[GreyNomad]

Has anybody used RoadPower Customs’ adjustable clutch and brake levers for the RE twins? The OEM levers are so far from the grips that the base of my left palm develops unbearable pain after 20-30mins of clutch usage (city riding). It becomes so bad that I have to go from 2finger operation to 4fingers to finally position even my thumb over the grip. Wanted to get Hitchcock or KSpeed ones but with shipping + customs it’s coming up to the same price as the RPC ones. They claim theirs are made in Thailand.
Given their Powerage slip ons have received very good reviews + I’ll get these way faster (and with lesser hassle) compared to the imported ones, I’m inclined to go for these.
However, as with most of my purchases (I refer to the forum even for stuff like mattress and AC purchases) I thought I’d check here once.

[JayPrashanth]

Originally Posted by GreyNomad

Has anybody used RoadPower Customs’ adjustable clutch and brake levers for the RE twins? The OEM levers are so far from the grips that the base of my left palm develops unbearable pain after 20-30mins of clutch usage (city riding). It becomes so bad that I have to go from 2finger operation to 4fingers to finally position even my thumb over the grip. Wanted to get Hitchcock or KSpeed ones but with shipping + customs it’s coming up to the same price as the RPC ones. They claim theirs are made in Thailand.
Given their Powerage slip ons have received very good reviews + I’ll get these way faster (and with lesser hassle) compared to the imported ones, I’m inclined to go for these.
However, as with most of my purchases (I refer to the forum even for stuff like mattress and AC purchases) I thought I’d check here once.

I have the TEC bike parts adjustable levers. They're pretty good. The Roadpower Customs levers are the same ones, with re-branding. Even TEC sources from Thailand.

If you want something more affordable, you can visit the local market and pick Chinese levers. However, ensure that you get the notched ones that will break off in a crash. They're safer.

Cheers,

Jay

[GreyNomad]

Hi Jay,

Thank you for the clarification. I don’t mind spending on the RPC piece. Just wanted to ensure quality. Your response puts me at ease

RPC suggested I go for shorty lever which ends before the notch. But that could be because those are available vs the larger ones which are in back order. Would you suggest I go for the larger lever? I have an AOM handlebar on top of CarbonRacing angled risers.

Originally Posted by JayPrashanth

I have the TEC bike parts adjustable levers. They're pretty good. The Roadpower Customs levers are the same ones, with re-branding. Even TEC sources from Thailand.

If you want something more affordable, you can visit the local market and pick Chinese levers. However, ensure that you get the notched ones that will break off in a crash. They're safer.

Cheers,

Jay

[JayPrashanth]

Originally Posted by GreyNomad

Hi Jay,

Thank you for the clarification. I don’t mind spending on the RPC piece. Just wanted to ensure quality. Your response puts me at ease

RPC suggested I go for shorty lever which ends before the notch. But that could be because those are available vs the larger ones which are in back order. Would you suggest I go for the larger lever? I have an AOM handlebar on top of CarbonRacing angled risers.

Purely depends on the reach of your fingers. If there's no way to test, go for the longer ones as you can't make shorter ones long post purchase.

Cheers,

Jay

[GreyNomad]

Had a quick chat with the owner Lalith Sharma and per him the short ones good for 2finger operation while the long one was for 4fingers. Since I use 2 fingers, ordered the short one. Will put up my observations after I’ve received, fitted and ridden with it.

Originally Posted by JayPrashanth

Purely depends on the reach of your fingers. If there's no way to test, go for the longer ones as you can't make shorter ones long post purchase.

Cheers,

Jay

[surjaonwheelz]

Tyre change after 14,000kms

Tyre change was overdue. The stock Pirelli Phantom Sportscomp were gone and tram lining on the slightest of undulations. Sometimes I had to stick out a leg (super moto style) while negotiating curves.


Flush with the TWI.


Front tread


Rear tread

Keeping tubeless conversions and 17" rims aside I decided to go for 18" tyres. Options are slim, Ceat, Ralco. With Rider Mania round the corner Ralcos were selling fast (block pattern for offroad events). I had used Ralcos on my Classic 350 so was not going to use it anyways on the INT650.

