About Schmidt

[Steve in NZ]

stll awaiting the bit where u stop and rebuild the bike

[NordieBoy]

Originally Posted by Steve in NZ

stll awaiting the bit where u stop and rebuild the bike

He doesn't need to stop now...

[Dino3310]

Originally Posted by Padmei

It's not about the bike - look past it. it's the message - truly inspiring





Deus Ex Machina from Seth C Brown on Vimeo.

Paders that was awesome mate, most excellent video

[Kokopelli]

I don't know, it's a sculpture that happens to move under its own steam(punk). But it's a bit too "out there" for me. But hey, I can relate to it running on one cylinder, having bits fall off and especially, having fuel pissing out of the float bowl.

What amazed me, was that he seemed genuinely surprised that his tank leaked .

Anyway, good on him for doing stuff like this, we need more people like him. Hopefully, he will use a japanese bike next time.

[Micawberism]

What an awesome vid mate
No doubt some people wont get it i believe the guy on the 1200 at the end did
Two words I took from the video, Attitude and Dreams





Who cares if the tank leaked

[Kokopelli]

Originally Posted by Micawberism

What an awesome vid mate
No doubt some people wont get it i believe the guy on the 1200 at the end did
Two words I took from the video, Attitude and Dreams





Who cares if the tank leaked

I am sure you got it.

[Micawberism]

Originally Posted by Kokopelli

I am sure you got it.

And I am sure your right about that

[ontic]

I really enjoyed the video. I love some quality shed time like that. And what a nice shed! It also made me feel sad for my broken tig welder and useless bottle of argon just sitting there staring at me (staring at me with its outrageous rental fees in its eys!).
As an craft/art-work, it is kindof a cool creation, but.... if it don't ride well I don't appreciate it much. I'm not big on purely aesthetic mods especially when the function suffers. But in the end it is not even that. Did he touch the engine? Aside from clip ons and all sorts of dodgy hand control tweaks, has he changed anything to do with geometry or suspension? Aside from a slippery saddle, why does it ride liks such shit? Even if the end result was still a bike that handled horribly and was dangerous and unreliable, I'd still appreciate it more if he actually tried something below the superficial surface- albeit a very creative and impressive superficial skin. Extend the rear, shorten the rear, tweak the engine, do something crazy on the front end, at least touch the engine...
Wobbly front end, fuel pissing out of a carb- this is basic stuff on the stock underlying bike that should have been addressed. I'm sure at some point it was addressed and I wish the film followed on past that point until it actually became ridable.

Cool guy, great shed, nice film, I love his style and I'd love to kill some time there sipping beer and braking stuff with him, but I hope things turned out better for that R75.
Thanks for the watch.

[Padmei]

Speaking of sheds i'm gonna have to make on of these up

http://www.bbcracing.com/old/box/

[Box'a'bits]

If you could swap Schmidtty for Gonzo, would you? In hindsight would you still do what you have done?

[Padmei]

No I don't think so. Gonzo was a great bike but was too top heavy for me to pick up or hold up in those tricky situations. It was doing my back in big time. That's why I got the drz for trails & Schmidt for working on & gravel bashing. In hindsight after the little amount of adv riding I've done on snotso the drz i should have really got the litest trail bike I could find as snotso still tweaks my back when picking him up - I find it pretty fricking grunty tho

I also wanted a project & the airheads appealed for that reason. I certainly wouldn't take Schmidt for an extended ride. I love workng on it but have to admit I get a bit sick of hearing new noises from different departments - ie the bloody gearbox whine. I was naively hoping that after repairing or replacing parts they would remain good for at least a few years.

I was talking to Jatz the other nite as he rocked up on his new BMW F800GS & he commented how after having the Big & the Ten & other older bikes that needed attention how nice it was to walk out to the shed push the starter button & ride. I started thinking about whether i'd get to that stage with Schmidt. I realised tho that working on them is a major source of enjoyment for now & I'd get pretty sick of just riding every weekend. That may very well change but for now it is ok.

[Voltaire]

I too like the spannering as part of the bike experience....preferably before trips and not during.......
I found the last two moderns about as interesting as kitchen appliances in that respect....and the depreciation and service costs don't really do it me either.....
On a side note , bought an engine less VW beetle just for the IRS rear end and my mate and my Son picked it up at 8:00 on Sat....pulled it to bits gassed the rear out and had the body at scrap dealer at 11:30.....my Son said it was a fun morning....even got $60 for the shell!!!!

[ztaj]

Don't get me wrong Padders..... I enjoyed the fixing/shed time, it's just that the Big went from one issue to the next,although I knew that bike inside out, and the Ten... the less said the better. I could fix a carb needle on the 350's in about 20 mins on the side of the road
I can only afford 1 bike and it's my main form of transport so it's gotta be good

[Mark_S]

Originally Posted by Padmei

I'd get pretty sick of just riding every weekend.

did you really say that?

I thought riding every possible weekend was the whole point of just about everything....

shed time - while not unpleasant - is just a consequence of the fun stuff

[msmckeon]

Originally Posted by Padmei

:
I was talking to Jatz the other nite as he rocked up on his new BMW F800GS & he commented how after having the Big & the Ten & other older bikes that needed attention how nice it was to walk out to the shed push the starter button & ride. I started thinking about whether i'd get to that stage with Schmidt. I realised tho that working on them is a major source of enjoyment for now & I'd get pretty sick of just riding every weekend. That may very well change but for now it is ok.

Exactly why I moved from an R80G/S in 2001 to a 2001 F650 Dakar. About my 21st or so motorcycle and first new one, Great decision, that bike took me and my partner all over the South Island High Country and back country for 6 1/2 years, 36,000 km of hard duty (hours of clutch slipping) without missing a beat while keeping the G/S humming required nightly attention, time that could have been used for "après ride" activity (route sheet assembly for a start).

However, changed it for a new 2007 Dakar. What a disaster, ride after ride completely ruined for 3 years, until it was swapped for another new EFI BMW, which I promptly sold and returned to an airhead.

I guess that most of the time, for most people, a new bike ensures dependability and low unplanned maintennace, but I personally don't believe any more!

I didn't want to revert to an "adventure" airhead - that 2001 Dakar was the best bike I ever owned, for exactly the reaons you advance - but at least anthing that goes wrong can be 1) diagnosed and 2) fixed. Look on the bright side of your woes. Air, spark and fuel (or mechanical bits), find what is missing and fix it! Imagine if you had my 2007 Dakar and the fault had first occured after the warranty had expired.


Michael