Re: Karizma/Karizma R Ownership Experience

I thought I should know my machine[emoji4] [emoji4]

Re: Karizma/Karizma R Ownership Experience

This air filter with the psr mod [emoji3] has been ready for sometime now and finally I found time to go to the mech. I had acquired a 2nd hand carb and wanted to put in both at the same time. Sadly the carb's choke section is stuck in the carb and it is given for extraction at the lathe. He had a zma carb lying idle and as a temp measure it was connected. The idle/ slow speed is pathetic. Till 3.5~4k rpm it is looney.. I have to use the choke liberally to get a move. Post that it is fine. The choke doesn't work gradually either - it is either on or off, like a switch. Anyway hope to get the carb back from the lathe today and try it. The mech said the Unicorn choke unit can be used for zma, any idea ?

Going further back , I was having starting issues for a long time. Since the headlight was good I thought it was the relay. But when I checked the voltage was below 11 and I changed the battery. Now it starts even with the headlight (60/55w) on.

Re: Karizma/Karizma R Ownership Experience

On the contrary I think FE is one of the pointers of a bike's health.

Re: Karizma/Karizma R Ownership Experience

It definitely is, for fuel worth Y, I get X number of km's with everything dialled in right and unless there is a radical change in figures I see no point in being concerned about the same.

Reason being there are multiple atmospheric and road condition factors that affect fuel efficiency on a carbureted motorcycle and a controlled FE check doesn't do justice to that, in a case where my average consumption would remain more or less the same I know for a fact that if I do a couple of controlled FE runs then the chance of coming up with different values is more likely due to all variables not being under my control.

Plus when it comes to the practical application I have spent more or less the same amount(1350/-) of money to commute(800 km's) the same distance(and route) on motorcycles with different displacements(100cc vs 220cc) which translates to similar FE figures but at the same time if I do a controlled run then the FE figures of both motorcycles would be at polar ends.

Which is why I feel that controlled FE checks are not worth the effort in the whole scheme of things.

As long as everything is dialled in right and there is no evidence of running rich/lean you will receive a consistent average and all would be well until the moment you get a radical drop in which case you diagnose and resolve the contributing factor. And in another case, if all things are dialled in right and you're still not satisfied with the FE then it might just be that you opted for the wrong motorcycle for the job and the only result you'll get with fiddling around with the tuning is a prematurely worn out carburettor which again is counterproductive, because all things considered you need to extract reliable miles for the money invested.

Re: Karizma/Karizma R Ownership Experience

[MENTION=37035]ashwinprakas[/MENTION] - there are guys who like to have the cake and eat it too ( whatever it means). Can't blame them. I know guys who squeeze every km they can from a RE.

Long back I had a bike crazy, tech-handicappad friend who suggested mating an RX engine with a CD100 gearbox to get the best of both. [emoji23]

Re: Karizma/Karizma R Ownership Experience

I've been getting a few PMs about the 3rd party front fairings so here's a report for everyone's benefit:

The quality of the Uttam Karizma R fairing is pretty decent and I got it fitted about 10 days ago. My headlamp also had broken those two pointy things which go into the meter bracket so replaced that as well with an original Lumax.

FITTING & PARTS:
Since i'm a bit anal about the bike running only on original parts, I bought a load of original and correct bolts, nuts, rubber mounts, washers, panels, small items etc which hold the fairing in place.

The 3rd party fairing is pretty strong (as strong as ABS plastic can be) and there are very minor to no vibes right now. I must say that I also bought the silencer foam pads which stick onto the fairing's inside and cushion it from touching the petrol tank, sides etc. so vibes may have drastically reduced because of this too.

Assembling the fairing from all the minor parts took more than an hour, which i personally supervised with the mechanic to make zero errors.

Also insisted on two patches of tube rubber under the fairing's two main screw mounts that are right on the petrol tank. Zero movement, and the screws don't budge!

CONS:
One minor glitch was that I missed ordering the original C-clamps, which connect the headlamp to the fairing's front side V-cowl. We used 4 pieces of local (and not long enough) C-clamps and it was a bit tricky to get all parts to behave themselves.

