Author Topic: Cheating on my RE 2010 C5...with a Taiwanese beauty  (Read 2617 times)

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Rich Mintz

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I've apparently become one of Those People -- just bought a second motorbike. (This is in addition to the 4 bicycles I own, down from 6 at the peak...)

It's a 2010 SYM Symba, a 101cc mini-motorcycle modeled on (and apparently very, very similar to) the Honda Cub, which sold 60MM units in 50 years. Looks like a moped, rides like a motorcycle.

I found a very good deal from a fellow in the NYC suburbs who specializes in buying up and restoring classic workhorse mopeds and then selling them on. I've been riding it for the last couple days (my RE is temporarily idled until my replacement battery strap and cover arrive -- would prefer not to have the battery fall off in the Midtown Tunnel).

The Symba is a clutchless 4-speed with a motorcycle setup (brakes on the right, shift pedal on the left). The shift pedal has a rear extension (so you can kick down with your heel instead of up with your toe if you like), but the ergos don't work for me -- my foot doesn't bend that way -- so I just ride it like a motorcycle.  People say the shifting is "quirky" but to be honest it's exactly like a motorcycle, it's just geared so low that you can't start downshifting until you've slowed down, and you can't shift into 1st until you've stopped.

At 101cc it's fully highway-legal. Yesterday I rode it 40 miles at parkway speeds (back to NYC from the point of purchase) and over the George Washington Bridge. It handled perfectly well, better than a scooter because of its full-size tires. No issues at all on the bridge. At my weight (two-hundred-and-*cough*) it can do 50mph easily on level ground, and 60 and above on a downslope. On a steep hill it tops out at 40 or so.
Rich Mintz - New York City
richmintz@richmintz.com
2010 Royal Enfield Bullet C5 • 2015 SYM Symba
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jdrouin

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Reply #1 on: May 09, 2013, 07:45:01 pm
Congrats on the new ride.

Out of curiosity I went to your website and really enjoyed your videos of riding around Brooklyn and the NYC metro area. My 2007 iron barrel Bullet lived in Brooklyn for the first three years of its life, and I always wanted to get video of those places, especially our ritual ride down the BQE from Carroll Gardens to Floyd Bennett Field. Brings back a lot of memories. Thanks!

Do you know Chuck D? He lives roughly near Ocean Pkwy and Church Ave and rides a Fireball.

Jeff


barenekd

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Reply #2 on: May 09, 2013, 08:49:10 pm
Where's the pics?
2013 Moto Guzzi V7 Racer
2011 Black Classic G5 (RIP)
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jartist

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Reply #3 on: May 10, 2013, 01:25:11 am
Small bikes rule! I think more people ride those Honda cubs than any other single make of personal transportation.


Rich Mintz

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Reply #4 on: May 10, 2013, 03:07:36 pm
Here are 2 videos of my SYM Symba, a walkaround and a ride video:

http://youtu.be/3jMeYMQNZzU
http://youtu.be/6kuJuGHwmbA
Rich Mintz - New York City
richmintz@richmintz.com
2010 Royal Enfield Bullet C5 • 2015 SYM Symba
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GreenMachine

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Reply #5 on: May 10, 2013, 11:38:41 pm
Great small bike for your new york riding style...The ride video was excellent and gave me a good perspective on what your're dealing with on the Enfield...I can see the need to keep the battery tender on more than usual...Lots of cool things to see being in the city but not something I want to deal with on a motorcycle (too much clutch work)..Cheers..
Oh Magoo you done it again


Arizoni

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Reply #6 on: May 11, 2013, 12:22:38 am
Nice videos of a neat little bike. :)

Riding in NYC would drive me nuts with the narrow lanes full of cars and trucks that seem to pay no attention at all to a little motorcycle not to mention all the people just walking off the sidewalks into the traffic lanes.  >:(

Yes, some of the streets in the heart of downtown Phoenix are very similar but that's the reason I never go into that area of town. :)
Jim
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noisymilk

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Reply #7 on: May 11, 2013, 12:31:23 am
I love little bikes too. My other ride is a Genuine Blackjack. See my sig line for the longest ride I've taken on it.

And I have long lusted after a Symba. Check out these guys:

http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=716979

Who needs a BMW R1200 to see the world?  :o 8)
-Milk

2003 Royal Enfield Military
2009 Genuine Blackjack - MrsMilk's ride

I'm trying to make my Enfield an adventure machine:
http://www.enfieldmotorcycles.com/forum/index.php/topic,12951.0.html

Ever want to ride a scooter to Canada??
http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=690259


Rich Mintz

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Reply #8 on: May 11, 2013, 12:55:08 am
Yeah, the Symba is a fun little bike. FYI, that ride video was along the route of my normal morning commute (except I shot it in the evening rather than the morning). So it's a very accurate reflection of the conditions I deal with every day, on the Symba or the RE.
Rich Mintz - New York City
richmintz@richmintz.com
2010 Royal Enfield Bullet C5 • 2015 SYM Symba
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noisymilk

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Reply #9 on: May 11, 2013, 01:03:49 am
BR Rich, perfect little commuter for the city. For sure.
-Milk

2003 Royal Enfield Military
2009 Genuine Blackjack - MrsMilk's ride

I'm trying to make my Enfield an adventure machine:
http://www.enfieldmotorcycles.com/forum/index.php/topic,12951.0.html

Ever want to ride a scooter to Canada??
http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=690259


Rich Mintz

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Reply #10 on: May 15, 2013, 03:02:32 am
Got back on the Enfield tonight for the first time in a week -- and after 300 miles on the scooter, the RE was like a Cadillac SUV! Cushy seat, triple the power, double the weight, much more stable but a little less maneuverable...

Driving them both in succession, you can feel why the RE gets 60 MPG and the Symba gets over 100...
Rich Mintz - New York City
richmintz@richmintz.com
2010 Royal Enfield Bullet C5 • 2015 SYM Symba
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High On Octane

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Reply #11 on: May 15, 2013, 03:06:36 am
Driving them both in succession, you can feel why the RE gets 60 MPG and the Symba gets over 100...

Oh yeah?  Well I get about 12mpg in my Chevy pick up.  Jealous?    ;D

Scottie
2001 Harley Davidson Road King


REpozer

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Reply #12 on: May 15, 2013, 07:18:35 am
Cool little SYM.
But even more cool video and narration.
2008 ( AVL) Classic Bullet in British Racing Green
REA member # 84  (inactive)


Rich Mintz

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Reply #13 on: May 15, 2013, 02:56:50 pm
Thanks! More video going up tonight.

I'm surprised that I get so much attention on the street riding the Symba. Not as much as an Enfield, of course -- but people "in the know" (people who have moped experience and/or who know that the Symba is basically a Honda Cub) stop me every day. I had a "thumbs up" from a truck driver this morning, and a dude who works in a gyro shop in Queens offered to buy it off me on the spot for cash.
Rich Mintz - New York City
richmintz@richmintz.com
2010 Royal Enfield Bullet C5 • 2015 SYM Symba
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ROVERMAN

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Reply #14 on: May 18, 2013, 05:15:16 pm
Hey Rich, i have been meaning to comment on this for awhile. My first bike was a 68' Honda Cub 50. I should not have any attachment to the bike after 40 years but i have to admit i still think about it. That little turd took me all over the Sussex countryside, to work, fishing, (with my 11 ft float rod strapped to the side), over the hills and dales of Ashdown Forest etc. One time whilst chomping through some local woodland i lost power/speed. I spent the next 20 minutes poking clay out from between the mudguards and tires! Good times man, have fun with the Symba, they are keepers.
Robert & REnfield. ;D ;D ;D