What did you do to your FJR today?

[wheatonFJR]

New front rubber and wheel bearings. All ready for those Florida twisties


Canadian FJR

On-ramps?

Both kinds.

[N4HHE]

New front rubber and wheel bearings. All ready for those Florida twisties


Canadian FJR

Wheel bearings? This ain’t no dirtbike!

[Canadian FJR]

When changing the front tire they both felt notchy, so I pulled them. They both felt perfect out of the hub .

Since they were out I put new ones back in. This is my spare front so the chances of them ever being replaced again are slim. And I now have a used set in case they are ever needed for an emergency.


Canadian FJR

[Hack]

'Bought her new tires... 'Round ones.

[bungie4]

Some guys know, off ramps take WAY more skill.

[wheatonFJR]

Some guys know, off ramps take WAY more skill.

I love the 20 mph ones on the northwest side of Chicago during rush hour myself.

[BikerGeek]

Some guys know, off ramps take WAY more skill.

Not to mention U-turns.

JSNS

[danh600]

FL is just like the dragon. 11 curves in 318 miles. Or something like that.

[danh600]

Not sure if I should put this in the good news thread or here. The side bags for my bike came in today. Just a few days shy of two months. Really wasn't a problem cause I was just doing day rides this time of year.

Going to get them put on in the morning.

Going to try to talk them into not using those silly security torx screws and maybe add some blue loctite.

[wheatonFJR]

FL is just like the dragon. 11 curves in 318 miles. Or something like that.

I know some places in Illinois that are so flat and straight, that if you are on even only a slight incline you can see two counties over, and could possible go 162mph if you were fixen to and motivated. So I've heard.

[raYzerman]

Not sure if I should put this in the good news thread or here. The side bags for my bike came in today. Just a few days shy of two months. Really wasn't a problem cause I was just doing day rides this time of year.

Going to get them put on in the morning.

Going to try to talk them into not using those silly security torx screws and maybe add some blue loctite.

FYI, the instruction sheet specifically states to loctite the screws...... most dealers don't do it.

[Cav47]

When changing the front tire they both felt notchy, so I pulled them. They both felt perfect out of the hub .

Since they were out I put new ones back in. This is my spare front so the chances of them ever being replaced again are slim. And I now have a used set in case they are ever needed for an emergency.


Canadian FJR

I had one fail a few years ago. Spawn and I were headed to Terra Haute on the Lower Terra Haute road (think curvier than most places in 200 miles) and I went into a corner and felt a crunch. Thought it could have been a rock under the front tire. Slowed a little because I did not like the feel of the front. Heard/felt it a few more times as we pulled into town. Got to the motorcycle dealership and their mechanic came out to look at it. We spent 5 min looking for a loose bolt or something amiss. I finally shoot the bars while his foot was holding the tire. The clunk was found. The bearings had pretty much ground themselves into oblivion. It was loose and riding was very ill advised We called home for a pickup and loaded the FJR up.

When I got it home and dis assembled the front wheel, it was barely holding itself in. Only the outside race along the wheel was solid. The rest was ruined. Replacement was done as well as really cleaning up the entire assembly. We were hustling pretty hard in those corners, but had we not known to lay off once the bearing went, it could have been bad.

Good on you for noticing the notch and fixing it.

[danh600]

Not sure if I should put this in the good news thread or here. The side bags for my bike came in today. Just a few days shy of two months. Really wasn't a problem cause I was just doing day rides this time of year.

Going to get them put on in the morning.

Going to try to talk them into not using those silly security torx screws and maybe add some blue loctite.

FYI, the instruction sheet specifically states to loctite the screws...... most dealers don't do it.

I mentioned that those screws come out sometimes. He said that is because dealers don't loctite them like the instructions say. Mine were loctited.

So I have my bags on now.

600 mile service coming soon.

[FJRoss]

Not sure if I should put this in the good news thread or here. The side bags for my bike came in today. Just a few days shy of two months. Really wasn't a problem cause I was just doing day rides this time of year.

Going to get them put on in the morning.

Going to try to talk them into not using those silly security torx screws and maybe add some blue loctite.

FYI, the instruction sheet specifically states to loctite the screws...... most dealers don't do it.

I mentioned that those screws come out sometimes. He said that is because dealers don't loctite them like the instructions say. Mine were loctited.

So I have my bags on now.

600 mile service coming soon.

They will probably be there for good. I still replaced mine with Allen screws, just because...

[extrememarine]

Rear shock boxed for shipment; coordinated service on my Ohlins YA707 with David in Hendersonville. Recorded ride height measurements along with rebound / compression settings.

FJR remains on the lift and to-do list is posted. Front fork service, brake pad check and rotation, air filter change, oil change, coolant flush and fill, rear pumpkin fluid change, steering head bearing replacement, wheel bearing check.

The list is longer than usual, but it will roll 100k this season and there are plans forming for some outside the normal riding for me this year. Someday is not a day of the week.

[Hppants]

Rear shock boxed for shipment; coordinated service on my Ohlins YA707 with David in Hendersonville. Recorded ride height measurements along with rebound / compression settings.

FJR remains on the lift and to-do list is posted. Front fork service, brake pad check and rotation, air filter change, oil change, coolant flush and fill, rear pumpkin fluid change, steering head bearing replacement, wheel bearing check.

The list is longer than usual, but it will roll 100k this season and there are plans forming for some outside the normal riding for me this year. Someday is not a day of the week.

Good idea re: brake pad rotation - I should do that as well. Is it time for a brake/clutch fluid flush? ABS pump cycle?

