Is motorcycling allowed?

[patches]

'Tis a sad day. My first 2-wheeled-petrol-powered love has moved on. The winner of my $1 auction came to collect her last night. (fortunately the bike went for $5749 above the reserve).

But yeah, my first bike, bought not long after making a solo move to a new country, and using it to explore the wonders of the South Island.

I almost feel like I need to make a video montage to Wind Beneath My Wings...  

...but I'm not much of an editing wizard so some photos will have to do.

So feel free to hum or sing Wind Beneath My Wings as you indulge me and read the rest of this post😅

*music starts*

From the night she was delivered. Splinter Nuwe!

Some offroad practice in the neighbourhood

Exploratory day rides to scenic surrounds

Sometimes a little too much exploration.

Multi-day sleepovers (that's a campsite in rural NZ, not my backyard, promise!

Gunning it through the Molesworth (NZ's biggest farm. 180,000Ha and a 250km dirt road right through it. No fuel. Only rivers to drink from. But one can easily hit 120kph on some sections so makes for a fun trek).

And finally... our last adventure together...

Getting my gravel on winding my way through a  braided river bed.

Sometimes the rivers needed crossing.

Picturesque panoramic

The little 350 did well! Hopefully the new owner gets as much joy and adventure outta it as I did!

Edited March 17, 2022 by patches

[BenReaper]

On 3/13/2022 at 8:41 PM, BSG said:

A friend bought the Harley Davidson XR1200 the other day for R30k. Can be changed from road bike to duel purpose in a few hours.

That's a absolute steal!💪

[BenReaper]

16 hours ago, patches said:

'Tis a sad day. My first 2-wheeled-petrol-powered love has moved on. The winner of my $1 auction came to collect her last night. (fortunately the bike went for $5749 above the reserve).

But yeah, my first bike, bought not long after making a solo move to a new country, and using it to explore the wonders of the South Island.

I almost feel like I need to make a video montage to Wind Beneath My Wings...  

...but I'm not much of an editing wizard so some photos will have to do.

So feel free to hum or sing Wind Beneath My Wings as you indulge me and read the rest of this post😅

*music starts*

From the night she was delivered. Splinter Nuwe!

Some offroad practice in the neighbourhood

Exploratory day rides to scenic surrounds

Sometimes a little too much exploration.

Multi-day sleepovers (that's a campsite in rural NZ, not my backyard, promise!

Gunning it through the Molesworth (NZ's biggest farm. 180,000Ha and a 250km dirt road right through it. No fuel. Only rivers to drink from. But one can easily hit 120kph on some sections so makes for a fun trek).

And finally... our last adventure together...

Getting my gravel on winding my way through a  braided river bed.

Sometimes the rivers needed crossing.

Picturesque panoramic

The little 350 did well! Hopefully the new owner gets as much joy and adventure outta it as I did!

It's not always lekker, but calling it an "upgrade" makes you feel better than "letting go".🤙

[BenReaper]

On the subject of letting go, my SRAD was supposed to go on the 4th. The money was in my pocket and the buyer was about to head off when I noticed some white smoke coming from the exhaust.

Parked the bike, gave him his money back and gave him a lift home with the car.

Was advised to sort out the small stuff before looking at stuff like piston & rings, so removed and had the carbs cleaned. Took the feul pump out the tank and realized it was extremely rusty inside and the feul pump was worse for wear, fortunatelyI have a whole second spares bike so took alook at the other tank and feul pump and they were in much better condition. New oil and oil filter aswell.

Upon reassembling everything I realized that I'd previously mixed up two breather pipes that were connected between the motor, carbs and airbox and that was probably the cause for the white oil smoke as I know my motor is supposed to be mint.

Started the bike up on Saturday 12th with the buyer present and had it Idle till warm enough to ride. First the buyer went for a ride and returned saying the bike ran like a dream now, I took it out next and bike pulled like a rocket again with the clean carbs, but as I neared my house started stuttering again.

We checked and saw that one cylinder was cooler than the others so took out the spark plug and saw that it was fowled. The buyers said he'd get 4 new plugs at Autozone on Sunday morning after his round of golf and he'll come to collect the bike.

Come Sunday morning I notice some petrol undreneath the bike and realized that the carbs were getting stuck and flooding the piston chamber. Swung the motor and petrol came squirting out the sparkplug hole. On second swing of the starter realized some of the other piston chambers were also flooded so took out all the plugs to swing the motor and get rid of the petrol inside. Once again petrol squinting out everywhere. 

And then the sh@t hit the fan in one of the worst ways motorcycling imaginable. And my heart was broken.

[Hairy]

11 minutes ago, BenReaper said:

On the subject of letting go, my SRAD was supposed to go on the 4th. The money was in my pocket and the buyer was about to head off when I noticed some white smoke coming from the exhaust.

Parked the bike, gave him his money back and gave him a lift home with the car.

Was advised to sort out the small stuff before looking at stuff like piston & rings, so removed and had the carbs cleaned. Took the feul pump out the tank and realized it was extremely rusty inside and the feul pump was worse for wear, fortunatelyI have a whole second spares bike so took alook at the other tank and feul pump and they were in much better condition. New oil and oil filter aswell.

