... assuming all goes as planned, tomorrow I will be the new owner of an old '89 GS! (Which I am purchasing from a forum member here)
As happy as I will be to have my first bike, I am also sad because I haven't taken MSF yet and won't be able to ride it around (no more than 1/8 mile, anyway). I've been holding off on MSF class because of issues switching my license over to a GA one (they now require your *original* birth certificate, which I am trying to have sent to me).
Although there is a *very* close post office (1/4 mile away down a non-busy street) with a GREAT parking lot shaped like a mini-oval where I could get some good practice getting familiar with the bike... I think it might be wiser to follow the advice of others and drop (assuming i do drop them) the honda bikes at the MSF class first.
I've been reading the forum for a bit. I'll be sure to post a nice photo of the bike (and the VFR that my roommate has owned for years).
I don't have a garage.... would investing in a bike cover help prolong the period between chain maintenance at all?
-kevin
(who will have to fight the urge to do laps at the local PO)
Hey,
Welcome....ya resist the urge until you have the bike tag/ inspected/ insured incase soemething does happen, or the bike gets away from you...BTW if the cops pull you over w/o a class M endorsement you may not be riding for awhile :(
AS far as leaving the bike out in the rain :shutter: it will be ok but you will defently want to put a few coats of wax on when you get the bike and I would suggest getting a cover. I personaly use a Target "X-large" grill cover that works like a charm >>$10<< FYI if you get any more Hurrcianes comming through GA you might also want to get some anchor bolts and tie the bike down. I know a few people that had their bikes knocked over because of the wind :nono:
auto zone has bike covers for 25 bucks, between the sun and the rain, in the south if you want to keep her looking good yeah you need a cover. welcome to the circus.
Congrats on your EXCELLENT choice for a first bike!
Do resist the urge. Wrench on your new bike until you take the MSF! That will help fill the void! :) We want you to remain a SAFE new member of GSTwin!!! :cheers:
pandy :mrgreen:
More than just the chain - it'll help keep all kinds of susceptible bits from being rusted/oxidized. It also helps to keep people from sitting on it/messing with it; a bit of a psychological barrier. You'll have to pony up some cash to get one that's actually waterproof, but anything shy of that isn't worth it, IMO.
Walmart sells a decent cover for $20. You will definitely want a cover if you're keeping the bike outside. Everything will start to rust if you don't.
Quote from: Jace009gsWelcome....ya resist the urge until you have the bike tag/ inspected/ insured incase soemething does happen, or the bike gets away from you...BTW if the cops pull you over w/o a class M endorsement you may not be riding for awhile :(
Yeah, I still need to figure out which comes first... inspection, registration, or insurance? Should I hold off on insurance until I finish MSF in order to get the discount? I hadn't given much thought to being caught riding in a parking lot by a cop, but its just as much a risk as dropping the bike (though less likely to happen). I'll probably just sit on and and make 'vroom vroom!' noises till i get my paperwork squared away.
Quote from: Jace009gsAS far as leaving the bike out in the rain :shuDDer: it will be ok but you will defently want to put a few coats of wax on when you get the bike and I would suggest getting a cover. I personaly use a Target "X-large" grill cover that works like a charm >>$10<< FYI if you get any more Hurrcianes comming through GA you might also want to get some anchor bolts and tie the bike down. I know a few people that had their bikes knocked over because of the wind :nono:
Target, you say? I'll check them out this evening. I also need a disc lock. I'm in Atlanta, and we don't get hurricanes (maybe 1 every 10 years). Though Wind won't be an issue because of the spot the bike will be in, (though 2 trees have fallen over here in the past 12 mos).
I think the wax is a good suggestion. Are the fairings usually waxed (yes, my bike has some 2004 fairings fitted to it) ? I'm going to remove them after MSF anyway (but not before i get some photos, though).
Yaaay, another spelling nazi... :)
I wax all of the metal and plastic. I use Meguiar's High-Tech Yellow (#26) - that stuff lasts, and the liquid is easy to apply. Don't use the Gold Class - it comes right off.
Forum member's 89 ... OK I'll bite ... whose ???
Cool.
Srinath.
I did MSF, then license, then GS purchase, then 2 weeks cruising in the neighborhood, then insurance, now starting practice on streets with cars.
