|
I went on another trip to the Oregon Dunes with my boys - Coos Bay this time. Got back yesterday, so today I worked on cleaning up the new KX250. Also did the 3rd oil change and the engine is at 18 hours now.    Still two bikes to go.
|
#
?
Jul 6, 2023 03:16
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 13, 2024 23:45 |
|
|
Gave the Scrambler a wash (maybe the first time ever?) and then took it for a spin to dry it off.
|
|
#
?
Jul 9, 2023 05:06
|
|
|
Another boost for the S100 cleaning kit I bought on a goon’s suggestion. I did an initial rinsing down the day after I got back, but today I thoroughly cleaned the Bonneville after my road trip. Thanks to my drop, I have a few scratches here and there. I’m not worried about most of them (they’re on east to replace parts I was thinking of changing for cosmetic reasons anyway), but I found a couple of tiny ones on a part of the tank where they’re kind of hard to see. I used the finishing//filling wax on them after my scrub down and I wish I’d taken before and after pictures because I was genuinely surprised with how well it filled them. It’s hard to tell they were ever there to begin with.  
|
|
#
?
Jul 9, 2023 20:09
|
|
|
I needed some new tyres so took the Fireblade into the shop, and had them do an annual service (excluding the brake fluid which I'd already done). 967 loving CHF! The tyres especially were overpriced compared to online prices. Ah well.
|
|
#
?
Jul 11, 2023 10:58
|
|
|
Ah also I have a couple of outstanding items: I asked the Ducati garage to fix the intermittent fault on the Scrambler's neutral light. They didn't. What's the approach to diagnosing this? I think the bike is now out of warranty. I forgot to ask the Honda garage to look at the headlight main beam switch on the left handlebar control unit. It was working intermittently and now not working at all so I think there's just a fault with the switch. I'm tempted to just take it back in and asking them to deal with it but it will be expensive. Are the switch units easily serviceable / am I likely to be able to repair it? Or is this usually a replace the unit job?
|
|
#
?
Jul 11, 2023 11:08
|
|
|
Today I worked on building more parking space for my ride(s) And yes that's a block of concrete sitting in the box bike. I wanted to buy three but they were real heavy and two was all I dared carry. Now imma ride the moto back there for the third time in two days for some more bracketry. I suck at thinking ahead. Also it turns out building several vertical meters of stairs is much more complicated than level decking. Stairs will have some kind of gutter for bike wheels along one edge, probably not suitable for motorcycles though.
|
|
#
?
Jul 11, 2023 14:50
|
|
|
knox_harrington posted:I needed some new tyres so took the Fireblade into the shop, and had them do an annual service (excluding the brake fluid which I'd already done). 967 loving CHF! The tyres especially were overpriced compared to online prices. Ah well. 
|
|
#
?
Jul 11, 2023 15:55
|
|
|
I wanted some more solid side pannier holders on my 2016 vfr. I looked for the oem hard side panniers and they are sadly unobtainium. I generally use enduristan soft panniers that fit all my bikes and the generic cruiser pannier stand offs didn't really work, no good tie off points and not really suitable for the weights I usually pack. I also had to use the passenger handles on the givi rack to mount them, leaving me with no good grip point for getting the bike on the main stand. I bought a Hepco & becker kit, it utilises part of the oem pannier hang points + is removable if not needed. This was the setup I had. The angle of the pannier stand offs are just friction fit from the screws, ie not actually 100% solid.   No passenger/ main stand lift grips  This is the removable part of the pannier holders. 4 90 degree twist locks that is manipulated with a 8mm unbrako hold them in place. They also have lockable twist locks so people cant just walk off with them(and your luggage).  Note the hooks that use the oem side luggage hang points  This is how the bike looks with the pannier holders off.  And with the pannier holders and passenger grips on.  
|
|
#
?
Jul 12, 2023 20:19
|
|
|
The right bag is going to get pretty warm sitting in the exhaust outflow.
|
|
#
?
Jul 13, 2023 06:32
|
|
|
yeah, I gotta check for that. The bags are the over seat saddle bag style so I can adjust the height. They're not gonna sit straight on the squares.
Supradog fucked around with this message at 08:33 on Jul 13, 2023 |
|
#
?
