Bubba

What type of head shape do the Bell helmets fit? Round or oval head?

Damn! HELL'A big parking lot. LOL

Jim: 26??? Yowzah. That seems way low for a big cruiser. That must be recommended inflation for parade drills....

Jim: This prolly works for you, but that would be higher than is typically spec'd by the manufacturer. Max sidewall inflation pressure might give you greater tire longevity but prolly isn't ideal for everyday riding with respect to grip. Of course, it depends on the type of bike, blah, blah, blah, but my guy tells me this would only be the case where the tire size and tire load rating were very close to the bike+rider weight, i.e., heavy cruiser with slightly undersize tires. YMMV....

SS: That question is about as easy to answer as "What's the best oil?" Tire pressure depends on SO MANY things: type of bike, type of tire (radial vs bias-ply, tube vs tubeless), weight of bike, weight of bike+rider+passenger+luggage, type of riding, overall average speed, anticipated top speed, air and/or road temperature, and even how you personally want to balance tire grip with tire longevity. From my experience, there are some general "rules of thumb": 1) You really can't go too badly wrong sticking with the manufacturer's recommendation in the owners manual. (This assumes you haven't dramatically changed the type of tire that came on the bike as OEM.) 2) Generally, the heavier the bike and it's load (rider+pass+luggage) the higher the pressure. 3) Lower pressure will usually result in a shorter tire life. 4) For extended extreme speeds (i.e., >120-130 MPH) you should bump the recommended pressures up several pounds. NOTE: THIS DOES NOT EQUATE TO BETTER HANDLING!! 5) For track days, most run lower pressures than typical street pressure for increased grip. 6) For colder air/pavement temps, slightly lower pressures give better grip. All of this shouldn't be taken as gospel, but is a short summary of what I've experienced over about 50 years of riding both street and dirt. Never exceed the maximum pressure listed on the tire sidewall, and don't exceed the GVWR of your motorcycle. When I say 'lower' or higher' I'm generally talking just a few pounds of inflation. For instance, I typically keep my tires inflated to about 34/36 F/R (Suzuki DL650, ~525#, DS radial tires) for normal commuting. If I plan on running the backwoods aggressively, I lower the pressure to 32/34. In winter weather, this might be as low 30/32. When I load up for a trip, whether it's on backroads or expressway, I air up to 36/38+. And I never have any tire problems on the Strom with extreme 130+MPH speeds.... BTW, I ride the poor little thing pretty hard and typically only get 5000-7000 miles out of a set of tires. My front usually lasts a little longer than the rear, but I pitch it when it gets triangulated, even if it still has some tread left.

Hellmutt: Not sure if you've got heart set on a brand new '15, but if you're interested in a Multi and want to save some serious cash, there's a '10 MS base model (no ABS, no panniers) with 13K miles for sale on ADVRider flea market for $7900. Looks super clean, 100% stock and located in Nashville, TN, so an easy 1-day drive-n-buy. Just an FYI... http://advrider.com/index.php?threads/2010-ducati-multistrada-beautiful-cond-nashville-tn.1099628/#post-27983465

Hope this is topical and not a repost or old info. Thought this was a pretty neat idea. https://www.facebook.com/michael.sandrock.9/videos/1256319011061556/

Give Brian Mullins (Kanatuna on the AFJ site) a call. Can't guarantee he'll have anything remotely like what you're looking for, but he still races and tunes the old, loud shit in his shop. Last contact I had for him is brianlmullinsatgmaildotcom or 859-409-7166

Three words: Not Big Enough! Nice Man Cave, tho.

Husky's are built pretty well. I'm using a Stihl right now, but my last saw was a vintage Craftsman from the mid-70s, when they were actually NOT POS saws. Think they may have been made by Jonsered at the time, and I used that for about 25-30 years with only a couple of carb rebuilds. Went thru 2 bars and plenty of chains and wish it still ran. Not heard a lot good about the light-duty Echos, but maybe the big ones are better. 20" bar seems big for trail building work....lots of weight to carry in and out. Unless you're using a quad to access your work area, might want to rethink the big saw decision. If you do get a full-size saw, get one with the 3/8" chainbar and DON'T buy the "safe" anti-kickback chains; a chipper chain will cut a lot faster (I like Oregon).

Aww jeez....I belong to a forum with a bunch of freakin' stoners. Cool!!!

http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-shows/tokyo-auto-show/news/a27175/yamahas-latest-concept-is-asports-car/?ref=yfp

Ben: DON'T DO IT!!! Sell and it's a certain guarantee of an apocalyptic winter with sub-zero cold and snow drifts ass-deep to a 10' indian....

Great pics! You hit some of the very good roads in NKY. I've been working on trying to convince some of the OR folk that live in SW OH to try out the southern flavor of routes for awhile. The "west" loop you describe is still east of some other great roads (west of the I-75 corridor). Some to consider--in no particular order--starting near the 19/62 intersection: 1284, 1032, 1054, 330, 607, 227 (better than 165, more technical!), 368, 32, 845, 1883, 1993/1995, 467 (both sides), 36, 1132, 1942. Many of these roads are pretty rural and some are only lane-and-a-half (no centerline) so expect the occasional possibility of less-than-ideal pavement and perhaps gravel and ride accordingly.