Upon reassembling everything I realized that I'd previously mixed up two breather pipes that were connected between the motor, carbs and airbox and that was probably the cause for the white oil smoke as I know my motor is supposed to be mint.

Started the bike up on Saturday 12th with the buyer present and had it Idle till warm enough to ride. First the buyer went for a ride and returned saying the bike ran like a dream now, I took it out next and bike pulled like a rocket again with the clean carbs, but as I neared my house started stuttering again.

We checked and saw that one cylinder was cooler than the others so took out the spark plug and saw that it was fowled. The buyers said he'd get 4 new plugs at Autozone on Sunday morning after his round of golf and he'll come to collect the bike.

Come Sunday morning I notice some petrol undreneath the bike and realized that the carbs were getting stuck and flooding the piston chamber. Swung the motor and petrol came squirting out the sparkplug hole. On second swing of the starter realized some of the other piston chambers were also flooded so took out all the plugs to swing the motor and get rid of the petrol inside. Once again petrol squinting out everywhere. 

And then the sh@t hit the fan in one of the worst ways motorcycling imaginable. And my heart was broken.

Oh my word, are you ok!

My condolences 

[RoddieJ]

41 minutes ago, BenReaper said:

On the subject of letting go, my SRAD was supposed to go on the 4th. The money was in my pocket and the buyer was about to head off when I noticed some white smoke coming from the exhaust.

Parked the bike, gave him his money back and gave him a lift home with the car.

Was advised to sort out the small stuff before looking at stuff like piston & rings, so removed and had the carbs cleaned. Took the feul pump out the tank and realized it was extremely rusty inside and the feul pump was worse for wear, fortunatelyI have a whole second spares bike so took alook at the other tank and feul pump and they were in much better condition. New oil and oil filter aswell.

Upon reassembling everything I realized that I'd previously mixed up two breather pipes that were connected between the motor, carbs and airbox and that was probably the cause for the white oil smoke as I know my motor is supposed to be mint.

Started the bike up on Saturday 12th with the buyer present and had it Idle till warm enough to ride. First the buyer went for a ride and returned saying the bike ran like a dream now, I took it out next and bike pulled like a rocket again with the clean carbs, but as I neared my house started stuttering again.

We checked and saw that one cylinder was cooler than the others so took out the spark plug and saw that it was fowled. The buyers said he'd get 4 new plugs at Autozone on Sunday morning after his round of golf and he'll come to collect the bike.

Come Sunday morning I notice some petrol undreneath the bike and realized that the carbs were getting stuck and flooding the piston chamber. Swung the motor and petrol came squirting out the sparkplug hole. On second swing of the starter realized some of the other piston chambers were also flooded so took out all the plugs to swing the motor and get rid of the petrol inside. Once again petrol squinting out everywhere. 

And then the sh@t hit the fan in one of the worst ways motorcycling imaginable. And my heart was broken.

Farrrrrkkkk! Sorry to that Bud...

[patches]

3 hours ago, BenReaper said:

On the subject of letting go, my SRAD was supposed to go on the 4th. The money was in my pocket and the buyer was about to head off when I noticed some white smoke coming from the exhaust.

Parked the bike, gave him his money back and gave him a lift home with the car.

Was advised to sort out the small stuff before looking at stuff like piston & rings, so removed and had the carbs cleaned. Took the feul pump out the tank and realized it was extremely rusty inside and the feul pump was worse for wear, fortunatelyI have a whole second spares bike so took alook at the other tank and feul pump and they were in much better condition. New oil and oil filter aswell.

Upon reassembling everything I realized that I'd previously mixed up two breather pipes that were connected between the motor, carbs and airbox and that was probably the cause for the white oil smoke as I know my motor is supposed to be mint.

Started the bike up on Saturday 12th with the buyer present and had it Idle till warm enough to ride. First the buyer went for a ride and returned saying the bike ran like a dream now, I took it out next and bike pulled like a rocket again with the clean carbs, but as I neared my house started stuttering again.

We checked and saw that one cylinder was cooler than the others so took out the spark plug and saw that it was fowled. The buyers said he'd get 4 new plugs at Autozone on Sunday morning after his round of golf and he'll come to collect the bike.

Come Sunday morning I notice some petrol undreneath the bike and realized that the carbs were getting stuck and flooding the piston chamber. Swung the motor and petrol came squirting out the sparkplug hole. On second swing of the starter realized some of the other piston chambers were also flooded so took out all the plugs to swing the motor and get rid of the petrol inside. Once again petrol squinting out everywhere. 

And then the sh@t hit the fan in one of the worst ways motorcycling imaginable. And my heart was broken.

Holy crap!

That's horrific! Hopefully no one was injured and the damage was contained to the bike.

So sorry man!

[BenReaper]

Thanks guys, a few scortched arm hairs but nothing serious.

Had to act quickly to get the BMW and some other stuff (19kg gas bottle) out the way and managed to contain the fire mainly to the bike. Some damage to paint on house, roof sheets and garagemotor but insurance has that covered. 

Unfortunately this bike was the only thing I own that wasn't insured. 

