[ValkyrieAB]

Originally Posted by rajeevsulu

Please make sure you clean and lube your chain every 700-800 kms, especially, Bangalore weather. Cheers!

Yes! He mentioned the same thing as well... I'm gonna get it done by a professional a few times and then start doing it myself.
He also mentioned that in rainy weather you should do it every 100 kms. That sounds quite extreme. Any truth to it?

[rajeevsulu]

Originally Posted by ValkyrieAB

Yes! He mentioned the same thing as well... I'm gonna get it done by a professional a few times and then start doing it myself.
He also mentioned that in rainy weather you should do it every 100 kms. That sounds quite extreme. Any truth to it?

Too extreme indeed. City riding or highway riding is mostly what we doo. Even hardcore offroading would not require a chain clean and lube every 100 kms. Guess he just wanted to impress you

[ValkyrieAB]

Originally Posted by rajeevsulu

Guess he just wanted to impress you

He failed LOL. Thanks mate!

[ValkyrieAB]

Updates post Nandi Hills ride

1. Engine Refinement - Everyone said that it would seem smoother post 1st service and I couldn't understand why. Yes, over the first 1000 kms it would keep getting smoother but nothing in the first service procedures suggested what I encountered. At 80 kmph, in 5th, you aren't riding as much as sitting on a flying chair. Unbelievable. Also, tractability in lower gears seems to be better. Have to downshift fewer times in traffic. I loved every minute of that ride, short that it was.

2. Handlebar risers are working brilliantly. In my first Nandi Hills ride without the risers I felt a little sore in my lower back. This time nothing at all. Also, maybe because of the changed posture, the butt numbness disappeared - I'd mentioned this in one of my previous posts.

3. CB300R mirrors - Big thumbs up! Good FoV for highway and city and they look, okay. A few pictures to give folks a feel of the looks.






P.S. One of the guys on the ride had a UM Commando. Poor fellow got to the base of Nandi Hills when the bike decided to throw a fit. Mechanics refused to touch it owing to the fact that they'd never seen one before. I felt for the guy. A peaceful ride turned into a couple of hours of stress and a painful 70 km Autorickshaw ride back to his house to deposit the bike.

[rajeevsulu]

That is the funny part about the first service. Guess it is more in the head, but the bike feels phenomenal after it. I am going for the 300 mirrors too. Hope my local dealer has stock. I have to go tomorrow to get my chain slack checked.

[sanchari]

Originally Posted by ValkyrieAB

The picture you see with me on the bike, is actually a before picture. I got the risers installed this week. I can try to get a similar picture one of these days to show the difference in posture

ValkyrieAB, do you mind sharing photos before and after installing handle bar risers?

[ValkyrieAB]

Originally Posted by sanchari

ValkyrieAB, do you mind sharing photos before and after installing handle bar risers?

Here you go. I unfortunately never took the before pictures with this in mind so I don't know if these help in comparing.
There is however a noticeable bend in the arm at the elbow after the risers. And you feel the difference in stance and posture.

Before:


After:

Originally Posted by rajeevsulu

I am going for the 300 mirrors too.

Do also check out the CB300F mirrors. They are a little angular. I liked them but the guy didnt have stock.

Originally Posted by pugram

On the handle bar - Do you have a before and after pic, to compare. I am 5' 6" and maybe the OE bar will do. I know a test ride will answer this but just checking your opinion.

Sorry for the late reply on this. Look at my post on this thread just before this message - have posted both photos. Hope that helps.
Also, I understand that the curvature of the H'ness handlebar is steeper and thus has better reach. So if you want even better reach, that could be a very workable solution H'ness handlebar + Risers.
Be warned however that it WILL need clutch cable re-routing. I was misled by YT videos. The clutch was harder and the service guys at Honda fixed it by re-routing it out of the bracket in the frame near the horn.

