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Steve S

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Everything posted by Steve S

  1. Steve S
    Adventure. You can do that but it puts a real heavy load on an already overloaded ignition switch. Here's a rundown on what I did. I used the Yamaha lights, but threw out the push button switch. It is a cheap, low apm switch, (You do need one though.) so I picked up a 15A toggle switch and rubber boot to cover the switch handle from my local Carquest dealer. (Most any parts store will have this.) I mounted the switch right beside the aux socket on the left side of the inside fairing. (You have to drill a hole for it.) I also got a 30 amp light relay and pulled a new fused (20A fuse, 12ga wire) circut from my battery to run the lights. ( I put this under the fairing.) I tapped into the low beam circuit to energise the relay to make the lights come on. You can use any circuit that shuts off with the key, but I wanted the passing lamps to burn only while the low beam was on. It works great and other than having to replace the relay once, I haven't had a bit of trouble. Good luck with it.
  2. Steve S
    Spotsy, My first thought is the fuel filter needs changing. If you have already done that and it didn't change anything, check the milage on the plugs. And then of course there is the fuel pump. It could be pumping, just not enough volume to keep you going under a load. I'm sure others will come in with some really good ideas, but those are the first ones I would look at.
  3. Steve S
    These headlight plugs are a standard automotive plug. You should be able to pick one up at most any auto parts store. It would probably save you a few dollars over going to the dealer and much easier than going to a salvage yard.
  4. Steve S
    Having done the 750 to 950 mile days for years, I'm finding that less than 500 miles a day is much more relaxing. My riding buddy just cannot do it anymore , so we are trailering to those long distance locations. We are hoping to save ourselves for as much riding as we can get in while we are in that area. It seems the older I get, the more my priorities seem to change.
  5. Steve S
    Bigfoot, If you have a good hard packed, level surface I don't see why the jack would not work OK. Just remember that the jack wheels will settle and the frame of the jack will be on the gravel. A sheet of 1/2 to 3/4 plywood under the jack would give you a much firmer foundation. I'm a firm believer in the Carbon1 Lift Adapter for lifting these bikes. My jack had an adapter that gave me a good four point lift, but I NEVER felt comfortable while it was in the air. Since I started using the Lift Adapter, I don't worry about it. I know they are kinda pricey, but it some of the best insurance I have ever bought.
  6. Steve S
    Carl, that tire looks like a victim of low air pressure and straight line riding, with no leaning at all. I had one Metzler wear like that once and found it was due to low air pressure. Since I bumped the pressure up to 42 PSI, I haven't had any trouble with the wear. I'm getting about 11K miles out of the rear and 20K out of the front. I've run nothing but ME 880s for the last five years without any problems at all.
  7. Steve S
    My riding buddy and I went together and bought a 6X10 ft, single axle, flatbed trailer with side railing. It has a 2X8 floor with a 2 ft dovetail and a wire mesh tailgate ramp for loading and unloading. It came with 13 inch tires, a spare and tounge jack that was set back far enough to pull the trailer with the tailgate down. All of this for $800 U.S. We bought it from one of the local trailer manufacturers that makes several different styles of flatbed trailers. We both had smaller trailers that would haul one bike, and larger 2 axle trailers, but we wanted something that would haul two cruisers or tour bikes. After looking at some of the trailers available at the "chain" stores, we opted to go to a builder and buy something that was a little more versatile. All we have to do is take our chocks off and we can haul lawnmowers or whatever we want. It's heavy enough to haul 2 large bikes and light enough that he can haul mulch behind his car. Kinda the best of both worlds. We did spent the bucks to buy some Condor trailer chocks. We tried the cheap tubing chocks and were not happy with the way the bikes rode. We feel the bikes are much more secure in the Condor chocks. Just my 2 cents worth.
  8. Steve S
    Isn't that what motorcycling is all about???
  9. Steve S
    I hate to do it, but it has come to the point that trailering is a viable option for me. My riding buddy and I both experience quite a bit of prostate pain when we ride those 6 to 700 mile days anymore. Trips to Daytona and out west, like Sturgis, where we have to ride hard on the interstate, we trailer our bikes. It saves a lot of pain and agony. Sides, we have made these trips several times and it's just not a lot to see from the "slab" at 80mph. We are planning a trip to western Montana this summer so we plan to trailer out to Red Lodge so we can ride Beartooth Pass again. If we can find a place to leave the truck and trailer we will continue on from there on the bikes. If not, we will trailer out to Missoula and base camp there while riding out to the west coast. Which ever way we do it, we will have fun. It sure beats the heck out of not getting to go.
  10. Steve S
    Thanks for the tip Sylvester. I put anything that draws any kind of amprage on it's own relay when I install it hoping to avoid the switch problem. (I learned that years ago when working on DC systems with my brother-in-law.) I will pull the switch and repair it if possible, then put the entire system on a 50 amp relay. Hopefully this will prevent any future problems with the switch.
