Tom McQuiggan's Honda CBR600F

30th MAY 2011

2011-05-30T23:15:00.003+01:00

SOME MORE PIX

2011-05-23T00:17:00.000+01:00

FRESH NEW LOOK!

2011-05-19T23:39:00.001+01:00

I wasn't too sure about the look of this bike - although it was the perfect colour for a Rossi-Fan, it seemed to be a bit too yellow! So I got a black rear fairing and put some decals on. Personally, I think it looks much better than before. Needless to say, I'm going to keep the original fairing for when the bike goes up for sale.

I also fitted a superb quality exhaust from Rebus called the "Okami" (Wolf in Japanese). Took 10 minutes to install and it sounds fabulous. Removing the baffle doesn't really improve the sound, so it's staying in.

10yr OLD TODAY! 4,000 MILES. SERVICE

2011-05-03T13:23:00.008+01:00

On her 10th birthday, Service & Maintenance...

Oil & Filter
Four Spark Plugs
New Yaesu Battery
Replaced Brake Fluid
New Cam Chain Tensioner
Flushed & Replaced Coolant
Strip, Clean & Balance Carbs

PAYING HOMAGE TO "THE DOCTOR"

2011-04-27T00:07:00.001+01:00

3,600 MILES. NEW TYRES

2011-04-21T13:00:00.002+01:00

Went over to SMD Tyres in Leigh today and had the 10yr old tyres replaced with a set of Michelin Pilot Road III's fitted. So pleased to be on fresh new rubber. In the past, I've had PR2's fitted to my bikes and they were fantastic tyres - especially in the wet. The 3's are supposedly better still (although with a bit less life). We'll see.

INSTALLING A NAUTILUS AIRHORN

2011-04-21T00:13:00.000+01:00

I was in Halfrauds tonight and picked up a Stebel Nautilus Airhorn. I quickly put it back down though, because they're pretty damned huge!! Then I spotted a "Nautilus Compact" which still looked pretty big and I stood for a while wondering where the hell I could stick it (no suggestions on postcards)! Then I had an idea and so I bought it (£20) and trundled off home.

After spending a few minutes examining various cavities behind the front and side fairings, I soon realised that there were very few options available to me, so I decided to look under the seat area and lo and behold, there was a place that was almost perfect! Needless to say, the seat might possibly muffle the sound somewhat, but let's worry about that later.

So, first step was to get the bits together. Unfortunately, I only had blue spade-connectors, so I had to make do with them (I'll change them at a later date). The relay comes with the kit, so no need to buy one of those. You do, however, need some fairly thick wire for the connection to the battery and to the airhorn. Don't make do with thin cable! You'll also need an inline fuse holder, a "piggyback" or "double spade" connector and an assortment of cable-ties.

Once you've got your bits and bats, fit some sponge/rubber to the underside of the horn to reduce vibrations. I had a sponge gasket off something else, so I stuck that on.

Remove the seat and put the horn in place, securing it with the bike's rubber bands. It holds it plenty tight enough - it's going nowhere! Despite what you see in this photo, I actually ended up turning the horn onto the other side so that the outlet vents were point UP and not down as in this pic.

Okay, that was the easy bit. Now the fun starts!

1) Cut a length of cable (about the length of the bike) and on one end, fit a "piggyback spade connector" to it, like the one shown in the photo below...

2) The original horn has two wires going to it - a light green wire and a dark green. Disconnect the LIGHT GREEN wire and push it onto the piggyback spade connector. Then push it back onto the horn so that now you have TWO wires connected to that one horn terminal.

3) Now you need to route that cable to the underseat area. I did this by raising the tank a little and then followed the route of the choke cable and along the right side of the bike. Use plenty of small cable-ties to keep it neat and away from any hot or moving parts.

4) Once you've got this cable to the underseat area, leave it for a moment and refit the fuel tank. You can now fit the relay by drilling a hole in the subframe and using a self-tapper to hold it in place. Please note, that this is a good time to make a small lead to connect between the relay's "86" terminal and the self-tapper (earth). Here's how the relay is wired up...