[Hairy]

2 hours ago, BenReaper said:

Thanks guys, a few scortched arm hairs but nothing serious.

Had to act quickly to get the BMW and some other stuff (19kg gas bottle) out the way and managed to contain the fire mainly to the bike. Some damage to paint on house, roof sheets and garagemotor but insurance has that covered. 

Unfortunately this bike was the only thing I own that wasn't insured. 

Might there not be a gap in the household insurance that covers the costs of undisclosed items that are damaged in a fire?

Best you ask the question as you never know ... even if it is certain limit and not the full cost of your loss.

[BenReaper]

On 3/19/2022 at 11:59 AM, Hairy said:

Might there not be a gap in the household insurance that covers the costs of undisclosed items that are damaged in a fire?

Best you ask the question as you never know ... even if it is certain limit and not the full cost of your loss.

Not sure, will check with the insurance company. The assessor was already here and it looks like they are out to coveronly the bear minimum they have to.

I think it's time to get a insurance broker instead of dealing directly with these companies. 

[sawystertrance]

Geez Ben that's terrible. Condolences but as others have said at least you're OK and it could have been worse. Maybe too soon but can you take at least something positive out of this and consider it now as a project build from scratch? 

[mazambaan]

21 hours ago, BenReaper said:

Not sure, will check with the insurance company. The assessor was already here and it looks like they are out to coveronly the bear minimum they have to.

I think it's time to get a insurance broker instead of dealing directly with these companies. 

Really a bummer; that is sad and a warning to all of us. I have had a few little fires (lesson to keep extinguisher handy) and a mate burnt out my bike once (he replaced it though - good man). Horrible though.

[Hairy]

30 minutes ago, mazambaan said:

Really a bummer; that is sad and a warning to all of us. I have had a few little fires (lesson to keep extinguisher handy) and a mate burnt out my bike once (he replaced it though - good man). Horrible though.

How did you and he manage this?

 

[Hairy]

A few years back I saw this suave looking BMW GS rider pull at the petrol station in on the cleanest bike straight off the showroom floor.

Given that this was the time in my life where I looked intently at every bike I could, planning what I would one day buy. I noticed that as he was filling up the tank, the petrol was just pouring out the bottom of the bike. He did not notice as he was too busy on his phone.

Gave a "shout out" as to what was happening and then he was about to start the bike....gave a louder shout out to him to push the bloody thing away from the pumps.

The petrol station was on the N1, which meant that the engine would/should have been hot too .... anything could have happened very quickly and gotten very nasty.

I would have been pissed if that was my brand new bike!

[Spokey]

On 3/18/2022 at 6:46 PM, BenReaper said:

On the subject of letting go, my SRAD was supposed to go on the 4th. The money was in my pocket and the buyer was about to head off when I noticed some white smoke coming from the exhaust.

Parked the bike, gave him his money back and gave him a lift home with the car.

Was advised to sort out the small stuff before looking at stuff like piston & rings, so removed and had the carbs cleaned. Took the feul pump out the tank and realized it was extremely rusty inside and the feul pump was worse for wear, fortunatelyI have a whole second spares bike so took alook at the other tank and feul pump and they were in much better condition. New oil and oil filter aswell.

Upon reassembling everything I realized that I'd previously mixed up two breather pipes that were connected between the motor, carbs and airbox and that was probably the cause for the white oil smoke as I know my motor is supposed to be mint.

Started the bike up on Saturday 12th with the buyer present and had it Idle till warm enough to ride. First the buyer went for a ride and returned saying the bike ran like a dream now, I took it out next and bike pulled like a rocket again with the clean carbs, but as I neared my house started stuttering again.

We checked and saw that one cylinder was cooler than the others so took out the spark plug and saw that it was fowled. The buyers said he'd get 4 new plugs at Autozone on Sunday morning after his round of golf and he'll come to collect the bike.

Come Sunday morning I notice some petrol undreneath the bike and realized that the carbs were getting stuck and flooding the piston chamber. Swung the motor and petrol came squirting out the sparkplug hole. On second swing of the starter realized some of the other piston chambers were also flooded so took out all the plugs to swing the motor and get rid of the petrol inside. Once again petrol squinting out everywhere. 

And then the sh@t hit the fan in one of the worst ways motorcycling imaginable. And my heart was broken.

Jeepers Man, glad you are okay, what a frightening experience. Note to self to check my fire extinguisher when home……..and perhaps add a few more in my bike garage…..plus a fire blanket. 
I am always nervous with fuel smells and spills. I have installed one of those turbine roof extractor fans to try and help in the garage. 
I would like a push button operated Halon system!

[BenReaper]

8 hours ago, sawystertrance said:

Geez Ben that's terrible. Condolences but as others have said at least you're OK and it could have been worse. Maybe too soon but can you take at least something positive out of this and consider it now as a project build from scratch? 

It was a bit of a project to get it to where it was. Had already made peace with having to sell it to fund some other important things that are happening soon.

The buyer was going to collect on the day of the incident. After some renegotiation he still took the bike as is as a project for himself. 

When the time and finances allow it again I'll get something again.