What was this machine? How is it doing such insane accelerations past my modern-age powerful motorcycle?

BHPian cr4nkshaft recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Before we start, this is not a restoration thread. This is also not a review thread.

If anything, this is a slice-of-life piece summarizing the last 6 months of my life. If you like lazy rambling and motorcycles, read on.

How my mind works

I have always tried to live my life a little closer to the safe side.

This is not because I do not love the wild side - rather the opposite. When I was getting assembled in the divine workshop the assembler missed one crucial bit, the self-control valve. It takes a very little push for me to be sprinting down a mountain path towards a certain abyss, with a wide smile on my face. I realise this behaviour far too late, sitting at the bottom of the aforementioned abyss that whatever I started was too much too fast, and I should have taken it slow.

Hence, as mentioned in the first line I try to live my life a little closer to the safe side. It doesn't always work; for example, I got my current motorcycle within 3 hours of intending to get it (after 8 years of not owning a two-wheeler) - but trust me, I do try.

My CB350, named Kraken through crowdsourcing

Then again, there is also the law of attraction at play in my life. You must have heard of the popular theory of the "Law of Attraction" - right?

No, I am not talking about the law of universal gravitation theorised by the unlucky chap who had an apple fall on his head - and instead of trying to eat it or make a facetime call, thought really hard about the why. I am talking about the "new thought" belief that like attracts like, you can manifest things which you really want - or if you are inclined to refer to Bollywood, you know the line from Shah Rukh Khan that has the words "shiddat" and "kaynat" in it.

The devil on my shoulders

The set of people I usually interact with outside of work are anything but normal, in the usual sense of the word. Some get into the mood of buying old cars when winter sets in, some irk the hell out of snowflakes on social media for the fun of it, and some - the particular one important to this story is on an evangelical mission of keeping old two-stroke motorcycles on roads.

BHPian boniver, it has been theorised (by BHPian predatorwheelz), might not be entirely human. No one knows about his early childhood or what transpired in his toddler phase - his life is known only in bits and pieces like the Stig from Top Gear. He runs on chips and coke, doesn't eat vegetables, quotes 50 km distances for rides and takes people 250 kms away and redlines in every gear, every vehicle at every possible opportunity. I barely knew this guy 6 months back but now we talk almost daily. How many people do you know who make an inline-6 cheese sandwich? The law of attraction checks out, being a weirdo will attract other weirdos.

The inline-6 cheese sandwich, patent pending

The first interaction I had with boniver was over a WhatsApp chat group, in June 2022. I didn't even know his name back then, just saw some guy asking for validation on the group about a perfectly sane plan that he had cooked up. He had lovingly restored a Suzuki AX100 in Bangalore, his stint there was over so he wants to get it back to Kolkata. Makes perfect sense till now, right? Here's the kicker, he wants to ride it back to Kolkata, alone, with his (albeit frugal) luggage. The WhatsApp group, as expected according to LoA was full of other sane people who cheered him on, and offered support like going halfway towards Bangalore from Kolkata to greet him, and so on. That (mis)adventure was cut short due to some bad weather (you can, and I guess you have, read more about it here.

Holy smokes, it's a two-stroke!

Sometime later both he and the AX was in Kolkata with support from Indian railways, and there was talk about an early morning ride in the same group. A lot of people expressed interest but in the end, it came down to three, BHPian ritkon with his FZ-S, me with my CB350 and boniver with his AX.

In December 2022, we took a short ride (around 150 kms total) to a place called Begor Mukh, which is the divergence point of the rivers Damodar and Mundeswari. There's not a lot to see, except cultivated land, sandy riverbed, a rickety bamboo bridge - which we crossed by foot but locals were crossing on 2 wheelers with their wife, children, mother-in-law and pet dog in tow - bless their courage! That ride was my reintroduction to two strokes.

In childhood I must have come across them but have no recollection, the only two-wheelers I remember are an Enfield with a sidecar which my uncle had, and an M80 which the family doctor used. I was aware of the fact that two strokes are as cool as bee's knees and RX100 is a thing but had no idea why. Throughout the ride, I had multiple instances when I thought something was wrong with my CB350 because I could hear a shrill metallic rasp, only to see boniver zipping past me on the 6-lane national highway, full clip, not a care in the world.

First close interaction with a two-stroke

My interest was piqued. What was this machine? How is it doing such insane accelerations past my modern-age powerful ride, that too with a large alien on top of it? Does it run on petrol or jet fuel? What sort of black magic you-know-what-ery is this?

The second interaction was at the parking garage of BHPian (and another fellow weirdo) ron82x3, in January 2023. He was still doing his MBA back then, and looking at the job prospects was also running a free car wash scheme whenever he came back home for holidays. He is placed at a corporate now, but the free car wash side gig is still on - "MBA Car Wash wala" will be looking for angel investors any day.

The AX had just finished having a bath, and I was giving it lustful stares. Detecting a potential victim for the two-stroke bug, boniver asked me if I want to take it for a ride. I didn't need any coaxing and was on it in a flash. First feeling, the motorcycle is barely there! Coming from a 184 kg (though well-balanced) machine this felt like nothing, as if I was straddling a cycle. The key turned, a few mis-kicks and the machine started its now-outlawed music. Put it in gear, rolled the throttle and let the clutch go - and I was reminded that it doesn't matter what capacity, weight or size is the thing between your legs, what it can do is completely independent of those facts. (Any innuendo detected in the previous line is completely on you, you have a dirty mind)

I went off along the local roads and came back after quite some time. boniver, ron82x3 and Rohan (boniver's friend, not a BHPian) were sure I had met with an accident somewhere. Well, I had, but not the physical kind. My missing self-control valve was the downfall once again, and I was running down the philosophical slope towards the inevitable abyss. Getting down, I quoted "It's a death trap" with a wide grin plastered across my face.

