Thursday, January 20, 2022

Guilty of Neglect - Restoring my VFR 750

I've neglected my VFR 750. There, I said it. Ever since getting my own shed, a Deauville for the regular commute, a bargain of a VFR 800 VTEC just before the pandemic hit, a small camper, a dog, and general house jobs, along with working full-time, it's not been easy to find the time that I used to devote to it.

That said, it's not been forgotten either. It's still a beautiful dark green 1997 model which has seen me through thick and thin, working away as a daily commuter to college, then to another part of the country (was the central character in a long letter I wrote to Bike which earned me a subscription and a set of Pilot Road 2s for it!). It's benefited from the expertise shared on this forum and with the odometer well past 90,000 miles, I'd love to see it approach the big 100,000 with some grace. No more cold, salty mornings, or being drenched in winter rain.

I started my quest yesterday evening and soon realised that not only had I neglected the VFR, but I've neglected my own spannering skills too. As they say, if you don't use them, you lose them. Taking a look at the list of jobs to be completed, I remember that I need to check the charging system, when I put it away the little LED on the dashboard was telling me that it wasn't all that healthy. There's no longer a chain on it, that was left behind on the motorway during it's last outing, thankfully without causing any damage. Does that count as one of my nine lives? The rapid deflation of my rear tyre on the VFR 800 on the same stretch of motorway probably counts as another.

Taking the rear bodywork off, I was disappointed to see the fuel lines and other bits and bobs covered, here and there, in mould which might very well contain a cure for Covid. Who knows? I say disappointed because this is no way to treat a 25 year old bike which one has professed to love. I'm a tidy person, it's not my style to tolerate mess, and yet, here it is in it's most organic form. The one thing I did manage to do was keep the battery charged and the bike will start, but with gummed up carbs, a sniff of throttle kills it. I attempt to take the tank off but the fuel hose from the tap doesn't want to budge so I remove it from the fuel filter at the other end. I have a jug with me to catch the fuel as it comes out but completely forget to turn off the fuel tap itself. It even takes me a second to just put my thumb over the hose to stop it pouring out. I'm very out of practice. Thankfully, I have a little bit full of cat litter and sawdust for situations like this and scatter that around but it's already after eating through a good bit of the floor paint. Ronseal, apparently, doesn't do what it says on the tin, anymore.

After cleaning up, I removed the tank, the airbox cover and air filter, grab my can of carb cleaner and give the trumpets a good spray. Again, the bike starts and the fuel pump ticks (it's an aftermarket one, much louder than standard) but even after liberal spraying, it won't manage to reach past 4000rpm. My guess is the high-speed jets in the carbs need a clean, the whole thing needs a clean really. However, after 15 minutes of spraying carb cleaner, running the engine a bit, and breathing air which is now composed of half-burnt petrol, I have to stop. It's been lovely to hear the v-four fire through the unbaffled Delkevic end can and good to think oil has been pumped around the various passages. It's no victory though, and those carbs will need to be pulled off. The whole bike needs a spruce up.

Still, there's less winter ahead than behind us, Spring will be here soon, and with it renewal, and longer days. Can that sense of renewal apply to this old 25 year beauty? It's up to me. I really hope so.

Friday, November 18, 2016

Trump's Victory Has Been Coming Since the 60s

This election result has been coming since the 1970s. In some ways the surprise is that it has taken this long to happen, but, mark my words, it was bound to.

As the 1960s drew to a close the era of progressive Democratic Party politics in the US came to a close. Franklin Roosevelt had put in place the New Deal programme to boost government spending and lift the US out of the Depression. With the end of World War Two and the election of Harry Truman came the Fair Deal. Perhaps the most consequential programme of these was the Great Society programme, and the parallel efforts in the realm of civil rights, initiated by President Lyndon Johnson in the 60s. The Great Society programme brought about Medicare and Medicaid, government health services for the elderly and the disabled which are now entrenched parts of the US social system. What all of these programmes underscored was a sense that Americans, despite the divisions which marked much of the 60s around the subject of both civil rights and the Vietnam War, shared common ground and a belief that government could work for the common good.

By the turn of the 1970s, however, this began to change. The historian Rick Perlstein has written that the divisions began with the election of Richard Nixon in 1968 as white, working class, voters from what we now term “Middle America”, opted out of the troubled consensus which had been built up since the New Deal. They did so for reasons which will sound familiar to anyone who followed the election over the last few months. The fear of cultural change coupled with an economy going through structural change, with subsequent job losses, resulted in white voters flocking from the consensus that had been nurtured, primarily, by Democratic Presidents (with the exception of Dwight Eisenhower). Many of those people became solid Republican voters disillusioned with the consensus system developed through the 60s. Not only were they disillusioned but they were angry too and Nixon tapped into this most famously with his “Silent Majority” speech, whipping up support for the Vietnam War and for his own conservative political agenda. Despite white voters being the largest voting bloc by far at this time, the disillusionment that was stoked at the turn of the 60/70s made those same voters feel like a small minority being pushed aside by new cultural forces of colour, sexuality and gender.