Pirelli Scorpion Trail II 150 section was retailing at 21.5k for the rear only! Sport Daemons (GT535) tyres also vanished from tyremarket, industry buying etc and they're mostly 2015-16 made tyres


Served me well with only 2 punctures in the rear tyres in 2 years & 10 months


Ceats was the default option then and I fixed an appointment with Prabhat tyres, Pune for the fitment.

In the meantime, fellow bhpian crankpin asked me if I can spread the word for his spare 18" front tyre from his Street Twin. I grabbed the tyres from him before he changed his mind!


Metzeler Roadtec 01 110/90-18 61H


10mm increase in sidewall (upsize from 100/90) caused the mudguard to be raised. At the tyre shop did this work around (jugaad) of putting spacers and longer allen bolts. Thanks to sukiwa for tagging along and felicitating the hardware shop runs and the specs. I lost touch with nuts & bolts specs!


Later found the mud flap extension (nuts) were very close to the new tyre. I removed it for now. I've ordered mudguard risers.

250kms on the new set felt very nice with the following observations:

+ Holding lines perfectly in corners
+ No tram lining (sideways hoping/moving)
+ Better control (confidence) on loose surface
+ Ceat is also good, not crappy at all

- Steering a bit heavy due to upsize
- Metz front + Ceat rear combo is a bit odd

Felt an odd buzz in the front but later found out tyre pressure was high (40), reduced to recommended 32 psi and felt better. I think I'll get used to this combo as I put on more miles on the bike.



Now an interesting topic for discussion.
Assumption: when you fit a rear tyre at the front you reverse the direction of rotation.

The same practice is followed on RE 19" front tyres for their 350cc bikes. Even for Ralco speed blasters this is followed.

Justification: The tread pattern in reverse 'V' gives more traction on braking and tread pattern enables better wet grip on the front tyre. This is opposite in the rear which gives more traction in acceleration.

Hence I fit the rear Metz in reverse rotation at the front. This is debatable, as if you see the RE SG650 (shotgun) pix from EICMA 2021, the tread pattern was in forward 'V' (but it was a show bike). The front Roadtec 01 tyres has a different tread pattern all together (a wide 'U' type).

I'll share a follow up post with updates from our beach run ride and some more front end updates.

Happy riding,
surjaonwheelz

[sukiwa]

Originally Posted by surjaonwheelz

At the tyre shop did this work around (jugaad) of putting spacers and longer allen bolts. I lost touch with nuts & bolts specs!

Allen bolt is 30mm long and spacer/washer thickness is 1.5mm, 5 of those were added to raise mudguard.

[jomson13]

Originally Posted by surjaonwheelz

[h3]

Now an interesting topic for discussion.
Assumption: when you fit a rear tyre at the front you reverse the direction of rotation.

Your logic sounds quite ok but somewhere in my mind I would still be concerned with the arrow on the sidewall rotating in the opposite direction.
I checked a few links online (for car tires) and all were pretty clear that directional tires must be mounted on the specific side of the car so as to ensure that they rotate in the direction that is indicated on the sidewall.
Nothing mentioned about cases when the direction of rotation is reversed.

In my case, when I switched from pirellis to ceat, I felt a major drop in grip levels. It was like driving with extremely hard and over inflated tires. Conditions improved after a bit of running but I still feel the worn out Pirellis were better!

Take it slow till the tires set in.

[bsenroy]

Folks, very exciting day for me.

Just booked the Int650 in the MK II livery. The folks at Brite Auto wheels Pvt Ltd have some in stock, so hopefully should be getting it sometime early next week.
This is only the second bike I have ever owned, the previous being a 2008 RE Machismo 500.

any tips on running in the engine?

