Dunlop Scoot Smart tyres. And the Swing in general.

So I've had a pair of these on my Swing for about 3,600 miles now, that's 4 weeks of commuting from Hayling Island to Watford at 900 miles a week ish.

And I have to say, whilst I confess I had severe reservations as they are Crossply tyres, definitely not Bias belt or Radial, they are pretty good.

They don't "like" raised white lines on the M25/M3 junction southbound, or the built in tramlines between the junctions, they make the bike "tram line" especially in the wet. They aren't fond of metal manhole covers either for that matter.

But I had occasion to show a pair of Power Ranger clad "Sundays and Sunny days" crotch rocket riders "Look we can go fast in a straight line" herberts how to take corners on a bike, and whilst the bike is a bit fidgety when banked over, I did manage to scrape the centre stand on the right hand side, probably because of road camber.
But that interference means I will never get the chicken strips off completely sadly. Shame, I was so close...

And even in the wet, whilst the brakes aren't brilliantly responsive, the bike does hang on, only two "skides" in the slightly torrential rain we had last Wednesday here. The kind of rain where the tyre tracks you leave behind fill up immediately.
And one of them was because I was pushing the envelope a bit. A front end lock up for about a foot maybe? Felt like much more but easing off the lever it just got on with it.

As for wear? Well. Can't really say they are ever lasting, but I still have 5mm on the rear, so probably about three more weeks of commuting, I tend to replace at 3mm anyway.

However. The bike is very "cold". My legs get cold, my ankle especially which is a problem as it's been broken recently, my hands get cold and wet, so I need to look into hand grip wind deflectors, maybe plumb my heated waistcoat in, install heated grips before too long.

Will I fit these tyres again? Yes. Because my "research" kind of indicates that the bike was designed for either Bias belt or Crossply type tyres and the extra grip Radials might give would over whelm the standard suspension.

The rest of the bike, well it's better than I was expecting, good enough that I am looking for a more "not hammered in London" version, preferably with ABS. I just cannot believe how much stuff I can get in the "boot" under the seat. Best I've managed so far, an A4 file, an A3 laminator, my coat, sandwiches, a 1/2 inch drive Bahco socket set, a two pint bottle of milk and I just had enough room for two chocolate bars. Which wasn't a good idea, they were ever so slightly squidgy when I got to work..

Fuel consumption I'm getting circa 48mpg, it will sit at 8,500 bouncing of the tacho all day if I let it, but those kinds of speeds are getting a bit silly these days. Wish the tank was a bit bigger so I could do the 180 mile round trip on one fill instead of needing to top it off...

Brakes aren't exactly "state of the art" either. But I have to presume Honda did their sums when they specced the front disc, it could do with being a little bit larger so it could produce more slowing down torque for less effort. Presumably any bigger and it compromised the balance? Or the disc is that size because Honda already had them in the parts bin. Answers on a post card...

I had to get a new screen for it, couldn't see naff all through the old scratched to heck one... And it really doesn't like supermarket fuel, it developed a "miss fart" from stationary tickover on initial pick up, a kind of "Duh. Durrr" flat spot effect. Cured by feeding it proper fuel.
What would I like? A bit quicker off the mark. I keep getting my backside wiped by Tesla's...

Lost it wrote:

[Snip] Brakes aren't exactly "state of the art" either. But I have to presume Honda did their sums when they specced the front disc, it could do with being a little bit larger so it could produce more slowing down torque for less effort. Presumably any bigger and it compromised the balance? Or the disc is that size because Honda already had them in the parts bin. Answers on a post card... [Snip]

The front rotors on all ABS models were larger diameter than non-ABS until Honda make a permanent upgrade c.2007. From that point all Silverwings had the larger diameter front brake rotor.

You could make the conversion to the larger diameter rotor but, beside sourcing the rotor, you’d also need to replace both lower fork tubes to accommodate the relocated caliper as well as different fender mount locations.

Tim

There are ways and means of making calipers fit rotors over here, kits that will use the original mounts to angle the caliper to suit the larger disc so I will take a look at that.

Or I'll buy me an ABS equipped one.

Well, decided to go and look for an ABS equipped one, save a lot of messing about at the end of the day. Rather than spending my valuable time trying to find a suitable kit, disc, calipers etc. to upgrade the Wing I have.
And lets face it, she's had a hard life, she has a "Chinese" paint finish (looks OK from about 5 yards away) and is as solidly built as any other Honda, there's this "thing" about being a Construction Site Manager where your transport is a kind of reflection on your standing, so most use big BMW's or Mercs, or Audi things. I use big Jaguar's being a patriot, so turning up to work on a bike that looks like it's done a few rounds with a London bus, and won most of them, isn't ideal in that respect. Has to look the part.

So I'm "upgrading" to the nicest one I can find. Then I can add the bits to make it a warm bike, the plugs for the heated KEIS vest and gloves etc. find some wind deflectors, the usual things. And either retire my old one or make it my winter project and fix all the plastics. That would be the ideal plan, because she's a good old bus. And she has done the job of showing me that Scoots are actually a sensible mode of transport. Not as quick as a bike, or as agile, but they do the job.

Lost it, unable to pm you, is this of interest?
16 Reg. Black ABS
6800M
10 months mot
New Michelin pure power tyres (1000M)
New genuine cvt belt
26g Dr Pulley sliders
Engine oil & filter change
Final drive oil change
New spark plugs
New air filter
Givi airflow screen
Oxford heated grips
Wind deflectors
Givi rear rack
Duel USB on handlebar
12v DIN socket at seat
LED driving lamps

Might have been but I bought one today. Owned by a retired bike mechanic, new screen, deflectors, new brake discs 24,000 miles, ABS, new seat, heated grips. It will do for me I think..

More importantly, my old mate Smiffy came around today whilst I was working on my old and decidedly tatty one, he has a Deauville 700 and is getting on a bit like me, in fact he's struggling with the weight a bit. So I suggested he take my Swing around the block. He came back with the biggest **** eating grin I've seen for a long time, went straight on the web, found one about 65 miles away, we have just been to collect it. 2001 version, not ABS but only 16,000 miles on it. In red. Has lots of paperwork with it, a proper bargain at £1200.

Collected it yesterday. As well as a Honda 125 for a friend of mine who is learning...

Unfortunately I have no idea how to post pictures on here...

Lost it wrote:

Unfortunately I have no idea how to post pictures on here...

Please see the post by JeffR in this thread bud ......... https://www.silverwing600.com/t10152-how-do-you-post-pictures-on-this-site