Retro's Royal Enfield ... a farkle diary

retroman

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So on Thursday the great day finally arrived, my overnight journey to Doncaster to collect my latest purchase courtesy of Micky :beerjug: ... his 2018 Royal Enfield Himalayan.

Plan being, train Cardiff-Sheffield to sample the many pubs in the City that my real-ale-drinking friends are always banging on about. Hotel overnight. Bus to Doncaster in the AM to meet Micky.

"I love train travel these days", said no-one, ever. Noise-cancelling BOSE headphones front-and-center!!

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Changing onto a trans-Pennine at Stockport, I had time for a quick pint in this dodgy pub near the station. Lots of Northern Soul and Union jack references (you get the picture) and the only beer was keg Boddingtons:barf

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Arriving at Sheffield, first stop was the wonderous Sheffield Tap on platform 1, famous in the CAMRA world, and I was straight on the Thornbridge with a much-needed home made Pork Pie:thumb2

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The rest of the evening was a bit of a blur, I did manage visits to several famous Sheffield pubs - the Harlequin, Kelham Island Tavern, Shakespeares and this beast - the Fat Cat, with a brilliant selection of ales and real fires, my kind of pub, especially when the landlady took pity on me and opened the kitchen 30 minutes early to cook me pie & chips:okay

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So home to bed for the night at The Crow Inn via a splendid single malt nightcap or two, onto day 2 and I might actually mention motorcycles.
 
New-ish Bike Day

Day two and onto the X78 bus to Doncaster, "why not the train?" you may ask, but the X78 stops at the bottom of Micky's street thereby saving him the pain of collecting me from the station:blast

I was on the bus for 70 minutes and the fare was £2 which I find amazing in this day and age. During that time I was able to view South Yorkshire low-life in all its dubious glory, including the inevitable Fat Slags (on the phone, fookin' this, fookin' that, the odd C-bomb:eek:) and their screaming baby being force fed Quavers and chocolate to keep him quiet. No photos taken thankfully.

It was great to meet Micky and Choccy, after a cuppa and a bit of banter I spent all of two minutes appraising the bike, it's an absolute minter 2018 E4 model with loads of useful farkles already added, there was no way I was going to change my mind and the deal was done:thumb2 albeit after some issue with money transfers, suffice to say that Micky (gentleman and true UKGSer that he is) allowed me to ride off still owing him a wedge, which must be a first in Yorkshire!

Thanks again Micky:beerjug:

The ride home was uneventful, I went south through the Peak District and then across country through Salop to Welshpool. The weather held although it was dark by the time I got to Llandrindod Wells ... and I'm not very keen on unlit twisty country roads at night:eek:

The bike was just great, a delight to ride, the big single thudding away, and so easy to turn into corners and on the twisties. A different style of riding to my GS, but a back-to-basics approach to motorcycling that I really like. Unlike some on here I have no issues with the brakes, and the bike is powerful enough for what it was designed for IMHO.

Only problem for me is the seat, I'm 5'10" with 32" inside leg and I was in agony after the first 100 miles. Crouched too far forward, knees bent to far, arse was killing me. This despite the fact that I took my sheepskin, knowing in advance of issues with the seat. I reckon the seat needs to be 2" higher with the option to sit slightly further back to be all-day comfortable. There's a guy on Facebook who has been recommended, SAS Autotrim, so I think my seat will be heading there soon:thumb2

This is what I need, an example of his work:

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Anyway, here is Hamish safely stashed in my garage at long last ...

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An example of Micky's useful additions, this Hella plug which allows me to keep the battery on trickle charge using my existing Optimate (I've now ordered a second from Nippy Norman's, so both the GS and the Himmy can stay on charge).

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More updates as and when - engine bars and luggage options are being considered.
 
Good one Dave, great to meet up. Glad you liked the 'bike, but it was never going to be in doubt :D

Loads of farkles available for the Himalayan. I know you know of them, but for anyone else looking in Hitchcocks Motorcycles have more accessories and bits than Touratech has for the GS's :thumb2

If I'd known about your plans for Sheffield I might have been across :friday

I watched you ride off along the top road ... the 'bike sounded great!

Keep us all posted :thumby:

:beerjug:
 
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That’s tidy. I did something the same on my 1200 GSA but, hadn’t thought of doing it on my Himalayan.
 
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That’s tidy. I did something the same on my 1200 GSA but, hadn’t thought of doing it on my Himalayan.

