Thumper Club Forum
Club House => Chatter => Topic started by: AleXBR on December 13, 2022, 05:52:28 PM
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Hi, new here, so trying to learn how to post.
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OK, seem to have managed that bit.
First question: why does one have to follow up through the verification faff each time a contribution is made? Especially when you're already logged in!
Also, tried to download a couple of photo's from my files, only to find my stored image files are too big.
I haven't a clue how to deal with that...I can use spanners, not computers.
Also, Firefox flags this site as not secure. Is that true?
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Hi Alexbr. Welcome to the TC. Sorry I can’t help with any of the above questions as I too am not computer savvy 🤦???.
Cheers Michael
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Aye AleXBR, welcome to the minority forum! ;D Like the handle!
First question: why does one have to follow up through the verification faff each time a contribution is made? Especially when you're already logged in!
Not a clue "Why?" I tend to remain logged in, in perpetuity and don't have any verification faff.
Also, tried to download a couple of photo's from my files, only to find my stored image files are too big. I haven't a clue how to deal with that...I can use spanners, not computers.
MMmmm! Because this forum is run on a budget/shoestring and maintained entirely gratis by SteveH (thank you :) ) there is a limit to the size of the images that can be posted and the number attached per post, as they take up server space and server space costs money and maintanence. I use a piece of software to manipulate images so that their size is reduced, without losing their quality. However, different software is required for either AppleMac or Windows machines and I am such a Luddite that I don't have a "smart" mobile phone of either type! So not the best to advise on this.
Also, Firefox flags this site as not secure. Is that true?
I too use Firefox and DuckDuckGo for web browsing and neither have flagged the site as being "unsafe". I would suspect that it is because your device has been set up with some more "security" settings in place than mine?
Hopefully, SteveH or one of the more computer savvy operators on the forum will be along to give you some tutoring.
In the meantime, enjoy the craic.
Good health, Bill
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Michael/Bill, thanks for the welcome.
My two regular bikes are a B31 I've been wearing out and re-building multiple times over 22 years.
This last summer, due to knee surgery, it was suggested to me to find something with an electric leg, so I bought an XBR (H '87) in pretty good std condition. A bike I've always wanted.
Once home I quickly found the fuel tap was inoperative when I tried to isolate the flooding carb.
Of course that meant both needed sorting. Carb kit from Japan and tap kit from the states, which took forever to arrive. Then I discovered what fun it is removing said carb.
That could be a saga itself. Anyway, eventually got it all back together, valves checked/adjusted, oil and filter and a good once over of the rest.
It's took a few rides to get used to how it likes to be ridden, but once I got used to it I'm delighted. Nice quiet motor and goes like the proverbial.
Managed to get 500 miles behind it before winter arrived. Established 48mpg on back lane riding and it hasn't used a drop of oil. Not bad for a bike this age and 43,600 miles.
S Yorks resident and visit Squires regularly. Me and my pal are coming up to 70. He has 2 Vincent's and 2 Brough's and Norton Domi, used regulaly among others, so a little cred between us.
Before I can submit this I'm having to go through this rigmarole of verification, how many wheels? and when did I last fart none-sense. So if someone can tel me how to avoid this it will be appreciated.
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Hello Alexbr,
In the next box over from the one in which you enter your password, there is a drop down box in which to select the length of time for which you wish to login. Select the "forever" option and your difficulties may be over. Google Chrome browser also doesn't report the site as unsafe.
Congrats on the XBR which doesn't use oil! Cheers, Matt.
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Hello Alex
Welcome to Thumper Club. Wearing out a B31 for 22 years and buying an XBR500; you were born to be a TC member! What year is the B31? I used a 1952 A10 Golden Flash outfit as my daily transport for many years and of course wish I had not sold it. I found the XBR500 I had was a fabulous bike once I'd realised it didn't 'plonk' like a typical big single, but rather liked to be kept in a lower gear and revved a bit.
