Motorcycle Consumer News / Motorcycle Consumer News / Technical Issues and Tips

The Darkside

BeHereNow — Sat, 14 Apr 2012 05:34:38 GMT

In the May issue of MCN magazine a reader asks attorney Harry Deitzler for his opinion concerning use of a car tire on a motorcycle, and the question of “cause” in the event of an accident.

His reply is that in a court of law, the ‘cause’ issue is really not relevant.
It does no good for a defense attorney to show the car tire did not contribute to an accident.
Car tire are not ‘recommended’ (by motorcycle manufacturers or car tire manufacturers), so the attorney starts out at a disadvantage.

From reading Mr. Deitzler’s column I know that representing a motorcycle driver in any situation the attorney starts out at a disadvantage. A bald (or low tread) tire adds to that disadvantage, as does a CT.
It does not matter if a car tire can be shown to be ‘safer’ than a MCT for a particular application, it is not recommended, and that tells the ‘whole story’, so to speak.
Safety and cause are not the issues, recommendations are.

I expect no lawyer, motorcycle manufacturer, MCT manufacturer, or CT manufacturer to recommend use of a CT on a MC. This has to do with money (profit) as well as legal responsibility, long before any safety concern.

For safety concerns, I favor asking the users. Ask those who have used CT for tens of thousands, or in some cases, hundreds of thousands of miles. I wouldn’t even guess how many millions of miles have been put on CT for MC usage. It would not surprise me if it is hundreds of millions of miles.

This brings me to Mr Deitzler’s comment “Quite frankly, I have to wonder about anyone who has sufficient disposable income to buy a gold Wing and then elects to sacrifice any level of safety to save a few dollars on a tire.”

In my budget a thousand dollars a year is more than a few dollars.
But, honestly, safety is more important than money.
See my previous post.

When I was running the recommended MCT on my R3, anything over 2000 miles and I felt I was riding on borrowed time.
I am on my second CT,will put the third on this summer, and I trust my ZR rated tire right up to the time I have it changed out to a new one.
I have read many of the scholarly reports on why CT are not as safe as MCT on MC.
I have also read the accounts of users, where the rubber meets the road, where the proof is in the pudding.
I find the latter to be the more convincing.

In a court of law ‘cause’ may not be an issue, but in the court of public opinion it should be.
I have absolutely no documented evidence to show that low tread on power cruiser tires has been the ‘cause’ of more accidents than the use of CT, but I suspect that is true.
I have seen a boatload of anecdotal evidence that CT do not contribute to accidents on a MC.
I have seen no anecdotal evidence that a CT was a contributing cause of any accident on a MC.

Motorcycles are not for all drivers/riders.
Power cruisers are not for all motorcycle riders.
Car tires are not for all power cruiser riders.
It gives new meaning to the term 1%er.

A lack of confidence is one of the greatest risks to any motorcycle rider.
If you do not have confidence in a CT, do not use one, that is my recommendation.

If I got 6000 miles on my R3 rear tire like I did on my Bonneville, I probably never would have tried the Darkside.
I have read accounts of those who were getting 5000-6000 on the rear MCT, and were not happy, so went to the Darkside.

Which stator?

wolfwing — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 06:49:44 GMT

I have to replace the stator in my '86 Goldwing Interstate. I am planning on using an aftermarket brand.Is there much difference in them? Any input would be appreciated.

Fuel additives/E 10 treatments

ironhead97 — Sat, 22 Jan 2011 20:01:44 GMT

Has anyone used this Product, or have there been any independent testing done.?
http://mystarbrite.com/startron/
Any opinions on these types of products?

Lifetime Oil Filter

Texasmoto1 — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 07:37:57 GMT

I read a review on a Lifetime Oil Filter in one of the MCN magazines in the last few months but I can not find the article now. Does anyone know what the name of the company is that makes the filter? Has anyone tried one out?

Front Tire Cupping

drummer — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 13:49:49 GMT

So I have three to four days of possible riding before I can get my front tire replaced. The existing tire is cupping but no wear bars are showing. Is it safe to ride the bike as long as i don't push the turning to hard? What about highway riding, does that present any problems with a cupped front tire? Just curious if you think I should ride or not.

