New guy without a clutch lever...

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MRB06ae
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New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by MRB06ae »

Hi from SC. I bought my 1st mc('82 Yamaha Seca 650 4cyl, shaft drive, standard /wish I kept it!) in SC when I was 25yo.

Enlisted in Navy when 28yo. Ended up in CA & bought 2nd mc ('86 Kaw Eliminator ZL600 4cyl, shaft, water cooled, cruiser /wish I kept it!) & sold Seca 650 to a shipmate. Got married when 32yo & sold ZL600.

After 2 kids grown & on their own, I bought my next mc('06 Suz S50 800cc V, shaft, water cooled, cruiser) in Dec2019. Decided it was not suitable to my long distance aspirations, so I bought a 2006 FJR1300AE (computer shifted clutch but gear selected by rider) in Jan2020 at 62yo.

Then the virus thing happened & hampered my attempt to sell Suzuki. Then I discovered that the leather bags passed under the seat & made the seat installed wrong. When I corrected that it was way more comfortable, so I decided to keep it. Nothing wrong with having 2 completely different mc's :D available!

The FJR had the side luggage, but not the top case. I added Racing 905 crash cages front & rear. That saved me when I low-speed turned into a huge pot-hole in a parking lot. I wish I could have feathered the clutch & revved the engine to handle that situation, but there isn't a clutch lever! And I didn't want to goose 1300 cc's with a deep ditch right in front of me. More practice needed.

I'm 5'6" & 160#. With the seat in the lower position, I don't have any excess leg reach. Thick soled boots are greatly appreciated.

Well that's me, the newest new guy. I think I have owned 4 of the best motorcycles of their times for the way I wanted to ride.
Last edited by MRB06ae on Thu Jul 16, 2020 10:16 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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fontanaman
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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by fontanaman »

Welcome to the forum from Spokane Washington.
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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by gixxerjasen »

Welcome, from another guy without a clutch lever. Geez, it must suck to be so short. Those of us up in the 5'7" group have NO problems handling such a huge beast of an FJR. :D

Seriously, that no lever thing is great, especially when you find yourself stuck in some kind of traffic mess. Most other times, it's a non issue. Learn to get on the gas while feathering the back brake and you can fix some of it's shortcomings. Great bike, you'll love it the more you get used to it. Again, welcome!
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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by wheatonFJR »

Welcome from SC!
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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by Uncle Hud »

Welcome from the big city next door. US Navy submarine vet, too. Still a new guy here, relatively speaking.
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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by Bounce »

Welcome to the forum. For a higher chance of people reading and replying with answers to your questions, a few paragraphs in all that might make it easier to read.
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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by wheatonFJR »

Bounce wrote: Sun Jun 21, 2020 10:15 am Welcome to the forum. For a higher chance of people reading and replying with answers to your questions, a few paragraphs in all that might make it easier to read.
I read it fine. He used English werds n ever thin. Taking issue with someone’s grammar is rarely a good way to welcome someone.

Now if you were a close friend and buddy of his and were joshin, I take back all I said.
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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by escapefjrtist »

Welcome from metro Seattle!

~G
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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by wnyfjr »

Welcome from another '06 AE owner! I am so used to not using a lever to shift, I'm not sure I can ever go back. ;-)
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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by Cav47 »

Wanna trade FJRs? Apparently my bike didn’t have much of a clutch either for a while.


Just kidding. It’s a long story.


Anyway welcome to the forum from Illinois. Glad you found this place. It truly is an amazing group of people that will throw the full weight of their knowledge and resources at nearly any problem.
I often have found myself when I was not looking, nor did that discovery take place where I thought it would!

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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by gixxerjasen »

wnyfjr wrote: Sun Jun 21, 2020 3:45 pm Welcome from another '06 AE owner! I am so used to not using a lever to shift, I'm not sure I can ever go back. ;-)
It's fun having multiple bikes and switching back and forth.
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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by Bounce »

wheatonFJR wrote: Sun Jun 21, 2020 11:44 am
Bounce wrote: Sun Jun 21, 2020 10:15 am Welcome to the forum. For a higher chance of people reading and replying with answers to your questions, a few paragraphs in all that might make it easier to read.
I read it fine. He used English werds n ever thin. Taking issue with someone’s grammar is rarely a good way to welcome someone.

Now if you were a close friend and buddy of his and were joshin, I take back all I said.
I didn't take issue with his grammar. I couldn't have since a solid block of unbroken text defaults to seeming TLDR for me and at least a few others. I was simply making a suggestion to get more eyes-on. Sheesh.

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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by wheatonFJR »

Bounce wrote: Mon Jun 22, 2020 10:13 am
wheatonFJR wrote: Sun Jun 21, 2020 11:44 am
Bounce wrote: Sun Jun 21, 2020 10:15 am Welcome to the forum. For a higher chance of people reading and replying with answers to your questions, a few paragraphs in all that might make it easier to read.
I read it fine. He used English werds n ever thin. Taking issue with someone’s grammar is rarely a good way to welcome someone.

Now if you were a close friend and buddy of his and were joshin, I take back all I said.
I didn't take issue with his grammar. I couldn't have since a solid block of unbroken text defaults to seeming TLDR for me and at least a few others. I was simply making a suggestion to get more eyes-on. Sheesh.

See. You don't like correction, neither does the new guy.

I get your point regarding clarity, but we welcome all types here. Even me.

So keep your sheesh, and put a smile on your face. Have a nice day! :D
There's no better therapy than a ride - petey
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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by raYzerman »

Welcome to the sandbox!!
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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by Bounce »

wheatonFJR wrote: Mon Jun 22, 2020 11:48 am See. You don't like correction, neither does the new guy.

I get your point regarding clarity, but we welcome all types here. Even me.

So keep your sheesh, and put a smile on your face. Have a nice day! :D
I don't mind correction when it's correct. What more of a smile(y) can be used than Sgt Hulka?
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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by wheatonFJR »

Bounce wrote: Tue Jun 23, 2020 8:55 am I don't mind correction when it's correct.
You never look in the mirror do you? I think you got something hanging off yer nose...yeah, right there.
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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by RacinRay »

Welcome to the forum. Here, all your questions will be answered...sometimes correctly!
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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by Uncle Hud »

RacinRay wrote: Tue Jun 23, 2020 9:27 am Welcome to the forum. Here, all your questions will be answered...sometimes correctly!
... and sometimes with a light dose of drama.

Keep an eye out for Southeastern US ride postings here. Join us. When we ride, we ride.
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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by gixxerjasen »

I think Bounce scared him off. He must have thought he mistakenly joined that "Need Thick Skin" FJR board he's heard so much about.
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Re: New guy without a clutch lever...

Post by Bounce »

wheatonFJR wrote: Tue Jun 23, 2020 9:24 am
Bounce wrote: Tue Jun 23, 2020 8:55 am I don't mind correction when it's correct.
You never look in the mirror do you? I think you got something hanging off yer nose...yeah, right there.
Would YOU if you were me? :D :stickpoke: :finger:

I thought the WHOLE Internet needed thick skin (or has "snowflake" been added to EVERY job description?).
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