The New Hotness.
 

I love this paint scheme. So many looks and even a thumbs up on my short little ride home. I would ride it more, but it ended up being a bit on the cold side today.

It has less than 15 miles on it, but it is such a smooth and wonderful bike to ride around on, and quite comfortable too.

https://i.ibb.co/4YFDkYD/20240420-154756.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/3mj0DTw/20240420-153638.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/mbQR2xF/20240420-154512.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/1r1LSdB/20240420-154557.jpg

Nice !

You deserved it Dan...


Enjoy the ride...

Don't know if I deservd it or not, but I definitely wanted it!

Beautiful! Dang it! Now I want one. Lol

It is a great looking bike. It's everything I love about old bikes but with all the right modern touches. The biggest one is the fact that it doesn't have spoke wheels. No inner tubes to deal.

I already have a list of things I want to get. Namely, a front sump guard and/or a fender extender for the front to protect the engine and oil filter from road debris. Eventually I want to get new turn signals too, but these ones don't honestly look too bad. Still big and chunky, but unlike a lot if cheap bikes, not obviously cheap either.

The one feature of this bike and the Super meteor that I didn't even know about is that it has a built in navigation system. It's very basic and just an arrow and distance type system, but still kind of neat. I would have happily traded that feature for a tachometer myself, but still a neat feature.

I am considering putting on a little digital tach/temp gauge like this one. https://www.ebay.com/itm/335097304377

The little gauge on the right is the clock/nav feature. https://i.ibb.co/23gPHBn/20240420-154855.jpg

That little meter is kind of neat. A Tiny Tach on 'roids, though I wonder if the clock is an hour meter.

That is a sharp bike.

I like it…a lot! Congrats Dan:tup:

Sick! Have you ever owned/worked on an RE before? All I think I know is they are a British/English company with the manufacturing in India.


Just in time for the new riding season. Nice.

Thanks! I like it too lol

On Brit bikes? No. Thankfully, this is a modern bike, so it's all metric and with good electrical lol.

I think it is an hour meter too. A "clock" of sorts. I don't really care about that function anyway, so it's moot.

They do also make one I am going to put on my Hawk, I think. Head temp, oil temp, voltage, and timer. I just need to figure out the fitting sizes. https://www.ebay.com/itm/18608440947...Bk9SR6aAt8jgYw

Can't tell you how happy I am! Welcome to the RE World! Love the 650 motor. I have the Tripper on my Scram. All the tach options I saw are $$$ for what I want to spend. I did this on the Scram. It's one of those boat motor deals. The Interceptor has both gauges.

It's a very unique story, for sure.

https://www.royalenfield.com/us/en/o...ld/since-1901/

Mr. Lal has done a fantastic job with the brand.

On to day 2 of ownership. Got in another 60 miles of random around town riding to get the break in period over with. The engine is slowly starting to loosen up and get a little smoother and the power is starting to perk up just a little more. The first service is at 300 miles for the first oil change and valve check according to the RE service manual, so I have some oil and a filter on order as I suspect that is going to come up sooner rather than later lol.

The stock exhaust has a nice little rumble to it. Surprisingly more than I first thought when I rode the demo bike. Maybe it's just got more of a pop to it now that the rings are seating more fully and the compression is starting to pick up, but I swear it was a lot quieter before.

Anyway, some dramatic night shots in a parking garage, because why not?

https://i.ibb.co/bJ36Kzx/20240421-205233.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/Km9JFxd/20240421-205313.jpg

Beautiful ride! You aren't going to believe how easy these are to work on. They're designed for owner maintenance. The valve check at 300 miles was a piece of cake. Took me less than two beers.

Sometimes it takes someone else to say it to make it believable...

Oh, I know. A few things to move around, but nothing terrible. The valve job on my VFR took most of a day to do. I am sure the Shotgun will take 30 minutes, maybe an hour of I go take a lunch break lol.

It's not that I don't feel I "deserve" it I guess. I just don't view the world in that way. I appreciate the sentiment though, for sure. It's not the words that matter, but the context and meaning behind them. :tup:

I get it...


Perhaps a better way to rephrase it would be...


"I'm glad the bike found you Dan"

After doing a bit of tuning to my Hawk and getting back from having fun riding it around to rack up some miles on it, I thought it would be fun/interesting to compare it side by side with my Shotgun just to really see a size comparison. I tend to forget how big the Hawk is because it feels so small when I sit on it.

https://i.ibb.co/rHBgpRr/20240423-030337.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/k9frB6d/20240423-025933.jpg

This perspective kind of shows the seat height differences. My Hawk is a couple of inches higher (about 33 inches). Also hard to believe both tanks are close to the same capacity, especially from this angle.

https://i.ibb.co/k5N54WQ/20240423-030053.jpg

Is that a Harley?

Nay, A Royal Enfield Shotgun 650.

Harley?

Hardly.

Full ceramic coat job is now done. Also decided to hit the rubber and plastic bits with some 303 protectant, yes, that includes the sidewalls. 303 is great for tires, and no risk of causing issues if you accidently get it on the tread.

https://i.ibb.co/sqK30wj/20240423-191057.jpg

You know when I saw your YouTube video, I thought man that guy sounds like MegaDan and kinda looks like him but his channel name is different, maybe it’s his brother :lmao:

Absolutely love the bike, hopefully you get the chance to make some more videos on it.

nice! glad you got it Dan. im a little jealous, but more happy for ya.

lol, my YT channel name goes back a long long time. I have just never changed it. All 4 of my brothers do look quite similar to me, but our voices are rather different, and I am the tallest and most good looking, obviously. :lol:

I do want to do more with it. Record upgrades, and once I get my action camera back up and working - or replace it - I will definitely try an do more riding videos again. It will never be anything serious, just a personal blog kind of deal.

lol, don't be jealous. I get what you mean though, as I kept watching everybody around me get new bikes, new gear, etc. and I just sat there with my sameness. Best advice is, don't measure yourself off of others.

