# Tank Slappers



## Andy (Feb 23, 2003)

Think you could save it ?

Forget it.

http://users.pandora.be/juulkabas/speedwobbles.mpeg


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## jasonm (Nov 22, 2003)

Wow!!!!


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## Griff (Feb 23, 2003)

I.O.M race??

Looked like a bout of the delicious tremblings did that!!!


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## pugster (Nov 22, 2004)

the link is gone







, but i reckon its gonna remind me of my old RD350 ,which felt like a rocket straped to a shopping trolly


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## Boxbrownie (Aug 11, 2005)

Ouch...thats going to leave a mark in the morning!

David


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## Nalu (Nov 28, 2003)

pugster said:


> the link is gone
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> ...


Mate of mine in secondary school had and RD350! Thing went like a scalded cat


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## PhilM (Nov 5, 2004)

Been on the back of my mates Ducati 996 and had a few close shaves but nothing as scary as that


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## JonW (Mar 23, 2005)

He did well to hold it as long as he did... Ive had one very nasty one I held on my old R1 in the depths of france not racing my mate at all at a very slow speed officer... and on the same bike flipping out of the carousel at the 'ring each lap... twice bitten I added a steering damper! money well spent on the 00/01 R1s!









Interestingly lots of Supermotos and Enduro bikes do it all the time at speed. On my olf KTM250EXC it was like rowing a canoe above 50mph... didnt feel scary at all but looked scary as hell im told.







Wish I had video of me on the old orange canoe!


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## oldfogey (Nov 29, 2005)

I once borrowed a mate's RD350 on the Isle of Man, in Douglas, and got the front tyre (they were narrower then) stuck in the tram rails. Had to wheely it (not part of the accepted riding style in 1973) to get unstuck!


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## Andy (Feb 23, 2003)

It's only happened to me once.

On the A38 in Plymouth in 1985 on my newly aquired Honda CX500 with Rickman Polaris fairing.

Got it to about 75mph when the first hint of it kicked in and I immediately slowed, at which point it got worse and by the time I got into the hard shoulder I was in a full lock to lock slapper.

Took it to a workshop who diagnosed the problem.

That aftermarket fairing was quite a big heavy lump of plastic and the bloke who fitted didn't think to beef up the front end with stronger springs and oil.

You'd think having more weight over the front would have a stabalizing effect, but believe me, in the case of the CX, it didn't.

It wasn't known for it's good handling, even at the time, but adding that fairing without any compensatory measures turned it into a mobile train crash.


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## JonF (Aug 26, 2005)

Happened to me once as well. Nothing as stylish as lapping the 'ring on a sportsbike, though. It was my own fault. One the way home I stopped off at the supermarket. They had a half price offer on wine and I couldn't resist, so bought six bottles. I put them in my top box







and all was well until I go up the dual carriageway bit of the A22. Massive wobbles, so much that my thumbs got banged against the tank. Luckily closing the throttle caused it to even out. Had to open a couple of the bottles when I got home. Never put more than a waterproof and a couple of sarnies in the box after that.

Top box has now gone, but it performed one final useful function. Was zipping round a corner within the speed limit officer, when I hit a patch of diesel, skidded, gripped and high sided. The bike went completely upside down, landed on the box before flipping back over and flopping on its side. The box took most of the impact, along with the screen. The only damage was a bust mirror, bent bar and snapped lever. Well, that and the top box and screen.

JonF


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## JonW (Mar 23, 2005)

Andy said:


> It wasn't known for it's good handling, even at the time, but adding that fairing without any compensatory measures turned it into a mobile train crash.


Just reading that and remembering the old maggot CX had me scared for you... Great commuter and even better despatcher being solid and dependable but Ive never seen one with a fairing, now I know why!



JonF said:


> Happened to me once as well. Nothing as stylish as lapping the 'ring on a sportsbike, though. It was my own fault. One the way home I stopped off at the supermarket. They had a half price offer on wine and I couldn't resist, so bought six bottles. I put them in my top box
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Lol! see drink and driving is bad for you!









That ring trip was in 2001 with Yamaha for the last of their advanced rider course - a scary mix of 3 days at the worlds most scary track and a load of nutters on big sportsbikes from all over europe... made worse by journos for all the mags being included in the deal too... made even worse by them allowing us to use the whole circuit and not being forced to come in each lap. On the first day one of the brits got clouted from behind when joining the track by a guy on a hot lap, the brit broke is neck and our earlier accident training was brought into bear... A journo Jamie (forgot his surname but he was form Superbikes) lost his Yammy loan bike at the lauda bend and his bike ended up in the village below... I had a good time despite having flu and had many a drink with Gus Scott, who I nearly roomed with, he's now sadly no longer with us after his TT crash. My best memory (other than seeing 163mph on the straight) was seeing Jamie (the guy I mentioned above - what ever happened to him? he was a great writer and rider) wheeling away through the gears off into the distance from the start of the 'asessed lap' on the final day and the german offical rounding the rest of us brits up and shouting 'no more veelies!' at the top of his voice over and over getting louder and louder as we fall about laughing! Id been to the ring before but havent been back since... if i go again it will be in a car, its deadly on a bike!

Interestingly ive never owned a topbox... am i missing anything?


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