[rakesh_r]

Originally Posted by FuelInjector

3. While accelerating from 60 - 90 i find my body pushed back due to wind draft. I get slightly dislodged by 2 -3 inches back in my saddle. This causes strain on my shoulders as my arms need to stretch a bit to hold the handle. Any ergonomic solutions you observe while riding at higher speeds for >10 kms at a stretch please?

I guess it's not wind draft but due to the bike picking up pace because of the engine torque coupled with a slippery seat.In simple word's it's Mr Newton's first law coming into picture. If you can arrest your body movement like using a good grippy seat cover,your problem should be solved.

[navin_v8]

Originally Posted by FuelInjector

Hi gurus - few questions.
1. Is there any good video on DIY engine oil change for STD 500?

There are tons of videos out there mate. One of them that I came across:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ah7yXXPImTo

2. Is there any good video on DIY adding a trafficator buzzer for Bullets?

There is one made by a company named Swiss India and it is called "UNIVERSAL 12v DC FLASHER CUM BUZZER". Google up the installation technique for RE.

3. While accelerating from 60 - 90 i find my body pushed back due to wind draft. I get slightly dislodged by 2 -3 inches back in my saddle. This causes strain on my shoulders as my arms need to stretch a bit to hold the handle. Any ergonomic solutions you observe while riding at higher speeds for >10 kms at a stretch please?

Whoa! that's the tree uprooting torque of a big single push rod engine mate. What you can do is, grip the fuel tank with your thighs while accelerating and while the motorcycle is in motion. This technique will somewhat overcome the issue you have.

[Piyadassi]

Can anyone tell me which Bullet is this? A mechanic has quoted Rs 40,000 to get it running.

[outofthebox]

Originally Posted by Piyadassi

Can anyone tell me which Bullet is this? A mechanic has quoted Rs 40,000 to get it running.

Jesus H. Christ! What an utter state of neglect. Looks like a Machismo 500 to me.

[man_of_steel]

Originally Posted by FuelInjector

3. While accelerating from 60 - 90 i find my body pushed back due to wind draft. I get slightly dislodged by 2 -3 inches back in my saddle. This causes strain on my shoulders as my arms need to stretch a bit to hold the handle. Any ergonomic solutions you observe while riding at higher speeds for >10 kms at a stretch please?

I think you are sitting too forward on the seat. Sit a bit more towards the back of the seat so that the rear seat's hump will be a support to your tailbone. And two things you should never do:

1. Never hang on to the handle bar (Even under acceleration). Keep the grip as light as possible
2. Do not keep the elbows straight while holding to the handle. Lean a bit forward to allow the elbows to bend a little. If the stock handlebar is too low for you, change to a higher bar like the RD350 replica

[navin_v8]

Originally Posted by Piyadassi

Can anyone tell me which Bullet is this? A mechanic has quoted Rs 40,000 to get it running.

Mate that's a Standard Bullet 350 maybe from the late 80's or early 1990's. The front fork dust cover is missing and the motorcycle looks like it has been sitting for years together without any movement. While the mechanic can give you an estimate of 40K as an owner my experience of restoring such bikes tells me you need to keep a budget of at least 50-60K on the upper side. One doesn't know what is the condition of the engine and how much work it will need leave aside the clutch, chain, sprockets, cables, suspension etc. that will need to changed right away.

[smekad]

Wow, was this bike submerged in water? Or it was kept in the open bearing the elements all these years!

[LazyGunner]

Hello,

I have a classic 350 which just came back from it's 3rd free service from Sairam Autocrafts, (Mahadevapura, Bengaluru). Ironically, the bullet was in a much better condition before the service. Here is what the useless lot at the service center have done:

1. I had put a pair of LED fog lamps (27W each) on either side of the head light which was working perfectly fine before the service but not anymore. The mechanic's answer was "sir, we don't give guarantee for modified parts". I was speechless! I didn't ask him to buy me a new set of lamps. All I wanted to know was how did they manage to screw up a pair of perfectly working lamps in a matter of few hours. I have had it for a little longer than 2 months now. It has survived through 2-3 water service and a regular-every-sunday-wash by myself. He refused to even check what was wrong with it.

2. When I handed over the gate-pass to grim looking security, shifted to first gear, moved just a foot(literally) and touched the rear brake, the bike skidded to halt. The rear brake was so tight that the mechanic couldn't loosen it with his hand using 14 spanner. He took it back inside, God knows what he did but brakes were alright after that. The problem is, I reach home which is a mere 3km from the service center and I get burning smell. I just leaned towards the rear wheel, right side and smell was stronger!

