Looking at another DRZ400e in San Miguel

[Tetge]

If I ever get another bike it will have tubeless tires so that I can get new rubber mounted easier and so that I can potentially carry a tire patch kit that will work out on the road. Tube tires are a PITA.

[Tetge]

My brother says:

My lift is from: http://www.bikelift.net/photo-gallery/c ... ia.html#13

It is a great lift, it goes higher than others, and is wide. I have NO idea where you buy them... at the time Snap on was going to rebrand them and sell them.. but I don't know what became of that plan.

[jhwalker]

Thanks. Gives me something to research... And I remember that the guy I was trying to buy the DRZ400 E from last year had a nice lift in his San Miguel garage. He is older than I am (!) and has some physical problems that I don't have (yet), so I will send him an email too...

[Brakelate]

Other than a personal desire to re-visit the "good old days" with a Ducati, why not the Triumph Scrambler? I liked them (especially being a sucker for anything imitating a Steve McQueen machine). I'm too lazy to go and look, and perhaps someone here has already made the comparison, and looked up the specs, and performance reviews. But, what would be the differences between the two?

http://www.bonnefication.com/modern-bri ... signs-278/


Or better yet, excluding the fancy brand name or personal attachments to a prior relationship of one's youth, why not build a fun bike out of the new "throw back" Yamaha SR400? There have been some amazing builds, simulating the good old '78 or so TT500 single, that was both a dual sport and a committed big bore "thumper" of a dirt bike? These builds below look very attractive to me indeed. Especially considering the reduced cost, parts availability, dealership network and assumed massive increase in longevity, reliability and all of that. Check this out! I am actually very impressed. Again, not having looked at the specs on paper, or read any actual reviews of how they too, would perform or survive in the "real world".

http://www.bikeexif.com/yamaha-sr400-usa

[jhwalker]

I will take this Triumph scrambler vs Ducati Scrambler as a research assignment, but while thinking about it, what about me taking my S and playing with it? Yes, it is water-cooled and has auto start, but has anyone made hot-poop stuff (DRZ scrambler) like for the Yammerhammer? I would take that Yahama custom in a heartbeat, but then I was reading it will be $12-20K. cough cough I guess the deal is to buy a used Y 400 and start hacking... That could be fun. Terri would kill me...

I owned a Triumph 350 twin back in the day. It pretty much ruined me for Triumphs.

So the first two numbers that I checked were weight and hp. Computing to lbs/hp.
Weight Triumph 506 Ducati 410
HP 58 75
lbs/hp 8.7 5.4

Those numbers make it hard to even think about how to do a Triumph project.
Forbes already did the analysis.
"
Ducati has finally unveiled its highly anticipated 2015 Scrambler. The bike sports an 803 cc engine that puts out 75 horsepower and a hefty 13-inch front disc brake. Much of the technology and design know-how from other bikes in the Ducati stable such as the Monster and Hypermotard has been brought into the retro Scrambler. ABS comes standard. The motorcycle’s design is inspired by the classic bikes the company built in the 1960s and 1970s but it features updates such as an ultra-modern headlight that features a ring of attention grabbing LED lights around its outer edge. The Urban Enduro version features a brown leather seats and is perhaps the most direct competitor for the Triumph Scrambler, a bike that features an 865 cc engine that puts out 58 horsepower. The engineers at Ducati have figured out how to squeeze more power out of slightly smaller engine. Also, unlike the Triumph, which has a five speed transmission, the Ducati Scrambler has six speeds. The Triumph also costs $600 more."
------------------
Triumph has to respond in some way...

[jhwalker]

While waiting on the Bike-Lift folks to respond regarding distributors, my friend send me a link on what he has.
http://www.harborfreight.com/1000-lb-ca ... -8495.html


This motorcycle lift has a foot-operated pump that allows you to easily lift your motorcycles or small recreational vehicle hands free for servicing. Constructed of diamond plate steel, this motorcycle lift can easily lift up to half a ton! Features include retractable casters for easy movement around your garage floor, a 7" wide tire stop and an integrated leg-lock for safe operation making this motorcycle lift ideal for any biker or motorcycle mechanic that needs to tune-up their ride.
•Heavy-duty hydraulic pump with hands-free foot pedal operation
•Diamond plate steel platform and ramp
•Retractable casters and integrated leg-lock for safe operation
•Three position tire vise opens to 6-1/8"
•7" wide tire stop
•Removable steel ramp with dual mount pins for security
•Overweight Item subject to $89.95 additional Freight Charge
•An additional lift-gate charge may apply.