  11. Steve S
    I do believe I am having the dreaded ignition switch failure and I would love some help with the diagnosis. Twice the bike has started, but the instrument panel has remained blank. This corrected itself when I turned the switch off, then back on. Often now it will reset my trip odometers to zero and the clock to 1:00 when I turn the switch off. I have reset the clock 3 times in 2 days so this is more than just a one time occurence. Is this some of the symptons of switch failure and is there an aftermarket switch available for the 2nd Gen? Many thanks to those that respond and help out. :bowdown:
  12. Steve S
    I have a relfective silver "Dragon" on the back of my trunk. That and the VR sticker that I am going to put on my winshield are the only stickers I want.
  13. Steve S
    Without a doubt it would be the Corebin seat w/backrest for me. I had an Utopia backrest but the stock seat was killing me. The pain had gotten so bad that I almost sold the bike right before I bought the new seat. Just goes to show ya that you should never give up 30 seconds before a miracle happens.
  14. Steve S
    I have one similar to that, but without the griddle. We have used it when we trailered and had room to carry it. It seemed to work great. All we used it for was to make coffee. I did loan it to some friends after our last ice storm and they LOVED it. Since it was all they had to cook on, they cooked full meals on it. Said it was wonderful and easy to use. This one looks like a great deal. Good luck
  15. Steve S
    I want to clarify that I wasn't on, or even near, the Dragon. We were about 5 miles EAST of Robinsville on U.S. 129. It was just an unfortunate incident where I let my mind wander and allowed my focus be somewhere else. You can be assured I really paid attention after that.
  16. Steve S
    Last week my riding buddy and I had taken a trip down to ride the Dragon and to catch a few roads down in NC and SC while we were down that way. We spent the night at the Two Wheel Inn in Robinsville on Thursday night planning to head out 129 East on Friday morning. Friday morning the road was still messy and it was pretty foggy after the heavy rains we had on Thursday evening so I was trying, (I thought) to take it easy as we left the Inn. About 2 miles into the trip I fell into a curve a little faster than was needed. Since the road was wet I didn't want to use too much rear brake so I grabbed some front brake and promptly killed what lean I had as I went into the curve. As I got closer to the double yellow line I saw 3 cars coming at me. I knew this wasn't gonna be a good situation, but I kept braking and leaning, all the time hoping for the best. The bike drifted over far enough to the left to hit the first of the yellow stripes. (Freshly painted and thick of course). Once it hit the painted stripe the whole front end SLID all the way into the left lane of the road. Thanks to some very attentitive drivers, I met all three cars with the bike in the left lane, and me praying while I was hanging on for dear life and leaning over the yellow stripes. All I can say is that once again God was watching over me. I was pretty shook up, plumb scared might be a better term, but we were able to finish our ride that day after I stopped and got my pusle and nerves back under control. Needless to say my riding style was not very agressive for the rest of the trip. Thanks for letting me share my little misadventure.
  17. Steve S
    Would anyone have a set of stock RSTD mufflers for sale? I flattened the bottom of my mine when I had the lowering kit on the Black Beast. Time for a newer looking set to spruce it up. Thanks
  18. Steve S
    Freebird used to make and sell an attached centerstand, but I don't believe he does that any longer. The only type that I know of is the stand that Carbon 1 makes. It's great for for putting the bike on to do any kind of work. However you do have to jack the bike up and put the legs on it. A bit of work just to check the oil, but its great to use when washing the bike. He has them listed ion the classifieds. Good luck
  19. Steve S
    Ruffy Put me down for a set. If not in the first order, then put it in the second edition. Thanks
  20. Steve S
    ...and to quote the 1st Book of Stewart, "I think, therefore I ride".
  21. Steve S
    Put me in for 2 as well.. Thanks Reckon it would be easier to keep count if this were put in a poll???
  22. Steve S
    Rule of thumb: If your pants dont stand up by themselves, THEY AINT DIRTY... We try to wear our jeans two days if they dont get wet. But I gotta change everything else every day. But we can make it with 4 changes and a pair of shorts to wear while the clothes are washing.
  23. Steve S
    A red lens is actually a red "filter". When you put a white light behind it, it filters out all of the colors EXCEPT red. So if you put a red LED behind a red lens, it allows all of the color from the LED to come through. Sounds crazy I know, but what in this world isn't??? I used the LED board from Custon Dynamics and changed all of my lens to clear. I just liked the clear look better. I'm planning on going with LED turn signals soon. Good luck with whatever you go with.
  24. Steve S
    I have a question about the facilities. I know some people camp at Don's, but the rumor I heard was that last year Mini-Muffin set up and open air shower for the men to use. If this is the case this year I am gonna be one smelly dude when I get back home....
  25. Steve S
    Leave it to Mini to come up with a great idea...
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