What did you do to your FJR today?

[wheatonFJR]

Krista at The Regal Barber does my hair. She is good and I get a consistent cut for a fair price. I can make appointments on line. Nice.

Krista isn't one uh dem "drive-thru" haircut places like the "drive-thru coffee baristas" y'all got out der in Washington, is it?

[basicjim]

After last weekends 1200 mi ride, today I washed the bike!

[escapefjrtist]

Went to the dealer today. They removed the check engine light for the princely sum of $0.00, as in free. As expected the light stayed off too so there was a big silver lining in my day.

Can't beat that price! Glad it's resolved Fontanaman.

~G

[Toter]

If i were living in a downtown metro, i wouldn't own a car. Between Uber and public transit.. that being said, a cub with some panniers would probably replace both those options. Good on Honda for realizing what the market probably needs.

What's old is once again new.

I commute on the FJR into midtown ATL. The office has parking, but many other destinations do not. (Or it's paid.) The big girl and I park on the sidewalk a lot, but it can be a challenge every now and then. A lightweight, skinny dirt bike could jump curb and squeeze into almost anywhere. Hmmmmm.

<seeking "On-Topic" points >

The big girl put on about 500 miles through GA, TN, and NC this weekend; an assortment of riders that are Kelly's friends. Two BMWs, a Triumph, a borrowed Honda 350 dirt bike (about 12 years old), Kelly's FZ-07, and ... this year ... TWO FJRs!

a highlight: US 64/74 westward from Ducktown, then right on TN 30 all the way to Tellico Plains! YeeHaw!

Hey Hud. Take 68 out of Ducktown. Nice twisty road to Tellico Plains. Buddy and I meet in Blue Ridge and take that route to the Cherohala Skyway. We usually ride it both directions, have lunch at the Tellico Cafe, and ride 68 back. Great ride.

[fontanaman]

Road my '17 FJR 270 miles today. Went out to lunch at a Pita Pit in Pullman Washington. The '17 gets much better gas mileage than the '09. Over 4500 miles it is getting 50 mpg according to the dash readout. I went 270 miles and it goes to reserve 1 mile from home. I never got that far with the '09.

Tested the ES more today. For hustling with no luggage and solo it seem the setting one helmet and luggage works well - as in the bike is planted.

Anybody have recommendations on a mesh jacket? It was warm today.

[gixxerjasen]

Anybody have recommendations on a mesh jacket? It was warm today.

Mine is on order, I'll let you know what I think when it comes in.

[wheatonFJR]

Road my '17 FJR 270 miles today. Went out to lunch at a Pita Pit in Pullman Washington. The '17 gets much better gas mileage than the '09. Over 4500 miles it is getting 50 mpg according to the dash readout. I went 270 miles and it goes to reserve 1 mile from home. I never got that far with the '09.

Tested the ES more today. For hustling with no luggage and solo it seem the setting one helmet and luggage works well - as in the bike is planted.

Anybody have recommendations on a mesh jacket? It was warm today.

Olympia Airglide, but they might be out of bidness.

[raYzerman]

Olympia Airglide, MotoQuest (new one is XMoto), or Dakar. I have the Dakar. Wear Olympia mesh four seasons. Older MotoQuest had zip down chest vent panels if you didn't want so much mesh/convertible.

[LKLD]

If i were living in a downtown metro, i wouldn't own a car. Between Uber and public transit.. that being said, a cub with some panniers would probably replace both those options. Good on Honda for realizing what the market probably needs.

What's old is once again new.

I commute on the FJR into midtown ATL. The office has parking, but many other destinations do not. (Or it's paid.) The big girl and I park on the sidewalk a lot, but it can be a challenge every now and then. A lightweight, skinny dirt bike could jump curb and squeeze into almost anywhere. Hmmmmm.

<seeking "On-Topic" points >

The big girl put on about 500 miles through GA, TN, and NC this weekend; an assortment of riders that are Kelly's friends. Two BMWs, a Triumph, a borrowed Honda 350 dirt bike (about 12 years old), Kelly's FZ-07, and ... this year ... TWO FJRs!

a highlight: US 64/74 westward from Ducktown, then right on TN 30 all the way to Tellico Plains! YeeHaw!

Hey Hud. Take 68 out of Ducktown. Nice twisty road to Tellico Plains. Buddy and I meet in Blue Ridge and take that route to the Cherohala Skyway. We usually ride it both directions, have lunch at the Tellico Cafe, and ride 68 back. Great ride.

Oh yes, the Sidewinder (68), is a fun road to Tellico.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[rbentnail]

Anybody have recommendations on a mesh jacket? It was warm today.

I use a Joe Rocket. Removable liner, good ventilation especially if you douse your shirt with a little tepid water.

[bill lumberg]

Soaked the bugs off of it again. I had foolishly looked forward to a time when it wasn’t cold and didn’t rain every day. And while I’m much. much happier in the cold and the warm, I’ve killed more bugs this week than an EMP at a foreign embassy.

And I will smile as I keep doing so.

