ramble

is it me?or is using a monster for daily commuting a bad idea?i dont want to sound negative as i love my bike,but every day the thing seems to run differently,sometimes sweet,sometimes off colour.it always starts well but theres always that feeling that i,ve been lucky it started,if you know what i mean? every week seems to throw up a new niggle too fix at the weekend before work on monday and the thing seems to attract dirt like no other i've owned!i'm no mechanic but i did fit a second-hand cylinder head after i broke a cambelt,so this might explain my lack of confidence in the machine but the the thing just feels fragile to me.in my opinion with 25k on clock regardless of age the bike should be like new,but when i read other posts it seems my bike is high milage! i ride one of the busiest roads in europe every day(a2 into london) but ive never seen another monster,are monsters for fun only?should i buy a honda 90?
creepy

nah but im convinced they need a good work out every now and again rather than (the short in my case) commute to work

[spacemonkey]

Broke a cambelt??? THE most important thing with these beasts is regular correct servicing. No ifs or buts. Should be fine for commuting then. I usually do a high mileage around London on mine. 35k now, most of that 'round London. The batteries are **** eon these, for a better solution get a http://www.tayna.co.uk/catalog/73/0/...ies-page1.html from http://www.knightbatteries.com/popup...1471&p_i=91471
That'll do it...

I used mine for a really short trip to work <3miles. Won't bother again as it did the bike no good at all and mine is well maintained. 27k miles. Better to get a scooter.

[slob]

Creepy,
I used mine for 26 mile round trip to work every day for a year, before I quit that job and I know what you mean about it feeling different every day(despite mine being fuel injected) no major problems. If the journey's less than 5 miles get a bicycle or a two stroke you'll do more harm than good. Sod what most people commute on... I got a 620 because I didn't want a heavy clutch for my city commute but still want a bike that's proper fun at the weekend. Yes, even the dark's a nightmare to clean properly.
Are you doing the East Kent rideout tomorrow? Bob knows how to keep a monster clean!

Slob, I found that out the hard, but thankfully not too expensive way. Mucho plug fouling etc. Now use the car and will soon use the feet. A pedal bike just don't have the grunt!

[slob]

Feet is still the better option there DD, using the car will just cost you a new pipe every year at MOT time, the thing will never get fully warmed up and the exhaust will rot from the acidic condensation. Also, if the car has a catalytic converter it never reaches its working temperature so is a complete waste of time.

tis true slob, but i find it so much easyer to trash the car than my bike

[gary tompkins]

Originally Posted by slob

Creepy,
Are you doing the East Kent rideout tomorrow? Bob knows how to keep a monster clean!

Oooh that won't get back...

Didn't you hear Bob say at the Oakdene that she's trying for the "Dirtybike" award at Arrow Mill in May?

************************************************** ****

Creepy,

Think I must see you at least twice a week at the moment. I'm guessing your the guy (open face lid & dayglo vest) on the red monster I often pass on Princes road around 8.30am, usually coming down the hill towards the lights on Lowfield street?

I'm in my works van (Balfour Beatty) most of the time, but if I get the chance to use the monster for work I'll give you a wave. I live in Wilmington so only a few miles away from you at most.

As Slob said - try to get yourself to a few Kent ride-outs, thats the best place to tie up with local UKMOC'ers.

My bike's dirtier than Bob's though!

I commute about 30 miles round trip every day on my Monnie - Hythe to Dover and return and have suffered comparatively few problems. I'm a firm believer that riding your bike regularly is far better for it than hiding it in the garage and only taking it out every now and again.

I wouldn't fancy your journey every day on my Monnie simply because the A2 into town requires you to use the clutch a lot which can get pretty heavy after a while. My journey's a bit more open road so I don't suffer the same problem.

gary t. that is me you see on princes road,i do shifts so one week i'm there 8.30 ish the next 6.15, it was a surprise to read that someone had spotted me! i've been commuting into work by bike since i was 16.......i'm 35 this year,ive used eveything from mopeds to a 1000cc bmw doing about 40 miles a day rain or shine, i love it! i'm just not sure a monsters a good bike to do it on! i will try to get out one weekend although id probably hold things up as i tend to ride quite slowly! the broken cambelt was down to me believing a dealer that the belts had recently been changed, 4k later a belt snapped!when i fixed the thing i found the belt tensioners had their allen bolts completely chewed-up and the belts were probably the originals,bike had 22k up.i fitted new rear pads last weekend,my next job is to find why the oil lamp has stopped working,i surpose what i'm trying to say is"why do to have to keep fiddling with this thing?" my other bike is 23yr old bmw,its completely clapped-out with at least 140k on the clock but it just keeps on going, with sod-all mantinance!
creepy

I wouldn't use a Ducati where the miles quickly clock up, servicing costs make it an expensive commuter and even if you do it yourself it can be time consuming.

