Skull

Well, it would've been simple if I was not Sofa King today. It looks sweet as all hell! The integrated turn signals are very cool. This was exactly what I wanted. I'll make my pop ride it tomorrow -- he's afraid of it, so I don't have to worry about him hot-rodding.

It's funny... when you take electrical connectors apart in a certain way, it's VERY IMPORTANT to put them back THAT SAME WAY. If you do not, you get to spend a couple hours and several fuses figuring out why you don't have a speedometer or gas gauge. :roll:

I can't seem to make my Pyramid hugger fit, either.

The LED taillight for the Blackbird doesn't come with integrated turnsignals. Clear Alternatives will make a custom one, but it's spendy.

I just want to jump in here and say that John runs a good business, with excellent customer service. I had a special request for a one-off item and he went to his supplier and set the whole thing up for me. I couldn't be a happier customer.

I have a pneumatic lift table with an LA Chock bolted onto it, and the table comes with a scissor jack to lift the bike above the table. Works pretty well.

I've been using the FM modulator on the Roadie II in my truck, and I have very few compaints. If I decide to leave it that way, I'll just remove the FM antenna from the stereo altogether. This is probably what I'll do with the headset as well -- I don't need to pick up signals from any farther away than 3'.

Ah, yes. Anti-reversion cones are another part of this whole phenomenon. I think the general consensus (outside of the lemming HD community) is that it basically accomplishes nothing toward your goal. Have you considered just some regular glasspacks? Cherry Bombs? Purple Hornies? I don't know if they're small enough.

I can't get the Pyramid hugger to fit correctly -- almost as if it came warped. Anyone else have trouble with one of these, or is it just me?

When it comes to balancing, you don't really need the dot on the tires -- in my experience it's not always right anyway. If you're seriously anal about it, you strip the old tire off down to the bare rim (with valve stem) and balance the wheel to find the heavy spot. Next, use weights to correct this imbalance, and then install the new tire. You can now determine the heavy spot on the tire. Remove the tire and the weights, and install the heavy spot on the tire opposite the heavy spot on the rim and then rebalance. I, myself, do not do this, having neither the skill nor the equipment, but I worked with my tire guy for my car doing this, and I needed less than 2 oz per wheel when I was done. Oh, and finding someplace that will spin-balance to higher than 60mph is nice, too, but also harder than you'd think.

You should have e-mail shortly.

The XM Roadie II has a built-in FM modulator. My solution is going to be to dismantle and install one of these in my helmet: http://store.sundancesolar.com/solamheadsol.html I haven't done it yet, so I can't say for sure that it works, but the idea of no cords is enticing.

Thanks, guys. Y'all are awesome. It's nice to have options. FSB, the tank and the tail section seem to be the only parts I DON'T need. I think whatever happened to my bike with a previous owner must've been kinda like yours. :???: I had taken the plastic off to do a full inspection of the engine and drivetrain -- bodywork can hide a multitude of sins. I find it ironic that the biggest sins turn out to _be_ the bodywork. Ah, well.

When I bought my bike, I figured it had been down, and I wasn't sure exactly what parts of the fairing would need replaced or what. It's looking like I will need a new upper and a lower right. Even through Service Honda, these are expensive items (although cheaper than through Ron Ayers or PowerSports Pro). :shock: There seem to be a lot of folks making aftermarket/3rd party plastics for every Honda sportbike except the XX. Anyone know of anyone besides Honda that DOES make stuff for the XX? If such things exist, are they interchangeable, or would it require a full aftermarket set?

The biggest problem for me, at the moment, is that I'm still recovering from my accident where I totaled my Goldwing, and while I have a lot of strength in the bad leg (as well as the good leg), I don't have that strength at full extension. As a result, if I get off balance (which I did), I don't have a lot of leverage to catch myself before I hit the point of no return. Frankly, it's not my dignity that I'm worried about, it's just a pain in the ass to pick the bike back up. :wink:

As far as I can tell, every other brand is just a rebadged Yuasa anyway.

--How short are you? I probably would have been a bit more comfortable on the bike if it was an inch lower, and it would have made pushing it around while on the bike much easier. I am about 5' 7.5" I'm right there at 5' 8" with a 30" inseam.

It looks like it is indeed the same one. I wish I'd thought to look there first, it would have saved me ~$25.

I was going to do that, but my dealer said to give him a check for the cost of ordering a new one. He loaned me the one he had, and gave me the check when I brought it back. If you're ever near Dayton, Ohio, Sporty's Honda in Fairborn is a good place. The owner is a stand-up guy, and the shop folks actually listen to you.

I only ever did it on my Valkyrie because I was changing out the Valkyrie swingarm for an 1800 Goldwing swingarm. I had to manufacture some spacers to adapt the Valkyrie pinchbolts to the Goldwing bearings. That was kinda interesting, but with more than 25,000 miles on the stock swingarm and bearings, everything was pristine.

No more than 1" on the front: Check. I hadn't thought about the front bottoming out and busting the fork seals. Thanks for the tip on that. This will include having somebody cut down the seat an inch. Dang I hate being short. The lowering link isn't adjustable -- I have no worries about its structural integrity. Stiffer fork springs is a good idea, too. Thanks all.

I have now conclusively demonstrated to myself that I must lower the bike (don't ask how). I have obtained a ProTek lowering link, which should lower the rear by an inch. I plan to slip the fork tubes in the tripletree roughly an inch as well, hopefully preserving the stock geometry. Anyone else done this? Know any pitfalls? Should I slip the front 6mm more to mimick the modification with the washers?

It's just the swingarm on the 1500 Valkyrie. My next project, after the XX, of course, is to buy a wrecked GL1800 and _make_ an 1800 Valkyrie. Of course, by then, maybe Honda will pull its head out of its collective ass and make a bike for the masses instead of the Rune. :bigpuke:

I love it. You clearly have the same disease I have: can't-leave-well-enough-alone-ness. Here's the Goldwing 1800 single-sided swingarm I shoehorned into my Valkyrie:

That liink didn't work for me, but this one did: http://www.racetech.com/