The General Motorbikers Discussion Thread

Spent almost two hours today on the Beemer, giving it a good scrubbing, polish and waxing. :D
Up close you can still see that the paint is scratched to hell, but from a bit further away it has quite a nice shine. Looks quite good with the black windscreen, too. Only the handguards are still missing, but hopefully that issue will be solved soon as well...

I also spent some time the last days cleaning my helmet, polishing the boots and waterproofing my jacket.
And I went ahead and ordered some pants - not the Alpinestars I asked about (which were 180?), but others that looked quite good too and were discounted from 160? to 100?. :banana:
 
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Um, dude? That's the US Department of Transportation. Arizona might have a similar state law, but if you look on any visor that is not clear you will see it stamped "Not for Night Use."

Even mine, with just a strip of blue tint at the top (just like many car windscreens) has that marking.

https://pic.armedcats.net/b/bl/blind_io/2010/03/05/0000_Shoei_CX-IV_Half_Tinted_Shield_Half_Tone_Smoke.jpg

Oh. I was under impression that it was a state law, since many motoring regulations are state laws instead of national laws.

This is a strange country.

In any case, I still would prefer if I could wear a tinted visor at night. When I first learnt to ride (in America, I learnt to drive back in the UK) I borrowed my flatmate's helmet with a tinted visor, got used to it. I didn't learn it was illegal for quite a while and rode at night with it on several times without knowing better (you'd have thought my flatmate would have told me about it). Lucky for me, in my not knowing it wasn't permitted phase, when I got pulled over at night once the patrolman didn't notice it.
 
Wearing a tinted visor at night is also not the brightest thing in the universe...
 
My suggestion is to get a visor like the one above and wear sunglasses inside your lid. You can just pocket the shades at night and look through the clear part of the visor, but the blue tint strip gives you double protection from the low sun when you have your sunglasses on. I have found it to be far more versatile than either a tinted or clear visor and it's much easier than carrying a second visor to swap out at night.

It gives the most combinations for your dollar and space and it works better than any one visor.

I've never been pulled over or hassled for it because the visor looks mostly clear. If I do get pulled over I'll just point out that it's no different than the blue tint on a car windscreen.
 
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I like the idea of that two-toned visor you've got. I'm not worried about day use; I'm actually fine with a clear visor during the day. At night, the headlamps of cars coming in the opposite direction put a big strain on my eyes, and it was much better with the tinted one I used to ride with.

I think I'll get one of those visors you recommended.
 
If the headlights bother you, you can always tilt your head forward and look through the tinting.

Also, I usually ride with photochromatic sunglasses. The more light there is, the darker they get. It makes riding on partly-cloudy days much easier on the eyes.
 
You could also look into something like this: http://www.maxhelmetsupply.com/hci77cafiduv.html

It has a normal clear visor with a smaller retractable tinted visor inside that acts like a pair of sunglasses. Personally I don't like wearing sunglasses with a helmet. The pads push the frame against my face and it gets uncomfortable.
 
My suggestion is to get a visor like the one above and wear sunglasses inside your lid. You can just pocket the shades at night and look through the clear part of the visor, but the blue tint strip gives you double protection from the low sun when you have your sunglasses on. I have


I used to do this. All i'll say is, good luck when going through a tunnel.

This is why i used to just have a tinted visor for the day (you can just lift it when going through a tunnel), and a clear one for the night. When it gets dark, pull over and change it. Easy.
 
If the headlights bother you, you can always tilt your head forward and look through the tinting.

Also, I usually ride with photochromatic sunglasses. The more light there is, the darker they get. It makes riding on partly-cloudy days much easier on the eyes.

I was going to say, someone needs to corner the market on photochromatic visors. Tinting for bright headlights is nice though. Of course, if that makes them illegal for use at night, then I suppose it has limited use for those without sunglasses(or awesome glasses like you and I).
 
I used to do this. All i'll say is, good luck when going through a tunnel.

