First [road Legal] Ride!

[jmo]

Hi everyone - just thought I'd share my first ride photos with you!

I bought a reasonably tidy TLR200 last weekend via ebay (yikes!) and picked it up on Tuesday this week... on getting it home and closer inspection there were a few jobs to do, but I guess that's all part of the getting-to-know-you process, especially with a 25 year old bike!

The bike was registered, but SORNed, so I got it up to spec for a daylight MOT - turns out the tyres in the photos were shot, and there was a weep from the left fork leg which I got sorted with a thorough fork service, and a new set of Pirelli MT43s. I also fitted a kill switch, horn, and full-size number plate, plus a GPS for the speedo, and it sailed through - result!

I couldn't resist taking it for a long(ish) run afterwards - not least since the bike had been standing a while and I felt it could do with a blast... it rides very smoothly on road, feels nice and solid, and the engine is a peach! It's geared for about 50ish MPH (13/44), and is very smooth, although it's not exactly going to set the world on fire of course, but then I bought it for pottering around the lanes and trails...

This is one of my favorite in North Wales:

What a perfect day for a trail ride!

Having stripped the bike down this week, I've ordered a few parts that should hopefully arrive in the next few days - new air filter and brake shoes (it only just scraped through the brake test during the MOT!), and an alloy fork brace - that arrived today from Shedworks:

Very tasty!

I've also ordered a replacement (alloy) exhaust as the stock pipe has a few rust spots and a hole in it, and also an 11 tooth front sprocket as I feel the gearing could be lower for more technical riding...

I also finished off a mod I'd been working on with an old pair of WR450 Pivot-Pegz - they fitted perfectly with a bit of grinding (and a copper tube insert to reduce the mounting hole from 10mm to 8mm) - although unfortunately the kick-start lever hits the leading edge now of course...

I considered getting the kick-start lever heated up and bent to fit around the peg, but then had an idea having seen a post about larger footpegs on here - basically having to fold it up to use the starter... so I removed the spring, and machined out a slot to take a small magnet in the end of the peg:

Now, when you want to start the bike, all you have to do is flick the peg up with your heel and it is held in place by the magnet on the frame!

It's like bloody magic!

I've only just finished this mod so will report back if it works sufficiently well or not...

I'll keep you all updated with the other mods too, and any advice is welcome of course!

Jenny xx

Edited June 5, 2010 by JMo

[pete_scorpa3]

Thanks for the write up, it looks like you have a tidy little machine there and some fabulous trail riding closeby too.

Pete

[jmo]

Aye, I'm very fortunate living in North Wales - there are some beautiful trails up here...

Infact, I thought I should put a few more miles on the TLR this afternoon - so went for a ride to test out my new kick-start modification... it performed perfectly, right up to the point that the bike fell over on a particularly windy hillside - and because there is no spring on that footpeg, it shattered the magnet when it hit the frame... doh!

So, having got home, I come up with a far simpler (and some might say more appropriate?) solution for a 24 year old bike:

A rubber donut washer fitted perfectly around the peg shaft, and provides just the right amount of tension to keep the peg up when I need to start it (and at the same time should stop the peg flopping upwards due to having no spring)... it is also my intention to cut a little rubber square to fit in the magnet recess, to lessen any impact between the peg and frame should the bike tumble over on it's side again...