1984 Yamaha Fj600 on 2040-motos

Yamaha FJ600 tech info

Engine Size (cc):600

Moto blog

Rainy BSB tests are nothing new

THE combination of bad weather in the UK and a European testing ban means that most BSB teams will now start the season with very little track time. This sounds like a disaster for the top teams but history has proved this isn’t necessarily true and it sometimes doesn’t matter how much pre season preparation has taken place.  Back in 2002 Sean Emmett won on the IFC Ducati at the opening Silverstone round after first riding it in unofficial practice the same weekend. Steve Hislop took the other win on Pauls Bird’s well sorted Ducati. More recently in 2009, Leon Camier took an untested new model R1 Yamaha to victory at the Brands Hatch opener after GSE took delivery of the bike just the week before. Sylvain Guintoli won the other race on a well developed, well tested Crescent Suzuki. You could argue if no one has had testing then it is a level playing field but you have to feel for riders moving up to the superbike class in the world’s toughest national series.  Tyco Suzuki’s PJ Jacobson is one such rider but having spent some time with him over the past few weeks he seems to be taking it all in his stride. It may be the confidence of youth or maybe the fact he has won in every other class he has entered in his short BSB career, but I suspect he fancies at least standing on the Superbike podium at Brands (He also does a bit of ice racing which is not dissimilar to the this year’s UK testing).  The testing ban was implemented with all the best cost cutting intentions and if it had been any other year in the past decade all would be well. The teams may be feeling frustrated but the fans should be excited. With so many unknowns, the 2013 BSB opener at Brands Hatch could be the best ever!

New Lorenzo lids unveiled

HELMET MANUFACTURER X-LITE will be unveiling one of their top-of-the-range lids in a variety of colour schemes favoured by Fiat Yamaha MotoGP star Jorge Lorenzo.The X-802 is now available in the MotoGP star's black paint scheme, with the recognisable red 'X' on the crown. The back of the helmet features an 'Evolution of Lorenzo', which charts the transition of the Mallorcan from boy to worldwide phenomenon, in a Charles Darwin cartoon stylee.If that doesn't float your boat there will be more options: Lorenzo's Captain America paint scheme, seen at the Indianapolis GP, will be available by the end of the year, along with the NASA-style astronaut helmet used during Lorenzo's stunning victory at Estoril.The helmet is priced at 484 euros (£442) on the European market.I feel a phone call coming on...

New: Venhill 888 fast-action twistgrips

CONTROL specialist Venhill has launched its new 888 range of bike-specific fast action twistgrips.  Supplied complete with the company's top of the range Featherlight cables, the kits are designed for a straightforward replacement of the factory-fitted equipment.  Bike-specific kits are now available for the Honda CBR600F, Kawasaki ZX-6R/ZX-10R, Suzuki GSX-R600/750, Triumph 675 Daytona and Yamaha R1/R6, among others, with prices from £105. Here's Venhill's description of the new product: "Manufactured with a robust CNC machined alloy body, the 888 fast action twistgrip provides a choice of two settings and is supplied with two rotors so that riders can select the throttle action that best suits the riding conditions.  Settings can be changed swiftly by undoing the two set screws securing the throttle body and changing the rotor. On the fastest setting there is 80° of rotation, (taking up 36mm of the cable), which is typically 45% faster than 'standard' throttles.