I've been busy doing somethings I wanted to do, and some I had to do. After looking around for a couple of years, I finally found a set of factory mag wheels to replace my spoke wheels. The spoked wheels are getting a bit worn looking, plus I don't want to get another flat where the bike has to be towed home again. My rear wheel developed a split in it ,so it was time for tires anyway. I found to rims in nice shape and bought them. I replaced the wheel bearings due to not knowing their condition, plus I didn't want to have to pull the wheels off anytime in the near future to do it. The tires on the wheels were 6 year old so , I bought 2 new tires to do it right. I had a case of the "might as wells", so I threw new brakes all around to finish it off. On my second ride out with the new goodies, my battery tender said my battery was 100% charged and good to go. Sometimes they lie. It started 3 times, but on the 4th try all I got was a tick. Tried getting a jump from a car, still only a tick. All the cables were tight, so it looked like the battery gave me the last amp it had. Ordered a new battery and after a week of waiting it showed up. The bike started just like it did when new. But the tender was acting funny. I ordered a new tender, and I'm all set to do some Polar Bear rides
So, what changes/improvements have you done to your bike lately?.,,
- Thread starter BigCahuna
- Start date
^^^Good job BC! I too had to get a new battery for my 2009 Superglide in August. I bought a Duracell from Batteries Plus with a 2 year free replacement warranty and so far it spins over much better than my tired 4 year old Napa battery. I bought a new to me 2010 CVO Streetglide back in June and added a Harley back rest. With the mounting bracket and backrest the cost was $250.00 but it’s worth $500.00 to my tired old back! I also replaced the front brake rotors that had started to surge a bit along with new Performance Machine brake pads. Stops smooth as butta now! This winter I’m planning on pulling the outer primary cover and replacing the factory Harley automatic primary chain tensioner with a manual Hayden or Baker attitude adjuster. I’ve read a lot about the Harley automatic primary chain adjusters ratcheting up too tight and destroying the inner primary bearings.
I hear ya bout the backrest. I got one 5 years ago, and I can't get comfortable with out it on. I had a set of aftermarket rotors on the bike for about 5k miles. They made a whirring noise when I applied the front brakes, they worked fine just made that annoying noise. The front wheel I put on had rotors that were in great shape they're doing fine. My chain tensioner is original to the bike , and has about 75k on it. Still looks like it could go another 75k. I forgot I changed the kick stand spring, and adjusted the push rods. It seems like alot of work and money to throw at an old bike, but it's still cheaper then making monthly payments.,,,
A while back I fitted some auxiliary LED lights - I managed to track down a NOS set of the official KTM kit, long-since discontinued, from eBay in France. Easy enough to fit, although took a fair bit of bodywork dismantling.
Just recently I fitted a permanent power supply for my bar-mounted GPS, so I no longer have to remember to plug it in and unplug it under the seat and the GPS come on and goes off with the ignition.
One of the best things that happened recently to make my bike feel better to me was to ride a different one! Mine was being serviced and the dealership gave me a KTM 790 Adventure to use for the weekend. Nice enough bike but getting back on mine was a nice upgrade.
Just recently I fitted a permanent power supply for my bar-mounted GPS, so I no longer have to remember to plug it in and unplug it under the seat and the GPS come on and goes off with the ignition.
One of the best things that happened recently to make my bike feel better to me was to ride a different one! Mine was being serviced and the dealership gave me a KTM 790 Adventure to use for the weekend. Nice enough bike but getting back on mine was a nice upgrade.
I like when you come across something you liked , but haven't been able to find easily. Making your bike the way you want it, is part of the fun of ownership. I wonder how many people have traded up to a new bike, because the dealer lent them the newer more improved model.,,,
I bought my '94 GL1500 Goldwing in June. The previous owner had it set up pretty well with what I would want (drivers backrest, wind wings, progressive front springs, fork brace).
There were a few things I did not like.
There are some maintenance things I need to do in the next few months (brake and clutch fluid need to be exchanged, it has been almost 2 years since it was done), may need a new battery soon (I just keep it on the Battery Tender every night right now), and need to remove and inspect the air pump, and probably need to do service on the rear air shock.
There were a few things I did not like.
- I have replaced the Tulsa Tall windscreen with a MadStad one (better airflow and visibility)
- Swapped back to the OEM foot pegs, shifter, brake pedal from the Markland foot boards with heel-toe shifter (I hated all the movement I had to do to shift, brake and floor boards dragged the ground way to easily)
- Added a shifter pivot brace (a known design flaw in the shift linkage of the GL1500 that causes poor shift quality and can lead to an oil leak from the shifter seal)
- Added a "dash cam", it is a front and rear camera that records automatically as I ride.