I'm disapointed though, there were no bike drops in my MSF class. :dunno:
I was doing laps last sunday in the school parking lot (late afternoon) and a sheriff pulled in. He wanted to see my bike and had questions about MSF class. He said he was thinking about getting a bike. He never asked to see my license or anything. Good thing, cause I hadn't bought my insurance yet. :thumb:
What part of the ATL are you in? I got a bunch of friends up there.
You should get the insurance first. I know Progressive will automatically change your rates as soon as the course is finished. They will even cut your premiums mid-month after you finish the course.
In ATL you shouldn't have this problem, but a friend of mine down here in the Boro was signed up for the MSF in Swainsboro, and the durn class got cancelled twice cause not enough people signed up. Also just for legal reasons (cops) you can get a Class M learners permit here in GA with only a written test. The learners permit allows solo riding during daylight excluding Interstate (and GA 400). If you are going to practice on your own this is probably a good idea.
Keep the shiny side up
Quote from: seshadri_srinathForum member's 89 ... OK I'll bite ... whose ???
Cool.
Srinath: Your intuition serves you well. This is the same '89 that sat at your place for a month while you were wrenching on, measuring, and welding to it. It's
cheesy's bike. AFAIK he is upgrading, but I'll leave it to him to break the news of whatever bike he decides to get.
Anyways, is the 'waterproof bike cover' better than the 'x-large grill cover'? I'd think that both would be waterproof...?
I dunno - does the grill cover say it's waterproof?
One big advantage of a bike cover over a generic Waterproof Thing is that it's cut to fit a generic bike shape, so it has pouches for mirrors, etc... that being said, I made do with a tarpaulin for a while.
(I finally got a real bike cover - and now I have a garage, oh well. But I cover it anyway, to keep exhaust crap off and to keep people from being tempted to mess with it as much.)
'89 is the best year, IMO! I remember seeing pictures of that project.
MSF is a blast. I DID have somebody drop a bike in my class. Actually, this lady about 40 years old and didn't know anything about bikes. The second night she got on her Rebel, opened the throttle to about 7 grand, dumped the clutch and launched right into a parked Nighthawk. She was shaken, uninjured, and :oops: .
But I'm sorry. It was funny!
Welcome!
In the meantime you can shop for your riding gear. Helmet, gloves, jacket, boots, pants.
Quote from: scratchWelcome!
In the meantime you can shop for your riding gear. Helmet, gloves, jacket, boots, pants.
or look for a second job to be able to afford all that :)
Progressive told me there is no discount for MSF.. all insurance Co's told me the same... Possibly there is a discount on full coverage, but I only pay $69. a year.. you cant get much cheaper than that :thumb:
Yea yea ... That ... you better not drop it ... Its no 89 ... Its the 89/04 Frankenbike ... and where is the pics Cheesy - or you ... someone better send me pics, I want before and after, to show the wifey, and no I lost them all ... I am horrible at documenting stuff ... so that entire project is now subject to the frailities of my memory ...
Cool.
Srinath.
Quote from: seshadri_srinathYea yea ... That ... you better not drop it ... Its no 89 ... Its the 89/04 Frankenbike ... and where is the pics Cheesy - or you ... someone better send me pics, I want before and after, to show the wifey, and no I lost them all ... I am horrible at documenting stuff ... so that entire project is now subject to the frailities of my memory ...
Cool.
Srinath.
By your command. These are the only pictures that I have of it so far:
http://riftwave.net/bpic/1989.html. I will document as many of the changes as I can (i can probably only remember half of the ones cheesy told me about) with my 4MPixel digital camera and send them along to you. You'll have to talk to cheesy about 'before' photos, though.
Quote from: scratchIn the meantime you can shop for your riding gear. Helmet, gloves, jacket, boots, pants.
Cheesy was gracious enough to include a helmet and gloves as part of the deal. Boots are definitely next on my list, but the jacket will probably have to wait until I make sure that my finances can handle the expense. With any luck I'll have it by MSF. I've already visited the course/area that Honda uses up here... its been raining something fierce every weekend here lately (reminds me of Florida). I'll look for pants after I can afford a jacket. Until then i'll use the toughest jeans i've got and my rollerblade kneepads if I have to (they are pads for half-piping, so they should be fine for low speed riding)
Quote from: oppy00What part of the ATL are you in? I got a bunch of friends up there.
p
I'm currently north of the city in Alpha-Roswell. I went to GaTech, so I've lived in and around midtown for most of my time here (and the requisite post-college 1-year stint in Vinings). As for people who ride... my roommate has a VFR, his old roommate has a GSXR-600, a guy who works at one of my jobs owns a Ducati and a GSXR-750 (he's selling the gixxer), one friend of mine is looking to purchase a bike soon (he won't consider anything w/o fairings), and another friend of mine races Suzukis professionally (500cc class i think)... so there is already small dearth of people for me to ride with... but more couldn't hurt I suppose. Also, my old roommate wants to get a Valkyrie, but that is at least a year off.
