Ritten
04-10-2006, 11:19 PM
After being offshore for three weeks I came in last week and finally got some time to spend with the bike to put on all of the accessories that were building up in the workshop. I could have sworn I saw dust and moths fly when I opened the garage door and I could only hang my head low when confronted with two neglected bikes that had been sitting still for so long.
First thing's first... I pulled out the Aprilia and started her up. First crank, without so much as a hesitation, she turned over and was purrrrrring like an Italian kitty. I let her warm up a while before stretching the throttle cable a bit...
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0701.jpg
Once I was pleased and settled that the cabon had been sufficiently blown out, I rolled her back into place and pulled the GS out of the garage and into the operating room.........I mean bike shop.
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0703.jpg
The first item of business was tires. Picking up a nail in Grand Isle was seriously affecting my rides and I was constantly paranoid of my pressures. The plug I had in the trailwings was sufficient for short term, but the tire would lose alot of pressure over night. Soooo, I pulled out the machine...
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0704.jpg
...and had an important choice to make.
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0708.jpg
I ended up going with the TKC's so that I can find out how well they do on the superslab during my trip next week to the show-me state. The Harbor Freight tire changer really helps the job go alot easier and the mojo lever makes it so simple that I'm kicking myself for not doing this sooner.
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0707.jpg
Getting the tires off proved to be alot easier than getting the new ones on, but after a bit of pulling, cursing, and throwing.....I got it.
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0709.jpg
Now, getting the front tire off of the beemer was going to be interesting since I didn't have the 22mm hex tool required for the front axle. I called every shop I know of, every place in Houma, and aside from ordering something from Motion pro, I had no idea how I was going to do it. An industrial tool supply place here in Houma recommended trying a 7/8" allen wrench since it was only a few thousandths of an inch over a 22mm. I figured I'd try it, but of course it didn't work. About that time I remembered that my Futura requires something similar to get the rear wheel nut off of the swingarm. It was a long shot that it would be the right size, but as soon as I held it to the forks I knew it would work. It slid right inside the axle and was a perfect fit!! I instantly called up Garrett at Eurocycles and ordered a backup to keep on the BMW!
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0711.jpg
So now, I could take the front tire off, but still had to rig up a little bit of "persuasive engineering" to get the bike weight to favor the rear end. 42lbs of water, one used rear tire, and a rachet strap did the trick nicely...
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0712.jpg
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0713.jpg
I finished up the tires and got them somewhat balanced with the Mark Parnes balancer. All along I have been building a tool kit to keep on the GS and have started doing all of my bike maintenance with just that. I add tools to it as I come across one that I need.
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0705.jpg
Next up......a big box of goodies...
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0706.jpg
The SW-Motech tank bag was a simple enough install and I love the concept. It never touches the tank and can be removed and put back on with a simple pull of the cord. It attatches to a bracket installed on the tank.
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0716.jpg
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0714.jpg
After the tankbag installation, I removed the carbon block canister. It is installed by BMW USA to collect and reuse any overflowed gas from the tank. In reality it's a 5 pound ugly piece of plastic that can cause carbon to collect in your intake. GONE!!
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0720.jpg
Much cleaner subframe without it too...
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0721.jpg
After the canisterectomy, I proceeded to install a BlueSea fuse box under the seat and wire up my new Hella FF50's. The wiring took me the rest of that evening, and all morning Sunday. I would have finished sooner, but I had a bachelor party scheduled in Houston this past weekend.
As soon as I can get some pictures of the fuse box, I'll be glad to post them up if anyone is interested, but the end result of the fog lights are here. Riding some gravel and backroads last night, I was able to get them aimed and focused so that they're not blinding oncoming traffic, but light up what's in front of me EXTREMELY well.
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0775.jpg
They're mounted to a Terrenova light bar and eventually I'll put a set of Hella Micro DE Xenons on the top of the bar for some serious HID driving lights. I spent a good bit of the afternoon riding through cane fields, dirt roads, and even a few unbeaten trails. The bike handled them all with more confidence that I would EVER expect from such a pig and I was even sliding the rear out in a few places.
My final farkle for the weekend though was a lucky find for me. Someone on ADVrider had bought, and didn't like a standard height Sargent seat and was selling it for $100 under asking price. I jumped on the deal and my butt has been thanking me since. Here's a few pictures from today during my short, but sweet outting.
