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Henry
31st May 2003, 12:18
Hey Gang,
There's a thread on a motorcycle board I frequent asking if there were any martial artists around and there were MANY, I felt like I "knew" these people but had no idea.

I did see the "What type of vehicle" thread but more specifically, what do you ride & why???

Louis, how do you like the ZReX? It was on my short list for a long time, recently picked up an FZ1.

Henry,
Frequenct lurker, VERY infrequent poster.

Striking Hand
31st May 2003, 21:49
Henry.

I don't have a Bike at the moment, but will get one again eventually.

Not into superbikes myself, prefer choppers and touring bikes.

Might wanna go for a Trike next.
:D

joe yang
31st May 2003, 23:11
Got an 89 EX 500. Did a lot of custom body work, bobbed fender, shaved turn signals, jet black paint. The engine is stock, but it looks great. More than enough bike for back road blasting in the Poconos. More bike than I'll ever need. But I am looking to add something for two up sport touring with the wife.

Richmond McClue
1st June 2003, 02:14
Have 2, a big one and a little one.

Little one is a 86 Honda 80 scooter

Big one is a 99 Harley 1200 Custom with ported and polished Branch heads, Branch forged pistons, Mikuni 42 carb, Vance + Hines long shots, Screaming Eage cams, SE ignition, Progressive 412 rear shocks, Race Tech Gold front shocks, steering damper and fork brace.

rentaroo
1st June 2003, 02:57
I love my REX!! FZ1 was on my shortlist, but in the end I prefered the REX's overall styling to the FZ1. I've been riding bikes for nearly 20 years (started riding dirt bikes really young). The REX is my second street bike, I owned a Kawi EX500 Ninja for a few years.

I've done quite a few mods to the bike. Here's the short list:

Stripped/polished wheels
Shortened turnsignals/clear lenses
Zero Gravity Sport Touring windscreen with Tasty Nuts fasteners
Scotts steering stabilizer (very nice!)
Galfer stainless steel brake/clutch lines
Givi E35 Top case (not the prettiest thing, but damn functional)
Shortened rear fender
Muzzy Block Off plates (to remove all the worthless emissions garbage on top of the engine)

My wife and I spend a lot of time riding around Colorado. Estes Park, Loveland, Walden, Rocky Mountain National Park, all are great riding areas.

We're moving to California (Air Force PCS) in July, I'm really looking forward to sampling the roads out there.

Take Care and Ride Safe!!

Paul Kerr
1st June 2003, 08:46
My 1985 Yamaha Maxim X :)


Paul Kerr

M Shook
1st June 2003, 09:28
I ride a 1998 ATK605. I chose this bike because it fit the area I live and my riding preference. I can blast down RR tracks and fire roads and still cruse the road. Ok, So it's a bit heavy off road at 280lbs and a 100+ miles on pavement really sucks. The friend who owns the place I bought it totally set up the bike, I wont pretend to know what he did to the engine (machined the heads, vented the lower case, bla, bla, bla, means nothing to me :rolleyes: ), but many street bikes are completely caught off guard and shocked by it's ability to keep up or out accelerate them to about 90mph, it tops out somewhere just over 100mph, and is scary as hell. I don't like doing 70mph, 60mph does me just fine. I get to enjoy both worlds but get the best of neither, but I love this bike.:D

Mike Williams
1st June 2003, 18:50
I currently ride a Suzi SV650. It's alright, I suppose - just a bit boring. I chose it because of cheap running & insurance costs (I've got a bit of a history) and reliability.

My previous bike was a KTM Duke 620, which I miss like crazy. If I could afford to trade in the SV I'd get another KTM (LC4 Supermoto, probably)

Never buy a bike with your head - always use your heart!

Cheers,

Mike

Henry
4th June 2003, 01:44
Hey,
Great replies, especially the pictures!

Peter:
Do you plan to ride in Tokyo? Visited there once when I was in the Navy and don’t know if I’d enjoy riding in what looked to me like pure chaos.

