New bike

[J Hop]

I just "won" 1999 XR400 on ebay, 25miles away ;-) waiting for seller to get back to me.

Mud........here I come !

[Bill Rutter]

Congratulations. A race off-roader straight out of the box by all accounts. A bit too "focused" for doddery old duffers like me though :-)

[J Hop]

I picked it up today, a bit tatty but no horrific surprises, Just needs the usual chain+sprockets/service/everything adjusted+greased.



Oh, and I will have to sort that numberplate !

[Steve H]

Looks good, did you say you wanted this for commuting ?

[J Hop]

Yes but I've only got a 7 mile each way trip to work, all on b-roads (lots of potholes and patches on top of patches). Obviously I will have to lose the knobblys for the road work, not becuase I'm worried about the handling but because the tarmac will ruin them. The XR's have a reputation to be bulletproof, I hope this turns out to be true of my one.

Impracticalities : No ignition switch (its got a steering lock but I dont have the key), No battery, I can only just touch the ground.

I will fit indicators because I live off a main road, and I dont want to get shunted while turning off.

Reading the owners manual, it recommends when new to run the engine in for a whole 15 miles !