3. Billed me for battery lock (Rs.72) which was only opened thrice (if at all) and by them all the three times. They argued that it is plastic lock and breaks just like that. Even though I wasn't happy about it, I let it go.

My short term problems:
1. How can I fix the rear-brake? I know something is burning every time brake is applied (or may be while wheel is spinning, I don't know). I am hoping somebody here can tell me what is wrong and how do I fix it?

2. How can I check if the fog lamps are working or gone? The wiring near the switch looked alright ( I don't think any water went inside the insulation tape.) The wire from fog-lamp switch goes inside the headlamp housing and connected directly to head-lamp wiring itself. I'm too scared to open it and meddle with electricals as I'm not an expert.

Long term problems:
1. [Please correct me if I'm wrong] I know I shouldn't miss the 4th free service and 5th, 6th and 7th paid services to keep my warranty running. Is there any good (even by RE standards) authorized service center other than this godforsaken place in Bengaluru.

2. When I bought the fog lamps from eBay and installed it from Shivajinagar, I kept asking Anwar(the mechanic who did it for my bullet, my friend's bullet and his friend's bullet and so on) about how is he going to do the wiring? where is he connecting the relay? how do I undo this circuit in case of a battery drain and things like that. He didn't answer any of it but finished the job just like that. After he gave a successful demo of working fog lamps and other lights, he told me:

"Battery won't drain. If it does, open the headlight housing, remove these wires and put headlamp back. And BTW, what is relay?"

After coming home I realized if I'm on a long ride, if it rains while I'm in a remote place around dusk, water manages to seep in and burn the circuit, I'll be left with a blind bullet with neither headlamp nor foglamps for the night. Is there a mechanic who understands the concept of relay and would set my bike's lighting circuit right in Bengaluru? If the answer is no, is there a guide which I can follow and do it myself, if it is safe for a novice like me to attempt it?
I googled, found some circuit diagrams with a lot of theoritical explanation which left me with ZERO confidence to try it.

P.S: I hope by the time I complete 20k on the odo ( which I'm sure will be much quicker than 2 years), after which I don't have to worry about warranty or anything, I can rely on DIY for regular servicing.

[rki2007]

Two more niggles to add to the crown

1. It took 10 minutes for me to fit the seats back properly after I removed it.

2. There seems to be a loose object all time shaking inside the tank whenever there is a movement in the bike. Need to check it. As usual the RE Service Clowns did not find from where is the sound!!!

[B O V]

Originally Posted by Piyadassi

Can anyone tell me which Bullet is this? A mechanic has quoted Rs 40,000 to get it running.

Originally Posted by outofthebox

Looks like a Machismo 500 to me.

That's a cast iron.

Originally Posted by navin_v8

Mate that's a Standard Bullet 350 maybe from the late 80's or early 1990's

As Navin rightly said, probably an 80's or 90's model.

I wouldn't suggest you spend that 40 k on it. Who knows what gremlins it holds on the inside, Unless you want to make a project out of it

[Haroon]

Originally Posted by LazyGunner

Hello,

I have a classic 350 which just came back from it's 3rd free service from Sairam Autocrafts, (Mahadevapura, Bengaluru). Ironically, the bullet was in a much better condition before the service. Here is what the useless lot at the service center have done:

1. I had put a pair of LED fog lamps (27W each) on either side of the head light which was working perfectly fine before the service but not anymore.

Its sad to hear your experience.

Regarding your fog lamp problem, I must say I am no technical expert on RE or Auto electricals either, but from my experience with having had aux/fog lamps installed on couple of my bikes, I have a feeling the 'power source' of your fog lamps that is directly connected to the battery may have got disconnected (since you mentioned the service center guys had done something to the battery cover/lock etc there is a good chance they knowingly or unknowingly disconnected that wire which is normally hooked onto the battery's 'positive(+)' terminal).

In simple terms the Aux lamps need more power than what your bike's headlight is rated for and if you take a direct connection from headlight to the fog light you can blow its fuse or overheat that wire due to overload. Hence normally the electricians would splice into the headlight wire which will act as the 'trigger source', while they will run a separate wire directly to the battery which will be the 'power source'. Infact they can also avoid the 'trigger source' and directly connect the fog lamp to battery with just a on/off switch, but the risk is that if you forget to off the fog lamp and switch off the bike ignition and walk away the fog lamp can continue to remain on and drain your battery. In this trigger source method, the power is shut down when the ignition is put off. The relay is what connects all of these in between. Normally it may be a 4-way relay. Sometimes there is also a chance the relay may have failed in your case. If you are not conversant with auto electricals, its better you take it to any bike/car electrician and he can set it right in few minutes as its not a very complicated procedure.