Any reason you are replacing the steering head bearings? Are they the originals? My current bike was procurred with 1100 miles on it. Of all things, the dealer installed tapered S/H bearings under warranty for the original owner. I've checked them a couple times and they are packed with grease and look terrific. I don't see a need to fix what doesn't appear to be broken.

Lubricate pivot points isn't on your list. It's trival, but as you know, important (particularly for the clutch lever bushing).

My bike has 90K on it. Your post reads like you have NO quarms about rolling your bike a while. Is that your intention? Do you feel very confident ofthe bikes' reliability 1500 miles from home? Right now, I feel that way, but I'm wondering what others with similar situations (mileage) feel?

Craigregs?

Intech?

FJRoss?

________?

[FJRoss]

My bike has 90K on it. Your post reads like you have NO quarms about rolling your bike a while. Is that your intention? Do you feel very confident ofthe bikes' reliability 1500 miles from home? Right now, I feel that way, but I'm wondering what others with similar situations (mileage) feel?

Craigregs?

Intech?

FJRoss?

________?

I sold my '07 with 186,000 miles and had NO issues that would have stranded me - worst was a couple of "spider" nibbles over the years. Fork seals (twice), radiator overflow tank cracked, a pinhole leak in my radiator, a plugged line to the MAP sensor, one set of front wheel bearings and that's about it other than routine maintenance. Nothing ever done to the drive train - even the clutch was untouched.

My current 2011 has right around 100,000 miles and the ONLY things I have had to do beyond "maintenance" are (quite literally) fork seals, some brake pads and a shifter rubber! Even the battery is original although that will likely need to be replaced this year. Would you believe I haven't even replaced a headlight bulb?

This spring's maintenance cycle will include a check of the steering head bearings, check wheel bearings, rear suspension pivots, and refurbish aftermarket Penske shock. Might look at replacing all of the front brake pads although lifetime has been greatly extended by swapping them around. (I have replaced four of the original front pads that were getting a bit too thin.) I changed the OEM rear pads last year.

After that stuff is done, I would have absolutely no concerns about taking the bike on a cross-continent ride. (Furthest I expect to take it this year is a June trip that will include a stop in Winnipeg MB to visit daughter and family but the total is only 5,000 miles or so...)

I am a lot more nervous about taking my recently acquired 2017 BMW F700GS with 43,000 km (27,000 miles) on a trip to include the TransLab highway and some of the backroads of Newfoundland - tentatively planned for August. If that works out, the BMW will take me on an Alaska and Pacific Northwest adventure in 2024 - a trip that will likely be something over 12,000 miles. (4500 miles from here just to the Alaska border.)

[extrememarine]

I’ll add that there are many items not on the list above because they get done on a regular basis – such as pulling the lever pivot pins to clean and lube, same for the rear brake pedal (I have a grease fitting installed there) – I touch those monthly or before any significant planned mileage.

My ABS pump gets cycled through normal use (my definition of 'normal use' likely very non-standard) – because that is part of my monthly routine – a side trip to a large, abandoned parking lot to practice – yeah, absurd thought, right?? But I spend about 30 minutes practicing slow speed u-turns (MSF figure 8 exercise) and braking. The braking includes cycling the ABS. If you haven’t ever experienced the ABS system activation on the FJR, you need to because the first time you feel it you need to know what it is and that the bike is doing what it supposed to be doing.

My thought on steering head bearings and wheel bearings are that it’s easy to do and cheap (steering head bearings from All Balls were $35-ish – easy as in it’s winter here, I have 2 months before I can even thing about rolling the bike out of the garage. And easy from the perspective of they are not easy to fix or adjust along side the road in Nevada or Utah, 2000+ miles from home. Same for wheel bearings.

Rear shock boxed for shipment; coordinated service on my Ohlins YA707 with David in Hendersonville. Recorded ride height measurements along with rebound / compression settings.

FJR remains on the lift and to-do list is posted. Front fork service, brake pad check and rotation, air filter change, oil change, coolant flush and fill, rear pumpkin fluid change, steering head bearing replacement, wheel bearing check.

The list is longer than usual, but it will roll 100k this season and there are plans forming for some outside the normal riding for me this year. Someday is not a day of the week.

Good idea re: brake pad rotation - I should do that as well. Is it time for a brake/clutch fluid flush? ABS pump cycle?

Any reason you are replacing the steering head bearings? Are they the originals? My current bike was procurred with 1100 miles on it. Of all things, the dealer installed tapered S/H bearings under warranty for the original owner. I've checked them a couple times and they are packed with grease and look terrific. I don't see a need to fix what doesn't appear to be broken.

Lubricate pivot points isn't on your list. It's trival, but as you know, important (particularly for the clutch lever bushing).

My bike has 90K on it. Your post reads like you have NO quarms about rolling your bike a while. Is that your intention? Do you feel very confident ofthe bikes' reliability 1500 miles from home? Right now, I feel that way, but I'm wondering what others with similar situations (mileage) feel?

Craigregs?

Intech?

FJRoss?

________?

[gixxerjasen]

easy from the perspective of they are not easy to fix or adjust along side the road in Nevada or Utah, 2000+ miles from home.

No shit, it's even inconvenient at a hotel!

[extrememarine]

I rest my case.

Imagine having to do some sort of fork service in that hotel parking lot?

easy from the perspective of they are not easy to fix or adjust along side the road in Nevada or Utah, 2000+ miles from home.

No shit, it's even inconvenient at a hotel!