saddlebum

They will move with the air box off if not binding. If they are try spraying a bit of sea foam on them and gently try moving them a few times with the flat side of a large screw driver and they should slide back in place when you remove the screwdriver. Its not uncommon for them to stick sometimes usually if the bike has been sitting. If they still wont move freely remove the sliders and check for debris in the bore or on the sliders. If they move freely with the screwdriver and return freely on their own check the diaphragms for holes or tears

My luck with tweezers has not been the best when ever I think tweezers would be great they usually end up flipping whatever I am holding further away than if I just tried with my fingers.

Are the cable adjusted too tight or is idle set screw turned in too far. It is on the left side and and has a finger knob on it. Keep in mind the sliders do not close completely usually there is still roughly a 1/4" opening when fully closed give or take.

Unless the forks are damaged there is no need to replace them. Replace the stock springs with progressive springs and @skydoc_17here on the site sells a kit which eliminates the anti-dive valves. Once properly installed using the spacers cut to the proper length to accommodate your ride and handling preference you can eliminate the air suspension from the front forks or cut the spacers a little shorter and keep the air ride to fine tune your ride preference. Check the tech sections for first gens here on the website you will find many tried and true suggestions for the exhaust system. Generally the only reason you would feel heat on your legs is the vents in the side fairings are open or have been removed. I have removed mine so it is quite normal for me to feel heat heat on my legs but not to the point of being unbearable and almost never on the highway. I mostly notice it riding around town and in shorts it does get hot but this is all normal. Keep in mind air passing through the rad eliminates heat from the coolant by absorbing that heat. That now heated air passes by your legs. Opening the long narrow vents in front of your shins will help some as the cooler air from the vents will blend with the warmer air from the rad reducing the heat factor slightly and I do mean slightly as not a lot of air comes through most of these vents. If its a cool morning open the vents in in the side fairings if they are still there to keep your legs a bit warmer. First step would be to eliminate the factory fuse box and its glass fusses you can by aftermarket replacements that use the ATO or similar push in fuses. get one with extra fuse locations to wire additional acc. to, this way you can reduce the amount of wiring eliminating having a birds nest everywhere. Here is an example https://www.amazon.com/6-Way-Mini-Blade-Block-Negative/dp/B0837NHY2W My advice forget it! As stated earlier I have not heard of any one having any success with the single carbs. The OEM carb is for the most part a very reliable and optimum functioning carb. True they are a PITA to work on if they do need a major overhaul which is rare for the most part. If properly maintained the most you generally need to do is a carb sync which in most cases a nearby member in possession of a sync tool is usually more than happy to help out (that is the way of this group) Maybe occasionally a diaphragm may need to be replaced which is a 10 minute job. Last time I replaced mine and rebuilt my carb 70,000 miles ago and it is still going strong.

The easiest way that I know of, is to start the clips in the groove than with a good pair of needle nose pliers carefully place one jaw tip against the shaft and the other jaw tip against the back of the clip at the center and carefully squeeze. Sometimes it may require bent needle nose. Come straight in from the end of the shaft not the side unless you have no other choice,

If the throttle cable snaps shut on its own I would leave it. That's a good thing, means everything is free. most times if a throttle only rolls back because you rolled it back, the problem lies in rust build up on the handle bar which causes the plastic sleeve to bind, on the handlebar. Removing the entire throttle assembly including the white sleeve from the handle bar, cleaning away all the rust. after all the rust is gone paint he handle bar with a good quality rust proofing paint but not too thick the sleeve needs to move freely on the handle bar. When dry lubricate with a good light rust proofing lubricant like fluid film, then reassemble One trick to lube the cables is to fill a small plastic bag with oil stick the free end of the cable ( whichever end you can get at with the least amount of work ) into the bag with the outer sheath just past the opening. tie a string tightly around the bag and sheath using a sack or millers knot (this is one time string is better than a zip tie) than hang it so oil can trickle from the bag down into the cable Leave over night or longer. The throttle cable divider is on the left side it is a flat foot ball shaped plastic box with 2 cables from the throttle, 2 cables to the carb and one cable from the cruise control diaphragm and it sits behind the upper fairing about 3-4 inches back of the upper corner of the rad. you will have to remove the entire upper fairing to get at it. Unless there is a real issue with it which is rare its not worth al the work to get at it. If I remember there is a a white multi grooved wheel where the cables attache too. This allows either the throttle cable or the cruise cable to operate the carb cable by way of the shared plastic wheel inside the box. Odds of anything inside that box going wrong is very slim.

some of the second gen owners got hold of a thick dense cup kozy. They cut the bottom out and slipped it over the gas cap and use it as a cup holder.

My sentiments exactly I am in the same boat looking forward to all the fun stuff and doings and covid decides to rear its ugly head.

Sorry to see you go but keep in mind even without a membership you can still check and read the forums so you can see all the nasty things we might say about you after your gone.

