New K-rider from up north

[Doodle]

Hi and hello from up north!
I bought an K75 RT with ABS from 1990, it's and old police bike. I have taken a few short rides with, its my first bike but I really like it so far. Except for the for view in the side mirrors, but I just ordered extra side view mirrors for it.
I live in Sweden and I am thinking about using it even during the winter, but I have to get a feel for how it is riding in the autumn first.
Glad to be here and learn more about these flying bricks :D

[Laitch]

Welcome to the scrum, Doodle! Be sure to look through this site's Technical Directory where you will find service bulletins, workshop manuals, rider's handbooks, and electrical diagrams to help you maintain and repair your Brick.

Look at this page and the accompanying information on Ted Verrill's website. He was K75 enthusiast and filled the site with useful information. This will give you an overview of maintenance needs.

Good luck with your Brick!

[Doodle]

Thank you, I'll have a look

[frankenduck]

Never trust your mirrors anyhow. ALWAYS do an over the shoulder look.

[Doodle]

I do before turning or moving over a lane. But right now I have to move in my elbow to see if there even is a car behind me or not. I am a bit wider then normal, but not that big...

[Laitch]

It you want more convenient or increase rear view sight, you could customize your fairing like this RS rider did.

[Doodle]

That was a neat solution.
I thought this hole was for putting in the mirrors in so that you have both the original mirrors and then also these extra.

[Laitch]

I thought this hole was for putting in the mirrors in so that you have both the original mirrors and then also these extra.

That hole is for mounting mirrors; it is found on all Brick models' control lever assemblies, but on an RT, stem mirrors mounted in those holes may hit the fairing when the handlebar is turned far enough in either direction.

[natalena]

Welcome aboard. Year round riding in Sweden sounds very ruffty tuffty. Do you use ice cleats or chains? Cheers

[Doodle]

Welcome aboard. Year round riding in Sweden sounds very ruffty tuffty. Do you use ice cleats or chains? Cheers

Thanks! I was thinking of using studded tires, but I am not 100% sure that I want to ride in the winter yet. The roads gets pretty icy and snowy.


The side view mirrors where a bit smaller then I thought    But they work I guess, at least the don't hit the fairing. I was in a hurry and did ask for measurements.

[Edward]

Greetings Doodle,You might find that, going forward, the original ones are fine without the second pair. I suspect it's a learning curve in action. After the winter season, try one set again; I think you'll be surprised. Gathering your senses in tune with each other goes a long way as the miles tick on. Studded tires... my only experience is on a mountain bike. That was so much fun some time ago, as the winters are now much warmer. Seeking out ice to ride on seemed counterintuitive at first. Motorcycle-wise, I've ridden my K75s in all winter conditions, even fell on ice. Oh well... youth gives one an amazing jeopardy pass. Enjoy the coming seasons, bit by bit. Remember your tires without studs become hard with little to no grip. Ride upright as much as possible with plenty of distance between front and rear.

[Doodle]

Hello!
I guess I just have to get used to not having a rear view mirror.
In Sweden most cars have studded tires in the winter, except most southern part of it. So I guessed that bikes also used them during the winter, but to be honest I haven't seen many or perhaps any bike riders during the winter here. Maybe it's not really feasible to ride a bike in snow and -20 celsius.

[The Mighty Gryphon]

I live in a part of the world where winter means snow and ice with below zero temperatures for at least 4 or 5 months.  When I was younger I competed in enduros and reliability trials events.  Some of them were held during the winter. 

We used trials tires loaded with hundreds of hex head sheet metal screws to improve the traction on icy roads.  My bikes were lightweight(~150lb) with small 125cc four stroke engines that were easy to handle at low speed and pick up when they went down which was fairly often.  The screws worked okay, but only lasted for a couple hundred miles before they started coming out.  I only used them for two seasons.

I can't imagine handling something as big as a K75RT that with rider weighs 2 1/2 times what my racing bike weighed on a patch of icy pavement.  The weight with rider would be almost impossible to control in turns and the tires, even when studded, wouldn't be able to control wheel spin under acceleration without very cautious throttle, and forget about making a quick stop on icy pavement..

Not only would the bike be dangerous to ride, you would probably be forced to ride at speeds much slower than the surrounding traffic, thus making you more vulnerable to them even if you aren't dropping your bike.

For riding in the winter, the only viable option is with a sidecar, preferably with dual wheel drive.  Urals and Dneprs are the way to go in the snow.

[Laitch]

Have you already passed your motorcycle test, Doodle?

[Doodle]

Have you already passed your motorcycle test, Doodle?

Not completely, I have the driving part left. But there in the written test and books it just briefly mentioned riding in the winter and that you probably should have studded tires if you do.


Sidecar was a funny idea, can you attach a sidecar to a K75 ?
I guess I should stop thinking about riding in the winter. There is not much left of the riding time here before ice and snow takes over the roads and I would like to have more riding time before next season.

[Laitch]

Not completely, I have the driving part left.

I thought that might be the case.

When I returned to motorcycles after decades absence but with thousands of miles of mountain bicycling experience with downhills at relatively high speeds on gravel, I decided to take what I thought might be a cautious approach before buying my K75. I watched approximately 500 hours of motorcycling accidents on YouTube. During the viewing I saw patterns of careless behavior arising that caused many of these accidents—both from riders and from other vehicle operators. I also saw the physical damage that happens from inattention and riding faster than your skill can permit.
 
After watching that much mayhem, I resolved to be aware, awake and mindful of consequences when riding. I suggest you watch the same stuff. Also, tune in to this channel and start reading the booklet in the link below.

Good Luck!

[Laitch]

A sidecar can be attached to a K75. It can be attached to a Honda, Harley, Kawasaki or many other motos, but not all models are suitable. I met some folks last weekend attending a rally over here run by motorcycles 300cc or less with sidecar rigs. One person I spoke with used her 1966 Honda CL165 rig on snowy roads all winter. It had neither a reverse gear nor two-wheel drive but that didn't stop her. It did have studded tires in the winter. 

[Doodle]

Thank you for the channel link, it made me more conscious about riding and everything that can go wrong 
I will look in to a sidecar, it sound like fun to have, maybe I can take my dog with me in it :D

[Laitch]

. . . maybe I can take my dog with me in it :D

That is being done all over the world. Here's a video from a member here.

[Doodle]

Haha, awesome!

Btw, I got my drivers license now 
But I was very nervous, almost pukes, but it went very well