When people ask questions about Chinese bikes?

[SillyMe]

Do you like answering them?
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Once made equal to man, woman becomes his superior.
The man who says "I may be wrong, but -" does not believe there can be any such possibility
Owned and rode: Honda 100H, Honda MBX 125, Kawasaki AR 125, Suzuki RG 125 Pepsi, Honda NSR125 RK, Honda NRS 125 race bike, Suzuki GSXR 400 Bandit, Aprilia RS 125 O2, Honda CG125, Kawasaki KMX 125, Aprilia RS 125 O6, Suzuki XT225 and now Honda XR 400. ( A few scooters and other dead beats in between)

[Im-a-Ridah]

Depends on the question and who is asking it. If its someone I know, I wouldn't want to offend, by decribing the bikes as being extremely slow and unreliable. On forums, I'm clearly not so bothered.

[map]

One of the things I predict is that in about 15 to 20 years time the Chinese bikes will be on-par with what we get from Japan (ok, maybe Korea) now.

No doubt someone then will regard the Chinese bikes we have now as classics and charge a fortune for those that haven't disintegrated.
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...and the whirlwind is in the thorn trees, it's hard for thee to kick against the pricks...
Gibbs, what did Duckie look like when he was younger?

[colin1]

"ONLY five years ago, most of the expensive bits and pieces inside a typical Apple iPod came from Japan. Today an autopsy of the iPad reveals that nearly all the important components come from South Korea and Taiwan."
from
https://www.economist.com/node/17151211

So Japan is already losing its place as a manufacturer of electronics, in time, china will up the quality of their motorbikes.

Its going to be as much a marketing problem for them as a technological one. I suspect they will manage the technological stuff before the marketing, or Japanese manufacturers will switch manufacture to China.

Triumph already manufacture in Thailand.
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colin1 is officially faster than god

[angryjonny]

[TimNorwich]

China can do everything cheaper, and so more money is being put into their economy through increased trade sales.

My gf had a chinese moped on an 08 plate, and it survived until my brother got his hands on it and put it into the back of a car at the start of summer, and it had no problems at all. But I also know people who have had Chinese 125's and they fell apart almost instantly.

Touch and go really!
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Speedshite 50cc > Honda XR125L > Kawasaki GPZ 500 S > 02 Honda Hornet > 05 Honda CG125 winter hack > 04 Kawasaki ER-5 > 99 Honda Hornet 600 > Kawasaki GPZ 500 S > 99 Honda Hornet 600 > 05 Honda CBR600F > 01 Honda Hornet

[SillyMe]

Yeah I suspect they will get better. Someone told me there's no trees in china and you need a lot of carbon to make good quality steel as well as a lot of other ingredients.

It just my neighbour had Chinese off roader,he took it off road once and the frame snapped on him, after three years it fell apart.
LOL
Never even got to MOT it.

Steel is generally a hard, strong, durable, malleable alloy of iron and carbon, usually containing between 0.2 and 1.5 percent carbon, often with other constituents such as manganese, chromium, nickel, molybdenum, copper, tungsten, cobalt, or silicon.

Just wondering what else they are missing as of yet in terms of ingredient's. unless it's related to the pressure of producing things cheaper than everyone else which is what China's economy is based on.

I’ve heard those north Korean jobby's are ok.
____________________
Once made equal to man, woman becomes his superior.
The man who says "I may be wrong, but -" does not believe there can be any such possibility
Owned and rode: Honda 100H, Honda MBX 125, Kawasaki AR 125, Suzuki RG 125 Pepsi, Honda NSR125 RK, Honda NRS 125 race bike, Suzuki GSXR 400 Bandit, Aprilia RS 125 O2, Honda CG125, Kawasaki KMX 125, Aprilia RS 125 O6, Suzuki XT225 and now Honda XR 400. ( A few scooters and other dead beats in between)

[stinkwheel]

It's not so much what's in the steel as how much of it, in what form and what temperatures it is at as they are added. Then how quickly that temperature is reduced.

Steel is a crystaline structure. Get the crystals the wrong shape and size by pulling your tubing or stamping your dies too hot/cold, fast/slow or by using impure carbon at the smelting stage and you get a bike frame that snaps.

