XXBIRD

Based on my experience with the set I have received, there is no doubt that when the lines are cut during the manufacturing process, there were mistakes made. If the line is for a very short connection such as from right caliper to 3-way manifold, 1/4" of a difference dictates whether if fits or not. Line #6 for the front master to manifold I received was 1" short. I am not going to go over all of them but it is obvious to me that they are not consistently accurate. Also, there could have been alternative banjos with different angles choosen to make it easier/better. The good thing is that if there is any problem or if you think there is a problem, both Gary and Matthias are so willing to help to sort it out for you beyond expectations. How about the bleed valves, Dale? Does your bike has two M8x1.00 and five M7x1.00 valves? My bike (2002) has all seven of them M8x1.25.

It's only a semi-chubb. Don't flutter yourself

Why "semi"? Forgot the pump at home or to take the pill?

Indeed they did. There is no doubt both Matthias of Spiegler and Gary of University Motors had no problems with discussing and sorting it all out. I have talked to both this morning again. Last night I already have had decided that I was going to return them. I gave a call first to Spiegler and talked to Matthias. I also had pictures and mesurements of the bleed valves e-mailed to him last night. He is taken by surprise that there is a difference in bleed valve sizes from year to year. At least mine is different (my bike is 2002 and serial number is xxxxx000003, btw). He made the sizing decision based on Dale's bike's valves. [Note: most likely you all received two M8x1.00 and five M7x1.00 like I did. 1.00 is the thread pitch. 8 and 7 are the diameters. If you measure yours, it will be like 7.85-7.90mm. Measure five threads and divide by five so you know the thread size, just in case if you didn't know what it meant. It helps to be more accurate to determine the thread pitch this way if you don't have a tread gauge.] He is going to make me another line with a 20 degree bent banjo similar to the OEM and also with the right length and put it in the mail today. In terms of the other short line #5 which is from right caliper to the 3-way manifold, he agrees that it clearly looks shorter in the picture but even an 1/8" extra length would make it not mountable for such a short piece. I agreed to pay for the difference for expedited shipping to receive it before Saturday ($10) otherwise it would be as late as next Wednesday. He was trully concerned and puzzled but very kind and willing to sort it out without a doubt. Becasue of his manners handling it, I changed my mind for more than anything else besides not wanting to go through the trouble taking them apart, putting the old ones back, etc. You can trust his products as he stands behind it to support it. Gary of University Motors is a different story of its own. He IS the most astonishingly outstanding bussiness person I have encountered in any occasion and on top of that such a pleasant person to talk to. I didn' thave any worries yesterday if I were to return them but today I have no worries that if anyone of you will encounter any issues he'll be backing you up all the way. Dale, I think you found the best person to handle this group by as far as I am concerned. When I told him what the deal was he offered and insisted to pay the shipping difference I paid to Spiegler. He called me back in ten minutes to let me know that he upgraded the shipping to "next day" so for sure I could have the replacement before Friday and he took care of the cost entirely. On top of that, he is sending me a label so that I don't even have to pay for the return items. If he is not first class, who is? :allhail: :wave:

As I wrote the post I was too tired to get into details and post more pictures. Yes, I have tried it both ways but the other way around makes it even worst but in the the other direction. I have tried every combination before I settled with the one shown in the picture.

Early this evening, after talking with Mattias and re-energized with his assurances that tight lines are OK, I tackled to finalize the install. I panned out the best possible short routes to relieve the tensions from the lines and moved to the final stage. As I progressed, torquing, using loctite as it is needed for the caliper mounting bolts, etc. I was checking to see if there were any binding due to steering (I had the front wheel up in the air). It finally happened! The line from master cylinder to the 3-way manifold snapped right below the banjo assembly. The throttle cables were pulling it out when the whell was fully turned to the left. I have had tried the line routing from outside the throttle cables but it was making it totally impossible to rotate to the left. So, only other way was through inside the throttle cables despite of the tension at the end of the left turn. It lasted about ten tries before it snapped out. I'll call them first thing in the morning. We'll see what they have to say. Even if they were to send me a new kit, it won't be with the adjusted lengths. If they were to adjust the lengths, it is going to take weeks. I am not going to put back the originals and take it out and put these "corrected" ones back just for the sake of it. I am done with it. I am not going to risk my life for it. If teh fittings can snap out this easy, I am not going to bet anything on it. Yes, indeed it may hold 400lb "tension" but it doesn't mean it can handle bending. If the line is short it means short, that's it. No trickery, can make it longer. I am returning my kit no matter what. Non matching colors, non matching manifold which also doesn't fit without mods, either too short or too long lines, seven out of seven bleed valves with wrong thread size, length, eight weeks wait... I hope I don't have to deal with the charges and I have full confidence on Gary of University Motors that he will make it right. Good luck to you all... Some pics. Sorry, I am too tired to do any more detailed than this. More pics at my album if you care to look at them. This one to demonstrate how even the fitting angles are not right. This is for the Line #6 at the master cyclinder. Note how the bend was supposed to be. This is where it snapped because insteead of being routed like this this is the only way I could route...