Michelin Tires

drummer — Sat, 04 Jun 2011 08:36:11 GMT

I was just getting my cage tires rotated at the local Michelin dealer. While talking we got onto all things bike related. He said that they just received a note from Michelin that they were going to back out of the bike tire market next year. Has anyone else heard this?

Octane and Engines

drummer — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 13:53:17 GMT

My owners manual states that anything less than 91 octane can damage the engine. What is the damage to which they are referring?

2nd question: if you had the choice of buying 93 octane with 10% ethanol vs 89 octane with no ethanol, what would you purchase?

near death expiences

900cc rider — Sun, 02 Oct 2005 04:10:14 GMT

Any of you guys had any close calls with your bike- where you thought Im finished ??

Speedometer vs. Odometer

drummer — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 04:35:23 GMT

Can anyone tell me if the speedometer is directly linked to the odometer? The reason I ask is, my speedometer is always five miles an hour faster than I am going (once I pass 45mpg). Granted it is incremental but you understand what I am saying. So my question comes to, if I ride at 65 mph which really is 60 mph for one hour, will my odometer show 60 miles or 65 miles? And is that the same for all bikes as they all use the same types of mileage/speed tracking systems?

Just curious ...

MIC's Tire Guide: free PDF

sgtslag — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 15:06:08 GMT

http://mic.org/tireGuide.cfm

This is the Motorcycle Industry Coucil's free, motorcycle tire guide. It is a 9.3 MB PDF, but hard copies can be purchased. Included are instructions on tire selection, maintenance, bike loading and consequences of excess weight, and wear issues. Use, ignore, share, as you deem appropriate. Cheers!

Auto vs. Motorcycle Oils - Final Debate

ST-TLW — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 05:46:13 GMT

In this month's Downtime Files Matthew Wiley has finally expressed it in a way that hit home for me. I'm convinced. And I will never again get caught into a debate on using motorcycle oil or automobile or diesel truck oil. Its strictly motorcycle specific synthetic oil for me.

A few dollars extra for oil that is made for motorcycles is worth it to me. I spend a lot of $$ on farkles and accessories for my bikes. It seems ridiculous to try to save a few bucks on oil. After reading his last column I realized the time spent researching the "best" oil online and then locating it can be replaced with a simple trip to the dealer or other store that sells mc specific oil.

That article was the end of the controversy for me.
Thanks Matthew Wiley.

MCN Oil Test Article from 1994: anything done since?

sgtslag — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 14:17:15 GMT

http://www.suzukicavalcade.com/Maintenance/oil_test.htm

The link is to an article published by MCN back in 1994, wherein a scientist evaluated the viscosity breakdown of automotive oils, and the expensive motorcycle oils. His test results proved that the automotive oils actually outperformed their expensive motorcycle oil cousins, at a considerable cost savings (mineral based oils only; all synthetics outperformed all mineral based oils).

Has this study been repeated since 1994? I read another of this scientist's articles wherein he studied oils in his car, and he came to the same conclusions, almost: for the motorcycle article, he said the turning point was 800 miles; in the car test article, he said the turning point was at 1,500 miles.

In the car test article, the scientist stated that you could run the no-name Wal-Mart oils in your car, change it every 1,500 miles, and be just as safe as if you used an expensive, brand named mineral oil, because they all broke down after 1,500 miles, to their lowest viscosity level (10W-40 would drop to the equivalent of a straight 10W oil, after 1,500 miles, regardless of oil temperature, brand, or price paid -- they all performed the same). His study ignored the additive packages, as these are almost difficult to evaluate, and you never want to rely on them anyway...

By the way, car manufacturers only require you to use an oil that meets an industry standard, such as "SM" rated oil (of the proper weight), to maintain your warranty. They don't force you to use their oil.

I am curious about any updates, as the SAE standard for automotive oils was "SG", back in 1994, while the current ratings for most automotive oils, is "SM". This suggests that current automotive oils have improved dramatically, but it would be nice to see some scientific evidence to back up the assumption. Cheers!