"It's a death trap" - a propaganda video by boniver

Somewhere in his alien lair, boniver got signals from the cabal of two-strokes that phase one is successful, he should initiate phase 2. Man, this guy would do such great work being a propaganda artist, if he was not wasting time around OLX and FB marketplace looking for old two-strokes. But that is what he does, and the outcomes are hand-delivered to the WhatsApp chats of the active victim at that point in time - which was me.

I used to get YouTube videos for two strokes, motorcycles up for sale from both OLX and FB marketplace in dozens those days. Most of them were not even good propositions, some looked too rundown, some were atrociously priced, and some were modified to hell. However the point was not to get those bikes, the point was to get my mind hooked on the idea of owning a two-stroke, to make me understand how easy and fuss-free it is to procure, restore and maintain these things, how having a two-stroke is a noble venture, how two-strokes can bring world peace. And I fell for it, hook, line and sinker.

How I met her

Long story short, around March 2023 end we came upon an RX100 up for sale which did not have the usual red flags. It did look shabby but not unsalvageable, it wasn't modified too much and it came with clean papers. I was super busy with office work, and lacked the necessary skills to identify any issues with it if I went to check it physically - therefore boniver, so kind of him, dropped off from a meeting to go check it out. 30 minutes later he calls me and informs the bike looks okay, the engine had a weird sound but we would have to go for a rebuild anyway so it will be taken care of, and I can go for it if I want to. Thanks to UPI the financial transactions went through and it was delivered by the seller then and there to boniver's bungalow in Barrackpore.

(He may try to disown the bungalow, so here's the post - from the horse's mouth)

Not too shabby

Not 2 shabby

First ride was a mixed bag, but the silly smile sums it up

boniver takes her out

The next steps were to restore the bike to its glory days. boniver believes in mechanical fitness; and while that is a perfectly rational school of thought it did not sit well with me. I wanted to get some of the cosmetic parts sorted as well, which ended up with most of the cosmetic parts getting sorted.

First order of business was searching for a capable garage which will take up this job. The motorcycle FNGs take up two-stroke jobs quite eagerly knowing these are done more from the heart than from the head - hence a chance of a fat bill. However, if the mechanics are not up for it, it might be disastrous for the bike. I remembered seeing a couple of two strokes at a house in my locality and approached that person, who directed me to an FNG which was not very close to where I stay but apparently, the guy in charge was a master of his craft.

Before bringing the motorcycle over (as boniver's place and mine are around 20 kms apart) I went to talk to Mr. Lalu, proprietor of Jagannath Garage - and found him to be a very colourful character, as you will get to know in the coming paragraphs. Take the guy - with his pencil moustache and gold-rimmed glasses sitting at the end of his nose - out of the grease-stained coveralls, put him in brown trousers and a crisp white shirt; one can mistake him as a professor. As I got to know slowly, like all good craftsmen, he brings his own beliefs and strong opinions to the job. You may not like it as it might go against your own wishes at times, but at least you know this person is equally passionate about the job as yours.

Bringing the bike over to the garage was also a task for me, as this was the first time I was going to ride it. It did not have front brakes (i.e. the lever worked fine but there was no braking action), made a real racket while running, had no mirrors and I had to do it in peak traffic. With a couple of close shaves (as I have a bad habit of putting my right foot down while stopping, hence no rear braking) we got it to Jagannath Garage. boniver and Rohan accompanied me on the AX and R15, we must have made quite an oddball combination on the road that day.

On the way to FNG

Hype shot by boniver on the way to FNG

At the FNG

The restoration

The parts list started from the engine. The engine was abused, and the level of abuse revealed itself as the bike was stripped of parts. Also, the bike was RX100 on paper but the engine was of RX135, with the YEIS airbox - this meant there were two possibilities, either it was RX135 which was converted to RX100 for the macho factor, or it was RX100 with the engine swapped. I did not want to get too much into it, just wanted it mechanically and cosmetically back in shape, and fast. It got back in shape on both counts eventually, but it definitely did not get done fast. Getting a two-stroke restored is a long game, as I got to know. Issues will reveal themselves as things progress, parts will be scarce, they might not fit even when you get them and in some cases, it might not be available at all, which would mean it is time for some jugaad.

The chassis was fine with minimal rusting, mudguards had rust patches cut out and metal pieces welded to cover the holes, electricals looked shabby but worked fine, 2T pump was not working as expected. The engine was the most surprising part, as we found out the oil drain hole was welded shut and the engine had a lot of mSeal in it. Most likely the bike had gone for a failed engine overhaul at some point in its life, post which oil leaks had started. Instead of taking it to a good garage, it was taken at some moonlighting plumber, whose solution to oil leaks was mSeal at all places. Mr. L was heartbroken - I could see it in his eyes. He wanted to mourn for a day or two even before he decided what should be the next course of action. He recovered eventually with a few well-chosen quotes from Bhagavad Gita delivered by me, and took up his spanner like Arjun.

A sign of impending bad news

The list of items started arriving thick and fast over phone calls, and soon I had a footlong list to get through. boniver and me went to Wellington bike market one day and visited MR Automobiles, the authorised Yamaha parts dealer.

That place is literally a madhouse, with mechanics and FNG guys leaning over the counter to get the attention of one person who knows every part - and I mean every one - of all Yamaha two wheelers produced in India till date. It was really a spectacle to behold, one person being fed with the colloquial terms of motorcycle parts (e.g. "lock cover pinion patti") or shown parts photos from WhatsApp chats, and quoting out part numbers from heart which he was punching into a computer. This generates a list of items to be procured which is handed over to the backroom boys. They fish out the parts from the warehouse and send them over to the billing counter where payment and delivery goes through.

Not just a human database, the man from the first counter is a teacher of sorts as well. I heard him stopping the whole process for a minute to lecture a young FNG upstart on the model years and updates for Yamaha RayZ, how many clips the front cowl has, and why he thinks the colour of the part shown to him doesn't match with the year quoted by the requestor - so something's got to give!

