, go and sit down and do not move, Oh ! and by the way when we leave, you can start the bike, while I go across the road and hide behind a big wall.

Luckily it didn’t go bang because I had to start it as the pannier key won’t fit the ignition and off we go to ride up along The Antrim Coastal Road. With tonight’s overnight stop to be at The Sheep Island View, Hostel in Ballintoy.

The Antrim Coast road (the A2 ) is one of the wonders, best sampled by motorbike, it twists and dips in the sweetest way and for added affect that day, the sea mist was blowing inland off the sea and as it hit the sea wall it then spiraled over the road forming a perfect tunnel to ride through, very akin to some of the Surfing video’s on YouTube when the wave goes tubular.

It was so spectacular that even I slowed down to take it all in.

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Following the A2 up through Carnlough and Cushendall and Ballycastle, where we stopped at the Co-op for some provisions, while we was down the cereals isle, this old fella, comes up to me and asks if that was my bike outside ? Or as Sharron heard it “ears thar yer boik oowtside” I explained it was and a 45 min conversation started about bikes, Joey, Robert, William and Michael and Ryan’s recent retirement plus The NW200 and other important stuff revolving around racing between the hedges, the fella knew his stuff and he invited us next year to camp in his garden for the NW200 as his house was on the circuit. One of those Dunlop names would spring to mind later that day.

On route to the hostel, we passed sign for the Rope Bridge at Carrick-ARede which is owned and run by The National Trust. A visit for tomorrow, for sure, as it was now quite late and that to be followed by a visit to The Giants Causeway.

Booking into the hostel was the normal, easy formality with friendly staff and good accommodation, though we had bought provisions, in Ballycastle, we’d past a pub about 400m back from the hostel, so off we went for a pint and a meal, yes lazy I know, but I was gagging for a Guinness.

This is where one of the Dunlop boys may or may not have made an unexpected appearance, or it may have been just wishful thinking on my behalf, because as we walked down to cross the road, in the last good light of the evening, I could hear a bike coming at great speed towards us from the direction of Portrush, the engine now popping and crackling as the rider endeavored to get down to 30 mph ( My Arse ) as it came into view I could see a number 3 on the front of the bike and a recognisable black and white helmet and Furygan leathers, there was reciprical nods from both of us, as that night of all nights I’d chosen to wear my new MD racing t-shirt and as the bike past and headed for the twisties towards Ballycastle, I noted the lack of any registration plate on the bike, now these antics were not unusual

by Joey and buddies in the days of The Armoy Armada and I mentioned this in the pub, and was informed it could well have been one of the boys, just sorting the bike.

Away from bikes for awhile and a morning of education and touristy stuff, it was a bit of a walk to the rope bridge, but so worth it, as the name suggests it’s a rope bridge strung high up, 30 metres ,over the sea, linking the mainland to a small island that was used by salmon fisherman in 1755 to land catches and get them back to the mainland.

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If you suffer vertigo, there was some very funny antics from nervous people and it will cure the phobia problem once and for all if you manage to get across, we spent a few hours on the little island watching the dolphins playing in the cove and all the seabirds flying back and forth to their nests with lunch for the little ones.

Fully recharged with bracing sea air, it was back to the bike to get to the Giants Causeway. Once again a bit of a walk, but seeing those incredible shapes in the rocks and sheer scale of it, really blows you away, yes it is very touristy, but once again, if you are passing, do it.

Its only about 10 minutes to the next attraction ( far more my kind of thing) and into the little town of Bushmills, for a tour of the Distillery.

A guided tour was joined and off we went around the process of making one of the worlds famous Whiskey’s, I’m not going to go into all the tour, but suffice to say a highlight was a tasting at the end with a miniature to take away.

Sharron being a bit on the bossy side, banned me from knocking back the sample and went to find something to carry it in, yes she took it with her, as I’m not to be trusted.

The day was really getting on now and our next stop over would be at Malin Beg in Co Donegal, back in The Republic and a fair old ride, so we headed back to Ballintoy for another night and an early start the next morning.

The day dawned dry but quite grey and the forecast for the West and Donegal was a bit bleak, oh alright it was biblical, with animals to form orderly queues, two by two to escape being drowned.

Still with waterproofs on and a small amount of whisky, still in Sharron’s bag, it was off into the grey and sometimes, for a brief second very bright flash of light, which seemed to be hanging about on the mountains we were to head into.

