Paul and I were having a quite pensive moment over dinner and then said, “I think its time…”
“For a blog about bikes.”
“And camping.”
“I think by now we’ve made most of the mistakes we possibly could.”
“And know what actually works too.”
We then sat silently again thinking about the things on the bike that broke and wondered where to start. We wondered if it would be easier to mention the things that didn’t break and realised that between the two bikes, almost every thing had broken or was knackered.
“But they are still going, even if barely, all things considered.” I said with a cheery smile, “and we will probably get all the way home on them.”
Paul grimaced. His bike has to be jumped into life by mine every time we start up and cuts out constantly while riding especially over bumps. We can’t find a motorcycle mechanic in Livingstone, and so the feeling is slightly desperate. Fortunately, the pool is lovely and the sun is out so being stuck here is not the worst thing in the world, by far!
Here we go with bike stuff:
All the indicators are broken on both bikes and taped on with black electrical insulating tape. Paul broke one of his to pieces. We carried one spare with us and it’s been used. We carried 4 spare bulbs and used one.
Both bikes have had the headlight bulb replaced. We carried 2 spares and have managed to find one replacement en route.
Paul’s headlight casing is broken as the plastic clips are rather weak. As a fix it is now glued into place.
We had Perspex headlight covers stuck on with Velcro. Mine is still there but Paul’s has fallen off.
Truck and car drivers constantly flash us to let us know our headlights are on. They are permanently on by BMW design but this is considered rude in the Middle East and unnecessary in Africa. We just wave and ignore now.
If the headlight is disconnected, the engine can’t run properly. In other words, it can’t be disconnected with out knowing what you’re doing.
We have fitted extra lights as at night the single beam is just plain inadequate on a dirty or potholed road. We used after market car fog lights. They seem to do the job. We’ve attached them to the front crash bars and have a small crude switch on the handle bars.
Both bikes have had to have the rear brake light tweaked because the metal contacts came loose. The whole rear light unit on Paul’s bike broke in Europe and Germany couldn’t supply him with a spare so it’s been held on with a bungee ever since. We used one of the 2 spare bulbs we have.
The ignition switch on Paul’s bike got completely clogged with dust. We assumed it was broken but it was okay with a good cleaning.
Paul’s side-stand cut off switch is utterly broken. He has twisted the wires together so that it shorts out. It’s a constant pain.
My side-stand’s damper has broken off and so I struggle to pull the stand from under the bike. I had to tie some rubber around it to stop it making a clanging noise. It still works fine.
The mirror on my bike broke off. We loosened the controls on the handlebar so that things would move rather than break, but mine still gave in and broke. It has been welded back on but broke again. I’ve used a big lump of metal glue and it holds for a while until it cracks and then I reapply.
From time to time dust got into the switches and stopped things like lights and ignition working. Before assuming something is broken, check and clean off dust and mud. Sometimes that is all that is wrong.
Paul’s handlebars are quite bent. It will probably be possible to straighten them at some point but it isn’t too much of an issue, just to be aware that the steering isn’t straight.
When using the heated handlebar grips they can cause the accelerator to stay on, causing a bit of alarm for the poor rider. Probably needs cleaning and then once the problem exists just anticipate it.
I haven’t broken any of my levers on this trip but did in the UK before leaving. We have one spare of each clutch and brake.
My bike has an electrical problem that I can’t place. Each time I start the bike it makes the sound of the battery reconnecting and the clock and odometer resets to zero. Nothing obvious is wrong like exposed wires… Please email me with any ideas. Sandilangton at yahoo.co.uk.
Both of our batteries have failed and been replaced. We don’t have the correct battery but as long as it’s close and fits into the space, it seems to be working for now.
Paul’s bike appears to have a problem with the alternator / regulator – we guess. The battery won’t charge. We have a clever way of jumping our bikes off each other without having to take all the plastic coverings off. Email us if you want more information on this idea.
Jump leads are essential.
Paul has gone through two sets of rear brake pads! With the pedal where it is and heavy bike boots, sometimes he leans on the brake and it wears out. We know of other chaps with the same problem. Perhaps move the pedal. My brakes are all still okay. I replaced them before leaving. I tend to not be as heavy on the brakes as I tend to ride more slowly and use less brake.
Same for the clutch pedal. I would have found it much easier to change gears if it were in a slightly different position especially for standing. It is possible to do this.
My clutch is knackered. It pops out of first gear into neutral. This usually happens in busy intersections or on steep gravel hairpin bends. It’s annoying because sometimes I have to hold the gear down with my foot to keep it from popping. Paul’s is only slightly sticky. I would desperately like a gear between first and second when doing off road – I can’t get on with the gears as they are: too little or too much.
My chain and sprocket are utterly shagged. I’m worried they won’t make the next 2000 km to SA. The chain was zig-zagy by the time I reached Nairobi but still had some life in it. The sprocket is now worn to sharp teeth. Paul fitted a heavy-duty X-ring chain and both chain and sprocket have lasted much better than my normal O-ring chain.
We have Scott Oilers to lubricate the chain. This system is good but also has to be maintained and can be a little temperamental. We have cleaned the chains and grease them often too.
