Hello Again!

[Ade B]

Helloooo!

In a moment of madness after baby no2 I sold my R1100SS back in 2010. I see a couple of folk are still on here.

Now kids are a bit bigger, I'm still in SE London and now I have a garage... and a new job involving a 25 mile daily commute.. I'm thinking to get on a bike again after a few weeks of intermittent cycling..

I'm thinking of getting something sensible and scruffy as I was terrible at cleaning my S and used it in all weathers - I see older R1150Rs going for sensible money which look like a good bet for a year round commuter.. Could stretch to a newer bike with finance (less than a monthly 4 zone travel card is a must..)

Any thoughts.

I also need to buy a load of all weather kit, nothing fancy so pointers would be appreciated as Hein Gericke no longer exists in Stockwell..

Cheers all

Ade

[roadburner]

Can't help on the bike ( although you can pick up R1100s's for not a lot now) but as far as kit is concerned Get Geared in leatherhead should be good and the Held clothing is good value for money and as good as the Gericke stuff. I used to work for Hein gericke so almost all my kit was from there, and I'm now replacing it with Held stuff as and when it needs changing. If I had the money I'd get Rukka but it is outrageously expensive

[70tno]

Hi Ade,
I have just bought a new R1200RS so my R1100S will be up for sale soon.
Thing is it is not really cheap or scruffy, has loads of extras on it like laser cans and wilburs suspension, but keep an eye out for it in "items for sale" soon.
Paul

[nab 301]

I'm thinking of getting something sensible and scruffy
Any thoughts.

Cheers all

Ade

Welcome back,
If shaft drive is a must there's always BMW, alongside my 11s which I still have, over the years I've used a Honda Deauville 650 .. extremely capable and cheap to run and insure .
If shaft isn't a must my current favourite is my Bandit 600 and I've also a small trailie which can squeeze through any gap (if that's the sort of commute you have.)
Best value second hand bike I've owned in recent years was a VFR750 but was a bit cramped for me .

Personally I'd buy secondhand at first , then if you change your mind about full time commuting it'll be no big deal to shift.

[Pete.]

I've had four Bandit 600's and I don't rate them as a good year-round commuter. Not because of the bike, it ticks all the usability boxes for short-mid range commuting, but because the electrics degrade when used in foul weather until eventually you find that the bike won't run at all in heavy rain.

Ade B I don't know why you wouldn't go for a scruffy 11s, or even a tidy early model as a commuter hack. I've put 12k miles on mine in the last year commuting from Kent into London.

[Ade B]

Cheers all - cheap, sensible jap bikes have no appeal..

If I'm honest, a scooter would do the job (where's the fun in that) as I'm looking at less than 6k miles p/a on all 30 and 20 zone roads. The sticky out bits on the S saved my lower leg in the one road crunch I had, and you can warm your hands on them in winter For all their foibles, I liked the solidity of the telelever front and power delivery of the flat twin around town and still like the detailing and design of the exposed bits.

Any specific ailments to look for on older bikes? Paralever play? Clutch input shaft etc? I'm expecting flakey paintwork, burning a bit of oil and vibes..

Doing the sums and a bit of browsing there are a couple of R1150Rs with fitted luggage about in budget, I think they have aged better than the S and I won't need to fold my legs in half to ride them... Weekend hooning about is about as likely as regular cleaning, although I may use the bike for the odd trip to escape family routine

Finally are more modern bikes significantly more economical? Fuel costs are a small factor in the all important 'presentation' to my better half who seems remarkably on side at the moment.

Just need the roof repairs to come in on budget...

Cheers

Ade

[nab 301]

Cheers all - cheap, sensible jap bikes have no appeal..

If I'm honest, a scooter would do the job (where's the fun in that) as I'm looking at less than 6k miles p/a on all 30 and 20 zone roads.
Any specific ailments to look for on older bikes? Paralever play? Clutch input shaft etc?
Doing the sums and a bit of browsing there are a couple of R1150Rs with fitted luggage about in budget, I think they have aged better than the S and I won't need to fold my legs in half to ride them
Finally are more modern bikes significantly more economical? Fuel costs are a small factor in the all important 'presentation' to my better half who seems remarkably on side at the moment.



Cheers

Ade

Personally I've never found the boxer economical in an urban environment which is why I rarely use it in that situation. I'm not sure if the newer ones would be.
As for the 1150r , I've never owned one but if it's a twin spark I guess the stick coils can be troublesome and fairly expensive , and if it has Tokico calipers they can seize up regularly even with maintenance.
Paralever bearings are handy enough to replace but noisy/ leaking bevel boxes and gearboxes could be prohibitively expensive to repair.
Later Abs systems can be expensive to repair .
Just checked , I replaced the (noisy) bevel box on my S at 93k miles , but many have had problems long before that. I'm still on the original gearbox and clutch at 113 k miles..

[ronnierockster]

Hi . You say Scooter no fun , try a Vespa GTS300 you will change your mind. Have had decades on bikes of all sorts and got a GTS five years ago. It does everything keeps up with most bikes A to B have been camping on it to adventure bike rallies. Would do europe trip tomorrow. Define keeper. Used all year round.

[stevesilver]

Bikes a very personal thing so good luck with that.
Clothing wise I have discovered helmet city in Tatsfield, just past biggen hill.
Most helpful staff I have ever had pleasure of dealing with.
Have bought 2 sets leathers from them (first set stolen), helmet & boots
Being on the large size, they actually bend over backwards to help you. Ordered freaky size clothes in for me just to try on.
10/10 and full of knowledgeable staff

try them

http://www.helmetcity.co.uk/

[The Teutonic Tangerine]

Hein Gericke do exist in the UK - But only in Belfast & Lowestoft - I used them (Lowestoft) mail order last week for new jacket & trousers in the sale - and saved £185 - I had to return for a larger size (no bother a returns label was sent to me via e mail and the new kit arrived a few days later very helpful phone staff.

Lowestoft
Hein Gericke, Lings Motorcycles, 1st Floor, Riverside Road
NR33 0TQ Lowestoft

https://www.hein-gericke.co.uk/shops/in ... l_shop=160

Tel:+44 1502/537444Mail:Lowestoft@hg-shop.com