Jul 13, 2023 07:28
|
|
|
First I was surprised by a really intense rain shower, rode through more standing water than ever before, laughing like a maniac while my bottom half got soaked through - I was wearing mismatched gear with the warmer rainproof jacket and the mesh pants. Bike took it without issues though. Later I rode past bro's garage for some emergency metal work and figured I might as well adjust the chain tension a smidge since he's got torque wrenches and 27mm spanners/sockets, which I don't. I was being sloppy when moving the bike around around, it came off the side stand and fell on my thigh muscle somehow so now I have a bruise there just above the knee (caught the bike by pure luck though). No biggie injury wise but it could easily have ended a lot worse both for me and the bike. Finally I hit a jarring pothole when heading home via the grocery store that I didn't even see. It was in a busy parking lot exit so I was looking around me instead of ahead, thankfully I was going real slow so nothing was damaged. All in all a pretty bad riding day.
|
|
#
?
Jul 18, 2023 07:38
|
|
|
I changed the drive pack as the chain had gotten some really annoying stiff links. JT sprockets and DID chains.  This is the first time I've done this on a single sided swingarm bike and it was mad easy, just plop it on the main stand, remove a plastic cover on the rear with 2 bolts, the front sprocket cover with 5 and away we go. I found it a little strange that there where no lock functions on the front sprocket bolt at all, ie, no bendy shim or similar, just a straight bolt with no locktite or anything. I verified that with the workshop manual.  I also found a "gift" from the po. Jammed behind the front sprocket was a piece of plastic strip fastener.. why? The only thing I can guess is that he tried to remove some of the oil dirt and jammed it stuck so it broke. And then didn't have the balls to remove the from sprocket bolt. 
|
|
#
?
Jul 22, 2023 07:56
|
|
|
The one big bolt thing is a Honda thing, it isn't susceptible to coming undone the way nuts are
|
|
#
?
Jul 22, 2023 08:29
|
|
|
Ah, good to know 
|
|
#
?
Jul 22, 2023 08:56
|
|
|
For the last week and a half I have been in the process of changing the fork seals on the goldwing. It has been nothing but gently caress up after gently caress up including but not limited to: 1) The fork pinch bolt on the top right triple was finger tight  2) Honda used red loctite (  ) on the bolts on the bottom of the forks. For the right fork I wound up having to heat the slider with a torch and hit the bolt with an air impact to get it loose. I then had to chase the threads in the cartridge with a tap to get the rest of the loctite out so the bolt could go back in. 3) Honda bolted so much poo poo to the outside of the fork legs I’m sure I’ll forget to put something back 4) a PO swapped the springs (I can tell because they’re longer than stock), but there are no markings on them so I guess I just hope they’re ok for me!
|
|
#
?
Jul 23, 2023 20:45
|
|
|
I have never seen red loctite on the fork bottom bolt, idk if Honda were the responsible party there tbh
|
|
#
?
Jul 23, 2023 21:05
|
|
|
I was ready to blame the PO, but the gl1800 forum has a whole “stuck fork bolt” thread with nearly everyone reporting a big blob of red loctite That thread was where I got the idea to torch the fork leg as well as chase the threads with a tap after the bolt wouldn’t seat all the way down without spinning the cartridge. I will however firmly blame the PO for not tightening the top yoke after they put the mystery springs in.
|
|
#
?
Jul 23, 2023 21:17
|
|
|
Just another utterly baffling Honda decision
|
|
#
?
Jul 23, 2023 21:46
|
|
|
Maybe I’ll find out why they used red loctite when my forks fly apart.  I used orange, which is stronger than blue but still considered “removable”
|
|
#
?
Jul 23, 2023 23:14
|
|
|
on the topic of questionable Honda decisions I noticed the other day that one side of the passenger's seat on my Goldwing wasn't held down, you could lift it up with your fingers. Took the seat off and Honda is using a plastic tab built into the casting of the passenger grab rails to anchor the seat, and one of those tabs had broken off. Price tag to replace the grab rail with the broken tab? $210, because you have to buy the entire assembly including the helmet lock, release button, yada yada, not just the plastic shell with the piece that broke off. It's not remotely cost effective, but this is the kind of thing that makes me want to buy a decent 3D printer and make my own drat parts when the plastic stuff the factory cheaped out on breaks
|
|
#
?
