[john doe]

So did the lock change make a difference?

[tharian]

Originally Posted by john doe

So did the lock change make a difference?

Need to wait and watch since starting issue was not that frequent. Some times it used to happen once in two weeks.

[tharian]

Originally Posted by john doe

So did the lock change make a difference?

Yes, it happened again today. But I didn't have to kick much, I kept turning the ignition on/off and managed to start it in few kicks.

Nevertheless, taking it to the mech tomorrow.

[tharian]

Hit 1,08,000 kms on a ride last weekend.

It has been few months or rather last July since I did a proper long ride on my 350. I had been using member SandeepMohan's D390 for longer 'iron butt' type rides.
I was reluctant to take my bike due to the starting trouble I had for few months which I think has been rectified by replacing the ignition key set.

So took off on Saturday morning, rather later at 10am, and hit Hosur road. I wanted to do Hogenakkal via Denkanikottai and Anchetti . I had done this ride almost 6 years ago on my 500 with member Sandeepmohan on his 500 too. I only remembered the numerous small ghat sections we crossed all the way from Mecheri (from Mettur side) to Hosur.
I read from the Sunday morning rides thread that the road has become a haven for bikers and decided to do it on Saturday than Sunday to avoid extra traffic. Even then I encountered two clowns a Street 750 and a bigger Harley who pulled a stupid overtake when they were going the opposite way.

Back to the ride, as always the bike performed perfectly. The firing was just right , no unwanted noise apart from the sweet sounding exhaust. This was my first trip with my new helmet(a SOL), so most of the noise was cancelled out except for the exhaust note which was audible only above a certain speed.

Roads were good for most parts and almost complete deserted between Anchetti and Hogenakkal . The curves on these roads were amazing more so since the roads are narrow. However, I could not push the bike much due to a stiff front which occurred on and off especially after the shockers had worked over time after a bad stretch. Need to get the oil replaced in the fork.

From Hogenakkal , I headed towards Dharmapuri and took the SH to Rayakottai. This stretch was beautiful with trees lining on either sides, well paved roads and average traffic. Only one fly in the ointment was a local on a some 150cc bike who kept annoying me by overtaking me and slowing down and again doing the same numerous times until I had to stop on two occasions to avoid loosing my cool and loosing him.

Rayakottai to Hosur is not good with potholes at every corner and dip and I ended up hitting quite a few with my front bottoming out often. On this stretch I began hearing a whine which I could not figure out since it wasn't there earlier. At first I thought it is the gearbox whine, but that was never there. Then I thought it must be the new rear tyre and finally after riding 50 kms with the whine, I looked at my long shadow and noticed the rear petticoat mudflap was all twisted up in the mudguard and the tyre was rubbing against the round reflector on it and had shaved one half off it clean.

Round trip was 300 kms which was completed with less than a tankful and the bike pulls better now after the ride.
Nothing beats a good ride for the motorcycle and the rider .

[adityadeva]

Great story of man and machine.

This great thread is reference book and an album of how bulls are very long term companions of aficionados.

Wish you many more happy miles on this well maintained special vehicle.

I am also expecting delivery of my classic 350 in near future and your story is really a great inspiration... and a real motivation than one should take proper maintenance of bike.


Thanks a lot and keep us posted

[adityadeva]

After going through tharians thread, I changed my classic 350 booking to electra.

The showroom staff / SA was dumb struck!! as they had billed my classic

there is a twist to the tale, I took test drive of both classic and electra, and the latter felt comfortable. But what made me change my mind was the magic black color. The deep green hue gave me a huge pull in my heart which I can never refuse, had I seen this colour earlier, I wouldn't have even booked classic.

Thank you for the thread and baptising me in magic black

[tharian]

Originally Posted by adityadeva

After going through tharians thread, I changed my classic 350 booking to electra.

The showroom staff / SA was dumb struck!! as they had billed my classic

there is a twist to the tale, I took test drive of both classic and electra, and the latter felt comfortable. But what made me change my mind was the magic black color. The deep green hue gave me a huge pull in my heart which I can never refuse, had I seen this colour earlier, I wouldn't have even booked classic.

Thank you for the thread and baptising me in magic black

Hey adityadeva,
Well at the end it is your decision based on what you want/like, and buying an Enfield is something special.

