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Dave77459

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Everything posted by Dave77459

  1. Dave77459
    If I don't have the trailer, I carry a pair of MSR bottles in my saddle bag. They come to about half a gallon, I believe. I use some Sta-Bil in them to keep the fuming and staleness to a minimum. I think a gallon would take too much room for me. He rides an RSTD. I get a low fuel warning at 114 miles, and am on reserve at 125. I've gone 150 in her, but was sweating because it was West Texas where 150 miles is nothing. If that one gas station in small town Texas isn't open, you have issues. Maybe you can flag a rancher or Border Patrol.... OR, if you have a headwind... I've been on reserve at 80 miles and run dry in 125 miles. Dave
  2. Dave77459
    Did you get enough information on the lift adapter? As a tech guy, you will want to work on your bike and you should do it safely. A "lift" is the motorcycle jack. Typically, you slide it between the wheels and pump it up. The 2nd Gen (you ought to get used to this term right away -- it is your bike for your purposes and is used to distinguish it from the plodding and geezing 1st Gens that were made on Model T assembly lines) has an obstruction that prevents the lift from connecting to the frame: the engine. The engine hangs below the frame, so a lift will touch that rather than the frame. The "lift adapter" creates contact points that allows the lift to be used safely. The one sold here by Carbon_One includes a pin that assures the adapter remains in the right spot. The pin also allows you to ride the bike with the adapter still attached, creating an exciting stream of sparks as you go over bumps. Fun! (Or so I've heard ) The "lift adapter with legs" has detachable legs that allow you to remove the lift after raising the bike. The legs are a worthy option, IMO. The bike sits very securely. With the clearance, changing oil is a breeze because the oil capture pan wants to be where the lift is. It is also at a perfect height for detailing the bike while seated on a rolling mechanics seat. The Freestanding Lift Adapter (with legs) should be one of your first purchases, I think. And if you look at Carbon_One's other items, he has a mounting bracket for the popular Stebel Air Horn. MANY of us have swapped or added air horns. If you think you might want that, contact Carbon_One and maybe you can get a discount on combined shipping. All that said, it is quite possible to lift the bike with a lift and some blocks or hockey pucks to create mounting points. Like this: http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3437/3373900239_be583e1a9d.jpg That's Kreg (KBAY) scratching his head, wondering when the bike will fall off, or if there is enough cheesecake in his future (there wasn't, for him). Here's another showing an oil capture pan, illustrating the leg's usefulness: http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4013/4470309020_384329e4f6.jpg And here's my girl Roxie, torn down for cleaning. The stand is a perfect height. Roxie is a "Tour Deluxe" ("RSTD") ,a variation of the Venture, but without the excessively heavy fairing and sleeping-dog-like-performance-creating queen seat/trunk. She is also the fastest color, "midnight". http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3368/3561873758_0091e75d72.jpg Glad you are aboard. Hope you enjoy your stay! Dave
  3. Dave77459
    Maybe next time you can invite them to ride with YOU. Lead and show them what you like. Could be some of them are just followers, and would rather ride than drink, but it's all they know. There could be a diamond in that rough. My $0.02. Dave
  4. Dave77459
    Ditto. Except the emailing part. I expect he'll get plenty of traffic without mine.
  5. Dave77459
    It's not true, but it is still fun!
  6. Dave77459
    When I see this reported every month as something new, I am always surprised that anyone didn't know it. Don't they look at their phone's camera settings, or are they in the cone of silence? I guess it is good to keep reporting it. Some day it will be as trivial as yesterday's dreaded "cookies." Dave
  7. Dave77459
    "at class" != "learnin'" Just ask any teen!
  8. Dave77459
    I will be at a class that day.
  9. Dave77459
    I wonder if I could bring Suzie (my '89 Intruder) on Friday and tear her down to have the carbs cleaned. She hasn't really been run much since I got Roxie, and I want to clean her up for sale? I've never de-gunked carbs. How much work is it? Dave
  10. Dave77459
    That's pretty cool!