[Urban_Nomad]

Originally Posted by surjaonwheelz

Tyre change after 14,000kms

Pirelli Scorpion Trail II 150 section was retailing at 21.5k for the rear only! Sport Daemons (GT535) tyres also vanished from tyremarket, industry buying etc and they're mostly 2015-16 made tyres

Now compare this to the 17 inch conversion

- using the rear 17 inch wheel from the himalayan to lace up the front : 3500 to 4K including a brand new rim

- meteor rear alloy - 6500 IIRC

- W rated apollo H1 : 9k for a pair in Delhi

Total cost : sub 20k

Even cheaper (H rated) tyre options available

Tubeless rear (that’s the painful one to remove for fixing a puncture)

Superb handling

Only negative - loss of around 10 mm ground clearance. If this sounds too bad, please look at how much 10 mm actually is on a scale

Get that 17 inch conversion peeps! No need to thank me

[surjaonwheelz]

Originally Posted by Urban_Nomad

Now compare this to the 17 inch conversion
Get that 17 inch conversion peeps! No need to thank me

This rider from Dehradun has a solution for the aesthetics too.

https://youtu.be/CcGUQ2oXIgE

The video is in Hindi. But this color combo looks decent!

In addition to Apollo H1 & TVS Protorq, premium Michelin Road 5, Metzeller M5 & Pirelli Diablo Rosso III tyres are also available now in smaller sizes!

Dismotech has tied up with Torque Block for better purchase & delivery experience.

I'll surely consider these for the next set. RE can still surprise us with INT650 Ver2.0

Happy riding,
surjaonwheelz

[Viju]

Originally Posted by bsenroy

any tips on running in the engine?

Congrats on your new ride! That is a beautiful color scheme. If I had not booked the GT, this is the one I would have gone for without a doubt.

About the running in, I would suggest you ignore all the advice on Google / YouTube, keep it simple, and use a common sense approach by simply following what is written in the Owner's Manual.

My simple suggestions after 24 years of riding motorcycles and scooters:
(1) Let the engine idle for a couple of minutes after a cold start without revving the engine, so that the oil has a chance to lubricate the moving components.
(2) Be gentle on the throttle and don't go to high revs in any gear.
(3) Do not ride at a constant speed / throttle for a long duration.
(4) Do not go climbing hills as far as possible during the run-in.
(5) If you have a choice, avoid taking pillions as much as possible.
(6) Replace the engine oil and filter early.

[bsenroy]

Thank you for your inputs. Its been a while since I ran in an engine and it is always good to refresh. I remember reading somewhere that it is all about having "mechanical empathy" and immediately made perfect sense to me. Thank you, once again.

Originally Posted by Viju

Congrats on your new ride! That is a beautiful color scheme. If I had not booked the GT, this is the one I would have gone for without a doubt.

About the running in, I would suggest you ignore all the advice on Google / YouTube, keep it simple, and use a common sense approach by simply following what is written in the Owner's Manual.

Attachment 2386881

My simple suggestions after 24 years of riding motorcycles and scooters:
(1) Let the engine idle for a couple of minutes after a cold start without revving the engine, so that the oil has a chance to lubricate the moving components.
(2) Be gentle on the throttle and don't go to high revs in any gear.
(3) Do not ride at a constant speed / throttle for a long duration.
(4) Do not go climbing hills as far as possible during the run-in.
(5) If you have a choice, avoid taking pillions as much as possible.
(6) Replace the engine oil and filter early.

[nasirkaka]

Get that 17 inch conversion peeps! No need to thank me

At next tyre change which is a bit far, i have been eyeing the possibility to switch to 17" mainly for tubeless. i have increased the GC, so a compromise there would not be an issue. Meteor rear is a direct fit, however, i was not too convinced with Himalayan rear on interceptor front mainly for two reasons that is only one wheel would be tubeless and all visually odd looking alloy at back and spokes on the front.
Hope something better comes up for front by the time i am due for next tyre change.

[vamsi2390]

So I have prebooked a super meteor and somehow still not convinced if I should go ahead with it as it might not really suit my riding style ( Ground clearance and front set foot pegs)

I do not tend to slow down completely on speed brakers and rather saddle and I think with the super meteor that might not be possible

Contemplating on getting a interceptor rather in baker or the chrome variant. Thoughts?


( I already own a Thunderbird 350X and an Electra )