FJRiders.com

Sold my 04 a few days ago. This is the first time since July of 02 that I haven't had at least one FJR but after my last romp in norcal the riding position just doesn't work for my dead back. Going to San Jose tomorrow to pick up a Guzzi Stelvio. Not sure why but I've always wanted one. Probably the only brand with worse dealer support than BMW.

Engine oil & filter change. Final drive gear oil replacement. New brake pads front rear and rear rear. Swapped around pads to even the wear on all the front fronts.

Left home at 6am, BRP and 276 at 7:25am.

Home by 11:30am. 250 miles of lonely twisty goodness. First light is the only time to climb 276 up to the BRP!

Slowed down to let Mr Armadillo cross the road. Saw cute lil Bambi and Bambis mommy on Charlies' Creek rd.

Yesterday I made a box.  Yep, boxes for forks are hard to find, so I spent waaaay too much money on a giant box made of nice thick cardboard from the UPS store and then came home and cut it up and folded it all up to make me a custom box.  Then I used a zillion rolls of expensive bubble wrap to wrap the forks and took it all back to the UPS store and shipped it off to Traxxion in Georgia.  Going to get them rebuilt and have them do a once over on everything including the AK20's in there since they've got some miles on them between me and the previous owner of them.  Should be good for a while once I get them back.

quick hint - Next time, try something like this.

gixxerjasen wrote: ↑Tue Jul 06, 2021 8:30 am Yesterday I made a box.  Yep, boxes for forks are hard to find, so I spent waaaay too much money on a giant box made of nice thick cardboard from the UPS store and then came home and cut it up and folded it all up to make me a custom box.  Then I used a zillion rolls of expensive bubble wrap to wrap the forks and took it all back to the UPS store and shipped it off to Traxxion in Georgia.  Going to get them rebuilt and have them do a once over on everything including the AK20's in there since they've got some miles on them between me and the previous owner of them.  Should be good for a while once I get them back.

Sunday, I installed some trip insurance. Insurance as in making sure that we don't spend a day in the western half of the U.P. looking for a shop to get a new rear tire installed on someone's FJR. I also diagnosed and resolved malfunctioning rear brakes on an '06.



I installed the same type of insurance on my bike last week in the form of fresh RS3's.

Ha, I'm confused, why the pics of PR4's? BTW, use something else on the front.........

extrememarine wrote: ↑Tue Jul 06, 2021 9:23 am quick hint - Next time, try something like this.

I did look into that. Seems to be mixed experiences out there with them and I can't find it now but one suspension company out there specifically stated to not use the gun cases and that they'd not be held responsible for shipping back and forth if you chose to use a gun case. Also, some shippers will charge an "Irregular box" fee for those.

Set of PR4's went on TimDawg's bike. The only Michelin's that have been on my bike would be a Pilot Power; since I needed more than 1,200 miles of range, I have fresh RS3's.

raYzerman wrote: ↑Tue Jul 06, 2021 9:51 am Ha, I'm confused, why the pics of PR4's? BTW, use something else on the front.........

extrememarine wrote: ↑Tue Jul 06, 2021 10:56 am Set of PR4's went on TimDawg's bike. The only Michelin's that have been on my bike would be a Pilot Power; since I needed more than 1,200 miles of range, I have fresh RS3's.

raYzerman wrote: ↑Tue Jul 06, 2021 9:51 am Ha, I'm confused, why the pics of PR4's? BTW, use something else on the front.........

They didn't fall off on the way home. I probably lost a few fasteners though. Those never seem to stay on.

Moved car and noticed rear tire on FJR was flat. Found 2 pieces of metal in the tire. Only one punctured.

T30 Evo with 7100 miles. Left side bald. Plugged it anyway. At the very least it was good practice with a new brand of self-vulcanizing sticky string plugs. Ordered PR4GT.

T30 Evo GT many years ago returned 7500 miles. I feel ripped off!

Ordered PR4GT because it is the longest lasting rear tire I have used, and I like its relative softness. $170 plus tax, Rocky Mountain.

Appears T31 is gone from RM. T32 only now. I have another T30 Evo front waiting so I didn’t order a front tire. My favorite front is T31GT. T30 Evo at only 3200 miles is falling in to turns at low speed, requiring more effort to turn at higher speeds. I’ll live with it. This is a common trait that only a T31GT avoided.

N4HHE wrote: ↑Tue Jul 06, 2021 11:13 pm Moved car and noticed rear tire on FJR was flat. Found 2 pieces of metal in the tire. Only one punctured.

T30 Evo with 7100 miles. Left side bald. Plugged it anyway. At the very least it was good practice with a new brand of self-vulcanizing sticky string plugs. Ordered PR4GT.

T30 Evo GT many years ago returned 7500 miles. I feel ripped off!

Ordered PR4GT because it is the longest lasting rear tire I have used, and I like its relative softness. $170 plus tax, Rocky Mountain.

Appears T31 is gone from RM. T32 only now. I have another T30 Evo front waiting so I didn’t order a front tire. My favorite front is T31GT. T30 Evo at only 3200 miles is falling in to turns at low speed, requiring more effort to turn at higher speeds. I’ll live with it. This is a common trait that only a T31GT avoided.

I have used the T30 and the T30 EVO and they gave reasonable service life for the price - nothing exciting. Never tried the T31 (been using Dunlop RS3 the past few years). Have a set of the newer T32 to go on next. They got the nod over the new Dunlop RS4 because of a better local price and $50 rebate on the pair.