Where I fitted that Hella socket is about the only place for it, with space behind. The air box sits directly behind the side panel otherwise :eek:

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Straight to the battery via a fuse :thumb

:beerjug:
 
I'm relieved to know it's not just me that doesn't fit that seat. Let us know how you get on with the re-model please. I'll be using a local car upholtery bloke. I just finished a 100 odd mile run to the Borders and back and was barely comfortable despite a wodge of foam and a sheepskin. On the other hand, the bike did 72mpg. :D

PS: That's a belter of a pork pie! :drool
 
Where I fitted that Hella socket is about the only place for it, with space behind. The air box sits directly behind the side panel otherwise :eek:

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Straight to the battery via a fuse :thumb

:beerjug:

Thank you, as I was wondering about the clearance behind the side cover. The only difference is that I‘ll probably fit a female SAE socket.
 
I fitted mine on the battery side cover. There's enough room if you're careful. I made a cardboard template first and checked that the switch didn't foul the battery or the abs gubbins below it.
 
Welcome to the Himalayan appreciation group retroman. Had my seat done by SAS autotrim, Steve does a good job but just be mindful that sometimes he puts quite a slope on the seat so I would advise you tell him how you want this. Thinking about returning mine as it leans me too far forward, the one in your photo seems about right.
 
Welcome to the Himalayan appreciation group retroman. Had my seat done by SAS autotrim, Steve does a good job but just be mindful that sometimes he puts quite a slope on the seat so I would advise you tell him how you want this. Thinking about returning mine as it leans me too far forward, the one in your photo seems about right.

Thanks for that GSite, I'll certainly mention this. Seat going in this week:beerjug:

EDIT this is the message I sent Steve:

Good morning Steve, I've just purchased a 2018 RE Himalayan but the seat is dire. I've seen the recommendations for your work on the Himmy FB group. I'm 5'10" with a 32" inside leg. The existing seat pitches me too far forward into the tank meaning my knees are too bent. I need the seat raised by 2" without any forward slope (or at least, very limited slope)so that I can push myself back a bit, plus firm padding for my bony arse!! I saw a photo on the FB page of your work which looks spot-on, will attach. Kind regards, Dave.
 
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That’s tidy. I did something the same on my 1200 GSA but, hadn’t thought of doing it on my Himalayan.

The battery is the same age as my bike (4 years) and I don't trust it! On the run south when I stopped at Matlock Bath, the restart was sluggish and the clock reset, I feared a dying battery, so much so that I kept the engine running on subsequent stops. I've had it on trickle for two days but the charge is showing amber/green on the Optimate, I'll be carrying my NOCO battery pack with me for the time being, but a new battery is certainly on my (ever growing) To Buy list.
 
The battery is the same age as my bike (4 years) and I don't trust it! On the run south when I stopped at Matlock Bath, the restart was sluggish and the clock reset, I feared a dying battery, so much so that I kept the engine running on subsequent stops. I've had it on trickle for two days but the charge is showing amber/green on the Optimate, I'll be carrying my NOCO battery pack with me for the time being, but a new battery is certainly on my (ever growing) To Buy list.



Let me know if you fit a new battery Dave :eek:

PM or text me the price, and your email/PayPal and I'll go halves on it :thumby:

:beerjug:
 
Let me know if you fit a new battery Dave :eek:

PM or text me the price, and your email/PayPal and I'll go halves on it :thumby:

:beerjug:

Micky, that's very kind and you are indeed a total gent - but it's a consumable at the end of it's natural life, so no worries!

My decision to carry the NOCO about with me proved prophetic, though: went up to visit the old man today, came back to the bike and it was stone-dead!!:blast NOCO to the rescue, she fired-up instantly:thumby:


I rode straight home with no issues, the seat is now parcelled up ready for posting tomorrow to SAS autotrim.

In addition to the battery I've also ordered the following from HITCHCOCKS:
-GIVI engine bars
-rear rack upgrade kit to strengthen the same, ready to accept a GIVI rack for my existing 30L TREKKER top-box
-part no 92095, an additional battery loom to reduce drain, which is apparently a problem for E4 Himmys.

So all this should solve these slight teething issues. Loving the bike:beerjug:

Also plan to fit a SW-Motech tank ring so I can use my existing SW-M tank bag, then start thinking about GPS mounting options:rolleyes:
 
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