With Portrush, Portstewart and Colleraine behind us, a decision was made to bypass the ferry across Lough Foyle at Magilligans Point, as we wouldn’t have seen anything anyway, plus I needed fuel, so headed off to go through Derry/ Londonderry and refuel when I could.

The fuel station I stopped at, was one of those I came across in the States, where you pay first and then fill up, great if you just want to put a tenner into your 60 litre car tank, but it’s a pain with a little bike tank, because once you paid, tough titties no, change given. (she was that scary, I wasn’t going to 43

ask anyway) A local lad on another bike was there too and we had a good bitch about it, until over the tannoy “ The Gorgon” told us, to clear off the pumps.

A quick glance at the sky westwards and as it was still, not nice, no lightning though. It was mutually agreed that due to inclement conditions any sightseeing would be abandoned and it would be the Hostel at Malin Beg or Bust.

Out of Derry/Londonderry and up through Letterkenny, where I believe there are relatives, but today it would be very focused riding, so next time we are that way we will drop by, honest.

Leaving Letterkenny and heading up into the Blue Stack Mtns on the R250 passing into Glenties and then Ardara on the N56, before heading onto the Glengesh Pass on tiny roads, more track than road, it was at this point the clouds decided to be all friendly and wrap themselves around us, allowing visibility of basically my bars and the satnav and that was only because it was lit up. We were honestly down to 10 mph, relying on the satnav to show where the corners, junctions, post offices and airports were, but not the sheep, who were happy just wandering around the roads bleating to each other, which obviously up here is some form of “ovine sonar.” Trade mark.

I swear I will eat as many Kebabs and sit on as many sheepskin rugs as possible; the bloody things were a nightmare. Still as we lost height the cloud was just replaced with horizontal and one time vertical rain blowing upwards, I kid you not; it was blowing up from the road and into my helmet.

I had no idea what I’d done so bad to piss off St Patrick so badly, but would make amends when we reach Croagh Patrick later in the trip.

Out of the rain the little village of Malin beg emerged and the hostel was quite obvious, it was the only newish building there.

The door was closed and my heart sank, until Sharron pointed at a note, saying, welcome Sharron and Andrew, come over to the shop for the key.

Squelching over to the shop, as by now the waterproofs had failed big time, we picked up the key for the hostel and our room, with the owner promising to come over to light the fire then make us some tea, after we’d showered and got warm.

To be honest, the first thing I did was go into the lounge, find the fire lighters and get the turf fire lit, there is nothing like the smell of turf smoke and with just a wee sniff of a smell almost the same, it transports me back to Ireland, in an instant, no matter of where in the world I am, anyway I was still in my 44

waterproofs and didn’t climb out of them, till the fire was roaring.

Sharron appeared all showered and shining brightly, with my precious, two little bottles from Bushmills and by the time the owner came over, I was sat by the fire still in wet kit, with my feet on a coffee table, socks steaming away and my large glass of Bushmills warming through me, as the Atlantic ocean was doing its best to get through the double glazed windows and the wind trying to rip the roof off, I thought to myself “ that was a seriously horrid ride over the mountains, but it was also brilliant as well “ hmmmm Bushmills magic working ? who knows, but when I eventually drifted off to sleep that night, everything was right with the world, well apart from the bloody sheep.

Guinness, mussels and Ponies to follow, not follow the ponies, just more tales from Ireland to follow.

Jeezuz

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Roundabout Mayhem

by John Measures

Over the last year, I have had a cluster of accidents that share the same basic circumstances. They have occurred when exiting a roundabout.

The typical scenario is where there are two or more lanes traversing the roundabout and an exit where there are two or three lanes on the exit. Quite often, if there is a third lane to exit the roundabout this then merges with the second lane further on. The common thread is where there is a car on the inside lane with a motorcycle in the outside lane. The car appears to be exiting the roundabout and may even be in a lane designated to exit. The motorcycle also intends to take that exit. However, at the last moment, the car decides that it does not want to take that exit and attempts to carry on around the roundabout. By this time, the motorcycle is committed and a collision occurs.

The natural assumption is that it is clearly the cars fault and this seems to be supported by the Highway Code which says:Rule 187 - In all cases watch out for and give plenty of room to Pedestrians who may be crossing the approach and exit roads Traffic crossing in front of you on the roundabout, especially vehicles intending to leave by the next exit ( I have put this section in bold) traffic which may be straddling lanes or positioned incorrectly Motorcyclists (and this as well) Cyclists and horse riders who may stay in the left-hand lane and signal right if they intend to continue round the roundabout. Allow them to do so long vehicles (including those towing trailers).

