[rodbox5]

Dreamrider Tomahawk model G4 Hummer Review.

I recently purchased a Tomahawk G4 Hummer from Dreamrider Inc. via e-bay. This is the first motorcycle I have purchased in some years and I did not want to spend a lot of money on something that might turn out to be a passing fad.

Finally, the reasons I chose this bike over the many others available on e-bay were:

1. Reasonable price ($1,225)
2. Full size configuration 21” front, 18” back 970mm seat height
3. Advertised improvements to power, technology and manufacturing standards, over previous models.

Delivery of the bike occurred within 2 weeks of purchase. The bike was securely packaged in a steel cage, with the front forks firmly bolted to a stout securing plate. The front wheel, and handlebars, (together with a few other bits and pieces of bolt on gear) were supplied detached from the bike, in order to save shipping space. The rear suspension linkage pin was also removed, so as to collapse the rear of the bike into a smaller package.

Upon arrival, only two minor problems were encountered:
1. The handlebar bridge was missing a M8 flanged nut.
2. The battery acid cells (shipped separately to the battery housing) arrived with the centre cell ruptured. The acid had leaked out and had burned/stained the bottom of the shipping carton. Fortunately there was no damage to the bike – and $4.50 purchased 1 litre of replacement electrolyte, from Battery World.

A quick look at the assembly instructions and the owner’s manual confirmed my pre-purchase expectations – both were poorly translated, poorly illustrated and far from comprehensive. I think the owner’s manual was actually written for another model, since none of the technical specs seems to match my bike!

The bike on the other hand was a different matter altogether. The build, fit and finish of the bike was pretty good and I have to say, exceeded expectations (especially given the price)! For those who remember the older model Hummer, much of the welding in critical stress areas has been done away with – to be replaced by solid machined billet components. The general quality of the remaining weld joints is difficult to assess – since much of it is covered with paint/powder coating. However that said, the visible welding on my Hummer varies between very good - and slightly marginal here and there. This is not surprising considering how fast they must be putting these bikes together to achieve the price – bust most importantly, all the welding located in critical stress areas, looks pretty good.

In putting the bike together, it soon became obvious that additional details (not covered in the assembly instructions) had to be attended to. To make things easier for anybody purchasing one of these bikes – I have listed some tips below:

1. Fitting the handlebars: The bars have two knurled rings where they locate into the bridge mount, so as to make jointing more secure. This works so well, you can't rotate/adjust the bars - even when the bolts are loosened. You have to actually pop them out of the bridge’s retaining clamp, rotate the bars to the required angle and then press fit them back into the clamp. You then just re-tighten the bridge bolts and the job’s done.

2. The assembly instructions warn you about not using the front brake lever until the brake pads have been fitted – but be aware that the rear brake pads aren’t fitted either. Be sure to fit the rear wheel brake pads before depressing the foot brake lever - otherwise you will have to loosen the bleed screw (to release fluid pressure), whilst you push the brake pistons back into place.

3. When raising the rear of the bike to insert the frame linkage pin - be sure to grease the pin well before insertion. Note that the other 2 pins in the linkage system (already fitted) are not pre-lubed either - so you should give them a decent coating of grease whilst you’re at it. The best way to do this is to support the bike under the forward part of the sub frame – so as to let the back wheel hang free. You then shim the back wheel with a piece of timber, until the height is just right to slip the linkage pins in and out. This will save you a lot of heavy lifting – not to mention a strained back! If you can afford around $100, a mechanical bike lift for this kind of work is a good investment.

4. I don't know what quality of oil or hydraulic fluids the Chinese put in these bikes before shipping, so I replaced all fluids with locally available products. Castrol Active 4T (4-stroke oil) is cheap from Woolies and works just fine in these bikes. For brake fluid, I generally use Castrol or Ferrodo Dot 4 – which is again cost effective and works well.

5. Be very careful when installing the battery. Shorting out the terminals on the frame is not only a lively experience - it can also screw the CDI ignition. Securing the plastic terminal covers before inserting the battery into its box is essential. The battery is also a tight fit – and for that reason I trial fitted the unit before putting in the battery acid and making it live. In my opinion the battery terminals are on the wrong side of the battery. If they were the other way around, the battery could be installed with the terminals at the front, making the possibility of shorting out on the frame much less likely.

6. The fuel switch is connected to the tank right behind the diagonal frame brace - which (if you have large hands) makes turning the fuel on and off a little tricky. On my bike, the fuel line was not connected - and this was an additional job I had to do. Be careful with how you set up the fuel line - you don't want any sharp kinks or to put it near moving suspension or hot engine components. Use a tie to secure if necessary.
Continued in next thread...........