National Day Ride 2010 (Anhui + SW Zhejiang)

[euphonius]

Milton,

do tell us a bit more about how your JH600 is performing! are you happy with the bigger bike?

cheers

[milton]

Milton,

do tell us a bit more about how your JH600 is performing! are you happy with the bigger bike?

cheers

Hi Jeff,
I've been riding my JH600 for about 3 months so far, logged around 5000km on it. I also own a Honda Magna 750 since 2006 (which is currently left in my Boston home), so I am not without some experience on big bores.
Up till now I have only replaced the spark plug and added an Adlo box on the back. 刘志东 has suggested, rather strongly, that I replace the battery and the chain soon. I think I will follow his instruction as soon as I find out what to replace them with. I will probably add a pair of hand guards in order to make sure any fall will not break the clutch handle or the gas handle, which is very likely to happen due to its weight.
My JH600 has been performing rather ok, but with frequent engine stalling and a few bouts of rough rides during my last trip, which I blame it to perhaps bad gas. It failed to start on me in the morning once, but recovered after I left it in the garage for over an hour. On lower gears it is difficult to get predicable response and definitely doesn't run as smoothly as my Honda Magna. However, on higher gears, especially on highway when I kick in above 4th gear, it is as smooth as one can expect.
But my biggest problem with this JH600 is my lack of confidence in its consistency and reliability. On the saddle there is always somethings nagging in the back of my mind such as:

1. Would the rubber chain guard hold up? Would it fail and derail the chain like what it did to Motorkai?
2. Would I be able to start it again when it's been under the rain for a while? There are many such incidents reported, including one by you.
3. Would it run rough after the next fill-up. It is very finiky about the quality of gas, as I've personally experienced.
4. What would happen to me when I suddenly get a flat on the highway, as there is an inner tube in the tire which does not react to puncture well. (I can't really blame Jialing for this)

To be fair, I personally have only experienced 3 above, but other not so desirable incidents have been reported in many forums. Maybe I am too well informed.
With Honda Manga and the GN250 I own previously, I am usually quite confident in their ability taking me to wherever I want to be. (Both those bikes have puny gas tank though, which ran dry on me a few times) With JH600, I am always a bit apprehensive about what it would do in my next trip.
Its weight and height is definitely an issue. Now I always have to plan ahead before I stop. It is so tall and heavy that the only way to move it out of a tight spot is to get off and push it. It is quite a struggle to pick it up if you fail to "keep the rubber side down".
Other than those small problems and my confidence crisis, it is a fun bike to ride :-)
Cheers!

[MotoKai]

Thanks for the comments guys. Couple of more photos below for euphonius. You better get back soon before the cold sets in (already hitting a low of 12degrees in Shanghai today!)

- Temple at Jiuhuashan (拜佛)
- Variation of "Where's Waldo?" but this one is "Where's Motokai?" (Click to enlarge and try to find me)
- What the S103 looked like for most of the way....love tree-lined roads!

There is something quite spiritual about a solo ride amongst the templed mountains, beautiful scenery and awesome weather. Trust it would be different in a different environment and/or under different conditions - so thankful for the experience!

Without incident is remarkable thing to say after a 5-day journey 1400km ride. The JH600 and and I are keeping each other happy. The only thing I can really comment on is related to the "bad gas" problem Milton referred to. Happens too often, and I haven't sourced the core reason. Is it the "E"? I know there are threads on MCM discussing gas at length so no need to go into it here, but I think the JH600 is uber-sensitive. I have my spots in Shanghai to get good fuel, but when on the road I hesitate getting a full tank anymore. This sucks, but thankful for the big tank I can still run almost 200km on a half-tank. I don't mind stopping now and then to stretch the legs - and refueling often beats a full tank of kryptonite!

Which brings up the final photo here: While gassing up at 中国石油 south of Huanghshan I came across this group of Harleys. Was good fun being an American on a Chinese bike riding up on 70 Chinese guys on Harleys - always creates lots of confusion for the posse.
See this link for a laugh: http://www.mychinamoto.com/forums/sh...0-Experiences)

[felix]

The JH600 does sound like it's ultra sensitive to bad petrol. I have no answers, just comparison. With my XTR, in almost 2 years and over 20000km of riding in all sorts of parts of china, only had "bad gas" symptoms 2 or 3 times. With the CJ never, but that thing can run on baijiu... Are there any riders out there with bikes technologically closer to the jialing that can comment on their experiences? Is it normal for big fuel injected singles to be so sensitive to chinese petrol?

I enjoyed playing "where's motokai" and even though it took me a while to realise that i was looking for you in the wrong picture, i still managed to find you. There you are hiding beside that tree!

[MotoKai]

Good Find Felix!
I can now see Motokai among the Harleys.

And after taking a closer look I also see another non-harley rider. This guy's on a scooter dressed out in visibility tape. Hmmmm..........

anhui harley meet.jpg

[Shanghaifingers]

Hey man,

There are a few of "outsideers" in the H.O.G that day. We were all leaving HuangShan after our yearly "rally"(only about 400 bikes from all over China, not sure if you can it a rally). The Shanghai Chapter went in two groups, the highway group (mainly new drivers, being herded back to shanghai, they all had BIG yellow stickers with numbers on their helmets so the ride captains could keep track. The other group mainly westerns took to the mountain roads, we took 10 hours including stops to get from HuangShan back to Shanghai....

Winston