Does this sound familiar? It should, because that is what happened during this election cycle and what was bound to happen since that shift in the late 60s. Through the 70s, that group of new conservative white voters grew in power and shifted the Republican Party further to the right to the point where many members today belief global warming is fake and that the Earth is just a couple of thousand years old. However, as they shifted to the right of the political spectrum, the factors which pushed them in that direction only became stronger. Stagflation dogged the economy in the 70s and traditional working class jobs gradually ceased to exist. Wages ceased to rise, a trait which has remained until today. The cultural changes which they witnessed through the 60s continued apace with gender and race roles changing. Many of the changes, such as the Equal Rights Amendment to guarantee equal rights for women as for men, were opposed by the new white conservatives much as how movements towards gay marriage were opposed in the US over the last few years.

Ultimately, the fissures which began at the turn of the 60s/70s have only grown wider, but they have been there for a lot longer than a lot of us seem to realise. They have been allowed to grow and flourish, fed by the likes of Fox News and Breitbart. The culmination of it all was, perhaps, the Tea Party Movement and Trump’s very own birther movement which attempted to prove that President Obama was actually not born in the US. It need not have been this way but the original root causes were never addressed. The cultural changes which occurred through the 60s were the perfect foil for the economic insecurities which emerged as the 60s became the 70s. No one politician, except perhaps Obama who has been dogged by similar economic issues since the Great Recession, has been able to separate the two. No one politician has been able to solve the economic insecurities which have stoked the flames of cultural distrust which feed the ongoing conservative movement in the US. Presidents Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush Snr, Clinton, Bush Jnr, nor Obama, have been able to do so. Will Trump? I would be surprised if he did. What we all should not be surprised about, though, is the election of someone like Mr Trump. The fissures in the post-war US societal consensus have grown wider since the 60s, this election has been the result of history.

Nevin Power. 

Published in the Evening Echo (Cork), Monday November 14, 2016. 

Thursday, November 19, 2015

Cube U55GT-C8 Octa Core Tablet Firmware Flash

If you happen to have bricked your Cube U55GT C8 then you might well find the guide below, and the links provided, to be of some use. While it is a fine device with a great screen my particular one really didn't like factory resets as they essentially broke Android, causing there to be little or no UI left once the resetting was complete. It was very strange and many tech people were confused by it. While I never found out exactly why that used to occur I did find out how to reflash Android on to it even when it seemed as if the device had become bricked (dead). Much of the appreciation for the information below should go to a friend of mine called Nick for going above and beyond the call of friendship to help me out with fixing mine, which in turn has allowed me to put together this guide.


Tools you may need:

Before you follow the steps below it is assumed you have a knowledge of SP Flash Tools and of how to replace drivers within Windows Device Manager. This is not meant as a full tutorial so please refer to other widely available guides on these matters before proceeding with this if you are unsure. This guide is for Windows only I'm afraid!

A - Firmware and SP Flash Tools software: http://chinagadgetsreviews.blogspot.gr/2014/10/download-latest-android-kitkat-442_1.html or http://www.mediafire.com/download/22yzk4cpkc7ebck/U55GT-C8_V1.0_20140902.rar


C - (This page was very useful as well even though the author refers to Windows 10http://laurentiumihet.ro/technology/windows-10-mtk-vcom-usb-drivers-for-32-64-bit-drivers-installation-tutorial/)

D - Nirsoft USB Devices viewer is free and allows you to see what USB ports are active and connected. It proved very useful for this as it also tells you the name of the connections in a handier way than Windows own Device Manager: http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/usb_devices_view.html


Follow these steps:

1 - Make sure you have the right Mediatek drivers installed on your computer. The ones on the website link B, specifically one named MDMCPQ (for Windows 7), worked for me. If you downloaded the firmware from the Mediafire link the drivers are included within the folder "MTK Drivers 32 bit and 64 bit..." Search for "Alcatel xxxxxx" in Device Manager as Windows installs a driver for the tablet automatically and it is, obviously, the wrong one. Replace that driver with the Mediatek driver.

2 - The connection will appear and disappear frequently within Device Manager but this is normal. On my install it came up as Mediatek MTK (Com 13) or something like that under Network. You can check more details using Nirsoft USBDevices software through the website link D above. If all is going well you should see "Mediatek DA USB VCOM Port" and "PreLoader USB VCOM (Android)". 

3 - Open SP Flash Tools, ensure it is set up correctly with the right scatter file etc. The scatter file is located in one of the folders in the Firmware folder you will have downloaded from web link A above. You may have to look for it yourself - it is a text file (Notepad format) called MT6592_Android Scatter). 

4 - Keep the tablet plugged out and when the scatter file is loaded up and ready to go click on the dropdown menu below the scatter file address bar. Select "Format+Download".

5 - Click on the big "Download" button and then connect the USB cable to the tablet. Ensure that you do this when the device has appeared in the Device Manager window (remember it will appear and disappear every few seconds so keep an eye on it). 

6 - Watch the progress bar until complete, disconnect the tablet, power up (it will take longer than usual for the first boot).

7 - The tablet will now be in Chinese but you can switch back to English easily by swiping from the top-right-corner of the screen and going into the menu structure (you'll find it eventually!).