Magnets....

Rainman — Sun, 20 Mar 2005 04:08:16 GMT

Anyone got any experience with the magnet type units that mount under the bike and are intended to trip the loop on traffic lights? Do they work or not? -RM

Tire Sizes

shelterwoods — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 06:32:35 GMT

My interest is in making the handling a bit sharper.

I have a ZX-9R with a 6.00" rear rim. I am going to buy new tires, probably Dunlop Roadsmart, and am considering the use of a 180/55 tire in place of the 190/50. The Dunlop website does not have a "recommended" rim width for this size tire, other than it should be a 5.50" or 6.00" (http://www.dunlopmotorcycle.com/tirecatalog_tire.asp?id=101).

I remember reading a CycleWorld comparo of liter class sportbikes 5 or 6 years ago and they fitted all the bikes with 180/55 rear tires to make the test equal.

Del

Crash Repair

ibafran — Thu, 26 May 2011 22:07:56 GMT

Well, the inevitable finally happened. I dropped my Sprint and busted some fairing. For 2 years, I have been dreading this day. I knew that I should never have bought a bike with plasticware as I fall often enough to be fairly good at it. But, upon puchase of the bike, I figured that I was old enough, slow enough, mature enough, etc that I could ride a plasticware bike sensibly and not fall any more. You talk about deluding one's self? That right there is a pretty good delusion for one with my crashing history. And for 2 years, I tried very hard to ride like I was forevermore through with falling down on the bike. I gave up, or passed over, a lot of fun opportunties with the bike solely becaue I didn't want to absorb crash damage bills if I was to error in the fun.

Gory details for those that like them: ATGATT, no helmet contact with anything, Stich seems good, outside edge of left non-biker glove roughed up a little. Managed to trap the left foot under the bike but got it out from under by myself. Crash speed was probably more than 6mph but less than 12mph. Left turn from stop on rain soaked street in a light rain. I would have liked to post that this fall was incurred during a great and fun adventure. But it was nothing more than about 3 purely dumb riding errors. First, I missed an important clue in the scenario. Second, When I saw what I had missed, I overreacted and grabed too much front brake. Third, before I could save the front fade-away on the regular street, I rolled over a white crosswalk line and there was no bringing it back from that greased lightning slide. I was down before I could get a foot off the peg to kick it all upright. I might end up with a bruised left calf where the bike was on top of it?

Bike damage: Left lower fairing panel scuffed and cracked. Left side of nosepiece busted with pieces missing. Left chromed plastic trim piece ripped off and crushed to confetti. Scraped engine (altenator) cover. Gearshift lever toe pin bent back. Stuff that survived but probably shouldn't have: Clutch lever, left mirror/turn signal.

A good samaritan helped me pick up the bike. No fluid leaks but the bike would not refire. I pushed it out of traffic and waited for traffic to clear so I could pick up pieces that might be useful for repairs. The bike must have some sort of safety for tipovers as it would not restart without turning the key off and then back on to 'reset' whatever needed to be reset. Riding home with the boogered shift lever was a challenge.

Once home, I took some ibuprofin to ward off aches and pains that may come. And I rested a bit and had a bite to eat while I phoned my local stealer and asked the service manager what would be a good adhesive to use on the fairing cracks? He had no idea as he doesn't fix that stuff but just replaces it. So I went out to the bike to take off busted parts and assess the damage. And while I was doing that, I let my mind percolate with ideas for repairs.

The engine case was the easy fix. It was cleaned with rubbing alcohol. The scuffs were so light that I didn't bother to dress them with a file. The engine is black and I did it up with some black engine spray paint that I always seem to have.

A piece of pipe slipped over the gearshift toe peg allowed me to mostly bend it back. But it looked like I was going to snap off the peg with the pipe. So I blocked and supported the lever and tapped the peg a little straighter with an 8lb hammer. I got close enough that I thought that I better quit beating on it while it hadn't snapped off yet. I cut a new rubber paddle for it from a hunk of rubber that I had saved for just that sort of application.

