*Dewy manholes won't do favours for your front fairing :(

[ColdInsomnia]

...In Tesco Extra car park.

Arrrgh damn it! It was 1 am (don't ask), it hadn't rained for days, it was cold I guess, must have been some dew on the ground.

Went round the 90 degree corner, didn't see the manhole and went over at about 10mph. With a pillion on the back

I tell you, a 600cc comes down with a hell of a bigger THUMP than a 125 :p I could have sworn I left a dent in the ground. Thank god for engine bars!


Well... unluckily for me, my first drop of this bike has also turned out to be an expensive one. Seems that I have a large crack just under the windscreen of my front fairing, as well as a smaller one to the side. I did check just after the fall for any damage (after tending to my pillion of course, who was fine), and didn't see any. It wasn't until the next day I noticed the crack... which is strange because it's a pretty big one and I'm sure I would have seen it the night before.

So either:

Someone came past in the night, and cracked my front fairing whilst I slept (not likely).

I cracked it when I fell and was too dozy to notice it when I checked (most likely).


Either way... I'm left with an expensive problem on my hands. As I'm sure you all know, a new front fairing will not be cheap.


BUT

Someone suggested to me that rather than spend money on a new fairing, spend half the money and turn my Divvy into a streetfighter.


I've found a picture of roughly what my Divvy would look like if I went SF - though this pic is a 900 whereas mine is a 600.

https://www.ydcn.nl/pics2/yxj900sj.jpg




....Opinions?


PS: I'm sorry Vee
____________________
Yamaha YB100 | Yamaha TZR125 | Yamaha XJ600S | Suzuki GSF600
"Our society is run by insane people for insane objectives. I think we're being run by maniacs for maniacal ends and I think I'm liable to be put away as insane for expressing that. That's what's insane about it."
John Lennon

[irving]

[chalky143]

unlucky m8....and it looks alot better lol do tht!!
____________________
Current bike :: sv650 minitwin race bike
Previous bikes::cbr600 steelie race bike, 1989 Honda vfr750f, 2013 Honda fireblade, 2013 Ducati multistrata 1200s, 2012 Triumph street triple R, 1999 yamaha r6, vfr 800, ducati 600ss, vfr 400x2, ntv 650, bandit 600, cagiva mito 125, aprilia rs 50, honda c90x2, honda hornet 600x2, cbr 600, aprilia rx50, suzuki katana
My bike pics: https://www.bikepics.com/members/chalky143/

[ColdInsomnia]

Forgot to include - this is roughly what my bike looks like WITH the fairing (It's the same colour as the one above though).

https://www.classicbikesregis.com/public/Yamaha%20Diversion%20600%20'94.JPG
____________________
Yamaha YB100 | Yamaha TZR125 | Yamaha XJ600S | Suzuki GSF600
"Our society is run by insane people for insane objectives. I think we're being run by maniacs for maniacal ends and I think I'm liable to be put away as insane for expressing that. That's what's insane about it."
John Lennon

[JonB]

I doubt it was ice, probably the manhole cover was just damp from dew as you said which can make it as bad as ice.
____________________
Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia, dispensing it is a way of fishing the past from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it?s worth.

[dew]

[ColdInsomnia]

Well so far it seems that I have support veering towards the Street fighter option...

My only concerns with going through with it are:

I'll need a new speedo and rev counter, won't I?
Top speed will take a hit without the wind protection... touring will be a lot harder.

Anything else I need to consider?
____________________
Yamaha YB100 | Yamaha TZR125 | Yamaha XJ600S | Suzuki GSF600
"Our society is run by insane people for insane objectives. I think we're being run by maniacs for maniacal ends and I think I'm liable to be put away as insane for expressing that. That's what's insane about it."
John Lennon

[krebsy]

You should just be able to get a set of clocks and headlight unit from an 'N and swap it in instead. That first pic looks like an N with new mirrors and a twin light unit.

K.
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What's my New Year's resolution?

1280 x 1024.

