www.irishbikerforum.com - The first and original forum for bikers in Ireland: Frenchman not in ireland anymore - www.irishbikerforum.com - The first and original forum for bikers in Ireland

Yep, you read it right. I'm moving into a new house. Again.

Since I left my parents 15years ago, that'll be my 10th move. And I had already moved 6 times with my parents before...

So long story short, we've signed some paperwork committing to buying a house and are currently hunting for a mortgage (at least a better one than the one offered by my bank...)

The house is located in Drom.

There is 1 large guest bedroom with a bathroom next door, and there's space to make to more bedroom in the attic. And 1500sq.m to pitch a tent or two :-D
There's of course a large garage in the house to park the bikes when it's wet and access the rooms directly, so when you visits, you'll be able to ride straight in (not that's it's raining a lot... )



It's located in a tiny village (200 souls), but close to a larger town and a motorway for easy access.
There's plenty of mountains, twisties around.
it's about 1h from Switzerland and Lyon and little more from the Alps.



Zooming in, and you'll see all the twisties and nice scenic roads



Anyway, we should finalize the mortgage thing soon and sign the act in April.

Then, I'll just have to mark the pitching spots and fill in the fridge

have fun and ride safe !

2 weeks ago I welcomed a new pensioneer in the house;



a 1979, Yamaha DT125 MX.

it has 9400km on the clock and I'm the 3rd owner after my mother's uncle and my brother in law.

So far I changed the fork seals and oil, the chain and sprockets and the air filter.

I've also set up the rear shock as it was a bit soft after 32 years ;p

it's a 2 stroke and it's running a bit rich so I guess the carburetor will have to be examined

See ya !

I've not forgotten the official "Ride to Work Day", and yes I know it's in June, but since I've not rode the bike during winter, i thought i could do with some training.


So, I have to spend 2 days at a customer site for a new installation, and I thought i could go on the bike.


(enclosed a view of Ireland for scale)

Route here

I guess i could also be riding a bike in South America, but hey, I guess I can't complain, really

it has been 2 years with the tenere, and I must say I still look at it as the first day i saw it and it always makes me grin when i ride it.

I know I had a few issues with it, but they were due to the official accessories: engine gards snapped, sidecase lock were dodgy. it has all been taken care of (with sweat and blood and a lot of time) under warranty.

The only other issue was a drive chain snapped... which lead to a whole swingarm replacement: 1500euros....

But, it's a hell of a bike.

My most recent mod has been the replacement of the Halfords RING Fog lights by some very neat LED Aluminium lights.

Anyway, I still have to work on the CB125, but it's 8degres in the garage...

This bit has been cleaned, I'll use a paint remover to expose the metal then will treat it .
But first, I have to open and dismatle the engine. Completely.

So that's the engine.
Well, that's how I got it anyway:







it's dirty but it doesn't seem damaged.
So we'll see if it's the original engine or not and what to make of it.

So saturday morning, I picked up my new bike puzzle.

in 5 crate + a rolling frame.

I spent most of the day cleaning and inventoring what I got:

- 1 frame with front and rear wheels, complete with 2 shocks/forks and handlebars and centerstand

plus:

- 9 indicators
- 2 speedos
- 2 rpm counters
- 1 set of forks
- 2 airbox(es)
- 2 chain guards
- 3 sets of footrests
- 2 sidestands
- 2 sets of wires thingy
- front and rear mudguard
- 1 downpipe + silencer (scratched, rusty and with a hole)
- 2 silencer heat guards
- a lot of engine bits (to be determined, but should be able to make 2 engines out of them)
- a spare rear sprocket
- 2 healight casings
- 1 actual headlight
- a few throttle/brake/clutch cables.... to be determined
- 1 pair of indicator holders: front
- 2 pairs of indicator holders: rear
- 1 swingarm

plus I use domestic oil and a brush to clean everything and place it in plastic crates. So it should be easy to find.

Next step:

get started on the engine and set which one of the engine "top" fits with engine "bottom"....

PS:
This is the original Zebulon:

Well, winter is coming to an end, and because of the cold and humidity in my (large) garage, and some laziness, i couldn't work on the VFR (refurbish the subframe and the wiring/connections).

But while i was looking for a 250cc enduro style bike to use on the local trails... i stumbled on an unfinished restoration project.... that will keep my busy when I'm not working/during week-ends... and I'm also waiting for a big project to start this summer.

I'm picking up the beast this saturday if all goes as planned.

I'll have 5 month to finish it (before the 2nd project kicks off) , and do the planned work on the VFR.

So stay tuned

Hint: one of the 2 project is a Honda. The other is not.

Pictures will be uploaded here: http://picasaweb.goo...6/ProjetZebulon

It has been a while (crocodile) since I last posted here or in the forums. And believe me, it is not because of the new layout.

Since mid august I spent my time at work, in business trips and hotels. So much that I barely saw my newly-wed wife as I was away 4/5days/week.

And i barely saw and touched the bikes too !
Except when I had the chance to go to the local office (3miles away), I had no time for a spin.

I did 400km with a nice group on July 14th, then a shorter spin or two on my own... but recently... apart from patting the bikes and asking them how they feeling,... well.. no spin.

And now I even bought a car....an Opel Astra Estate

And now my Dad has sold his Honda X11 to buy..... a BMW !!!! WTF is happening ???

Well the VFR is now parked in my workshop for winter.

I have the intention to thoroughly clean the subframe and inspect the wires/connectors. And maybe dismantle the swingarm hub to free the chain adjuster. it has been stuck for 2 years now.. (shame on me)

The Tenere is ready to hit the road now that the swingarm has been changed.

But no sunday spin organised, and on my own, it's not as fun as it was with you guys...

I hope I'm still a biker

The drive chain on the Tenere snapped in 2 places last week while I was overtaking ....

Pulled the clutch in as soon as I felt the rear wheel locking/skidding, pulled over to a rest area/car park nearby...

About 1third of the chain was wrapped around the rear axle, the rest was to be found in the middle of the road later.

I called the recovery (and glad I took the option with the insurance)

I managed to unwrap/untangle the chain carefully to free the rear wheel.

Damage:
- plastic chain guard broken
- rear sprocket
- rear sprocket nuts grinded
- swingarm badly grinded and will need replacement. (note the aluminium scrap from the swingarm by the chain on the 3rd pic)