Saxophones Carrying a tenor on a (motor)bike?

[Targa]

I couldn't ride a 125. Too much of me and not enough bike. I'd get a terrible wedgie.

 

[jonf]

Some interesting comments in this thread.

I've ridden for over thirty years and must have done well over a quarter of a million miles by bike, and I've never once felt the need to lean one against a hedge or wall. I do sometimes find myself parking on soft ground, but I keep a sidestand puck in my tank bag. Drop it on the ground and put the sidestand foot on it, it spreads the load. I've used this with an 850 on soft dry sand, no problem.

I would never ride a bike in snow, I have been caught out by unexpected snow a few times, and it's not nice. That's the weather for at least four wheels, or better still a train.

Some half jokey comments about sidecars. The worst of all worlds, the don't have the comfort, weather protection, air con and so on you get in a car, but you can't filter or corner like you can on a bike.

Incidentally, much as I love my bikes, I do also own a car, and wouldn't be without one.

 

[ProfJames]

I used to ride a Honda CB 1000 (the Big One as it was known) no fairing on the motorway to work. Maidenhead to Hatfield, M4, M25 and A1. In winter when it snowed I went and bought a car and became a fairweather biker!

Agree about sidecars. Never had a sidestand puck but would use an empty Coke can. Did the same thing.

 

[richardr]

I have done nowhere near so many biking miles as jonf - totting up mileages that I can remember on individual bikes, my figure is about 100K. Most of these were covered in the three years when bikes were my only transport and I had a daily 50-odd mile round trip to work in Manchester as well as the obligatory nightly visit to the pub in the hills. In those days we had big snow, even in the warm, wet North West of England. There were quite a few times when my trusty CZ got me home from work in conditions that would have left me stranded in a car.
Leaning bikes against walls or hedges was a trick that I learned on my CG125 which had no prop stand, only a centre stand which gradually bent so that eventually it didn't lift the back wheel clear of the ground. A wall or a hedge was a safer option than relying on that stand. When I realised that it could be done, it was often more convenient than finding somewhere to put my bike on its stand. Obviously this only applied to my winter bikes where an extra scuff or two mattered not. I can't remember parking my BMW that way.
My equivalent to jonf's puck was a piece of plywood which doubled as my food chopping board when I was camping.
I'll tell one of many winter biking tales: it was snowing hard and blowing a gale but I managed to make it to the pub in the hills (the Sportsman up the Kebs which Colin the Bear will remember). As the pub was snowed-in Gerry the landlord had no excuse to impose closing time. Instead there was a lock-in and a full session for the locals and me. I'd arranged to spend the night in Kamikaze Pete's caravan about 500 yards down the road. Sometime in the early hours it was time to leave but neither Pete nor I could start our bikes. Pete's bike had blown over in the gale and he'd lost his battery in a snowdrift. Mine was still upright because I'd leaned it against the pub wall instead of risking the stand in the gale, but its tickler jammed down with ice so the carb kept flooding. So, Pete and I set off wheeling our bikes. One of us, I say it was Pete and he says it was me, slipped and brought both of us with our bikes down. We picked ourselves up but such was our state of inebriation, we couldn't untangle our bikes so we left them where they were and carried on walking. Brian the Bus followed us a few minutes later in his Land Rover, came upon our bikes and chucked both of them in the back. I rode home the following morning - it was probably a memorable ride through very deep snow, but that winter such rides were commonplace.

 

[DavidUK]

That's nothing. When I were a lad I had to travel 3000 miles to work in t'Arctic every day and sleep in the pannier o' me Honda Gold Wing.

 

[Jeanette]

That's nothing. When I were a lad I had to travel 3000 miles to work in t'Arctic every day and sleep in the pannier o' me Honda Gold Wing.

And how many bikes did you try before settling on a holding 🙂

Incidentally my husband rebuilt a goldwing from a box of bits. Nice looking bike when finished, kept him quiet for months building and sourcing parts mainly from USA 🙂

Jx

 

[kevgermany]

Incidentally my husband rebuilt a goldwing from a box of bits. Nice looking bike when finished, kept him quiet for months building and sourcing parts mainly from USA 🙂

No wonder you've no money for more saxes...

 

[Jeanette]

No wonder you've no money for more saxes...

He sold it not long after finishing it, it was more the interest of building it than riding. It had been a long time since his biking days and in his opinion the roads are not as well maintained and much busier all too risky.

Jx

 

[Colin the Bear]

Tales of riding bikes from Liverpool to Manchester on cobbles, on bikes with bakelite parts puts modern roads into perspective. I think the idea that roads were in a better state of repair in our youth is down to young bones handling bumps better, and the immortality of youth fading, explains the increased risks.

 

[Targa]

Tales of riding bikes from Liverpool to Manchester on cobbles, on bikes with bakelite parts puts modern roads into perspective. I think the idea that roads were in a better state of repair in our youth is down to young bones handling bumps better, and the immortality of youth fading, explains the increased risks.

