Just a heads up for all Aussie fourm members, Motorcycle Trader magazine has a 3 page write up about our R65 under the heading "Reader's Resto".
Cheers. [smiley=bmw_smiley.gif]
What month?I don't normally buy MT since they pass off advertising pap as ride reports (more on this below) but I bought this month's edition because of the supposed R65 article.
There is an article about a bestial cafe conversion of what was apparently once a very nice R80, but nothing about an R65? any chance if it was last month, that you could scan the article and put it up here?
/rant-on
I dislike Motorcycle Trader because last year Yamaha released a new triple, MT supposedly did a ride test and published a lot of drivel including how the new Yamaha triple features a "450 degree" crank for smooth power delivery.
I found that fascinating because as we all know, there are only 360 degrees in a circle, so whilst theoretically the crank webs could be phased 90 degrees, giving a "2 up, 1 down" arrangement, the question would be why? As far as I know, Laverda were the last manufacturer of a triple using a flat plane crank, not only did that lazy 90 degrees left over give them a decidedly odd exhaust note, they also vibrated like 40 bastards which led Laverda to invest in the machining equipment capable of casting, machining and grinding a 120 degree crank and the next model was in fact a 120 degree crank which was the making of the Jota.
In Yamaha's first iteration of a triple - the 1970s era XS750/850, they used a 120 degree crank from the outset, resulting in what is generally regarded as an engine of such smoothness as is only approached by the likes of the CBX Honda, the Z1300 Kawasaki and the Benelli SE.
So it struck me as passing odd that Yamaha would build a smooth running flat plane crank triple when the required balance shafts could simply be deleted if you used 120 degrees (and as a famous GM engineer "Boss" Kettering (the inventor of the points triggered ignition system) once said - "Parts left out cost nothing and create no servicing problems.".
The alleged reviewer from MT responded to me by email, unfortunately his response revealed that he had no idea what he was talking about. I wrote back to him and he responded by sending me the full text of "his" ride report which he alleged had been cut in an less than opportune manner by the editor.
Sadly for him, I am a suspicious and mis-trusting soul and I used one of the more unique paragraphs in "his" unedited "ride report" into Google - which came back with a Yamaha America press release which just happened to have about 98% commonality with "his" ride report (and which also contained the same obvious error about a 450 degree crank).
I dislike so-called reviewers regurgitating pre-packaged advertising material and presenting it as their own unbiased opinion arrived at as a result of their own riding and testing of the bike involved. In fact I think such behaviour crosses the line into deceptive and misleading conduct and we actually have consumer protection laws in Australia that deal with that sort of thing.
Anyway, I have a snout of Motorcycle Trader as a result, the only thing that would appease me is if they simply give me the two adventure prepped Dr Sues they are giving away to a lucky subscriber at the end of this month. Yes, that would do it.