I have made up my mind to go back there one day just to hang around the counter and take in the proceedings, and try to identify the method in the madness that goes on, if there is any.

Happy faces outside MR Automobiles

Delivering the goodies to Mr. Lalu

After we were done, we delivered the parts to Mr. L who went over each item with the passion of a Michelin star restaurant's head chef going over the day's produce. Some items were appreciated, some begrudgingly accepted and some fought over. This is where Mr. L's opinions came into play. For example, we had got a full carrier which was not to his taste and we spent quite some time convincing him this is indeed what I want for this bike. This pattern repeated over the next one and a half month of the restoration job, if the issues were mechanical I had to get more stuff and if they were cosmetic I had to have design discussions with Mr. L - and also get more stuff of course.

I will call out a few things I had to get done even if they were not needed, like getting the perfectly fine rims and spokes replaced, changing the working headlight, replacing the handlebar - not because anything was wrong with them but because they looked shabby. I will get calls late into the night from Mr. L going over parts which were messing up the look which he had in his dream - and the next day I will place orders for those. I had to order two sets of monograms as the first one I got did not have screws along with it, and the man with the spanner outright rejected the use of the old screws as the chrome had worn off. He also tried to strong arm me to not use mirrors - because "buro buro lage" ("it looks old"), but on that I held firm. The final state the bike got to is a labour of love both Mr. L and me, no puns intended. Of course I needed to supply the money and patience - but I have to say this bike is as much Mr. L's and boniver's as it is mine - just don't let those two hear it.

A huge shoutout is due to MotoLegacy at this point, a two-stroke parts supplier who have everything going from them. Quick responses over WhatsApp, pics of parts whenever requested, trying to figure out which part mechanic meant from the phrases used by him, fast shipping post delivery - you get it all that you need from an online outfit who you are interacting over the internet. Without them this would have taken a lot longer, for sure. They, along with boniver and Mr. L was in the top 5 WhatsApp contacts for me in the past couple of months.

Got the RR and CDI gifted from BHPian Dhruvritzed, which were not assembly line stuff. These parts are finished at a different level and I think I won't have to replace them in my or the bike's lifetime.

The final battle over the restoration was a grand 3-way one between me, boniver and Mr. L about the colour of choice. The spanner-man was on the maroon/black camp as he is a stickler for doing a stock job, but us BHPians were on the blue camp. Even there, boniver wanted to get a darker blue which is closer to the one RX100 came with, while I wanted to go for a comparatively lighter shade, as the RX100 original one looks close to black after dark. I put my foot down on this with an emotional plea, told Mr. L that the rest of the bike has been done to his taste so the colour has to suit mine, and conveniently changed the shade of blue one week when boniver was out of town. Mr. L tried one last time before the spray went on, calling me from the painter's shade ("rong ta neel ee hobe to?"/"sure you want to go with the blue?") but I could deter him from any final change with a curt "dada, ar na" ("not any more, please").

The last mile

The bike was close to completion in the last couple of weeks, but not without niggles.

Mr. L kept finding out small parts which needed change/cleaning/refurbishment and work dragged on. The paint guy went AWOL for a week with the parts locked in his garage almirah - props for security but negatives for professionalism.

I would expect a call from Mr. L at 1030 PM every day, and they followed a similar script. He would share some pics over WhatsApp, and while I was happy with the progress made he will broach the topic of just one more change that is a must - otherwise, "bhalo lagbe na dada" ("It won't feel nice").

I tried my best to make him happy and the same from his end - in the end, the relation between a passionate mechanic and a smitten owner is sort of like marriage, you win some, you lose some - but the ride is awesome!

Finally one day in late April, I get the call from Mr. L to hear the 3 magic words - "Ready hoye geche" ("It's done").

I drop all my meetings on the pretext of some terrible tragedy and arrive at the FNG in 20 minutes, and take the first ride. The colour looks lovely to me, and even Mr. L admits it looks different that the usual RXs on the road. The absconding painter has done a good job with the finish and applying the pinstriping sticker.

Close to completion

FNG doggo approves colour

It feels the same as the AX in terms of weight and feel, but the ride is crazier. If that was a death trap, this was ACME corporations of death traps - I would have to learn to tame this one! Crazy - that's the word I chose to use to sum it up, which brings us to the naming.

The christening

When it comes to naming automobiles, I am not too keen.

My Polo went a long time without a name, and when VW dieselgate came to fore I named it "MoMa" - short for Monoxide Madness - though the name was rarely used.

My current ride, the Brezza is called "Beja" in respect to another artist with a spanner, Mr. Tarak who refers to all Balenos as "Bleno" and Accents as "Assent". Thanks to the welcome message feature of the car, it chimes "Beja is ready" whenever cranked - so that name is stuck.

The CB350 doesn't have a name, but the day I got it I posted "Release the Kraken" on social media. That was in reference to a footballer being signed to my favourite club, but people thought otherwise - so it is Kraken, maybe?

With this, I had the idea that this one should have a name starting with "K". My love for the sing-song tone of dakhni Urdu, the Netflix series Rana Naidu, MotoLegacy - a major player in the restoration - being located in Hyderabad - all these factors came into play and I decided to name this one 'Kirak'. For the uninitiated, here's the extract from Google - "Kirak is a slang word used for a person or a thing which is awesome and crazy", so perfect fit - right?

The delivery

Waited till the next morning after hearing the magic words, as I wanted to take Kirak home in daylight. This meant any potential flaw would be easily visible, and boniver will also have the time to drop by to lend an expert pair of eyes. ron82x3 also joined us uninvited, as his gym is right opposite the FNG. He told us it was the racket made by Kirak that brought him down - could he be the next victim?

As luck would have it, one of my relatives was to be released from the hospital on that day and I had to leave for a trip two days after - so the window was pretty small. Somehow managed to finish the paperwork at the hospital and get over to the garage. As I get there, I see almost all hands at the FNG fawning over Kirak to get her looking her best.