Maximum Lift Height (in.)
29-1/2 in.

$429 I can ship it to his Texas home and he will bring it down. Tetge, I suspect your brother's lift is in another league, but we will see.

29-30 inches of lift should be about right. Sounds clumsy to "lift" but that will not be an everyday event...

[jhwalker]

And the answer to "what the hell am I doing up?" is that Terri just landed in Leon after taking the overnight flight from LAX. 2:40 in the air, 3 hours on the plane.

[Tetge]

I looked at the catalog and there were a lot of lifts made by the company that my brother used. I checked the stats on one, the standard 500, and it lifted the bike a max of 39". The Harbor Freight unit doesn't match this feature, and, of course, for some, the max lift height is very important, as some can't bend well. To visualize, and compare, one could use a tape measure and put some temp marks on a wall. But, even though no prices are shown for the Italian units, there is no doubt that the Harbor Freight unit is less expensive. My brother does a lot of work on his own motorcycles and he is not too limber and spry these days, so he went first cabin when he got a lift. He alleges that it has made a huge difference.

Of course, my dream was always a car lift, and, one might suppose that some additional modification would allow a car lift to serve double duty as a motorcycle lift. But, my garage ceiling is too low for such a thing. So, I make due with my home made stand when I want to get both ends of the bike off the ground (as in when I remove both the front and rear rim). The wooden adapter that I made just barely clears the Yosh exhaust and hits some solid support points under the bike. I also tie the bike down with straps to make sure that it doesn't topple off the jack. It works, but it is not quick, or eloquent, nor does it lift the bike very high in the air. It also takes some time and effort to deploy, but, it stores away quite nicely.

[mikedbike2002]

I have a lift like the Harbor Freight one. No problems & I like it. If you are near a Harbor Freight look in just about any cycle magazine for their ad as there are 20% off coupons in most of them & I have used them to get an extra 20% off the sale price!! Used a 20% off on my trailer when I bought it & got 20 off sale price!

[jhwalker]

I looked at the catalog and there were a lot of lifts made by the company that my brother used. I checked the stats on one, the standard 500, and it lifted the bike a max of 39". The Harbor Freight unit doesn't match this feature, and, of course, for some, the max lift height is very important, as some can't bend well. To visualize, and compare, one could use a tape measure and put some temp marks on a wall. But, even though no prices are shown for the Italian units, there is no doubt that the Harbor Freight unit is less expensive. My brother does a lot of work on his own motorcycles and he is not too limber and spry these days, so he went first cabin when he got a lift. He alleges that it has made a huge difference.

Of course, my dream was always a car lift, and, one might suppose that some additional modification would allow a car lift to serve double duty as a motorcycle lift. But, my garage ceiling is too low for such a thing. So, I make due with my home made stand when I want to get both ends of the bike off the ground (as in when I remove both the front and rear rim). The wooden adapter that I made just barely clears the Yosh exhaust and hits some solid support points under the bike. I also tie the bike down with straps to make sure that it doesn't topple off the jack. It works, but it is not quick, or eloquent, nor does it lift the bike very high in the air. It also takes some time and effort to deploy, but, it stores away quite nicely.

I don't need the extra 9 inches of height. I remember working on my friend's lift and it was adequate. I can always use a stool to raise the effective lift height. I await a response from BikeLift regarding distribution and price. Who knows? Queretaro is 40 miles away and has 2 million people -- maybe they have a distributor.
I enjoyed my 4 post car lift. It was very convenient for working on the SPF. If a miracle occurs and the SPF makes it to my garage here, I will bring in another 4 post lift.

It is interesting that my friend bought the Harbor Freight lift for $300 and change 2 years ago and now it is "on sale" for $430 reduced from $699.