The fairing had a bunch of pieces missing and some long cracks. And a few tabs and supports were busted. The fairing looked to be of some hard plastic rather than fiberglass or flexi ABS material. One of the magazines tested an expensive plastic gluing kit to fix stuff like this. And the inter-web said not to buy the expensive kit but to go to Sally's Beauty Supplies and buy the false fingernail glue and the power for cheap that the nail techs use. So I did that spending about $30. (Hint: The powder is cheap and plentiful. The glue is expensive and I needed a lot of it. 4-5 modeler's paint brushes work good for spreading glue. Acetone cleans the brushes.)

Starting with busted tab, I figured to teach myself how to do this after reading nail tech instructions several times. I even phoned a nail tech that I knew and asked her to tell me how it was done. Great conversation. I scuffed the surfaces on each side of the break with sandpaper to remove paint but not the break surfaces. The little brush in the glue bottle applied glue to the mating surfaces perfectly. As I set the surfaces together, the phone rang! I kid you not! The karma was about as perfect as possible. Fortunately, the now misaligned parts did not stick instantaniously and I could get then realigned and held in position for nearly a minute before the tab set up. To re-enforce the joint after the initial glue is dry, pour a little pile of powder onto a sacrificial material (I used plastic lids from fast food soda cups.) Dip the glue brush in glue. The dip the wet glue brush into the powder which gives you a small drop of molten plastic which is smeared over the glued joint. This seemed to work real well and the tab was back in place. The tab felt dang good but I didn't lean on it real hard.

The long crack was tough to do. I wanted to hold it open and get glue down in the very narrow end of the crack but I didn't have enough hands for that. And the crack was long so I didn't see how I could paint the mating sides with a brush well enough to keep it all wet prior to mating? Buying enough glue so that the bottle is like an eyedropper spout is the hot set-up. I managed to get the long crack glued but not aligned as perfectly as I wanted. Grrrrr. But, once the crack was glued, it was easy to work powder&glue along the back side to re-enforce it. The front side was left alone. The fornt will be played with later as I have the time assooming that the fairing stays together during normal riding.

So, the fairing looks like an archeological reconstruction. There are plenty of slightly mis-aligned joints and gaps in material. It is back on the bike. And if it stays together, I will start worrying about how to make it look better. When/if I attack it to make it look better, I will probably take my moto-tool and wire brush some surfaces to glue on more supportive material and fill in some holes. The nail techs have a sanding block with various grades of grit per side to smooth out joints and get the nail paint to look right. If it starts to look really good, it will probably repaint it over the winter and I might break down an buy (shudder) a new chrome trim piece? And if it all goes as easy as it has gone so far (too much to hope for at this point), maybe I won't dread crashing it anymore? And if that is the case, maybe I can go back to my wild and reckless ways of yore and have lots of fun again?

Motorcycle Rescue Technique

ibafran — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 16:32:26 GMT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwhpI6sG12Q&feature=player_embedded

10 minute video demonstrating how to get your bike up a narrow staircase. Very cool! Stolen from the ADV boys.

Best part is that the equipment packs easy and could be taken on the road as Emergency Retreival gear to get a bike out of the ditch or other problem spot.

With my ability to remember how to do stuff, I would have to make myself a laminated card to reminding me how to set and use the configuration and stow the card with the gear. (Just like the card that I had to make and hang on the EMT bender so I can retrain myself every time I pick up the tool.)

gas mileage

newbe — Fri, 01 Apr 2005 00:17:56 GMT

I am thinking about buying a bike for commuting to get better gas mileage. However, I have heard that motorcycles don't really get that much better gas mileage than cars. On average do bikes get better gas mileage?

wheelies

900cc rider — Sun, 02 Oct 2005 15:22:35 GMT

I see it all the time these guys on ninjas's on the expressway doing wheelies at 70 mph. how in the hell do they do that please explain how its done and what bike you can do it on

The old Gas Gauge

ibafran — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 14:06:19 GMT

http://autos.aol.com/article/gas-gauge/

One of those AOL things that pops up on my 'puter when I sign on. This one is an article that our cages' gauges read the way they do because we like them that way. Just to let everyone know, I was never asked how I liked my gas gauges to work inn any of my machinery that has them.