If you want something that will run and run with little attention then a beamer or something japanese is the better option (in my opinion), i did over 20,000 miles on my old Firestorm and all i touched were the plugs and oil, the S4 if far more fun but costs lots more to run.

Ducatis are fun but i don't think they are a day to day bike.


Shaun

[gary tompkins]

Originally Posted by creepy

gary t. that is me you see on princes road,i do shifts so one week i'm there 8.30 ish the next 6.15, it was a surprise to read that someone had spotted me! >snip...

Guessed it was, and if I spot you again I'll give you a wave next time.

my next job is to find why the oil lamp has stopped working,i surpose what i'm trying to say is"why do to have to keep fiddling with this thing?">snip...

This could be something as simple as a blown bulb in the idiot lights, a duff oil pressure switch or connection/wiring loom faults.

IMO a monster will only hack reliably if you can afford to keep on top of them service-wise, and this gets more critical as the miles rack up. Throw winter use/salted roads into the equation, combined with a lack of proper cleaning and they quickly fall apart in front of your eyes

TBH If I still needed to use 2 wheels for work (which I don't) I would get something like a cheap scooter for commuting, and keep the monster back for better (weekend) use.

It's good to track down another local monsterer - I'm sure we'll meet up before long

A number of points to consider here, especially as we are going to move house this year, which means I will need to start commuting again – I use shanks pony at the moment. I’ve commuted by bike before (Suzuki Bandit), but when I got the Monster the choice was taken knowing that I did not have to use it to get to work.

I know of a number of people who do commute daily on their Monsters, but I am also very aware of the cost of servicing / insurance, etc. As well as the need for a reasonable length of run in order to get the bike up to operating temperature, etc. In addition, I run a 900 – and the dry clutch is not so good an idea if having to do a lot of town work. So obviously the choice of what to do will depend upon exactly where we end up living, distance (and type) of commute.

I don’t mind cleaning the thing – although around here I’d have to at least hose it down every day during the winter when I got home – unless I was going to try and compete with Nik for the dirtiest Monster award . Having used one on my Bandit when I commuted by bike before, a Scottoiler is a must. (Please discuss elsewhere).

If it’s a reasonable run, I may use Susan’s SV650 as a commuter bike, or if it is a ‘short’ run then I’ll get a scooter – although most of them look pants - maybe I could get a Gilera DNA 180 from somewhere? (love the design , but would want the biggest engine).

Knowing that we were going to move has concentrated my mind on this over the past few months – what bike would be good – assuming a reasonable length of run, and what features are necessary/desirable?? What can I say – given a choice of any bike, I probably wouldn’t start with a Monster 900. Ideally I’d want a bit of weather protection, comfortable ride position, avoid chain drive if possible, wet clutch, cheap servicing costs, and good reliability. (And NO, I don’t want a Honda Dullville). It also has to be FUN and Look Good (Beauty being in the eye…) for weekend hooning.

The following are possibles:
1) baby Multistrada, but chain drive and servicing costs… plus it will be a fiddle to clean like the Monster.
2) Maybe the Buell CityX, but questions about reliability (stop laughing PD!)
3) Yamaha’s proposed MT-03 looked great, but apparently they aren’t going to use the prototypes belt drive (bad decision), so looses a big advantage.
4) new Aprillia Strada? Unknown at this point, and has chain drive.
5) Moto Guzzi V11 ???? Less practical, but I like a lot in the absence of a practical MGS-01. (Did I hear a rumour of a proposed Guzzi equivalent of a multistrada??)
6) Whisper it… BMW

Descisions, decisions

[spacemonkey]

For 'round town commuting, the best tool has surely got to be a reasonably sensible supermoto, like the japs build (not a KTM etc).
I get my Monster back at last this week and I'll be back to doing 50-70 miles a day around London. I agree with the ones who say a used Ducati (with a bit of spanner tickling to keep it on song) is better than one that only comes out on sunny Sundays. Not using it will kill the cam belts quicker than using it every day, I'm sure, due to them moulding to the shape they're in on the sprockets. I bought the Monster so that I could twiddle spanners every now and then as for me that's part of the involvement of bikes, so it suits me fine.