Product Review: Flare Isolate Pro Titanium

I have been using the 3M ear plugs for sometime now and while looking for a better earplugs I came across the Flare Isolate. Did a bit more research about it and most of the users are happy with the product. I decided to bite the bullet and asked if anyone else in the group was interested in doing bulk purchase to save on shipping but only one other was interested. After some discussion regarding the final price including shipping I ended up ordering a Isolate Pro Titanium for myself and the Isolate Mini for him.

After waiting for about 8 weeks for delivery, the earplugs finally arrived. It is packaged in a nice resealable plastic bag.

Shoei GT-Air 2 review

Recently had a helmet discussion with a colleague of mine who just started riding. He made the mistake of getting a helmet online without going to the physical shop to personally try on the helmet to get the right sizing. Long story short, he bought two helmets which were in the wrong sizes. Told my friend about the discussion and the next thing I knew she was looking at full face helmets and comparisons online and one name always came up on top: Shoei GT-Air 2. We came across the new Shoei 2020 Graphics and this particular graphics caught our attention.

When I first saw the design it reminded me of Wolverine. Mind you I do not mean the modern Wolverine uniform which we see in the X-Men movies but his uniform from the 1990's:

TCX Roadster 2

Since I had to go to Hot Bikes to try the TCX shoes, my friend decided to tag along. After looking for some with my size, I managed to get the TCX Mood GTX. I love the look of the Roadster 2 but it is a shame that they sold my size a few days ago. Since my friend likes the design of the Roadster 2 and they have it in her size, she tried it on, felt comfortable and now she has finally acquired the last motorcycle protective gear after 5 years of hunting.

The stylish Roadster 2

TCX Mood GTX

Was looking for a motorcycle specific shoes since I started riding. It has been a challenged for me as I have wide feet. I was recommended by a friend to try the Alpinestars Faster 3 as it has wide option but after 5 minutes of wearing I could feel the pain the sides of my feet. Did more research and found out that the TCX has wide options for their shoes and there is one shop on the island which carries the brand.

Went to Hot Bike to take a look at their shoe selection and the salesperson was a very friendly, helpful and chatty lady. She talked about all her trips, experience on the motorcycle and also her motorcycle accident during one of her motorcycle tours. My criteria for the motorcycle shoes is simple. I need it to look formal enough to pass as office wear, able to spend long hours in it comfortably and has all the protection required in an event of a fall.

She had a couple of shoes which met the requirements and after asking me for my size, she proceeded to look for the one with my size in stock. I had my eyes on the TCX Roadster 2 but sadly she does not have it in my size. After trying on the shoes and asking opinions from friends, I ended up with the Mood GTX Black.

UClear Amp 200

I was looking for some Bluetooth (BT) communication and most recommendations online are either Sena or Cardio Scala. There are 2 reasons why I did not get either or because 1) it has the boom mike and 2) the price of either or are very expensive. A few years ago in Facebook there was a shop in Singapore which was promoting a boomless BT communicator from the UClear company. Since MegaBike has stock for it I decided to give it a try and bought a set.

Packaging:

All 4 sides of the UClear box. Listed at the side of the box are the features of the BT unit

Unboxing:

The first thing which greets you is the BT unit

Two shops, two states

A few days back I was invited to attend the Kawasaki Soft Launch at Sheng Fatt. Since it will be held on a Saturday, me and my friend registered our names and waited for the day to arrive. On the day, we had quite a hectic morning before arriving at the event. We arrived, signed in and was asked wait and look around the showroom until it was time to go up to the workshop area for the presentation.

Apart from Alpinestars and Shoei helmet displays, there was a Shoei personal comfort fit booth and a Ducati Panigale V4 in the middle of the showroom. Being a curious lad, I had to try the bike and as with the other Ducati bikes I did not like the  position of the foot pegs. All the Ducati models foot pegs are too high up which makes my legs feels cramped and too tucked in. The only model I did not try yet was the Multi/Hyperstrada. There was a second hand Hyperstrada available but I chickened out backed out from trying it when I was near the bike. It was more to too afraid to drop the bike when I am getting on and off them.