The article says that us 'merikins like a gauge that reads 'full' for a long time and then dives towards the bottom. When it hits 'E', we want it to hover there for a while and maybe get a chime to let us know that we need fuel. And after the chime, we want still more fuel left so that we might get to a station in time. Does this preference from all the focus groups and exit groups lead anyone to believe that the cage buying public is even dumber than I thought? I always thought that the gas gauge idiocy was part of the packaged hot dogs/buns conspiracy? Gas gauges read as they do because there is no possible way to make them accurate or good?

Up until I got my modern bike, 05 Sprint ST, all my bikes had fuel petcocks with some sort of reserve. And in the time honored tradition of bikers, I would fill the tank and ride it out to see what kind of mileage I could get out of a whole tank. When the bike coughed and died, I might drain the reserve to measure exacly how much fuel was available. And/or I might ride right on down thru the fuel after switching to reserve noting the possible miles the reserve might afford. Of course, I packed a half gallon of fuel for these experiments so I could get to a fuel station as needed. And I learned many fuel secrets along the way. Fer instance, brit bikes had a petcock on both sides of the tank saddle with the reserve located on the higher side when the bike was on its sidestand. Thus it was possible to see plenty of fuel in the tank and not get any of it to the carbs. Some bikes had only one petcock and gas would be trapped on the opposit side of the tank saddle requiring the bike to be leaned over or shaken to get fuel over to the petcock. Some petcocks were located in tanks in such a manner that some of the fuel was trapped away from it. Thus, many bikers of old would run their bikes out of fuel on purpose just to see what would likely happen. Some bikes had a sight tube on the tank which was very cool. My old Suz x-6 Hustler has one but it couldn't be seen from the saddle while the bike was in motion without risking life and limb.

My Sprint's electronic gauge reads much the same way as the cages' gauges do but has lines that disappear as fuel is consumed rather than a needle that moves over the face. And an idiot light comes on when there is about a gallon left. I have run it out of fuel once so far. But not on purpose. The gradations are not fine enough for me to to run it down to the last tenth of a gallon before having to get fuel. And, yes, I am one of those bikers who knows that that my bike needs 2.8-3.0oz fuel to go a mile.

So, I sure would like either a real acurate gauge on the bike or a gauge programable by me to meet my needs. Heck! If we could get the fuel gauges fixed, we might be able to get the odometers and the speedometer fixed too.

So, is it just me who is pretty much annoyed by inaccurate fuel gauges now that I know that it might be possible to make accurate ones? I know that I would like to strap down a few fuel gauge designers and their boards of directors and drain a quart of blood out of them using their gauges as measuring devices while asking them if they still feel ok?

Start rant here: (rant deleted) End rant here.

And yes, the life-mate likes to stop and top up the fuel as the gauge barely dips below half tank. The hysterics start at the quarter tank mark.

Powerdex AFX Air-Fuel Monitor

walt3022 — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 16:07:39 GMT

I read with interest the Innovation of the month (May, 2011). This NGK product is an innovation? There are a number of such products in the market already. It's unclear to me how this Powerdex is different or superior to other similar tools. Can anyone comment on its use/advantages/drawbacks?

Crankcase Breathing, March 2011, P.24

ibafran — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 12:57:57 GMT

I note that some engine configuratios draw air into the crankcase. The article makes an exception, "(but not triples)". I assume this is because triples have a mostly constant crankcase volume due to one piston rising as another falls with the third piston taking its turn. So crankcase gases blow back and forth along the crank and triples have different problems of their own.

Yet there was no mention of the same thing happening in a parallel twin with a 180 degree crank?

So, I am going to copy this and send it to Dave for clarification.

Watch your mcnews and stay tuned for the fun

Engine Blueprinting 101

hallowedcontactpatch — Tue, 01 Feb 2011 08:25:48 GMT

Is it just me or does anyone else find Dave Searle's article ABSOLUTELY AWESOME or what???????? I suppose it's old hat to the engine builders and racers on the forum. However, for a Shadetree mechanic like me it's a real eye opener.