They also use a hell of a lot of recycled steel which will be carrying all manner of unexpected impurities. I strongly suspect they just melt the whole lot down then make it into stuff without due consideration to the intricacies of metallurgy.

The same goes for their aluminium alloy although in all honesty, the Japanese are not much better. If you want to see good quality aluminium alloy on a motorbike, you need to look at European ones. Older BMWs in particular but even the cheapo soviet era stuff from Eastern Europe has good quality alloy. Badly cast, sloppily machined alloy, but good quality. You don't get white furry shit and crumbling cooling vanes on a 1960's MZ even if it's totally caked in salt.

The alloy on my Enfield is apalling quality, due in no small part I'm sure to it being made of melted down coke cans.
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“Rule one: Always stick around for one more drink. That's when things happen. That's when you find out everything you want to know.”
I did the 2010 Round Britain Rally on my 350 Bullet. 89 landmarks, 3 months, 9,500 miles.

[SillyMe]

Very good synopsis stinkwheel. Unlucky with the Enfield, sure you look after it though!
____________________
Once made equal to man, woman becomes his superior.
The man who says "I may be wrong, but -" does not believe there can be any such possibility
Owned and rode: Honda 100H, Honda MBX 125, Kawasaki AR 125, Suzuki RG 125 Pepsi, Honda NSR125 RK, Honda NRS 125 race bike, Suzuki GSXR 400 Bandit, Aprilia RS 125 O2, Honda CG125, Kawasaki KMX 125, Aprilia RS 125 O6, Suzuki XT225 and now Honda XR 400. ( A few scooters and other dead beats in between)

[spetom]

[spetom]

[SillyMe]

Good point spetom!

Nar It's just hard looking for parts for them when trying to answer peoples questions. They seem to have a lot of electrical related problems too. Of which it's difficult to get your head round.

Just wonder about electrical standards too.

Thanks for the responce, some very interesting replies.
____________________
Once made equal to man, woman becomes his superior.
The man who says "I may be wrong, but -" does not believe there can be any such possibility
Owned and rode: Honda 100H, Honda MBX 125, Kawasaki AR 125, Suzuki RG 125 Pepsi, Honda NSR125 RK, Honda NRS 125 race bike, Suzuki GSXR 400 Bandit, Aprilia RS 125 O2, Honda CG125, Kawasaki KMX 125, Aprilia RS 125 O6, Suzuki XT225 and now Honda XR 400. ( A few scooters and other dead beats in between)

[calyx]

I tell them to get a second hand jap bike.

Brand new Jap bikes are stupidly over priced though. How much is a vfr1200? 12.000 pounds? What do you get for 12.000 pounds?
2 tyres, 2 rims, an engine, some gears whacked into a cage called gear box, 3 calipers, a seat to accommodate 1 butt cheek, a plastic windscreen, couple of cables, 17 litres petrol tank and a frame.
If you buy a 12.000 pound brand new car you get everything you get from a bike plus 5 leather seats, stereo, sat nav, air conditioning, 5 tyres, 5 rims, 4 brake calipers that last, 5 glass windows and a wiper with an electric engine, 7 air bags, 5 doors, a metal roof, cruise control, electric windows, 3 years free insurance-mot-service, 5 years warranty etc etc...
Never thought about this before. Man I'm pissed off now!
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Boris - London

[D O G]

[andyscooter]

i help them out as i have had and would have another
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gilera runner vxr200 (chavped)
if its spelt wrong its my fat fingers and daft auto correct on my tablet

[colin1]

[Gone]

[SillyMe]

Cheers for that FinnDave very interesting.
It's just my neighbour a Harley rider told me this about the tree's in china and had me thinking.

Amazing if true.
____________________
Once made equal to man, woman becomes his superior.
The man who says "I may be wrong, but -" does not believe there can be any such possibility
Owned and rode: Honda 100H, Honda MBX 125, Kawasaki AR 125, Suzuki RG 125 Pepsi, Honda NSR125 RK, Honda NRS 125 race bike, Suzuki GSXR 400 Bandit, Aprilia RS 125 O2, Honda CG125, Kawasaki KMX 125, Aprilia RS 125 O6, Suzuki XT225 and now Honda XR 400. ( A few scooters and other dead beats in between)

[Gone]