Possibly roads were better in the say the 60's.
If you take the suburbs expansion, roads becoming dual carriageways and improvements in road technology from around the thirties to fifties, then the roads we were driving on in the sixties would probably have been in good condition before they started to need repairs, when they are patched not resurfaced.
Probably not strictly accurate but a reasonable idea of why the roads were better.

 

[kevgermany]

As an occasional visitor to the UK, and previous resident, I'll say that they're a lot worse - badly repaired and unrepaired potholes, worn surfaces that would have previously have been resurfaced.Really rough repairs not made at the same level as the road sirface, causing bumps and dips. Missing cats-eyes. A lot seems to be being spent on smart motorways, whatever they are. And the interminable roadworks on the M1 - can anyone tell me why virtually the whole stretch between London and Leeds is under repair in both directions? This is costing a fortune in drivers' and vehicle time wasted, but probably generating a lot of speed camera revenue. Probably costing a fortune in repairs due to the time invovled/slow progress as well.

But older roads are being neglected. Especially in towns.

 

[Jay]

So today I took my theory test (passed, yay, had to get up at 5am to get there for the first appt, a bit less yay) and since I had half an hour to spend before my meeting started, I stopped in on my way back, to the local bike dealers, where a very nice older gentleman from the workshop looked after me, as the owner/salesman was away.

(More carts before horses following @Colin the Bear)

I explained about me, and asked what he thought would be a good bike for me (assuming I pass my practical tests). I explained about my saxophone and he said (wait for it) "are you sure you don't want a side car"

So once we'd stopped laughing about that, having explained why, we agreed that a pillion seat would do, and he showed me, and let me sit on, a few bikes. He said he thought the Triumph Street Triple was a bit lively for a first bike..... (it was rather nice, and purple, but I got the impression he knew what he was talking about, so I listened properly).

The one he thought was a good bet was the Honda NC700.

You know what, he might be right. It's rather boring (in looks at least) compared to the W800. But it has a huge internal space to store stuff (like music, or a soprano sax going, and your helmet once you're there). It gets a good write up, it does 80mpg, they've got a 2103 with 2k miles on for half what a new W800 would cost me. It's local to me (as far as anywhere is) and I could have it in a day, if I pass my test, thereby not wasting weeks waiting for a new W800 to arrive - the local Kwak dealer says 10-14 days at least.

1. Am I being far too sensible here?

2. I could reach the floor with both feet but only my toes (balls of feet). He said he thought that was ok, but also that it was only about an hour's workshop time to fit different suspension to lower it. I think I'd feel happier if I could get my feet flat. If you were buying it, would you have this done?

What do you bikers think?

 

[ProfJames]

All good advice Jay. Listen to what you have suggested to yourself! Good job I stem from Ireland!

 

[trimmy]

Congratulations on the theory pass

It's a nice looking bike and Honda so it's bulletproof, i use to read all the bike mags..Ride, MCN ect which gave reviews of bikes so it's worth going on line and checking what's a good bike for a novice.
http://www.motorcyclenews.com/new-rider/choosing-a-bike/

Happy bike hunting

 

[Jay]

H

All good advice Jay. Listen to what you have suggested to yourself! Good job I stem from Ireland!

Help me out, I'm clearly being dim today 😳

 

[ProfJames]

H

Help me out, I'm clearly being dim today 😳

You are not being "too sensible" and it would be good for you to have both feet firmly on the ground.....

 

[Jay]

You are not being "too sensible" and it would be good for you to have both feet firmly on the ground.....

got it

 

[Targa]

2. I could reach the floor with both feet but only my toes (balls of feet). He said he thought that was ok, but also that it was only about an hour's workshop time to fit different suspension to lower it. I think I'd feel happier if I could get my feet flat. If you were buying it, would you have this done?

Just wear high heeled boots to reach the ground, suit your biker girl look.
Not this one.
Beat Kev to the delete, use your imagination.

 

[kevgermany]

1 - no
2 - looks good to me. Lowering the suspension lowers ground clearance. Check what they'd do. I've seen a lot of people who can only put the balls of their feet down. But given what you're going to use it for, it's probably not a good idea to buy a bike where you can't get both feet down properly - especially for a first bike.

If you go used, check it hasn't been in an accident. And has a service history/warranty.
Reason we're saying test then bike is that there are so many options. Like saxes, try as many as you can before buying.

Good luck with the rest of the test!

 

[kevgermany]

Interesting Wikipedia article on these bikes, one quote:

Honda NC700 series - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"The engine was designed to deliver a "pleasant throbbing feel" of a V-twin through the use of a 270˚ crankshaft, which Honda "deliberately designed with a uniaxial primary balancer" even though the primary vibration of the crankshaft could have been balanced perfectly using a biaxial balance shaft"