The friendly "dumb" bike questions thread

[King Herald]

You might find the tyre is squeezed in at the rim, and thus taller and rounder than the original.

Or, they might be perfectly okay, depends on the rim width they are designed for.

I bought and fitted a low profile tyre to the back of my ancient Yam SR500, to get the custom look, but by the time I’d squeezed this big wide tyre onto the 3 inch rim it looked bloody awful. And was more than likely dangerous.

[Biker 1]

I fear handling problems. Much cleverer boffins than us mere mortals worked out the geometry of these things, so I would be highly sceptical. Could also be counted as an unapproved mod for insurance purposes(??)
Anyway, I had a bike a few years back with very little clearance between the chain & tyre, even on original rubber; if the chain wasn't tightened to an exact spec, it would take chunks of rubber off the tyre....

[TvrJohn]

OK guys thanks for your comments, i'll stick with std sizes

[The Camanachd Kid]

So real dumb question but looking for your thoughts.
I live in Highland Scotland and commute 162 miles per day to work. It is all rural roads (all A class 60 mph speed limit, but Highland A roads so tight, twisty and exposed in places) with the last (or first) 2 miles being in town. I have never ridden a bike. Once the better weather comes I am thinking of getting a suitable bike and using that. My car returns an average of 57.8 mpg. The aim is to try and reduce my commuting costs.
Is this plan a runner and what sort of bike, engine size etc do you recommend?.
TIA

[bogie]

The Camanachd Kid said:

So real dumb question but looking for your thoughts.
I live in Highland Scotland and commute 162 miles per day to work. It is all rural roads (all A class 60 mph speed limit, but Highland A roads so tight, twisty and exposed in places) with the last (or first) 2 miles being in town. I have never ridden a bike. Once the better weather comes I am thinking of getting a suitable bike and using that. My car returns an average of 57.8 mpg. The aim is to try and reduce my commuting costs.
Is this plan a runner and what sort of bike, engine size etc do you recommend?.
TIA

If its just about the cost then I dont think a bike is going to be much better than the car you already have. By the time you have bought the bike, gear, insurance, you have spent many thousands.

the most economical commuting bike is going to take years before you break even from the savings in petrol. Something sensible like an NC750 is doing 60-70Mpg in the real world.

...unless of course you are thinking of something like a Honda C90 which will do 100mpg and go forever.....

Now if you really just want a bike for hooning about on nice days, and commuting use is just to justify the spend to the missus....well...even a litre sportsbike can be "economical" to run

[Berty3000]

The Camanachd Kid said:

So real dumb question but looking for your thoughts.
I live in Highland Scotland and commute 162 miles per day to work. It is all rural roads (all A class 60 mph speed limit, but Highland A roads so tight, twisty and exposed in places) with the last (or first) 2 miles being in town. I have never ridden a bike. Once the better weather comes I am thinking of getting a suitable bike and using that. My car returns an average of 57.8 mpg. The aim is to try and reduce my commuting costs.
Is this plan a runner and what sort of bike, engine size etc do you recommend?.
TIA

What kind of car are you driving? That's a pretty good mpg on twisty old roads. As far as I can tell, motorbikes are not much better than cars in terms of fuel economy. Less weight but smaller engines and higher revs. Unless you're really strict on how fast you go, but it's very tempting with a bike to twist that throttle. Might be more dangerous for you as well.

Might depend on the bike though. I've read about people saying they get 70mpg from their bikes.

[wiliferus]

Hmmm. I may get shot down for this. But you’re not gonna see a huge amount more mpg than that out of a bike. A bit more maybe, depending on what you go for, but certainly not enough to make up for the training, purchase, kit, insurance, ved and maintainence of a bike - especially at 160 miles a day.. that’s potentially a set of tyres every 3 months, plus other bits and bobs.

If you want a bike to save money, I don’t think it’s the right call. However, if you want a bike and are using the commute to justify it, apply a bit of man maths and you’ll be fine

[Tall_Paul]

Unless you're selling the car and replacing it with a bike you won't cut your commuting costs.

Even if you remove the initial purchase price of the bike, you'll get 70-80mpg max with something like a Honda nc750, tax is £80 a year, tyres are £110 for a rear that will last 8000 miles, and £100 for a front that will last 15k.

Apart from the bike you also need some decent kit (£500-1000), and a DAS course (£600-900).

Oh and you'll be filling up every single day.

Edited by Tall_Paul on Wednesday 27th December 23:27

[Gavia]

Tyres, chains and other disposables soon add up a lot quicker on bikes than cars too.

[Berty3000]

In addition to the other things people have mentioned - biking is amazingly good fun and I'm hooked, but riding is more exhausting on your mind and body. Two hours riding is probably equivalent to four hours driving. You have to be more on the ball. In a car, you can go off on some mad day dreams for a while and then realise you haven't been paying much attention, but it's ok. Driving is more forgiving. Do that on a bike and miss a pothole or some oil in the road, and you'll soon have your arse handed to you on a plate. 160 miles a day might do you in. So you end up keeping the car as back up. So then you're paying two lots of insurance, tax, etc.

[Gavia]

Berty3000 said:

In addition to the other things people have mentioned - biking is amazingly good fun and I'm hooked, but riding is more exhausting on your mind and body. Two hours riding is probably equivalent to four hours driving. You have to be more on the ball. In a car, you can go off on some mad day dreams for a while and then realise you haven't been paying much attention, but it's ok. Driving is more forgiving. Do that on a bike and miss a pothole or some oil in the road, and you'll soon have your arse handed to you on a plate. 160 miles a day might do you in. So you end up keeping the car as back up. So then you're paying two lots of insurance, tax, etc.