8 - If the tablet had previously been rooted you can download the KingORoot apk (not available in the Play Store but available from kingoroot.com) which will root it for you once again (it may take a couple of attempts and ensure to keep the screen awake while it works) and allow you to uninstall any bloatware from the system using App Master or a similar app.

Further resources which may be of assistance (they were to me):

2 - China Phone Arena on Youtube, video on using SP Flash Tools to unbrick a device like above (extremely useful to watch): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVh5koB5ky4

Friday, May 1, 2015

Rough thoughts - Are Motorcyclists Too Conservative?

This is by no means something that I have ruminated over for days on end but rather a rambling thought. It probably isn't correct but it might end up spurring on some thoughts of your own on the subject...

I was saddened to hear that Erik Buell Racing had hit a wall last week and filed for receivership. As Jensen Beeler of Asphalt and Rubber stated, this does not necessarily mean the end of EBR as an entity, as the receivership process basically tries to reorganise the companies debts and assets in order to see what can be salvaged. I have first hand experience of going through it in Ireland (twice in a football club I was working for at the time), and the club came through both much stronger and is now, perhaps, the most stable football club in the country from a business point of view. The purpose of this post is not to debate the merits, or not, of Wisconsin's receivership laws (as Wisconsin was where EBR were/are based), rather it is to ask the question "are motorcyclists too conservative?".

Erik Buell's products were always a bit different, from his very first bike to the fuel-in-the-frame idea to the strange ZTL rim-mounted braking system. Was this part of the reason for the downfall of EBR? Is it that we motorcyclists are just not imaginative enough? When you really think about it, the motorbike, as a basic idea, has not changed all that much over the last one hundred or so years. There's an engine stuffed in between two wheels with a frame keeping it all together, a chain driving the rear and forks with springs in them at the front. Simple and effective. Buell's products took that basic idea and attempted to make fairly significant refinements to it in order to make their bikes better and more distinctive. They were not giant leaps but they were certainly different enough to make the bikes stand out from a crowd and, maybe, in doing so, people were a little afraid of them.

There are some motorcyclists who like to cling to the idea of being a reincarnated Dennis Hopper, riding across the US on a bike with front forks long enough to use for Olympic high jumping. (Come to think of it those same forks are probably about as structurally stiff too!) While they certainly were not the type of motorcyclists Buell was marketing his bikes too, they are often the group with some of the most money to spend. They tend to be older people who use their bikes as leisure machines rather than everyday transport. As such the bikes, for them, are a novelty. Some fine china plates are novelty items. There's a comparison there if you think about it. Fine china plates do their jobs just fine but are not exactly cutting edge technology either. The low-revving and traditional cruisers favoured by the older crowd impersonating Mr Hopper do their jobs just fine too but to the detriment of the cutting edge technology that Buell was bringing to market.

Indeed, when I talk bikes with someone who isn't all that knowledgeable about them, they tend to bring up images of long straight roads, great weather, Harley's and "living the dream". So then, not only does the general public (from what I can tell) see motorcyclists as all aspiring to own traditional cruisers of the fine china variety, but that exactly is what many older motorcyclists want to do. A funny-front-ender would be anathema to them because it simply would not look the part (even Buell, to my knowledge, did not go there). No forks? That's crazy talk! Rim-mounted front disc brake? More crazy talk!

Now that we have dealt with that section of the motorcycling tent, it's time to deal with the other groups. Are we ALL averse to technology that looks out of place with the idea of a "normal" bike? Maybe, but the reality is more complicated than a binary answer I'm afraid. Sportbike riders tend to be younger and more technologically oriented than our cruiser riding brethren but even with sportsbikes the name of the game has been evolution, quiet evolution, rather than revolution. I mean, how many Bimota Tesi's do you see on your daily commute? (Unfortunately your's truly sees none)
Yes the BMW S1000rr and the Ducati Panigale are loaded with electronics and even semi-active suspension but they use conventional forks, and in the case of the German machine, a conventional frame. At least the Panigale is a monocque design in that it doesn't really have a frame as such, rather it uses the engine as a stressed member and mounts components to both that and the airbox. They don't depart massively from the original idea of the motorcycle that I outlined above. Many engineers agree that forks are really not a great idea for front suspension and steering duties on a bike as they have to deal with too many forces, especially when cornering, and cannot isolate on force from another. You might be thinking about BMWs telelever front suspension design now but did you notice that they made it look like a conventional fork? Why did they do that? And why not perfect it and add that to the S1000rr? Yes it would be a massive engineering challenge but could the answer also lie in the thought that many of riders in their target market would, even if perfected, eschew the strange telelever front suspension system because it was not something they were "used" to?

Even in the field of adventure bikes and dual-sport bikes the focus of innovation has really been on electronics and engine power output. The basic look of the bikes, which a funny-front-end would alter, has been much the same throughout the years. This altered look wasn't really a feature of Erik Buell's creations, for while they were different, they still had classic bike "shapes". This being said I read plenty of comments online where people were happy to question the purpose of the ZTL rim mounted braking system and idea of putting fuel in the frame. In some cases you could almost feel the "I told you so attitude" which I found to be quite sad and which made me think of the original question behind this post, are motorcyclists too conservative?