All hands on deck

I had to get a shot of Mr. L as well, but the suave and confident spanner man got shy all of a sudden, citing reasons like his shirt is not clean enough, he is sweating a lot etc. As I came to know over the last months that convincing this man will take a lot of time and energy, decided to take a spy shot of him. I think a man can not look better at any moment, compared to the one when he's doing honest work - so here is he in all his glory.

The marvellous Mr. L

boniver did a great job of doing another hype video, that's his thing. I am sure it will be used to lure some other unsuspecting soul into the cabal of two-strokes. In case you are reading this after being bitten by the bug - welcome, brother!

Kirak comes to life

Rounding this up with a couple of parting shots, thank you for reading through this - may you live long and prosper!

Kirak with Kraken (under wraps)

The silly grin gets wider

Key-rak

Here's to a long ride together

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

I've been satisfied with the engine, ergonomics & fuel efficiency of the motorcycle but a few things have kind of spoiled the overall experience.

BHPian vprao recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

I have been riding bikes since I was 16. I guess I must have done over 2,50,000 km. My last bike before the CB350 was Xpulse. Somehow the off-roading bug bit me and I took the plunge. Although I did some challenging trails, age was catching up and a fall at my age (45) isn't a good thing. I did fall a couple of times but got lucky with a few bruises.

It was during some hardcore trails, it dawned upon me that off-roading at my age is best done on a four-wheeler and not a two-wheeler. Also, long trips on my bike were no longer fun as they used to be in my thirties. The aches in my body take more of my attention than the scenery around me.

I bought a Thar and decided that Xpulse would be my last bike.

It was during one of our Ladakh trips that I drove my friend's CB350 there. It was love at first sight! I immediately decided that I'll book it once I returned from the Ladakh trip. I stuck to my decision and booked it immediately after I returned. Fast forward 6000 km on the CB350 in 8 months (I guess my fastest so far in any of the bikes I owned) and here is my observation...

Engine Refinement

This has the smoothest engine I have ever ridden. The exhaust note is music. I had Royal Enfield Classic 500 before. I have not ridden the new REs, but compared to the old Classic 500, CB350 refinement is miles ahead. Don't be under the impression that there are no vibrations. There are handlebar vibrations above a certain RPM, but it's very less.

Paint Quality

I was expecting a better job but I saw rusting within a few months. However, it was taken care of by the BigWing service without any fuss.

Ergonomics

I find the ergonomics of the CB350 top-notch. The seating position is perfect and I feel no backache/shoulder pain for really long rides. Seat firmness too is perfect and I don't feel my bum aching.

Fuel Efficiency

I get an average of 45 kmpl on long rides considering that I ride in the 70-80kmph range. I'm very happy with it.

Quality Issues

Now this is where it makes me wonder whether the CB350 really lives up to the Honda hype. Most Honda bike owner has this some sort of superiority complex that makes them believe that they own a marvel of engineering. I too felt the same for 6000 km.

Then the dreaded day arrived. I started experiencing cone set problems. I had both the top and bottom replaced. I was told that they don't come under warranty and had to pay around ₹2000. I got a rude shock. None of my bikes owned so far experienced cone set replacement in 6000 kms. In fact, I never replaced one in any of my bikes. All my pride in owning a Honda machine went down the drain.

I have another issue that started appearing recently. During cold starts, the moment I shift to first gear, the engine rpm goes up and down rapidly. I was told by the service people that it is backfiring and happens in cold weather. I'm not convinced as it appears every time I start cold, be it early morning or during day time. I'll be visiting the service guys soon on this and will update.

I have had some or the other issue with almost every bike I have owned, and I had come to terms with that issues are part and parcel of owning any machine. However, when I bought my CB350, I had very high expectations. I was in fact owning a premium Honda bike. The recent developments have only made me wonder whether a Honda machine really lives up to its name.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

Ever since I got my motorcycle, I had the itch to ride her to my hometown & in the process explore & experience different parts of our country.

BHPian CBryder recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

The best part of getting lost is finding yourself.

Hello BHPians!

A bit about myself - I am a Software Developer in my mid-20s hailing from Assam. I moved to Bangalore last year and bought my first bike - Honda H'ness CB 350. She is about to turn a year old and is absolutely amazing! She helps me commute through BLR and I have also done a lot of tours with her - Ooty, Yercaud, Mangalore and a solo ride to Hyderabad.

I will discuss the above tours in a future post maybe! Let's get into our agenda for this post, shall we?

Prelude

Ever since I got my bike, I had the itch to ride her to my hometown, and in the process, explore and experience the different parts of our country. I started planning this ride back in early 2022. I have some friends from Orissa who regularly ride between BLR-Bhubaneswar, so I had a fair bit of idea about the route to take, and what to expect on the road. The organization I work for is very flexible about WFO/WFH, so I got the approval to do WFH till December with my manager and the plan was on!

Day 0

I had prepared the Google Maps route back in June/July after discussing it with my friends from Orissa. The route I had planned was - Bangalore-Vijayawada-Brahmapur(Orissa)-Kolkata-Siliguri-Guwahati. The idea was to ride only during the daytime. I created a list of stops I planned to take and another list with all the Honda Bigwing service centers on the route - just in case things went south. After some mental preparation, I got up one Saturday morning and decided I am going to do it!

As per my plan, I wanted to reach Kolkata in 3/4 days, take rest for a week and then continue on to Guwahati. The first thing I did was to check weather conditions on the route - they looked favorable with about a 30-40% probability of rains in Orissa - all good! I applied for leave for the upcoming week (wanted to keep some days as a buffer), got the bike serviced from Bigwing Ulsoor, packed my saddle bags, booked hotels... and just could not sleep. With mixed feelings of excitement and some amount of nervousness, I set out from Bangalore at 5:30 am.