[maker_of_things]

Originally Posted by LazyGunner

My short term problems:
1. How can I fix the rear-brake? I know something is burning every time brake is applied (or may be while wheel is spinning, I don't know). I am hoping somebody here can tell me what is wrong and how do I fix it?

2. How can I check if the fog lamps are working or gone? The wiring near the switch looked alright ( I don't think any water went inside the insulation tape.) The wire from fog-lamp switch goes inside the headlamp housing and connected directly to head-lamp wiring itself. I'm too scared to open it and meddle with electricals as I'm not an expert.

1. My Classic 500 also suffers from this, try loosening up the rear brake nut. You have to find a compromise between good stopping power and the free rotation of the rear wheel. Plonk your enfield on it's center stand and rotate the rear wheel with just two fingers, it should move freely with as little force as possible. If it's even a little bit tough and feels hard, loosen the rear brake nut.

What happens is that the brake pads clamp up the wheel which heats up quickly and you get that burning smell from the rear wheel of the bike.

2. As I have not experimented with aftermarket LEDs on my bike, I really do not have much knowledge of the electrical set up they require. Best to go to the guy you got it fixed from. Sounds like he did not use a relay, which might be the source of your problems.

[Majumdarda]

Hello all,

Off late I have observed that when my Bullet is started, it starts to give some metallic sound. This continues for some time and is more audible when I am riding it (1st/2nd Gear). The sound then ceases after the motorcycle is ridden for some time.

I am not able to locate the exact location from where the sound is coming though I am somewhat sure that its emitted from the front.

Please advise.

[LazyGunner]

Originally Posted by Haroon

Its sad to hear your experience.

Regarding your fog lamp problem, I must say I am no technical expert on RE or Auto electricals either, but from my experience with having had aux/fog lamps installed on couple of my bikes, I have a feeling the 'power source' of your fog lamps that is directly connected to the battery may have got disconnected (since you mentioned the service center guys had done something to the battery cover/lock etc there is a good chance they knowingly or unknowingly disconnected that wire which is normally hooked onto the battery's 'positive(+)' terminal).

In simple terms the Aux lamps need more power than what your bike's headlight is rated for and if you take a direct connection from headlight to the fog light you can blow its fuse or overheat that wire due to overload. Hence normally the electricians would splice into the headlight wire which will act as the 'trigger source', while they will run a separate wire directly to the battery which will be the 'power source'. Infact they can also avoid the 'trigger source' and directly connect the fog lamp to battery with just a on/off switch, but the risk is that if you forget to off the fog lamp and switch off the bike ignition and walk away the fog lamp can continue to remain on and drain your battery. In this trigger source method, the power is shut down when the ignition is put off. The relay is what connects all of these in between. Normally it may be a 4-way relay. Sometimes there is also a chance the relay may have failed in your case. If you are not conversant with auto electricals, its better you take it to any bike/car electrician and he can set it right in few minutes as its not a very complicated procedure.

Better explanation than I had hoped for! Like maker_of_things said absence of relay is what might be causing the problems. As the guy who set up the aux lamp connection for my bullet doesn't know about relay, I'm going to find a guy who does and get it fixed.

Originally Posted by maker_of_things

1. My Classic 500 also suffers from this, try loosening up the rear brake nut. You have to find a compromise between good stopping power and the free rotation of the rear wheel. Plonk your enfield on it's center stand and rotate the rear wheel with just two fingers, it should move freely with as little force as possible. If it's even a little bit tough and feels hard, loosen the rear brake nut.

What happens is that the brake pads clamp up the wheel which heats up quickly and you get that burning smell from the rear wheel of the bike.

Rotating the rear wheel trick worked like a charm. By the time I reached home, there was no smell and brake was alright. It was little difficult to loosen the brake nut, but I managed. It was a happy feeling once again to ride from office to home last night.

Thanks a lot guys!

[raghu.t.k]

Originally Posted by Majumdarda

Hello all,

Off late I have observed that when my Bullet is started, it starts to give some metallic sound. This continues for some time and is more audible when I am riding it (1st/2nd Gear). The sound then ceases after the motorcycle is ridden for some time.

I am not able to locate the exact location from where the sound is coming though I am somewhat sure that its emitted from the front.

Please advise.

Not exactly sure, but I had a similar noise when the rubber tube under the tank (not sure of its technical name) was cracked. Might be a good place to start.