There are some maintenance things I need to do in the next few months (brake and clutch fluid need to be exchanged, it has been almost 2 years since it was done), may need a new battery soon (I just keep it on the Battery Tender every night right now), and need to remove and inspect the air pump, and probably need to do service on the rear air shock.
My friend just picked up a '02 Wing. It's got 102k miles on it and he says it runs great. I'm sure he'll be adding more stuff as time goes on. But he did put a cup holder on it for starters. It has a darkside rear tire on it. I know some people say it makes the bike feel funny until they get used to it, but he's never ridden that bike before, so it just feels like a different bike to him.,,,
My home made Ducati Panigale Ceramic Matrix Composite Disc Mod... weight is the enemy...
MotoGp technology for the street... Sicom's Ceramic Matrix Composite
(CMC) rear disc is light as carbon but sports an everyday workable
alternative to the heavier steel disc... the CMC disc stops from the
get go no matter wet or dry... someday I hope this technology may
become to norm for top shelf bikes...
Check out Sicom's other line of CMC disc for motorcycles
http://www.sicom-brakes.com/html/motorcycles.html
Sicom's (12oz / 340gm) CMC disc was for a Ducati 1199 Panigale
but this is how I modified it to fit Mr.RC45 employing my Mill and
Rotary Table...
I wanted dead nuts accuracy so I located the center of the Ducati's
110mm bolt circle with a wiggler and then wiggled the Honda's 120mm
bolt circle...
The bolt hole was cut with a .312 Carbide Ball End which comes out the
other side without chipping...
To size the bolt hole to fit perfect with the Titanium fastener I used
a stone hone...
A .500 Carbide Rodman bit was employed for the other holes to lighten
the disc and give it the shape I wanted...
I used a Ceramic cutter to trim off the excess diameter surgically...
I angled the Mill head 45º to give the edge a crisp 45º cut...
Finish weight was 7oz (198gm) thats a 1 lb 14oz (849gm) savings over
the stock Honda steel...
The sinter pads that came with the CMC disc are milled down to fit my
4 pot Gp Brembo...
You have to feel it to believe it but my finished Ceramic Matrix Composite disc only weights 7oz...
Now my rear disc is CMC like my front disc...
MotoGp technology for the street... Sicom's Ceramic Matrix Composite
(CMC) rear disc is light as carbon but sports an everyday workable
alternative to the heavier steel disc... the CMC disc stops from the
get go no matter wet or dry... someday I hope this technology may
become to norm for top shelf bikes...
Check out Sicom's other line of CMC disc for motorcycles
http://www.sicom-brakes.com/html/motorcycles.html
Sicom's (12oz / 340gm) CMC disc was for a Ducati 1199 Panigale
but this is how I modified it to fit Mr.RC45 employing my Mill and
Rotary Table...
I wanted dead nuts accuracy so I located the center of the Ducati's
110mm bolt circle with a wiggler and then wiggled the Honda's 120mm
bolt circle...
The bolt hole was cut with a .312 Carbide Ball End which comes out the
other side without chipping...
To size the bolt hole to fit perfect with the Titanium fastener I used
a stone hone...
A .500 Carbide Rodman bit was employed for the other holes to lighten
the disc and give it the shape I wanted...
I used a Ceramic cutter to trim off the excess diameter surgically...
I angled the Mill head 45º to give the edge a crisp 45º cut...
Finish weight was 7oz (198gm) thats a 1 lb 14oz (849gm) savings over
the stock Honda steel...
The sinter pads that came with the CMC disc are milled down to fit my
4 pot Gp Brembo...
You have to feel it to believe it but my finished Ceramic Matrix Composite disc only weights 7oz...
Now my rear disc is CMC like my front disc...
That looks like some Genuine ingenuity. My concerns about using a disc like that would be ,there appears to be only 4 mounting points on the disc. And at they look to be about only a half inch or so in thickness, on either side of a critical mounting point. Being the material I would assume is more brittle then the steel disc it's replacing, do you have any concerns about the disc cracking or becoming weak from heat and the stresses placed upon it? Also, any predictions on how long they will last in normal use VS race usage? If that all pans out, you might have the next big thing in performance brake discs. Good luck with it.,,,