I really enjoyed my SR400 as it seemed to have a lot of torque for a Japanese single, as does my current bike, a 1993 Suzuki GN250 known as The Mighty Midget. It happily spends a lot of time wandering slowly around the little back roads of Derbyshire at a relaxed pace whilst I admire the views.
One of the many Ians (almost as many Ians as XBR500 owners now)
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Matt/Ian, hi there.
The drop box referred to was ticked as suggested when I began...so that isn't the solution, I'm afraid.
The BSA is a maroon 1956 relic.
Dad was always an A10 combo man. I have a story of when 7 of us +Alsation dog piled into onto one of his heaps for a trip to Filey. The chain only snapped twice!
Different times, eh?
I've a long history of stories if anyone is interested.
Ian, you're correct about the Honda not being a plonker.....to my mind that alone disqualifies it as a 'thumper'.
Though when it's on song it feels like a well sorted unit 500 triumph...but a bit quicker.
In fact I've already surprised my mate on his Vincent and Norton. Actually, that astonished me too! Not what I've been used to.
Bought the (maroon) XBR unseen on fleabay from a retired teacher who hadn't been using it much. MOT, new battery and number plate done on the day I collected it (van).
From a yard away it looks new....the more I look at it I've realized all the tank/mudguard/panels/seat have recently been re-done to a very high standard. Inside the cavern of a tank looks new too. The frame has been heavily touched up with a brush.
Brand new standard exhaust system and what appear to be new fork stanchions.
Amazed to find I'm the 11th owner.
Came with documentation going back over more than 10 years, many of which show an annual millage of no more than 1.5k. Plus owners and original workshop manual.
Well chuffed so far.
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Hi Alex and welcome. Good job you're not another Ian as Ian AKA itsme says....
The "insecure" warning is because the forum doesn't have a security certificate so has an http address not an https one. It doesn't mean it's unsafe. As said, it's run on the cheap (and all the better for it) and a certificate costs money....
The best way to include photos is to have them hosted elsewhere eg Flickr or similar. I have the luxury of my own site so can put them there. Unfortunately when they're uploaded directly here they disappear after a time.
Re fuel tap - I bought one from ebay (albeit to fit the CX500 tank I'm fitting) for less than a tenner and it seems fine. Carb bits from NPR - https://nrp-carbs.co.uk/ although I appreciate these tips are a bit late.
My small fleet:
(http://www.iansoady.org.uk/XBR500/images/after.jpg)
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So much space Ian....I wish!
Just opened a flickr account...will have to learn how to use it.
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52563548578_0fef931f29_q.jpg
https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52562998626_8574f31fe0_q.jpg
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Flickr doing my head in, but have managed to put these two photo's on a photostream but haven't worked out how to put them here yet.
Which is a bugger as I'd like to post images regularly.
I'm sure I'll get the hang of it eventually.
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Alex:
Copy the image location (right click on it and pick "Copy image location" from the drop down menu). Although flickr may have an easier way...
Then press the "insert image icon (bottom row extreme left above message text. This will insert {img}{/img} (but with square brackets not curly). Paste the image location between the inner square brackets.
You'll get:
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52563548578_0fef931f29_q.jpg)
although for some reason that's a tiny image.
Re space - the camera makes it look bigger than it is although it's great to have a bit of room. I used to have a damp cramped single garage.
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First question: why does one have to follow up through the verification faff each time a contribution is made? Especially when you're already logged in!
What do you mean by faff, what verification process are you having to go though ?
Also, tried to download a couple of photo's from my files, only to find my stored image files are too big.
I haven't a clue how to deal with that...I can use spanners, not computers.
The file size is limited to reduce storage space etc, also there is little point in uploading a huge high resolution file only to have it resized before being displayed. I increased the size a while back which helped. Google Facebook etc make this easier by resizing before uploading, the forum doesnt offer that option (or didnt last time I checked)
There are a few online tools available.
Also, Firefox flags this site as not secure. Is that true?