In fact when I bought my Electra in 2002, I too had the same criteria which is I wanted a single tone color which looked plain. The other options back then were the STD 350 which looks the same now, the Machismo 350 which looks similar to the Chrome 500 of now. I had a basic understanding of the difference between the AVL and CI engines back then and more over I hate excess chrome, so that was out of the picture. STD 350 was the only contender in my decision and I didn't go for it because of the ignition system and related issues I may have. The moment I heard the Electra didn't need a battery, I went for it. I didn't know that there is a difference in flywheel weight between the Electra and the STD, but I never regretted that since I have use the bike on the highways a lot and a light crank helps in smoother and better cruising speeds

Keep in mind the new Electra's are a world different from what I have. From what I heard they have a heavy crank compared to the Classic 350 and yes I felt the riding posture is better compared to he Classic.

You can read my view on riding the range of RE bikes in the link below;
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/motorb...eries-138.html

[navin_v8]

Originally Posted by adityadeva

After going through tharians thread, I changed my classic 350 booking to electra.

adityadeva mate I am glad that someone acknowledged the Electra which I have been always saying is the underdog in RE's stable. As you experienced it the Electra is more comfortable and plusher than the Classic and Standard. I converted on of my Standard's into Electra for this very reason. The ride becomes very comfortable and also the handle geometry of the Electra suits my riding style. Many people chuck out the Electra solely on the basis of its looks, but the motorcycle goes beyond looks and one has to ride it to experience it.

There is a twist to the tale, I took test drive of both classic and electra, and the latter felt comfortable. But what made me change my mind was the magic black color. The deep green hue gave me a huge pull in my heart which I can never refuse, had I seen this colour earlier, I wouldn't have even booked classic.

The magic black colour is the same as the one on my AVL Tbird 2004 model. It looks black during the night and on a cloudy day. But when the sun shines at its brightest one can see a bottle green tinge in the colour. It is like a dual tone paint. Same reason why my AVL Tbird still sports the same colour as ir came from the factory.

Originally Posted by tharian

I didn't know that there is a difference in flywheel weight between the Electra and the STD, but I never regretted that since I have use the bike on the highways a lot and a light crank helps in smoother and better cruising speeds.

Keep in mind the new Electra's are a world different from what I have. From what I heard they have a heavy crank compared to the Classic 350.

I can vouch by the light crank when it comes to acceleration and gaining speeds as my 1996 Standard has a light crank which was shared with the Electra when it was launched. Once upon a time I wanted to convert it into heavy crank but I felt the light crank also has its own character and is unique. So I decided against it and have never regretted. I believe the new Electra comes with the same crank as the classic it is the Standard which comes with a heavy crank. This information about heavy crank is mentioned for Standard on RE's website whereas there is no mention of heavy crank for Electra. Also the weights of both Electra and Classic are identical at 187 kgs. Maybe the staff is trying to sell the Electra my misguiding saying it has a heavy crank as the model is a slow seller as compared to CL series. But the one who rides a light crank Bullet knows the benefits and hence I call Electra the underdog.

[tharian]

Originally Posted by navin_v8

believe the new Electra comes with the same crank as the classic it is the Standard which comes with a heavy crank. This information about heavy crank is mentioned for Standard on RE's website whereas there is no mention of heavy crank for Electra. Also the weights of both Electra and Classic are identical at 187 kgs. Maybe the staff is trying to sell the Electra my misguiding saying it has a heavy crank as the model is a slow seller as compared to CL series.

I guess your belief is right since this was told to me by a newly opened Brand showroom here and I had my doubts and rode both the bikes back to back and couldn't feel much of a difference.
The reason was customers wanted a engine like the STD350 but with a body of an Electra. Even the name Electra is removed from the bike now.

Even the STD350, although heavy crank is not as obvious when it comes to rideability when compared to the cast iron light and heavy crank versions.

[adityadeva]

Originally Posted by navin_v8

The magic black colour is the same as the one on my AVL Tbird 2004 model. It looks black during the night and on a cloudy day. But when the sun shines at its brightest one can see a bottle green tinge in the colour. It is like a dual tone paint. Same reason why my AVL Tbird still sports the same colour as ir came from the factory.

I saw the magic black electra sitting pretty in the showroom with all those spotlights on it, the subtle bottle green gleaming my bro!!!!!

In any other bike( in my current pulsar 150), while riding what we see is the speedo and the road, but on any RE the petrol tank is very much visible in front of us, that's a very special feeling and words can never put the feel of it, the world is not the same again, I learnt motorcycle driving on my father's Enfield ( not RE then) standard 350 when I was 17, but I was too young and too raw to fully appreciate the feel of a bull, father disposed of the bull after he met with an accident. He always told me that either you loose money pouring petrol or you loose money on maintenance, this was back in 1994.