Day 1: Bangalore-Vijayawada: 653kms

After speaking with one of my friends from Orissa - I decided to take the following route till Bhubaneshwar - Bangalore-Tirupati-Naidupeta (connect to NH 16 here) - Vijayawada.

I planned to take a break of 10mins every 1 hr and drink 1 litre of water every hour to prevent dehydration.

Mulbagal Plain Dosa

First stop of the day was at 7 am at Mulbagal Dose, easily the best dose/dosa I have ever had! The rest of the route till Tirupati was smooth, with the Chitoor - Tirupati expressway being the highlight. The stretch from Tirupati-Naidupeta was under construction and in absolute shambles. I was struggling to maintain 50-60kmph with multiple potholes, diversions and heavy vehicular traffic. Hope this stretch gets completed soon.

I felt a good amount of relief when I connected with NH 16 at Naidupeta. Felt a bit surreal when I saw the signboards mentioning the distances to Vijayawada, Bhubaneshwar, Kolkata. This route connects such a huge part of our country. The rest of the ride till Vijayawada went smoothly. The highway is in good condition. I reached my hotel in Vijayawada by 5:30pm. I had booked hotels which had covered parking within their premises.

My Highness was my only company on this ride, and I did not want anything to happen to her! I parked the bike, checked in, took a shower and napped for a couple of hours. I went out for a short stroll in the evening, there was nothing much to see in the area I was in. Still feeling a tinge of nervousness, I decided to get back into my room and mentally prepare for the next day. I ordered a veg Andhra thali for dinner - which came with obscene amounts of rice and lots of delicious curries. Tummy filled, I adjusted the AC and went to sleep.

Day 2: Vijayawada-Brahmapur(Orissa): 606kms

I woke up at 5am, freshened up, packed the saddlebags and headed out. As a side note - Loading and unloading saddle bags, putting on rain covers on the bags is such a chore and easily the worst aspect of motorcycle touring I feel! It was a nice pleasant morning, and I was back on NH 16 in no time.

I had read about potential traffic snarls and bad road conditions at Rajahmahendravaram and Vishakapatnam, and so wanted to cross them as early as possible. NH 16 was mostly smooth with a few diversions outside Vijayawada. I reached Kovvuru Toll Plaza at around 8:30am. Although traffic was thin, the stretch till we reach the Godavari bridge was in shambles with multiple craters. Had to take a lot of precautions and negotiate this stretch till I found smooth patches again. I took a stop at Cafe Coffee Day near Tuni.

My friend from Orissa as well as Google Maps had suggested me not to follow NH 16 into Vishakapatnam city, and so that's what I did. Maps diverted me onto a state highway near Anakapalle. The less I speak about this route the better. Had to face terrible traffic with so many heavy vehicles while climbing a narrow Rail overbridge - easily the scariest experience of my trip.

After this stretch, Google took me on an adventure- it connected me with an under-construction expressway which was partially open. Till date I have no idea about the areas I passed through, I just followed the maps till 80-90kms. Thankfully it did eventually lead me back to NH 16. The rest of the ride on this day was absolutely blissful.

The weather was nice, the roads were smooth and I enjoyed the greenery and the vast farmlands of Andhra Pradesh.

I took a break at another CCD near the Vizianagaram junction. CCDs are the best rest stops along this route I feel - Air conditioned, comfortable seating, clean washrooms and free WiFi!

NH 16 continued to be butter smooth and I kept bypassing so many towns and cities.

Crossing Icchapuram and entering into Orissa was a sight to behold as the landscape was so green. I was warned about strict speed limit checks in Orissa, so slowed down a bit and maintained the speed limits mentioned on the signs. I hit Brahmapur by 5:30pm.

Entering the town, I had a warm feeling. The atmosphere and hustle-bustle of this town gave me good vibes. I found my hotel, Hotel HCB, managed to squeeze Her Highness into the tight two-wheeler parking space, checked in, showered and crashed onto the bed. It was a typical old-styled budget hotel with decent facilities. The feeling of nervousness I had began to fade away and I started to feel excited about reaching Kolkata the next day. But first I wanted to try out some authentic Oriya cuisine. My friend gave me the names of a few restaurants nearby. Hotel Khanti Odia was just 500ms away from my hotel, so I decided to take a walk, absorbing the evening vibes of the town. I reached the restaurant and it was almost empty - probably because it was just 7:30pm. I ordered a non-veg Odiya thali for INR 250.

Khanti Odia non-veg thali

It was a lip-smacking experience! Prawns, sutki (dried) fish, Chicken curry, Egg curry, etc etc. After the sumptuous dinner, I decided to try out the famous Chenna Poda at a nearby sweet shop. I loved the taste - I will describe it as a cross between paneer and cheesecake. Post this, I headed back to my hotel room and took a rest. However, I could not fall asleep. Maybe it was the caffeine in my blood from having had two cold coffees that day or the thrill and sense of safety of reaching a state where I could speak in my mother tongue!

Day 3: Brahmapur-Kolkata: 618kms

I finally got some sleep at 3:30am, woke up at 5:30am and hit the road again. Side note - I had a helmet-mounted DJI Action 2 on this trip, but was so far too nervous to think about recording anything! I finally started recording clips after leaving Brahmapur. I hit Chilika Lake in no time. Seeing it reflect the morning sunlight from a distance I wanted to stop at a good vantage point and take some pictures, but just could not find a decent spot on the highway. I did catch a glimpse of a train passing through the lake and it tickled the rail enthusiast in me. Post this stretch there are a lot of constructions and diversions. In one particular stretch, there was a sharp diversion and an abrupt change in the road level, where my rear tyre hit a long piece of metal and skidded a bit. I was scared that my tyre would burst. Stopped and inspected it, and thankfully the tyre was fine.

The road surface turned nice once I reached Bhubaneshwar city limits. It was around 9am, so there was a bit of traffic, with people commuting to their workplaces. I spotted a lot of small food trucks and huts on this stretch with people gathered around them. I hadn't had breakfast yet, so decided to stop at one of them opposite the Kawasaki showroom. The outlet had Idly, Dahi Vada and Dosa. I opted for the Dahi Vada as my friend had recommended it.