5) Now route the cable from the horn-switch to the relay and fit a spade connector to it. Attach the connector to terminal "85" on the relay.

6) Now make up cable to connect between the positive connector on the airhorn and the "87" terminal on the relay.

7) Now make up a cable to connect between the negative connector on the airhorn and a good earth point.

8 ) Now make up a cable with an Inline 15Amp fuse to go between the "30" terminal on the relay and the positive terminal of the battery. Be VERY careful that any tools you use do not make a connection between the battery and adjacent earth points!

9) Double check you did everything right!

10) Turn on the ignition, take a deep breath and press the horn.

WOW!!!!!!!!!!!

11) Check that the seat fits back on okay and you're done!

Can't wait to scare the next young brat I see pissing around at the side of the road, LOL.

Tom.

CBR600F REPLACED

2011-04-18T08:30:00.002+01:00

Unfortunately, I had to sell the red F6 rather quickly and have since replaced it with another CBR600, but this time it's an F-Y model. Again, this is a low-miler with just 3000 miles on the clock and is like new!! Very striking looking "in the flesh", but I'm not too sure about that yellow rear fairing, so I might replace it with a black one.

The tyres obviously look like new, but are still 10yrs old and have hardened, resulting in a very squirmy ride when ridden over white lines. I'll have to change them asap. I will also be fitting the Renntec rack to the bike and will no doubt look for a suitable hugger.

2nd JULY 2010 - SERVICE

2010-07-12T11:39:00.003+01:00

3,000 miles. Took the bike into RR RACING for a checkover and new Oil & Filter. Great mechanic - really knows his stuff!

POWERBRONZE SEAT COWL

2010-06-08T21:23:00.001+01:00

Seat cowl arrived today and it fitted fine. Looks brilliant!

SATURDAY RIDEOUT

2010-06-07T11:54:00.000+01:00

A friend got a new bike (Ninja 600), so we went for a bit of a rideout last Saturday. Covered around 160 miles through North Yorkshire and South Cumbria. Highlight of the day for me was the stop at Dent. Beautiful little village! Had some lunch in the Sun Inn before carrying on to Hawes.

NIALL McKENZIE RIDEOUT

2010-05-31T11:50:00.002+01:00

Whilst sat at Devils Bridge, Kirby Lonsdale, having breakfast and a cuppa tea, who should come along and park his bike right next to mine?? Three times BSB Champion, Niall McKenzie!!! Couldn't believe my eyes! Apparently, he was there to complete a rideout over to Rivington Barn in Horwich (where I live), so I figured it would be rude not to tag along.

2000 MILES - SNOWDONIA

2010-05-23T23:36:00.001+01:00

Well, the original owner took 3 years to put a thousand miles on the bike; I took 3 weeks. This weekend's trip to Snowdonia saw the odometer reach 2195. Time for an oil change methinks.

Anyway, I'd gone to Snowdonia specifically to see "Electric Mountain", otherwise known as Dinorwig Power Station. I'm glad I did too, cos it's an amazing place, buried deep underground in a slate mountain with a lake above and a lake below the mountain.

Water from the top lake is allowed to fall down huge steel pipes and through six huge turbines deep in the mountain. The water is then fed into the lake below. At night, it's pumped back up again. Amazingly enough, for every 3 units of electricity that they generate, it costs 4 units to pump the water back up to the top! Luckily though, they're on Economy7 at night. Seriously!

After Dinorwig near Llanberis, I rode over to Porthmaddog and then headed back home. On the way I stopped at Conwy because I spotted a very nice marina (I love boats). I pulled in and had some lunch and then a cool bitter shandy as I sat basking in the gorgeous sunshine overlooking the boats. Great day!

What's hidden in that mountain

177,000 MILE CBR600F

2010-05-20T10:58:00.001+01:00

I knew that CBR's had fantastic engines, but this story is just amazing! Here's a long (picture intensive) thread about a guy who crashed his CBR and bent the crankshaft in the process. He got paid from his insurance company and bought his bike back off them as a write-off.

