Obby

One word.... MICRON'S!!! I prefer the Carbon Fiber models... Fixes the midrange hole and sounds tits!

I've got a '97 with the K&N Jet kit and filter. Gained 14 horses on the Dyno, filled-in the midrange flat spot, but lost 10 mpg. What the hell, still better mpg than what my car gets at 16mpg.

:pointup: That's something right out of Obby Mechanics 101.

Here's the step by step instructions: 1. Take off the wheels and tires. 2. Bring them down to your local metal polishing shop. 3. Pay around $300.00 for the set (well worth it). 3. Put the wheels and tires back on. I have done a few of the smaller parts by hand though. As you know, It's quite a chore without the proper equipment (buffing wheels, polishing compounds, rags ect.). It's also a very messy. Plan on throwing away plenty of blackend rags too. If you try to wash them, do it by hand. They really f' up the washing machines. You better plan on wearing some good gloves too, unless you like smelling gasoline-like for a few days after. That polish must get into your blood or something. As far as the maintenace goes, I use an airplane polish called Rolite Aluminum Polish and Honda Spray Polish. Right-side frame... It's definately a labor of love. :hump:

What... no pics... no links... We can't read you mind buddy. Help us out a little here .

... and to think when I did it, I just removed the top vinyl covers (like 3 screws each side). After that, it came right out.

:pointup: "when you drop your bolts into the abyss, forget it". You made me spit up my coffee on that one. I do that shit all the time. Some people are natural mechanics, the rest of us are great beer holders.

Always a good fighting point, "function over form". It's a hard call, but there is always a mean (~) to be had. That's probably why I have 4 windscreens and change them per ride :wink: . On the '97, no worries about the headers. They all snake way right of the oil filter, don't know about the later models. Yep, at least without damaging some of the underbelly. Not to mention, with the right tools, it's all but a couple of minutes to take it off. Also, with all the oil that comes down from the filter when removed, I prefer see where to wipe. Man that sucks! When I felt my tools fall over my head, the first thing I did way turn and look at my bird :shock: . No damage . I was to far away. Man... those socket can really move... I was chasing them all the way down my driveway :oops: . Who says a white man can't jump! Finally figured out what happened. The tool trays all slid open while I was under them (the chest was on an unlevel surface). The weight of the loaded tray turned the whole thing over. What a mess. Anyways, all well that ends well. My Bird is happy :cycle: , therefore so am I.

Bought my new rubber from http://discountmotorcycletire.com (good reseller). Drove my bike into a local motorcycle racing shop to have them install the tires for $32.50 a wheel. For the difference in price $20.00 a wheel to do it myself or $32.50 to have it done, no brainer for me.

It was 500 miles overdue. I just like riding it, not taking it apart. That's one reason I bought a Honda. Anyways, everything went swimmingly. I took off the left lower side fairing. Drained the oil, pulled off the oil filter (large channel locks worked for me). Replaced the oil plug, installed a new crush washer. Installed the Honda brand oil filter (recommended). Refilled the oil with Mobile 15/50W Synthetic (4 quarts on the button). Started up the bike, looked for leaks. Re-checked the oil level. All is good . Put the fairing back on. Pat myself on the back for such a perrrfect job :wink: . Start putting away my tools and.... smash, bang, clunk! Not the bird, but three drawer tool chest fell over my head with sockets and wrenched flying everywhere. WTF! I have know idea how the chest came down on me, but it hit my left arm on the way down and gave me a huge lump that started growing. I grabbed and ice pack and got it under control. The good thing, my bird was far away and didn't get a ding. Some days you just can't win :sad: . Didn't I say I would stop working on motorcycles :evil: . Oh well, the bird is happy. Ps. Put on a Cheetah windsreen while the oil was draining. Better wind protection than stock. Look a little weird though. I'll leave it on for a while and see if it grows on me. If not I have two more to try .

:shock: Does that mean I can do more wheelies sir?

Mine also makes this noise. It took me a while, but I finally fixed it. I bought a nice tight Shoe helmet. Sounds gone .

Second that. Also change the oil. My tranny ran a little smoother after my oil change. Another thing you could do is check/change the clutch. This has helped me in the past with other bikes. They all kinda do that though.

Nice boots Involute :fart:

Here is a quick check. Now that you have it running (after a battery charge), check the voltage across the battery terminals with the engine running at some speed over idle (say, above 2000 rpm). If your charging system is working correctly, it should read around 14 v. You may still have a bad battery. A quick check for battery condition, would be to check the voltage when you try to start the bike. If it drops way down, you probably have one or more dead cells. Batteries don't live forever. I would check for a bad battery before looking for problems with the reg/rec. Most of the time, when the reg/rec fails, you will be overcharging your battery. (around 18 v.) You will see blown light bulbs (usually the dash lights go first), etc. Thanks Roadrash for the info. I've never changed the battery, it's about 1.5 years old (not sure). It's a sealed unit batt. I'm getting around 13.5 when the bike is at 4,500 rpms. It did take a full overnight trickle charge at 1 amps. One of the batt. cables was loose and a little dirty when the bike wouldn't turn over. I guess time will tell. I will just keep that little charger with me for a while I guess.

Not the kill switch. I wish it was something simple like that. Thanks for the info Involute. I checked the charging system. I appears to be charging at around 13.5 volts when the engine is at 4500rpm. The manual says it should be a little higher. Not sure if I should worry about it.

Out of the blue... After a short ride, I get the bird back home, I turn the ignition back on, try to start her up to get her in the garage, battery seems almost dead. The engine will not turn-over. WTF. I check the battery terminals, and recharged the battery, then everything seems fine. After reading so many post on the defective voltage regulator, I figure this may be the culprit. One question for you mechanical guru's :roll: . How should I troubleshoot what is going on with my baby? Not sure where to start. :?: :?: :?: PS. You have to love how easy it is to get the battery out of the bird. Two phillips screws an a battery strap. Slides right out. Done. My other bikes are way more complex (removing the tank and sh't). F' that. Honda's baby, Honda's :wink: . Any help would be great.

Doesn't the higher octane help the engine run cooler? Eary model Civics? Didn't the name come from the engines head design. Something about an additional valve per cylinder (3 valves).

I've also heard good things about the TwoBrother exhausts. My XX came with Mircron's CF Dualies. I love the sound. Not too loud either.

Worried about what your folks will think. Understandable. Do what I did when I lowsided my Kawi, put a cover over it and don't mention the bird at all. Glad you made it out alright. Ebay or RonAyers for the parts buddy. What kind of exhaust was on the bird. Stock? Aftermarket?

So that's where my gas mileage went :sad: . I bought mine already jetted with pipes. Couldn't believe that I was only getting 25-32mph. I wouldn't want to screw with it now though. The power is great, and it run tits.

I had it really bad with my old BT057's. With a new set of balance tires, I get the shake at speeds of 100mph+ under hard acceleration only. Can't seem to get rid of it completely.

On the same subject. I just ran my '97 down 5 miles on the reserve light (I was sh'ing bricks). When I went to fill it up, it only took 4.533 gallons. What's up with that? Got a total of 144 miles out of the tank at 32mpg. Best mileage I've seen in a while. Any thoughts of why it took so little fuel.

Test/Replace the voltage regulator.

http://www.discountmotorcycletire.com/