Dahi Vada @ Bhubaneshwar

It was very nicely prepared and served in a bowl made from a leaf. The meal was very filling in itself, and to finish off they fill your bowl with "Ghola Dahi" (buttermilk). The best part is, this meal costs only INR 25! Having recharged myself, I hit the highway again, faced some traffic till Cuttack, and after that, it was smooth sailing all the way till Balasore. Crossed some beautiful green stretches of highway. After Balasore, the NH 16 becomes an eyesore! Most of this stretch is a broken two-laned highway filled with potholes and random speed breakers. I was sure that my bike's rims would give up on this stretch. Also, there were a lot of wrong-side driving idiots and cattle on the roads. The road surface improved a bit when I entered West Bengal at around 2:30pm through Jaleshwar.

Just after entering West Bengal

Had a bottle of water and got to speak in Bengali for the first time on this trip! The stretch from Jaleshwar till Kharagpur junction was also under construction but the overall road surface was decent. Faced moderate truck traffic on the Dankuni Expressway and then heavy evening traffic while entering Vidyasagar Setu. It also rained a bit on and off on this stretch so had to put on my rain jacket. I reached my destination for the day - a cousin's place at Naktala which served me hot tea and snacks. The Odo read 1883 km.

I spent the next 3 days (Wednesday-Friday) in Kolkata. Washed my riding jacket, clothes and rain gear on Wednesday morning and visited some relatives in different parts of the city. On Thursday morning, I went to Honda Bigwing, Baguiati, to get the bike serviced. They found that the spark plug had worn out, and got it replaced. Other than that the bike was absolutely fine. I passed through Salt Lake at around 9:30am and the traffic was surprisingly well-managed. The road surface at Kolkata also felt much better as compared to Bangalore. Friday was another rest day and I went out for dinner with my cousin and her husband.

Day 4:Kolkata-Siliguri:575kms

Started this day a bit late - around 6am. I had read about the routes to take to reach Siliguri, and also spoken with some people who had done this route. The best route seemed to be Dankuni- Old Delhi highway- Kalna-Gouranga Setu-Krishnanagar- Farakka- Siliguri, so I followed that.

A Tram in Kolkata: Rare sight these days

Crossing the Vidyasagar Setu

Getting out of Kolkata itself took about an hour and a half, with horrible truck traffic on the Dankuni Expressway - the second scariest experience on my trip. Once I entered the old Delhi highway, the road was butter smooth all the way till Krishnanagar. From here till Farakka, there are some diversions and rural traffic but overall it's manageable. Google Maps took me on another adventure in Berhampore where it guided me through some rural roads and a police battalion to connect me with Ramendra Sundar Tribedi Bridge on NH 12. Once I crossed the bridge, the roads became butter smooth once again, all the way till Farakka.

Train on the Farakka Barrage

As a child, I was always excited whenever we crossed Farakka on our train journeys. Felt the same childish excitement again while riding over it and was lucky enough to see a train pass through at the same time. The highway has some broken patches near Malda, Google Maps took me through Raiganj town, which took a good 35-40mins to cross. Not sure if the bypass is ready.

I had read about the dreaded Dalkhola stretch. Thankfully the bypass was open and I sailed through this stretch.

Kishanganj was another place where I faced traffic and some bad stretches. I reached Siliguri outskirts by 7pm and reached my destination for the day - another cousin's place by 7:30pm. Had a home-cooked dinner and just fell asleep. Guwahati was just just a day's ride away. Even though this stretch was the shortest of my trip so far, it took the most time and was the most tiring. Kolkata-Siliguri is such an important stretch and it takes 13-14 hours to cover it. Hopefully, things improve once all the constructions are completed.

Day 5:Siliguri-Guwahati:474kms

I was quite familiar with this stretch and hence was relaxed. I left Siliguri at around 8am. Planned to take the Sevoke route, as it's more scenic and also because there is no truck traffic. In no time, I had reached the Dooars - the most beautiful stretch of my trip.

Chasing a train through the Dooars!

Crossed the Coronation bridge, with the Teesta River roaring below. There was heavy police presence along the entire stretch that day for some reason. Stopped for breakfast at Oodlabari, where I met a gentleman riding a Bajaj Avenger to Guwahati. He was curious after seeing a KA-registered bike there and we had a small chat. I would have ridden together with him but he was going at a slow pace of 50-60kmph so I bid farewell and went ahead. Crossed tea gardens and innumerable bridges along the way. I entered Assam at around 2pm.

It felt surreal, I had actually pulled this off! In my excitement, I barely took any more stops and rode on and reached my home in Guwahati by 5pm.

The Saraighat Bridge... Home!

So there it is, an item off my bucket list. My big wall of text ends here. I am glad to have pulled this off and thank the gods for facing absolutely zero problems on the journey!

Some numbers

• Total distance covered = 2956 km
• Total fuel consumed = ~ 85 litres
• Total days on the road = 5
• Memories collected = Priceless!

Odometer Reading: BLR-KOL

Odometer reading: KOL-GHY

6 states in a week!

The complete route!

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

The weight distribution is amazing. I don't feel the heaviness of the bike, which was evident on the Royal Enfield Classic 350.

BHPian vn11 recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

My Honda H’ness/Highness recently completed 4500 km and about 5 months and I wondered what was the best way to celebrate other than writing down my journey with the beautiful machine.

A bit of background about me and how I decided to buy this bike.

I (25, Male) switched jobs at the start of the year and had to move to Pune from my hometown Lucknow. I felt it was high time to get a personal vehicle. I had lived in Lucknow since my birth and used my parents' Mahindra Duro and then the Hero Maestro. I had no prior bike riding experience so sorting that up was the first thing. I watched some videos and practised using my friend’s bike which he no longer used. Now, deciding what bike to buy was a tough decision. I read as many articles as I could which mentioned what to look for in a first bike, but those just didn’t make anything easier.