I like the idea and it is easy to do. One thing I would like to know is if your water heater jacket material can be subjected to the heat from the engine. Jacekts are to wrap the water heaters from outside and they never get hotter than you couldn't touch. I couldn't say the same for the engine though. I used the blanket to cover a heat duct from a wall/floor heating unit at my house to put furniture in front but quickly changed my mind when it started smoldering. This happened while the heat to covered side was off. I recommend to test it to see what temperature it ignites unless of course you like toasted chesnuts on the go.

OK. Here is the beef. Make your own stew as you like. I've had talked to Matthias at Spiegler. We went through all the concerns I raised one by one. He states that the lines can hold up to 400lb, so stretching them as in the case of Line #5 is no biggy. For the long lines, he suggests them to tuck away or rearoute them to take the slack. For the other short ones going over the steering head neck, he suggests them route at the shortest possible path rather than trying to follow the clamp locations. Or route them behind the triple clamp rather than from front like OEM lines were. [My note: You could do this for the Line #3 but if you also do the front master Line #6 to 3-way manifold, there is not enough room to make full right turn with the handlebar.] Line #7 which is the one with the mid-eyelet, he says it is OK even it clearly pushes against the fork but he acknowledges that it could have been better. When it comes to colors, he states that the batch of materials he gets are different so the difference from line to line. [My note: I don't buy this because if you know that there is a problem with the line colors from batch to batch then make all of the lines for one set from teh same spool of lines.] He also says even the banjo colors don't match from batch to batch eventhough they are supposedly made with the exact recipe. He had nothing to say about the 3-way manifold not being "black" as it was supposed to be. With the bleed valves, he was taken by surprise since he didn't expect they would be wrong. The ones I've got are M 8 x 1.00 (two of them) and M 7 x 1.00 (five of them). They all are supposed to be M 8 x 1.25 with an overall length of 27.50mm (theirs is 27.99mm). At this point, I need to insert a FAQ section from an earlier post: :wink: In my case they just dropped into the holes and there were no need to hammer them in except one of them. Matthias will replace them with the correct ones but he needs to receive the wrong ones first so he can ship the replacements. I am not going to wait them to arrive to be able to use them in two years when I change the brake fluid. I need them now and right now, not next week not tomorrow. So, they will go back. I took pictures and measurements of all seven bleeders with thread sizes and all and e-mailed him for his future reference for a 2002 bike. After all, mine is going to be like it is. I still have to spend few more hours trying every possible other way to make them look right and torque everthing up, fill and bleed the good old way... I may post some other pictures if I could come up with any pointers for the ones who has not started the work yet but otherwise I am out. Good luck to everyone... I need few of these right now (no, I didn't pick them from the Grolsch truck crash site and the holder is the courtesy of University Motors):

True but no cigar, yet :wink: I choose to do so that the long line would have the longest path to fit in as good as possible. Regardless, I went ahead and swapped the locations. Picture below shows how much extra length is left out in this scenerio. This is still despite of the banjo for Line 2 is rotated to go around from outside to make the path longer. If it were to be like the originals, it shoudl have been inside which makes it even longer. In summary, I would call this is a "longer than it should be line". And, yes, indeed all the lines with double banjo ends required one end rotating. I rotated them such that the bolts would match the surface without twisting/bending so I could screw the banjo bolts by hand all the way to the end without binding.