I am no way close to a definitive answer but but I think there is some merit in the thought that, on the whole, motorcyclists may well be a conservative bunch. They (we) like what they (we) know. New stuff is ok too but only if it's an evolution of what we have and therefore have, in some way, "previewed" it already. For those on traditional cruisers this is often not even the case, as anything that deviates from the look and "feel" of what is regarded a proper cruiser, is deemed sacrilegious. Such attitudes are not exactly useful in helping the industry as a whole to progress. Vilifying bikes like Yamaha's GTS1000 with it's hub-centred steering front end only drives manufacturers away from really experimental designs (ironically the look of the bike, apart from the front, was quite bland but maybe there was a reason for that...). It keeps the public image of motorcyclists the same as the one I outlined above, and stops operations like Buell's from flourishing.

It's true that I have ignored a ton of factors here such as economics, manufacturing scale, reliability and ease of maintenance of the machines themselves for the user but still, there's food for thought there.





Wednesday, January 7, 2015

Cube Talk79 U55GT Tablet Review

Have you been looking around for a tablet for some late-night reading, watching a few clips on Youtube, or perhaps even writing a few short pieces on Google Docs? Well these were some of the reasons I was on the lookout for a cheap tablet. After hesitating for a long time I began to do some research into tablets from various Chinese OEM manufacturers and ended up buying the Cube Talk79. For less than €150 it's hard to go wrong with it.

This picture from www.cngadgets.com gives you a good idea of the overall look of this tablet. It's not all that different, from the front at least, to an iPad Mini but the back is distinctly different. It's very thin as you can see from the side profile.

The technical details of the tablet are here: http://www.cube-tablet.com/cube-talk79-octa-core-u55gt-c8-phone-call-tablet-pc-mtk8392-bt-gps-fm-3g-7-85-inch-retina-2gb-16gb.html

The Talk79 is a slightly smaller version of another Cube tablet, the Talk9X which was released a few months ago and was billed by some as China's best Android tablet. The specification of the Talk79 which I bought, is very similar to it's larger brother and will leave most users very satisfied with its performance.

Because tablets spend so long being held I always think that how they feel in the hand is very important and this one feels properly solid, almost in the same way that an iPad would feel. The similarity with Apple's products doesn't end there, as you can see from the pictures in the link above, it looks quite similar (at least from the front) to the California-designed products. The buttons on the right side, controlling volume and power, are fairly solid but there is more movement in them than is the case with a real top end device. At the same time it is not something I am worried about, I am confident they're going to last the lifetime of the tablet.

Turning on the tablet is easy and running through set-up is also easy. Cube kept the Android OS fairly clean with very few pre-installed apps so it's a clean slate for you to work from. It's a very sharp slate to work from too, the screen resolution and colour production are very good. Apparently it uses the same display as the iPad Mini and it shows, especially when watching HD videos or looking at sharp hi-res pictures. Indeed it is really useful for watching TV shows on if you like to do that with a tablet. The one thing which is noticeable is that brightness is not very adjustable, especially on the "auto" setting, but again it is no great problem and especially so for those of you used to phones or tablets which do not dim/light-up abruptly depending on ambient light. This is not to say that it doesn't work, it's just not all that sensitive.

I rarely use a tablet's, or a phone's own speakers as you can never expect much from them in the way of bass or sections of midrange due to their physical size. In saying that the speakers on the Cube are decent, clear, and loud without being too tinny. They do their job well but linking it up with some speakers or headphones (you can use the 3.5mm jack for this or use Bluetooth) makes a huge difference, obviously. Sound, in this regard, is clear, loud, and far more customisable through an EQ manager.

But what about the overall user experience? Is it smooth, flowing? Is it a joy to use or is a frustrating package of lag and force-closures?

Overall the Talk79 has been very smooth running your usual array of apps such as a music player (Google Music in my case), Chrome, VLC, Pocket Casts (for podcasts), Pocket (for text), Mightytext, Gmail etc. It can handle all of these apps easily and can run them all simultaneously without any hiccups. The screen's touch sensitivity is very good and typing on it is surprisingly easy (I use the Swiftkey app). There have been the odd time when I have pressed the power button the wake the tablet up and have not had a reaction for a few seconds but this has since mitigated (no idea why but maybe the power button was a little stiff from the factory).

Another very important aspect in tablet usage is battery life and the Talk79 did not initially impress me in this field seeing just about 8 hours of usage before it would need to be recharged. However, as I have cycled the battery through a few charges now, that has improved somewhat but a much bigger change resulted in much greater battery gains. This tablet can accept a nano-sim for phone services, and at 13cmx20cm (approx) it is just about small enough to hold in one hand if you DID want to use it as a phone. I've never seen the appeal of that though and rooted the tablet with a PC programme called KingOroot. This allowed me to install "App Master" which will allow you to delete apps which are usually not deletable. I made sure to get rid of all apps to do with phone services in order to save battery life. Even without a sim card the tablet will attempt to search for mobile networks either way and in Android's built-in battery monitor this was taking up quite an amount of battery. In deleting the phone services I can now squeeze out about 12 hours of battery or more.

