A summary of my bikes over the years.

For Bike Videos see here

1988 Cbr400RR NC23 Triarm (1998-2000)

I loved this bike! My first proper bike after a year on a CG. 18,000RPM 4-cylinder with gear driven cams. 60BHP which was as much as the cars I learnt to drive in. Would sit at 130MPH all day (on a private road of course). They don’t make them like this any more, the new 2012 ’CBR400R’s are twin cylinders making only 40hp. If I had space I would have kept it. It ate regulator/rectifiers for breakfast, I used to keep a spare under the seat. Looked great in yellow and purple, not many pics remain from these times. Completly stock!

2000 R6 (2000-2002)

Bought as a brand new parallel import back when they were only £5k.

WP shock, race can, reworked forks, steering damper, 30k miles in 2 years with no real commute! A very unlucky bike, rebuilt twice. Fast though. Last trip it was eating oil so it was time to get rid of it.

1993 ZXR750 L1 (2001-2005)

Second bike at the time. Classic 90’s old skool. Big, heavy, roomy, handles great if you play by its rules (smooth and gentle). Breaking into a corner isnt an option!

Super comfortable at 130-150mph. Poor top speed due to crap aerodynamics. The best gearbox when your going for it (full of holes otherwise). Despite moving to matt black, green is the only colour to have this bike in!

Rear can, new shock, rejetted, all the silly head venting blocked, braided lines.

2000 R1 (the wife) (2002- 2012)

Owned for 10 years, 2 engines, 70k miles and only hit the ground at standstill (repeatedly). Bought pre-damaged with the intention of doing a rat conversion. Grew sick of shiny bikes after the new R6, gaining an appreciation for the the stealth of a rat bike for theft prevention and against the polished, un-riden bike crew.

Full system, re-jet, Matt black race bodywork, Penske shock, 2002 forks, calipers and triple clamps, steering damper with custom mount.

Was a great bike I shouldn’t have sold really! Photo was just before sale with the Penske removed. Looked tatty but was setup for fast road riding and went like stink, perfect rat bike. Not much could touch it in its day (bikes and cars were slower).

1992 Crm250 MKII 2007- 2010)

Awesome bike, 40hp in a light package, bought it to get me around and to play at off-roading after blowing the R1 engine. It was winter at the time so I needed a solution until I could tackle the R1 in spring. I put oil in it and rid it. Still had torque but with the manic scream of a two stroke. Decided to replace it because I was getting sick of smelling of 2-stroke and it was used for commuting a lot. It was difficult to replace as I didn’t want to loose the power/weight of the two stroke or the low maintenance of the Honda. KTM was the only choice to give similar performance. Every rider should own a 2-stroke at some point. Had off road wheels and road wheels and it loved jumping speed bumps.

2006 Ktm 525 RFS (Travel modified) (2010 - present)

Awesome bike, horrible when bought, noisy (and its not quiet now) with solid suspension.

Resprung, rewired for real clocks, ignition key, real kill switch, cooling fan, indicators, LED aux lights (running off AC generator). Rejetted/needled, custom carbon fibre pannier mounts, rear rack, large tank, comfy seat.

Super simple and easy to work on engine. A mountain bike with engine. Was built for weekends of off-roading and camping and did a trip UK-Denmark-Sweden-Norway-Denmark-Netherlands-UK, riding the gravel roads of Sweden.

Supermoto and off-road wheels. Now ULEZ exempt after having it re-tested.

2008 Ktm 690 (rally conversion) 2012

Bought as a long distance off-road bike to compliment the 525. Sold the R1 for this as I wasn’t using it much at the time and it really didn’t like sitting in London traffic.

FI removed, 41mm klein FCR conversion Ignitech.cz custom CDI ignition system, modified air box, vacuum fuel pump, carbon fibre custom parts including air box cover, clock surrounds and bracketey, Resprung shock, SXS forks, custom nav tower, twin Hella projector headlights. rally bodywork, custom wiring loom.

Stolen. Really too heavy and too much of a road bike compared to the 525. It at least got to the Spanish Pyrenees for a trip.

2002 ZX9r F2 ( 2015-present)

After the 690 was stolen, I road my girlfrends SV650 for a few years (along with the 525). After a while it was time to replace it with another open-class bike. Not wanting to get another 2000-1 R1 (it being the last carbureted version) I opted for the last of the carbed bikes the ZX9R. A simple build for long distance commutes.

Repaint Matt black (its a silver and orange bike originaly), rack, rejet, full system, Nitron fully adjustable rear shock, foam filter, Brembo disks. Rear rack, custom sandwich construction carbon fibre interface plate with internal Dzus sockets allowing simple connection and removal of the Peli box.

Smoother on the hands than R1 but down on power. Big tank and decent under seat storage like th R1. A more mature rat sports bike!