HamrTym

I've heard this saying wheels and it seems to apply to a lot of machinery also: Wheels almost always come in a combination of 2 (and only 2) of the following forms; A) Cheap Light C) Strong It seems to me that a lot of things are that way. A strong, light bike, ehh, usually will cost 'ya. Cheap and light, usually not strong. And so forth. Or maybe I'm just in my own little world. L8R,

Replacing my header soon and looks like I have to remove the radiator to access the header bolts/studs. Might as well replace the coolant. Its about time anyhow. My question is does anyone have any experience with Evans NPG or NPG+ coolant. Any improvements, pros, cons, etc.. I've looked at their info online and all looks pretty and all, just looking to see if anyone has used this. Or am I wasting good money and should just use the usuall water/antifreeze mix. On the subject of coolant, since I live in central Florida, freezing protection is not one of my highest concerns. Protecting the internals of the cooling system and heat transfer is. Anybody use a less than 50/50 mix of antifreeze/water. Or just straight de-ionized water with Redline Water Wetter or (insert favorite water conditioner here). Any insight would be helpful. Thanks ya'll. L8R,

Thanks ya'll for the help.

Replacing my side case covers. Service Manual calls for Liquid Sealant. (along with a new factory gasket which I already have). I'm assuming that items like Permatex Liquid Gasket is what they are asking for? Thanks Rob

Not the only one, heh. Same thing happened to me this past Bike week. I saw 255 and held. Then the battery died. Bump strarted and went home. Temps normal of course once moving. Feelerguage, welcome. Its normal. The warmer running temps that is.

Has anyone had any experience with ceramic coating their headers? Reduced heat during slow moving? Extra performance? Or waste of time/money? Asking because, due to my recent misfortune, I have to replace my Yoshi full system. Since I will be putting on a new one, I'm wondering if the coating would be worthwhile. Thanks.

Or forced induction. Sorry, back on topic..

FWIW, Have you tried his website yet? http://www.bikebits.us/ Just curious.

When working on your bikes, such as removing/replacing forks, tires, etc., what do you use to support the bike. A bike jack? Saw one at Sears but using the oil pan as a resting spot for the jack to raise the bike seems scary to me. Is the pan strong enough? Any suggestions would be great. Thanks. Rob

I'm using the rear fender as a reference point. When standing directly behind the bike, the left sidewall of the tire appears flush the end of the rear fender. The right sidewall has about a 1/4 or so of an inch gap between the fender and sidewall, by line of sight. I know that is not the best of methods, just trying to assess the damgae. From the damage, the bike looks like it was picked up, turned sideways, and slammed on its right side. The crankcase cover is pushed inward, but barely scratched. The yoshi muffler can was crushed at the front end cap and pushed into the swingarm. The lower mounting bolt at the right foot peg broke the aluminum mounting tab. The swingarm is scractched from the impact with the muffler. I assume that if the rear subframe was bent, it would be to the left, making the tire 'appear' to be sitting to the right of the center of the mudflap/fender. Then again, what do I know . First time puttin' a bike down :? . Thanks for the help guys (and gals). Rob

Actually, pretty good. LOOKS much worse than it really is. Got all movement back in my arm. 3/4 of my arm is turning from blue to slightly yellow now. People see it and are eewwww. But Thankful I am. Could have turned out much worst for me, physically at least. Now menatlly??? :roll: Rob

Round 2: Next question, the Rear Swingarm: My swingarm 'appears' to have shifted to the left by about 1/4 or so of an inch. By the naked eye, there seems to be no bends/defects in the swingarm. Then again, I don't have SuperMan X-ray vision. Is it possible for the swingarm to have shifted to the left on swingarm pivot bolt. Or am I just in denial of major damage. Any experience/input would be great. Thanks ya'll. Rob P.S. Will post apparent damage soon. I finding some new and interesting crap.

Hey all, Just a warning. You will probably start seeing a decent amount of questions in 'the garage' from me regarding R & R on my XX. Had an 'off' with my bike and in the process of repair. My story is here: http://www.cbr1100xxforums.org/forum/viewt...pic.php?t=25743 I might get correct terminology/name of part wrong. If I do, please correct me. Well here we go. Started taking off the damaged/offending fairings and such. All the damage was sustained on the front and right side (as in sitting on the bike). First of two questions. Front forks. When the front tire is straight, the upper clamp appears to be slight turned to one side. Could this be caused by the forks 'slipping' or twisting in the lower clamps. Or is it more serious than that, as in permanent damage. Possible corrections would be great. Second. Rear/right passenger foot peg is where the muffler (yoshi full system) is attached. Since the mid-pipe/muffler is damaged (pics in the aforementioned link) the muffler is sitting against the swingarm. Question: How sturdy are the brackets for the pegs. The right peg appears to be bent slightly inwards. Is the bracket itself bent, or is the bend in the frame itself where the bracket is bolted into. Have yet to get the rear cowling off, since there was no damage to it, but will remove shortly to get a better look. If anyone has had any experience with any of these, any advice would ge greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance. L8R, Rob

Thanks for the info guys. I be sure to to take care of this before I pack up the bike for the Dragon this weekend. Rob

Hi ya'll, Pathetic question, but here it is. From riding a lot in the rain here in Florida, my clutch lever is now creakin' and squeakin' at the pivot point. Should I just put some aerosal (sp?) oil WD-40 or whatnot? Or should I take the lever off and put some heavy grease/lubicant (bearing grease,waterproof) in there and re-assemble. Thanks L8R, Rob

Hey all, Need some advice on a possible problem. I have a '02 Bird w/ 5500 miles on it. Last Saturday went to Daytone for the day (live in central Fl). Hit the obligatory Bike week traffic in town. After about an hour traffice, stop-stop-then go-stop, I shut the bike down to get under the seat. Went to restart, and nothing. Battery dead, nada. Friends help push start the bike and fires right back up. Note to self, don't stall. About half an hour later, coolant temp climbs upward 240 F or so. Traffic moves and cools her off some. Traffic parks again, this time coolants climbs over 250 F :sad: . Stall bike by mistake shortly after. Push start again and decide to head home. Traffic leaving was moving so temp got more manageble immediately (under 240 F) and once back on the country roads it was back to normal cruise temp (185-190 F) after about 25 minutes. Ride home uneventful (as in good thing). Arrived home, shut it down and let it sit just a while. She cranks over like new and fires up. Battery is holding 12.85-12.90 volts when not running. Excessive idling the culprit, or something more serious to look into. I just downloaded the 'shop manual' (props the people responsible for that) for reference. Any advice or pointers would be much appreciated. Thank you in advance. Sorry for the long post, just thought details might help out. Take care ya'll. L8R, Rob