Panigale V4

Life-hack: Anti-Fog Visor

Ever gone riding in the rain where you should not to open your visor but yet you need to else you cannot see anything to save your life? What about riding in the cool morning enjoying the coldness but cannot open the visor unless you want to freeze your eyes out? I have a simple solution.

What causes fog in the visor?

Fog / mist appearing on the visor

Fog happens is because of difference in air temperature. The temperature in the helmet is warm because of the heat and hot air from your breath and the temperature outside is cooler when it is raining, snowing or during the morning. This difference in temperature causes the warm air to condense on the surface of the visor and causes it to fog up. This is the same concept as putting ice into a cup and the condensation will happen on the outside. In order to solve this, I will try a simple and cheap method using shaving cream.

A trip to Taiping

Taiping Prison entrance

Recently took a trip down to the historic town of Taiping with a friend. Taiping is located about 100km from my little island. The original plan was to try to leave early (0700 hrs) so that we could take the Vulcan but ended up leaving the island about 1100 hrs.

Before we left the house we got a call from the optometrist that our new specs are ready for collection and since they are along the way, we figured we might as well drop by to collect the specs before leaving. It was a good thing that we took the car instead because it was raining cats and dogs even before we left the island and parts along the highway.

Always wanted to visit MegaBike Taiping since I found out about them but was only free on Sundays and public holidays and so happens that that those are the days they are closed. Here are a few reasons why we made the trip:

1. They are open on that particular Sunday (19 May 2019)
2. We needed a short break
3. Looking for a new jacket 
4. Looking for motorcycle pants
5. They are having sales for Komine and Taichi apparels

One of the reasons we made the trip over

Twisted Throttle Dryspec bags

Carrying space on a motorcycle to me is one of the most important thing. Imagine going to market or a short trip to do some groceries and there is no space to carry all your purchases. You would need to rack your brain and play a puzzle game on the spot to get everything in place and not hinder your controls.

There is a reason as to why the Demak does not go out to malls or market. The bike has no storage space. There is always a shopping bag folded and stored somewhere when taking the Demak out and made sure to not over purchase anything which makes it dangerous to carry on the way back. Since started working at the new job, there are times where I had to buy groceries or dinner after work and the most creative way to carry them back was to use the sternum clip on my backpack. If the plastic bag was big, I can rest the rest of the weight on the tank while protecting it from falling with my legs.

OJ World motorcycle gloves

Current Harley-Davidson Winged Skull gloves

Was looking for a new pair of gloves for quite some time now as the right middle finger on the H-D gloves has become uncomfortable when I cover the front brake. I did a temporary solution which was soaking the gloves in warm water, wear the gloves while performing daily activities until they dry in hopes of stretching them a bit. This method did work for awhile then it would require another round of treatment.

Not sure if this is due to leather + humidity which shrinks the gloves or I got the glove a size too small to begin with. When I first tried them on, it fits but after one ride in a slight drizzle the gloves started to be uncomfortable.

Tear at cuffs for both sides of the gloves

There is a tear on the cuffs at both sides of the gloves. This could be my doing as I tend to hold at that spot while putting the gloves on. No choice as the gloves are a snug fit and they did not make a tab for me to pull to put on the gloves.

Was supposed to visit some motorcycle shops around the island window shopping for riding apparels but somehow that was not the case for who knows why. There was also a plan to visit MegaBike Taiping which is a 45 mins drive but when I have the time, they are closed. To me it is either bad timing or not meant to visit them yet.

An opportunity arises when I had to over to the mainland for work and since I was there, I decided to stop by a few shops to have a look. Originally planned to stop by Guan How but remembered about the Benelli @ CK Motoworld along the Juru highway so did a pit stop there.