[adityadeva]

Originally Posted by tharian

Hey adityadeva,
Well at the end it is your decision based on what you want/like, and buying an Enfield is something special.

The moment I heard the Electra didn't need a battery, I went for it. I didn't know that there is a difference in flywheel weight between the Electra and the STD, but I never regretted that since I have use the bike on the highways a lot and a light crank helps in smoother and better cruising speeds

Keep in mind the new Electra's are a world different from what I have. From what I heard they have a heavy crank compared to the Classic 350 and yes I felt the riding posture is better compared to he Classic.

You can read my view on riding the range of RE bikes in the link below;
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/motorb...eries-138.html

The new electra comes with 8 AH battery and 35/35watt bulb in headlight compared to classics 14AH battery and 65/55 watt. Is this the reason you've added an additional light on the handle.

Can I upgrade the battery to 14 AH and lights to 65/55 watt halogen?

I would also love to install a car like soft horn that which sounds like ' pom pom' rather than a powerful 'bing' sound of roots.

Are led park lamps worth replacing the stock.

Also I would like to have two additional lamps on the crash guard.

Please give a feedback.

The pillon in the classic seems to be the biggest victim, I feel they are literally hanging on to their dear life while riding pillion.

[tharian]

Changed the front fork oil today with Motul 20w fork oil.

I don't remember at all when was the last time I replaced it and was wondering if there was any oil left at all. There was around 150ml left when drained out and refilled it with 175ml on each leg. The mechanic mentioned the Motul oil is too thin for the forks on my bike and will start leaking over time. Since I bought it, I asked him to fill it anyway since during the next service I will be replacing the springs since they are compressed and weak and they are the originals.
The cone set needs to be dismantled and the bearing checked and greased as well since the handle sometimes gets tight. Decided to do all this over the next service since the bike is running fine now.
Not much of a difference after the fork oil replacement as well.

[adrian]

Originally Posted by tharian

I will be replacing the springs since they are compressed and weak and they are the originals.

Any methods like "tempering" to bring the original springs back to condition ? The quality of spares available now has gone down the drains

[tharian]

Originally Posted by adrian

Any methods like "tempering" to bring the original springs back to condition ? The quality of spares available now has gone down the drains

Need to check my options when I do go about changing them.
There is a spare parts shop I pick up parts for the bike that sell both original and local makes. Most of the replaced parts have been good stuff.
Don't think I'll go the recondition path since the springs have never been replaced till date and probably won't last much even if I can get them back to condition.
One spring costs around 400.

There is another round of replacements which I will do during the next service which includes the clutch plates which has run over 50k kms.

Originally Posted by adityadeva

The new electra comes with 8 AH battery and 35/35watt bulb in headlight compared to classics 14AH battery and 65/55 watt. Is this the reason you've added an additional light on the handle.

Can I upgrade the battery to 14 AH and lights to 65/55 watt halogen?

I would also love to install a car like soft horn that which sounds like ' pom pom' rather than a powerful 'bing' sound of roots.

Are led park lamps worth replacing the stock.

Also I would like to have two additional lamps on the crash guard.

Please give a feedback.

The pillon in the classic seems to be the biggest victim, I feel they are literally hanging on to their dear life while riding pillion.

I don't think adding extra lights or horn will affect the bike much if done properly with a relay.
My bike only shares the name Electra with new UCE bike. They are totally different otherwise apart from similarities in looks as well.
The main advantage of the old Electra's and the reason for the name is the Electronic ignition which doesn't require a battery for the engine to run. However the battery was smaller than what the bikes have now due to the absence of an electric start.

[adrian]

Originally Posted by adityadeva

The new electra comes with 8 AH battery and 35/35watt bulb in headlight compared to classics 14AH battery and 65/55 watt. Is this the reason you've added an additional light on the handle.

Can I upgrade the battery to 14 AH and lights to 65/55 watt halogen?

Only the standard 350 UCE comes with a 12 V 5 Ah battery. All the others with electric start comes with 12 V 14 Ah batteries. So that includes the Electra as well.

Edit : Just checked the website and it says 12 V 8 Ah for electra and 12 V 14 Ah for classic. If the numbers for the electra is not a mistake, then I think it is a downgrade by the company. To the best of my knowledge, I think the first lot of electra uces came with a 12 v 14 ah battery. Can anybody confirm ?

Edit again I was right in the previous para. Look at the chart below



Don't know why the company did this

@Tharian : Sorry for going OT in your thread.