Lights out

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furygan man · #1 Post by **furygan man** » Mon Aug 13, 2012 11:03 am

Was a bit of a rare occassion yesterday..i actually went out around the Dales on the bike, i got overtaken by a couple of bikes who were at the next junction when i arrived, one of them motioned me over, thought there was something wrong with the bike so turned off the engine to hear the chap and he said "if i turn on my headlight i will been seen better by other motorists..!" I had my LED side lights on...was a fair point i guess, everyone entitled to there opinion but i was more surprised by the fact he'd called me over like i was some young kid!!!!

On a seperate note, when i got back home it was getting harder to change gear and needed the lever dial position to be on No:5... does this mean the clutch needs bleeding, sorry con't word it any more technical than that?

Aladinsaneuk · #2 Post by **Aladinsaneuk** » Mon Aug 13, 2012 12:55 pm

have you checked the fluid level - and more importantly, have you topped up the clutch fluid recently?

is the clutch binding or slipping at all? now the bike is cold, does the gear engage more easily??

check and adjust the gear selector as well - they get lots of crud in them!

I guess the obvious thing is - check the simple things first....

furygan man · #3 Post by **furygan man** » Mon Aug 13, 2012 1:09 pm

...yeah never thought to have a quick look at that till i came into work...will check at the weekend

D-Rider · #4 Post by **D-Rider** » Mon Aug 13, 2012 1:42 pm

Noooo lights are for night time.
They hide other vulnerable road users and make people lazy in only looking for lights. What's more they make it much more difficult for others to determine your speed and position.

furygan man · #5 Post by **furygan man** » Mon Aug 13, 2012 1:49 pm

I remember you've made that point in the past, sometimes i've found when you're behind someone with the HID light on it makes them nevous and jittery and they start driving erratically and looking in their mirrors and start indicating or slowing down for you to go past even if you don't want too!

I started to think about lighting acording to the riding conditions and pay more attention to being allert rather than presuming that as I have my headlight on they'll see me...i was just surprised to be told by the other guy...couldn't really be bothered with a smart reply at the time

#6 Post by **Kwackerz** » Mon Aug 13, 2012 2:12 pm

shouldve asked him his qualifications..

struv · #7 Post by **struv** » Mon Aug 13, 2012 4:29 pm

dont use lights later in the year when the suns low you just blend in with the glare better off without then

Willopotomas · #8 Post by **Willopotomas** » Mon Aug 13, 2012 5:49 pm

D-Rider wrote:Noooo lights are for night time.
They hide other vulnerable road users and make people lazy in only looking for lights. What's more they make it much more difficult for others to determine your speed and position.

+1. Far more accidents attributed to day time running lights than with none.

BikerGran · #9 Post by **BikerGran** » Mon Aug 13, 2012 6:57 pm

I agree to some extent but I use lights on sunny days when going into a tunnel under trees makes it all very dark. Bikes - and trikes - present fewer reflective surfaces than cars and larger vehicles and therefore ARE more difficult to see.

fatboy · #10 Post by **fatboy** » Mon Aug 13, 2012 7:45 pm

Agree with B/G on that one, if you can see a head or side light in daylight it means they are visible, so are you.
Also agree with Furyganman, a bright bike headlight in your (car/van/lorry)mirror is noticable but can be difficult to judge the distance and speed of the bike, I always pull over to allow overtaking room when I see a bike behind me, sometimes they pass and wave thanks, sometimes they sit on your ass leaving you hugging the kerb,sometimes they pass when you least expect it