Car & Bike Does anyone here ride an Enfield?

Peformance mods and Enfield are two words I don't see used quite often. I just upgraded the Carburettor and the coils on my 97 Bullet 350 to make it barely usable. People used to use Pulsar carburettors and Karizma shocks to make the Bullets more usable. I don't use mine much, so didn't even go for the basic mods. I will probably get disc brakes installed some day and probably upgrade the shocks. The new bikes from Enfield already come with somewhat satisfactory components installed, and I haven't seen many people modding them for performance.
 
rdst_1 said:
Peformance mods and Enfield are two words I don't see used quite often.
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Sadly I have to agree. That said, I'm still trying. I'm planning to do the following to my standard 350:

1. Self start installation because my knees hurt now :(
2. Remove carb to airbox housing, airbox and directly fit air filter to the carb
3. A ceramic wool packed free flow exhaust (one that doesn't make loud sounds)
4. Tune the AFR for increased air and exhaust flow.
5. Bolt on kit for RE (a company that makes scrambler kits).

The above mods should reduce weight by 20-25kgs and slightly increase performance. The cost benefit analysis however says none of this makes sense!
 
bigquads said:
Sadly I have to agree. That said, I'm still trying. I'm planning to do the following to my standard 350:

1. Self start installation because my knees hurt now :(
2. Remove carb to airbox housing, airbox and directly fit air filter to the carb
3. A ceramic wool packed free flow exhaust (one that doesn't make loud sounds)
4. Tune the AFR for increased air and exhaust flow.
5. Bolt on kit for RE (a company that makes scrambler kits).

The above mods should reduce weight by 20-25kgs and slightly increase performance. The cost benefit analysis however says none of this makes sense!
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What model do you have? Are you comfortable with the stock suspension setup. My father and his mechanic used to not upgrade anything because they wanted to maintain originality. Also, it was just a weekend ride kind of bike for him, so he could live with most of the issues. That 97 model had coils and charging system designed for 6V and used to always give charging issues and that meant we couldn't use it for any long rides.
The mechanic finally upgraded it on my insistence after 17 years, when we were moving away. Same thing for disk brakes which he is saying that he can finally retrofit now because now they have become less problematic that earlier iterations.
I have only ridden this bike in my life. I am only holding on to it for nostalgic reasons and of course because it is now appreciating in value and that value is only gonna increase. If I were to use a bike more regularly, I would probably not choose anything from Enfield's stable. The only issue is that because of such a long association with Bullet, other bikes feel puny and somewhat less secure (which they aren't).
 
My Grandad rode one - sold off eventually before I could get to it. Mine's pretty new, BS4 from late 2017. It doesn't have any reliability issues thankfully. It was a childhood dream hence even I'm not willing to let it go. I use to it for weekend rides, city commutes and occasional highway trips (Mumbai to Pune / Goa etc)
rdst_1 said:
The only issue is that because of such a long association with Bullet, other bikes feel puny and somewhat less secure (which they aren't).
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Absolutely! Anything else feels small and weird to wield.
 
bigquads said:
That's nice man! Have you gotten around to doing any performance mods?
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None of performance front. Just used a different silencer for a year or 2 before returning to original one which gives the best pickup & performance. The engine is not that much capable for any kind of mods. You can try if you want, but it won't make much of a difference. I may be wrong though .
 
sanjeevram said:
A 2015 Thunderbird 350. Everything is stock have done more than 60k Kms.
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As long as you treat it as its meant to be treated, it hardly gives a issue. I did Kanyakumari to Mumbai in 2016 around 2800kms didn't spend a rupee on any repair during the trip

Just a sneak peak
DSCN1278.JPG
 
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sanjeevram said:
As long as you treat it as its meant to be treated, it hardly gives a issue. I did Kanyakumari to Mumbai in 2016 around 2800kms didn't spend a rupee on any repair during the trip

Just a sneak peak View attachment 113649
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Buddy it's taken them a long time and Bullets are still known to have niggling issues whether it is something as simple as the shockers leaking to something as severe as the Himalayan chassis breaking up while riding. On the other hand, japanese bikes have been always much more reliable. Unforrunately, Bullets are still a far cry from being perfect reliable machines despite selling so much and making a lot of money compared to earlier.
 
^ cant say about other enfileds but did you try continental 650 twins? my friend is using it since launch and it had zero problems till now. Ive ridden it and theyre smooth
 
adventureguy said:
^ cant say about other enfileds but did you try continental 650 twins? my friend is using it since launch and it had zero problems till now. Ive ridden it and theyre smooth
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They have definitely become better, but it has taken them too long of a time and even now they keep ****ing up intermittently, just like Tata and Mahindra who are also making really good vehicles now but their QC is still not world class.
 
^ ya but im definitely looking at continental 650 as my next bike. will see the cruiser version about to be launched and decide. service interval is 10k kms so not many trips to service center I hope
 
adventureguy said:
^ ya but im definitely looking at continental 650 as my next bike. will see the cruiser version about to be launched and decide. service interval is 10k kms so not many trips to service center I hope
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A bit off topic. I am not a rider but still I really like this channel with its Top Gear vibes and superb cinematography.

The GT650 is a big hit in EU it seems.
 
I really like the 650 twins except for the bazooka like exhausts, I'm interested in the scrambler version rumored to be named Sherpa 650 due for launch this year since it has been spotted with a single exhaust.
If only RE provided an alternative like this,

www.baakmotocyclettes.com

Short exhaust for Royal Enfield 650 Interceptor / Continental GT

This stainless steel and aluminium exhaust is designed for Royal Enfield 650 Interceptor / Continental GT. It's handcrafted in France by BAAK's craftsmen
www.baakmotocyclettes.com www.baakmotocyclettes.com
 
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