One caveat to all of this - I don't play any games on my phone or tablet so cannot comment on any of that sort of stuff and I have yet to bother with the camera on it but reviews elsewhere say it is quite good.

Overall, for less than €150 this is a very good 7.9" tablet which will handle all that is thrown at it. I'm not an Android fan-boy but I do wonder why so many people spend so much on Ipad's when they will never use the full capabilities of that device. They could save so much money with something like this and still never use this device's capabilities! If you're looking for a decent tablet on a budget this is a great choice.

Tuesday, May 20, 2014

How to pack for a short motorbike tour...

I am writing this blog post from La Ferte Bernard, near Le Mans, and was lucky enough to enjoy the MotoGP action at the Circuit Bugatti this weekend past. It blew me away. That is all I'll say on the subject for now because the whole experience is still just sinking in but a blog post on this will follow at some point soon. However, on my way over here from Cork, Ireland, I left my packing until the day I left. I'm not normally so complacent but I had done this trip, and blogged about it here, once before, so I felt confident I could bring it all together an get it all on the VFR in time for me to meet my ferry. I did, just. For those of you looking at a short motorbike trip ahead, perhaps a few days in another country, or another state for those reading this in the US, this is my blog post of advice. Do with it whatever you will!

The Basics
There are plenty of websites out there that contain a lot of this information already but I wasn't happy with any of them and that is why I am writing this. This is not intended to show you how to pack ultra-light, it does not require you to buy anything particularly special, and does not expect you to take stuff half-way around the world. This is just some basic advice on what to bring, and how to pack it on your bike, for a few days away. A basic tour!

Where do you begin?
You begin, I think, with writing a list of questions. Decide where you want to go. How far away is it? How long will the trip take? What sort of weather should you expect? What sort of riding will you be doing? Where are you staying? How much do you want to pack? How much do you HAVE to pack? Do you think you'll bring home anything (you'll need room)? These questions will then feed into other sub-questions which will start to make things clear in your head.

Gear
These questions bring on further questions such as "should I wear leathers or fabrics?", both of these types of gear having advantages/disadvantages in various weather conditions. If you expect rain, fabric is a good option but I often find fabric gear keeps me warmer than I'd like. Leather, in this regard is good, but not waterproof and forces you to bring waterproof overcovers which take up packing space. Bear this in mind and plan accordingly. Also, you'll need to be comfortable, wear what you are used to wearing for hours in the saddle. Being uncomfortable can be a real hindrence and even a danger. The last thing you want is a sore arm from a pinching sleeve or zip while you scramble to read a roadsign to get you out of the mess you've made in getting lost! Similar advice applies to boots and gloves, make sure they are comfortable and try and waterproof them before you leave, Nikwax make some great products which will help you with this. I only mention them because I use their stuff a lot and find it excellent (also Vaseline smeared on zips makes them work a lot better). Bodywarmers are handy for keeping you warm and are easily washable in a sink (I washed mine in the sink in my ferry cabin last time to refresh them but they didn't dry on time...I didn't need them in France anyway). I think you can get ones that also keep you cool. Think back to what weather you expect and whether your gear tends to keep you warm enough with just a tshirt underneath or a sweater/jumper etc...

What did I do?
On my April ride from Ireland to France I wore my Richa Sky fabric gear with liners in (I never take them out really), bodywarmer on upper and on legs, tshirt and a windstopper top from Aldi or Lidl (they really work). This was fine in Ireland but not in France and I sweated madly on the car deck of the ferry. You might be riding through various different climates so plan for this. Work in layers, light layers are easy to wear, easy to carry, and easy to put on more if need be. This time around I wore leathers, they kept me a lot cooler but I had to make space for waterproofs in my Givi topbox. They're a tight fit, as they should be, so there's no space for bulky sweaters underneath. In this case a bodywarmer with long sleeves and a tshirt worked a treat under the jacket. Being on a faired bike my legs are well protected from cold air so the leathers alone are fine here.

Packing clothes and stuff
Hopefully you'll have an idea of what to bring with you already. It all depends on where you are going and for how long really but I think the best thing to do is start with underwear and socks. I've always done this because it's easy (I hate packing so I have to start somewhere easy). Bring as many as you think you'll need but bear in mind that, if going on a ferry and it's an overnighter, pack a set for the end of the first leg of your ride. If the ride down to the ferry has been sweaty, it's nice to take a shower and change into fresh stuff asap so you can enjoy the crossing. There's more on the ferry bit later...

Get your clothes and lay them out on a bed or on a table and sort through them. Do you really need them all? Shirts tend to get smelly quicker than trousers so bring more tshirts than trousers. Tshirts are also lighter and easier to pack in. Bring a belt, even if you don't use one normally, it can be handy for a ton of things such as wrapping a bunch of clothes tightly or keeping a bag closed etc. It might be useful to bring stuff which you don't mind losing or throwing out if you need space to bring any gifts home. A friend of mine told me he used to go around Europe years and years ago and simply pop into a supermarket and buy cheap white tshirts and wear those before then getting rid of them. It sounds wasteful but it could save you a lot of room and if you can find a charity bin for old clothes to dump them in you can even help people!