He had 177,000 miles on the clock which is simply amazing considering that this bike is in the "SuperSports" class. He rips the engine apart and rebuilds it again, using bits from a low-mileage CBR. Great story and an interesting read.

CLICK HERE TO READ

SHARK S800 UNION JACK

2010-05-18T11:17:00.003+01:00

I have a few helmets and would like to mention three of them...

First up is the NOLAN N102 with full BlueTooth capability. Cost me a small fortune and is the WORST HELMET that I have ever owned. Heavy, noisy, poorly constructed. Complete and utter piece of crap! To top it all off, the flip-up front started to refuse to lock into place after a few weeks of use. Just what you want! It was sent away for repair but continues to give trouble. Not that it matters any more cos I refuse to wear the lump of *#x$.

Then there's my trusty SHOEI SYNCROTEC II. Great helmet! Reasonable weight for a flip-front, very well made, fairly quiet and very comfortable. Nice one Shoei.

And just recently I made an unexpected purchase. I was in a bike shop and spotted a VERY striking looking helmet. Full face, Union Jack motif, VERY thick visor with a light tint, supremely comfortable, fairly quiet, unbeatable safety rating, amazingly fast visor-detachment and very reasonable price (£170). It was, of course, the SHARK S800 special edition.

TOP MARKS!!!!!

moto-racing.co.uk

2010-05-17T15:52:00.001+01:00

I ordered some R&G Crash Bobbins from www.moto-racing.co.uk and when they didn't show up, I discovered that MANY people had experienced the same problems with this company! D'oh! I emailed the store repeatedly and tried to contact the owner by phone, all to no avail. I very quickly got very angry!

Luckily for me, I found out his parent's telephone number because the low-life store operator registered his business at their address (Mr & Mrs Riley 01629 581 552). So, although it went against the grain to give grief to an old couple, I rang them and made it VERY clear that I wasn't gonna stand for being robbed. The old man said he didn't know his son's telephone number, so that just wound me up more and eventually he agreed to get the son to ring me.

Anyway, later that day I got an apologetic email from the son, claiming all sorts of bullshit reasons for the delay and he said the R&G's would be with me next day - which they were. So, if you've experienced trouble with this online idiot, tell his parents about it!

www.moto-racing.co.uk trade as...

Hi-Way Transport Services
11 Pinewood Rd,
Matlock
Derbyshire
DE4 3HN
.

SILENCER CLOSEUP

2010-05-15T20:44:00.001+01:00

Apologies for quality - I used my mobile to take this...

SILENCER FITTED

2010-05-15T20:42:00.000+01:00

FITTED EXHAUST

2010-05-15T06:42:00.000+01:00

Fitted the Titanium Exhaust. Didn't have much time, so silencer not
perfectly straight so I'll sort that out in a couple of days. It
sounds AMAZING!!!

Sent from my iPhone

FIRST MOT !

2010-05-14T09:44:00.000+01:00

I took the CBR for her first MOT test yesterday and needless to say, she passed with flying colours. Now that's out of the way, I'm eager to fit the Titanium exhaust, but the link-pipe still hasn't arrived. Why are UK companies so shit??

PHILIPS MOTOVISION

2010-05-12T22:16:00.001+01:00

Ever seen these? They're replacement bulbs from Philips in H4 or H7. They are considerably brighter and longer reaching than your regular fitment and have an unusual amber cast to them. They're about £14 each, so I just bought the one for the main riding headlamp, leaving the main beam as standard (that's bright enough).

YOU MEET THE NICEST PEOPLE ON A HONDA

2010-05-12T20:53:00.003+01:00

How many times have you heard that? Well, no matter how cheesy you may think that advertising campaign was, you have to remember and respect the fact that it TRIPLED Honda's sales!! Anyway my own way of showing respect is by always fitting my Honda's with my own personal take on the slogan....