These might have to take a different course or straddle lanes either approaching or on the roundabout because of their length.

Watch out for their signals.

There is even a diagram as to what lanes you should use when entering and exiting a roundabout.

The courts have also considered this type of case and insurers quite often rely upon this case when defending this type of accident.

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The case was: Grace v Tanner (2003) This went to the Court of Appeal.

The facts The claimant and defendant were travelling on dual carriageway in the same direction. The defendant, driving her car was in the inside lane.

The claimant, on a motorcycle was in the outside lane. They approached a roundabout. The defendant mis-judged her exit and continuing to travel in the nearside lane, went around the roundabout again, intending to take her correct exit on the second approach.

As she was going around she was struck by the claimant’s motorcycle in the outer lane as he tried to turn off the roundabout. The claimant said that he assumed the driver was going to take the same turning that he was turning into. The judge dismissed the claim, finding that the claimant had failed to keep a proper look out and had made a dangerous assumption.

The claimant appealed.

The decision If a driver in the nearside lane of a dual carriageway passes the first exist and approaches another that was not the intended exit, the driver had to be aware of the possibility of another driver in the outside carriageway wanting to take that exit.

The defendant had not taken account of that possibility and was negligent.

She failed to appreciate the potential danger to traffic using the exit she was passing where the traffic had been lulled into the false belief that she was going to use that exit.

The defendant was 50% liable.

The upshot of this case is that the motorcyclist should not assume that the car is about to take the exit and should hold back until the car has indeed exited the roundabout. Is this a counsel of perfection? I know that experienced motorcyclists have that second sense and something tells them that all is not right when exiting a roundabout next to a car. But sometimes, that second sense fails and the motorcyclist is suckered into a sequence of events that lead to a collision.

Of course, every case depends upon its merits and much will also depend if there are witnesses that support you. There are also cameras that are becoming more popular that motorcyclists wear and I must admit to have one on when riding, not to record excellent days out but the Muppets that we meet on the road.

Take care and ride safe, John Measures 47

Cinema Antics

by The Rusty Mechanic

After my last witterings about lost love etc. my mind went a bit further back to the days when we could only go out on a Saturday night to the pictures. Yes John Wayne with the cavalry coming to the rescue at the last minute. Yes films with a beginning, middle and an end. No blood, gore and debauchery. You had to use your imagination as to what the leading lady looked like without the clothes....

I digress as my memories went back to the transport of the day. We lived in the country and the only way to town was on a bus. You had to work like the clappers to get the milking etc. done , washed and changed ready to catch the 6pm bus into town. Sometimes you had to scuttle even harder to go to the next town (Bigger and had an Odeon) but this caused a massive problem for getting home. The last bus from the local town left at 10-30. If you missed this it was a 7 mile walk home and a serious rollicking for being late. We had to run from the Odeon across the shopping area to get the 1010 bus back to the small town and hope for no delays on the 12 min journey.

A couple of times the local Police sergeant stopped us running past the shops as we looked suspicious. A quick explanation meant we missed the bus.

Luckily we caught a train nearer to home and were in by 11-15. (Yes a rollicking and not believed). Shortly after this the passenger trains were stopped. The sergeant thought he was clever and tried the same trick again but one of the lads (will remain nameless for ever) hid in Woolies doorway and when the officer got out of his car to question the suspects, laddo nipped out of the doorway and jumped into the car, left with engine running, and drove off round the corner with blue light flashing and the bell ringing. Surprisingly the sarge. stopped his query and tried to run after the car (Overweight and flat footed) which by coincidence was parked at the other entrance for the bus station.

We caught our bus and watched a puffing policeman getting to his car as we rode past. We all waved a fond farewell to him and by the look of his redface he was pleased to see the back of us. Needless to say we were not stopped on our sprint to the bus again. Nothing but harmless fun and noone was hurt other than Plod’s pride... Ah well..

The Rusty Mechanic.

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Sometimes the obvious is hard to see….!!

By James W (Rock Hopper)

As the tittle suggests this is a story that follows those words of wisdom that we have all had said to us at some point in our life, that is, “Check the bleeding obvious first…”.

For those that don’t know, I became the proud owner of a beautiful 2005 K5 GSX1400 in May 2015 having written off my all-time favourite bike, my RF900 of some 8 years at the beginning of the year to one of those serial 20mph slide style crashes that happened for no obvious reason and still remains a complete mystery to this day as to why. In short, a write off and a money pit to put it all back to good.