Joe:
Sounds like you’ve put a lot of time into the EX. Love to see a picture of what you’ve done. Mines still 100% stock (just got it last week) but I’m already making plans.

Richmond:
Nice Harley! My wife would’ve preferred something like that, I told her I was getting a bike & she assumed “cruiser”. What can I say, this bike took me back to the “good old days” when I rode an FJ1100 and my friend a GPz1100, good times! My dad gave me a little crap for not buying a Harley. Most of the guys (& gals) I see on HD are either real bikers or wannabes, don’t guess I belong in either camp. He seemed to understand the reasoning but not the “foreign” bike thing…

Louis:
That looks so much like the GPz’s of old that I almost had to buy one. VERY tough choice. Test rode one a couple months ago, incredible. Careful removing emission garbage and then moving to California. I had a '70 roadrunner when I was stationed out there, they just laughed when I tried to register that car. Original 383Mag, then 440 4bbl dual ex... not a chance.

Paul:
I’m still mad at Yamaha about the Maxim X…They announced it just after I bought my Shadow. Nice bike then, nice bike now.

Michael:
I know what you mean about surprising larger street bikes. When I was in my teens I had an RM125 & drag raced my friends dad on a “dressed” CB750. I could take him consistently “telephone pole to telephone pole”. I was pretty much topped out by then & could only watch him blow by… I also understand the “best of both worlds” thing. About 25 of my 30 years on bikes has been in the dirt, I still prefer dirt to street but it takes longer to recover from the abuse and I started looking at the trees and rocks whizzing by, thought “Damn that could hurt” and slowed down, permanently, my friends all laugh at me now.

Mike:
Isn’t the KTM Duke the “wheelie monster”? I’m afraid I would lose my license in short order with one of those. SV650? I’ve only heard good things about this bike. What don’t you like about it? Just a solid bike that doesn’t really tug at the heart-strings? You get a supermotard and you’ll be tempted to do all sorts of crazy stuff, I toyed with the idea of a motard WR450 but decided I’d either get in trouble with it or get hurt practicing wheelies.

I’ll try to post a picture I just took a few hours ago, maybe it’ll work.

Henry

Striking Hand
4th June 2003, 01:51
Originally posted by Henry

Peter:
Do you plan to ride in Tokyo? Visited there once when I was in the Navy and don’t know if I’d enjoy riding in what looked to me like pure chaos.


I don't plan on commuting within Tokyo, but I would like to tour Japan a bit.
At the moment my son is still small and I haven't got the time to really go for a nice burn.

My last 2 Bikes were as follows, don't have pics handy.

1.) Kawasaki Z440 LTD, great town commuter.

2.) Honda CB750C, too many customisations & mods to list here.
Looked good and had a good performance on the quater-mile too.

Both Bikes were custom painted by a friend who also helped with the Mods.
Biggest mod on the 750 was fitting the broadened trie with custom rim and extra-wide swingarm.

Cheers.

Richmond McClue
4th June 2003, 01:51
Richmond:
Nice Harley! My wife would’ve preferred something like that, I told her I was getting a bike & she assumed “cruiser”. What can I say, this bike took me back to the “good old days” when I rode an FJ1100 and my friend a GPz1100, good times! My dad gave me a little crap for not buying a Harley. Most of the guys (& gals) I see on HD are either real bikers or wannabes, don’t guess I belong in either camp. He seemed to understand the reasoning but not the “foreign” bike thing…



Yeah - I like riding with my Harley pals - I also ride with some serious sportbike/sport touring pals, hence all the engine and suspension goodies. I was trying to turn the sportster into a Ducati Monster. It did not work, but I ended up with a really fast sportie that is the best handling Harley around!:p

With the convertible windshield/2-up seat and luggage rack, I can turn this into a sport touring rig in about 5 minutes.

