Filtering with Vstrom 1000 - London

[AJ]

Hello blokes,

It might sound like a strange question but a bit of background. I passed my Mod 2 a month ago; I always wanted a touring type bike as I preferred the riding position and am on the heavy side. Saw a vstrom and liked it; I also thought it was excellent value for money. Considering my plans were to do some long-distance trips on the weekends etc. I went ahead and got the vstrom. So the vstrom is my first bike (I know some might say it was a wrong choice).

Now the question is, do any of you filter during heavy traffic and find it a bit difficult (maybe I need some more experience)? I live in London, and I also use the bike to commute to work. I am 178cm with a decent inseam of 33”, the bike came with a Sargent lowered seat, and I still struggle to put both feet flat down, so maybe that doesn't help in the equation.

What are the experienced rider's thoughts? It would be great to get some feedback from you blokes!

[TLPower]

First things first, congratulations on passing your mod 2.

Worry not you do not have the wrong bike.

Worry not you don't need to put both feet on the floor, it's good practice to cover your rear brake.

Book yourself onto https://bikesafe.co.uk/metropolitan/ the courses are quite brilliant.

[Dark-Strom]

Town riding can be harder on a larger bike, I find Canterbury a pain as the lanes are narrower than elsewhere...

[porter]

They are a tall bike, I've a Wilbers shock in mine which makes it even taller!
But that's not what I dislike about it in traffic, it's the engine, too lumpy, slow clunky gearbox etc it's just hard work. I don't commute on mine, if I had to I'd get the 650 strom or another bike.

[Hugo Magnus]

I love filtering. But don't forget not to turn too sharply when you have panniers on otherwise you may suffer from a healthy dose of embarrassment 

[kwackboy]

I'm in London traffic daily, to be honest, it's far easier on a smaller bike but if your bike is all you have then you'll get used to it pretty quickly riding daily.

Also, don't worry about being a little short for the bike , you'll adapt ... 

[Holmsey]

I travel from East London to South London daily through the Blackwall Tunnel and that can be a bugger during the rush hour... I filter yes but only safely, you will get the idiots travelling at 30 mph plus in slow moving traffic (let them pass)... Filter to your ability and don't rush as you never know when some idiot will change lane to go into a space without looking. During my rush hour trip up the A2 and A12, I am normally in second gear travelling at a max of 20 mph as I have been to many accidents involving bikes there because they were flying past when a car changed lanes.

[Mep]

Do the Bike Safe course as mentioned. You will get a lot out if it and filtering is covered. I'm happy to filter on my Vstrom 1000, even with full luggage and on motorways. The ride height and visibility is good. The engine can get a bit hot very quickly so you won't want to be stood still!

[Pannier Down]

Lots of decent advice.  I use both my 1050 and my BMW 1200RT in traffic,  filter to the level you are comfortable with,  my dad used to say the key word is 'caution', and your experience and skill levels will develop.

[STORMY]

I commute from the South Coast up to Sarrrrf London fairly often, I’m 6’ but only have a 31inch in seam. Strom’s are a bit ponderous in tight London traffic but manageable. I find the most dangerous part of the journey is the M3 where moving traffic is doing between 20 - 40 mph, and you could easily snick between lanes but there’s always one who’ll take you clean out - the concentration required is high and I just can’t be bothered to take that risk anymore.
I see blokes on much faster nimbler machines really scything through the traffic at either end of the M3, but I’m too old and fragile to do that kind of stuff. Once in London cars are a bit more captive, but for me it’s cyclists, Ubers, Black cabs and Mr Khan with his traffic calming measures that you need to watch like a hawk.

[oslin]

I have a 650 v-strom and I have had it lowered which just involves another set of dog bones and the forks raised through the clamps, it makes it much to get my feet on the ground.

[AJ]

Thank you all for the feedback; that's helped me resolve many of the concerns I did feel.

The first issue I need to resolve is probably just how far the clutch biting point sits. As it's at the tip of my fingers, I just don't feel like I have reasonable control of it for slow riding. During my training etc, the bikes I used were all midpoint of the clutch travel.

[Gert]

Either after market adjustable levers may be an option or perhaps a similar mod of shortening the clutch lever push rod, as discussed in post #1 of https://www.stromtrooper.com/threads/clutch-lever-mod.53992/. The pix help explain the operation.

[Lincsman]

Bung main beam on along with the 4 way hazard warning lights.