BMW R1200R R1150R/T F800 K1200R R1100R/T R1250R RnineT Message Board

My brother has a Tuono in the Bay Area (he lives in a place called Pleasanton which didn't look that pleasant last time I visited ...). He loves it, has had it about as long as I've had the Rockster, and has had virtually no problems with it apart from a slightly erratic dash display (it's the origi...

I certainly agree that diversity is one of the things that makes riding motorcycles great ... we're not all riding the same motorcycles, and to be honest pretty much every motorcycle on the road that's above about 500cc holds some interest for me, you don't really see too many truly bad bikes on the...

I was really looking forward to the release of the R1200R. "How can they go wrong", I thought. My Rockster is already a good bike but hey, time marches on, and I figure a biker never stops looking for the next bike. The K1200R looked great, a bit "edgy", something different. The ...

A simple change, but it sure makes the bike stand out from standard Rocksters (like mine ...)

Captain K.

had the same problem with mine. Riding along, smelt gas, thought that I may have overfilled the tank, then felt my foot getting wet! Problem is, with the fuel system under pressure gas was pissing out all over the place. I chanced it and rode the couple of miles home, switching off the engine whenev...

Don't H-D's qualify under the 'Big Dog' category?

Captain K. in sunny Sydney

When you talk about the catalytic converter, are you talking about that strange black canister at the RH rear that is fitted to US bikes only? Unlike some of the others here, I actually like the standard exhaust on my (non-US spec) Rockster. Yeah, the big catalytic converter ahead of the rear wheel ...

Yeah, we're well and truly into 06 now! FYI, New Year's Day in Sydney is currently 42 degrees C -- don't know what that is in farenheit, but as me ol' mum used to say, "It's 'kinnot out there son!". DJ, the fireworks look great -- for Melbourne. The rest of you should know that ever since ...

I really like the suggestion of the brighter sidelight. The standard set-up looks a bit half-hearted! I've also seen suggestions for auxilliary lighting. But I've only really just begun to notice how poor the main beam is on the Rockster. Our very plebian Ford Falcon family hack has headlights that ...

DJ ...

how much did you pay for the Diablos?

You sure got your money's worth out of the old rear -- think I'd have a few reservations about riding on a tyre that worn!

Captain K.

I've discovered that when I'm not using my own computer at home where log-on happens automatically, I need to log-on twice before my name registers -- may the moderator/admin guys can look into it?

Yeah, that new Duke sure looks good. When I was shopping for the Rockster the other bike I could have ended up with was the S2R -- but it was only an 800, and they hadn't yet announced the 1000cc version of the same bike (pretty obvious really -- the 800cc S2R is selling well by taking sales away fr...

I've got another variation on the theme ... Get lazy because you're only going a half-mile up backstreets to buy a couple of items at the local supermarket. Decide there's no need to get into proper bikin' gear because you're only gonna be gone five minutes anyway. Wear your timberland loafers inste...

An interesting website indeed -- it's good to read tests from sources other than the usual U.S. and British magazines, I thought the South African test of the Rockster was detailed and objective without the flowery prose that detracts from reports in the big glossy bike rags. Definitely a site to bo...

It has to be said that BMW are hardly shy about telling owners that their bikes will consume oil ... there are numerous warnings in the owner's manual, my bike has a decal on the gas cap as a reminder to regularly check the oil level, and when I was taking delivery of the bike the dealer explicitly ...

Some of my worst memories of riding motorcycles when I was younger concern riding with hands that were frozen near solid, so I love the heated grips. I also use them to wear lighter gloves -- I use a pair of BMW 'GS' gloves that are pretty light but have some reasonable knuckle protection. When I've...

Is this new V-Max a concept bike built for the show circuit or is it the real production bike? The original might not be to everybody's taste, but it sure worked for Yamaha! Even today when you see one you still take a second look -- far less anonymous than all those look-alike racer reps! Captain K.

When I was your son's age everybody -- and I do mean EVERYBODY -- learned to ride on a Honda stepthru of some kind. Advantages were that they were light and didn't need any effort to balance at stoplights etc., and that the auto clutch allowed new riders to concentrate on their roadcraft before movi...

The centrestand is strongly recommended -- like all BMW stands (my 15 year old R80 is the same) it's really easy to use ... just a bit of downward pressure and a very gentle heave and it's safe and sound!

Captain K.

[because the bag didn't have it's showercap on it leaked]

Just to clarify, the BMW bag does come with it's own little "showercap" -- I haven't had to use it, but it does look like it would do the job of keeping it waterproof -- as long as you remember to put it on!

Captain K.