Martyn van Halm
30th July 2003, 10:56
I ride a 1995 Yamaha Diversion XJ 900 S. All year long. Commute, trips, holidays. Just spent three weeks touring Scotland [nice, except for the midges]. I live in Amsterdam, where cars are not practical. My girlfriend [who also trains in TSKSR] rides a Fazer 600.

Paul Kerr
30th July 2003, 12:43
I just spent some time this summer sprucing up my Maxim X. Engine overhaul, new paintwork and electrics, new instrument cowl and progressive front fork springs.

It was a feisty beast before, but now...:)

Check here (http://homepage.mac.com/paulkerr1/Menu7.html) for pictures.

And Hi Martyn!

ScottUK
30th July 2003, 13:16
Aah, still lusting after a VMax. When my new business finally takes off, I shall be on the prowl for a derestricted beast...

Anyone wanna offer me some webdesign work?

Scott

Paul Kerr
30th July 2003, 14:57
Ah, the VMax :)

A beautiful thug of a machine. I took a test ride on one about 6 months ago when I was going through a period of temporary insanity thinking to trade in my beloved Maxim. Lots of fun in straight lines, but it was a real sphincter-clencher in tight corners. The frame just can't handle the engine! Still a wonderful machine though.

I'm thinking that what I want to add to the stable is a Kawasaki Z 1300 (http://www.z-power.co.uk/Z1300.htm)

Mike Williams
30th July 2003, 15:10
I really, really wanted a V-max as a teenager when they first came out.

I finally got to have a go on a full-power model a few years ago, and was a little dissappointed by the engine. At the time I was riding a tuned Bandit 1200 (118 bhp, 82lb-ft of torque, and an incredibly flat power curve). In comparison you had to keep the V-max above 7000rpm to get anywhere - which is the total opposite of what I was expecting.

The V-max has a thing called V-boost which blocks off two of the carbs (I think) below 7000rpm, and opens them all above that. The one highly amusing side-effect (especially if you were half-way around a corner at the time) was a huge hike in power as the extra fuel kicked in - it was a bit like riding a two-stroke.

Great looking bikes, but the world of big bhp (and handling!!) has moved on.

Cheers,

Mike

Martyn van Halm
30th July 2003, 15:11
Hi Paul!
Been a while since you showed your face at TSKSR. No time?

Originally posted by Paul Kerr
I'm thinking that what I want to add to the stable is a Kawasaki Z 1300 (http://www.z-power.co.uk/Z1300.htm)
Ha, yes. Ultimate naked bike. And, imho, way better than a V-max.

ScottUK
30th July 2003, 15:12
Proof that ufos DO exist...

http://www.vmaxzone.com/images/my_vmax/20010402/dsc00003.jpg

Paul Kerr
30th July 2003, 15:31
Scott:
Sweet looking VMax. The place (http://www.freesestreetfighters.nl/) I get my tuning done at does quite a bit of custom work on VMax's. There're no pictures of them in the current gallery page, but this (http://www.freesestreetfighters.nl/gallery/1100rgr2.jpg) is some serious muscle.

Mike:
Yeah, the power curve on the VMax is definitely one that only really kicks in around 7,000rpm. No real comparison to a tuned Bandit though :D

The power curve on the Maxim X (The Thunder Banana) is similar. It was build to run high and can be a bit grumpy at lower revs. At about 6,500rpm the jets kick in and it's take off time (first time it happened was quite a shock to the system).

Martyn:
Sadly no time for TSKSR these days - it was a straight choice for training time between that and Aikido.

Henry
30th July 2003, 20:47
Yup, ya gotta love the V-Max. I remember when they came out in '85, I was riding an '84 FJ1100 that owned the top spot for one short year...then the V-Max was released. I looked at them briefly early this summer but decided that they just hadn't kept up with the times.

Anyone else hearing rumors of an all new Max? I've heard that there may be a redesign for the '05 model - 20 years after the original. Maybe something low-slung like the warrior with a real hot-rod engine, modern suspension and sticky tires?

If this turns out to be true, I'll be near the front of the line.

