[adrian]

Originally Posted by Alfaholic

My dad has been using a bullet 500 for the past 3 years and did close to 30k kms. T
The bike doesn't have any modifications and was serviced in January.

Starter relay stuck in contact position. See if it gets released by giving it a light tap with a rubber hammer or the handle of a screw driver.

The starter switch energies the relay, which completes the circuit, that gives power to the starter motor directly from the battery. That might be the reason the motorcycle continued to crank even after switching off the ignition.

[ashwinprakas]

Originally Posted by Alfaholic

My dad has been using a bullet 500 for the past 3 years and did close to 30k kms. Today morning when he tried to use the self start, the bike refused to stop cranking even after releasing the self start switch. He then tried to switch off the ignition, but that didn't help either. He then removed the battery connection which stopped the cranking.
What could be the reason for this?
The bike doesn't have any modifications and was serviced in January.

Happens when the starter relay gets stuck.

You need to replace the starter relay, not an expensive part and is a simple DIY.

BTW, kudos for the quick thinking, I know of guys who simply stood by while the starter motor went for a toss.

Cheers,
A.P.

[scorpian]

This could be primarily due to self start relay getting stuck hence the cranking continuing post release of the switch.

If i am not wrong should be fairly simply to replace the relay.Another probability is the switch staying stuck even after letting go, you could test this with a multi-meter.

hope this helps.

[Alfaholic]

My dads bullet 500 is also having black deposit (rust?) on the bend pipe (the area where the bend pipe connects the cylinder). I used to remove it once in six months with coca cola and aluminium foil (jugaad) whenever i went home. Is there any better method to remove it?
My method used to remove 70% of the deposit and it hasn't been working properly lately.

[Roy.S]

Originally Posted by Alfaholic

Is there any better method to remove it?
.

I use Autosol metal polish for the silencer on my CL500 and it does the job brilliantly. My bike doesn't have the problem you've mentioned but there is enough muck that gets burnt into the hotter parts of the exhaust and 15 minutes of hand buffing with autosol is enough to being back the shine.

[Alfaholic]

Originally Posted by Roy.S

I use Autosol metal polish for the silencer on my CL500 and it does the job brilliantly. My bike doesn't have the problem you've mentioned but there is enough muck that gets burnt into the hotter parts of the exhaust and 15 minutes of hand buffing with autosol is enough to being back the shine.

I used to do the engine and silencer with the autosol polish and always worked. But the bend pipe has a think layer of deposit which makes it hard to remove with the help of autosol.
I have only tried using autosol once in that area and wasn't very successful. A technician from RE service centre told me to use petrol on the hot bend pipe and rub it hard with a cloth, but i was not willing to do it.
I will finally end up nickeling the bend pipe, but before that i am checking for some easy solution.

[adrian]

Originally Posted by Alfaholic

I used to do the engine and silencer with the autosol polish and always worked. But the bend pipe has a think layer of deposit .

If the bend pipe in your 500 has reached the condition in the following picture, then no amount of metal polish can help as it has already lost the chrome covering and rust has started to rear its ugly head.

My Bullets silencer (before)


The only solution left is to paint the part to preserve it. ( I don't know about the after effects of electroplating the part since it contains two catalytic converters- the experts can comment on this)

My Bullet's silencer after painting


You will have to use paint that can withstand high temperatures

[jacob.d.mathew]

Hi has anyone tried to fit a cast iron engine to the UCE chassis? I'm planning on building a RE with left hand brake, right hand gear - using an older engine and a more recent chassis. Has anyone attempted this?

[aditya.86]

Hello.

I own a 2014 Thunderbird 350. Till now have been using the liquid gun engine oil for regular changes.

Are there any other alternatives to this or is it better to stick with company approved engine oil.

The bike is hardly used nowadays, hence planning to change all fluids before i start riding again.

[adrian]

Originally Posted by aditya.86

Hello.

I own a 2014 Thunderbird 350. Till now have been using the liquid gun engine oil for regular changes.

Are there any other alternatives to this or is it better to stick with company approved engine oil.

The bike is hardly used nowadays, hence planning to change all fluids before i start riding again.

Go for Motul 5100 semi synthetic. After 8 years and above 47K on the odo, I did a recent change to that from Motul 3000 4T Plus mineral oil and I am still regretting for not changing to semi synthetic earlier.

https://www.motul.com/is/en/products/5100-4t-15w50--2

The engine will become more smooth and you can also slightly extend the refill period.

[locusjag]

Does anyone know if RE's official alloy wheel accessory can't be fitted onto plain Std 350s/Electras? For some reason they only mentioned it being available for Classics and Thunderbirds.

[aditya.86]

Originally Posted by adrian

Go for Motul 5100 semi synthetic. After 8 years and above 47K on the odo, I did a recent change to that from Motul 3000 4T Plus mineral oil and I am still regretting for not changing to semi synthetic earlier.

https://www.motul.com/is/en/products/5100-4t-15w50--2

The engine will become more smooth and you can also slightly extend the refill period.

Thanks a lot. Will try it out this time. Also can you recommend any specific chain cleaner that you use.

[adrian]

Originally Posted by aditya.86

Thanks a lot. Will try it out this time. Also can you recommend any specific chain cleaner that you use.

I use Gear HP 90 or 120 for lubing my chain for regular use and motul chain lubing spray during long rides and rainy season.


Edit : Just noticed that you were asking for a chain cleaner

I am using kerosene and grunge brush to clean my drive chain.

[LazyGunner]

Originally Posted by locusjag

Does anyone know if RE's official alloy wheel accessory can't be fitted onto plain Std 350s/Electras? For some reason they only mentioned it being available for Classics and Thunderbirds.

Classic rear wheel size is 18" whereas for Electra and Std350, it is 19". I believe there'll be no modification needed to fit the smaller wheel on Electra and Std350, but I see following issues:

1. GC reduces greatly resulting in center stand scraping the road on most(if not all) speedbreakers.
2. Classic rims are wider to support wider tyres (110/90 and 120/80) in place of ~100/90(3.25-3.5) of Electra/Std350. So, one will need to upsize the tyres. Classic350 comes with a 16 teeth front sprocket to pull this added weight at the rear where as Electra and Std350 are fitted with 15 teeth front sprocket. Unless changed, this messes up the drive ratio resulting in loss of pick-up.
3. A wider tyre on an Electra probably means regular realignment of rear mudguard because it is smaller and might touch the tyre more often than not.
4. It might become difficult to use the center stand in Std350 because of the added weight at the rear due to upsized tyres and those traditional shocks don't help at all to lift the motorcycle.

If I'm not wrong these mag wheels should be direct fit for Std500.

I do not have first hand experience on Std350/Electra with 18"rear wheel. So my observations are theoretical. If somebody has done, would love to know the results.

[Geo_Ipe]

Originally Posted by aditya.86

Also can you recommend any specific chain cleaner that you use.

I'm using WD 40 to clean my chain.

There seems to be a variety of opinions when it comes to WD 40 as chain cleaner. However, this comparison by FortNine seems to say that WD 40 is quite alright.

https://youtu.be/UrEpAUi_QKA

Public Opinion??