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My speedo cable snapped again, about 1500 miles after the last one did. Is there something I should check that could cause high stress on it? It's not kinked, it curves quite smoothly down to the hub.
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Oct 27, 2008 21:28
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Z3n posted:Did you lube it before you installed it? No and the guy in the store said I didn't need to as it was prelubed. Hmmm, I guess I'll lube the next one up real well. I've heard gun oil is good, should I go for some grease instead? About helmets, I heard once you should find a helmet that squeezes a bit around your cheeks but not your forehead. The foam on your cheeks will compress and settle to form around that proud square jaw of yours.
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Oct 27, 2008 22:20
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My bike has a very specific cold routine, it's very reassuring and it has created a deep bond between us. If it's real cold I'll give it full choke. It starts right away and the mechanical sound is a bit rough. Five six seconds later oil pressure has built up, the noise quiets and the engine speeds up, I then push the choke lever in to let it idle around 1700 rpm. 20-30 seconds later the engine mechanicals quiet yet more, it speeds up again and I readjust again. Then it can sit for a few minutes before yet another increase in speed, but I usually take off before this. I have some lights just outside my house and I leave 1/4 choke on until I'm past them, then I just push it closed and get on my merry way. Just tried my first oil change of synthetic and the first transition of noise/idle speed sets on s little quicker.
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Oct 30, 2008 20:04
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Oh I forgot. I have a stupid question about valve adjustments. From what little I know, there are various ways valves go out of whack. On some engines the valves wear into the head and eventually go tight against whatever actuates it as it eventually sits higher. Does this eventually wear out the head? If so, is it usually engineered to have a replacement mileage higher than the expected life? I said "on some" because I remember hearing just that somewhere, are there other wear modes and ways valves can go out of adjustment?
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Oct 30, 2008 20:16
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It's funny how close you get to the machine and all its sounds. I found my engine ran much smoother and less vibe-y after I'd filled gas. Like she was happy and content or something. I guess the empty tank acts as a resonator.
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Nov 2, 2008 14:10
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If you've replaced the filter, then the level on the glass will lie a little because there's an empty cavity that's usually full of oil. What I do is fill until the glass is full, then crank the engine for a few seconds. Sometimes the oil light comes off, sometimes it stays on. Either way the cranking builds up the pressure and fills the various cavities that don't drain into the pan when the engine stops. Let it sit a little while and recheck the glass, add oil as appropriate. Bonus info: The reason I only crank it instead of starting it is that the first time I did it I started it and the oil light didn't go off. It only ran for a few seconds at idle rpm, but it was very painful for my inner mecha-hypochondriac. Remember to screw on the oil filler cap before cranking or starting. Oil will not splash from my filler hole if it's uncapped, but the owner will feel like a huge dumbass.
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Nov 3, 2008 23:22
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Phat_Albert posted:For 99.9999999999999% of people out there, dry clutches are a pose-factor thing, due to the noise they make and the "Ooooh spinny things" factor. Hence all the pant leg munching wide-open billet clutch covers for Ducatis. Aaaaaaaaa I can't stop thinking about the clutch getting a tiny bit of the skin on my leg, then before I can react it has skinned it and torn a chunk off the muscle 
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Nov 7, 2008 11:27
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100 Years in Iraq posted:However, in listening to others' tales of choke, they say that they leave it on full or partially for a minute or two when starting up the bike. I use full choke, but I have to release it about 10 seconds after the bike starts or else it stalls out. She's running rich. If you use choke in the summer, it won't start at all right? Or at least run poorly? Once she's running the gas evaporates better and the added choke causes a too rich mixture. Any mods to the intake or exhaust? Air filter clean?
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Nov 11, 2008 19:50
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Whoa! Glad to hear you're ok. If the carbs are constant velocity I'm pretty sure they should compensate for altitude. Plug chops often seem like a chore, but it's pretty fast. Let it idle for a few mins, turn off, look at plug(s). Go for a ride, ride the last 30 seconds or so at constant power (low gear, high revs), flip killswitch and coast into driveway, look at plug(s) again.
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Nov 12, 2008 19:21
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QnoisX posted:...or if I was counter steering it wasn't conscious. Ding ding ding! There is no other way to turn a bike at speed. Weight shifting helps the bike, but the primary steering input is countersteering.