I had a very flexible budget but did not want to go above 3.5L. I had some things very clear in mind when I started looking for a new bike:

• No bike with sporty fairings and sporty riding stance- This removed KTMs, R15 and similar bikes.
• I am 5’4” tall and weigh around 60kgs. This removed any ADV or tall bikes from my list.
• Comfort was my priority since I had a messed-up lower back. (Yes, I’m 25 with back problems thanks to a football match where I injured my back badly).

I went to an RE showroom one fine day to check out Meteor and the 650 Twins. The 650 Twins were too heavy for me to comfortably control in traffic. I could not flat foot both legs and it made things more difficult. Meteor with its quite a low seat height fitted perfectly with my requirements. I could flat foot with boots on it easily. The Classic 350 was nice but it was way too common on our roads. Wanted something less common. I wanted to check out the newly launched Yezdi Roadster but the showroom was quite far from my place and I thought it’s better to give newly launched machines some time to niggle out issues. I also checked FZ and FZ-X from Yamaha which felt really manoeuvrable but lacked the wow factor.

I had nearly made up my mind to book the Meteor but decided to look at other available options. I went to the BMW showroom next to check out the G310R and man, that is one gorgeous machine. It had a very low seat, was light, very less units running on roads but carried a premium. Yes, before I get grilled that it’s a sports bike and I previously said no to them- I simply don’t know why but I fell in love with this machine. It had a premium feel to it. I forgot about the Meteor and booked it by paying a heavy sum of Rs. 30,000. But fate had something different for me. I was expecting my work from home to continue but I got a call to join the office in Pune in the first week of March. I started to weigh out options- to get the delivery of the G310R and ride it down to Pune OR to courier a brand-new bike to Pune which is really risky or lastly, cancel the booking and buy the same bike in Pune. Unfortunately, BMW had mentioned a deduction of 50% (i.e. Rs. 15,000 ) if I cancel the booking which was quite high. I have a thread on the very same topic on this forum. Shoutout to @Turbanator and @GTO for helping me get my full money back without much fuss.

I heavy-heartedly cancelled my booking, packed my bags and went to Pune where life happened and I got busy in flat hunting. Once I had a roof over my head, I started my search again. I came across a Honda showroom and had a Eureka moment that Honda had some Bullet-lookalike retro stuff in the market (CB350 fans, please don’t kill me for these words ). I fired up google chrome and looked around the offerings. The very next day I went to the Honda showroom, and got told that the CB350 twins are sold in BigWing exclusive outlets only, which for me was across the city. I spared some time one evening post office and went to the BigWing showroom. I entered the place to find the place filled to the brim with the CB350 twins and they looked simply stunning.

I asked for a test drive from the salesperson who was really polite. I test drove both - the CB350 RS and the H’ness and was simply blown away by the smoothness and refinement of the engines. The bikes simply glided on the road as if you had simply replaced the wheels with butter and are riding over a hot knife. The experience was nothing I had felt in the previous 5 to 10 bikes I rode. The only doubt I had in mind was will I look small on such a big bike (for my proportions) and will I be able to handle it since I was only a third of the bike’s weight.

My second doubt vanished on my second test ride, I went through heavy traffic and it was just effortless. The weight distribution was amazing I didn’t feel the heaviness of the bike, which was evident in RE Classic. At that point, I had made up my mind that I’m getting a Honda. Talked to my family about the colour choice and finally booked the Matt Green anniversary edition.

My reasons for going for H'ness over the RS at that time were:

• H'ness looked a bit more elegant since I was more into retro looks.
• Had Bluetooth connectivity which after 4000 km I have used only once.
• Not sure if the seat heights are different but I felt a bit uncomfortable in RS. H’ness seemed more welcoming to me, especially the anniversary edition which has split seats and the rider seat is tapered in the front.
• The Chrome elements on H’ness are just perfect. Not overdone or underdone.

I made the payment over a period of three days due to UPI restrictions. I had opted for Bharat registration hence the on-rod price came down a bit. The papers went to RTO on Monday and I had the delivery the next Monday. The process to get the Bharat series was quite smooth with only one hiccup which was due to some discrepancy in the documents I submitted, the rent agreement I submitted had a different owner’s name than that on the electricity bill. I had to submit a marriage certificate to sort that out. I am really thankful to my flat owners for being so helpful in providing the documents.

Let’s talk about some major aspects of the bike, mainly the issues since it is the least talked about aspect by an owner.

The engine

You will easily fall in love with the bike’s smoothness. Vibrations are minimal and start to creep in only when you get very close to the redline. The bike produces enough power and torque to easily climb up steep hills with a pillion (and honestly that’s what one wants with a bike, we have roads in the city- not racetracks). Highway trips are delightful as well. You can cruise around 90-100 kmph all day without the engine feeling stressed and just a bit of juice left for overtakes. Engine braking is quite good too and works well when you want to control your descent from a steep slope.

Quality of components

It’s a bit difficult to give a straight answer to this. In some places the quality of material and parts used is great but in some places, cost cutting is clearly visible. Let me elaborate on it a bit.