Jul 24, 2023 02:10
|
|
|
Beve Stuscemi posted:Maybe I’ll find out why they used red loctite when my forks fly apart. I didn't know orange existed, learned something new today Jazzzzz posted:on the topic of questionable Honda decisions I noticed the other day that one side of the passenger's seat on my Goldwing wasn't held down, you could lift it up with your fingers. Took the seat off and Honda is using a plastic tab built into the casting of the passenger grab rails to anchor the seat, and one of those tabs had broken off. I mean, this is only a problem if your bike isn't fully loaded and idk what kind of decisions you're making if you're riding an oldwing and it doesn't look like a Sri Lankan lorry
|
|
#
?
Jul 24, 2023 02:40
|
|
|
Well it was worth all the pain. The new oil and especially the new fork slider bushings have it riding like it’s brand new. I didn’t realize how bad the situation was
|
|
#
?
Jul 24, 2023 12:41
|
|
|
Slavvy posted:I mean, this is only a problem if your bike isn't fully loaded and idk what kind of decisions you're making if you're riding an oldwing and it doesn't look like a Sri Lankan lorry interesting way to tell someone's wife is ugly
|
|
#
?
Jul 24, 2023 15:07
|
|
|
Slavvy posted:I didn't know orange existed, learned something new today not an oldwing, it's a '21. I'm old, but not old enough yet to cover it in chromed plastic and light it up like a christmas tree the seat wasn't loose enough to rattle or shift around, not yet at least. I was mostly annoyed that Honda of all companies used plastic as a seat anchor (who cares) but then also made that plastic flimsy enough to break if a 130lb woman sat on the seat. maybe the PO's wife was a large person, I dunno, but the average 'wing passenger isn't exactly tiny and I wrongly assumed Honda would've taken that into account in their design. if I could've found the broken-off tab I would've just plastic welded the fucker back on with a little reinforcement. instead I paid the idiot tax to buy a new part
|
|
#
?
Jul 25, 2023 00:08
|
|
|
after three years of sitting in a can the ktm 950 runs. front idle jet was clear. rear lightly clogged. hot battery, 5 mins with a quick squirt of carb cleaner and it started at a low idle. rode it home without a problem. Now to resume beating the poo poo out of it like intended.
|
|
#
?
Jul 28, 2023 04:53
|
|
|
cursedshitbox posted:after three years of sitting in a can the ktm 950 runs. front idle jet was clear. rear lightly clogged. hot battery, 5 mins with a quick squirt of carb cleaner and it started at a low idle. rode it home without a problem. Out of curiosity did you drain the bowls before storing it?
|
|
#
?
Jul 28, 2023 04:59
|
|
|
lolno. I did run stabilizer through its last tank back in 2020 and parked with about a liter of fuel still in the system. About ehhh 6mos prior it did get a comprehensive service. I dumped about 7 liters of fresh in, hosed out the carbs and ran the fuel system plumbed back to one of the tanks so there would be no stale fuel going into the carbs. it lit off immediately. I was real fuckin concerned it was going to be A Project and it wasn't. For once something isn't kicking me in the junk. I am continually amazed by this crapcan.
|
|
#
?
Jul 28, 2023 05:12
|
|
|
I changed the oil, oil filter and air filter on my vfr today. Dirty  When removing the lower fairings to do the oil change I found out that the vfr has a instant beach feature.. It grabs all the road sand it seems. Which also fouls up the fairing clip-pin mechanisms.   The sand collector area, a nice tray with no drain holes or low air holes.  I got it cleaned up in the end. The oil change itself vent fine, expect for the loving PO had removed the crush washer, I checked the engine case also, it was not stuck there. I supplied my own. 
|
|
#
?
Jul 30, 2023 21:32
|
|
|
Supradog posted:The sand collector area, a nice tray with no drain holes or low air holes. Lol gj Honda
|
|
#
?
Jul 30, 2023 21:50
|
|
|
Drill a lil drain hole in it, as a treat
|
|
#
?
