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My first bike - Honda CBR 600 F Sport


WinstonR
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Hello All,


I thought I would start a progress blog of my first bike which is a 2001 Honda CBR 600 F Sport. It is a version that Honda brought out as a more sportier model than the standard 'F' type. However, it was only sold for a couple of years because in 2003 Honda brought out the well known 'RR'.


I passed my bike test in February 2016 and as I was 25 I just did my CBT then full bike test. I used to have a Rieju RS2 matrix when I was 16 so I had some minor experience in biking before.


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/win%20bike.png


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/winbike2.png


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/winbike3.png


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/winbike4.png



I bought some cheap old musty leathers off Ebay for my bike test and gave them a good clean.


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/IMG_20160911_132035997.jpg


I then used them for a knee down course at Rufforth Airfield near York with i2i Motorcycle Academy (http://www.i2imca.com/About.asp). That was great fun and I would definitely recommend. Everyone on the course had their knees down by the end of the day. I have a video but I have no idea how to upload to the website.


So at this point, in August 2016 I was actually still without a bike. I was checking insurance quotes with several bikes and the most cost effective options were the Honda CBR 600 F, the sport version and the Suzuki SV650. I was actually very close to getting the Suzuki but everyone told me it was a girls bike :oops: :oops: :oops: not my opinion!


Anyway, so I had been checking online on Ebay, Gumtree etc. for bikes to see what was available in my price range. Then this Honda CBR 600 F sport came up for sale with only 17K miles, one year MOT, aftermarket exhaust, only slight damage and for sale at £1,500. Only problem was that it was located in North Wales (and I live in Edinburgh!). The seller was an incredibly nice guy and agreed to pick me up from the local train station. So I got the train down at about 5:30AM and arrived around 10AM. Collected the bike and very nervously started my journey.


What a horrible experience that was! For the first hour I was between being completely terrified and having an amazing time! Then it started raining and I hadn't packed waterproofs... and by God did it rain! I had to stop around and detour to a J&S in Lancaster to get waterproof overalls. That made the journey much better but it pretty much pissed down with rain the entire journey back to Edinburgh - a baptism of fire (or rain!).


The next day I gave the bike a good clean:


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/IMG_20160904_154943676.jpg


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/IMG_20160904_154951711.jpg


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/IMG_20160904_155007249.jpg


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/IMG_20160904_155019915.jpg


That's all for now but I will post more as plenty progress since then!

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Snap!


http://i.imgur.com/DtUD9ep.jpg



Looks lovely mate :D, bargain at that price too. It's worth a fair bit more! £2100 for mine and it had 30k on clock in feb :o, full service history though and in top condition.

Edited by Westbeef
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Looks lovely mate :D, bargain at that price too. It's worth a fair bit more! £2100 for mine and it had 30k on clock in fed :o, full service history though and in top condition.

 

Yeah mine is definitely not in top condition and it's had about 6 previous owners!

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When I got the bike home it was the beginning of September so I had a few blasts but then I garaged it for the winter. I got the bike purely for fun so I am only going to use it when the weather is decent (my wife and I have a car and I cycle to work as it's only 10 minutes away).


While the bike was garaged I started looking at things to buy for it! I was once quite into cars and I can't help tinkering with things and taking them apart. The first thing I bought was a set of frame sliders from http://www.lustracing.co.uk. There are two options for frame sliders for this bike and one involves cutting holes in the fairings. I wasn't too keen on that so I opted for the 'non-cut' version.


I was also very keen on tidying up the tail, as you can see it's quite a bulky, ugly looking thing:


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/IMG_20160904_155019915.jpg


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/IMG_20160904_155014172.jpg


I checked online to see what was available and pyramid plastics had exactly what I needed (https://www.pyramid-plastics.co.uk/accessory.html?h=100032&accessoryCode=1267&d=CBR600+Sport+2001+-+2004+Unpainted+Undertray&partNumber=770100054)


Unfortunately I didn't take any progress photos when I fitted it. I had to use an angle grinder to cut up the existing undertray and licence plate assembly which was a bit daunting. Here is a photo of the extent to what it needs cut that I found online:


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/image-7.jpg


There are two options with the undertray - replace the rear lights and indicators with regular bulbs or change to LED. I decided I was going to change to LEDs... which I now regret!


I have had such a hard time trying to find a set of LED indicators that are actually decent and can be seen in the daylight. The first set I bought from China and it was dirt cheap (I was expecting it to be shit) and right enough they were rubbish. They were also much smaller than I thought!


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/IMG_20170219_104652621_HDR.jpg


So I then set about looking for a pricier set. The price range is quite large and you can buy a set of just two indicators for £80 :shock: :shock: :shock:


I decided to go for a more modestly priced set of four for £40 but they were also pretty rubbish. Not as bad as the first that I bought but still very poor quality and not 'super bright' as they were advertised. The bizarre thing is that I have LED lights on my bicycle which are fantastically bright so I just can't understand how the same isn't available for motorbike indicators. If anyone has a decent set of LED indicators that they would recommend please let me know!