Henry

Paul Kerr
30th July 2003, 20:59
I've also heard rumours of a new VMax but I haven't followed up on them to any degree to know how realistic they might be.

A friend of mine did show me some pictures (which I've since trashed :( ) claiming to said item. They were, imho, bloody horrible - reminded me of a Yamaha Bulldog on bad steroids (the Bulldog being a flaming fart of a motorcycle).

Some designs just shouldn't be messed with.

adroitjimon
30th July 2003, 23:49
I'm still holding out till next spring or this winter to get
an '03 CBR 600 RR...I want the black one but red or yellow
would be nice as well if the price was right...really I want
to save a few grand so I can buy one out right and not have to
worry about the full coverage insurance...there should be a law
against having insurance instead of there being laws against not
having it,but I hear it doesn't work that way:cry:

Henry
31st July 2003, 01:40
Chris,
Sounds like your minds made up on the Honda, but...If insurance is your big hold up you might check out the R6's. Yamaha will finance (ugh) with no insurance required for bikes <$10k. Just a thought.

Paul,
I know what you mean about the styling, that bike just looks mean:)
I saw a few drawings of what some artist thought the new Max could look like (Motorcycllist Mag, maybe a year ago?). I liked it even better than the current, not sure what a Yamaha Bulldog looks like. Is it similar to the Warrior(?) or V-Star?

Henry

adroitjimon
31st July 2003, 02:55
[QUOTE]Originally posted by Henry
[B]Chris,
Sounds like your minds made up on the Honda, but...If insurance is your big hold up you might check out the R6's. Yamaha will finance (ugh) with no insurance required for bikes <$10k. Just a thought.

Henry I was looking at the R6 as well but when I was in the
showroom for Yamaha there was a girl puchasing one,jk...

Yeah pretty much the 600RR is the bike I'm wanting...I've had
another bike and it never fails that when someone gets on back
they almost allways touch there shoe or a part of their flesh
to the exhaust pipe and the Honda has the exaust routed beneath
the seat much like a Ducati but with better reliability,speed,
handling, price,ect...ect... I'm not knocking Ducati or
Yamaha For that matter as ,I've had a Yamaha before a'93 FZR1100
it was a BAD bike but somebody else thought I bought it for them...

Paul Kerr
31st July 2003, 20:09
But , guys, the important question remains - How does the bike you ride represent the art you choose to train in? (Freudian hat off now).

The Maxim X is like aikido because: looks cool as hell (Ok, subjective I know), deceptive (everyone thinks it's a balls free cruiser lump), demands you use your centre to tame it and can give you a serious poke in the eye if you're not looking out :cool:

Martyn van Halm
31st July 2003, 23:59
Originally posted by Paul Kerr
[B]How does the bike you ride represent the art you choose to train in? (Freudian hat off now).
The anonymous Diversion 900 moves silently and is deceptively fast for its bulk. Its long wheelbase makes it stable, but it's still nimble for congested crosstown traffic. I don't know how this relates to my 'art', but it does relate to my personality. Except that I'm not as stable as my bike...

adroitjimon
2nd August 2003, 03:09
Light as heck,compact,10 sec.1/4 mile.kicks much touch
SHOTOKAN,YEAH!BABY!red 600rr and you can always make it faster...

Gene Gabel
2nd August 2003, 05:35
Originally posted by Paul Kerr
But , guys, the important question remains - How does the bike you ride represent the art you choose to train in? (Freudian hat off now).

The Maxim X is like aikido because: looks cool as hell (Ok, subjective I know), deceptive (everyone thinks it's a balls free cruiser lump), demands you use your centre to tame it and can give you a serious poke in the eye if you're not looking out :cool:
............................................

I guess I am on the right bike for Iaido.. My '95 K75 BMW with precise (German)engineering seems to fit the bill.
I love it. 3 factory cases hold all my junk going back and forth to work. A very smooth ride and I will get another one in a couple of years.

Gene Gabel