Jul 30, 2023 22:25
|
|
|
I have no clue how long in km that fairing bit has not been removed though. The PO claimed he changed the oil last year, but he has claimed a lot that has been untrue. Last dealer signed service was at 36k km in the warranty book, and that only has the note "Yearly service", not what items was done. And I got no actual receipt. The odometer is at 47250 now(doing the 48k km service bits. While I've owned it I've had like one real wet session with 250km of it just pissing down rain. + 3-4 2km trips on some wet gravel roads to get to a cabin. Unless you do something silly like suck up the oil from the filler neck, you have to remove that fairing bit to get to the oil drain plug. I'll just check that area a bit often. Removing the fairing to get to it is real simple after you've read up on it and done it once. I think I can clear it out with some compressed air/ water hose also now that I know about it. Supradog fucked around with this message at 00:59 on Jul 31, 2023 |
|
#
?
Jul 30, 2023 23:56
|
|
|
Supradog posted:
It's not silly it's just Swiss
|
|
#
?
Jul 31, 2023 00:19
|
|
|
Today I did the rear tire on the vfr for the first and last time. The tarp setup worked fine, the dampness below is from some earlier rain. Too much a pain in the rear end to do as the rim width is too big for the off-road bike oriented tire tool we have.  Had to work with all the tricks in the book to get it on, plus reseat it thrice because some loving how a tire lever got inside it??¡¿ then on the next reseat one of the rim protectors jumped inside on the last heavy part. There was much cursing. I also can’t balance it on my balance stand because of Honda single sided swingarm rim middle design. I hosed around with using some sockets as spacers, and it seemed to be working, indicating no weights really needed, as I’ve seen before on Pirelli tires. I went from road 6 to angel gt 2. Took it up to 130-140 kmh later, no wobble or notable vibrations. Next time a shop will handle it.
|
|
#
?
Jul 31, 2023 20:18
|
|
|
Supradog posted:
lmao I would absolutely lose my poo poo if that happened to me
|
|
#
?
Jul 31, 2023 20:46
|
|
|
It boggles my mind. We got a set of 5, the silver grey bacho brand ones you can see in the picture.. With using the bead breaker stand the rim is on the stand on the floor. I only work tires up or down to get em on or off. My guess is I managed to drop it into the tire when I easily popped on the first edge. Since we have 5 I didn’t miss it, + I seat the tire where I want it in regards to weight balance marks from the first rim so I didn’t rotate it. I only added the zip ties when I could not manhandle the last 1/4 edge of the second edge easily.
|
|
#
?
Jul 31, 2023 21:42
|
|
|
The first time I did my own tires it was a poo poo show. It was in December, so the rubber was cold and uncooperative, I didn't quite learn how important it was to get the one bead in the center of the rim to give me more room to work with at first, and the pump I initially tried to use was too underpowered to get the bead to pop in place. This weekend I'm going to do a coolant drain and fill it with that blue Engine Ice brand. I'm thinking braided brake lines and fork rebuild this year as well.
|
|
#
?
Aug 1, 2023 16:47
|
|
|
Very simple, but swapped out the brake lever I broke and the pedal I smooshed when I had an oopsie on some gravel I had no business riding on during my vacation.  By the way, with this pedal off and in my hand, there's no way it was bending back without breaking.   Might put the busted pieces in a shadow box with a picture of the bike taking its nap as a memento of my first real goof up.
|
|
#
?
Aug 2, 2023 00:41
|
|
|
Getting to the backlog of projects from the before times. The gauge lenses have been deeply scratched since I bought the bike in 2017. They're available new aftermarket for like 150-250 or so.  400 grit wetsand + Novus polish. The polish works ok. I may pull em off and do it again once I get more tools set up.  
|
|
#
?
Aug 2, 2023 16:48
|
|
|
Just realized when filling up a couple days ago I named the bike "My Suzuki" in Fuelly lol
|
|
#
?
Aug 2, 2023 18:35
|
|
|
|
| # ? May 13, 2024 23:45 |
|
|
After a lot of loving around I've managed to get my Alpinestars Tech Air 10 airbag suit working. It turned out the detachable indicator LED panel was defective and preventing the whole thing from working. Not very confidence inspiring but it's going through its checks properly and recording trips in the app so I guess it's OK.
|
|
#
?
Aug 3, 2023 05:31
|
|