  11. Dave77459
    I called the dealership this morning to see what progress had been made on finding the cause of the failure. I had *not* sent them my maintenance log, being under the impression that I had given them permission to discover the cause on my dime if necessary. However, the dealer had gone only so far as to determine that there was a hole in the engine, then called Yamaha to begin the warranty process. Yamaha has apparently taken the position that they will not permit the dealer to tear down the engine until they see the service records. Thus, nothing has been done. Kinda frusty. There was mention that Yamaha wants to be sure that approved motor oil and filter have been used. I gather that they mean over the life of the engine. I'm not being quarrelsome or accusatory (at least I am not trying to be). I am posting here to provide information to other owners who may someday hope to have warranty work done on their machines. The process differs from what I would have assumed given the plain language of the printed warranty. Dave
  12. Dave77459
    I meant to add that the phone call was made by the dealer to convey their understanding of Yamaha's position. "Don't shoot the messenger" was stated several times. I don't believe the dealer to be crooked. Dave
  13. Dave77459
    Thanks folks for the advice. I'm not about to manufacture receipts. I believe that to be dishonest. I maintained a pretty detailed log, starting with a paper one and then moving to a Google Docs spreadsheet when I couldn't find the paper one for a day. I have dates of service and mileage and what. I note that the warranty does NOT require receipts, or even mention them. Here are some relevant sections from the warranty, for those lacking the manual to hand: So. My position at this time is that they have permission to diagnose the cause of the failure. With that knowledge, it their responsibility to inform me how my actions caused the failure. I will sign a letter attesting that my maintenance log is true and accurate if required. I believe that to be equivalent and even better than receipts for oil that I may or may not have actually used. I have drafted a letter transmitting my maintenance log. I prefer to not display it here, but if one or more of you who have successfully dealt with warranty issues want to PM me and request to review it before I send it, please do. I'd kinda like to send it around lunchtime if possible. Note that my wife works as a legal secretary. Her lawyer would be glad to send the email instead of me. However, he would like to know what to say since he is not an expert in warranty law. He could be the party to transmit my email, if that would be helpful. It would be sent Monday, since we are closed for business today in Houston due to ice. Dave
  14. Dave77459
    I got a call this evening from the dealership. They want me to bring all my receipts to the shop, because it is Yamaha's stance that they won't pay unless I can prove proper maintenance. I thought this would be the case, but I've been trying not to think of it. Most of my shop supplies were bought on jumbo trips to WalMart, where a gallon of oil and a couple filters would be lost in dozens of other items. The receipts were left in the paper bags, and disposed of. And, frankly, I never thought the bike would die under warranty; it never happened, right? I knew I was doing proper maintenance, and that seemed the important thing. Until now. I'm sick to my stomach. Dave
  15. Dave77459
    So the "cheap rubber caps" are not the plastic ones commonly found on valve stems. Thanks for the explanation! Dave
  16. Dave77459
    I don't understand the bolded statements. I thought it was the valve stem keeping the air in the tire, not the caps? Isn't the purpose of the caps to protect the valves, rather than holding in air? Dave
  17. Dave77459
    Erm, I used to type 95WPM, but can probably only manage 60 now. I didn't use the iPad long enough to really become familiar with the keyboard. Probably works great for entering URLs or unlock codes, as needed. Or emails, when traveling. AFA as "Find my phone", that's something I use the Tasker app for on my phone. I send an encoded SMS message, and it turns on the GPS if needed. Takes a photo and sends that to me with the coordinates. It would change unlock codes if I want. It also downloads the latest weather for wherever I am, and reads it to me every morning. This Tasker app is the sort of thing forbidden from the App Store, but hugely useful. Apple's tight controls are probably as big a liability as they are a benefit. The key is the last statement. YOU spend money, so you care. A kid is given a computer, and told things not to do, like leave it running on his bed, so it overheats and melts the motherboard. But he does it anyways, and it dies a premature death. Thanks Dennis. Dave
  18. Dave77459
    I had a chance to play with an iPad for a day. It was seriously quality equipment. I found the text entry to be very slow compared to my phone's Swype technique. And there is the hilarious "damn you autocorrect" site that is possible because of i___'s craptastic interface. I don't find iTunes syncing to be a particularly elegant alternative to Android's "sync to the cloud" that I experienced with my phone. Perhaps I am mis-comparing things. Clearly, if you prefer a closely controlled vertically integrated solution, the iPad is fantastic. Very solid. My style varies though, so something else would work better for me. Dave
  19. Dave77459
    Bought baby girl a laptop for Christmas, since she is going to college this Fall. By the time I added a 3-year replacement warranty (my son killed his in 15 months) and a virus scheme (it "runs" winders), the price nearly doubled. One nice thing about the Nook Android is that you aren't encouraged to keep stuff on it. Download from Google Market? Always there to reinstall. Data? Um, kidding me? So you can restart from scratch and no worries. Dave
  20. Dave77459
    What version of Android do you get from rooting the Nook? I myself love Android. I use the Tasker app under Android to automate a lot of what I do.
  21. Dave77459
    Same temperature in Houston this morning as Chicago. How about that?
  22. Dave77459
    I haven't taken mine off yet, since I didn't have a replacement in hand. And now, Roxie is in the shop for perhaps 8 weeks. I don't know that you will want to wait, but if so, I'd send them in exchange for a postcard. If you are only using the shape as a template, I could also trace them once off and send you that. Dave
  23. Dave77459
    I believe that the mechanic's level of excitement was due in part because it was a question he'd like to answer. Nobody has seen one of these crater; wouldn't you like to be the guy who figured out why? I understand that this guy has worked these engines since they came out (he's been doing it 12 years?), compared to the closer dealer who "does Big Dogs" and sees a couple Royal Stars a month, maybe, since they re-opened 2 years ago. Anyways, I'm calling them Friday for an update, and to maybe make a date to see the innards on Saturday. Dave
  24. Dave77459
    I see that you are looking for some, but mine say "Tour Deluxe". I don't suppose you are interested. Dave
  25. Dave77459
    Um, yes?
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