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Geez, It’s been 5 months since I last posted about my ride.
So, for those who don’t know, my cousin and I recently bought small displacement motorcycles for the sole purpose of turning them into cafe racers. He bought a Honda TMX 125 while I got a Yamaha YTX 125.
His bike is now a full on cafe racer/ tracker style bike while mine has mostly remained stock save for the handlebars.
Since we bought our bikes, we’ve barely logged in 2000kms on our respective vehicles. Our bikes, sadly, have remained mostly sitting in the garage collecting dust and taken out very rarely for a quick ride.
March 17, 2018 – We were invited to go on a ride with friends to Samal Island which seemed like a perfect opportunity to test out our bikes with others of varying engine sizes and displacements.
In all, there were 5 of us, all close friends of my cousin. I was basically the odd man out with a bike mostly stuck in stock form as well as being the eldest in the bunch. Awww…
During our ride, I discovered a couple of things about my own bike that I’ve taken note of to change in the near future.
The Yamaha YTX handled itself pretty well during long stretches of road. I was the pacer so I worked in conjunction with the sweeper. Why was I relegated to pace duties? I guess that’s because in the bunch I was one of the more experienced riders having logged lots of hours riding back when I was younger.
What does a pacer do? A pacer basically makes sure everyone is in close formation during the ride. The sweeper makes sure no one gets left behind. We work as a team to effectively keep the ride fun and safe during the entire trip.
The Yamaha YTX 125 is perfect on the highway with its stock tires and at the recommended highway speed (60kph to 80kph). Anything more and you’ll experience slight vibrations coming from the frame. At that speed, the Yamaha YTX 125 becomes very light and there’s a slight lift from its stock height. Now my mind may be playing tricks on me but that’s how I feel. Oh and this isn’t an official review commissioned by Yamaha.
The ground clearance the Yamaha YTX 125 has also makes it perfect for slight off road use. Little road imperfections are nothing to worry about.
I do have an issue with my stock tires though. There is a tendency to slip if you go into a curve on the highway at full speed. These tires aren’t made for gripping the road. There is only enough traction for these tires to hold on to the road and at the normal riding position. So… if you have a tendency to speed up, you might want to change those tires to something more appropriate. I’m looking at the tires on those Raider bikes. They look cool enough and they can provide you with the grip you need to do those wild turns. They also come stock on those bikes. As soon as I have the money, I’ll buy those.
And if you want me to reach my goal faster… well, I accept donations hahahaha!
Seriously…
Just send me some funds on Paypal.
Please.
In terms of speed, the Yamaha YTX 125 still has a lot of room for improvement. The Speedometer states it can go as high as 140kph. I think that’s going to be quite a stretch as going over 80kph in its stock form produces a lot of vibration. Your engine at that point will also sound like it’s a death metal vocalist trying to produce a falsetto. If you’re stuck in stock mode, keep it at 80kph and you won’t have a problem. Otherwise, change your sprocket so you can achieve higher speeds.
I’m still debating on whether to effect this change since I’m very comfortable with my current speed. I don’t usually go over 50kph anyway. Yeah, yeah, yeah… I’m that slow motorcycle rider who stays in the center of the lane who doesn’t overtake slower vehicles in front if the road isn’t clear.
As soon as I have enough money for bigger tires, I’ll be changing my swing arm too. I’ve seen a couple of Yamaha YTX 125 with bigger tires installed and it just seems too overcrowded back there. Plus, let’s be honest here, the current stock swingarm is a bit too slim for the bike. It just looks a bit too teeny weenie. I’ll probably be looking for a dirtbike swingarm soon.
Lastly, I really, really need side panniers soon. Travelling with a bag strapped to your back just isn’t fun. It limits your movement and just isn’t… how shall I put it… just isn’t cool.
I’ve been looking at side panniers and I might have to go with the SEC 22 liters for mine soon. I’ve done some research on those boxes and they seem sturdy enough. They also look cool enough to make my bike look even cooler.
Other things I’m considering for my bike:
- Install handlebar side mirrors
- Install brighter bulb for the headlight
- Change rear light to something more cafe racer inspired
- Install bullet turn signals
- Place red accents
I’m quite torn about shaving off my seat since I’m using it now as a daily driver. I don’t want to sacrifice comfort for looks. Well, not much anyway.
I might have to reconsider the foot rest… I might swap it out for something more low profile or have it painted matte red.
Hmmm and I’m gonna be… wait a minute… I’m listing far too many things here. Maybe I should save it for a future post. Yeah, maybe I should. I’ll leave you with this:
The ride in Samal was fun.
We were all safe except for that time one of us overshot the turn and that time when I slipped while my cousin was tailgating. Good thing nothing bad happened and we’re looking for more people to ride with soon 😀
Ok, that’s enough for now.
Remember: I need funds. Sending money to my Paypal account is a good cause. Send now 😀
(Just in case you do have a heart, my Paypal address is: chipesterkhan@gmail.com)
And here’s a rundown of modifications I’ll be making soon:
- Swap out swingarm for a sturdier one.
- Change to thicker, wider tires.
- Install panniers for easy transport of items
Bye! Ride Safe!