I couldn't say, by no means, this true. I first called Gary from University Motors 6:15am West Coast time. He was absoultely receptive and he assured me that he would make sure that it will be taken care of. He called me back in ten minutes to give me an update which was the person in charge at the Spiegler wouldn't be in till afternoon. Instead, gave me another name and asked me to call him. He again emphasized that I would have replacements in no time (next day or two). Then, I called Spiegler. John at Spiegler looked up the details which I've emailed to them and asked me to take some more measurements and call him back. He was going to make sure that Matias is going to know about it as soon as he comes in. So far, I have not received any negative response from neither of them. In terms of comparing to Dale's install, here is one of his pictures for the right side caliper lines to 3-way manifold and the delay valve from the lower port; and mine which shows the same line which is not even tightened yet ( I was afraid of pulling out the banjo fitting as the top part pulls the line more as it is screwed into the 3-way manifold; I don't think the sets are at identical lengths. In such a short line, 1/2" length makes a big difference. It is true that you can run the lines from point A to B but if they are not long enough with extra to prevent binding or teh best possible route, I would consider it ill designed or manufactured. Overall results remains to be seen, hopefully very very soon.

Isn't the water heater blanket about an inch thick? I bought one roll for a home project and still have some left overs. But, in order to retain it's isolating capability, it needs to stay fluffy, right? I'm sure it still better than nothing but as to "reflect" rising heat.

Here are some pictures of the install. They pretty much tell the story line. Lines 5, 6 and 7 are the wrong colors and/or with length or banjo angle problems. Almost all of the lines required twisting the banjos. Front port of the proportioning valve (under the seat) originally do not have a banjo bolt which required a bit head scratching. There is one banjo bolt which is cut to shorten for that location. Overall, the kit is complete albeit with non-mataching color lines with not so well cut lengths. I'll find out what they are to say when I call tomorrow. Out of the box. for my set, I wouldn't even give grade D for the set.

OK... I have temporarily finished (or I rather say attempted) to install the Spiegler lines after spending way too many hours to figure out and find alternative ways to make them work. Here is the list of the problems: 1) Colors do not match. I've ordered smoke lines, black fittings, black banjos. I get either of the smoke or black lines randomly. 3-way monifold is bare metal color (supposed to be black according to the part list as well). 2) 3-way manifold won't fit unless shaving off the little portruding nipple like piece from the place it's supposed to bolt. I used a dremmel to shave it off. 3) Clutch line is very tight - needs two more inches. 4) Line 1 is I would say only "right" one. 5) Line 2 is about 2-3" too long (rear master to rear caliper). The extra length can be only tucked away towards to shock which ends up in between the spring. 6) Line 3 is 54" in length but needs about at least 3-4" more to be able to route through the original clamp locations. Original line is 62" long. 7) Line 4 is OK 8) Line 5 is too short. It is a straight line from top port right caliper to 3-way manifold. It is literally stretched to mount but it is not even tight yet. It needs 3/4". 9) Line 6 needs another 2-3" to make it right and wrong color. 10) Line 7 is the two piece one with the middle eyelet which is mounted inside port of the secondary master against the right fork. The middle eyelet is straight on both sides but needs to be bent backward on the top part. Fitting is rubbing against the fork. The other half from caliper to the secondary master eyelet is too short. Plastice sleeve poped out under the balck tension sleeve next to the fitting. 11) Line 8 which goes to the delay valve from the left caliper is about 1.5" too long. 12) Line 9 is OK if you do not follow the original mounting locations. 13) Bleed valves: None of them had dust caps. I've got seven of them (one for the clutch six for the calipers.) I've got two in one size (thread wise) and five in another size. To begin with the smaller five are the wrong thread size. Also the length of the thread is supposed ot be 16mm but they are 23mm long. they stick out like a sore thumb. In summary, I am dissapointed despite of the wait after the order. I am sure they will fix the problems by replacing the wrong color/length lines and replacing the bleed valves with the corect ones. My bike is out of commission right now till I figure this out. I am not going to go through the trouble to install the original lines back, bleed the system and put the body work back to do it all over again. removing the lines from back to front is a real bitch. I'll post some pictures to justify/clarify teh points I made once I get a chance (I need to resize them to make it suitable for posting.) There goes my Memorial weekend (and my Julie's as well since if she didn't help out I would still be sitting in the garage cursing). And no, I didn't drink even a drop of beer or any other beverages during this torture. I wonder what a shop would do with these lines. There is two weeks and a day to Hookers for me. I have serious doubts that I'll get replacements in time.