What did I do?
For a week in France, and bear in mind I was staying with my girlfriend so did not have to pack a towel etc (if you need a towel try and camping store for the ultra-light ones). I brought about six tshirts, underwear for every day and two spares which I could use on the ferry (I was glad of this when the ferry broke down on the return leg). Two trousers and two sweaters. This was more than enough really, and many will say this was waaaaay too much. They are probably right but it's what I did anyway. I used specific shirts for riding in, these tshirts were slightly bigger than my normal size to allow me more room on the bike. I kept these separate to my normal clothes.

Distributing stuff on your bike
The most important thing in this regard is to get weight towards the bike's centre of gravity but also to make sure that frequently-required stuff is close to hand. Ferry tickets, toll money, maps, camera etc are all going to be needed frequently so there isn't much point in putting those under your seat. Try and balance the need for weight to go low with the need to have some stuff very close to hand.

Panniers (for clothes)
This is pretty important. As I rushed, and I mean rushed, to the ferry for this trip to France, I noticed a flapping shadow cast across the road as I turned through a bend on the road to Rosslare ferryport. Looking in my mirror I could see one of fabric panniers flapping about madly having been caught in the wind at certain speeds. I never bungee my panniers from underneath but I might start to now in order to aid stability. Instead I use the velcro straps on the panniers and make sure at least one of those goes under the seat.
In this case it stopped the pair from completely falling off the bike. Without a bungee this time I just popped more stuff into the pannier and this extra weight stopped it flapping. A rubber mat stops the panniers from scratching your paintwork and are available in many poundshops, car shops, or bike shops, as anti-slip dashboard mats. It also stops them sliding. Put your clothes into helmet bags or plastic bags and "weigh" them with your hand. Try and spread that weight evenly and pop one bag each into each pannier. Keep the heavy stuff as close to the ground as you can.

Topbox (for light stuff)
Light stuff can then go into your topbox if you have one. My shoes wouldn't go into the panniers and are light anyway so I dropped these in the topbox. I was also able to pop other small things into my shoes. One was a phone charger and the other an electrical outlet adapter so I could use my Irish plug in a French wall socket (and because the shoes came to the ferry with me, so did these items). Because I was doing some PhD work while in France I also had a couple of books and folders in here. I also put my hard-drive in here as I was afraid that the magnets in the tankbag would ruin it. I'm not sure how true this is but... Waterpoof overcovers can also go in here so they are easily accessible at the roadside should you need them.

Tankbag (for frequently needed stuff)
Tankbags are great for maps or GPS or whatever you use but if you have a plastic tank get ready to strap the bag on. I have a steel tank so the traditional magnetic tankbags work for me. Some, like my Lidl "Ultimate Speed" one, convert into rucksacks for walking with. Put any reading material and documentation you need into the tankbag along with a washbag so you can easily freshen up (toothbrush, deodorant, the usual...).
Chocolate, water, book, map, passport, camera in camera-bag, pens, ferry tickets. Also out of sight there's a plastic bag in a sidepocket in case of really bad rain. Chain lube went in a side pocket too along with tissues and spare ear plugs.
If you bring a camera keep it here so you can easily stop to take shots without having to get off the bike. Keep a bottle of water or some food here as well if you'd like to stop and eat. Make sure it is not too light, you don't want it to fly off! If in doubt bungee it to something.

Keeping things dry
Get yourself some plastic bags and waterproofing spray for this! My fabric panniers and tankbag have been sprayed with a waterproofing spray a few times and have survived a few downpours without letting any water in which is handy as the waterproof covers on them are a pain to put on. I'd advise you to do likewise with any fabric tankbag or pannier you have. It is also a good idea to keep a large plastic bag in each one. Then if the rain is really pouring you can just pop your stuff into the plastic bag, back into the tankbag or pannier and the bag will keep things dry. If combined with a waterproof spray on the tankbag or pannier itself you're almost guaranteed that your stuff will stay dry (my clothes were dry after heavy rain overnight when the VFR stayed on the dock while they repaired the ferry). The topbox, if you have one, is the ultimate storage space for keeping items dry but keeps the weight of your luggage up higher than desired. I've kept waterproof overcovers in here for quick access in a downpour. Sensitive electronic stuff can be kept properly dry here too (for those with expensive cameras...you probably won't be taking pics in the rain anyway so the advantage of quick access through keeping it in the tankbag is negated).

What if I take the ferry?
If you are taking the ferry and it's an overnighter (or just a long sailing) pack a separate bag which you can fit in the topbox or tankbag (anywhere easily accessible for you). In this bag put a tshirt,sweater,trousers,jocks and socks, and a pair of shoes (or tie a pair together and make them easy to carry that way separately). It's a good idea to take your tankbag with you too, especially if it converts to a rucksack, as it might be able to swallow this overnight bag for you. If not, put the shoes in there where it will join your wash bag, your reading material (gives you something to do when bored on the sailing), your map or GPS (for planning when on the ferry), and your documentation (best to keep them close). This is what I did on my ferry crossing and it made a lot of sense. However, I was lucky enough to have a cabin to throw this stuff. If you do not have one for an overnight crossing, it might be a good idea to forget the change of clothes and instead bring in a sleeping bag or a camping mat and little pillow so you can find a quiet corner and get some sleep. Your head will thank you more for sleep than for cleanliness when riding on strange roads the next day. Do try and go for a cabin though...the extra few bob is worth it.