Take this bike. Everybody kept saying it was too slow, etc. I bought it anyway, and I don't regret it at all. It's all the motorcycle anybody could ever need, and it is still fun to ride. Walk your own path, and be true to what your insides and instincts tell you.

I did order myself a few accessories for it today. Most of them coming from India and one from the UK. Most of them will be here in roughly 2 weeks, which is fine. I figure by that point I may actually be done with my break in and ready to do the oil and filter change. Most of the parts are Genuine Factory upgrades. Their black LED turn signal kit with flasher upgrade, sump guard, and a tinted flyscreen "windshield" for now. Nothing crazy.

I've also been looking at some cheaper saddle bag options just to have some cargo carrying ability. These caught my eye, mostly because of the price and the brand is an ok one for cheaper but decent quality as I have a tail bag made by them that is a few years old. https://www.ebay.com/itm/116083639223

Same Brand, very different look, size, and style, but I like them too. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...M9K7GWGH&psc=1

I am trying to decide if I want a tail bag or not, and if so, what kind.

Uh.....yeahhhhh.....please pass on my condolences to the other three.....

Other 4. I'm number 3 out of 5.

I'm the youngest of three country boys.....and obviously the best looking. ;-)
The youngest. Learn to fight the hardest and run the fastest.

I decided to pull the trigger on these guys since they were only about 60 bucks.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/29591641959...01&mpt=8361645

Not an ideal design, but I am going to see just how sturdy they are, and I may make a small modification to add a little support to the back section with the rear seat subframe grab handle mount points if I think they are going to flex too much and potentially cause a problem.

I grew up the youngest. My older brother and I are the sons of our mother, the other 3 are my half-brothers from 2 different women. The oldest was put up for adoption when my father and his girlfriend had a kid very very young. The 2 youngest are from his second marriage after my parents separated.

Does the Super Meteor and the Shotgun have the same frame???? Hopefully those bars bolt right on.
BTW, my 88 year old mom still has me up for adoption...... No takers.

Yes, they do share the same frame architecture and swing arm/brakes. The Shotgun rear shocks are 20mm longer, the front forks are 30mm shorter, and the triple clamps are different. This is why the Shotgun handles so well, it has the same steering geometry of many sport touring bike, including my former vfr1200, with 25 degrees of rake.

The only real difference to the frame is where the Shotguns rear seat subframe bolts on, but the mount points these bars use are identical.

I know a few of you saw my video on YT, but I may as well share it here too. Did my first service on it yesterday. Definitely a more complicated process to do a valve check than the Hawk since the tank has to come off... and the coils need removed, and their bracket needs moved out of the way all just to get the valve cover off, but at least it's nowhere near VFR1200 valve check levels of nightmare.

https://i.ibb.co/c2YrqZv/20240430-192131.jpg

4 of my valves were tight/zero lash, an one set were at .02mm and the other was dead on spec still. I know that RE states the next service is at about 4700 miles, but I may check them again after the full break in period (1200 miles) is over. As much as I would love to just leave them alone, I just don't trust them until they have run longer than 291 miles.

I put in Castrol 10w-50 synthetic oil and a new genuine filter. I also installed a new pair of NGK Iridium CR7EIX plugs. I am keeping the OEM plugs as spares. I did find that my right side plug was actually not tight.

I also upgraded the turn signals to the Royal Enfield factory LED upgrades. I really like how they look, even though they do feel exceptionally cheap. For 99 bucks delivered for 4 direct replacement flashers and a relay it was a decent deal in my opinion. They definitely look a lot better.

https://i.ibb.co/LdTB8GZ/20240501-004700.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/L8Nfsrc/20240501-004638.jpg

Also, if you do find yourself with one of these bikes, or its brother the Super Meteor 650, the flasher relay is under a bracket, under the seat pan, under the seat. It's fun to get to.

https://i.ibb.co/86TmGsD/20240430-224300.jpg

Sweet bike, Dan. It's a looker, for sure. I'm still new to this motorcycle stuff, but Royal Enfield has really caught my eye.

They are great bikes. Just the right amount of power to do pretty much everything, or as others might say "all the bike you need."

I like them because they are mostly metal. Tank, fenders, side panels, trim pieces on the throttle bodies - metal. Not many bikes below 10k can make that claim. Yes, they still do use plastic - the turn signals are definitely a cheaper plastic, but I can live with that.

The real masterpiece is the 650 twin. It's not the most powerful for it's size, but still a real gem of an engine. RE bikes aren't without some flaws, but as time has progressed they have started to really iron out the quality issues that they have had, and while not quite as cheap as parts for a Hawk 250, most of the parts are quite affordable.

I am curious to see what the Classic 650 is going to look like. It's basically a Shotgun 650 but with different tank, fenders, and spoke wheels to give it the real retro look many people want that the Shotgun doesn't quite give. The Shotgun is more of a Neo-Retro Bullet.