The long and short of it was that from this misfortune I was fortunate enough to be offered the GSX and from a person I knew very well and somebody who had looked after it from brand new. A very real case of being in the right place, at the right time for one of those bikes that only comes along once in a while. Unfortunately the bike had had to be stored outside for a winter under tarp which had led to some light corrosion around the bike, but nothing that a few weeks of slow methodical TLC wouldn’t put right.

Having stripped the front forks and treated the alloy corrosion that was there it was around this time that I began to ponder about re painting the front and back callipers the same cherry red colour that was on the rest of the bike. This would obviously put the bike off the road for a few weeks but I considered the use of public transport a good enough evil if the finished look would be worth the hassle.

Having already done this sort of maintenance every year before, the job did not seem at all daunting and in fact quite the opposite to be honest, especially when you consider the savings to be had by not asking a dealer to do it for you. It was while looking at the net for places that did calliper re sprays that I stumbled on a local company who could do the job for half the price I had already been quoted, but who also suggested I ought to think about going down the stainless steel bolt replacement idea along with steel braided hoses to give it that extra wow factor.

So, back to the net I started to price up the cost of the bits to refurb the callipers, a set of steel braided brake hoses and a complete bolt change on both callipers. That unfortunately was when I left the paper work laying around for the wife to find and who’s kind words of wisdom cut short a full transformation in one go, but something that would have to be done in two stages out of my money and not the joint account….!!.

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So having booked the calliper bits in for a respray, I spent the next 24 hours ordering the calliper bits from Robertson’s and the bolt bits from Pro Bolt which all started to arrive in Jiffy bags over the next few days much to the suspicion of the wife that all these packets weren’t costing us a bomb.

Taking the callipers off and splitting them proved to be a bit of a nerve racking process as all the main attachment bolts and body bolts where of the hex type which can be a huge pig to remove once the heads get chewed. Thankfully an overnight spray with WD40 and a quick squirt with Plus gas meant they all gave first time with a ping. All the old bits got saved in a plastic bag for a, “just in case moment”. Once stripped, I spent the next hour cleaning the holes and recesses where the pots and seals sit and also blew through all the oil ways. This I thought would save time later on and make for a quicker re build. Once done, the callipers were sent to the spray shop and all I could do now was sit and wait for their return.

After a couple of days I got a call to go collect my callipers. The job had been really well and in my hand I had three sets of callipers in a bright cherry red that I was itching to get back on the bike ASAP. Unfortunately I was only half way through a shift pattern and would have to wait another 3 days before I had the chance to re build. However I spent the time making sure I had all my new bits laid out in order and that I had all the necessary lube’s, greases and fluids to hand.

Come the big day, I started with the rear brake calliper first seeing as this would be the easiest to do and re fit. After about an hour I had the body back together and bolted in place and the hose connected up. With a few adjustments I finally torque loaded all the bolts and everything was ready for the brake fluid to be added. To be honest after 20 minutes of filling, pumping and adjusting the back brake was working fine and I moved on to re building the two front callipers.

These took at least an hour and a half to re build the bodies as their big six piston brutes, which they need to be to bring the 1400cc to a screaming stop. Again it took at least another 30 minutes to attach them to the front forks and re connect up all the hoses and torque down all the bolts. I must admit being able to see them on the bike for the first time with the new paint work and stainless bolts they looked the dogs B’s. Up to this point everything had gone smoothly or so I thought.

It was while I began the process of bleeding the system that the first sign of something wasn’t quite right began to show. Initially I put this down to my lack of experience with this being the first time in doing the brakes on this bike. I know the RF front brakes had their own little quirks that you learnt to navigate round with experience. Although I knew this would take some 50

time to bleed the system considering the size of the callipers and amount of pipe work it just seemed to be taking for ever. Eventually after an hour of slow pumping, bleed valve turning on and off, pipe nipping and about a litres worth of wasted oil I gave up believing that I needed to let it be and settle down for the night with the brake lever ty-wrapped back to the handle to let any air work its way up to the reservoir and also let any air that had mixed with the oil with all the pumping action settle out overnight.

Next morning I found that the reservoir level had indeed dropped a couple of millimetres and a small amount of air came from each bleed nipple when I started the whole bleed process once more. To start with all seemed to be going well and a small amount of firmness was indeed beginning to be felt in the front brake lever but no matter what I did that final bit was still eluding me. For the next hour I continued trying every trick in the book that I knew to find and eliminate this elusive last pocket of air that refused to budge or be found. It was around mid-morning when the first of many spanners got launched round the garage because of my frustrations with it all, that I left it alone and retired to the internet and a few phone calls to mates and local workshops to try and pinpoint just what was wrong.

