wantahertzdonut

Sure seems that way! And yes, I'm just after the connectors and maybe 2" of wire. I'll gladly send a few bucks your way. Don't tempt me! That's about all it took for me to get this one!

Are there any motorcycle junkyards or shops in or around the Cleveland area selling Aprilia parts? I'm hunting around for a set of used or broken front turn signals for my Tuono because I need the plugs for some aftermarket units I'd like to install. Cleveland Cycle doesn't have anything and Cleveland Cycle Salvage appears to be out of business. I haven't seen anyone else turn up in my searches that has a functional webpage.

You'll like the magazine too.

Still, 70mph through stopped traffic is highway speed inches away from stationary objects containing people. And why is he bouncing the thing off the rev limiter? It just screams 'amateur'!

Because of dickheads like that, we'll never get lane sharing legalized here. It just makes the rest of us look bad. And it's too bad too. With how choked I90 gets, I'd love to share lanes since it's generally stopped and nobody is going anywhere. Nothing boils my blood more than putting my feet down on the highway to stop.

Back when I had my Bandit I would back out of my parking space at work and let the bike just roll by itself since the lot was on an incline. I got pretty good at putting my feet up and just letting the bike go, then I'd turn to go down the lane just like a car. Well, one day I got going a little quicker than normal, and the gas in the tank sloshed to the right taking the bike and me with it. Only bent the brake lever. I've never backed out without feet since! 3 years ago I dropped my SV in the garage not knowing the kickstand wasn't down. It has hard saddlebags and I parked the bike perpendicular in the garage and behind my Mustang. It was a tight fit anyway so I didn't realize the saddlebag was resting against the back of the car when I went to move it, and once I pulled the bike to the side, over it went since there was no kickstand to catch it. Just broke the clutch lever and felt quite stupid. I always check for kickstands these days!

I'm not planning on sleeping in the truck bed, ever. I didn't really state that before. I'm still looking at a camper trailer to tow behind the truck. Bikes only will come out when they're going out on the track or the road. Being bent over does sound like it stinks, but I'd be doing the same in a van too. And I haven't liked any of the layouts of toy haulers I've seen so far, so I'm just considering this as another option. Reason being is I'm looking at diesels, and it's much easier to find a diesel pickup than a Suburban or van. This enables me to go with a camper or toy hauler, whatever I find first.

I did some looking around on ARE's website and found a few caps with potential, but only for trucks newer than my budget allows (2008+). Do you recommend anyone who sells these things? I'll check on CL too.

About pickup beds, are caps available that are tall enough to allow a motorcycle to drive in? I've never looked at truck caps before so I have no idea if someone makes one that's tall enough. Finding something like this would open up options for what we're after, since we could go back to just getting a camper trailer instead of a toy hauler.

I've found OEM manuals don't help much with this sort of thing since they seem to be written with the expectation you to have some experience with repair and only use the book as a quick reference. Most of what I learned came from the Haynes books for my bikes, but after a quick search on Amazon it would not appear there is one available for your bike. But looking at Hornet shocks, they appear to be similar in construction to the forks that I've disassembled. Basically there's only a small screw at the bottom of the fork that hols the sliders to the top tubes, and you'll either need an air ratchet or a special tool (read: jammed broomstick handle) to secure the internal nut. Undo that bolt and the forks seperate completely. It makes more sense if you can get a diagram of their construction. About what I said about the shock (I know I said fork, I meant shock), get the F3 if that's what you can afford. A rebuild may be spendy, but if the F3 has the adjustment you're after, it's a good start. In regards to the forks, Tpoppa said it best. Install stiffer springs and heavier oil, and add emulators. That's all I did to my track bike and what a difference! I'm not sure what adjustability you'll get, but you should get something that's better spring than what you have now. Changing springs and oil requires no special tools, just the means to get your front wheel off the ground to remove the forks. On my bike, once they're off, all you have to do is unscrew the cap at the top of the fork and then drain the oil. Springs come out and you can upgrade at that time if you wish. Replace with heavier oil and reassemble.

Could you see anything that guy was trying to show?

Like the idea, hate the tires and the headlight that looks like the head of a Zaku. For $35k, I'll build my own handlebar-equipped S1k and pocket the remaining $20k.

8Rider6- If the bike is truely "yours", you won't have trouble rebuilding the forks. They come off easy and you may need a special tool here or there, but if they're anything like the Bandit forks, any special tooling can be bypassed with a little creativity. (speaking from experience) See if your library has a Haynes book for the 919. Thumb through it and look at the fork disassembly and then make the decision to do it. Get a friend if you need to, or one of your fellow OR members in Columbus may be willing to help you out. It'll save you a bunch of cash and you'll feel good knowing you modded your bike by yourself. Once you do that, get whatever fork you can afford. Penske would be the best, but if you can't afford one, find something you can. The F3 fork may not be perfect, but going by what everyone is saying, it's better than what you have now. You have a good starting point in the 919, making it great is up to you. Get your wrenches and get to work!

Must be a bunch of Clevelanders out driving

Left lane enforcement is something I'd pay to see more of. Bottlenecking traffic creates possibly the worst situation on the road by bunching everyone together. Don't like the faster pace? Stay the fuck home. Or let the fast people by and they'll get the ticket, if that's your mentality. If traffic is moving quicker than I normally go, you better believe I speed up. (I normally drive 5-7 over) THERE IS NO NEED TO HOLD UP TRAFFIC. Unless you're a cop, IT'S NOT YOUR JOB TO ENFORCE THE SPEED LIMIT. It's not a difficult concept. On edit: http://www.slowertraffickeepright.com/ for those of you that need pictures.

I knew they were getting rain but had no idea they were getting 6-7" of it. I can't say I'm surprised about the landslides in that case. I didn't realize there was any business left in Cherokee to kill. When we went through there 2 years ago, that town was d e a d.

Last I checked, isn't there a naked version of the GS500? Would it be worth finding parts off one of those and transfering them to your bike? I don't know if your windscreen is of much help on your travels but if you don't think you'd miss it, you can ditch it and get a round headlight with handlebars. It's just a cheap suggestion and would cost you less than buying a while new bike.

I spent some time riding in and around Cape Coral and found if you're not near the water, it's pretty dull. Same for the Jacksonville area. Not sure if there's anything better in between. Drivers aren't much better than they are here either. Old people and wannabe racers, so they're either going REALLY slow (slower than here) or stupid fast. Keep your eyes open.

Nice shots. Funny enough, I have friends who live in Cape Coral and I rent a bike every time I go there, I'm pretty sure I know exactly where you took that shot. I might even have the same photo, but without your rainbow.

Sounds like one of us needs to win a lottery

I rode to work which sucked, because I had to work. I shouldn't be working weekends and it just figures I get dragged in on the first "warm" day of the year. I did get out for a short ride with my girlfriend when I got home at least.

Will do for sure. I usually make at least 1-2 trips a year to Iron Pony, and there will most likely be a concert somewhere in Cbus that won't be in Cleveland. Rock-And-Roll-Capitol-Of-The-World my ass.

I like the tent idea but will be going to a lot more places than just trackdays. National Parks for one, and you can't have soft tents in places where there are bears.

I'm glad the schedule doesn't start till May. My job should be ending by the end of April (fingers crossed) so that first weekend in May should be a fun way to celebrate. Hopefully we get another dry summer like last year.

Do people seriously think they'll get what they're asking when a new unit is less? WTF?