Its flagging that the site does not support https, this would encrypt the content end to end. Technically if someone was looking at your internet traffic when you signed in (using username and password) they would be able to see your password. So I would recommened you dont use a password for this site that you are using elsewhere.
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Guy's, I do appreciate the patience you're sharing. Thank you.
Ian: I've tried to use the available flickr tools (as I see them), but couldn't see any way to copy from there and paste here.
The 2 links I inserted are sh-te and have no idea how they appeared; however, I did later manage to establish the beginnings of a photostream with them, which contain 'normal' size images.
To be honest, in 10 years of working on other forums I've never encountered these issues.
I accept this forum is a shoestring affair, so is different to what I'm used to, ie just copying and pasting.
A confession;- I'm dyslexic, both alphabetically and numerically. So stepping outside my comfort zone can have me confused. Experience has taught me to find unusual/oblique strategies to understand things that normal folk see straight away.
Steve: I discovered the 'faff' was due to me not being logged in properly. Though elsewhere you can't write a bunch of stuff until that's done. Here you can!
Whatever problems I'm having, I'll get around them; where there's a will etc!
Until then I'll just have to stick to babble, ramblings and observations. Sorry to waste all this space.
Back to bikes; after living with the BSA for so long, then jumping on an XBR, was like a kind of culture shock, which illustrates the development progress between them. They both get there, but differently.
I've also got a Ducati F2 replica, which I had built in 1984 at a time when I was all year round, weekly commuting to London on BMW' (R's & K's). That was like falling off a sofa onto a bicycle!
Had enough for now....but I'll be back!
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Any better?
[img]
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Very nice. Any time you fancy telling the crowded combo story, I'm all ears! Love a good biking tale, me.
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Aye AleXBR,
That is the images cracked, congratulations. :)
As for "I've also got a Ducati F2 replica ...." ;D that'll be a wee ripper and a bonnie bit of kit, if it is half as tidy as the B31 and XBR. Would you please post a an image some time as I have a liking for the wee washing machine twins. ;D
Good health, Bill
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Yes, the trip to Filey. You did ask.
Hard to believe my own story, but it's true.
Suppose it was the end of the '60's/early '70's.
We used to hire a caravan at 'Primrose Valley' for our annual hols.
This time we must have invited Aunt Betty, Uncle Jack and cousin Sue.
That leaves Dad, Mum, my brother and me = 7 of us, plus our Alsatian Tina!
No one had any money, so I suppose Dad thought we'd save some by all piling in together!
Life was a lot simpler back then. You just did things. Well, we did. It's what we called normal.
So the combo consisted of a plunger A1O hitched to a double adult Busmar sidecar.
And it was a heap.
Anyway, off we went, singing ''Blue Bells are blue, 'cos Blue Bells are blue''. As you did.
The dog was stuffed in the tiny foot well with me. Mum sat up front with my brother on her lap. Aunty Betty sat in back with Sue on her lap. Dad driving, Jack on pillion.
And a bottle of pop to go round.
Don't know if you've ever ridden in a sidecar. You're about a foot from the engine.
Yelling was the order of the day.
I was always the first to be sick.
Of course we used to take adventures such as these in our stride.
Yorkshire Grit I think it was called?
I do recall Betty encouraging us to lean to the inside of bends, to do what we could to help dad's endless fight with the handlebars.
He wore a flat cap but never reversed it. So when a gust of wind blew it off he'd simply turn the plot around to collect it.
It was during one of these retrievals that the chain went the first time.
When a chain goes bang, protesting at this ridiculous load, with a bit of 3 ply between you, then it's no surprise we all screamed together!
Still, it was a welcome opportunity to take a pee....along with the dog.
Dad always had a massive oily canvas bag full of tools in the boot (yes). Included were various odd lengths of chain; entirely worn out. So, like a good 'un, he rolled up his sleeves and got on with the job.
While we sat on the grass verge in some posh village staring back at the locals staring at us. The sun always seemed to shine back then.