A few hours later I returned to the garage with a list of things that could be wrong and a check list to work my way through. Firstly I crimped off just below the reservoir and worked the lever to see if the res pump was faulty, nope, all working well. I then worked my way down the pipes to the splitter above the mud guard and repeated the process of nipping the pipes and again all of it passed with flying colours. I think it was around this time that the first of many doubts began to creep in that I could be looking at having to split the callipers again because I may have put something back together incorrectly. To be honest this was the last thing I wanted to have to do not only from the huge amount of work involved but more from the point I didn’t want the chance to mess up my new paint work.

The next step was to test each calliper individually by crimping the opposite pipe. It was also at this point that I made a mental note to myself that when I did go down the brake hose replacement, I would fit a race configuration so that if nothing else it cut by half the numbers of hoses I’d have to work with and bleed in the future. One point about this test was that the brake lever did become firm but only on side of the callipers pistons moved onto the disc…?. More phone calls resulted in my unbolting the callipers from the fork mounts and rotating them slowly around and hanging them by bungee’s to see if that worked. Unfortunately with the day coming to an end and with desperation and depression settling in I gave up and retired to the computer to trawl the many sites that cover brake issues but also see if I had any answers to the questions I had left.

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Day three found me at a dead end with no option other than to accept I would have to take the callipers off, split them and look inside to see if I had incorrectly fitted anything. After an hour I once more had the callipers off and each in two halves. Fortunately or unfortunately, whichever way you look at it, I could find nothing wrong that screamed out at me plonker….!.

So everything got put back together once more and refitted. On the plus side at least I was becoming a dab hand at putting everything back together and bleeding the system. A couple of phone calls later ended in my mate Lee who owns LKW Autos in Yeovil offering to have a look at it so long as I could get the bike to him the next morning. At least by this point the front brakes where working at I would say 60% braking force.

So by early day four found me driving very slowly to Yeovil and an appointment with Lee. I talked Lee through everything I had done and found and apart from a few small details it seemed I had done everything as it should be. The long and short of it was that he could find nothing wrong with the top ends, pipe work and connections and we were left with the final step of completely stripping the callipers down once more and checking everything was right. This I opted to do myself and following the instructions Lee had given me I made the journey home with another complete set of seals for that just in case moment and a small tub of red seal grease. Something I had heard about but never used before.

Day five came with a heavy sense of impending doom that if I didn’t fix the problem today not only was I going to be without the bike for another few days or worse, but that I also stood a chance of not being able to make the South Coasts camping weekend which was this weekend coming.

So, once more I removed and split the callipers down to their two halves having of course pumped the front brake lever to raise the pistons from their recesses first. This I suppose was where the light started to come on that I was getting to the heart of the problem, as no matter how much I tried I could not get all the pistons to move on both sets of callipers.

I also noticed for the first time a kind of white stroke red crinkled string substance that was protruding from around two of the pots. Eventually I managed to pull out all six pots on each calliper and it was only then that I began to see just what the culprit was that was causing the system to fail.

Having stripped out everything and laid it down in front of me I could see that the sealing ring recesses where contaminated with paint over spray residue that must have gotten in during the spraying process. Although not noticeable during the re build, once the brake fluid that I had dipped the new seals into had seeped into all the nook and crannies behind the rings it had begun to expand and loosen the paint which in turn had broken the oil seal and over the next few days expand and stop the pistons from moving by gumming up the works. The annoying thing was that I remembered 52

looking into the holes to check for contamination and had found a small over spray residue that I had removed by wiping away with a clean cloth dipped in thinners but I had not gone the extra step further and checked into the ring recesses.

Looking back I can only put it down to impatience in not wanting to spend the extra time in checking for contamination when I thought I’d cured the problem with a quick wipe out. Couple this with the fact I had thoroughly cleaned the whole unit before it went for spraying I suppose wrongfully led me to believe it was still in the same condition when I got it back from the paint shop. So, armed with cotton buds and a small Allen key I carefully cleaned out all the recesses and for good measure blew through all the oilways. Then I slowly rebuilt each calliper, this time using the red seal grease which I found to be far superior to dipping the seals in brake fluid.

In total it took me nearly a whole day from start to finish stripping, clean, rebuild then re fit both callipers to the bike and finally re fill and check the system. To my credit the brakes worked and tested correctly first time. The real pain and learning curve for me was that, if I’d spent a little bit more time when I found the over spray the first time round, I’d have saved me five days of grief and about four litres of brake fluid.