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Nov 15, 2008 19:54
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Nerobro posted:when the fuel level gets really low, fuel pressure drops. This means float levels drop. So the bike runs a little lean. And it gives lean signals. So that's why it feels happier with a full tank! I can feel a difference in vibrations (and perhaps a bit in poewr as well) after filling up, but I thought it was the empty tank resonating and my head filling in the blanks. But fuel pressure makes perfect sense. I've hit reserve with surprise two times, the first time was in a 30 mph zone and I just pulled over and set it to reserve. This made me worry about how I'd handle it on the highway so I simply sat on the bike and practiced turning the petcock with gloves on. The next time I was surprised it was in a 50 mph tunnel and I could reach it, give it a shot of prime then to Res without taking my eyes off the road.
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Nov 16, 2008 14:12
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Don't ride the bike upstairs, just use a ramp, a rope and some pulleys. Edit: Ride the bike upstairs, youtube the result.
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Nov 20, 2008 00:27
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Ghost of Razgriz posted:
No difference. I put my bike on the center stand if I'm parked where I can bother people walking past (it sticks out more to one side on the side stand), otherwise side stand. About the fork lock it seems a bit like your thing is busted. I assume you have tried jiggling both fork and key but one thing you don't make clear is that you have to turn the fork all the way to one side before you engage the lock. If you haven't, try that.
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Dec 6, 2008 04:46
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Your carbs are horribly out of sync. You don't have a sync tool right? Bring them as close together as you can visually, so the butterflies are similarly open. Then sync the carbs by ear at a higher rpm, you're not supposed to sync at idle. Then hopefully get it done with gauges at some other place later. I don't know what the air valve does so can't answer it, but I know some other bikes have galleries downstream of the carbs to equalize pressure which will mask a poor sync at idle.
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Dec 10, 2008 10:37
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Tequila Ranger posted:How hosed am I? Not very hosed, I think. If it's been exposed to different temperatures there might be water in the gas, so you could perhaps drain a pint from the petcock (or hologram activated piezo-electric solenoid valve or whatever these modern bikes have) before you try starting. It will probably need a few cranks.
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Dec 11, 2008 10:07
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Vidaeus posted:Does the fan only kick in when the temperature starts to get higher? Yup! Which is a good thing since it saves electrical load and keeps the engine in the proper temp range.
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Dec 15, 2008 14:23
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What's a good webshop for bike parts in the UK? The pound has dropped nicely lately, maybe I can save a little.
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Dec 29, 2008 12:28
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Looks good, thanks!
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Dec 29, 2008 18:24
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Lawn posted:I used seafoam to try and clean out the pilot jets so the power surging on my bike would go away. It starts up faster and the idling is pretty even, but the power surging almost seems worse at low throttle. I haven't had a chance to really test riding around with half+ throttle on steady yet. What else could cause power surging at steady low throttle? Do I just need to take the carbs off and properly clean them? As mentioned previously, it could be that you've just rearranged the gunk and you need to get in there and force it out. But I should also mention my similar issues which turned out to be air delivery. It happened at low revs and mostly on low throttle. If I opened wide it might backfire but would pull fine, if I opened gradually it would nudge and surge until it hit 4K, then it would be completely normal. Start and idle was fine. That was simply a tiny snorkel sitting on top of the airbox. When you look at the thing it doesn't seem like it's doing anything at all so it was quite surprising the effect it had. So the easiest thing to check is air supply, all stock bits intact, air filter clean (and oiled if needed) and no leaks either up- or downstream of the carb rack.
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Dec 30, 2008 07:11
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Sound Mr. Brown posted:Electrical question Theory GO. Your bike's battery is draining when you are at idle, as it should. The bike's charging system will only give a usable charge at riding rpms, at idle it will drain. The vest controller will detect voltage, if it's over 12 it will heat but if it's below it will shut down until it is reset. You might need to patch it in with a switch so you can switch it on when you're riding at charging rpms.
