Think I broke the engine, what now?

[talkToTheHat]

So riding back from the dentist, traffic is busy but moving, 2 lanes opens into three, power, change into 3rd power then CLUNK and engine goes quiet, back end is loose so I pull the clutch and coast, get into left hand lane, metal barriers all the way along side of the road. I find neutral and thumb the starter. CLONK. I hop of, and pussh bike to the first place I can pull in. No visible damage. Have oil. Smells normal. Phone RAC. Somehow they are convinced I'm describing a dead battery. Orange van in minutes. By which time I've already phoned local independent garage. RAC man sighs at description of fault, apologises profusely for his phone team and summons a recovery truck. Bike is now sat in garage awaiting a diagnosis, but mechanic says it's probably terminal.

How do I shift a non-runner ten miles from my home if it is fucked? What kind of money can I expect to get for her. 92 XV535, cosmetically tidy.

Replacement wise, I need to do sooner rather than later. I don't walk very well, to the point where how the fuck do I do my food shopping is suddenly a major issue.

I want something with a more upright riding position than a sportsbike that's going to be reasonably cheap to run. I would like to be able to fit hard luggage. I have two Givi E45 and two E21 boxes I'd like to be able to use, but if it turns into keeping an E45 as a topbox and finding the more modern givi side box system I won;t be too upset.

I am considering bandits and fzs600s. I think the fazer would be more fun. I think the bandits might be more sensible, especially if I can find a 650 ABS. Thoughts?
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Bandit. does. everything.

[Pete.]

Sounds like a thrown rod or a dropped valve. Maybe not terminal but not far off. 535's rot so fast there should be an engine out there somewhere.
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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

[talkToTheHat]

£350 buys an engine with more miles on than mine. How many hours of mechanic time to swap? I'm limited to pre 1994 engines unless I source new engine management and rejet the carbs. Quickly spirals.
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Bandit. does. everything.

[Wafer_Thin_Ham]

Why did yours shit itsself? Any idea yet. Listen to Pete. he knows his shit.
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My Flickr

[stevo as b4]

Id get the bike home, and investigate more. Check compression, look at the plugs etc, and then at your leisure strip it down as required to see what damage has been done and what you need to replace.

In the interim any bike would do wouldn't it? Even a cheap 250cc scooter or a commuter bike maybe?

I wouldn't want to plan on replacing my main bike, until I knew it was beyond hope or way too expensive to fix?

[Pete.]

Pull the plugs and shine a torch down the hole. If you see no obvious debris turn the engine back and forth by hand on the crankshaft end nut and check if the pistons are moving in time with the crank. FI they are the camchain has probably snapped.
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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

[talkToTheHat]

My bike is at the local independent garage. I trust them. It arrived at close of business today, inspection cameras going in first thing tomorrow. Mechanic's gut feeling is it's a dropped valve. That this happened under power at about 5000rpm means whatever crapped out did so with some force. If we don't find all the bits we broke it's wasting money.

I don't have the facilities nor the physical fitness to do a major overhaul. I don't talk about how ill I am much on here, or anywhere really. The bike hides a lot from the rest of the world. With it I do a reasonable impression of a functional human. A big guy in bike leathers leaning on a shopping trolley hobbling around the supermarket is invited to exchange crash stories. A young person with a walking stick is treated like the scum of the earth.

Particularly looking at a blandit I'm thinking commuter bike. I do about 500 miles a month, mixture of large town, back roads and the occaisonaly bit of NSL dual carriageway or motorway. Occaisonal 2 up. Occasional long trip. Never without luggage. Typically lots of ten mile trips.
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Bandit. does. everything.

[bugeye_bob]

[duhawkz]

Ha ha beat me to it.

I was just going to point out that internet grocery shopping is actually a thing.

So there's no need for OP to starve (or get a taxi to the shops)
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"The guy is a worthless cunt and I honestly believe I would be a slightly happier person if he died." - Chris-Red

[Beehive Bedlam]

I'd get an FZS Fazer over a Bandit and the 'fox eye' over the 'box eye' because the headlights on the box eyes are shit not a deal breaker however you get used to them. Many owners of the box eye choose to DIY HIDS but I am not convinced this isn't going to be a PITA when the MOT comes round so have not bothered myself.

Wingracks with the FZS fitting kit are like gold dust so forget panniers unless you can modify an FZ6 one to fit.

Other than the above they are a great daily runners and aren't too shabby when you want to get a shift on.

[talkToTheHat]

[Polarbear]

[Rogerborg]

[talkToTheHat]

My mechanic says a bearing on the crankshaft has disintegrated. Possible damage to crankshaft, a con rod and possibly crankcase. Metal everywhere so likely to have contaminated other bearings and in need of a very meticulous rebuild or taking a leap of faith on a 25 year old engine.

I think this one's a goner.
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Bandit. does. everything.

[Rogerborg]

Gumtree, "was running great until it wasn't, prolly an easy fix tbh".
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Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[blueglue]

must be worth about £500 as a non runner?

[Matt B]

[stevo as b4]

Why is the 1200cc the only one worth bothering with though?

The 600cc is still under stressed too, and is 6bhp down on the GSXF600 engine, and as per the closely related GSXR750 engine, it can be taken out to 884cc with a big bore kit.

I wouldn't say the 600 or 1200 Bandit are better than each other, Id buy one on condition and even colour before if it was a 600cc or a 1200cc version.

I think an 884cc kitted bandit, with GSXR cams and engine bits etc, along with say some SRAD 600 brakes, forks and a decent rear shock would make for a very good sleeper Bandit too.

Even though I'm not in the slightest bit into the Sleeper look/spec.

[redeem ouzzer]

The 600 Bandit isn't fast enough for modern roads.

[1198]

Mr Hat, where are you / the bike based?

[talkToTheHat]

[stevo as b4]

[Ariel Badger]

Do you have a full or an A2 licence? I would be looking at an MT03 on an A2. A hell of a lot of fun and little to go wrong.
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Bikers make great organ donors, get 115 on your licence today.

[talkToTheHat]

[talkToTheHat]