Acerbis handguards. Built with a thick aluminium strip through them, handy for saving the levers if the bikes go over. Very ‘world traveller’ & much cheaper than a BMW

Plus Oxford heated grips.

These were bought for this trip. So far the puny switch has had to be replaced & the wiring has broken in both handgrips, one of the connectors & the ‘on’ light - a typical example of the festering cesspool of Oxford build quality.

Move your mouse over the blanked bike parts to see them, wheee! Then click to read some info about how they’re modified & why, hmmmm.

Rear number plate. Custom ordered with small characters and our website logo along the bottom. Very nearly legal in some countries... maybe...

Not that it matters much when you’re travelling on plates that no-one recognises anyway, “GB” doesn’t mean much to anyone outside Europe.

Seat. Carried from Mexico to England & back for re-foam, gel insert & new cover. Sadly it turned out a bit too firm so we get a bum battering plank ride instead of the glorious bum cuddling we’d hoped for.

Touring screen. To keep the wind & the bugs out of Anita’s face, a girl does have to watch her complexion! Bought in Auckland to replace the remains of the fairing screen after it was laid to rest in Buenos Aires. Shop demo model so cost $50 instead of $175, good deal.

Extra rear lights, stop lights & indicators - cos you just never know when that brain dead, blind homicidal moron with a bad hair day is accelerating behind you...

Well actually, quite regularly it would seem, no wonder hairdressers are on the Australian Govt long term skills shortage list (it’s true - look it up!)

The Luggage. Hundreds of hand rivets, weeks of design & build time, about 1/3 the cost of buying luggage including all the extra lights & wiring.

It’s not sapient & doesn't have hundreds of legs but it is a top place for stickers & a great conversation starter wherever we go. It has become a souvenir & a tourist attraction in it’s own right.

Oh yes, we also put stuff in it!

Steel crash bars.  Man enough to take 250 kg of bike when it goes over &save the engine. Only problem with them is that the bars bolt together behind the cylinder head, making carb adjusting a really fiddly job

Straps. Bog standard ratchet straps. A bit  too long but otherwise ideal for their purpose. They act as the weak point if the bike does fall, allowing the box to break away rather than grind into the road - put the box back on, re-tie where the strap broke & away we go!  Also a lot cheaper than a BMW.

Mudguard. Modified by being rammed into the back of Lew’s bike, then fixed it with pop rivets, an old offcut of plastic mudguard & lashings of some South American glue we happened to have - still working fine today. Marvellous!

Instruments. Salvaged from the original fairing & still mounted on a minimal piece of the original fairing frame. The cover is a marvellous piece of Haksore Customising, the original fairing liner chopped up & turned upside down to keep the bugs & wet out

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

LED brake light. High level, high intensity - again for that brain dead, blind, homicidal moron with a bad hair day accelerating behind you...

 

Fog light. For that brain dead, blind, homicidal moron with a bad hair day accelerating behind you in zero visibility (& they do)

 

Headlight. Bought in Buenos Aires to replace the remains of the fairing after it was laid to rest. Being South American you can buy the light but you cant buy any brackets for it & it manages to turn a perfectly normal 60w halogen bulb into a feeble yellow candle-likeflicker aimed vaguely forward

Lubeman chain oiler. Bought from our photo-finishing, H.U. moderating friend in Christchurch, ironically he imports them from the UK! Simpler & way, WAY cheaper than a Scottoiler. They are a bit faffy to fit but has been keeping Anita happily lubed down under since fitting. Takes a bit of working out how often to squeeze it, too much & your rear end gets very messy, too little & it gets dry & worn. Sooo many cheap double entendres in one simple plastic device......