You’re new to riding, it’s very relaxing and easy once you get some experience under your belt it’s exactly the same as it was when you learned to drive and used to drive tense until the experience kicked in.

The weirdest thing is why someone in rural Scotland would be considering buying a bike on one of the coldest evenings of the year. I reckon he’d struggle to get more than 8 months a year out of riding in that locality, so would need to keep and maintain a car as well.

[King Herald]

Berty3000 said:

What kind of car are you driving? That's a pretty good mpg on twisty old roads. As far as I can tell, motorbikes are not much better than cars in terms of fuel economy. Less weight but smaller engines and higher revs. Unless you're really strict on how fast you go, but it's very tempting with a bike to twist that throttle. Might be more dangerous for you as well.

Might depend on the bike though. I've read about people saying they get 70mpg from their bikes.

I have a diesel Mondeo, that gives a solid 52mpg on mainly town driving. Stop start stuck in traffic rubbish. I’ve never owned a biggish bike that will give anything like that mpg.

[Berty3000]

Gavia said:

You’re new to riding, it’s very relaxing and easy once you get some experience under your belt it’s exactly the same as it was when you learned to drive and used to drive tense until the experience kicked in.

Well he will be new to riding too that's interesting though. I look forward to developing the sixth sense I have in a car or on a bicycle. Incidentally, I've been spending about 4 hours a day on mine and always try to string it out as long as possible, but even experienced, your body is way more exposed and involved than in a car. Driving basically involves sitting in an arm chair with one hand on the wheel, cruise control, and sipping coffee to some tunes whilst being warmed by a heater. Pot holes and oil slicks don't matter. Very little does. Rain and wind, doesn't matter. It's surely easier driving, especially over long distances.

Edited by Berty3000 on Thursday 28th December 00:06

[Gavia]

Berty3000 said:

Well he will be new to riding too that's interesting though. I look forward to developing the sixth sense I have in a car or on a bicycle. Incidentally, I've been spending about 4 hours a day on mine and always try to string it out as long as possible, but even experienced, your body is way more exposed and involved than in a car. Driving basically involves sitting in an arm chair with one hand on the wheel, cruise control, and sipping coffee to some tunes whilst being warmed by a heater. Pot holes and oil slicks don't matter. Very little does. Rain and wind, doesn't matter. It's surely easier driving, especially over long distances.

Edited by Berty3000 on Thursday 28th December 00:06

I don’t ride in crappy weather anymore, but that was a pain, but not mentally draining. The more relaxed you are, the easier the ride, the less mental effort goes in and you get into a nice
Virtuous cycle. I can ride at a decent pace all day long and not feel tired at the end of it. Driving is no different IME, although I prefer driving to arriving in soaking wet gear, even if the underneath is dry.

You couldn’t pay me enough money to get me to ride on the roads in this weather, but that’s a different discussion for elsewhere, that seems to offend many on here.

[Berty3000]

Yeah, I suppose it's like anything else. Do it long enough, and it becomes second nature. Here where I am it was lovely today - sunny and fairly still, and the roads were dry. There were other bikers out to nod at in passing. The winter ain't all bad!

[Gavia]

Berty3000 said:

Yeah, I suppose it's like anything else. Do it long enough, and it becomes second nature. Here where I am it was lovely today - sunny and fairly still, and the roads were dry. There were other bikers out to nod at in passing. The winter ain't all bad!

You’ve mentioned where you live previously, I’m 30ish miles away and it was freezing cold, slimy roads and no way I’d ride in that personally.

[King Herald]

Gavia said:

I don’t ride in crappy weather anymore, but that was a pain, but not mentally draining. The more relaxed you are, the easier the ride, the less mental effort goes in and you get into a nice
Virtuous cycle. I can ride at a decent pace all day long and not feel tired at the end of it. Driving is no different IME, although I prefer driving to arriving in soaking wet gear, even if the underneath is dry.

You couldn’t pay me enough money to get me to ride on the roads in this weather, but that’s a different discussion for elsewhere, that seems to offend many on here.

I took a 100 mile ride out across Buxton pass a few days ago, past the Cat and Fiddle, through Macclesfield etc. No frost or snow, but cold, very windy and very low cloud/fog. No dramas if you ride steadily though.

It was very enjoyable but I’d not have done it with any trace of snow or ice on the ground, just not worth the risk of throwing it down the road.

[The Camanachd Kid]

To answer the question about what car i drive, it's a BMW 5 series.
I hadn't considered consumables such as tyres etc lasting only 8000 miles
The plan was to use the bike over the better weather and keep the car for the not so nice days. Thought it would be a more enjoyable commute with a potential cost saving no matter how small
Thanks for all the help

[Berty3000]

If going on a tour, do you guys take the tools to adjust the drive train? Or would you just drop into garages and have them do it along the way. Do garages charge much for that?

[Gavia]

The Camanachd Kid said:

To answer the question about what car i drive, it's a BMW 5 series.
I hadn't considered consumables such as tyres etc lasting only 8000 miles
The plan was to use the bike over the better weather and keep the car for the not so nice days. Thought it would be a more enjoyable commute with a potential cost saving no matter how small
Thanks for all the help

8000 miles? These mileages baffle me. I know I ride sports bikes but I’m lucky to see 1500 out of a road tyre, even a more road oriented one will square off well before 8000 Miles. I don’t think I get that kind of mileage in my car.