I think because of the local C-Clamps, the RHS fairing doesn't meet the headlamp very elegantly (the LHS fairing fit perfectly though) resulting in a slight gap visible from the front. See photos...

RESULTS:
Overall, I'm happy with the fairing and bike looks new. Nothing moves, squeaks or rattles anymore. And this is in the Himalayas, where this year the roads have been exceptionally terrible. On smooth city roads, the fairing should be perfect.

Moreover, for 1600 bucks, I also have a spare windshield and couldn't care less if there's a gap near the headlamp. Maybe sometime later, I'll order the original C-Clamps and test to see if the cowls fit 100% perfectly.

ADVICE:
Get all original bolts, screws, minor items to ensure a perfect, hassle-free fit. It's the small things that make up the big picture.

Here's some before/after pictures of Lhamo without and with the new cowl set:

Re: Karizma/Karizma R Ownership Experience

Guess its an Indian thing, once I figured I couldn't maintain a quarter liter on long hauls I dropped displacement to a 100cc and never been happier, more reliable, very less hassle, just to change the P220's headlight bulb I have to remove the fuel tank, pathetic. With the CT100B everything is simple and flawless, during the two week run around the GQ circuit most of the time I was pinning it to WOT and doing speeds around 115~120kmph speedo indicated, true speed being 100 kmph measured via a Sigma attached to the front wheel, overall we covered the sub 8000 km's run with fuel for the CT100B costing barely under 9000/- and other consumables costing under 1500/- which I feel is a steal in comparison to my co-riders Bullet 500 which had fuel and consumable costs come up to 30000/-, a little more and you could buy a brand new CT100B with that kinda money!

Guess this is another reason why I suggest people to opt for other motorcycles if they're not satisfied with the fuel efficiency because the long-term savings pay for the investment costs, at least it has worked well in my case.



A snap of the frugal CommuTourer next to the 500 taken at Indian Gate, New Delhi.

Re: Karizma/Karizma R Ownership Experience

Got the carb from the lathe yesterday. The mech came to my office and took the bike. With this carb the ride is smooth. I had asked him for 3.5 turns on the screw. He still did a tuning and said it's about 3~3.5. First I have to check the mileage with this setup ( which is a hassle since I ride about 5-10 kms per day). Only then will I think about the tuning.

Thinking about going for RE headlight reflector. I'm running 60/55w bulb. I don't want to lose the speedo unit. Any idea how to make it look good?

Re: Karizma/Karizma R Ownership Experience

Why RE when you have the Ambition/Dawn headlight unit, its H4 and costs 650/- for a brand new unit from Lumax, and once the reflector goes kaput you can get a Hella reflector for 400/- which I doubt would be compatible with the RE setup.





As for aesthetics go for a Honda Dio Gen 1 handlebar cowl, Dr. Arun Theraja a.k.a Dr.Speed's ZMA sports the setup and I personally find it to look way better than many stock motorcycles, kinda like an Indian'ized version of the MV Agusta Brutale.

Re: Karizma/Karizma R Ownership Experience

I'm not sure about the spread of ambition/dawn HL unit. I had used the RE one in my RX100 and it was ok. My mech hav asked me to consider the classic p180 reflector too. I had a p180 for 7 years and it was good, but not sure it is better than RE. Any pointers/link would be welcome.

Re: Karizma/Karizma R Ownership Experience

How to clean and preserve a carb? The original one I removed is very dirty. I plan to use it if/ when I decide to up the performance by upjetting etc. Should I use petrol or wd40?

Re: Karizma/Karizma R Ownership Experience

carb cleaner is available for cleaning the carb , btw i need a carb , will you give it to me ? [emoji52]

Re: Karizma/Karizma R Ownership Experience

Possible reasons for speedometer not working,on a bike parked under shade for 2 months
Only back light glowing of meter
None of rpm meter ,speedometer ,and digital display is working.
Only orange backlight is glowing.

Re: Karizma/Karizma R Ownership Experience

I wish I could. But I bought the 2nd one cause I can have a different spec-ed one. I'm planning on up-jetting it after gaining enough gyan about it.

Re: Karizma/Karizma R Ownership Experience

Please make sure to double check the bulb type before making the purchase, reason being I had a hard time finding a H4 round headlight, most of the options available came with the BA20D holder.