Ethel self serviced at last

Having decided to carry out the 60k miles service work myself I invested in a torque wrench, hex and socket set with extension and wobble bar and Haynes manual to complement the original BMW handbook. I was astonished by just how simple it was to replace bevel box,gearbox and engine oil with filter. The air filter was also easy once it dawned on me that the whole filter pulls clean out, I thought it must be fixed but it simply is held in place by a shallow perimeter gully and then the cover snaps back on. Treated Ethel to stainless filler and drain plugs, brake caliper bolts too. Next up will be footrest hanger bolts and disc rotor bolts. Put in a xenon filled headlamp bulb too. Put on a set of Conti tyres, the Dunlop rear squared off at 11k miles, and chunks of the front centre tread had gone awol. This has transformed the handling. No more top heavy feel at low speed, the handling now feels planted and the orrible understeering is gone. Now Ethel goes where you look and the ride is so much more relaxed. Next jobs are to replace the in tank fuel filter and fork oil and to fit LED running lights.
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Self service

Having accumulated the parts and tools in time to have a go at servicing Ethel as the miles to 60k built up today turned out to be the day. With Haynes and the owners manual laid out there was no turning back. I had replaced the spark plugs the other day so today the engine oil and filter, gearbox and final drive fluids were replaced and all the relevant drain and filler plugs replaced with stainless items - did the front brake caliper bolts too whilst I was at it. Armed with all the data + torque wrench, sockets for both Allen keys and bolts it was ridiculousy easy to do. Great ! Next jobs will be the fork oil, LED running lights and headlight xenon bulb + plastic headlight lens cover - Bank Holiday looks good !
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New boots

Having ridden to Birmingham in pouring rain for a meeting the other day I was surprised to find I had got wet feet. The soles on both boots were coming away from the uppers on my el cheapo e bay Axo boots after 16k miles. Nothing for it then but new boots. Having read all the glowing reports I splashed out £249.99 less HOC 5% discount - thanks Honda !- on a pair of Daytona GTX leather and Goretex uberboots handmade in Germany. What with Schuberth C3 helmet and now German boots all that is left now is the riding suit and that will probably be upgraded to a BMW Coverall one piece. Anyway I was initially disapointed with the Daytonas. The tops seem made for people with big fat calves and wellied about, the heel rubbed and the thick instep made gearchanges clumsy. It also transmits hitherto unknown vibration through the footrests. Buyers remorse set in until I adjusted the rear velcro fitting straps, inserted insoles and put on white sports socks. Aha ! Great fit and super comfy. Also repositioned the gear lever and away we went. So far so good.
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Satnav woes getting better

Coming home from Donington all I had to do was reverse the nice swoopy cross country route up. Trouble was that due to stacked traffic I came over all London Biker anf plunged through to such great effect that all of a sudden, and for no particular reason, Ethel and I turned up in Nottingham. Enter the latest Satnav goody - the Givi S850 satnav pouch. This is a bumbag with a plastic window + a rain cover with a window all of which velcros together and on to the bars. It even has a diddy zip for the power lead and a holder for a pointer pen thingy. In to this went the lovely Jane, MK1 Tom Tom ever, and off we went into a sudden downpour. Aha, just as with the Great Ziploc Bag experiment any additional film in front of the screen cuts visibility, 2 of them cuts it even more. Next I will try it in night mode and see if that gives better contrast. Good bits, it works as a holder and is totally waterproof. Iffy bits, as the pouch is expensive at £46 you may as well take the whole thing off when leaving the bike which is more velcro scrrching than I can really be bothered with. Also any drops of water that get in whilst scrrching it all together turn a funny milky colour and obccure the screen.
Either way I reckon it is a must have item for GS owners as it has Givi written on it in big chrome letters.
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MotoGP at Donington Park Friday 24th July 09 - last time, hooray !

Could not resist the temptation to hear MotoGP unsilenced bikes live so am here at Donington as I write. The MotoGP bikes sound great with the Ducati the noisest thing on wheels, outside a top fuel drag bike, yet. It rained for the first 20 minutes or so and Melandri on the 2 year old rebadged Kwacker was going round quick and neat.As soon as it dried out the pitch of the engines rose and it was time to put the earplugs in. The Yamahas flat drone makes it hard to tell if they are quick or not, the Ducatis are all blood and thunder and look a real handful, the Hondas are very neat and trim which makes you wonder why they are not doing better than they are and the Suzukis trundle round and round doing ok but looking just a bit off the pace.
Donington continues to be a shambles. Once again all the bikes are parked on shale, the car park attendants had no idea if Coppice was open to spectators. At the gate I was told to walk half a mile to another gate as his scanner was broken. Breaking it gently to him that the MotoGP bikes I had paid to see were imminently due out he turned a blind eye and I was in. Even the relentlessly partisan circuit commentator Fred Clarke seems to have had enough of the Donington fiasco announcing with exasperation that Radio Donington is not working on normal radio sets - you have to buy a Circuit Radio for a fiver. On this open practice Friday there is a fair crowd yet the goodie shops are mostly shut.
Good luck with Formula 1 Donington - bet you do not make the first race.

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Leap of faith

Coming back from Sussex on Friday the M25 produced solid traffic the moment we arrived on it from the M23 planning to follow it around to the M1. As a novice at threading through traffic on a big bike with panniers I cautiously trickled through in 1st gear then noticed a gaggle of bikes built up behind me.Pulling over I let them through to see how it's done. The London bikers just plunge through the gaps around 20 - 30 mph and did not get caught up in slow manouevres or clutch slipping so when a fully kitted Beemer zapped clean through I decided to say damn the torpedoes and give it a go. What a revelation. The cars mostly see you coming better at speed and mostly pull aside. The bike is much easier to ride - I kept it in 2nd at 30mph - and found that with lucky timing you would arrive just before a car restarted and could more easily weave the bike around to get through. All of a sudden it became fun as we ploughed on relentlessly until the M40 came up and we took the Silverstone route home. Thanks for the lesson London bikers - one more skill learned.
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Do not buy from The GPS Warehouse - their products and customer care are shit

Having received a returns note for the 12v BMW Blackberry power lead that failed on me in France I sent the item back. A string of e mails ensued claiming there is nothing wrong with it although they never confirmed testing it with a Blackberry. The suspicion is that as we traced power to the mini plug but none out of it then that must be at fault. Nonethess they sent it back to me - no refund. The connection to the Genuine BMW 12v outlet is very loose and wobbly and of course no charging symbol comes up on the Blackberry. So fuck you The GPS Warehouse - never again - and I will warn every forum I know not to deal with you.
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