Based on what I've seen and read in the media, the injured aren't likely to recoup much if any of their medical expenses, and even less likely to get a satisfactory pain/suffering settlement. Crum appears to live in trailer park, so even if he actually owns the trailer and land, it isn't worth much. Plus, his obvious lack of respect to the rule of law--based on his prior run-ins that involve aggravated menacing with a vehicle--would make it pretty unlikely that he carries any real amount of insurance. You could suspend his license for life, but I'd put odds on that he'd end up driving anyway.

There's a lot of misinformation and false beliefs about brake fluids. The old glycol-based DOT3 and DOT4 (and the newer DOT5.1 which is diethylene glycol ester-based) are "technically" miscible, but it's not recommended by the manufacturer. The main difference as far as performance in the three fluids is the dry vs wet boiling points. DOT5 is a silicone-based fluid and most definitely NOT MISCIBLE with glycol-based fluids. The only time a switch to DOT5 is recommended is after a complete overhaul of the brake components, including replacement of the rubber seals and hoses and thorough cleaning of the hard parts. D.O.T. Minimum Boiling Points (degrees Fahrenheit): DOT3 DOT4 DOT5 Dry 401 446 500 Wet 284 311 356 The main advantage to the higher DOT-rated fluids is that they boil at higher temperatures. The one BIG DISADVANTAGE is that, generally, the higher the boiling point, the more hydroscopic the fluid, meaning that they absorb water more readily and their "wet" performance degrades more quickly than the lower DOT fluids, so you must flush and replace on more frequent schedule. Fine for a race bike that gets an overall check-up several times a season, but not very good for a typical street vehicle that sees rain, humidity, and a less frequent maintenance schedule. This leads some folks to believe that the silicone-based DOT5 fluid is the answer to water intrusion in the brake system. It's true that silicone is far less hydroscopic--on the order of only a few hundred PPM vs 5-6% for glycol base--but therein lies the rub. Your brake system is not perfectly sealed, allowing some moisture in through the master cylinder vent and even through the rubber brake line material. When water contaminates a silicone-based system, it can't partition into the fluid, and generally settles to the lowest point in the system, i.e., the calipers. There, it not only can cause corrosion of the metal, but the water has a boiling of....well, water, which is only 212*F. In addition, silicone brake fluid is slightly more compressible than a glycol-based fluid. This is why silicone brake fluid is not recommended for racing applications.

From the video, sounds like the engine isn't getting fuel/too lean condition. Does this model of Suzuki have a vacuum petcock? If not that, then I'd check the screen filter on the petcock for blockage. Check the fuel line for kinks. Check for a loose vacuum hose. If all that fails to remedy the condition, pull the carbs and clean the bowls and jets.

First dibs. Sending you a PM.

Love how he boasts "You're going to have a hard time finding cosmetic damage." Meaning? "I've done a real good job of hiding the bad shit."

There aren't many good roads in the NE corner of Cinti, plus Sunday is the DMC Hill Climb event in Oregonia. Gonna be a shit-ton of MCs--mostly H-Ds and cruisers--wobbling around the area all day....some 'em drunk. Not my cup o' tea. I don't know you, but why don't come on down to Fuel Coffee for the Alley Meet Sunday morning from 8-12, have a cup o' joe, and then we can wander across the river and ride a few of the great roads in NKY for a few hours. I'll prolly get there 9-9:30ish, have a coffee and some bisquits and sausage gravy, and then roll south about 10:30. There will be a few other folks from LocalRiders at Fuel, and some might make the roll with me. Prolly end up at the Hash and can come back across the river at the Ferry. https://www.facebook.com/events/941967355888605/

Not on my radar anymore. Besides, you REALLY don't want me to come on this ride with you guys....with my history of bad weather on camping and motorcycle trips, I'm like the old Al Capp comic character Joe Btfsplk...you remember, the one with the continual rain cloud over his head? I'd completely negate the rain-shedding properties of Tonik's Dome of Hate. Joe Btfsplk: The world's worst jinx, Joe Btfsplk had a perpetually dark rain cloud over his head. Instantaneous bad luck befell anyone unfortunate enough to be in his vicinity. Though well-meaning and friendly, his reputation inevitably precedes him—so Joe is a very lonely little man. He has an apparently unpronounceable name, but creator Al Capp "pronounced" Btfsplk by simply blowing a "raspberry," or Bronx cheer.[14] Joe's personal storm cloud became one of the most iconic images in the strip.

Damn, that didn't last too long. Posted on Sept 19th: "Best birthday present ever!"

In the interest of totally highjacking this thread.... This is directed to Doc as well as anyone else who has done some comparison shopping, and hopefully even demo rides, on the 2015 Kawasaki Versys LT. I've been loving my '09 Vstrom for the last 30,000 miles or so, but would love to have just a Wee bit (there's a pun there somewhere...) more HP and less weight. Could always go the route of swapping the Strom cams for the SV cams and doing a remap, but I'm not convinced the HP gain would justify the cost. So, does anyone own--or has anyone ridden--the new Versys LT?

Update: I'm officially licensed. I made my appt at the HCSO for 9:40 Monday (yesterday) to submit the application and get fingerprinted, and they called me back at 8:30 AM today--less than 24 hours later--to say I was approved and could pick up my permit. Don't know how other counties in OH are but Hamilton Cty is on it.