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Bummer

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Everything posted by Bummer

  1. Bummer
    Seriously. Everyone needs them sooner or later. Usually sooner.
  2. Bummer
    I'm a strong believer in the "semi" part. I tried retirement. It was boring, fattening, and didn't pay all that well. I went back to work at a less strenuous job. Too many hours, admittedly, but still not as demanding as what I did before. And I can still afford nice toys. Good luck, hope things work out as well for you!
  3. Bummer
    My primary interest in going with the LEDs was the huge increase in brightness. Load was a thing I considered, then pretty much dismissed. Is there an electrical load savings to not using equalizers? Yes. Is it significant? No. In the end it was just another item to get hot and eventually cause problems. Why bother? I actually liked the attention the faster flash brought. The savings of six electrons was ok too. Still, it wasn't even close to the main point.
  4. Bummer
    LEDs are LEDs. It's going to take a bunch of 'em to add up to the same load as standard bulbs. All else being equal, a different load means a different flash speed. Load equalizers do exactly that, so the load on the electrical system stays pretty much the same. I didn't want that, so I didn't use load equalizers. I replaced my turn signal bulbs with the Custom Dynamics LED boards. Very easy mod - a couple (rears I think) took a few swipes with a file around the edge for final fitment. Very bright lights. I did not originally change the relay and just let the thing flash fast. Technically it's not exactly legal. (USDOT has a flash per minute specification. I don't know if any States go that far. Absolutely no idea about Canada or elsewhere.) I was never hassled about it, though I had a few cagers tell me I had a bulb out. I just thanked them and went on my way with the realization that if they noticed, they were pretty unlikely to run me over. The emergency flasher is in the fairing on the brake side. The turn signal flasher is on the right (brake) side behind the side cover. The emergency flasher is a two wire type. The turn signal flasher has five wires. I've installed a "Trick Flasher". (Actually two, one for each flasher.) At the time of purchase this was a brand name which is no longer available. I think the Custom Dynamics flashers should work using the Yamaha Cruiser installation instructions from that page. I do not think it'll be necessary to remove the OEM flasher, just pull the two original connectors and insert the two from the replacement flasher. That's how I run my turn signal. Note that the Trick Flasher Custom Dynamics sells is probably also not technically legal due to the USDOT, but again, nobody seems to care. I've run my Trick Flashers for several years (and at least 30k miles) using a non-stock flash pattern with no hassles. This is another case of 'the cagers notice'. With the bulb change I still had auto-cancel. I swapped my turn signal flasher with the one from my Sister's Royal Star, doing some testing. When I put mine back auto-cancel didn't work. The trick flasher change killed auto-cancel every time. And to wander a bit further off topic, I also got a RadiantZ 128 LED tail light (no longer made) very similar to the Custom Dynamics 100 LED tail light. This thing is also poke-your-eye bright. Well worth the money. Plug and play. No other changes needed.
  5. Bummer
    Two please, Annie. PayPal sent. Thanks!
  6. Bummer
    , Walter! May you have many more!
  7. Bummer
    Pay very close attention to where the wiring is routed. The wiring must not be in a position to be pinched when the forks are turned fully to either side. Once everything is together check this from the bottom/back of the fairing looking forward from along both sides of the tank. Check this with the power off - gently swing the fork fully from side to side. If it can pinch, it will pinch. Do whatever it takes to make sure the wiring is up and out of the way of the stops. If a wire can get into the pinch points it will be cut the first time you park and let the fork hit a stop.
  8. Bummer
    Actually the decorative bolt on either side panel/battery box cover will work in place of the shifter bolt. Not perfect and no washer, but it'll do in a pinch.
  9. Bummer
    Let me google that for you.
  10. Bummer
    Just another fine reason to not use Microsoft products.
  11. Bummer
    Check your shifter bolt. If it hasn't gotten any yet it badly needs a drop of loctite. Without that drop of loctite, sooner or later you'll find the heel/toe shifter laying on the footboard. Kind of hard to shift that way. Don't ask how I, and several others here, came to know this...
  12. Bummer
    rotflol
  13. Bummer
    About the only thing you'll actually need will be sun glasses. Everybody needs them sooner or later.
  14. Bummer
    Let's bring this thread up to date. The title certainly works. I bought the VentureMP3. It arrived in less than two weeks, with seems pretty good for an item coming from Spain. Installation was a breeze. Sure, it requires removing the seats, tank, and splitting the fairing, but that really goes without saying for a stereo part that's mounted in the trunk. I plugged the included wire into the CD connection from the stereo and it works just fine. There's even a nice heavy pass-through plug included for the hole in the bottom of the trunk. I see no reason it wouldn't work for those with the CD in the side bag. There is a switch on the wire next to the player to control power during long term storage. I believe this is a result of the nature of the Clarion CD that Yamaha used. I am planning on bypassing the switch with a relay wired under the seat and controlled by switched power to remove the need to worry with the mechanical switch at all. When I add the relay I'll take pictures and do a write-up of the whole thing. The player has worked well so far. SpanishVenturer recently sent me an email regarding stripping the ID3 tags that are sometimes found in MP3 files. He has windows based software available to help folks remove the tags. (I don't do Windows, so I'll be doing it on my own - common issue as I'm a hard core Linux nerd.) There has been an occasional hang with the songs I've put on the card. I suspect removing the ID3 tags will remedy that since there have been a number of devices that simply don't like the tags. Once I convert my music files, most of which are in Ogg Vorbis format, I won't have any tags to worry about and will be able to do a better test of the device. All in all I'm very happy. The device is much smaller than the CD player. Does not skip. The occasional hang can be remedied by a press of the up/down control on the audio head, so even that is quite livable. The SD card can hold a lot of music, and it can also use a pen drive, though I believe it's a one-at-a-time sort of thing. It's controlled by the audio head as if it were the Clarion CD player it replaces. After several years of empty talk from Pete in Florida (I'm not mad at him, we're not really a large market.), SpanishVenturer has gotten the job done! Thank you very much, sir! (Oh, and SpanishVenturer, welcome to VentureRider.)
  15. Bummer
    A few years back, on the way to the Ft Collins International, Irene and I saw a 'Wing with an attachment on the rear for carrying golf clubs heading up the Beartooth Highway. A canoe I can understand (well, maybe not going up the Beartooth), but golf clubs?
  16. Bummer
    11. When an AGM battery starts to die it won't charge normally, leaving you looking for a jump at a restaurant in a small town in the middle of nowhere (or right next to it) in Montana. 12. You'll get the system tested at the Yamaha dealer fifty miles down the road and the battery will seem to work just fine. 13. You'll plan on getting a Buckeye stator until you try to start the bike in the spring after keeping it on a Battery Tender all winter, just to have the engine crank once then everything go black. 14. After checking all the fuses you'll go buy a Yuasa lead/acid battery for half the price of the AGM that lasted a year and a half. 15. You'll still consider buying a Buckeye stator since you just aren't sure what happened with that high-price AGM wonder battery. Of course, it could just be me.
  17. Bummer

