Motorcycle Riders?

[JettaKnight]

I think I want one of these?

A 200 pound electric motorcycle that goes 80mph with a (claimed) range of 80 miles (probably more likely 50 in real world use) seems like it could be a lot of fun for short runs, as a short range commuter bike. Premium components like Michelin Road 5 tires, wireless phone charger and a removable battery. But the price is a bit steep at $5000 for a short range bike, at that price I could get a Honda CB300 and still have change rattling around in my pocket. Still, it seems like it would be a heck of a lot of fun, maybe more fun if they put an offroad suspension on it and some tires suitable for dirt & street.

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sondorsx.com

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Off road would be pretty cool.

And they could have put some storage on the thing instead of a gaping hole.

At $5000, it's much more affordable that HD's $30K price tag on their electric.

 

[melensdad]

Off road would be pretty cool.

And they could have put some storage on the thing instead of a gaping hole.

At $5000, it's much more affordable that HD's $30K price tag on their electric.

There are plans for using that "gaping hole" in a couple different ways. One option is an additional battery. Another option is storage. The company has made that much known.

I'm still curious if the turn signals integrated into the headlamp are street legal. They ran that bike on California streets so I suppose it passed some standard, still I think I'd prefer some more obvious turn signals.

ZERO motorcycles cheapest electric is about $10,000 and they go up to $20,000 but are all far more capable at sustained speeds with better range. Still, this one is sort of a nifty little commuter bike, or is it a super-scooter styled to look like a motorcycle?

 

[chezuki]

This was JP cycles April Fool’s joke this year. Not a bad photoshop really.

 

[melensdad]

This was JP cycles April Fool’s joke this year. Not a bad photoshop really.

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But will it drip oil on the garage floor?

 

[melensdad]

New Sidi Armada boots finally arrived. It has been a 2 month wait to get these. Pretty sure they are keepers! Fit a little loose in the heel, but length and toe box fit are good.

Right out of the box they are a bit stiff, but in a secure and comforting way. Doing squats in the boots and they squeak a little, the sole flexed just enough.

The sole is fairly stiff, but certainly ‘walkable’ when off the bike. If my Forma boots have a sole stiffness of a 5 out of 10, these are a 7 out of 10. I’ve tried Euro style touring boots that were closer to a 3. Ski boots & serious dual sport boots are pushing a 10. So these have moderately rigid soles, which is something I wanted. Soles look like a knock off of Vibram hiking boots, but perhaps a little thinner.

Wearing straight leg, thin cut Wrangler blue jeans while trying them on, there is no way to get the jeans over the top of the boot. The shaft of the boot is not terribly bulky but the straight leg jeans are just too narrow. Not a big deal, my moto pants are not straight leg! Perhaps with the wrap around cuff removed they might fit under straight leg jeans.

As for protection, these are pretty amazing compared to anything that I’d call a touring boot. In addition to the fairly stiff sole, the heel is pretty much crush proof and very rigid. Toe feels crushproof, I could not compress it. Shin protection is interesting, thick and padded, especially with the cuff. There is a smallish hard rubber impact panel on the cuff in addition to the thick semi rigid padding.

Zipper entry is easy, there is an elastic expansion panel next to the zipper to allow the ankle shaft to expand while inserting your foot. Not an issue for a skinny leg like mine, but the zipper allows you to stop short of the top, and lock it in place, if you have a thick calf. There is also elastic on the top back for comfort.

Ankle protection includes foam pads in addition to the rigid exo-skeleton that extends up several inches.

I’m very favorably impressed so far. Looking for a first ride tomorrow evening or maybe Thursday? I have to be at Notre Dame all day tomorrow and back in time to get to the fencing club to teach a class in the evening so not sure, but I might ride to the club on the bike to test these out.

 

[tv1217]

Currently weighing if I want to replace the xenomorphesque fender with a tail tidy. I don't ride in the rain all that much and my primary jackets are leather so I probably don't have to worry about wet back. Also it's gonna be a while til I need new tires(less than 1000 miles on the Odo so far) but I've seen a lot of people vouching for the Dunlop Mutants, might give them a shot when the time comes.

 

[melensdad]

... but I've seen a lot of people vouching for the Dunlop Mutants, might give them a shot when the time comes.

I’ve seen that too and am shaking my head at the unbelievable reviews. The Mutant has been available for a month. How can we see any accurate reviews in such a short time?!? Seriously I get the advertising hype, and maybe people believe it so they act like parrots? But there is no actual good review of the Dunlop Mutant based on REAL WORLD use.

Michelin Road 5 is currently the best road tire I know of for mid-weight bikes. That may change next week or next month if another tire is proven better. But the Mutant is not proven. I do like the looks.

FWIW I have Road 5 tires on 2 bikes.

—————

I’ve been wearing my new Sidi Armada boots in the house and yard, just to make sure I want to keep them. I want them to prove their comfort for daily wear.

These boots are NOT for people with WIDE feet. I’m not saying they run narrow but I am saying they don’t run wide.

As for for initial comfort, I vote yes. They are comfortable enough out of the box to make my delicate feet happy. The left boot seems a bit more roomy than the right, I presume that is a foot issues rather than a boot issue. Walking around is actually pretty comfortable, granted most of my walking is on carpeted floors. But while walking my heels stemmed to settle into the heel cups and that increased the comfort. Squeaking seems to have calmed down a bit. There is still some but it has quieted down significantly in the 30 minutes I’ve been wearing them.