In a Jiffy, as they used to say, we were on our way.
Until it happened again. But by then we were seasoned campaigners, full of the Brotherhood of Man'. After all, we were on HOLIDAY!
And so we were. LIVING THE LIFE.
We piled into a 4 berth caravan, spent our days on the beach with a boiled egg and a bottle of milk for lunch, while Dad and Jack took the dog onto the brig and collected winkles all day. We'd take them back, boil them, each be given a pin and had them for tea.
Being the oldest, 10? I was in charge of us kids while the adults went out for their piss-ups in the evenings. But not before I'd been instructed how to light the mantle in the gas lamp.
We were lucky and happy. Because they were HAPPY TIMES.
Lest you forget.
I of course retain copyright and am open to offers for the film rights too.
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Drool or what?
(http://)
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Aye Alex,
Nice bit of kit. I trust it goes for a canter regularly? ;D
Here is a shot of my old bird. Part of the family and ridden regular.
Good health, Bill
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Hi Alex
I can't match your total of bodies in an outfit, but my wife (ex now) and four children used to regularly accompany me on my own plunger A10 outfit and it didn't seem to mind at all.It seemed quite reliable from what I remember although it did split a rocker oil feed pipe once when I went to Cadwell Park for the VMCC racing. I wandered around the paddock complete with 6 year old son and 2 year old daughter until we found a nice man who soldered the pipe back into the union for us and we got home with no further issues. I look back on those days with some sense of awe; travelling around the country in a 1950s outfit with two small children, no mobile phone or breakdown cover just seemed normal. God looks after fools and simpletons both!
Nice B31 there with some nice touches, is the pushrod tower an aftermarket item or did you make it?
Have fun and hope we get to meet at a TC meeting somewhere next year for a natter.
Ian
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Hi Ian.
Aftermarket stuff for B31's? I n your dreams!
As I've received such a warm welcome here, I think you'll be hearing a lot more from me over winter.
All my life has revolved around bikes one way or another and it would probably take another lifetime to one finger type all about it.
Often I'll sit and roll my eyes listening to the younger generation describing what they see as essential to life and bikes.
My solution to bring photo's to you is a convoluted process.
Open a flickr account....upload a picture....then select same picture to download back to my device, you then have various resolutions to choose from....import that back here to a folder I named 'REDUCED'. That's where I then select that low resolution image that will fit this forums parameters.
I used to have several albums on flickr. Then they changed their hosting policy and started charging. So I spat my dummy out and deleted the lot! Oh, hum.
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My childhood sidecar memories date back to the early 1950s. My dad had a pre-war Norton Model 19 - long stroke 600 OHV single. A real thumper. Every Christmas we used to travel from County Durham to Farnworth near Bolton to visit my mum's relatives. There would be dad on the bike, mum with me as a toddler and my sister who was/is 3 years younger in the sidecar. In those pre-motorway days the route took us over Blubberhouses Moor which at the best of times was - and probably still is - exposed and desolate.
I don't know how much I actually remember and how much I was later told but I do remember one journey where the road was so icy dad had to take to the grass verge and slide down a hill more or less sideways. Possibly on the same trip the worn-out chain kept jumping the sprockets and dad spend much of the trip doubled over the bike trying to refit it. He wasn't the world's most gifted mechanic and his toolkit was minimal at best. However, we all survived although looking back I'm rather surprised.
I must have learned little from these experiences as my first "proper" bike in the early 1970s was a Norton 16H with a Watsonian Avon sidecar - being extremely hard up at the time and my (t)rusty Ford Anglia having finally succumbed to terminal rot I thought the outfit might give cheaper transport.
So following dad's example I and my new wife set off the next Christmas on the combo from Brum where we lived to County Durham. For a variety of reasons we had only got as far as Derby by the time night was falling. The battery on the Norton was well past its best and as we headed north on the A1 the lights finally failed as the dynamo burnt out. We were close to a petrol station whose manager kindly let me park the bike round the back while we managed to catch a train north from the nearest station. Dad brought me down the next day in daylight to pick the bike up and I spent the Christmas period fixing it reasonably successfully.
