FiremanBob

I keep a travel-size pump bottle filled with H2O2 in my tank bag. It has a plastic cover that prevents leakage. Since most of the schmutz on the helmet visor, windscreen and headlight consists of bug guts, peroxide is the best cleaner for it.

Another question I have is this: How do you find a mechanic whom you can trust to do the job right?

I sold my Sabre about four years ago, so I can't check it. But the guys here can help you: v4hondabbs.com

$60? I use an old screwdriver, place it against the bearing and tap, going around the bearing evenly until it drops out. Takes about 2 minutes. If your wheel has a spacer between the bearings, you may need to knock it aside to get a purchase on the bearing race. Remember to clean the bearing bore well and spread a thin coat of oil on it before installing the new (frozen) bearing. I use the HF bearing/seal driver kit to tap it in. The key thing is to make sure the bearing is going in squarely from the start. And if you have a spacer between the bearings inside the wheel, MAKE SURE TO INSTALL IT BEFORE INSTALLING THE SECOND BEARING. I see on the Bird's rear wheel diagram it is part #8, called a "collar". If you don't, you'll have to do it over and may ruin a bearing on removal. DAMHIKT. For swingarm bearings, I rigged up a press using a threaded rod and some large hardened washers and nuts. The bearings went in nice and slick.

I had a very good experience with Waynesville Honda in North Carolina.

The cost of the Givi/SWM setup definitely hurts, but you only cry once. I'm glad I bit the bullet. With my 52L topcase and 45L sides, I can go on a two-week business trip and still have room for souvenirs, or grocery shopping at Sam's Club. Best thing is that once I get to the hotel, I can remove the racks and cases and run the Dragon (or whichever twisty) without feeling like a moving van.

From the ones I investigated, it would take nearly 100K miles worth of oil changes to justify the expense of the SS filter. Also, I don't see how holes in the metal sheet core could be as effective as the synthetic, non-woven medium in the PureOne and similar quality filters.

I put an 18T on the front. There is still more acceleration than I need (as proved on US129 and nearby roads last week). I get 37-40 mpg in all-around riding with side cases installed. I also found that the speedometer is now dead accurate, checked against my GPS, whereas Honda normally sets the speedos 5-10% optimistic.

Try swapping the plug wires (at both ends) to check whether it is the wire that is bad first.

I got a good deal on parts from Waynesville Cycle in North Carolina.

Received the Park-n-Move today. It works perfectly, just as Dave said. Very well made, heavy platform, quality casters.

Thanks, Dave. I'm still unclear about how it actually works and would appreciate your clarification: 1. I accept that it will pivot the bike on the front wheel, essentially turning in two bike lengths. 2. Does it allow you to easily tip the front wheel up so that the bike will spin within its own length, using the dolly as the axis? When you do that, does the bike become unstable on the center stand? I just want to be sure so that I can avoid having a returned merchandise issue if it doesn't work as I envision it. Returns are a buttpain and a cost for all involved.

Thanks, Dave. Is that discount something I can glom onto?

I just bought a HF dolly on sale for $80, put my Suzuki on it and it works pretty well. I need another stand of some kind for the Bird. One weakness of the HF dolly is that it has only one side extension for the side stand. It would better if I could ride in, give the bike a 180, and then ride back in without having horse the dolly around so the extension faces the right way again. I want to use a dolly to spin the bike around in the garage so it will be easy to come and go without having to do an 8-point turn inside the garage. My driveway is to steep to turn, or even stop, a bike on. Having two bikes in a one-car garage is tighter than I thought it would be. I searched and found some other dollies that go under the center stand. In the video, a smiling woman spins her Gold Wing around by pushing down on the tail to make the front wheel come up. It seemed effortless. But I am doubtful that it would work so well on my Bird. For some reason they seem to cost about $200 also, which is 2.5x the price of the HF one. Have any of you all tried these, and if so how did they work for you?

Well, it's been nearly a year since that woman driver put me down, requiring replacement of the right-side fairing and the center cowl piece. I put on new pieces but the damage to the old ones isn't bad. I'd like to repair them and then either keep as spares or sell. Where could I go to get these repaired to as-new condition? What should I expect the repair to cost? Preferably someone within a 2-hour drive of Charlottesville, VA. Thanks.

Makes sense to me. This is what the 1st Amendment is all about - free speech, freedom to assemble and to petition. Certainly the tax grabs that some states and the .gov are planning would screw over a great many small businesses - probably hundreds of thousands. And the purpose of the 2nd is to protect the 1st.

I love my eco-drive watch. Nine years and still running like new.

Good luck, Jerry. I don't know what anyone would do with a faster Bird, but I know that you and Magoo ride like a couple of 20-something squids. And thanks to nitrile gloves, fingernail grease is optional.

I have to transport the Bird (with everything else I own) in a rent-a-truck next week. Penske told me that I have to remove the bikes' gas tanks before loading - failure to do this would void the rental agreement. I read in the Clymer's that the tank does not have a diaphragm petcock and I can expect gas to leak out when I disconnect it from the system. Is this right? What should I do in order to complete this job safely and neatly? Thanks.

I've heard good things about RM stator making good on their warranties, and also that they need to. Not only Hondas have week charging systems. The RR on my GS550 died last week. I think it was because I had connected the negative wire from the RR to a frame ground instead of to the battery negative. Anyway, that wire failed on the diode test and the RR is toast. Fortunately, there is no damage to the stator. BTW, here is a good fault-finding chart for the charging system: The Stator Papers So I emailed Jack at roadstercycle.com and $137 later, a complete Shindengen MOSFET RR kit with all connectors pre-installed is on its way, priority mail. Supposedly the MOSFET technology is a permanent fix for the Overheating Rectifier Blues. This is a plug for Jack: He even called me on the phone yesterday to help me decide which kit to order and to assure that his priority mail shipments almost always get delivered within 2-3 days, and that he's dropping off this week's shipments at the PO before work today. Very nice guy, does the MC work in his spare time from his day job.

I like the Craftsman tools because of the guarantee, because they are made in USA, and because they really are quite good quality. I don't know about Birds, but on my older Japanese bikes the OEM Phillips-head screws are JIS standard which is different from US. The grooves are at a shallower angle than on US screws, and a US screwdriver doesn't seat fully and is more likely to cam out and strip the screw head. There are several online sources for JIS Phillips drivers and I highly recommend getting a set - around $30, maybe less. I also have a set of flat screwdriver bits for gunsmithing. These have scalloped heads that ensure the driver is fully seated at the bottom of the groove and pressed equally against the walls - as opposed to a straight-sided, angled bit that puts its pressure mostly at the top of the groove. These also do a better at avoiding stripping the screw. I prefer a hand impact driver over the electric ones. Perhaps it's only subjective, but it seems that the action of striking the impact driver both presses the bit into the screw and provides vibration to help loosen it. Nearly all the screws on my Saab are Torx heads. I don't understand why these haven't become universal and it would be great if they were widely available in stainless, too. The driver engages positively and the star-shape ensures solid torque transfer with no risk of camming out.

There are several FJR riders over on sport-touring.net. You might want to post your ad there, too.

I don't know much about chain drive. Someone once told me that I can't run an even number of teeth on the front and rear sprockets or it would damage the chain, or something. If that is not true, I'm interested in the rear sprocket. I currently run an 18-tooth front and a 45-tooth rear. Advice would be much appreciated.

Al, since the cost of shipping the bags is an issue, perhaps it would be easier for a buyer to decide if you would post your location. Also, photos help.

3 Franklins? Not bad. I think I"ll make it a winter project.