[fontanaman]

Change my tires today. I got 6900 miles out of the Pirelli Angel GT Spec A's - this is a guess because I bought the bike with the tires and don't know how many miles they had on them. Overall I was very happy with these tire. Good price, the bike handled well and good tread life.

I installed Pirelli Angel GT Spec A's. We will see how they hold up on Eastern Washington cheap seal.

The bike keeps providing surprises. Today I found the rear axle nut under torqued while the pinch nut over torqued. Who ever worked on this bike in the past was careless at best.

[FJRoss]

Fixed a leaky fork seal on my 2011 - Seal-Mate to the rescue! I was hoping to avoid replacing seals and bushings this time.
I have done forks before on my '07 with the help (and tools) of a fellow FJR owner in Vermont. The forks on this bike have Traxxion AK-20 innards and I was wondering if anyone had any experience with bushing/seal change with this setup. Should be easier getting them apart since Traxxion doesn't use the middle bushing. Reassembly without the middle bushing should be easier.
Any tricks to taking out the AK20 cartridge? I assume that has to be done before taking the forks apart.
Can the top bushing be inserted without using the thin wall metal pipe?
What fork oil? I think Traxxion suggests Maxima 125/150 (7wt). I have used Belray 5W in the past. Easier to get around here.
Hope to avoid doing seals this year, just oil if I can get away with it.

[Cav47]

Anybody have recommendations on a mesh jacket? It was warm today.

Mine is on order, I'll let you know what I think when it comes in.

Just ordered a Klim Induction from Alex at BH Moto for this very thing. My Kodiak is warm and vents well, but it’s not gonna be the everyday one. He says the induction is the best warm weather jacket ever. Should be here this week. Same as GixxerJasen, I will let you know.

[fontanaman]

Does your Klim Induction have a pant's connection zipper? No not Pants, but the kind you wear.

[raYzerman]

Fixed a leaky fork seal on my 2011 - Seal-Mate to the rescue! I was hoping to avoid replacing seals and bushings this time.
I have done forks before on my '07 with the help (and tools) of a fellow FJR owner in Vermont. The forks on this bike have Traxxion AK-20 innards and I was wondering if anyone had any experience with bushing/seal change with this setup. Should be easier getting them apart since Traxxion doesn't use the middle bushing. Reassembly without the middle bushing should be easier.
Any tricks to taking out the AK20 cartridge? I assume that has to be done before taking the forks apart.
Can the top bushing be inserted without using the thin wall metal pipe?
What fork oil? I think Traxxion suggests Maxima 125/150 (7wt). I have used Belray 5W in the past. Easier to get around here.
Hope to avoid doing seals this year, just oil if I can get away with it.

Ross, sent you a PM..... expanding here. First, the AK-20 cartridges are simply a bolt in replacement for the originals, proceed as normal.
Not having a middle bushing should make removal easier, but the FJR top bushings are way too much of an interference fit IMHO. Heat the lower tube in the bushing area with propane torch until quite hot, hope bushing doesn't expand as much as the aluminum, slide hammer away.... worst that can (and has on Gen1), is lower bushing comes off the tube and you end up prying/bending the upper bushing in past the "split" and get it out that way... of course, hopefully the seal came out, but seal pry tool works then (or big screwdriver).
We can debate the merit of the middle bushing all day.... never see them worn much, mostly destroyed on removal. If I had a scrap lower, I would section it for scientific purposes to see design theory. These days I tend to think OK to leave it out, although anal me always has replaced them. The lower bushing takes the heat and wears the fastest, but at say a 30k replacement interval, wear depends on mostly the aggressiveness of the rider. I've seen everything from barely worn to completely worn (on forward and rearward surfaces, no teflon, down to the copper.... and nobody noticed anything bad in performance. What are we talking with Teflon gone, a coupla three four five thou, worst ten? Relatively speaking, the lower bushing is a sloppy fit anyway, rides on a cushion of oil in the lower.
I would go with Traxxion's recommendation of 7W, Yamaha has a 7.5, or mix a 5 and a 10 in the same brand. I wouldn't go 10 although many have with OEM cartridges. No need, there's plenty of damping adjustment and the OEM valving was designed for 5W, and the OEM Yammy oil was really something less than that.
SealMate will get you by for a while... depends what got in there, just dirt/grit or bug guts damaging the seal lip... you're gonna replace them at some point sooner than later, IMHO. OTOH, you have nothing to lose by simply flushing and replacing the oil for now... if it leaks in not too many miles, re-use that oil if it's not dirty.
Another topic of interest... other bikes sometimes recommend greasing the seal, which leaves grease between the two seal lips... I haven't done it as a regular practice... is there merit to that grease staying in place and not letting dirt in? Or was it intended to be a lube for less stiction? Upper dust seals usually are in good shape and debatable if they need replacing but we always do... they keep the big rocks out, LOL. The main seal does the work.