Product Review: 3M E-A-R Ultrafit corded Earplugs

Recently with the HJC helmet the sound in the helmet is totally different from the ones I am used to with the X-Dot 3/4 helmet. In the X-Dot helmet I have the whistling sound which can mainly  be eliminated when I put the visor down. The sound on the HJC is a different kind of wind noise. I can reduce it with the chin curtain installed but that would fog up the visor instead. This sound is made worse when on the Vulcan because the windshield directs the wind up to the head.

This got me researching on earplugs and end up with so many questions: Which are better for motorcycles, which are easier to fit in, are they reusable, which type is better. If possible I do not want the foam earplugs where you have to roll them up before inserting into your ears. I always have this fear of putting it too deep in and will need a trip to the ER to get it out.

If you are wondering about the benefits or how wind sound can damage your ear, head over RideWell and Motorcycle Paradise for more information.

DIY motorcycle ramp

A few months ago I somehow had a suspicion that there might be a puncture at the back tyre of the Vulcan S. I initially thought the loss of tyre pressure was due to the bike not moving for some time but after checking the tyre the next day after filling it up, the pressure would be less. I think this was because every time I have to park the bike, I need to ride the bike up to the tiled portion from the garden. The back wheel sometimes need fight for grip (the area is muddy after rain and it feels like I am taking the bikes off road) to go up the side garden and the edge of the tiled area might be putting some unwanted pressure on the tyre.

  

The distance between the ground and the tiled area and the height is about 7cm.

Givi CRS01.AX Rain Suit

Recently due to the sky developing a habit of opening up just before it is time to get off work which ends up soaking me from head to toe and water accumulating in my shoes which is enough to fill an aquarium.

I have a 3 year old H-D riding jacket which is water resistant. During small showers, I am fine as only the pants will be soaked but still manageable. The heavy downpours are the ones where I am soaked like as though I took a shower with my clothes on.

From then, I was on a mission to look for a rain suit. Went to Mr. DIY to look for a rain suit but the biggest size available is 3XL. I can fit into the shirt no problem but the pants is a bit too small for as a overpants.

First motorcycle: Demak D7 Classic

This post is a throw back to the first day I bought my very first motorcycle:

On 12 May 2015 I got my first motorcycle; ~14 years after getting my license. This was how the first experience on a manual bike went.

In Malaysia there are a few classes of motorcycle license. The most common is B2: limited to 250cc, B1: limited to below 500cc and B or also known as B Full: above 500cc. There was an option when I first took my B2 license to add an additional MYR 100 to go for the B Full license. Saves time and money in the future but a shame that I was not allowed to do it at that time (was only 17 at the time and wasn't paying for the license).

I was introduced to the bike scene when I was very young. I got my bike license in 2001 (if memory serves me correctly) and I just started college at that time and needed a transport. Since I did not have a car license yet, my mum reluctantly agreed to let me ride to class.

Wishlist

*Note* I have created a wishlist page to better monitor and update the items

It is inevitable to anyone who has a hobby that the more time spent on it the more things you will want to add or change to make it more personalized and enjoyable. A little background on me. I have a lot of interest and lots of hobbies. I have a curious mind to try things and to tinker with them (but mostly will end up breaking somehow). Things I was interested in previously I do not have the time for them now.

So this is the only hobby which I can maintain in my busy schedule. In this post I will list future upgrades which I plan to get or do with the bikes. It is a combination of mods  and accessories to the bike. If something is completed I will link it to the post and as time pass by there will be more items added to the list.

Welcome

Hello and welcome to my blog.

I am a passionate motorcycle rider from the tiny island of Penang, Malaysia. Started riding in year 2001 but had to give it up due to parent's order but started riding again in 2015 when I got my first motorcycle after some persuasion from the missus. As it luck would have it we came across the design of the bike she likes and she was thinking and doing research about it.

The blog serves as a record of all my motorcycle adventures and review of gears obtained. Please feel free to look at the Bucket list tab as those are the motorcycle trips I have in mind and if you are in the area or are interested in joining, let me know as I am more than happy to have the company.

I was exposed to motorcycles since I was at a very young age. My mum use to ferry me around the island on the Honda EX5 as it can get very congested at rush hour and also faster to reach the destination by lane splitting.