The brake lights, which I also thought would be rubbish, turned out to be surprisingly good. I got them online at http://www.alchemyparts.co.uk/round-pointy-led-motorcycle-motorbike-stop-tail-light/.


I also got the LED number plate light up screws off Ebay. I am not particularly fussed how well they perform but they passed an MOT so that's fine with me!


Anyway, so the normal bulb type undertray looks like this:


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/image-8.jpg


And mine (plus licence plate) looks like this:


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/tail%20tidy.jpg


(Sorry the image quality isn't great).


As I was changing to LED I also needed to change the front indicators and replace the indicator relay unit. I bought a variable resistance relay unit which is quite handy as you can change the flash speed to as slow or quick as you like. I have mine on a slightly faster flash rate than normal to try and make them a bit more noticeable. Swapping this over and changing the indicators involved a bit of pulling apart... street bike anyone? :D :D :D :D


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/IMG_20170415_111541775_HDR.jpg


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/IMG_20170415_111535220.jpg


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/IMG_20170415_111529941_HDR.jpg


Excuse the mess in the garage :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops:


Which also reminds me as you can see in the photos that I bought an ABBA stand. I don't think I need to say as everyone already knows but it is excellent, well worth the money. That is another pain with the Honda CBR 600 F sport - you can't use a rear paddock stand because there is no mounting point for cotton reels :evil: :evil:


Anyway, that's it for now. Will update again soon!

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Lovely tail mate Ive been searching far and wide for one where I don't need to hack up my original, yours looks mint though! I need to invest in the sliders too sooner rather than later. Also you can get a rear paddock stand, you just need the type with the cradle cups. I use my dads all the time :thumb:

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Also you can get a rear paddock stand, you just need the type with the cradle cups. I use my dads all the time :thumb:

 

Ah nice one, didn't think about that. Too late now I guess!


AFAIK there is not tail tidy option which doesn't require cutting the rear licence plate holder.


Here's a better photo of the rear :wink: :wink: :wink:


http://i288.photobucket.com/albums/ll185/new2pugs/Motorbike/IMG_20170625_141236716.jpg


I've got a track evening at Knockhill tomorrow, hopefully will go well!

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What? Wait...


Where did this guy come from?


He's making us look like a right bunch of wallies - he's done far to much stuff way too quickly and I don't like it. Stu - I recommend an instant ban. :x






Welcome to the forum Winston. :-D

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Also you can get a rear paddock stand, you just need the type with the cradle cups. I use my dads all the time :thumb:

 

Ah nice one, didn't think about that. Too late now I guess!

 

 

Don't listen to Beefy (non of the rest of us do) the ABBA stand is FAR superior to a paddock stand - you made the right choice!!!

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What? Wait...


Where did this guy come from?


He's making us look like a right bunch of wallies - he's done far to much stuff way too quickly and I don't like it. Stu - I recommend an instant ban. :x



Welcome to the forum Winston. :-D

 

Ha ha thanks! I've cheated slightly, this is all progress from when I bought the bike in September last year so it's a year's worth of progress condensed!


So I went to Knockhill for a novice track event on Monday. I was a bit surprised because I thought there would be a bit more of a teaching element to it but it was just everyone on your bikes and have fun! Someone crashed out in the first ten minutes but it seemed like a relatively harmless low speed slide at a hairpin corner. I was pretty rubbish and I was definitely one of the slowest in the group! :oops: :oops: :oops:


I found it hard to get into a groove as I was concentrating so hard on what gear I was in, when to brake and not running into the back of people. I think I forgot to have fun and just enjoy it! I know a lot of people say they are hooked after their first time but I am still on the fence. It was great getting to do some (relatively) high speed cornering and trying (and failing) to get my knee down. I've booked another session for 15 July so hopefully I'll get into it more then.

19441672_467907526921313_3665595685076752351_o.thumb.jpg.81e2557ba36500d7663a8b44947ce9c9.jpg

19467859_467907113588021_2524753661727126315_o.thumb.jpg.d2bb0c818427dca9c6c2d873877dcf41.jpg

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hats off to ye brother , be proud of way you have done already. a lot of us even myself have not done a track day yet ( blasted kids taking up my time), but once I've sold them , am gonna do stuff too :twisted: :twisted: :lol: :thumb:

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  • 2 weeks later...

Purchased a nice set of second hand leathers in advance of my trackday this Saturday... But they are too large!! :cry:


Haven't tried them on the bike yet but they feel too baggy walking around. Will be putting these up for sale soon I think.

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  • 8 months later...
  • 2 weeks later...

I just used a cheap one that I bought off eBay. The under tray is made of plastic and has a small lip which allows you to just drill a couple holes and fix the license plate holder to that.

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