One of the good things to come out of all of this is that I certainty became very proficient at working on GSX1400 brakes and I certainty became aware of just what is out there in the market with regards to tools and systems with which to empty and re fill brake fluids. One just such tool I am going to be taking a much closer look at is the positive pressure re filler. This is where you fill from the bleed nipples up and thru to the reservoir rather than using suction to pull it down through the system.

Maybe another article to come...

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Motorcycle Drive Chains

by Phillip Floria

Chain drive is used on more motorcycles than drive shafts and belts. The drive system consisting of a chain and two sprockets is lightweight, efficient, and allows for easy gearing changes.

The cleaning and adjusting of the motorcycle’s drive chain is one of the most overlooked maintenance requirement on any motorcycle.

It’s a time consuming, dirty task to clean, lube and adjust the chain.

With periodic maintenance and adjustment the today’s modern Oring chains have doubled the life time of use we get from the drive chain. Today’s chains are made of stronger materials but are still subjected to the same conditions; stress from horsepower, weather, and grit. The greatest factor in the chain’s life is maintenance. It is usually the lack of periodic maintenance that shortens their life spans.

Drive chains are made up of links, side plates, pins, bushings and rollers.

It’s the rollers which engage the sprockets teeth. Today with the advent of the o-ring chain; chain life has been extended tremendously. The o-ring seals in grease to lubricate the rollers; they also prevent water and dirt from getting in. The latest innovation is the x-ring chain; it is supposed to reduce drag while still offering the same level of reliability as the conventional o-ring chain.

Those little rubber rings have solved one of the chain maker’s biggest headaches; the loss of lubricant. The load bearing pins and bushings that enable a chain to bend over a sprocket have precious little oil to keep them lubricated. With high centrifugal forces that occur when the chain turns around the drive sprocket, forces the lubricant out and of the chain. The only reason for chain wear is the loss of lubricant. With the use of the O-ring this enabled the chain to keep its oil inside and stay lubricated where it counts for longer periods of time and service.

The lubricant in a modern O-ring chain is not ordinary oil. It contains plenty of synthetic additives that help it withstand the enormous loads that develop during first-gear. Friction is not a significant issue; the lubricant’s 54

film strength is what keeps the metal from touching and wearing. The moment the lubricant is not there, wear escalates.

The chain ends are joined together by a master link. The master link may be staked, which is the strongest and safest method. A staked master link creates an endless chain which is seen on most modern sportbikes. The staked master link requires special tools to install or remove it.

The other method is by the spring clip, which can be installed and removed with a pair of pliers. Master links with spring clips should always be installed with the closed end facing the direction of travel. The spring clip can easily be dislodged if the open end comes in contact with anything that can get in its travel path.

Even the cheapest chain without O-rings will last a very long time with proper care, meticulous adjustment and oiling at 350-500 mile intervals.

Heavy gear oil applied with a brush is used by many racing teams. This is a messy proposition and best only when the chain can be left to drip away the excess; preferably overnight.

Most people spray on chain lube, which is good as long as you wait the required 20 minutes to let the solvents in the spray evaporate and leave the thicker lubricant on the chain, rather than on of the tire’s sidewall.

Chain grease isn’t as efficient. It cannot get into the tight clearances between the moving parts and the most good it can ever do is keep the chain’s side plates from rusting in the winter.

Chain oil’s main enemy is high running temperatures. The running temperature of a chain should not exceed 160 degrees Fahrenheit (70 degrees Celsius). Above that, chain lubricant starts to thin and the chances of it seeping out past the O-rings increase; eventually the film strength drops.

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Surprisingly an over tightened chain is far worse than a loose one.

Suspension movement increases chain tension and what is a fairly tight chain at standstill becomes tighter when the suspension bottoms. These added unnecessary tensile loads can exceed the chain’s capacity and the increased friction will raise the chain’s temperature quickly.

The best way to check chain tension, the one used by many race teams; is too ask two of your biggest friends to sit on the bike and compress the rear suspension to the point where the wheel axel, swing-arm bearing bolt and the front chain-sprocket centerline are all in line. That is the point of maximum chain tension. Or you can compress the bike’s rear end with a ratcheting tie down. Free up and down movement at the middle of the chain’s bottom run should be about half an inch (13 mm) with the suspension compressed.

Your motorcycle’s owner’s manual will have the recommended amount of chain free play to be measured midway on the bottom run. That free play includes both up and down movement of the chain while the bike is sitting on the ground.