• Quality of switches and plastics: Just amazing. The switches are very responsive and feel very premium. My friend purchased Scram 411 and there was a stark difference visible in the materials used for switchgear. The headlight could/shroud felt like made of cheap plastic etc.
• Battery: They have used a Tata brand battery and it is a headache for users of these bikes. The battery fails all of a sudden without giving much warning. Numerous owners are stranded on the side of the road because the battery died all of a sudden and the bike refused to start. I am nearing 5k kms and didn’t have such an issue, but after seeing such reports on FB groups and YouTube I’ll possibly switch to Amaron or Exide pretty soon.
• Paint quality: Once again, FB groups, YouTube and even our Team-BHP is filled with users facing rusting on chrome parts, around nuts and even on chassis. As far as I know, Honda is NOT covering this under warranty, please feel free to correct me if I am wrong. I don’t know if this issue is with a particular batch or with every unit. As a precaution, I always spray the rust-prone areas with WD-40 post washes and I avoid pressure washes.
• Rims and tyres- Some users have reported the rims getting bent even on small potholes. I have also driven by mistake into some notorious potholes but didn’t damage my rims. This could again be an issue with a batch.
• The brake pads: My front pads got changed at just 3200kms. Some users are reporting even lesser distance. I was pretty shocked when I was going to the office and suddenly my front brakes wouldn’t slow down my bike. Luckily I had just taken my bike out of parking. I went to the service centre and found that the front brakes are busted. It was a surprise for me since I always practised engine braking and do not over speed. Checked the FB groups and yep, it’s a very common problem. Going for Vesrah ceramic pads once these wear out.
• Mudguards: You would need a mudguard for the front fender the moment you leave the showroom. Also, advise the pillion to wear a raincoat else his/her back will be covered with mud after some time. I need to find a way to stop my bike from throwing mud on the pillion’s back. A tyre hugger is a good option but that would ruin a retro bike’s look.

Gearing

The gearing is very tall. You will need to get used to it and it somewhat takes some joy out while driving in the city. You will need to shift gears a lot and by ‘a lot’ I actually mean it. But that has its advantage also- you get pretty good fuel efficiency. It happens nearly every day when I see my friends go over potholes and speed breakers without even changing gear sometimes and I have to drop down till 1st gear so that the engine stops lugging.

The headlight

It looks gorgeous but it would be very risky to go on highways without AUX lights, moreover, it’s a death wish to drive in the Ghats with these headlights.

The fuel efficiency

For a 350cc bike, it delivers excellent mileage. I have got up to 46 kmpl on highways at 70 kmph constant speeds. In the city it drops to somewhere around 30-35 kmpl, mostly hovering around 32-33 kmpl mark.

Handling and riding

I am a 5’4” guy which makes it a bit difficult to manoeuvre the bike on bad roads since I can’t flat foot both my legs but with practice, it got easier. I cut out some foam and replaced it with gel, which lowered the seat height. Now I can flat foot my left leg like a breeze and the right leg can touch the ground simultaneously. Since I am a bit short for what this bike would like, I get some shoulder pain when driving 200+ kms. Thinking to install inclined handlebar raisers to solve this issue. I never felt that the bike is very heavy while filtering through traffic and it can easily help to find your way out.

The Bluetooth connectivity feature

Used it only once or twice and never found it useful enough.

Service experience

Have completed 2 free services as of now, both at the Rasta Peth service centre in Pune. The attention provided to the bike and the owner is just amazing. You will feel a bit relieved knowing that the premium you paid is showing up in the right places. Everyone is super polite and they listen to your issues patiently. Most importantly, they make sure you leave the place without any pending issues. They have a big window in the waiting area where you can watch your bike serviced and can even go to the service bay and watch by the side of the mechanic while he pampers your bike.

Summary

A lovely bike which feels effortless to drive but the above-mentioned shortcomings sometimes remind you that maybe Honda did not test it enough for Indian conditions- considering that they forgot very basic things such as not providing a longer fender/mudguard to avoid mud splashes.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.

I own a Honda CB350 H’ness bought in June 2020 with 5500kms under the clock. Due to a job opportunity I have to move to Bangalore for few years.

BHPian nerdgalore recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

Hello Bhpians. I own a Honda CB350 H’ness bought in June 2020 with 5500kms under the clock. It’s running perfectly. Due to a job opportunity I have to move to Bangalore for few years. I am definitely going to need a vehicle in Bangalore so would like to take my bike with me. But from what I have read is that I can only use my bike for few months before I will have re-register it in Karnataka which is going to cost a substantial amount. Also I found that it’s very difficult to get refund for road tax from my current state. I don’t want to heckled by the cops in Bangalore on frequent basis for out of state registration number. So either I sell my bike and buy a new one in Bangalore or move the current one to Bangalore and go through re-registration process and then sell it there in few years. Both options have pros and cons. What are your thoughts on this?

Here's what BHPian condor had to say on the matter:

Your bike is too new to be sold and to lose that differential price, on top of which you will have to spend on another bike once you move.

Suggest to bring it over. Check for options to pay annual tax. If you find it difficult to do that yourself, Bangalore members can give you contacts of people who can do it for you.

Here's what BHPian ninjatalli had to say on the matter:

Have been living here with a TN registered bike for about 8 months so can understand your query.

Official rules allow 11 month period before legally you need to get the registration done. I got the bike transferred via train (parcel) so I have an official 'parchi' (/paper) that serves as a proof of the bike being brought into the city recently. Have been stopped twice by cops for different reasons (pillion not wearing helmet, taking a left on a red signal) and both times I was penalized only for that offense. I even showed them my bike documents (having TN details) and there wasn't any questions on the out-of-state number plate.

No plans of transferring the registration as of now (3 year old bike) till the year ends. Also I keep traveling (on it) to Chennai and back so that might be a breather (legally) for me going forward.

My recommendation - get the bike over and use it for about a year. Carry documentation that covers your date of entry (for the vehicle) and you should be safe atleast for a year.

Here's what BHPian ghodlur had to say on the matter:

I dont think it is possible to pay annual road tax, that happens only after the vehicle undergoes re-registration i.e 15 yrs. I maybe wrong here.

I think the outstation registered vehicles being an easy target was in the days of the past, these days that's not an issue after a much hullaboo about the same couple of years back.

Getting a road tax refund from home state is a pain. Alternatively you could move out of KA for 15 days or more after the 11 months time frame and then come back with all proof (read PUC, toll receipts of home state) and continue for next 11 months as if you entered recently. This is a loophole taken to advantage by many.

Read BHPian comments for more insights and information.