Well I do admit there are times when I like to let my pony have its head but most times I keep her on a short rein or ride it as as you say like I borrowed it. I usually prefer taking the back roads instead of the highways and enjoying the scenery ( maybe I'm starting to get a tad long in the tooth ) . Its also my daily commute vehicle, to and from work, from the time the roads are clear of ice and snow, until the snow returns, which these days is about ten months out of the year. Commuting to work involves riding in a lot of stop and go traffic which is were I really appreciate the clutches ability to slip clutch when needed or want it, since I hate constantly coming to a full stop and putting my feet down all the time, ( and I am not a bike walker ) yet it will take a firm hold as well when needed. Like I said I do not have your expertise which I have the utmost respect for, I can only give MHO based on what I have experienced with my own bike. BTW what do you mean unusually kind? I thought I was always kind

Its extremely rare that I disagree with you Earl and I still don't claim to know better. I just know that I have run the Barnett carbon fiber clutch for about 70,000 KM now give or take and I have not noticed any of the issues you pointed out. Always smooth yet solid engagement. No slippage or increased engine heat and slip clutching to be able to move at an almost dead stopped crawl is a dream with no bad side effects. For myself I cannot say anything bad about this clutch and would have no issue installing another one should this one ever wear out which so far it is showing no inclination of doing anytime soon.

Yes he will certainly be missed.

Was the bike in gear with the kickstand down or did you simply shut the bike off by putting the kickstand down while in gear and leave the key in the bike in the on position ( this one cost me few beers when I had to go back into the bar to get some able bodied chaps to push start me ) Check battery voltage and then watch how much voltage drops when you try to start the bike. If it does not drop at all you have a wiring or switch issue maybe even a bad starter with an open internal circuit, . If it drops of severely you likely have a battery issue or possibly a starter with seized bearings or internal short. If the relay does not make a click sound you may possibly have a bad starter relay starter relay or fault in the primary starter circuit. try jumping across the two big posts on the the starter relay. Here is a brief guideline I devised and give my apprentices to do quick check of the starting system before tearing things apart. Starter and electrical issue diagnosing.pdf

This is quite common. Often pads which withstand higher operating temperature quiet often need to heat up to a certain temperature before they become fully effective. This is why you will often see stock car drivers ride their brakes before a race in order to warm them up so they have maximum brake effectiveness during the race also another reason why just because something is used on the track does not mean it is good for everyday driving. I have also known brake pads that have amazing stopping power but loose 50-70% of it when the rotors are wet and cold. When asked I generally tell people unless their vehicle is constantly heavily loaded, pulling a trailer or running hills constantly not to buy the high end pads but stick to something closer to the middle range and for that Sunday driver or the person who only gets out once or twice a week to do a bit of shopping the cheap organic pads are probably their best choice since at slow speeds softer pads stop better and there is little or no metal in the pads to rust from sitting and metallic pads do corrode even crumble and fall apart from lack of use due to a vehicle spending more time parked than driven. Believe me its no fun trying to convince a person that the brakes on their car are scrap even though they barely have any millage on them.

All of the above are true. I have switched to I switched to the Bosch ES16 brake fluid and have noticed quite the difference. Even clutch and brake response has improved. It has a higher boiling point both wet and dry. Wet boiling point is the temperature boiling begins to occur when brake fluid icontains a certian amount of moisture. Dry boiling point is when there is no moisture present in the brake fluid. See attached link https://www.boschautoparts.ca/documents/101512/0/0/7c8c2217-78dd-0adc-c840-91edb62866a3 Also organic brake pads can be an issue as well because they have a greater tendency to glaze over at lower operating temperatures then other higher end friction materials. Glazing is what causes brake failure and once pads are glazed over they loose much of their friction ability and so stopping ability becomes compromised. Organic pads are easier on rotors and are very good for in town driving because initially they grab better than other materials. But in hard braking situations like riding hills or pulling a trailer they begin to glaze over and loose their braking effectiveness.

I get that and it was as a preventative that she tried them but still got poison ivy.

They do look nice.

I also discovered by accident that a GEN 1/MK1 seat put on a GEN1/MK2 also lowers you about 1-1/2'' and its just a straight drop on. No modifications needed. Only thing is the passenger part of the seat is smaller than the MK2 I used the space to slip in a Harley handle bar pouch.

Glad most of your trip was enjoyable.

Raggy does have a point. With those knees of yours, your not likely to out run your hunting partner if the bear gains the upper hand and attacks

The connectors at the ignition module are not weather sealed and if there is any green fretting in those connectors any moisture getting in and mixing with that green fretting material will wreak havoc with you ignition as it creates a path for electrical crossover. You also have a strong argument for water in the fuel as you stated it is not uncommon for fuel stations to get water in their holding tanks after a heavy rain and your timing certainly suggests strong possibility of getting bad fuel. Back fire can also be the result of unburnt fuel from a misfiring cylinder being ignited in the exhaust system by the hot exhaust stream of a firing cylinder.

My wife tried those a few years ago after getting poison ivy over half her body and so bad that she had to get shots and cortisone cream. They did not work at all for her.

I used the Barnett carbon fiber clutch kit with pressure plate about 6 years ago and its still working great. Carbon fiber is recommended if you do a lot of slip clutching like crawling through a parking lot at less than walking speed and great for trailer pulling without clutch slipping.

Most hardware, automotive or farmers hardware suppliers have assortment bins from which you should be able to find what you need.