Here goes.
I started reading about the Enfield 500 and fitting a Yanmar L100 clone into it, as seen here: http://www.altmann.haan.de/riding_on_salad_oil/
After many conversations with the owner of this conversion I decided the Enfield wouldn't be the best thing to convert. I needed something a bit more "Adventure" style. Although I will definitely be using an Enfield sprung seat.
The L100 is originally a Yanmar engine but loads of Chinese companies have copied it. It supplies a paltry 10HP, which should eventually get the bike to 65mph. You may have heard the expression anything over 10HP is wheel-spin? This probably applies to a bike that doesn't have a heavy diesel engine in it. I'm expecting performance to be dreadful.
I set about looking for a cheap trail bike something around 400cc. This as difficult as everybody wants them. It had to have a steel frame because one way or the other the frame was getting cut and/or modified. I was looking at the XR400 or 650L but then an 1992 XTZ660 Tenere came up for £350 on this site.
Criteria was simple. Straight steel frame, decent suspension and good wheels/brakes.
The picture looked MUCH better than the real thing. When I say MUCH, I mean that everything was broke. I somehow rode it back from Nottingham, although by the time I was up Newcastle I was doing 7000RPM at 60mph complements of one ****ed clutch.
The bike looked like good value. It was not. It came with a spare wheel, and it needed it, as the one fitted had a large hole in it.
Having bought my first house I took a bit of time to get the pre-fab garage renovated. I have a reputation for doing things properly after all, and after spending two weeks breathing in asbestos the bike was inside and the tools began to be assembled.
I stripped the bugger to the engine and that's coming out today. Most the bolts were seized and a grinder was used extensively. I also noticed how shit Yamaha are at building bikes, everything is over-engineered. The rear passenger pegs weigh as much as a KTM Enduro.
I started reading about the Enfield 500 and fitting a Yanmar L100 clone into it, as seen here: http://www.altmann.haan.de/riding_on_salad_oil/
After many conversations with the owner of this conversion I decided the Enfield wouldn't be the best thing to convert. I needed something a bit more "Adventure" style. Although I will definitely be using an Enfield sprung seat.
The L100 is originally a Yanmar engine but loads of Chinese companies have copied it. It supplies a paltry 10HP, which should eventually get the bike to 65mph. You may have heard the expression anything over 10HP is wheel-spin? This probably applies to a bike that doesn't have a heavy diesel engine in it. I'm expecting performance to be dreadful.
I set about looking for a cheap trail bike something around 400cc. This as difficult as everybody wants them. It had to have a steel frame because one way or the other the frame was getting cut and/or modified. I was looking at the XR400 or 650L but then an 1992 XTZ660 Tenere came up for £350 on this site.
Criteria was simple. Straight steel frame, decent suspension and good wheels/brakes.
The picture looked MUCH better than the real thing. When I say MUCH, I mean that everything was broke. I somehow rode it back from Nottingham, although by the time I was up Newcastle I was doing 7000RPM at 60mph complements of one ****ed clutch.
The bike looked like good value. It was not. It came with a spare wheel, and it needed it, as the one fitted had a large hole in it.
Having bought my first house I took a bit of time to get the pre-fab garage renovated. I have a reputation for doing things properly after all, and after spending two weeks breathing in asbestos the bike was inside and the tools began to be assembled.
I stripped the bugger to the engine and that's coming out today. Most the bolts were seized and a grinder was used extensively. I also noticed how shit Yamaha are at building bikes, everything is over-engineered. The rear passenger pegs weigh as much as a KTM Enduro.