A few days later we set off back home in freezing fog and by the time we got just past Derby (again) we were both frozen and stopped at a cafe to try to warm up. My wife was so cold, as the sidecar was not graced with a windscreen, that she refused point-blank to get back in the chair. I fruitlessly explained that there was no alternative. It was only when a passing lorry driver intervened and manged to persuade her back in that we could continue. I think her abiding dislike of bikes was triggered that day although she willingly occupied the pillion on a variety of bikes for some years - even commenting how smooth the Norton Commando I later had was - "like riding on air". But since those days my motorcycling has been a solitary affair. And to be honest I prefer that. We share much but her love of gardening is matched by mine for motorbikes.
This is me on the Model 19 trying to reach the gear lever.
(http://www.iansoady.org.uk/images/early%20days.jpg)
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Oh, by the way, I use a program called pixresizer to change image sizes. It's free and very easy to use.
https://pixresizer.en.softonic.com/
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Ian, thanks for the pixresizer heads up.....def going into that.
Glad my contributions so far have been welcomed, and appreciate various people offering advice and help.
I already feel at home.
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Since we're talking of Ducatis on part of this thread I thought I would post up a pic of my '96 750 Monster which is a wonderful characterful bike when it's going well.
However it has reliability issues like they all seem to and is currently at my mate's in Solihull having had a new clutch, carb strip clean and rebuild several times, and presently awaits 2 ne ignition black boxes from Germany caught up in the Royal Mail industrial action. He has virtually had to re-wire most of the ignition system.
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Great stories, oh learned men of halcyon days!
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Oh, by the way, I use a program called pixresizer to change image sizes. It's free and very easy to use.
https://pixresizer.en.softonic.com/
What a fantastic picture and great personal memory.
Love this thread
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Hi y'all!
I'm a member of an American Honda GB500 forum and have sent a link so they can drop in here and see what you're up to.
Who knows, you may gain a wider audience and a few more members.
https://www.advrider.com/f/threads/honda-gb500-thread.1170221/page-207
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Thank you Alex.
Bill
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Many thanks Alex, I've been looking for an XBR/GB thread. I used to use the advrider forum when I had a Triumph Tiger 955i but haven't visited for years. It's quite surprising there isn't a proper XBR forum but thumperclub is probably even better!
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Of course there's the Facebook group.
I personally can't be doing with Facebook.
I downloaded the PIXresizer software, but have yet to have a play, though the tutorials I've found make it look simples.
Once I'm comfortable with that I hope to be brightening your miserable lives with more tales of daring-do!
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Mmm
Not that I'm at all creepy (occasionally unsavory), but in an idle moment I decided to expand my 'profile', only to find I can't.
I'm also prevented seeing other members profiles.
(makes me shudder to think of your members)
Probably not logged in properly again....aren't I demanding individual?
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Hi Alexbr. That's a very nice looking pair of thumper you have there, welcome to the club!
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I've been absent on the forum for ages due to some nearly terminal health issues which robbed me of any enthusiasm.
My last ride was September '23. This weekend I rode the XBR to very busy Squires cafe, Sherburn.
All the past misery washed away; it was so refreshing to get back on a bike and find so many familiar faces.
I'm going to have to learn how to navigate these pages again, I'm so rusty.
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Sorry to hear about your health issues Alex, welcome back to the fold. Hopefully we'll soon have some nice sunny weather for us all to enjoy some quality time in the saddle!
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Yes. Sorry to hear about your health issues Alex. Good to hear you’re back up and running again. Welcome back 👍
Cheers Michael
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Aye Alex, pleased to read that your health has improved and that you are now able to get out and about on the XBR. Long may it continue. :)
All the best, Bill
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Thanks for your kind wishes, guys.
Very much appreciated.