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Jan 3, 2009 04:09
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Nerobro posted:If your bike can bounce, and develop slack, it can come undone and suddenly you have 600lbs of harley bouncing around your truck. Which is why I say ratchet straps to unsprung parts. The suspension is free to absorb the car's motion to bike's main mass and it won't develop a slack, ever. You can safely roll the truck in a ditch, then ride the bike home. (edit: this works best with a center stand, which the Harley doesn't have)
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Jan 10, 2009 18:56
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Primo Itch posted:
Highside is when the back end slides out, then it suddenly catches traction again so the back end is pulled swiftly towards the inside of the turn which causes the rider to be thrown like a slingshot towards the outside. Losing traction, not regaining it but falling towards the inside of the turn is a lowside.
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Jan 27, 2009 12:46
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 Click here for the full 800x600 image. I'm toying with the idea of replacing my rather bulky gauge box with something else, preferably some high tech poo poo with lots of features. There's loads of gauge manufacturers found via google, but has anyone got anything in specific to recommend?
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Feb 1, 2009 18:57
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That Vapor thing looks pretty cool, but I'd hate to give up my fuel gauge and gear indicator. No shut up! Gear indicators are cool  I also found some classy and advanced ones here http://www.motogadget.com/But for now I'll leave the idea as just an idea and not cause myself all kinds of electronic grief. EvilDonald posted:
I just coat it evenly inside and out, then squeeze it a bit (with a plastic bag) to soak the oil through. It shouldn't drip and should only be moist to the touch. If you squeeze your over oiled one with a clean rag it should probably remove the excess oil just fine. Remember to wipe the inside of your airbox before you put it back in. Now for my Q *shines GS light on nearest cloud, waits for Nerobro to emerge from Batcave* My speedo quit working in November, which was weird since I'd replaced the cable only two months previous. Never got around to checking it properly before today, turns out the cable is fine and the speedo worked when I spun the wheel end of it with an electric drill (fun!). I shone a light in the cable hole of the speedo gear and spun the wheel, the little thingy inside didn't turn. Is the gear completely hosed or is there a chance to repair it? If not I'll just email a junkyard and see if they have one, I suspect a new one from my local dealer will be a$$rape.
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Feb 2, 2009 17:34
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Yeah there were loads on ebay, but most don't ship to Norway and most also didn't look exactly like mine although I'm sure they'll fit. I'll shoot the junkyard an email, they have heaps of UJMs. Also another question, I just noticed one of my bar ends have fallen off. The other one also seemed a bit loose. How are they attached to the handlebars? Just press fit? Maybe I'll just rip the last one off and put on some aftermarket ones, but I bet they are all chromed skulls or purple devils horns or whatever.
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Feb 2, 2009 18:31
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Z3n posted:Some use a piece of rubber that's squished by a nut, and some thread into the handlebar. I'd bet yours are the first. Yeah, there are no threads in there. So any similar rubbery thing should fit right? Should I go for chromed skulls, leather frills or maybe some plastic cast girls with internal LEDs? Chill_Bebop posted:So I'm trying to get my XT250 running, and it has great compression, charged battery, I'm assuming fuel delivery, everything except Spark. I have a brand new plug on it and all the wires seem fine after tracing the ignition system ones back to the battery and all over, so I'm assuming its the starter. Where should I be looking and what should I be checking here? If the starter is shot, it shouldn't spin at all or perhaps very slowly when you hit the button (do you have a kick starter as well?). You can look for spark by holding the plug against the block and hitting the starter, at the same time* you can sniff the plughole for gas to confirm some fuel is getting there. Maybe it just needs some choke? If it has an on/off/prime petcock it might need a few seconds of priming. * edit: not exactly at the same time, don't burn your nose off Ola fucked around with this message at 19:54 on Feb 2, 2009 |
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Feb 2, 2009 19:52
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Chill_Bebop posted:Done this, no Spark. First thing I'd check is the coil, if you have a multimeter check for voltage on the primary connection (the ones that don't go to the spark plugs). Otherwise it could be some trouble with the ignition module, if it's an 81 it might have points and I don't really know how to troubleshoot those. For all I know there's like a wick in there that needs to be soaked in kerosene. 
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Feb 3, 2009 00:10
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Orange Someone posted:
It's very unlikely that it's slipping like that, but it could be oscillating up and down and striking the swingarm or some of the sprung parts as the rear suspension compresses. Check your chain tension and adjust it.