Of course, a loose chain is not good either. It will rub on many static parts of the bike such as the swing arm rubber buffer and frame spacers. Besides, with the chain’s ability to saw through anything in its path, the added friction will again raise temperatures.

The sprockets will also suffer from a loose chain condition. A loose chain will “ride up” into the higher and weaker areas of the sprocket teeth and slowly bend them into a hooked shape. Proper tensioning as explained above is the remedy.

Also, proper tensioning means a straight and true running rear wheel. A cocked rear wheel will place uneven stress on the chain, making one side of it work harder than the other. A quick check can be made by sighting the chain’s top run, back to front. A badly misaligned rear wheel will show as a notable kink in the chain’s run line.

For more exact results you can pick two eight foot (2.5 meters) straightedged wood boards and place each on either side of the bike, about 4” (100mm) above the ground. On a properly aligned wheel, the edges should touch the rear tire sidewall and leave equal gaps on both sides of the front tire. Adjust your chain tension adjuster accordingly.

Race teams use a compass with two, long sharpened points to compare the distance between the swing arm bearing pivot and the rear wheel axel; a measuring tape can be just as effective; simply measure the distance from the center of the swingarm pivot to the center of the axel. It should be 56

the same on both sides, if not adjust the chain tension adjuster until both measurements are the same.

Even after all this straightening, it’s worth checking, making sure that the chain runs centered on the rear sprocket. A missing 1mm washer somewhere may cause one side of the sprocket to make contact with the chain. If after some mileage one side of the rear sprocket gets shiny near the teeth it means that the front and rear sprockets are not properly aligned. A few shims or washers behind the drive sprocket may be necessary.

Off-road riders have a few problems all of their own. The mud or sand that gets trapped between the chain and sprocket works as a fine grinding paste, destroying chains in no time. The “relieved teeth sprockets” that are available from aftermarket supplieres help a great deal in reducing chain wear and stretch by letting the dirt out of the high-pressure area where the roller and sprocket teeth engage. Proper maintenance of a dirt bike’s chain also means a good hosing after the ride, first drying and only then oiling. By the time of your next ride all the excess oil will have dripped away, reducing dust pick up to minimum.

Chains really don’t stretch but as they do their job the lubricant between the pins and bushings is burned off by heat, pressure, and friction; loose enough of the chain’s lubricant and rapid chain wear, takes place. As the various parts of the chain rub against each other, wear develops between the pins and rollers. With the wear, the chain elongates.

Sprockets, as a rule do not require any maintenance other than inspecting the mounting bolts and cleaning. As the chain wears and elongates (stretches), or if the chain is allowed too long in a slack condition, it will ride up on the sprocket teeth, quickly wearing the teeth into sharp hooks.

Inspecting the chain for wear is rather easy. If you have it off the bike checking it’s length is one method. On the bike, pulling the chain off the rear sprocket is another. If you have too much play, or you have run out of adjustment it’s time to replace the chain. When replacing the chain, the sprockets should be replaced at the same time.

Manufacturers use a series of numbers: 420,428, 520, 530, and 630, followed by a series of letters to designate type style and strength. With motorcycle drive chains the first number will always be a 4, 5, or 6. These numbers correspond to the chains size or physical dimensions.

Chains are measured in pitch. The pitch is the center to center distance between any two adjacent pins. The first number is the pitch measured in eighths. A 4 series chain measures 4/8 (1/2) inch between pins. A 5 series 57

chain is 5/8 inch between rollers and a 6 is 6/8 (3/4) inch.

530 EK heavy duty o-ring chain The next digits represent the nominal width of the chain between the inner plates or bushings measured in eights. A common 530 chain would measure 5/8”from pin to pin and would be 3/8” between the inner plates. These are nominal measurements; the actual dimensions can vary a little from manufacturer to manufacturer. They can also vary between chains of the same dimensions, but of a different grade or style made by the same manufacturer. The letters after the numbers are the way the manufacturer describes the special characteristics that particular chain may have.

Pitch is Pitch, a 530 chain from any manufacturer the pitch will always be the same 5/8”; as well as the roller diameter. Chain width between the roller link plates may vary slightly as well as the overall width. The plates themselves may be thicker or thinner, pin lengths will probably be different and so on.

It’s pretty clear that one manufacturer’s master link may or may not fit another manufacturer’s chain.

Using matched chain and links is the best way to insure the fit is correct and it’s the correct tensile strength.

