hmm thats odd.

[motorola222]

well guys had my storm a few months now.

Apart from not liking starting in the morning (it always does on the 4th crank)

its been a trouble free ride. one thing is the bike realllly doesnt like being ridden under 3k revs this is uber annoying when ur in traffic which 90% of the time i am.

also id noticed about 2.5k revs the bike make a large clonking tappy noise. sometimes just sat in traffic the bike will cut out completly making a large clunk as it does(im told this is the pistons as the compression is so high).

any ideas?

also when moving off in any gear i get a very faint patting noise similar to whipping the seat with a shoelace is the closest thing if u wanna make the noise urself it happens all the time and only when moving. the engine revs freely all the way through the revs all the way to redline with no noises at all. i came from a silky smooth V4 before so im wondering if im just beeing over sensitive to the rather noisy V-twin.??

[Jonesey]

What you have to remember is these bikes are quite agricultural, which for me personally is all the charm.
Mine also gives the occasional cough which is enough to stop the engine, but as they say "they all do that"
Don't worry about it, get it out there and ride it.
Chris.

[benny hedges]

im wondering if im just beeing over sensitive to the rather noisy V-twin.??

thank crouton you didn't buy a ducati lol!! talk about funny noises.....
it should pull like a train from 2k so maybe check the air filter isn't dirty and i suggest you get the carb balance sorted, sounds like one pot is helping the other along and it doesn't like it..
also if you do a lot of stoppy starty town riding, drop a tooth on the front sprocket, to a 15.
i put a 14 on mine but it's a bit extreme tbh lol but it saves on front tyres.

i got mine from http://www.intobikes.co.uk next day delivery & good quality.
vac gauges you can get for about 20 quid off ebay.

other than that, either you've got a crap helmet with bad sound proofing or you need a set of race cans

[tony.mon]

I've been whipping my seat with a shoelace for a while now, and I'm beginning to make funny noises.

Haven't coughed yet, though.

Tried to make a crap helmet but it isn't looking very successful, not sure if the bathing cap will ever be the same.
And the gold ACU sticker keeps falling off.

Hmmm, it's certainly odd.

[Stratman]

Just because its a V twin doesn't mean you can ride in a high gear at low revs and expect it to take off smoothly. Try a lower gear in traffic - no more than 3rd in a30, 4th in a 40 etc. You can pootle down to 20 in a high gear on an inline 4 but not with a twin.

[motorola222]

I've been whipping my seat with a shoelace for a while now, and I'm beginning to make funny noises.

Haven't coughed yet, though.

Tried to make a crap helmet but it isn't looking very successful, not sure if the bathing cap will ever be the same.
And the gold ACU sticker keeps falling off.

Hmmm, it's certainly odd.

lol shucks uv obviously got the wrong shoe lace my prefernece is wilkinsons finest brown tan there a pack of two for 99p.

as for doing things myself I am to mechanics what Monica louinski is to politics.
Tbh I think you guys are right if I'm below 3rd the thing pulls like a train if I'm doing same speed but in a huger gear it doesn't like it like u said I think it's more the fact I'm not used to vtwin gotta love that torque delivery tho it's addictive.

[Tat_Man]

Sounds about right, if you pick too high a gear through town its like riding a goat...and a big goat at that

[motorola222]

Lol a goat more like the donkey from buckaroo!!.

I'd love to know what that stupid tapping is !!.

[Stratman]

The tapping, or slapping, could be the drive chain whipping around under load if you are in too high a gear. It could have a tight spot too, which wouldn't help matters

[Tat_Man]

Without actually hearing the noise its a toughie,

Does it make the noise only on acceleration or all the time?
Does the whipping sound pick up speed as the bike does or does it remain constant?

Find a nice quiet road, ride down it so that you can hear the noise...then pull the clutch in and keep it held in ,letting the revs drop.
Listen to see if the noise is still there, if it dissapears when you pull the clucth then the noise is most likely coming from the engine,
If its still there its probably in the drivetrain somewhere.

As Stratman says, look for a tight link in your chain.
I had a CBR600 that made a similar noise when i bought it, i did the above method and eventually traced it back to the chain.
It did indeed have a tight link on it.
New chain and sprockets and the noise was gone.

[motorola222]

My chain is probs very dry this won't be helping matters.

[tony.mon]

The tapping, or slapping, could be the drive chain whipping around under load if you are in too high a gear. It could have a tight spot too, which wouldn't help matters

Good suggestion.

It's easy to get chain tension wrong on Storms, ideally you want someone of approx the same weight as you to sit on the bike when you've tensioned it to see what the slack actually is.
If you do it when you're off the bike it's often too tight once your weight's on it.

But if it's too slack then the chain can just catch the LH link pipe if you have aftermarket exhausts- standard ones have a dent in the pipe for this purpose.

If you coast with the clutch in, the noise will slow with road speed if it's the chain. (or engine sprocket- whip off the sprocket cover to check).
If it disappears it's the clutch.
If it varies with engine speed then it's valves or CCT's, or something else engine-related.

[cliveyandrews]

But if it's too slack then the chain can just catch the LH link pipe if you have aftermarket exhausts- standard ones have a dent in the pipe for this purpose.

I've just had to make a sacrificial plate for my aftermarket link pipes for that very reason....

[motorola222]

It's not the clutch I get the whine as normal in first and I get the usually rattle with the clutch out on in neutral that dissapears again when u pull it in

The tapping noise I mean only appears once moving it's sounds like it's the chain area tbh I can sit still and rev the engine with no noises or complaining.(apart from neiborghs)

[tony.mon]

Try !!carefully!!- with a helper holding it- putting it on a paddock stand and letting it run in gear.
You should be able to see/hear the problem easily.

If it slips off and wheelies away down the drive blame your mate.