I've quit my job so that I can hold a vigil at my mailbox as I await the arrival of the MCN magazine with Part Two...................................................

Tire Article

drummer — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 07:33:44 GMT

http://www.rattlebars.com/tirewear/index.html

Good for when the snow and ice is outside.

Michelin Pilot Road 2 tire

rnrkeeper — Sat, 20 Oct 2007 10:14:03 GMT

I have just read a report on Michelin's Pilot Road 2 tires. It appears to have 2 types of compounds: less soft in the center and more soft on the edges. I was wondering if anyone has tried them. I use Dunlop D220s on my Zrex and 6500 miles on a rear tire TO ME is not really acceptable. If I could get 10,000 miles that would be a lot better. Since Michelin is trying that tack maybe other tire makers are following the same route.

penny tech

ibafran — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 12:26:27 GMT

http://www.instructables.com/id/5-Motorcycle-Camera-Mount/

NJSGal and others have been challenged with mounting stuff on the bike. Being nearly digitally and language illiterate, I am often flumoxed by my inability to help via this media. Thus, the above link to help riders get started at a low cost. I don't believe in buying some fancy gadget when not forced into it. Once the low cost item has been built, it might be remanufactured so that the second effort has more charm. Sanding off rough edges and a little paint may enhance or camo the item.

Second topic:

I was at the dealer recently and watched a real old, decrepit rider, similar to myself, put his Tri. Torphy up on the center stand. He not only didnt struggle like me, but he did it with elan. So, I walked around the bike to see how he did it. He had a fold out handle like many bikes. But his handle looked like an inverted, cheap, clamp-on, folding footpeg from the discount supplier. It might be found at the bicycle shop, box store, who knows where else? Anywho. The light came on and I looked for a frame rail on my own bike to mount such a peg/handle. Even if I use a cheap footpeg thingie, I can wrap the nubs on the peg or sand them off. I may have to make a bracket, but its looks doable. His handle came stock but looked like a footpeg that folded out and up for lift. Thus, even though I had seen the fancy handles on beemers and the like and wished for one like it for myself, I now realize that I was locked into a too tight perception.

Hopefully, this thread will collect some neat penny tech ideas.

V-Strom oil consumption

ridercoach1 — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 09:25:11 GMT

I have a 2008 Suzuki V-Strom 650 that consistantly uses a quart of oil every one thousand miles. I use Rotella 15w40 oil. At the present,I have less that 9,000 miles on the odometer. Other riders I ride with have not noticed smoke from the exhaust, and there are no oil leaks. Would a compression test tell if the rings have failed to seat? Any help would be appreciated.
Ride Safe,

FJR Ground Spider Bite?

leftfield123 — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 06:54:42 GMT

I did some minor work on my 07. I added the lead for my heated jacket to the battery, put a set of Fiamm horns into the old connections, and replaced the OEM grips with BMW's. Then the gremlins came. When leaving for a 150 mile ride, the bike died going around the first corner. Restarted without a problem, cut out a couple of times on the freeway (1 or 2 seconds). I visited a H-D shop and when I came out, no response when turning the key. My first thought was the horns and disconnected them, the bike started and ran without a problem the next 80 miles with several stops and starts. Coming home I got of the freeway and suddenly had to rev the bike to very high rpms to keep it running. I disconnected the battery, cleans all the connections, and put in longer bolts. It seems to run fine now, but after reading about similar situations on the FJR forums, I also took off the tank and examined the S-4 ground spider and it showed no signs of wear.

So, should I ride the bike and see if the problem reoccurs or have it checked out professionally? I want to ride, but fear frying the electrical harness to the tune of $1000.