Remember a chain is only as strong as its weakest link. Using the incorrect master link; a 5,000 lb master link in a 10,000 lb chain application can drive that old adage home. Never mix chain pieces or manufacturers.

Always check your owner’s or service manual for recommended types of chain, or the chain manufacture’s recommendations before replacing your chain. It’s ok to upgrade your standard chain to a heavier duty or o-ring chain. You should never use a lesser strength chain than is recommended.

It can and will wear faster and possibly stretch faster letting the chain saw away on parts of your motorcycle, or worse break, leaving you a long walk home.

Ok you’re all excited about running out to the garage and cleaning, lubricating and setting the tension on your chain; but just what do you use for a chain cleaner?

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Most chain manufacturers recommend kerosene, WD 40 works well and it’s easier to handle and far more convenient to use. Be careful what you use to cut the gunk off of the chain with; especially if you have an o-ring chain.

It won’t help no matter what you use if it damages the o-rings.

Locate the master link in the chain, and mark it so you will know where you begin and end. Spray the WD 40 on the inside or the lower run of the chain as you rotate the rear wheel. You may want to use a plastic bag to cover the wheel and rim or any other parts you don’t want wetted down with the WD 40. Use a rag to wipe off excess WD and dirt from the chain. Pass a corner of the rag in-between the rollers and clean the inside of the side plates and the rollers.

Do not use a wire brush of any kind to clean the chain; they can damage the o-rings. Use more WD 40 on stubborn areas and rub with a rag.

Once you have the chain nice and clean, make sure the sprockets are clean too; there’s no sense in letting the grit stuck on the sprockets to contaminate the clean chain.

With chain and sprockets now clean, take the bike out for a short 15 minute ride. This will help warm up the chain. As soon as you get home spray or brush your chain lube on the inside of the chain, (That’s the part of the chain that wraps over the sprockets yes the inside. Centrifugal force will push the lube into the chain as you ride). Let it stand for a few minutes. Read the label on the can for the time it will take for it to work its way into the chain.

Do not run the engine or put the bike in gear to apply the lube, raise the rear wheel off the ground or push the bike forward or back to get access to the chain.

Then take a rag and remove the excess lube, do not remove all of the lube, just the excess.

Even o-ring chains need to be lubricated, any of the chain lubes will work even heavy gear oil will.

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Motorcycle Live NEC 2016 What a great show Motorcycle Live is! So much to see and do and that is just working on the stand, we met so many interesting people, welcomed members and sold a whole heap of merchandise. We made some really good contacts, DFDS have offered discounts on their ferries, we have had a few people offer their establishments for meets and camping, retail discounts were garnered and a wonderful company called Go Skippy came up trumps but more of that in the next issue!!

Suzuki GB had a great stand, celebrating 40th Anniversary of Sheens World Championship having his bikes and the wonderful display of leather and crash helmet very generously loaned by Andrew Ellis.

There was a great selection of bikes plus the announcement that Sylvain Guintoli will spearhead Suzuki and Hawk Racing’s assault on the 2017 British Superbike championship, with renowned insurance firm Bennett’s renewing its association with Suzuki for a third consecutive season.

A total of 113,172 motorcycling fans attended the show and we saw many visit our stand, I am sure that everyone felt they had spoken to all of them by the end of the week, what an extraordinary amount of visitors.

Whilst talking to all the visitors to our stand our new merchandise line was a great hit, lots of interest in our new design of buffs, clothing and wallets. Oil filler caps were flying off the shelf, never fear, more have been ordered! Check out the shop to see the new products arriving at: www.socshop.co.uk One of our visitors who also helped out was Peter Mead, our President! What a lovely surprise, Peter was enthused by the stand and the truck and the dedication of the members helping out, he had also presented Peter Dibble with a new club trophy, an absolutely stunning trophy that will be presented at the AGM. There will be more about the trophy in the next issue, watch this space!! Thank you to Peter Mead for helping out and supporting the club in its endeavours, it was wonderful to see you.

It was a long 9 days and we could not do it without the help of our members who brought vigour, laughter and joy to the proceedings, without their help we would not be able to do this show so a huge Thank You to everyone who helped out. We must say thank you to all those who help out in the background ensuring that we are able to do this amazing show, our husbands, wives, partners and families who either enable us to be here or support us while we are here, you are all amazingly giving in their support.

Make a date for your diary for Motorcycle Live 2017, at The NEC, Birmingham from 18-26 November.

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Photo Guenter and Angela with Pete, Sue and John.

Hamburg 2016

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