I bought it in a fair condition, but there have been odd things that have needed some attention and every time I find something, I usually find another little niggling thing too! So i've taken it on myself to essentially restore it, although i'm not sure 'restore' is the right word here.

Anyway...

Firstly, the performance. It's my little commuter bike, and I love it to bits, but while pottering along at 60 it's screaming it's balls off at about 8000-8500 rpm, this bothers me due to engine wear and such. It's also shoddy on hills. I hear replacing the front and back sprockets with ones that have different numbers of teeth can help this. Any idea as to the numbers of teeth I should be looking at?

Secondly, I have the idea in my head of replacing the stock 125 carb with one from a GS 250 as I hear the 125 ones are kept rather lean. Would this work/up performance/keep the revs down at higher speeds? It'll also have the standard air box removed and replaced with a fancy air filter.

Thirdly, fairings. Mine is a swish black model, which it seems that no-one has ever heard of. Ever. So finding myself the headlight fairing I want is proving impossible. Any suggestions as to where to look?

Lastly, i'm thinking about sticking some handlebar guards on there to try and keep the wind off of my bloody hands in the winter. Anyone use/used them before? Are they worth it?

Some might see this as polishing a turd, but I love this bike and i'm hoping it's get me through my test in Feburary. If it does, it's going to be a long time until I can afford anything else (The joys of being a student) so i'd like to keep this in good nick if at all possible.

Cheers in advance!

I had one of them...rode it for about a year or more..

Performance.....you're about stuck with, without spending loads !! you can put a smaller rear sprocket on (1 or 2 teeth) to make it less frantic at cruising speeds but the trade off is less acceleration

If you are gonna play with the carbs.....remember that what you put in has to come out..ie. if you have more fuel air going in the exhaust will have to be more free flowing to carry the gases away = new exhaust...BUT... to be honest you have much more chance of naffing the whole set up, unless working on V reliable settings, or given to a expert.

Nose cone..ebay then get it painted

Oxford bar Muffs, if fitted correctly will get you through the winter with your hands intact

Keep it clean, apply ACF50, give it a rinse over at least once a week & apply ACF50 again after about 6-8 weeks (do not get on brakes or tyres), ride it, service it, enjoy it and flog it for as much as you paid for it

All the best
Mot

Cheers man. I was actually looking at buying myself a new exhaust alongside everything (http://www.motad.co.uk/product.php?prod=GS125+ESZ-ESX+Disc+Complete+System) but i'll give it some thought as to whether I go through with the new carb or not. I might just re-jet the old one, give it a thorough going over and a new air filter.

Sounds like my only option for the fairing doesn't it? I'm no artist but my girlfriend is fantastic with that sort of stuff, so I may set her on the task of repainting that!

The bar muffs are exactly what i'm looking for, i'll order myself some of those ASAP. Thanks

I'm gonna have the seat and tank off at some point, check the frame over and repaint the bits that need touching up so i'll definitely look into the ACF50. Many thanks for that. Also considering the acceleration is balls when you get up to 50 anyway, I may lay off the new sprocket as with it, i'll never get any further.

Cheers!

Just bear in mind that engine tuning also carries with it a reliability penalty so if you need reliabilty leave it alone, you can also lower the revs at a given cruising speed by buying a bigger section back tyre as well but it will slow down the acceleration. Oh and finaly a 125 is NOT "pottering along" at 60, I dont care what any one else says its being thrashed! if you want many thousands of reliable miles coupled with pretty good fuel economy 50 is a good cruising speed and then when its served you well and you dont lose a lot of money on it get a bigger bike 350+ bikes "potter" at 60. I take it your new to this lark so I will wish you well and welcome to a very enjoyable method of transport and a damn good hobby as well.

You are right of course, however I do quite a bit of dual carriageway riding and I hate being an obstruction to traffic, and I especially hate being blown around by overtaking lorries, so 50 is comfortable for the bike, but a problem. 60 allows me to generally not obstruct the traffic and keep the lorries away, however it is thrashing it a bit. It's hard to find a midpoint really. I'd like something bigger but funds won't allow, and I refuse to buy a stroker on principle! So i'm not getting any more power that way.

If you have a full licence you should be able to sell your 125 for the same ammount that a decent 250 Honda or such like will cost and I go all over the UK on my 250 loaded with camping gear and run all day at 60mph. averages about 80mpg and is super reliable used in this way. They can be bought from fleabay for as little as a couple of hundred pounds because most people want a Gixxer or the like. whereas your 125 will be a bit more of a sought after learner leagle bike.

I have the test booked for Feburary, and I was looking at a 250 superdream earlier on that looked like it was in decent nick. I tend to find looking for/at things and buying them rather stressful, especially vehicles as I'm not massively mechanically minded, so I always think there's going to be lurking problems and that any good looking deal is someone looking to fleece me. Part of me wants a little 250 after I pass, part of me wants to wait until the restriction is over and buy a BMW F650 GS. But that's a silly idea!

What's the insurance like on something like a 250 Superdream anyway? I pay 136 quid a year for a 125 on a provisional with an 18 year old rider. I hate the company i'm insured with as well, they're crap. The insurance is another reason why I wouldn't want to change bikes for a while.

Erm - which principle? Cos they're dirty?

I rode a 100cc stroker for 3½ years and it would give you all the performance you want - but I guess you know that from what you said. Would definitely be the answer to the motorway problem as mine would do a steady 70 quite happily apart from up long hills or with a head wind. Great fun bike to ride as well.

Dirty, the fuel economy isn't what i'd need for a cheap commuter bike, I dislike the noise, high maintenance (Rebuilds after every so many thousand miles) Granted they're good for certain applications (I hear 125 strokers make fantastic track day fun bikes) but it's not what I really need.

Fair enough - but that's the choice!

High maintenance - my RXS100 goes about 25000 miles between rebuilds - and a 'rebuild' is only a rebore and new piston!

I would expect to insure an older 250 a fair bit cheaper than a 125 and that would be a great way of seeing out your two year restriction and build no claims as well as standing up to the inevitable first few minor spills the old superdream is a good choice all you realy want to worry about mechanicly on them is the cam chain wears with lack of mantainance. these bikes are favoured by older riders who will spend all their spare time servicing and fettling them so these are the ones to look out for. I actually enjoy riding my 250 far more than I did my Pan euopean and have covered a few miles on it in the last year, take it from me a 250 Honda will never set your world on fire but equaly it will never disapoint or let you down either. Again with a bit of care you should certainly never lose money in the two years or so you own it.

I do have a bit of a thing for the looks and styling of the Superdream and considering they seem to go for anywhere between £300 and £700 that sounds pretty affordable for me actually, even more so if the insurance will wind up cheaper. Only problem I can see in this plan is finding one in decent condition local to me

Where's local to you?

I have a Superdream but it's a 400, no good for what you want. But I do know someone locally who had several 250s while he was restricted - he got into rebuilding and restoring them - tho I don't know if he's kept any of them.

I'd say anywhere around Derby, i'm also not that far away from Nottingham, so anywhere around there really.