TWO WEEKS AS A COURIER BIKE....MY THOUGHTS

[acf1073]

I been using my 06 kat 750 as my courier bike for my business (www.westtennesseemotoexpress.com ) for about two weeks now and here are my thoughts......I have added a ZG sport touring windshield, XM radio, full set of soft luggage,cup/water bottle holder,removed every single sticker on the bike and other than that it is stock.

The bike is truly perfect for what i do...well,almost perfect....considering I do 200-300 miles per day,5-6 days per week....you do the math (52K a year on the low side and 93,600K on the high side for an average of 72.800K per year)

Excellent fuel economy,good comfort,good weather protection,smooth yet a tad buzzy,my man-package often tingles with joy and/or motor vibration, I aint figgered out which one it is yet.....You would be amazed at the stuff I can carry. I recently carried a big yellow tractor rim for a John Deere farm tractor and 6 log chains with this bike,at the same time...lol

The only changes/additions I have planned for the life of this bike(which is less than two years considering the miles I run daily) is to add a Corbin seat with passenger backrest(for the wife when we take weekend trips),heated grips, a 17 tooth front sprocket to reduce rpm's and vibrations at highway speeds and a 12v outlet for winter riding and all my heated gear,and tires/brakes/chains and valve adjustments.

I am still thoroughly pleased with my decision to get a 750 kat. It performs equally well whether it be city traffic,open rural highways or the Interstates or backroads........Thanks again Aaron...you da man....enjoy that SV.

[woobie]

Re: TWO WEEKS AS A COURIER BIKE....MY THOUGHTS

With that type of Mileage you should consider adding a scottoiler or a lubeman.

I recently carried a big yellow tractor rim for a John Deere farm tractor and 6 log chains with this bike,at the same time...lol

[Specter]

Yes, we really need pics of your bike. I'm curious to see what this courier bike looks like

[mharrison]

Re: TWO WEEKS AS A COURIER BIKE....MY THOUGHTS

With that type of Mileage you should consider adding a scottoiler or a lubeman.

I agree. I would definitely look into that racking up miles like you do.

[Don't Panic, It's KAT!]

Transport anything?

We need pics of you transporting the John Deere rim! And the KAT, of course!


Nice looking website. It's informative, concise and to the point. Is this your main "business?"

Best of luck!

[daspope]

I like the website

[acf1073]

it is my main business and my only income aside from my wifes job as a circuit court probation officer. i spent 10 years in law enforcement with the last half of it as an undercover narcotics agent and when it became too much for my family to deal with due to long hours,stress and low pay i threw it all out and started my own business....so far it is the best decision i have ever made.

i lube my chain every 3 days but i might look into the scottoiler pretty soon.

thanks for the compliments on my website and i ill try to get some pics posted soon.

[bikerscars]

wow...

you just got my mind a racing...

ya know what the philly area needs AND would fulfill my m/c riding habit...hmmm

nice to see you made the leap

congrats

[Nero]

What an interesting life story you must have. Sounds almost like a good premise for a movie. Good luck with your venture!

[KatanaSoldier]

Glad to hear the Kat is serving you well!

[Abzs]

My pleasure A.C....take care of her!
Abzs-

[mharrison]

I'd be scared that riding everyday for a living would make riding seem too much like work!

It is pure enjoyment now, I'd hate to screw that up!

[acf1073]

its not a chore...riding is a way of life.....i just traded an unmarked police car for a motorcycle and lots less stress...lol...i work for me and not a politician...lol

[The CyberPoet]

Re: TWO WEEKS AS A COURIER BIKE....MY THOUGHTS

...a 17 tooth front sprocket to reduce rpm's and vibrations at highway speeds...

Won't fit. Period. The biggest you can go to in the front is a 16 -- at 17 tooth, the chain won't have sufficient clearance (we've had other members who tried -- or maybe that was back in the KP days).

i lube my chain every 3 days but i might look into the scottoiler pretty soon.

I'd recommend getting in the habit of lubing your chain every time you fill up on gas, at least until you get some form of oiler. Lubing every gas fill-up was a trick taught to me by dispatch riders in Europe -- because if you can get three times the life out of the chain & sprockets, you're also cutting your fuel-use losses due to drive-line losses with dry chains. (And according to Craft59, who I trust on this stuff, a well-oiled chain is still the least parasitic power-transfer system available for any engine).
These days I use a Pro-Oiler, which takes a signal from the speedo signal generator on the 98+ Kats and oils on a speed-sensitive basis (more oil per mile at higher speeds, and an easy control panel you can bump the oiling rate up or down for conditions such as rain).

The only real concern that I would have for you (aside from safety issues -- I assume you wear some form of safety vest to improve your visibility) would be the wear/replacement cycle -- at 78k miles a year, you can figure you'll need another bike every year to 18 months (consistently buying slightly-used 2-3 year old bikes makes sense financially for such an undertaking).

A fumoto oil drain would be a must (less down time for maint), as well as an triple-A RV/Gold-plan (which covers towing bikes -- their standard car plan doesn't). I'd also pre-stock up on a lot of maint supplies (3 to 6 months' worth at a pop) plus some of the irregular consumables (chains, sprockets, handlebar tubes, grips) to make sure that you'll never be down due to supply-side issues getting replacement parts. Send me a PM and I'll get you covered if you'd like...

Cheers,
=-= The CyberPoet

[The CyberPoet]

Whoa... I just checked the rates... unless that map is a lot smaller than I imagine, I can't see how you're making any significant income...

Mileage costs run around 32-37 cents a mile to run a typical Kat from birth-to-grave at this point, including fuel, maint, depreciation, supplies, tags & taxes, insurance & etc.
Thus, if you're shooting out 30 miles on-way to pick-up, dropping off 40 miles the other way and take 15 miles to get home, that's $27 to $31 worth of overhead... am I missing something here?

Cheers,
=-= The CyberPoet