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Feb 3, 2009 15:30
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Anyone with painting experience? At some point before spring I'm going to remove some rust spots from the frame and the exhaust and touch it up. My local cheap auto-mega-mart has a black high temp paint which should go nicely on the pipes, but for the frame I'm considering some grey "rim paint" which supposedly resists impact better. The front of the frame is worst affected, I assume heat and abrasive road grime are the culprits and that this rim paint might hold up better. It's also cheap enough that I can try color matching in a hidden area, then throw if away if it's terrible. Ideas?
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Feb 3, 2009 19:17
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angryhampster posted:I feel like an idiot, but what the hell is an R/R? Regulator/rectifier. It takes 70 volt AC from the stator and turns it into sweet sensible 12 volt DC. It's very easy to swap, but when it fails it tends to take the stator with it. It did on mine and I had to replace both. I'd take wonky electrics over poor mechanics any day, it's pretty easy work.
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Feb 4, 2009 23:37
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Last_Ranger posted:Supposing I took basic and advanced training classes, wore armor and a helmet, and drove responsibly, what are my odds for coming out of a wreck? Eleventyfiftyhundred to one! It's hard to say, but taking the classes and wearing the gear is mandatory. Otherwise you do what you can to prevent the most common ones. Most multi vehicle accidents are caused by the car not seeing the bike (or misjudging its speed and distance), most single vehicle are running wide in corners and overbraking - too much speed is one cause for this, made worse by target fixation and poor control inputs. For cars violating right of way, you need to be way more alert than in a car. Move your eyes around all the time. Typical dangers are: - Cars waiting to cross your path at an intersection, they might see you, wait for you, then change their mind as to how far away you are. Be ready to brake and SWERVE. Be visible. Practice hard braking a lot. Don't mash the handlebars, be progressive. - Cars about to miss their turn, braking hard without signaling. Don't tailgate. - Cars merging into you. Don't stay in their blindspot, in fact don't linger abreast a car at all if you can avoid it. - Cars ramming your rear end at a red light. Again, be visible, place yourself on the edge of the lane, watch your mirror. For single vehicle accidents, this is just about as typical as it gets: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whVXD3ex9DA - Weather is perfect. - Road surface excellent. - He decides to pass on a blind right hand corner. Deal's Gap might be all corners, but the next left hander has much better visibility. - Too much speed into the corner, 30-40 mph. Not too much speed for the bike, nor the tires, but more than the rider is used to when being surprised by a corner. Average impact speed in accidents is 25-35 mph. - He overbrakes, locking up the rear wheel. - He runs wide, eyes staring at the terrain instead of the road, failing to push the right handlebar and steer the bike. - Any injuries are made worse by the fact he's wearing practically no gear. - And, literally as insult to injury, the camper van family thinks they will get beat up due to the outlaw image Harley riders insist on. These are all slap-your-forehead, middle-of-the-statistics rider error causes. The one thing that could have prevented it is simply fixing his eyes on the road and steering the bike. I ride in the rain quite a bit and it's not bad. You don't lose too much grip and motorcycle tires are less prone to aquaplaning than wide car tires. One thing to be cautious of is the first rain after a dry period. Dust, coolant, oil and other gunk mixed with the first water can be very slippery but it dissipates in a short while. The bike will cope with it just fine, but you could check that there aren't any exposed electrical connections and gaps in the gauges. Take 15 minutes one time after riding in heavy rain to remove the seat and tank and see if water pools anywhere, make provisions for draining accordingly. Chances are the designers got it right and it doesn't!
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Feb 9, 2009 13:16
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Phat_Albert posted:
And after The NonBornKing's constructive post, he knows that now. And yes, ground wire = negative.
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Feb 19, 2009 20:41
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Speaking of Hitler, my ignition has been acting erratically lately. I switch it on, all good. As soon as I hit the starter button, there's a little click as if a fuse pops and all is dark. All fuses are ok. With a bit of jiggling the key, and later I found it was more effective to bump the rear wheel into the ground if on the centre stand, it lights up again. My theory is that the little click is the starter relay operating for a fraction of a second and that gunk/corrosion is dicking up my motorcycle starting experience. Can you open those little bastards and clean them out or are they tamper proof, replace only?
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Feb 21, 2009 00:56
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Z3n posted:If you're willing to do a little wiring, any starter solenoid will work. I meant that I suspect the actual key module has corroded insides, being exposed to weather and all. I gave it a shot of 5-56 (WD40 equiv) and it hasn't given me any grief since but I'd hate for something so trivial leave me stranded or cut out on the highway.