[Aikman666]

Two words: plastic welding. If you can find the original paint you wont be able to see where its been repaired Currently doing repairs on my CBR400 fairing which are quite extensive, but i have painted one of the fairings and the repairs become just about invisible. All you need is: a soldering iron, a broken CD case, a bit of patience and alot of practice! Only thing is you might end up repainting the entire panel so it doesnt mismatch! Oh yeah and DO NOT use fibreglass, its pants, the fairings on the CBR were previously fibreglassed and it seems to have done sweet fuckall! Good luck, sorry to hear about the off!
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Will work for petrol
My Design Blog

[CortezTheKill...]

[ColdInsomnia]

[Yoshi]

Any particular reason you can't ride it with a cracked fairing?

That's what I'm doing now. Seems little point in paying for a repair/respray when it will make no difference to me whatsoever, but I still get the benefits of having a fairing. Plus it costs nothing
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Present: GS650 Katana - Getting ready for summer touring!
Past: TS50, RS50, ZXR400, LT80, TS250

[ColdInsomnia]

[irving]

[Visitor Q]

[Gazdaman]

Not a divvy, but an XJ600 none the less.

Let's say, been there, done that. Get the crack glued up or plastic welded. Doesn't have to be pretty, but you'll regret it if you rip it off IMO.

https://www.gaz-racing.co.uk/images/XJ/Full/DSCI0024(Small).jpg

Gaz

[Aikman666]

Basically what you do is make the crack worse before making it better, Basically this means that you weld down the crease of the crack on both sides until your sure that all the material has been welded back together. Then use the broken CD case to fill in the crack, make sure its nice and compacted, try to smooth off the surface as much as you can with the iron, then sand it down, and hey presto! Repaired!
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Will work for petrol
My Design Blog

[Finglonga]

Worth remembering if its your only form of transport and you remove the screen, you also remove the weather protection. Not good this time of year.

There are a few places that will repair fairings, so if you want it done properly that might be theway to go.
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Andy Sez....
F.Y.Y.F.F.

[Aikman666]

This is one of the least damaged fairings, however it still had two major repairs done to it before the spraying (its a basecoat btw). I'll kiss your ring if you can tell where they were done:
https://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l192/Aikman666/12112006004.jpg

If you have the money fair enough, get it done at a profesional place. However because im taking on this big project ive ended up doing alot of stuff myself, the fairings included and the painting of my subframe. Both of which have came up brilliantly so far, and it makes me proud to stand back and look at what i can do with my own two hands! Although you DO need a certain amount of patience to do this!
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Will work for petrol
My Design Blog

[hmmmnz]

i think bakini fairings look gay (just my opinion) (i have a gs so like the naked look )
i think bikes should be all naked or fully faired, no half measures.
save the money and street fight it
bollocks to the it'll be harder to tour with it and top speed
it probly wont make a hell of a difference, a little more wind, no major really you usually get it straight in the face from the screen redirecting the air any way.

i would street fight it, but thats just me good luck with what ever you do
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the humans are dead
I kick arse for the lord
Wiring Diagrams BIDNIP it bitches

[_Will_]

HOW COULD YOU!


Cold, post a pic, it isnt the crack thats been there all along by any chance - l/h side?
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Past -Honda qr50 | 2004 Peugeot Tkr s 50| | 1996 Yamaha XJ600s Diversion|

[extreme3d]

It might be worth giving Yamaha (or a dealer) a ring as often parts for bikes that are not 'sports' bikes are a lot cheaper than you might think. After my SV was knocked over by a car deciding to do a u-turn it was sent off to be repaired at York Suzuki. Got the estimate done by them and was amazed to see a complete new front fairing WITH stickers was only £163

So give a dealer a ring and ask - it may be cheaper than you thought to just get a new one. Failing that, there is always ebay.

Think long and hard before S-Fightering it. Riding a bike without a fairing is not fun, especially in winter

[Zanx]

[ColdInsomnia]

Thanks a lot for all the replies...

As quite a few of you pointed out I'll be missing the fairing quickly enough with winter approaching, so I will keep it throughout the winter at least

Really sorry Vee I'll give you a picture tomorrow but no, it's not the one that was already there (Though that is in fact the other one I mentioned, oh well, at least it's not all my work )
____________________
Yamaha YB100 | Yamaha TZR125 | Yamaha XJ600S | Suzuki GSF600
"Our society is run by insane people for insane objectives. I think we're being run by maniacs for maniacal ends and I think I'm liable to be put away as insane for expressing that. That's what's insane about it."
John Lennon

[_Will_]