The little things
The little things are the things that fit, mainly, under your seat (or at least under mine) and which won't be used often. They are often legally required or just for emergencies. I did not pack one but small first-aid kits are easily available for under the seat too.

Hi-Viz Vest
I do not normally wear a hi-viz vest but I always try and keep one on the bike for foggy conditions or bad rain. When abroad this can be especially important not to mention that if you're at the side of the road doing a running repair it might help make you more visible.
 
Chain lube
If you have a chain-drive (most bikes) bring chain lube with you. You can easily buy small tins of this stuff for touring which can fit in a tankbag pocket. Just because you're off for a few days doesn't mean you can neglect your chain. You'll likely be doing a lot more miles than you would usually so keep an eye on the chain and oil it during your touring. A small piece of cardboard can stop it being sprayed on the wheel as you apply it (you could cut up a cereal box and lay the bits flat in your topbox for this or look around for free leaflets which can do it too). 

Toolkit
Do you do your own work on the bike? It goes without saying that you should check it over before you leave. Prior prep prevents failure! Still, unforeseen events do happen so bring your bike's toolkit. If your bike hasn't one, find out what was in it when it was brand new, and make one yourself. We all have socks which are missing their other half so use that old sock as a tool roll. Put the tools in the sock and wrap up tightly with a bungee. Pop under seat or in topbox or wherever. I put it under the seat as I had space and because the stuff under the seat is intended for infrequent use. Stuff up high is to be used frequently (thus your documents in the tankbag, not under the seat!).

Electrical tape/gaffer tape and cable ties and bulbs
Yes these are important. They can be used for anything from fixing some fairing after a small spill, to joining wires together for the GPS to work. It costs nothing and takes up no space so get some tape and pop it under the seat. Cable ties can also be very useful so bring a few and squeeze them in between the bungee and sock which serves as the tool roll. Spare bulbs are useful, and a requirement in some countries. You can buy ready-made packs from bike shops. I popped mine into a sock. Check the picture below...
 
It's not the best picture ever but this is what was under my seat. Spare documents in a plastic pocket, a spare bungee, disc lock, electrical tape and a sock tied with a bungee with tools inside it and cable ties fitted between sock and bungee. Spare bulbs are in the white sock at the very top. It's a VFR so a multimeter is here too (I've yet to fit my LED voltmeter to the dash).

What stays on you
Phone
Make sure to keep your phone on your person so put that in your pocket. It's useful for all types of emergencies. If you fall the last thing you want to do is have to walk back to the bike for your phone to call help. Not only may it not have survived the fall (it will probably survive on you as the pockets are away from typical impact points) but you might not be able to make it that far. I'm not trying to scare anyone but it is worth bearing in mind.
Wallet
Keep this on you if you can. At least if you lose everything else you've your phone and wallet still on you! Almost everywhere takes cards these days, at least in the EU, so just bring that and go. 
Licence
Keep your licence on you, you'll be using the same jacket for the trip, keeping it in that jacket makes sure you always have it with you.
Tyre pressure guage
One of the short needle style gauges are cheap and accurate. Keep one in your pocket.
Pen
Always useful.
Earplugs
If you haven't tried using them give it a go, you'll be much less tired after a motorway ride.

Be flexible
One of the main points is that you must be flexible with your use of stuff. A bungee can act as a toolroll compressor, a trouser belt can wrap tightly around an overnight bag of clothes to make it easy to carry, tying shoes together and throwing small things in them saves space. Maybe even "de-pair" your socks, they take up a lot of space when paired together I find! I've been able to lend electrical tape to another biker to help him out on his travels to mend a GPS cable/headphone cable that wasn't connecting right. It can also be used as a makeshift plaster for cuts. Chain oil doesn't just work for chains but it can also lube up a seized lock or anything else (I've helped a biker on Cherbourg port this way, his lock was seized so I sprayed it with chain lube, let it work its way in and then he was able to use it again). A packed hi-viz vest can also be used as a makeshift picnic mat to sit on or to kneel on if doing repairs or as a "carpet" in the topbox to stop things rattling.

Make your own list
Now you can go ahead and make your own list and enjoy your trip!

Tuesday, May 13, 2014

Back in the Saddle: Back to Le Mans...

It's May and that means two things. One is that I've got to do some birthday present shopping as both my fantastic girlfriend (such superlatives are fitting, just wait...) happened to be born in this month some years ago. Another is that the Le Mans MotoGP is coming to the Bugatti circuit, the "purpose built" section of the famous Le Mans 24 hours track. And here is where the superlative comes in. The French MotoGP takes place on the very day of my girlfriend's birthday but that's ok, here it is, she's coming with me. Could I ask for any better?!