Although I have little riding experience (20 min x2 times on a dirtbike), i'm not that worried about dropping the MSF 250cc's. Skating and tumbling have given me a healthy respect for the damage one can incur *without* a half-liter engine sitting between your legs. I hope noone gets hurt when I take the MSF course. The day I went, i saw a guy sitting up against the fence being attended by paramedic/firefighters (he seemed ok, just dazed). This guy was pushing 350 lb easy, which probalby contributed to his what-I-assume-was-a-fall-off-a-bike.
Gotta run... equipment inspection!
-kevin
you normally have to prove that you have insurance when you regester it, although I don't know if that applies in GA or not. I'd get the insurance asap, cause you just never know what's going to happen. for cheep gear try craigslist, new enough, motorcyclecloseouts, MAW. that's all I can think of for now, but if you look hard enough you can get a good jacket for 60 bones or so.
Quote from: seshadri_srinathYea yea ... That ... you better not drop it ... Its no 89 ... Its the 89/04 Frankenbike ... and where is the pics Cheesy - or you ... someone better send me pics, I want before and after, to show the wifey, and no I lost them all ... I am horrible at documenting stuff ... so that entire project is now subject to the frailities of my memory ...
Cool.
Srinath.
I'm going to be riding it naked for quite a while before I put the fairings back on. It does look sweet with the fairings, but I was about to buy a naked GS500 anyway (2001), so tempation won't be a problem. Cheesy mentioned something about some brace tubing that you still owed him... I'll put'm on the bike to protect it as soon as they are in my hands.
Quote from: scottpeelProgressive told me there is no discount for MSF.. all insurance Co's told me the same... Possibly there is a discount on full coverage, but I only pay $69. a year.. you cant get much cheaper than that
I just got off the phone with progressive and they quoted me just a teeny bit over that for minimum coverage. I'll most likely go with minimum for a few weeks/months until I start taking it out in traffic, when i'll go with their uninsured-motorist-damage/injury for ~$200 a year.
I'm starting to get excited. Tomorrow's going to be the longest day of work ever, due to the anticipation/waiting. I'm going to head out and shoe-shop for some boots as well as bike covers.
-kevin
If you have the money...
(http://www.newenough.com/product_pictures/s/sidi_vertebra_2_boots/black_front.jpg)
I'm still waiting for someone to get me a set for my birthday.
I agree with davipu; you can wear just about any type of boots, so focus on getting a good (low-cost) jacket. Hell, as long as they protect your feet and cover your ankles, a cheap pair of workboots from a discount store like Target or KMart will work just fine, but you NEED a real motorcycle jacket. Motorcycle jackets are designed to fit snugly, which means they WON'T ride up in a crash; anything else is a skin-graft waiting to happen. Any experienced rider will tell you helmet, jacket, gloves, footgear (head to toe) is your FIRST priority. Since you already have a helmet and gloves, take davipu's advice and find a suitable jacket, and add some good cheap workboots.
Once you have the basic gear (including overpants), you can focus on upgrading, but start with your priorities straight; helmet, jacket, gloves, and boots. Don't make the mistake of waiting until you can "afford" the basic protection a jacket provides; any surgeon will tell you he'd much rather treat a flesh wound than have to operate on a skull or a chest, because bad things can happen inside of them. Though a skingraft is painful as hell, a chest puncture is REALLY serious, because of all the delicate items hiding behind your ribs (heart, lungs, spleen, stomach, and intestines, to name just a few).
Covering the extremities is also important, because both your hands and feet are highly vascular areas (means a lot of blood flows through those parts), but they don't have a lot of flesh to protect the bones and blood vessels. If you sever a vein or artery, you better hope that someone applies a tourniquet before you bleed to death. One of my brothers-in-law ripped his left arm off in a crash; he was only going to the store for a pack of cigarettes, it was a hot day, and he didn't bother wearing his jacket for a simple five-minute trip. He was one of the lucky ones; he crashed across the street from a fire station (hit by a drunk who ran a red-light), so they were able to save him before he bled out, and his arm was successfully reattached, but he hasn't been on a motorcycle since then (1982).