    EBAY Rant

    Bummer replied to bongobobny's topic in Watering Hole

    There's an episode of The Big Bang Theory where an iPod gets thrown out a window. One of the guys shows up on scene with the iPod he found several stories below on the sidewalk, pretty much trashed. He tells the others he's going to sell it on EBAY as "slightly used". Funny scene. A bit too real, but funny anyway.
  18. Bummer
    Sorry, but I must... (Actually I think they deserve a place in a museum. Seriously. Work of art and all that.) I have a cousin who rides one. He likes his.
  19. Bummer
    As mentioned check for a cut wire at the stop. I pulled into a parking spot. Turned the handlebars all the way and locked the headset. The stop cut the power wire. I now take pains to make sure the wires are out of the way of the stops, because if it can, it will.
  20. Bummer
    I can't address the value issue, that's up to you, but I would not hesitate to take an RSV with 68k on a 5,000 mile ride. In fact, mine should have about that when my wife and I head out for Nova Scotia this summer. Adjust the valves, sync the carbs, lube the swing arm and headset, and go. Oh, and if you hear the dreaded whine, downshift.
  21. Bummer
    Thanks for the info. I'm chompin' at the bit to get it and tinker.
  22. Bummer
    Did you run into any issues? I have one on order and am patiently waiting on delivery. I intend to put it in the trunk, but having not even seen it yet don't really have a plan. By the way, when the mad money replenishes itself I personally like the R1 caliper/SS lineset/HH pad conversion Skydoc has parts for. I think they offer much better control during braking. (Didn't see it on your list so I thought I'd mention.)
  23. Bummer
    Must just be magic, Eck.
  24. Bummer
    , Sleeperhawk! May you have many more!
  25. Bummer
    Better late than never - , Don! May you have many more!
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