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Feb 21, 2009 01:15
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Swerve I suppose, either lane depending on how far in he's gone. I'd choose to risk of a head-on collision over a guaranteed t-bone. Preventing it is obviously better, you did good by noticing how the situation could turn bad rapidly. Being visible with headlights, brights colors etc is one thing, another is being prepared to brake hard and how to do it safely without locking up your tires and arriving at the scene of the accident already crashed. Practice emergency braking and avoidance swerving often (gradually! and in a safe place to do so), cover the lever and pedal when you approach situations like this to minimize reaction times. Moving your eyes around is important too, you can predict a car's movement quite often by looking at its tires, its driver etc. If it looks like he's wondering if you're far enough away that he might make it across he'll be staring at you, maybe leaning forward a bit and the tires will be rolling very slowly. In these situations I slow down, perhaps inviting him across which is bad but also shortening my braking distance and giving me more room to act. Some times I've wanted to smash into non-yielding idiot drivers just to spite them but in the long run that is a poor decision.
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Feb 23, 2009 11:14
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Nihilanth posted:No, actually. Does this make a difference? Yes, much in the same way as it does when the engine is running.  Compression tests are always done with wide open throttle, otherwise there's not enough air coming into the cylinder.
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Feb 23, 2009 22:51
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Daamn Simkin, that sucks. You have my symapthies but also a dumbass-slap for doing it. Holding a stiff brush or something against a spinning sprocket might not be so bad though.dietcokefiend posted:
Easily. If you can get the chain off without splitting it (I can't, due to space constraints), it will probably come off if the rear wheel is pushed all the way in on the adjusting rail. The NonBornKing posted:Where do you even get 90w gear oil? The only thing I can find is 80w-90 and 85w-140 gear oil. Also, do you have any problems with oil flinging everywhere? I've been using the paraffin-base no-fling chain wax but it is pretty expensive compared to gear oil. It doesn't have to be exactly that viscosity, just something thick compared to motor oil. 80w-90 will do just fine. I've read much good about this:  But I can't find a single shop that sells it, or even anything similar. I can't even find anyone in the business that have heard about the company DuPont, which is weird. I guess all retailers only know their catalogue, but I'll check out some Pro shops. In America it's available at Lowe's and it's only a few bucks. The advantages are what it says on the tin, it's dry and doesn't attract dirt. My chain is worn out, the reason is the PO never cleaned it but only lubed it. Dirt and lube together becomes grinding paste. I'm going to get a kind of pimp x-ring chain from DID and use this teflon stuff if I can get it. The most lube critical component of an X/O ring chain is sealed anyway, the drier stuff will do the rest of the job (I trust DuPont and internet lore on this) while also making it easier for me to keep it clean. It might be good for cables and stuff as well. Motorcycle-specific stuff from dealer outlets is just like stuff for cars, overpriced and well marketed. I'm sure 90W oil is more than good enough compared to the rather expensive chain wax I've bought. I got a chain cleaner that was an excellent degreaser though, used it on all kinds of other stuff instead of my regular degreaser and now I'm spoiled.
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Feb 24, 2009 21:27
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Thing is, I live in Norway so most consumer type products are either sold under another brand or not at all. There's probably other ones that are just as good, but I'm pretty well sold on that DuPont can.
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Feb 24, 2009 23:49
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quote:Dear Ola, Looks like their customer contact workload is pretty small if the director of sales and marketing replies in four minutes. If his day is so slow maybe he should fill it by setting up Scandinavian franchises!
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Feb 25, 2009 00:10
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| # ¿ Apr 29, 2024 01:23 |
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codewarrior posted:I have a 99 V-Star Classic. Anybody know where to find out what kind of headlight / signal lights it takes? If they are standard then the headlight is H4 type and the flashers are called 1156. Any auto shop should have them. Motorcycle dealers will have "motorcycle specific" H4s which they claim to be better protected against vibration and weather, I don't know if that's snake oil or not but they'll certainly be way more expensive than one from your generic auto store. Christoff posted:
When it's worn! Some people get loads of mileage out of them, some change every other year. A quick wear check is pulling on the chain from the middle of the rear sprocket, it shouldn't move out.
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Feb 25, 2009 01:00
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