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0770.jpg
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0771.jpg
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0772.jpg
First thing's first... I pulled out the Aprilia and started her up. First crank, without so much as a hesitation, she turned over and was purrrrrring like an Italian kitty. I let her warm up a while before stretching the throttle cable a bit...
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0701.jpg
Once I was pleased and settled that the cabon had been sufficiently blown out, I rolled her back into place and pulled the GS out of the garage and into the operating room.........I mean bike shop.
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0703.jpg
The first item of business was tires. Picking up a nail in Grand Isle was seriously affecting my rides and I was constantly paranoid of my pressures. The plug I had in the trailwings was sufficient for short term, but the tire would lose alot of pressure over night. Soooo, I pulled out the machine...
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0704.jpg
...and had an important choice to make.
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0708.jpg
I ended up going with the TKC's so that I can find out how well they do on the superslab during my trip next week to the show-me state. The Harbor Freight tire changer really helps the job go alot easier and the mojo lever makes it so simple that I'm kicking myself for not doing this sooner.
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0707.jpg
Getting the tires off proved to be alot easier than getting the new ones on, but after a bit of pulling, cursing, and throwing.....I got it.
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0709.jpg
Now, getting the front tire off of the beemer was going to be interesting since I didn't have the 22mm hex tool required for the front axle. I called every shop I know of, every place in Houma, and aside from ordering something from Motion pro, I had no idea how I was going to do it. An industrial tool supply place here in Houma recommended trying a 7/8" allen wrench since it was only a few thousandths of an inch over a 22mm. I figured I'd try it, but of course it didn't work. About that time I remembered that my Futura requires something similar to get the rear wheel nut off of the swingarm. It was a long shot that it would be the right size, but as soon as I held it to the forks I knew it would work. It slid right inside the axle and was a perfect fit!! I instantly called up Garrett at Eurocycles and ordered a backup to keep on the BMW!
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0711.jpg
So now, I could take the front tire off, but still had to rig up a little bit of "persuasive engineering" to get the bike weight to favor the rear end. 42lbs of water, one used rear tire, and a rachet strap did the trick nicely...
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0712.jpg
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0713.jpg
I finished up the tires and got them somewhat balanced with the Mark Parnes balancer. All along I have been building a tool kit to keep on the GS and have started doing all of my bike maintenance with just that. I add tools to it as I come across one that I need.
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0705.jpg
Next up......a big box of goodies...
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0706.jpg
The SW-Motech tank bag was a simple enough install and I love the concept. It never touches the tank and can be removed and put back on with a simple pull of the cord. It attatches to a bracket installed on the tank.
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0716.jpg
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0714.jpg
After the tankbag installation, I removed the carbon block canister. It is installed by BMW USA to collect and reuse any overflowed gas from the tank. In reality it's a 5 pound ugly piece of plastic that can cause carbon to collect in your intake. GONE!!
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0720.jpg
Much cleaner subframe without it too...
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0721.jpg
After the canisterectomy, I proceeded to install a BlueSea fuse box under the seat and wire up my new Hella FF50's. The wiring took me the rest of that evening, and all morning Sunday. I would have finished sooner, but I had a bachelor party scheduled in Houston this past weekend.
As soon as I can get some pictures of the fuse box, I'll be glad to post them up if anyone is interested, but the end result of the fog lights are here. Riding some gravel and backroads last night, I was able to get them aimed and focused so that they're not blinding oncoming traffic, but light up what's in front of me EXTREMELY well.
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0775.jpg
They're mounted to a Terrenova light bar and eventually I'll put a set of Hella Micro DE Xenons on the top of the bar for some serious HID driving lights. I spent a good bit of the afternoon riding through cane fields, dirt roads, and even a few unbeaten trails. The bike handled them all with more confidence that I would EVER expect from such a pig and I was even sliding the rear out in a few places.
My final farkle for the weekend though was a lucky find for me. Someone on ADVrider had bought, and didn't like a standard height Sargent seat and was selling it for $100 under asking price. I jumped on the deal and my butt has been thanking me since. Here's a few pictures from today during my short, but sweet outting.
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0770.jpg
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0771.jpg
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d71/Thetedeo/IMG_0772.jpg