And after I rode off into the sunset...

...the sun rose on a bright new Sunday, and I took the opportunity to hit the road and do what every biker dreams of: U turns and figure 8s. Yes, I'm that chap, the one that practices low speed control, even though I don't have to - I'm not bothered about passing the test, at least not in near future. A 125 is quite enough for me at the moment.

The little Huonaio behaved impeccably, being stable and easy to handle, even in the brisk gusty wind that chilled my hands in no time. Better gloves are in order, although I can probably tough it out for now. Strangely, my crotch also got frozen through my leather bondage trousers. There's a new experience.

Emergency stops happened without any fuss, although the brakes do have to work hard on steep downhill stretches. Gear changes were all fine, although I did fumble a few upshifts. However, I think that's more down to a lack of practice on my part rather than a mechanical issue.

The boring, important bits aside, how fast is it, you ask? Don't ask me, I'm running it in. Yes, I'm that chap as well. The 5000 rpm running-in redline yields an indicated 32 mph-ish, which, combined with confident road positioning (and a bit of "Look out - I may be a mental" weaving around) is just enough to keep Mondeo Man from trying any rash overtaking moves in 30 limits. OK, I may have nudged 6000 rpm, or 40 mph briefly while jaunting on an A-road. The bike feels perfectly happy at this speed, with the vibration just starting to creep in, although the mirrors seem stable enough. What matters is that the engine is torquey and willing, forgiving of being left in higher gears, and gets the bike up past 30mph quickly enough to get you into the traffic stream safely.

According to a nag-cam on the A-road, the speedo seems fairly accurate. If my calculations are correct, the max power at 8500 rpm would yield a road speed of 58mph or thereabouts. Depending which blurb you want to believe, the Huoniao claims a maximum speed of 90kpm or 56 mph. I'm not sure I'd want to hold it at 8500 for long, although properly run in it may not be a problem. Either way, I couldn't in all honesty argue the point that this bike is suitable for sitting a full 'A' test (i.e. 100kpm / 62.5mph), but then again, since it's got very similar mechanicals to the test-hack of choice, the Honda CG 125, perhaps more test examiners should actually ask to be shown that an 'A' test bike can hit and maintain 100kph on the level, hmm?

During my jaunt, biker nods were exchanged with a Harley pilot, and a quaddie. Do we nod to quads? Stuff it, I do. Anyone outside a cage gets the nod.

A few maintenance issues did crop up today. Huzzah! This is why I got the bike, so I actually relish them. The vibration loosened off the bolts holding on my rear L plates - I can hardly blame the Huonaio for that though, since I neglected to loctite them. My bad. Also, while attaching the tax disk holder to the clamp at the top of the offside suspension strut, I over-tightened the bolt and stripped the end of it, as you can (almost) see here.



This is in the "I should have expected that" category, since as any fool know, the Chinese use bolts made of straw and sparrow spit. A 8mm British bought coach bolt (doubtless made in China) replaced it. Washer, spring washer, loctite, goes the mantra. How much torque is needed on this bolt? About that much, I think. I'll keep an eye on it, but the same applies to all the other bolts as well.

Later, I went on a shopping trip, for which the bike was gifted the cheapskate soft panniers from my pedal-cycle. With a smidgin of adjustment, they clipped onto the side rails of the rear rack just fine, and feel pretty secure there. Not as pimp as saddle-bags, but probably more practical. Also, anything that makes the bike more visible and gives it a bit more presence has to be a good idea.



Now, maybe some bull-bars or a snow plough on the front?