PS - Just had a guy in another sandbox GixxerJasen his forks, jammed the lower bushing into the middle one, could not get the top one to budge, could not hammer the inner tube back down... eventually did with a lot of swearing and pounding, and twisting had inserted the axle shaft to hold it... lightly scored his lower tube, not awful, ended up with spiral marks.... will lightly hone and move forward. Jasen thinks he's special, LOL, but he ain't the only one... been there myself but I somehow managed to fix it.

PPS - The brilliant FYB method of seal removal.... big hydraulic press, fork filled with ATF, press only until seal slides out... not that messy. Wish I had one, that FYB is kinda brilliant but don't tell him, his hats get to be a tight fit when you do.

[Cav47]

Does your Klim Induction have a pant's connection zipper? No not Pants, but the kind you wear.

That is a good question. I looked at the Klim and Revzilla sites and could not get a definitive answer. The question section of Revzilla had one that said “yes, you can zip the pants to a jacket” and two reviewers said there was not a way to connect it. I also watched the Revzilla video and when they opened the jacket up, I think I could maybe see a zipper connector, but not sure.

If there isn’t one present, I will adapt my jacket to have one. I will be using this jacket for 2 different types of riding. Mainly when talking to Alex, I expressed questions about riding the KLX in really hot weather but I did not want to wear body armor only with a jersey. Kinda feel a little exposed in the event of a get off that includes some sliding either on rocks or pavement. His answer was the Induction. That is his personal choice as well when not wearing full armor. The secondary usage he brought up was the ability to wear it was on the FJR for non touring days, but also hot weather where little chance of rain was possible. I will let you all know as soon as I get my hands on it. I already know it is “perfect” because it doesn’t have the zip closed wrist cuffs. They are Velcro type, but that may be the only other thing that is not great about it.

[FJRoss]

Ross, sent you a PM..... expanding here.

Got it, thanks!

We can debate the merit of the middle bushing all day.... never see them worn much, mostly destroyed on removal.

Traxxion doesn't replace it and I have been happy with my current setup. Also, the lack of a middle bushing should prevent the problem that Jasen ran into - middle bushing jamming under the top)

SealMate will get you by for a while... depends what got in there, just dirt/grit or bug guts damaging the seal lip... you're gonna replace them at some point sooner than later, IMHO. OTOH, you have nothing to lose by simply flushing and replacing the oil for now... if it leaks in not too many miles, re-use that oil if it's not dirty.

My leak and use of the Seal-Mate is what prompted the post - I agree that the seals are likely going to need to be done fairly soon - within a year, most likely.

Another topic of interest... other bikes sometimes recommend greasing the seal, which leaves grease between the two seal lips... I haven't done it as a regular practice... is there merit to that grease staying in place and not letting dirt in? Or was it intended to be a lube for less stiction?

Yamaha says to grease before installation but I expect it is to reduce the likelihood of damage. Certainly wouldn't hurt anything.

PPS - The brilliant FYB method of seal removal.... big hydraulic press, fork filled with ATF, press only until seal slides out... not that messy. Wish I had one, that FYB is kinda brilliant but don't tell him, his hats get to be a tight fit when you do.

I would love to have the press to do it that way. (It is the way Yamaha says to remove the seals in the FSM.)

Thanks, Ray!!

[Red]

The question section of Revzilla had one that said “yes, you can zip the pants to a jacket” and two reviewers said there was not a way to connect it. I also watched the Revzilla video and when they opened the jacket up, I think I could maybe see a zipper connector, but not sure.

Cav47,

You (or any decent sewing machine operator) can add accessories like zippers to your gear. Heavy zippers (metal or plastic) can often be had at camping or military surplus stores. Amazon has everything.

Ordinary sewing thread may or may not be up to the job, though. The fabric stores will have the outdoor (UV-resistant) upholstery thread that does the job well. You can not break this thread bare-handed; it would cut you, if you tried. It may look like ordinary thread, but it is far better and stronger. Any home sewing machine can use this thread, no problem, just fill some bobbins with it and go. It's all very normal stuff, except the results will be very good. Back-stitch the start and end of each run of sewing. You can get upholstery thread in many common colors, from black to white, but make sure it is the outdoor grade.
.

[gixxerjasen]

Ross, sent you a PM..... expanding here. First, the AK-20 cartridges are simply a bolt in replacement for the originals, proceed as normal.

One thing to remember however, the cartridge itself does require maintenance itself, as per email from Traxxion Dynamics to me, but nothing specific from them.

They do required periodic maintenance to keep the damping at top performance, but otherwise they are hard coated and don’t wear out.

PS - Just had a guy in another sandbox GixxerJasen his forks, jammed the lower bushing into the middle one, could not get the top one to budge, could not hammer the inner tube back down... eventually did with a lot of swearing and pounding, and twisting had inserted the axle shaft to hold it... lightly scored his lower tube, not awful, ended up with spiral marks.... will lightly hone and move forward. Jasen thinks he's special, LOL, but he ain't the only one... been there myself but I somehow managed to fix it.

If he got them apart, then I'm still special.

Sad to see it happening to other folks, hopefully my experience gives folks pause when they feel it start to grab and saves them my own hell.