If you skip the place it is supposed to route through it makes a very tight fit but this is without risers. These are the bleeding nipples. They don't look like a good replacement to me at all. It doesn't look right at all. And also, I noticed two of them have different threads than the rest.

I took it out and measured against the original one. The difference is 3" (45" original as closest as I can measure vs. 42" eyelet to eyelet with the Spiegler line).

I made the attempt to install the lines this morning. I practically took the bike apart using the excuse to have a good/easy access to everything. First, tackled the clutch line. Easy to take it out but the line marked as "clutch" appeared a bit too short to my eyes. Sure enough, it is so short that cannot follow the original line path. It needs at least two more inches to be slack not to stress near the banjo bolts. The part under the brake line attached to the outside of steering head doesn't even go where the original used to go from. I don' thave a handlebar riser. The other issue is the bleeding nipples. They are too long. Almost about 1/4" of thread is sticking out once it is fully seated. Anyone had started theirs yet? I'll go back to garage and take some pics now.

I occasionally ride top case and saddle bags mounted and with passenger. It is not the same but still it is perfectly doable. Side wind affects you more than anything else. Top case acts like a vertical stabilizer on an aircraft. Filtering is almost the same if you don't mind scratching your bags. If the mirrors fit in between, the rest would. In terms of speed, I know it can go easily over 125 all fitted and with the passenger (don' task - don't tell).

My HeinGericke boots are 47 which corresponds to US13. I've just tried this weekend all of the SIDI boots. The most expensive one fits me but the lateral ankle support was digging onto the top of my foot on the right side. Other "lesser" models didn't fit well. I couldn't zip them up. I suggest you order from no fee - no obligation to buy stealer.

That's what a "quicky" must be named after... :twisted:

PM me an address, I'll cut up a piece and mail it to you.

How often you need to replace those? My owner's manual doesn't say anything about it. What tools do you need? I have extension arms for the socket set and a four feet pipe which slides over the extension arm. :twisted:

I personally like it with the HID on highs but you cannot flash it. It takes more than couple of seconds to ignite the gas to full charge. On the other hand, it is so bright even during the daytime, it will make you visible for sure. I have posteed some pictures a while back with install locations. Installed the larger piece behind the intrument cluster with heavy-duty velcros and the other bits to inner side of the air rams with velcro again. Request for at least 30cm for the cables so you can tie the extra bit up once you install the nose fairing. Expect to pay $160 for a single unit and $300 for the pair. Anything more than that you are paying for the "brand" not the light.

I had noise interference problem when I first installed the 8500. I tried few suggestions (cheaper ones) before I ended up buying the proper noise filter from Escort ($25 + shipping). It didn't provide the perfect solution. Now, when I use the horn, the detector go crazy for about 4-5 seconds and lets me know with noise it makes. Also, when the high beam is on, there is a subtle but noticable high pitch noise coming from Autocom speakers. When the detector is off, there is none. It's wired form the fuse box main. Any ideas?

I am few inches taller than you are and have a stock seat profile Sargent seat. Don't have any problem both feet fully touching with more for reserve. Riding preferences and the trends for me pretty much the same (pot holes, hwy riding a lot, weekend rides, etc.). I decided to go with the recommended 15mm height increase but with the height adjustment option. Since the adjuster has a -/+ 0.5" play, if I don't like the new geometry, I can lower it easily to almost stock height (2.5 mm short). If I wanted to raise the height more, I have another 12 mm to play with. I opted for the remote preload adjuster to accomadate the pillion with or without luggage (I choose anything from a single top case to two side cases and even the third one as top case - mostly empty though). So I am set for that too. In terms of LS/HS compression adjusters, my understanding is that it would be beneficial to be able adjust them seperately so you can make your bike "easier" on your back as well as keeping the rubber down on the pavement on bumpy potholed city streets adjusting highspeed rebound dampening while maintaining a stiffer lowspeed dampening for the curves. I may be way off here but this is what I understand from high/low speed dampening. (Ref: Suspension & Set-up Guide, Performance Bikes, 200?)

Teng Tools, Nik. They are top notch quality and they have a set which suitable for motorcyles (MR101). You may need to add few other things but you won't need anything else except some special tools. Should check it out. They also have selection of torque wrenches. You may need two of them though (5-25Nm and 20-110Nm or alike).