We fitted rim locks. These are probably unnecessary unless you intend doing lots of deep sand and letting the tyre pressure right down, which you will probably avoid on a loaded bike. The rim locks make tyre changing a ball ache. The front one is probably completely unnecessary.
We had punctures – 4 rear and no front. Have at least one front and one rear spare tube. I think heavy-duty tubes don’t seem to make a big difference. We bought normal ones as that was all that was available and they work just fine and are much easier to carry.
It’s not easy to fix the puncture at the side of the road, so use the spare tube and repair the punctured tube in the evening. A sink with water and a plug (!) help to find the leak.
In your puncture kit, add Rema patches and glue. It appears that any other brand may not withstand the heat (as we experienced). Get a set of the long tyre irons with a curve at one end. We also use one or two small tyre irons. Talc and washing up liquid or Vaseline are essential. Pressure gauge. Chalk. Sand paper. Valve remover. Spanner and socket wrench for the rear wheel.
Carry a bicycle pump and check it actually works. The ones with a tube work better than the ones that push directly onto the valve. A small compressor might work but not sure. Depends on battery power.
Carry your whole puncture kit together. Obvious but saves cursing.
Best way to break the bead is to use the side stand of another bike as a leaver. I’ll have to post a photo to demonstrate.
Check your spokes and have a spanner small enough to tighten. Tap them and listen for a dull sound – tighten those ones. We have spares but haven’t used them so far. Tie spokes together with small cable ties to prevent damage if one does break.
We changed to off road tyres in Turkey. I have Continental TKC80s and they lasted a lot longer than Paul’s Metzeler Karoos. He had to buy a second hand rear tyre in Nairobi. Our tires still have tread but just barely.
The wheel alignment bolt on Paul’s bike came loose and broke. He has continued without it.
We had to remove our front mud guards when the mud got sticky. The mud guards just clogged up. If keeping the guards, they need to be raised away from the tyre.
My rear mud guard was ripped off on a stretch of sandy ruts in Sudan. We have now adapted the rear cover, cut off the bit that covers the chain only and put that bit back on.
The frame bolts tend to break off. This requires drilling out and putting another bolt in. I had to trust a bit of wire twisted around mine and a few cable ties across hectic roads in Ethiopia until I found a mechanic with a drill.
We went with the standard suspension that is fitted at the BMW factory. This was probably a mistake. Both bikes have tired front suspension making it tough to handle on bumpy roads. Cover front and rear suspension some how with rubber, an old inner tube perhaps, as this protects the oil seals.
Paul’s rear suspension damper broke in Uganda and had to be replaced. He managed to find a “bike shop” in Dar es Salaam who was able to take an old Yamaha mono-shock, chop and weld it to fit. It is not strong enough but will get us to SA enshallah.
We had our seats lowered professionally and a special gel inserted for comfort. I think it was a waste of money. The big difference is a sheep skin. On the downside, it gets wet when it rains but is much more comfortable.
We had power sockets fitted. They are really handy for charging various cameras, phones and things. Just remember that being BMW means the plug is not a standard car charger and so an adapter is required (and held on with cable ties and elastic bands).
Our panniers are Metal Mules. They have withstood many, many crashes and dings. The boxes are designed to pop off rather than drag. The levers have been bent back and that seems to be the only damage after a drop n’ pop. They haven’t even dented much. The frame is fine except the fitting to the rear foot rest continually fails and pops out. It is held together with cable ties. The locks also loose their waterproofing seals. My own addition to the design is making dots on the locks so that I can easily see if the locks are locked.
Insulating tape is very useful. Duck tape perishes quickly in heat.
Carry extra oil for the engine. Swap to oil for hot climates (20-50).
Carry spare nuts, bolts and washers (for your bike).
Carry lots of extra cable ties of good quality – or they just break.
Make sure your tool kit has all the correct size of spanners and sockets for your bike.
Have a good tool to undo/do all the screws holding the plastic covers and indicators because you will come to hate this job. You will fantasize of knee-capping the engineer who thought up this design.
Carry a spare service kit. Air filters need to be cleaned out from time to time – more often than service requirements.
Buy a copy of the service manual off the internet. BMW doesn’t have them for customers.
We fitted Touratech crash bars and bash plate – expensive! But worth it.
I tie various things onto the crash bars to keep the weight forward. The bikes are very back heavy.
Extra fuel is in plastic square cans strapped to the front of the pannier boxes. We have needed to use this reserve on quite a few occasions.
Octane booster for North Africa is essential but is not readily available in shops so stock up on a few bottles. Fuel quality improves further south and gets much more expensive further south too. We used a sock to filter dodgy fuel.
I wish I had handle bar raisers.
I hope that helps.
And you know what? If I did this again… (no, I’m not actually going to) but if I did, I’d seriously consider a Yahama no bigger than a 450cc and make sure it’s an old engine so that mechanics and spare parts can be found in abundance and at a reasonable cost. A fuel injected, computer managed BMW isn’t necessarily the thing to have in Africa if you are on a budget.
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