I don't think that it would be right for me to vote in the General Election as I am now an Isle Of Man resident, although I would have been eligible.

I decided to leave the UK back in 2006 and cut all official ties (tax, national insurance etc,) and the only knowledge I have of what living in the UK is like now is from other peoples opinions or through the press, rather than through 1st hand experience.

I fully accept that the right to vote is there though and respect everyones views, it just wouldn't sit easy with myself.

Have a look at this quick quide for an idea :-)

Shoe guide[/url]

Another one for Pegasus here 8)

I got mine from here – Sports Shoes

I would definately get fitted up though, or at least do the 'wet foot on the tiled floor test' to see what print you leave.

The correct pair of trainers will make the world of difference to your run.

amplebrew – Member
Meddle for me

For Fearless and Echoes

But then again…………..

There's

Hey you
Wish you were here
Brain Damage
Us and Them
Learning to fly
Time
Sheep

I just can't decide :?

Meddle for me

For Fearless and Echoes

I wouldn't be happy if people living in different countries could affect how my own country was run.

With not living in a country, how up to date with current affairs could someone be?

I'm obviously watching the news etc and speak to family and relatives about what's going on, but that's not the same as witnessing and experiencing things 1st hand?

15 years does seem like a long time 8O

I wonder how many people from other countries used their right to vote?

I'm not too sure I'd like to vote to be honest as it wouldn't feel right with not living in the UK.

Not my Kangoo, but it looks exactly the same, even the colour.

Twin rear doors and a side loading door. It's got a solid bulkhead and no windows, so no-one can see in the back.

I've got a Kangoo van with the DCi70 engine in it and it's really cheap to run.

It's a late 2006 model with all the bells and whistles (air-con/cd/ electric bits.) Cost £5000 inc VAT with 30k on it and a full Renault service history.

Been a really great van, although they aren't THAT big I suppose.

Just done a round trip of 1500 miles going to aviemore and back and it was comfy and did over 600 miles to a tank fully loaded with bikes, dogs and luggage and it's easy to drive and park.

You need to decide on what size van you need really and what your going to use it for.

I'd have loved a larger van, Transit / Vivaro etc; but the missus wouldn't drive them.

Just checked our Direct Line paperwork and the legal protection was £25.00.

It doesn't say if this is a standard charge though or priced in relation to your premium.

We're with Direct Line and have legal protection.

They then chase the other party for loss of earnings and injury etc

I suppose you could have one of those 'no win no 'bods do it instead, but it's just more chasing around for us to have to do.

Direct Line should sort the whole thing out, or so they told us.

I think it just makes a difficult situation at the time, less stressful.

I don't believe that it provides a Solicitor in criminal proceedings though. ie knocking people over 8O

It only comes into play if it's a no fault claim according to their site.

If you have a road traffic accident involving your car that is not your fault, you have a right to be able to claim back your uninsured losses from the driver responsible.

The hourly rate for a qualified solicitor or legal executive’s costs is likely to be in excess of £100. Our legal protection cover will provide up to £100,000 of legal costs to help you to recover losses that cannot be claimed from any insurance policy.

(Information taken from the 2005 Guide to the Summary Assessment of Costs. Source: http://www.courtservice.gov.uk)

Examples may include:
Compensation for death or Injury
Your car insurance excess under your comprehensive policy
Accident repair costs if you do not have comprehensive cover
Damage to your clothes, luggage or personal belongings if you do not have comprehensive cover
Hire car costs
Loss of earnings

I did Aviemore taking in the the local trails, Wolftrax and also had a meander over to Fort William for the world cup course.

Had a fantastic time and would def recommend that area :-)

Didn't want to leave though :-(

peajay – Member
Versys gets good reviews, if I had the cash my pic at the mo would be a hornet 600 with abs,
PJ

hopefiendboy – If you get a copy of June's BIKE magazine, there is a really good write up on the Kwak Versys with suprising results 8)

Only 0.24's slower tha a GSXR750 around a track!!!!

And nearly as quick as an R6 on the roll on from 40 to 100mph. R6 did it in 13.4's and the Versys did it in 13.9's.

It seems to get rave reviews for pretty much everything to be honest.

Looks to be a bit of a dark horse :-)

I think it's hard to buy a bad bike these days.

They are all pretty good and it can be such a personal choice.

I love my SP1 to bits and think it's the best thing since sliced bread, but my mate thinks it's rubbish :-(

I tend to favour V twins or IL4's, but my Dad loves his ER6.

My Vertex RSL was dead comfy, much more so than my mates Taurine.

They both felt completely different to ride even though they are similar bikes both made from plastic.

I'd test ride a few if you can or at least get feedback on individual bikes from owners :-)

And how dare you call a parallel twin 'vibey'

Shouldn't that be "How very dare you?" ;-) lol

Have a look at this link for an idea on what you can do to one 8)

Mini twin

I had one for just under 12 months and thought it was fantastic.

Fitted a Quill exhaust to it and it sounded like a right little racebike :-)

I had a GSXR1000 k6 at the time as well.

I did double the mileage on the SV, when I could have been out on my k6; that speaks volumes on good they are.

There are loads of bits available for them as they are a very popular racebike, so you can always spice one up a bit 8)

SV650 8)

Perfect for you I reckon.

Be careful with the 400cc bikes as spares sometimes are expensive and/or difficult to locate.