[Black_Star]

Originally Posted by ValkyrieAB

Here you go. I unfortunately never took the before pictures with this in mind so I don't know if these help in comparing.
There is however a noticeable bend in the arm at the elbow after the risers. And you feel the difference in stance and posture.

Before:
Attachment 2372272

After:
Attachment 2372271

I just love how the Blue color changes due to lighting effect and environment.

[ValkyrieAB]

Originally Posted by Black_Star

I just love how the Blue color changes due to lighting effect and environment.

As do I. In the shade, it turns a very rich shade of blue, reminiscent of the Chelpark Blue ink from school
In well lit environments it sparkles. Very happy I didn't go for the Bakc & Yellow. Don't think it would have held my attention for long.

[sanchari]

The black mirrors suit the blue color well I feel, even better than the steel ones.

BTW, do you have a closeup of the risers? Do you mind sharing which riser from Carbon Racing did you buy? So now you don't need to bend forward as much as without the risers, right?

[ValkyrieAB]

Originally Posted by sanchari

BTW, do you have a closeup of the risers?

There you go:

Originally Posted by sanchari

Do you mind sharing which riser from Carbon Racing did you buy? So now you don't need to bend forward as much as without the risers, right?

I bought the straight risers in black which you can find here:

https://carbonracing.in/collections/...50-an-cb350-rs

They also have "inclined" risers which improve reach even more. However you need considerable re-routing of the cables to install those (basically routing them from the outside of the front forks instead of between them).

Yes, the posture changes significantly and the stress on the back and the wrist is noticeably reduced. I did Nandi Hills with and without the risers so have a very good idea. It seems to have also reduced butt numbness for me, but it might also be because I'm used to the seat. Not sure if that change in posture could contribute to butt comfort

[Nimz]

Hey ValkyrieAB

So did you buy the risers online and get it fitted by Big Wing? I am considering the risers but not sure if it is better to buy it at a motorcycle accessories shop and get it fitted by them. Would Big Wing accommodate just fixing the risers?

[ValkyrieAB]

Originally Posted by Nimz

Hey ValkyrieAB

So did you buy the risers online and get it fitted by Big Wing? I am considering the risers but not sure if it is better to buy it at a motorcycle accessories shop and get it fitted by them. Would Big Wing accommodate just fixing the risers?

So I bought them online and got them installed at a mechanic near my house. That led to the clutch setting going a bit haywire. He tuned it a bit. I thought it was ok. However the moment the service supervisor at Honda (went for first service) depressed the lever he said it was hard and the setting was off. Asked him if he could fix it and he said he’d try. He did fix it by rerouting the clutch cable and now it’s beautiful. Compared it to other bikes there as well. I realized i didn’t know my clutch well enough (had only about 500kms so it wasn’t yet muscle memory)

1. Try to get it done by Honda. If they don’t agree, then ask a trusted mechanic to install and to reroute the clutch cable. From the factory it gets routed through a clamp on the downtube near the horn. Post riser installation, take it out of that clamp and it’ll have enough free play. But try to persuade the Honda folks to do it. They know the bike best.
2. I have straight risers. These need the least rerouting. The inclined risers bring the handle even closer, but they need way more in terms of cable management.

Hope this helps!

[Miyata]

Quick question -

On bikes with no kick start and only having electric / self start option, do you not face starting challenges during cold winters or even during regular temperature days where the bike is being started after perhaps few days?

[ValkyrieAB]

Originally Posted by Miyata

Quick question -

On bikes with no kick start and only having electric / self start option, do you not face starting challenges during cold winters or even during regular temperature days where the bike is being started after perhaps few days?

Well considering that I’ve owned kick start + electric (HH Karizma) & only Electric Start bikes (Yamaha R15 v3, Honda CB 350 RS) I think it has more to do with Carburetors vs FI.
The Karizma used to give me a little trouble in the cold, i had to use the choke.
With the only electric start bikes I’ve had no trouble. The FI system manages the fuel mix based on temperature and other conditions.

This is of course based on a small sample size. Happy to hear other views.