What did you do with your CB500 today?

Stevie Gimo wrote:

Jameshambleton wrote:

fgclark123 wrote:
2. The B road coast roads east of Hull and up to Bridlington are DREAMY! Had a cracking day up that way.

Those roads are boring compared to those in/on the edge of the dales. If you loved east yorkshires roads god knows what you'd think in the dales and the lake district.

Yeah,+1 on the lake district, must try the dales this summer any recommends?

https://goo.gl/maps/zP8gqXcZMox If you want any others gimme a shout as it's my playground.

Jameshambleton wrote:

fgclark123 wrote:
2. The B road coast roads east of Hull and up to Bridlington are DREAMY! Had a cracking day up that way.

Those roads are boring compared to those in/on the edge of the dales. If you loved east yorkshires roads god knows what you'd think in the dales and the lake district.

Dales are great for sight-seeing, but I think they're too often overly technical and in poorer condition than the marked B-roads and A-roads of the north Yorks wolds and Howardian Hills. I also think the dry stone walls of the Dales are less forgiving than the hedges of the wolds.

Excellent, will try this soon hopefully

Ride to the conditions and your ability and you'll be fine

and another thing I have always done and that's I always try to ride on my own that way you don't get pulled along by a bunch of riders who may be faster than yourself and you try to stay with them and start making dangerous mistakes and that's when you come unstuck, riding on your own you don't start feeling that you are hanging anybody up

^what he said a lot of that.... @wornsprockets should maybe listen to that when he's leaving his house

Tried to start up my CB500 a few weeks ago and battery dead. Charged and tried again and battery immediately died so concluded one dead battery. Bought a new battery from M&P (a Yuasa) and got sent an original Honda one instead - what a result. Took it for a short spin on the way to the MOT this morning and it passed with not an advisory in sight. Not bad for a 24 year old bike................

That was a good result then, getting a genuine Honda battery. I did not know they did one.
Learn something new every day

Not exactly today but I tested it again today - home made top box! I made it a while back more out of boredom than anything as i had the box lying around but actually finding it pretty useful! Took a load of old engine oil down to the recycling place today. Secured with two wing nuts from the inside so can remove the whole thing including aluminium plates in about a minute.  Secured at four points so is solid on the bike - the two bolts (pictured) and it slots over two 'stubs' at the front of the rack (also in picture but too dark to see). No security on it mind.

rode mine in awful weather to my new job at cummins Diesel in Daventry.

roughly 60 mile round trip, part of it on the A14 so got lots of spray from HGVs. bike and kit needs a good scrub down but weather too crap for that today

Yay congrats on the new job, I'm glad to hear you got it!

Thanks james.
The engines are huge and can have four or more turboos fitted. makes my bike engine look puny by comparison.

On the thursday evening shift someone left a dropped bolt in a cylinder on an 8 cylinder engine and it got as far as having the cylinder heads fitted before it was spotted, and the other week a engine was sent to america without its flywheel, even though each stage of build gets audited.

Jameshambleton wrote:Yay congrats on the new job, I'm glad to hear you got it!

yes its always good to hear when  you have landed a new job well done

Oops...

Took a casual glance at the Dymo-label I've got underseat, indicating last oil+filter change odometer value.
It said 84.000 km. I'm now at 94.700. Apparently I'm developing Alzheimers, because I was so convinced I'd changed the oil last autumn.

So, I took the bike out for a spin to warm up the engine oil. Started on the second press of the button (first press to fill the empty carb bowls). Proceeded to change oil+filter, then wrote a new Dymo-label. I even took the bike out for another spin, despite the freezing cold. Sun was out; this cold, clear, almost blueish light usually signifying spring, but thermometer said -2 C and wind from the east. Brrrrrr.

Returned bike to shed, ready for spring 2018.

Finally got around to fitting a proper battery charging connector. Fashioned one out of two short lengths of 14AWG wire, two automotive ring-connectors to go on the battery's M6 bolts and a set of XT60 connectors towards the charger. Solder, crimp, install, job done. Attaching the charger now takes 10 seconds and does not require tools.

stormbringer wrote:Finally got around to fitting a proper battery charging connector. Fashioned one out of two short lengths of 14AWG wire, two automotive ring-connectors to go on the battery's M6 bolts and a set of XT60 connectors towards the charger. Solder, crimp, install, job done. Attaching the charger now takes 10 seconds and does not require tools.

Nice, getting the battery in and out is a bit of a faff... at least with the battery I have anyway! However I don't mind dropping the battery holder and connecting the charger if I knew it didn't hurt anything to charge with connected battery? I assume not on such an old bike...

I've only every charged mine with the battery still connected, using an optimate cable. Never had any problems.

sullivj wrote:I've only every charged mine with the battery still connected, using an optimate cable. Never had any problems.

Thanks, I have a ctek charger but will do this from now on.

Went out for a packet of doughnuts 110 miles later still no doughnuts as all the bloody shops are shut. I don't understand what it is with shops in Northern Ireland.... In other news lovely ride even with snow and ice

ceejay wrote:

sullivj wrote:I've only every charged mine with the battery still connected, using an optimate cable. Never had any problems.

Thanks, I have a ctek charger but will do this from now on.

Hi, the reason for disconnecting the battery was when , in the "old days", you had to use a car charger with a large amp output that could (would) fry the diodes in your rectifier. Now with bike oriented (low amperage) outputs our diodes are safe. My lovely C-Tek only charges at 0.8 amp so is safe even on small bikes! 
The proof is they give you the fixed plug connectors with the charger!!
Have fun, Dave.

ceejay wrote:

sullivj wrote:I've only every charged mine with the battery still connected, using an optimate cable. Never had any problems.

Thanks, I have a ctek charger but will do this from now on.

yes me too I have always charged my batteries in place and connected without any problems but have always switched the charger off if I want to run the bike up in the shed etc and then after the run up switched the charger back on

What did I do today?  Nowt, cos I committed a basic foo-pah and left me hot grips switched on for the last week.   DOH!!   

Had planned to commute to work today on the bike, got all ready and then nothing.  Not a sausage.  Not even a click from the starter.  Checked headlamp.  It came on in sympathy and then quickly died.  So battery currently on charge on the kitchen bench. 

Hope it's ok for the morning.  Have it booked into my local bike shop for 9am for it's MOT.

Steve

The Wizzard thing to do would be to run the grips through a relay activated by the ignition then when you switch off there wouldn't be the danger of leaving them on!

Easiest place to wire in a relay circuit is the front sidelight as you can use spade terminals without having to chop up the loom!

Thanks guys.

Battery back on and fired first time.  Will investigate using a relay so it's ignition controlled, though suspect now I've been burned, I'll remember to check it next time.

Anyway, Spring is here.  Who needs hot grips !

Off for it's MOT.....

Steve