Well, the rest is up to you; we want you to ride safely and well for a long time to come, but you have to be willing to make the effort to protect your vital areas every single time you get on a motorcycle.
Quote from: TarzanBoy... would investing in a bike cover help prolong the period between chain maintenance at all?
-kevin
it will also prolong the period between now and you getting a replacement bike...
Check this jacket out; if it fits you, it might be just what you need:
http://gstwins.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=19871
I went to Target and K-mart looking for some boots. Didnt find much for under $40 (i'd probably rather spend the extra $20 or so for 'riding' boots than $40 on regular ones). I've been told that steel toed shoes aren't necessarily desireable because it makes it difficult to tell when you have successfully shifted. Is that true?
At the moment, i have 2 pairs of (non-leather) hiking boots that i plan to use for MSF (they do cover the ankle). Is this acceptable interim footwear?
I am pricing jackets. Best deals i've seen so far is closeout stuff on newenough, but they don't have my size in on the best priced stuff.
At 5'7" and ~157lbs, should I shoot for a large or a medium? I have a slightly athletic build. Not quite stocky, but almost (Old photo when I was a bit bigger (http://riftwave.net/photos/college/thumbs/t-pbeach3.jpg)).
Quite a small pick there,TB and btw;which one are you?
medium. and no steel toes, imagine a bolt head in a socket, that's your toes in a steel toe cap, only your foot's not made of steel so it's going to break in this nice clean line right across the front of your foot. whereas just having leather boots, they will bend and fold, but worst case scenario is that you pull some tendons off.
Quote from: averageQuite a small pick there,TB and btw;which one are you?
Here is a larger version. I'm the guy.
I guess I'll have to find a way to try on some medium sized jackets. I tried on a large and it
seemed to fit ok (it took some effort to get my arms out of the sleeves), so I was thinking
about a large.
Am I missing something? There are three guys. :P
Quote from: pandyAm I missing something? There are three guys. :P
Oops! I thought that I'd linked a
different picture (
large version).
I am the
guy on the right in the dark green shirt with the hat on backwards. I'm still right around that size... alas, just not quite as cut anymore (don't cheer anymore).
-kevin
Hiking boots that cover the ankle and capture the heel are decent interim footwear. You will want to eventually get something that will be stiffer and more crush-resistant.
To try on medium-sized jackets, search the phonebook for local motorcycle shops to go to.
Alright, I found/bought a jacket on something of a whim.
In response to the what-size-am-I part of the discussion... I went to a stealership and tried on medium and large jackets. They both felt comfortable. The main difference I noticed was that the sleeves on the medium were a bit tighter, but both felt very wearable for riding (not that i've ridden yet). I must be right between the sizes because I have noticed the same thing with medium and large helmets.
Anyways... on with the tale:
I had seen an ad on craigslist selling a jacket, but the asking price ($120) was more than I wanted to spend. after getting suggestions of waiting for an $80-or-less deal.
My plan was to wait for a newenough.com closeout jacket, but I responded to the craiglist ad because the seller lived so close to me and since I was going to be in the area this weekend running errands.
Basically, it was a new jacket whose owner had bought the wrong size, due to his long, gangly arms (he said the rest of the jacket fit well). I didn't get much off his asking price, but I still ended up paying $50 under the lowest sale cost I've found to date (~$80-$100 under avg retail price). So, I spent about $30 more than I was shooting for, but I got a much, much nicer jacket than I thought that I would end up with.
Its Joe Rocket's Rasp model. Here's a photo from newenough.com:
(http://www.newenough.com/product_pictures/j/joe_rocket_rasp_jacket/black_front.jpg)
So, how important are riding pants? I've read that some people think denim is alright? I've fallen while rollerblading in wearing denim and gotten scrapes and cuts through it pretty easily... I don't imagine that it would offer any meaningful protection on a bike.
Opinions?
You need textile or leather pants; denim disintegrates just like all the other non-ballistic fabrics. About 20 years ago, Motorcyclist Magazine did a test of different materials to quantify abrasion resistance as the fabric was sliding along on pavement. Heavy denim did best of all, and it sucked completely. Everything else disintegrated even quicker than that, so ballistic overpants are the minimum you should be shooting for. Check the sales and closeouts at newenough.com; you might find exactly what you're looking for. Joe Rocket has some good ones, and I'm sure others will recommend the ones they prefer as well.
Let us know what you find; as far as I can tell, you're doing pretty well so far... :thumb: