[ebonho]

Originally Posted by aravind.anand

You are right, Doc. After doing ceramic coating, and taking extra care to maintain the fuel tank, some random guy had dropped his scooter on my parked bike and caused a paint chip and a deep scar. I was devastated and was exploring different ways to fix that. Now 3 years since that incident, I have accepted that to be a battle scar and it doesn't bother me too much, it has become part of the scenery now

This is the law of nature and bikers. Universally.

The first scratch always pains the worst.

Cheers, Doc

[parrys]

Originally Posted by aravind.anand

@parrys - The PPF you have installed is all the protection you would need to protect the top of the tank surface, just go out and enjoy riding without thinking too much

I know, that’s probably the best solution to protect the paint, and can be replaced like once a year or so, if the film gets damaged. I’m just not in the state of mind to accept and let that scratch be.

Originally Posted by ebonho

This is the law of nature and bikers. Universally.

The first scratch always pains the worst.

Cheers, Doc

Hurts more than a gunshot.
I had been planning this motorcycle since a year, and it’s scratched within a month.

Today, I had some free time in the evening.
So, went to the Mr. DIY store to find a rubbing polish compound. Did not find that, but found some other interesting stuff.

TPU takes the shape of the tank. Can be stuck using a 3M tape.


There are similar tank pads available internationally. This is a little large, but more or less the same, and the width seems just right.


This is a leather finish. But not sure how to place it. Would need at least two of these.


Here’s a carbon fibre finish.

[V0rtex]

Originally Posted by kaza

Does installing a slip on affect your warranty?

If one were to remove the slip ons before taking it to the service. I’m pretty sure they wouldn’t know if you’ve had an exhaust on. Also, it really depends from service center to center. If you have developed a good relation with them, they don’t really care. If you want to claim warranty, they’d tell you to swap it to stock exhaust.

[V0rtex]

Originally Posted by TheHelix0202

Those are possibly the worst - courtesy of being the cheapest - exhausts run by your average 650 chapps on the street.

PoweRage dyno tune their exhausts and honestly sound the most balanced, with or without the baffles.

I’ve been seeing a lot of hate towards the Red Rooster exhaust. Is it because the exhaust is inherently bad or is it because of the squids that use it? A friend of line mentioned that it has wool burning issue?? I’m not sure about this !

[aargee]

Originally Posted by V0rtex

I’ve been seeing a lot of hate towards the Red Rooster exhaust...A friend of line mentioned that it has wool burning issue?? I’m not sure about this !

Like your friend said, once the wool burns out the dB level increases which eventually becomes cop & dog magnet

[V0rtex]

Originally Posted by aargee

Like your friend said, once the wool burns out the dB level increases which eventually becomes cop & dog magnet

So it’s just an issue with the dB level and not the performance?

[aargee]

Originally Posted by V0rtex

So it’s just an issue with the dB level and not the performance?

IMHO, there's no performance; let me do a rough calculation to explain why
Weight of Interceptor: ~212 Kg
Weight of stock exhaust: ~8 Kg
Weight of RR exhaust: ~4 Kg
Power: 47 Ps

P2W ratio on stock exhaust: 221 Ps per ton
P2W ratio on RR exhaust: 225 Ps per ton

I'm totally out of arguments such as back pressure yielding to increase in HP; give or take 2-3 PS addition. Let's say a performance gain of 3-4 PS for Rs 21K

[V0rtex]

Originally Posted by aargee

IMHO, Let's say a performance gain of 3-4 PS for Rs 21K

The stock mufflers are too quiet in my opinion. In my opinion when you are buying a multi-cylinder bike ( except the 180 degree Twins) you should get a slip-on.

[parrys]

So, the stock headlight was quite useless.
Picked up these HJG aux lights, 70W each unit.
Fixed only one, retro style.
Cost - INR 7,700 for a set, with wiring harness & switch.

[parrys]

Here’s a reference of the light throw, after the installation.
A night ride is due, would adjust after that, if necessary.

[parrys]

So yesterday, it rained in & around Mumbai.
Very light drizzle, for a few minutes.

Of course, first rain means you ride a two-wheeler extra carefully because the road surface turns to a skating ring.

I have been riding motorcycles since 2005, and the Ceat tyres on the INT 650 are possibly the worst OEM fit tyres on a bike I have experienced in such a situation. Robbed me off all my confidence.

For as long as the road surface was wet, I was riding on the extreme left of the road, with hazard lights on, and so nervous, that I had one leg off the peg just in case...

I hope & wish RE simply ditches this tyre compound for the 650 twins completely and offers something better.
Now I am very seriously considering a tyre upgrade, in less than 1,500 kms of riding on this very poor Ceats.

I have noticed it before, on small wet patches, that these Ceats love to slide. Horrible tyres.

[b16h22]

Originally Posted by parrys

I hope & wish RE simply ditches this tyre compound for the 650 twins completely and offers something better.
Now I am very seriously considering a tyre upgrade, in less than 1,500 kms of riding on this very poor Ceats.

I have noticed it before, on small wet patches, that these Ceats love to slide. Horrible tyres.

Continental GTs come with the Vredesteins iirc. You might want to look into those. Tyre options are not plenty for the 650 sizes.

[parrys]

Forgot to share good news from yesterday.
Some sanding and machine polishing, the scratches were gone from the tank.

Which means, the PPF is off too. It was lifting, and I just could not accept the stupid reasons given for that happening. I was anyway never a fan of PPF.

Gave it a thorough coat of the Turtle Wax Graphene spray tonight. Will let it rest for 3 days now.

[Viju]

Wow, so relieved to see that the scratches have vanished! Well done, Parrys!

I was really pained to see the scratches on the tank when you posted them, and really glad you managed to fix them. I would really suggest following Doc's advice and not stick anything on that beautiful tank.

On a different note, will be really helpful if you could check something on your bike for me.

On the earlier Twins from pre-LED headlight era, the headlight used to come ON with the IGN ON, and not on engine start like the J Platform 350s. If possible, could you please check this on your bike and let me know how it works?

(1) Only the DRL comes on with IGN ON and headlight turns ON after engine start?
OR
(2) Both the DRL and the headlight turn ON at IGN ON?

Thanks in advance!

[parrys]

Originally Posted by Viju

Wow, so relieved to see that the scratches have vanished! Well done, Parrys!

I was really pained to see the scratches on the tank when you posted them, and really glad you managed to fix them. I would really suggest following Doc's advice and not stick anything on that beautiful tank.

On a different note, will be really helpful if you could check something on your bike for me.

On the earlier Twins from pre-LED headlight era, the headlight used to come ON with the IGN ON, and not on engine start like the J Platform 350s. If possible, could you please check this on your bike and let me know how it works?

(1) Only the DRL comes on with IGN ON and headlight turns ON after engine start?
OR
(2) Both the DRL and the headlight turn ON at IGN ON?

Thanks in advance!

Cannot afford to leave the tank open & uncovered, in the interest of my mental well being.

When you turn the ignition on, only the DRLs turn on, not the main beam. Headlight only after engine start.

But if you've been riding and you hit the kill switch. Then the light stays on, till you turn the ignition off.