Categories: all aviation bicycle gadgets misc motorcycle theater

Fri, 21 Oct 2005

The Z750s is now over 1000 miles, which means that the break-in RPM
limits are gone. I feel I can safely say that this is way more bike than I need, but it sure is fun.

The motor gets pretty buzzy over 6000 RPM. That's actually quote convenient, as it matches up with about 75 MPH (real, not indicated) in 6th gear. The engine buzz is therefore a good indicator that I'm going too fast for the boys in blue.

Despite being over-sized, I'm growing to like the Z's character. I didn't know, when I bought it, if I would be able to live with an inline-4 engine. It's basically a slightly reworked sportbike, which is one of those areas in which I've never been interested. Despite that, I look forward to riding it, and find that (size aside) it's suiting me pretty well.

There are still times I think I should just go get a new Ninja 250 and stop worrying about it.

In other news, the sidecar has been getting more of a workout lately, and I've actually been carrying passengers. For a while there, I figured passengers would only be a once-every-6-months kind of thing. With the play that I'm working on now, there are several people who are actually excited about riding in the sidecar, though, which is a pretty compelling reason for me to give them rides. Plus, they fit the spare gear I have.

On the topic of spare gear, I think my Arai helmet is just about to its 3 year old mark, so I'm considering getting a replacement. Certainly it's a debatable point whether a helmet needs to be replaced every 3-5 years (which seems to be the manufacturer recommendation). Yes, it's in the manufacturer's best interests to sell more helmets, but I also believe what I've read about gradual degradation of the hard styrofoam in helmets over time. If anyone's going to see that (which is caused by heat and moisture, aka, my head), it'll be me, with my riding every day, and in every weather. I could probably wait another year or two, but if I get a new helmet now, I'll have the Arai as a spare for passengers while it still has some life left in it.

I haven't done any research on helmets yet, so I don't have any idea what's out there. I'll have to see what I can find out.

Posted at 12:14 permanent link category: /motorcycle

Categories: all aviation gadgets misc motorcycle theater

Written by Ian Johnston. Software is Blosxom. Questions? Please mail me at reaper at obairlann dot net.