This is why i used to just have a tinted visor for the day (you can just lift it when going through a tunnel), and a clear one for the night. When it gets dark, pull over and change it. Easy.

There aren't any tunnels around here, but when I was in California I never had any problems. As soon as I hit the shade of the tunnel my photochromatic sunglasses would turn clear and I could see just fine. Upon exit they would darken again and I would ride on.

Also, I got pretty good at taking my glasses on and off while moving and stuffing them into my tank bag.
 
[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Dn19VbH_98[/YOUTUBE]

Finally, the return of the UJM: a bike that hasn't been forced into some plastic-clad marketing monstrosity, a jack of all trades, and a harkening to a more simple time. It also doesn't hurt that it reminds me of my (same color) CB550F, and that I have the same color jacket. (And helmet, and that I'm Asian, and also awesome.)
 
[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Dn19VbH_98[/YOUTUBE]

Finally, the return of the UJM: a bike that hasn't been forced into some plastic-clad marketing monstrosity, a jack of all trades, and a harkening to a more simple time. It also doesn't hurt that it reminds me of my (same color) CB550F, and that I have the same color jacket. (And helmet, and that I'm Asian, and also awesome.)

Not coming to the States any time soon.
 
^Do want. Was that a fuel injection system I heard at 0:52? Why do you say that it won't come to the States? I understand the marketing demographic is limited, but it could be introduced for a couple of years as an experimental addition to their lineup.
 
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Not coming to the States any time soon.

MCN is reporting that the CB1100F, first seen at the Tokyo Motor Show in October, will be put into production in 2009. They go on to report that the US will be the first market in which the big, air-cooled retro is offered. We like the CB1100F but are really holding our breath for its sportier cousin, the CB1100R.

http://hellforleathermagazine.com/2008/01/honda-cb1100f-set-for-producti.html

While it's been reported that the 2010 Honda CB1100 will make it stateside, American Honda doesn't officially comment on upcoming models. One thing we do know for sure is that Honda is ramping up for the CB750-inspired UJM's release in Japan, showing the production model at the Tokyo Motor Show and now releasing a long video of it in action on the road.

http://hellforleathermagazine.com/2010/03/video-2010-honda-cb1100-in-mot.html

If it's not coming to America I'll pick it up when I'm in London anyway - Europeans are mad for naked bikes like these. :D
 
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Why are you reporting news from two years ago? The 2010 models are already on showroom floors and the dealers are starting to get wind of the 2011s from American Honda - and there will be no CB1100.

Europe may not be getting them either. The only non-Japan market that has so far been confirmed is Brazil.

^Do want. Was that a fuel injection system I heard at 0:52? Why do you say that it won't come to the States? I understand the marketing demographic is limited, but it could be introduced for a couple of years as an experimental addition to their lineup.

Yup, it's fuel injected and it has a catalyzed exhaust (hence the larger pipes). As for why I say that it's not coming to the US - the 2010s are already all out and there is no CB1100 in the US. There also will not be a 2011 CB1100, either, not unless the dealers were told wrong and Honda changes its mind between now and September.
 
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Europe may not be getting them either. The only non-Japan market that has so far been confirmed is Brazil.

Ha!
I knew there was an upside in living here.:lol::mrgreen:
 
Finally, the return of the UJM: a bike that hasn't been forced into some plastic-clad marketing monstrosity, a jack of all trades, and a harkening to a more simple time.

I was about to point to the CBF600/500, but then I checked and saw that you don't get them in the US. :blink:
 
There aren't any tunnels around here, but when I was in California I never had any problems. As soon as I hit the shade of the tunnel my photochromatic sunglasses would turn clear and I could see just fine. Upon exit they would darken again and I would ride on.

Also, I got pretty good at taking my glasses on and off while moving and stuffing them into my tank bag.

I've never personally seen a pair of reacta-lens sunglasses react fast enough to be able to do that.
 
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