What brand of sticky string? Haven't seen anything "new" in those for quite some time.

DesignFlaw06 wrote: ↑Tue Jul 06, 2021 11:07 pm

extrememarine wrote: ↑Tue Jul 06, 2021 10:56 am Set of PR4's went on TimDawg's bike. The only Michelin's that have been on my bike would be a Pilot Power; since I needed more than 1,200 miles of range, I have fresh RS3's.

raYzerman wrote: ↑Tue Jul 06, 2021 9:51 am Ha, I'm confused, why the pics of PR4's? BTW, use something else on the front.........

They didn't fall off on the way home. I probably lost a few fasteners though. Those never seem to stay on.

Well, we know the PR4's do well in the rain...............

FJRoss wrote: ↑Tue Jul 06, 2021 11:26 pm I have used the T30 and the T30 EVO and they gave reasonable service life for the price - nothing exciting. Never tried the T31 (been using Dunlop RS3 the past few years). Have a set of the newer T32 to go on next. They got the nod over the new Dunlop RS4 because of a better local price and $50 rebate on the pair.

What? Rebate? I better stock up!

Edit: https://www.bridgestonemotorcycletires. ... promotions says:
“THERE ARE CURRENTLY NO BRIDGESTONE MOTORCYCLE TIRES PROMOTIONS. PLEASE CHECK BACK LATER.”

What brand of sticky string? Haven't seen anything "new" in those for quite some time.

ASIN B00LC4KONQ at Amazon. Currently $13.49 for a pack of 60. Is supposed to be self-vulcanizing with no need for glue. It isn’t really a new product so much as it is a different brand than I have been using. Is new to me. Using a Walmart Slime reamer and pusher-inner.

First one I pushed into the hole seems to be sealing. I usually have to repair on the road then ride immediately. Perhaps before the plug cures? This time it gets to sit 12-18 hours before riding. Will see if it holds air tomorrow.

Still grinding bugs off of it from Sunday. Pulled the aero screen offand reinstalled my beloved Yamaha touring. Can’t deal with the buffeting from the aero, but I like everything else about it so well I’m considering an mra for the first time. Throwing good money after bad.

N4HHE wrote: ↑Wed Jul 07, 2021 1:22 am

FJRoss wrote: ↑Tue Jul 06, 2021 11:26 pm I have used the T30 and the T30 EVO and they gave reasonable service life for the price - nothing exciting. Never tried the T31 (been using Dunlop RS3 the past few years). Have a set of the newer T32 to go on next. They got the nod over the new Dunlop RS4 because of a better local price and $50 rebate on the pair.

What? Rebate? I better stock up!

Edit: https://www.bridgestonemotorcycletires. ... promotions says:
“THERE ARE CURRENTLY NO BRIDGESTONE MOTORCYCLE TIRES PROMOTIONS. PLEASE CHECK BACK LATER.”

What brand of sticky string? Haven't seen anything "new" in those for quite some time.

ASIN B00LC4KONQ at Amazon. Currently $13.49 for a pack of 60. Is supposed to be self-vulcanizing with no need for glue. It isn’t really a new product so much as it is a different brand than I have been using. Is new to me. Using a Walmart Slime reamer and pusher-inner.

First one I pushed into the hole seems to be sealing. I usually have to repair on the road then ride immediately. Perhaps before the plug cures? This time it gets to sit 12-18 hours before riding. Will see if it holds air tomorrow.

Bridgestone rebate was in May, IIRC. I have been using up a couple of "take-offs" with local riding and saving the new ones for a trip. (Canada rebates may not be the same as US but I think there was one around the same time.)

I use the "glue" more as a lube for the string than as a sealant. I think most strings are supposed to work without it. I will look at the ones you posted. Package of 60 - use two and throw out 58 a couple years later to buy fresh ones. I currently have a bunch that are getting old. They are generally pretty cheap so replacement is a no-brainer, even if they may be still OK.

I have a couple sets of the reamers and insertion tools but only with the screwdriver handles. T-handles are easier to use, especially with slightly arthritic hands. Might pick up some of those as well.

FJRoss wrote: ↑Wed Jul 07, 2021 7:02 am Package of 60 - use two and throw out 58 a couple years later to buy fresh ones.

This, every time.

Edit: Got me looking, this pack is cheaper with more that you can throw away. What a deal!
https://www.amazon.com/HappyBeeYo-Repai ... NrPXRydWU=

Even cheaper with fewer to throw away.
https://www.amazon.com/Vakert-Repair-St ... s9dHJ1ZQ==

FJRoss, let us know what you find that you like in those T Handle reamers.

Moved it out of the garage so I could bug bomb the garage. I hate spiders.

Interesting - it's been a while since I shipped a set of forks. I also remember making a set of triangle shaped tube boxes from Fedex work on time.

I keep the original box for my Ohlins rear shock, so I reuse that each time I ship it for service.

gixxerjasen wrote: ↑Tue Jul 06, 2021 10:09 am

extrememarine wrote: ↑Tue Jul 06, 2021 9:23 am quick hint - Next time, try something like this.

I did look into that. Seems to be mixed experiences out there with them and I can't find it now but one suspension company out there specifically stated to not use the gun cases and that they'd not be held responsible for shipping back and forth if you chose to use a gun case. Also, some shippers will charge an "Irregular box" fee for those.

For the first time in awhile, took the FJR to work (I go in 3 days a week these days). After riding the S10 exclusively so much recently, the FJR felt small and narrow, lol. It's all good.