My neighbour sold his CBR400 racebike because it was getting dear to maintain and run.

He bought an SV650 and now races that instead.

I think you'll find the insurance is cheap as well 8)

anagallis_arvensis – Member

although being a parallel twin it's a bit vibey

Crikey, you would need a good hold on your teeth if you rode my single then!!

:-) lol

I'm comparing it to a 4 cylinder, although to be honest my main bike is an SP1 v twin, so I'm used to a few vibes 8)

Have you considered a kawasaki Versys or a Z750?

I've had a ride of a Z750 and they have more torque that the 600's, but I think the insurance is about the same.

A quick look on the autotrader website has brought up a few in your budget with low miles on them.

I've rode bikes for the last 13 years and I wouldn't get too focused on ABS IMO.

The best saftey mod I ever bought was a weekends advanced training :-)

Watty – Member
How about the new Ducati Monster 796? That can be specced with ABS.

These seem to be getting good reviews in the press.

My dads got an ER6f and loves it, although being a parallel twin it's a bit vibey and you need to be in the right gear.

Honda make good bikes that do the job well, albeit not always with the most excitement.

Yamaha FZ6 is a good bike and IMHO the more exciting bike to ride out of the three.

I'd get the FZ6 out of the three.

Have you considered a Honda Hornet with ABS?

I borrowed one for a few days and I thought it was fantastic and loads of fun; and that's even with me riding 1000 sports bikes for years.

Depending on your budget, you could also look at a Triumph Street Triple 675, although I don't think they do one with ABS.

Macavity – Member
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrzY3bfznyc
about 2 minutes in.

I suppose putting my own face on it would have scared off and thieves :-) lol

Shame they didn't show the finished badge to see the likeness though.

AlexSimon – Member
Very nice – it's the painted sections that elevate it for me. I think I paid roughly £100 for having the sterling silver Independent Fabrication badge, and I don't regret it at all.
Hope the gluing goes to plan.
Enjoy!

Alex, I am right in thinking that the IF badges are bolted on?

ken_shields – Member
I used the double sided rear view mirror pads from Halfrauds and have had no problems with them coming off.

A phrase involving poo and blankets springs to mind

Someone else had mentioned to me about 3M sticky pads. Once the badge turns up, I'll give Jen a shout and see what she thinks. It was getting sent out yesterday from USA, so hopefully it should arrive in 7 – 10 days :-)

If they were described wrong, I would take them back and give a full refund to the buyer.

Such a shame to ruin a good victory by doing something so stupid :-(

Whilst i recognise him as a good cyclist, I'm not a fan myself.

I'm glad that his team took a stand though and removed him from the tour, but I wonder if that was more down to sponsors rather than team wishes.

I was saw a group of roadies out the other day and one of them copied Cav's actions and they all chuckled away to themselves.

I love the matt colour of the frame, think the bike looks fantastic.

I always think that they look like some amazing top secret government military project in that colour :-)

You must be made up 8)

Finished work at 2am and then got home around 3am after cycling back.

Just having a Magners before bed 8)

JonT – Member
V nice, it's grown on me since seeing this thread this morning. The cost actually increases it's desirability. It's some serious hand made jewellery for your bike and passion, I get it

As for affixing, and decent epoxy (2 part epoxy, i.e. Araldite) will be sufficient. The key is good preparation of the surfaces to be bonded. Do not shy away from this.

Properly de-grease the surfaces, abrade them, clean and and de-grease them again. Then epoxy and you'll be right as rain.

Thanks for the heads up on this Jon, I want to make sure that I get it right.

It'll hopefully be arriving in the next 10 to 14 days depending on the post from America :-)

It's a bit of a mixture between the old and the new badge.

The newer badge just has the crest without the 'world cup' colours.

I wanted to keep the newer badge and wanted to add colours to it as well :-)

Talkemada – Member
Once it's in the System, it cannot be removed from the System, or else the System would fail catastrophically, causing flooding.

Computer says No.

:lol: :lol: :lol:

Why i didn't get one from Ribble first is beyond me!

It really is a case of buyer beware.

I'd steer clear of Ribble IMHO.

Funnily enough, I mentioned Ribbles service earlier on this topic

I would never buy off Ribble after having to deal with them myself and seeing how much grief friends had with them as well.

They might be cheap, but the service is very very very bad.

simon1975 – Member
Jen recommended JB Weld for gluing my badge, and mine didn't fall off…
http://www.avenuesupplies.co.uk/index.php?id=866&pid=6937&sid=1

Cool 8)

Thanks Si

I used to get sore knees with 175's, although I think it's a very personal thing.

I think my 170's were £20 dearer than the 175's at the time I bought them

I've had said that you'd have been better on 170's, but it's really down to what you feel more comfortable riding.

I'm just a bit of magpie :-) lol

I wouldn't have paid £10 for a mass produced Litespeed badge.

It's that fact that it's been handmade that turns me on 8)

MoseyMTB – Member
i've always had 170 crank arms and it is on a 16" frame, will it make a massive difference going 175?

How tall are you?

I'm 5ft 7 and ride 170's

richcc – Member
Mundano, focus, octavia, vectra etc. Go common

+ 1

Something main stream that is easy and cheap to fix and get parts for.

Another one for DT240's here.

I've got mine on some DT 4.2's and have been made up with them.