My last blog posts of my trip to France were quite long and detailed my preparation far in advance of the trip itself but I haven't been able to do anything of that sort for this trip. One of the main reasons for that is simply because I haven't actually put in all that much preparation this time. The bike is pretty much ready to go, tyres are fine, all fluids are fine, and despite me wanting to change the spark plugs and air filter, I've decided to let them be for another while. Like an aging athlete the VFR is looked over by my own, fairly watchful, eye and constantly monitored. As it ages bits wear down, things become brittle, it demands that little bit of extra care (but only a little extra, the VFR was a fantastic bike to begin with anyway and at 17 years old it still doesn't require intensive work). But in putting in that bit of extra work in anyway the rewards are great - you get to know the machine, you know what noises to expect, what signs are troublesome, and when (and not) to replace service items. Away from the bike and on to packing, there hasn't been any done at all so far. My tool kit, wrapped up in a sock and cable tied under the seat (novel way of stopping it from rattling), is still under the seat from the last time, as are copies of the documents I am legally required to have. The only thing to squeeze back in is the spare-light-bulb box. Planning my route will be done on the ferry I imagine as it'll be useful to waste some time engaging in a bit of map reading, I find it prepares me for the journey ahead. I'm thinking that this time around I will take a different route and experience some different roads, we'll see how that plan works out when I have a map in front of me on the ferry...

Time to fit new brake pads in the new university motorcycle club workshop
Brake Prep

So have I done any preparation at all? What's the whole point of this blog post? Actually I did do some preparation after all. The bike has been washed (twice...once after this brake pad fitting as I always think if you're spraying nasty stuff like brake cleaner about along with greases, any excess is best washed off so it doesn't wreck your paint). The bike has also, as I just gave away, been fitted with new front brake pads. This was a nice job to do because I was using the new UCC Motorcycle Club workshop. Yes that is right, my university, University College Cork, has a motorbike club and a very nice new workshop which we are still kitting out. University-based motorbike clubs such as ours (we don't have a back patch and all of that stuff, we just work on bikes together, do the odd track day and ride-out etc) are rare, the closest I know of is Bath in the UK but we're the only ones I have found with our own workshop. The new workshop was two years in the making but it can rival any professional set up even at this point where we are still working on fitting it out. I was able to roll the VFR in, put it on the lift, listen to Motopod (brilliant MotoGP podcast show, listen if you never have) and Car Talk from NPR (very funny show and informative too, I get the podcast), have something to eat and a cup of tea (we've a fridge and microwave), and then get down to working. This was luxury.

Still life left in the Nissins but now that I'd the new CL pads I thought it best to go ahead and do it
Sitting in a swiveling chair and unbolting the front calipers I popped out the old pads, which were Nissin OEM pads, and proceeded to clean up the caliper. I keep them in good condition so there was no excessive dirt or dust in there really but I cleaned everything up and put fresh grease on the sliders etc. Red rubber grease is great stuff for this as any other grease that is oil based will eat the rubber boots and stop the sliders from, well, sliding. Copper grease on the pad pin, a tiny dab on the BACK of the pad, and you're done. It took a lot longer than that however as I checked everything. I had also planned on changing the spark plugs and air filter but the air filter had only been inspected a thousand miles ago and still looked new so I'm happy to have left it alone. Likewise, if I ever have the tank off, I pull a plug out and check it. I did this before the last trip to France and it was perfect. I'll do them at the next oil change in 3000 miles time by default. 

As I bolted the calipers back in place I noticed that our new workshop clock was telling me that it was almost 11pm and the gates to the complex are closed soon after that so I needed to get packing. A quick wash outside made sure no lingering greases or sprays would be left on the paint and then I headed on my way. New brake pads are always strange when first installed. They need time to shed their first layer, if that is even the right word, they need to bed in to the shape of the disc, and so, when you fit new pads, things don't always seem right. This is why there is no way I can really tell anyone how Carbone Lorraine pads feel! The Nissin OEM pads were always consistent but were, at this stage of their life, beginning to lack in feel and initial bite. They would still do the job but were a little vague and took more effort. The only reason I didn't buy them again was simply that I wanted to try out some different brands just to get experience of different manufacturers. The Carbone Lorraine pads are slightly different looking to the Nissins, the CL ones have 1 centre groove rather than 2 as the Nissins have while the back pad of the CL pads have no manufacturer on them and don't look as pretty as the Japanese ones. Still, brakes are all about friction, not looks. By the time I hit French roads I'm sure these new ones will have settled in.


Leathers or fabrics?

The last time I went across the sea, just three weeks back actually, my choice of riding gear was made for me. The weather, on both sides, was changeable, and even if the weather in France looked good, what if I was caught in monsoon rain upon my return to the rainiest island in the whole world (may not be factually true)? My usual fabric gear was the only sensible way to go but this time around the temperatures in France are higher and the weather, even here in Ireland, is, well, about the same as ever. Showery. I'm keen to bring the leathers though as I think they actually keep  me a little bit cooler than my fabrics and I'll never forget the heat underneath my fabric stuff on the car deck of the ferry the last time. I think this one will be a last minute decision...

Vee Fours?

It isn't often that my VFR has other V-fours around for any sort of company so this is a quick note to sign off on. Sharing it's engine angle, and general design philosophy with the RC214V Honda MotoGP bike, the VFR's engine will be in the company of many V-fours when the MotoGP rolls into town. I better make sure that on that same day that I have the birthday presents ready...

I'll do my best to provide updates of the trip along the way so keep checking back!