SV 650 won't rev past 7500 r.p.m.

svrider — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 18:16:26 GMT

Hi folks,

I am trying to figure out what is going on with my SV650. I live in Palmetto, Florida, 10 days ago it started to get cold here. One night after work heading home I was getting on the highway and I accelerated hard to get up to speed when all of a sudden it seem like I hit the rev limiter but when I looked down the tach. said 7500. I shifted into 2 and the same thing, 3rd same thing, all the way to 6th gear. My ride is about 20 miles and I had covered about 5, the bike was fully warmed. Next morning I went for a ride and the bike was fine, at night coming back from work it was fine. Then next day on the way back from work the same thing happen again. The bike was due for a service so I changed the oil and filter, clean the K&N, replaced my spark plugs that looked great at 7500 miles. The gap was within the .08 mm. to 1.1 mm. that the shop manual indicated. I put a bottle of Red Line fuel treatment and refilled the gas tank with premium which is the only fuel the bike has ever used. I rode about 3 days after that with no issues but then last night it happened again. This morning it was fine but tonight it happened once more. I can twist the throttle all the way and the bike will not increase rpm or speed. It almost feel as the clutch is slipping but without the increase in r.p.m. The bike has 38000 miles. I change the oil every 2500 miles, spark plugs 7500 miles, air filter gets serviced every 15000 miles. I do all the work myself except for the valve adjustments every 15000 miles that are done at the Suzuki dealership of turn since I have moved several times.

Source of good products?

drummer — Sat, 18 Sep 2010 12:43:38 GMT

I switched to Amsoil a while ago but with the purchase of my 05 R1200RT I found that they do not sell an oil filter for it. So I am wondering where others are purchasing their common parts like filters, tires, etc. Care to post your favorite parts dealers?

1999 suzukivs800

ken — Sat, 11 Sep 2010 12:14:11 GMT

Hi, ken here , can anyone tell me what to check for when my engine sputters when I first give it gas -just for a moment then it runs great -the moment I turn acc.it starts skipping a beat -hard to take off smoothly-from 5-10 mph -if Igive it gas and ride clutch -its ok -but Idont want to keep that up ---rear carb was cleaned -new plugs (ngk)new stock mufflers -oil change -new gas -/sea foam added--could it be front carb acting up ? please advise -thanks Ken

Electrical help for bike projects

ibafran — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 17:57:48 GMT

https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B93X-mL6XEOSMDhkNDEyNjktYmJhYi00YzMyLTlmMTYtZWNmNWQyYmMxYjhl&hl=en

Stolen from another forum.

I know that we have several forum members with extensive electrical experience. Rather than those guys having to repete themselves for the FAQs, here is something that can be referenced.

(Insert your fav disclaimers here)

Beaucoup thanx to the guy who put this stuff up where we can all get at it. The main advantage of this source is that it is in pdf format. So you can print out what you like and take it out to the garage. Thus, when the sparks fly and the info burns up, you can print it out again and find out what you did wrong before.

On a more semi-serious note, if you are going to play with the bike electrics, you will want to consider some safety issues. For myself, I always like to have the garage door open and the bike on the centerstand at the doorway. Thus, if the fireball occurs, I can kick it out the door. And because I am usually the only one working in the garage, I have good ventilation and have made sure that flamable vapors and other combustibles are not present for my impending fireball opportunities.

YFMV (Your Fun May Vary)

Every, there are no exceptions in this instance, good mechanic has several electrical stories where the wiring has let the magic smoke out.

Yamaha Zuma 125 Fuel Pump Failures

k-moe — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 13:37:48 GMT

Pardon the interruption.

I am trying to get as many people who have had the fuel pump fail (either on the Zuma 125 or the c3) to file a complaint with the NHTSA at
http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/ivoq/index.cfm
For more information please read this thread at ZumaForums.net.
http://www.zumaforums.net/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=55&t=12496
or http://www.zumaforums.net/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=55&t=12414
as well as several others.
We need more complaints to get a recall initiated.

Thanks for your time.

Goldwing Ignition

Gristmill — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 12:06:10 GMT

For the last year I have had intermittent ignition problems with my '99 Goldwing. The problem is almost always after it has been idle for 24 hours, or more. When the ignition key is turned on, lights and all power is present. When the Start button is pressed I hear a click on the lower right side, power is lost and cannot be restored. After moving and wiggling all the wires I can imagine and waiting a day or two, the problem vanishes and I can ride again.

After several such occasions I took the bike to my local dealer who had it for a month and daily tried to replicate the failure, without success. For about 9 months I had no problems before it recurred.