I did manage to get my straight leg Wranglers down over the boots, but it was a challenge. I tightened the cuffs as much as possible and, after tugging and swearing, the jeans finally fit. Once I got over the top of the boot cuff they slipped down to the ankle easily. A wider Boot Cut or a Relaxed Fit would have no issue. Again, as I wear protective moto pants the cuff is not an issue but it might be for jeans wearers.

 

[tv1217]

I don't take much stock in professional reviews. I'm going off other owners in my Facebook groups.

 

[melensdad]

I don't take much stock in professional reviews. I'm going off other owners in my Facebook groups.

Those are the reviews of which I am most skeptical. They have had their tires for a month, maybe less. How can they actually know how the tire will wear, ride, handle under a multitude of conditions?

Seriously they get a bike, it comes with crappy tires, they put better tires on it and are amazed. But compared to what? How many have had 4 or 5 different tires to compare on a similar/same bike? Probably 1? Most people who buy a new product and review stuff tend to write glowing reviews after a handful of uses. Most people have very limited frames of reference in comparing other products on similar bikes.

A tire on a middle weight bike will handle very differently than on a lightweight or a cruiser. A tire like the Mutant is designed for multi-surface riding off and on road but your bike is a road bike so why give up road traction to gain off-road traction? Seriously, I don't get it. Maybe if you had an Africa Twin and wanted to bet on the unknown then the Mutant might be a great tire to try.

 

[Fester]

 

[JCSR]

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Sweet ride! Is that a Honda front wheel? Details please !

 

[G192127]

My current favorite, I have others.

 

[04FXSTS]

There are not that many tire sets that fit my bike, 16" rear and 21" front. I have certainly seen tires come and go since 1972 when I started riding on a Honda. Don't remember what kind of tires were on it but the next bike was a BSA with Avon's and I loved them. My 1980 Sportster had Goodyear's and they served me well but a lot of people had problems and Goodyear dropped the motorcycle tires so I went back to Avon's. Then Avon changed to those "slicks" with a couple grooves instead of a traditional type tread. Worst tires I ever had, never felt safe on wet roads and they wore badly. I tried Michelins, Pirelli and Metzeler with the traditional tread. Just went back to Pirelli MT-66 Route and really glad last Thursday when I got caught in that nasty storm that went through. After the wind died down to just a heavy rain I had no problem running 55-60 mph on 63. Jim.

 

[melensdad]

There are not that many tire sets that fit my bike, 16" rear and 21" front. I have certainly seen tires come and go since 1972 when I started riding on a Honda. Don't remember what kind of tires were on it but the next bike was a BSA with Avon's and I loved them. My 1980 Sportster had Goodyear's and they served me well but a lot of people had problems and Goodyear dropped the motorcycle tires so I went back to Avon's. Then Avon changed to those "slicks" with a couple grooves instead of a traditional type tread. Worst tires I ever had, never felt safe on wet roads and they wore badly. I tried Michelins, Pirelli and Metzeler with the traditional tread. Just went back to Pirelli MT-66 Route and really glad last Thursday when I got caught in that nasty storm that went through. After the wind died down to just a heavy rain I had no problem running 55-60 mph on 63. Jim.

So are you pointing out that tread patterns make a difference?

Or that rubber compounds make a difference?

Or that tire design and construction makes a difference?

Some of the high tech modern motorcycle tires have harder rubber compound down the center and softer compound on the sides for grip during turns. But the tread pattern seems to also make a huge difference in addition to the rubber.

For mid-weight bikes, like TV rides (Honda 650), for road control the generally considered top traction tires, for on road use, both wet and dry, are the Michelin Road 5 followed closely by the Pirelli Angel GT2. These tires, while convincingly superior on road for bikes in the 400 to 600 pound range have also been reported to be too soft in the sidewalls for 800+ pound cruisers like the GoldWing. So the same tire that excels on one class of bike may fail to perform on another.

The Dunlop Mutant is one of the new high tech tires, it is designed for both on/off road use. Not sand or hard core off road, but designed for good grip on gravel as well as good road manners. Early profession "reviews" stated it had good grip in most conditions, that makes it a very attractive tire. It is designed for 500 to 1200cc Adventure style bikes as an 80/20 tire (80% road/20% off-road).

My question is, is a potentially great 80/20 tire, when used on a road bike, giving up road grip to other tires, known as 100% road tires, and optimized for road use? It would seem that the answer must be yes because off-road tires are known to give up grip on asphalt. Is the Mutant 80/20 tire better than the factory crap that is put on many motorcycles? Could be, but just because it is better than crap doesn't mean it is a wise choice for a road bike.

My bikes regularly go onto gravel and grass tracks so I have been watching the Mutant pretty closely. It may be my next tire. Doubt it will go onto my wife's bike as she hates gravel and avoids it like the plague, for her rain/wet traction is her #1 concern and that is where the Michelin Road 5 and the Pirelli Angel GT2 both excel.

 

[04FXSTS]

"So are you pointing out that tread patterns make a difference?

Or that rubber compounds make a difference?

Or that tire design and construction makes a difference?"

None of the above. Just what I have run on my bikes and my personal experiences. Jim.

 

[JCSR]

Great ride to the Overlook in Leavenworth

 

[jax1463]

Looks like a beautiful place to stop and have lunch!

The river looks pretty high.

 

[JCSR]

Added a turbo. WOW what a difference!

 

[fjw2]

Felt great to get on the bike today. Need to ride more. Life is too short to not ride!

 

[tv1217]

The tail bag should arrive for my CB today. No more backpack trying to pull me off at speed like a parachute. In other news, I'm gonna have to get a second more relaxed position bike or begin a workout regimen eventually because the CB as expected isn't great for much more than an hour maybe two before I need to take a break.