L plates keep coming off !

[peterkay1994]

Hi, i have a honda XR125, and i can't get my L plates to stay on without snapping, ripping, or pulling my number plate off at high speed (i managed to crack the regplate bracket doing 70 on my way home from school )
so i was just wondering if anybody had managed to pull together some way of fixing L plates on to the back of the bike without them just ripping apart! i don't fancy paying 3 quid a week to buy a new set of L's each time !

Cheers, Peter
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Honda XR 125 L-3... 15k miles when bought, and its going to be sold with 5 times as many ><
debating on wether to take my test before or after my car test . . . .

[Andy_Pagin]

Lateral thinking needed here - You could take your tests then you wouldn't need L places!

(Sorry couldn't resist it).

[Martay]

Are you using the flexible or solid ones?
My rear kept snapping on my 125 for i glued it to a thin piece of plyboard and screwed that on. Its still on there now.
____________________
Eat well, poo hard
Drives: Cavalier 2.0 16v
Rides: Slightly ratted Honda City Express

[peterkay1994]

Ive used all sorts, paper, solid plastic, magnetic backed with a placemat, at the moment i have a botched bracket with a magnetic one on, i stuck it on this morning, done about 4 miles today, and its already ripped slightly. which will just get worst. im raging ! i think i might just cut them down and hope i dont get pulled over.
.
and i do plan on getting my test done later this year, but ive only been riding 3 weeks !
____________________
Honda XR 125 L-3... 15k miles when bought, and its going to be sold with 5 times as many ><
debating on wether to take my test before or after my car test . . . .

[MattJ]

Mine is screwed in to the holes on the number plate. I've never had a problem, it's one of the stiff ones. Don't know how they could be ripping.

[peterkay1994]

i think that maybe because i live up a rough lane the L plate might either be catching on ditches, or maybe just stones flicking up. i guess il just keep botching till i find somehting that works well.
____________________
Honda XR 125 L-3... 15k miles when bought, and its going to be sold with 5 times as many ><
debating on wether to take my test before or after my car test . . . .

[MattJ]

Could you take a picture to show us how you're fitting it?

[Pete.]

Used to rip mine off my DR125 years ago by going off-road. Nowadays it's 3 points so you better do something about it.

Loads of stuff you can do - some legal, some strictly not.

Change the angle to reduce drag and the chances of it catching on stuff - not too much mind or you risk a ticket.
Cut down the L-plate to the legal minimum border to reduce wind drag and chances of catching it on stuff.
Make the L-plate from (or glue it to) something indestructably flexible like a sheet of mylar.
Make a sheet ally backing plate for both numberplate and L-plate.
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a.k.a 'Geri'

132.9mph off and walked away. Gear is good, gear is good, gear is very very good

[anthony_r6]

I just clear taped mine to the bottom of my license plate. It stays on but after a while it gets torn up by my back tyre. Have to keep replacing them.
____________________
Ted : "Maybe he's agoraphobic."
Dougal : "Jack scared of fighting? I don't think so, Ted."

[Teflon-Mike]

£3 a time?
There's your answer.
Your buying the cheapo nasty, probably fibre board L-Plates.
OR you are doing something wrong, like not watching what you are doing when you park.
Decent £5 L-Plates in plastic, on proper fork bracket, and drilled & screwed to rear fender tend to be pretty robust and not break, certaily not from wind speed, unless some one has cracked them first actually bashing them.
But permenant solution is to pass the test, so you dont need'em.
They ENT supposed to be a permenant feature ANY way!
____________________
My Webby'Tef's-tQ, loads of stuff about my bikes, my Land-Rovers, and the stuff I do with them!
Current Bikes:'Honda VF1000F' ;'CB750F2N' ;'CB125TD ( 6 3 of em!)'; 'Montesa Cota 248'. Learner FAQ's:= 'U want to Ride a Motorbike! Where Do U start?'

[peterkay1994]

chears guys i think il try backing my plates with lyno, hopefully itl keep them from ripping, and il angle them up a bit to help too. thanks everybody
____________________
Honda XR 125 L-3... 15k miles when bought, and its going to be sold with 5 times as many ><
debating on wether to take my test before or after my car test . . . .

[MattJ]

[Pete.]

Come to think of it - taping them all over with that 2" wide sellotape you get from Wilkinsons should make them strong enough to withstand nuclear attack.
____________________
a.k.a 'Geri'

132.9mph off and walked away. Gear is good, gear is good, gear is very very good

[stirlinggaz]

buy the cheap ones from asda.
not the normal ones for cars, but the vinyl ones, come self adhesive, so peel the back off & stick to anything rigid. (seat or piece of plywood?) only 2 or 3 quid.
cheers,
GAZ

[peterkay1994]

ive angled it up at the back and backed with gaffer tape, done 3 miles at speed and it seems to have worked finaly. just need to remember to take it easy on my off-road sections
cheers everybody
____________________
Honda XR 125 L-3... 15k miles when bought, and its going to be sold with 5 times as many ><
debating on wether to take my test before or after my car test . . . .

[heehaw]

I never had a problem with mine, they are semi rigid foam. Fine for all the riding I've done so far but one became victim to the wind on Monday, when it flew off and the bike was blown over.
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Its important, otherwise it wouldn't be there.

Retro Rider Bicycles: CB125TDC, CBR400RR, BSA Bantam.

[Ingah]

[Muscle Bike Rider]

https://cgi.ebay.co.uk/L-PLATE-MUD-FLAP-LABMRETTA-VESPA-SCOOTER-MOTORCYCLE-NEW-/360363418529?pt=UK_Motorcycle_Parts&hash=item53e75563a1

Sorted, its what I used to use.
____________________
Previously Known As A5tra_G
Old Bikes :2010 Kawasaki ER6 F & 2000 Honda VTR Firestorm
Current Bike : XJR1300

[Scotsman37]

Trim a piece of aluminium plating or a sheet of tough plastic, drill couple of holes and afix the L-plate label to that before securing it to the bike!

Those cheap plastic L-plates eventually just break when it gets to windy!

[peterkay1994]

im afraid the mudflap one wouldnt work as my mud guard is already very low and off roading it would just get ripped off. but thanks
____________________
Honda XR 125 L-3... 15k miles when bought, and its going to be sold with 5 times as many ><
debating on wether to take my test before or after my car test . . . .

[Fairies attack]

I used abit of 16gauage stainless steel to hold mine on.

No chance of it snapping.
also when I lost the plate, I just flipped it round a wrote my number plate on the other side, and used that for a while.

[ThoughtContro...]

[anthony_r6]

[ThoughtContro...]

[peterkay1994]

i go off road every day though, its the main part of my journey, living out in the sticks has its bad points :/
____________________
Honda XR 125 L-3... 15k miles when bought, and its going to be sold with 5 times as many ><
debating on wether to take my test before or after my car test . . . .