Power struggle
Winter stasis hobbles K75…
OWNED FOR A YEAR NOW, my K75 has proven a reliable workhorse but the recent bout of snow and pestilence meant it sat idle for weeks on end and when I came to start it on a rare bright morning, it would barely crank over – although the anti-theft alarm shrilled its warning. Cursing done, I trickle charged it for eight hours, and even then it barely motivated the engine. After much head-scratching I deduced this was because a previous owner had (badly) fitted the long-obsolete Gemini antitheft device which leeches current and since the battery itself was pretty ancient, it totally lost the plot. So first off I had to get a new one which in the case of the Beemer, even a mere 750 triple, is the size of a small car battery. Current wisdom is that an expensive gel item isn’t necessarily a better bet unless you’re leaving your bike unridden for long periods of time. With this in mind I opted for a much cheaper conventional, 26AH job from Unibat, £70. I spent my money at one of the few remaining ‘proper’ old-school dealers left, Maitland Racing (0207 485 0473). They are in Kentish Town, just up the road from my London gaff and I visit as often as possible, not least ’cause 20 minutes spent putting the world to rights with avuncular boss-man Tony Huck is always a laugh. Battery transported back to Wales on the train in a shopping bag – such fun – and squeezed into the frame, it was then necessary to de-commission the Gemini which was fixed into the system with little more than twisted wires and musty electrical tape. The unit itself occupied precious space in the rear tool compartment already crowded out by the bulky ABS control unit – which may be the next thing to go. So after more cursing and bruised knuckles, the electrics are pretty much as they should be now, the Beemer’s on the button, Spring has sprung and big hurrahs are in order.