Now I have a slight variation and better symptom description.

Last week It started normally, but within 60 seconds the engine died, seeming to run out of gas, although much faster. It did not suffer an immediate shut down; more like 2-3 seconds rapidly losing power.
An attempt to restart was frustrated by no power when the ignition switch was turned on.

The next day leaving the key ON, I began to remove a side cover and the lights came on in less than 60 seconds. When the ignition button was activated all that happened was the classic “click”. The sound came from under the console panel below the instrument cluster. But it could not be repeated, for lack of power.

Five days later, after daily attempts, the power came on when the key was turned to On. Turned the key Off and then back to On and the power came back on. Repeated once more and then pressed the Start button. A loud “click” was heard on the right side as the power went off.

Repeated the cycle once more, getting the same click. One more attempt was made, but no power came on.

Any thoughts, anyone?

Added pipes after 15K miles...

2008fatboy — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 17:30:40 GMT

...along with a PCM and breather kit. You're welcome to check it out on my blog, along with a before and after video. Thanks!

http://2008fatboy.wordpress.com/2010/02/09/the-pipes-the-pipes-are-calling/#comments

Removing Bug Goo

drummer — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 09:00:12 GMT

My bike has sat for a little over three months due to a personal injury. Now it is time to start getting ready for the first ride and I would like to clean the bike. There are a number of bug splotches that I need to remove and simple soap and water are not cutting it. Got any suggestions?

Oil cooler

Gfurlo — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 15:45:34 GMT

Real quick history,

My HD dresser is air cooled, like all HDs.

I have an oil gauge on the dash to monitor oil temps.

I acquired a new in the box oil cooler for it two years ago, never installed it.

Two weeks ago I got stuck in traffic and 100 degree weather; my oil gauge got up to 270/280,

Last Saturday I installed the oil cooler and Monday we went for a ride.

No leaks and the oil cooler seem to be working.

The temps were only mid 80s and my oil never got over 120 degrees. And the one time we jumped on the freeway the oil temp dropped to 95/100.

Now for the concern; I’ve always been told that oil needs to be 180 to 220 to burn off any moisture and the other ugly items that accumulate in your motor oil.

So now what, card board across the face of the radiator to stop air flow in cool weather, a petcock to turn on and off, how about a really small thermostat like on your radiator and when I say small the hoses are only 3/8” dia.

So how much should I be concerned?

What solvent to clean off hand-grips' glue for new?

sgtslag — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 05:51:05 GMT

I am planning on replacing my grips, and I need to know what solvent is safe to use to remove the old glue, after I cut off the old grips. I looked up acetone, but it dissolves some plastics, so I don't want to use that on my throttle's plastic. What solvent is plastic, and metal, safe? Thank you. Cheers!

tank/pillion bag rain bonnets?

ibafran — Wed, 12 Apr 2006 16:31:48 GMT

the clear plastic rain bonnets for my tank bag and pillion bag (oxford lifetime luggage) have split from the rigors of winter riding.

anyone got a cheap replacement idea?

no. the trashcan liner is not exactly what i had in mind. the showercap was too small. those things that cover the polished silver might work if i could find a source and seal the seams.

nobody rides half as well as they know how.

Feels different after 600 mile service

blutex — Mon, 12 Jul 2010 17:43:36 GMT

I just took my 2009 v star 1300 to the dealer for the 600 mile service. When I got on the highway after the 600 mile service I noticed it felt different. Once I reached 70mph I felt some buzzing on the handlebars and floorboards which I didn't feel before. Prior to the service it seemed more relaxed at 70mph. I asked the guy at the counter what was done to it...besides checking several things on the bike. He said they check and adjust the valves if needed. He wasn't sure if the technician had actually adjusted the valves. Pardon my ignorance but what might of affected my bike? valve adjustment?

Electra Glide Classic....RADIO

electraglide51 — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 12:34:55 GMT

I have a 2000 Electra Glide Classic with the "premium" radio. Unlike the Ultra it does not come with CB or a headset connection.

Do any of you know if it's practicaly possible to add the standard 6 pin receptical so I can plug in my helmet headset?

Thanks