BAGSTER TANK COVER

2010-05-12T20:23:00.001+01:00

The Bagster Tank Protector protects the tank from scratches, it provides a mounting platform for a wide range of luggage and it gives you a great pair of knee-grips!! Bought from Into-Bikes.

POWERBRONZE DOUBLE BUBBLE

2010-05-11T23:12:00.001+01:00

Finally tonight, I installed a Dark Tint Double Bubble screen. I really do rate this item. It's very well made, of good quality material and looks fantastic. It was very easy to fit and there were no niggles.

POWERBRONZE WEBSITE

POWERBRONZE HUGGER

2010-05-11T23:02:00.001+01:00

I also installed a Powerbronze hugger with integral chainguard. This too, fitted very easily. It looks extremely functional and saves all the back end getting crapped up.

RENNTEC SPORTS RACK....

2010-05-11T22:55:00.001+01:00

I have a very handy 4-Ltr sportsbag which I used to use on most of my other bikes for short trips. In order to use it on the CBR, I needed a rack, so I looked at Renntec's site and saw that they did one for the "F5" model but not for the later bikes. I rang them and they didn't know if the F5 model would fit or not, so I ordered it on the condition that I could return it if it didn't.

Needless to say, it went on fine. The hole centres were a TINY bit out, but I think that's just the manufacturer's tolerances being too tight. When you weld metal, it can move slightly and I reckon this rack needs the holes opening up another couple of millimetres to make installation a total doddle. Anyway, it went on with little fuss and looks pretty good. I sent Renntec a couple of photos showing the REN7240B rack fitted to my F6/F7 and they have now modified their website accordingly.

RENNTEC WEBSITE

FITTING A SCOTTOILER TO A CBR

2010-05-10T21:29:00.000+01:00

I've always been a fan of Scottoilers and have fitted one to most of the bikes I've had in recent years. The CBR will be no exception. They keep the chain in perfect condition, reduce the frequency of chain adjustments and extend its overall life. There's a step-by-step guide on how to fit one HERE.

A rather neat installation, even if I say so myself :-)

SCOTTOILER WEBSITE

THE FARKLING BEGINS

2010-05-10T21:19:00.000+01:00

You get a new bike and it does everything you want it to, doesn't it? No! There's always more things to add, lol. And so it is with the CBR. First up is SATNAV. I decided to install my trusty Garmin Zumo 550. I've had this a couple of years now, and it's been on a few bikes and been to a few places with me. Fitting SatNavs to sportsbikes is always a bit tricky. There's almost nowhere sensible to put them, so I decided to fit a RamBall to the top yoke and then use a short-reach mount to the Zumo. Looks and works fine!

GARMIN WEBSITE

Next up was a pair of Heated Grips. I know summer is "just around the corner", but in the meantime, I'd like to keep my hands warm, thank you. These Oxford grips are electronically controlled and can supposedly be connected directly to the battery terminals, but I don't feel comfortable with that, so I routed the power through a relay that I'd installed for the satnav under the seat. In use, the grips need to be pushed up to 100% to get them toasty and then you can drop it down to 30% to maintain a nice comfortable temperature. Lovely!

OXFORD'S WEBSITE

FIRST POST

2010-05-10T21:10:00.001+01:00

MAY 1st 2007
Deep in recession, job at risk, no money, not the time to buy a new bike! But then I spot a 3yr old CBR600F with just 1000 miles on the clock. How can that be?? I look at the bike and it appears to be mint condition. Showroom condition in fact! Hmmmm, at almost half the price of the cost new - it was a bargain.

The previous owner was a 40yr old guy who worked on the oil-rigs and earned a small fortune. He decided that he'd become a biker with his money and bought this CBR brand new from Hunts in Manchester. It didn't take him long to realise that he wasn't really a biker and so the CBR spent the rest of its ownership in the garage gathering dust. Eventually, he realised that it would be best to get shut.

So, here it is, as good as new....

And here's a piccie of my old "RR"....