Zero Knievel

PM sent on the windscreen and rear cowl.

My clue is always hard starting....especially if the bike was run the day before (not unusual if the bike's been sitting for a while). If the battery is over 3 years old, it's the likely culprit.

Got the laptop reconfigured and updated. Put OpenOffice on it, CutePDF Writer and Adobe Reader 10. Firefox and AVG. Updated specs. Here's a photo. Sorry. Used my phone for it. The power button near the top (oval dark thing) is the trouble spot. The indicator lights don't work unless you press down on them. Power on/off manually is done by pressing hard on the button and the other end of the oval. Been that way for a long time, but after the extended warranty was up. :icon_wall: In every other respect, it works perfectly.

Not setting a price because I don't know what it's worth. Dell Latitude D505 1.60 Ghz single core (Pentium M) 1280 MB RAM (we upgraded it) 14" XGA display (1024 x 768) 30 GB HDD Modem port (56 kbps) Modular CD-RW/DVD-ROM and Modular Floppy drive (use only one at a time unless you use USB interface cable (included) LAN port 2 USB ports VGA out Serial out Parallel out WiFi I "mind-wiped" it for someone to use as a Macbook conversion, but he had an issue with its one problem. On/Off switch is twitchy. You have to press the button and the other side of the indicator panel to get the switch to trip. If you're an electronics guy you can probably replace the bad switch yourself or you can live with this issue. Dell's only offer is to replace the whole blasted MB for one switch. In every other way, it works fine. I can restore the system to when it had XP on it and remove the office-specific stuff we had on it. Might start doing that anyhow. Has power cord, original docs and discs, and two spare batteries. PM or post up if you are interested. Dell PDF if you want details.... d505_spec.pdf

PM sent.

Tempting....it's not like I can't used the extra T-shirts.

Too bad you didn't post earlier...as in many months ago. Bought this lid in Black and XL. Could have lived with a large, but the XL was a bit more comfortable.

The XX has a 6 gallon tank. Until now, I've never put in more than 5 on a fill up (with the light on). Coming home, I was pushing 80 most of the time and it was windy. A fill up actually took 5.6xx gallons. Under worst conditions, I know I can go 200 on a tank. Under favorable conditions, I could do over 250. Ironically, I did the remap because the buildup on the pipes was bothering me. I suppose there's no avoiding the buildup at all.

Stock. I've noticed the highest MPG in the following circumstances.... 1. Running 6th gear 2. Speeds of about 55ish or RPMs staying not much over 3K. 3. Fairly level surfaces or downhill. In both cases, I'm pretty sure circumstances limited how fast I could go, but there was no need to run a lower gear for the type of riding I was doing. I was impressed since both times I had all 3 Givi cases mounted on the bike. It's also possible ethanol-free gas was in the tank at the time.

Sooooooooo tempting. Someone will likely nab it before I could commit to parting with the cash.

On the trip I got from 37-54 mpg....depending on conditions and speeds.

Thanks. I am running a lean map to conserve fuel. The bike was ridden in rain during the trip, but this brownish stain keeps coming back, and it cleans off fairly easily with a petroleum distillate (such as wadding polish). It also gets on my luggage. I don't see it on other guy's bikes, but I suppose if you don't ride very far between cleanings, you keep it in check. I was afraid I was burning oil, but my oil level is fine. After all, it is tacky as if it was burnt oil.

Okay, just over 6,300 miles and they were cleaned down to the metal with wadding polish before I left. This stuff keeps coming back, and I don't know if this buildup is normal and others keep cleaning it away or if something is causing this.

Was it a loose wire or something like water intrusion? I did have that side open before the trip (at WVXXT) when we inspected why my throttle stopped working (glue on throttle grip came loose).

1. No. I've not done the wire loom fix. I doubt that's the problem as the bike has always been garage kept. Usually, as I hear, those who have it cause problems have their bikes exposed to the elements more often than others. 2. Weirdness. I accidentally used my turn signal (was using hand signals), and the lamp worked 100% normal. Both sides. When I stopped for the day in Colorado, I put the fuse from the Fuzeblock to the fuse block for the headlamps and the low beam worked fine. So, I just unplugged my field repair and plugged back in the high beam. It's all working fine now. I pushed the end wires out of the way...just in case I need them later, but it's all normal now. :icon_think:

In Custer, SD. With the proposed idea, I need a 10A (IIRC) micro fuse. I planned to take the headlamp fuse from the block and use it on the FuzeBlock. That should power down the headlamp circuit....correct? I'm still debating finishing the trip or just heading home. If I have to spend an extra day, I'm forced to cancel ALL my reservations because it fucks my schedule, and I might as well go home because at this point I'm only going to find places charging much higher rates than I managed to get a couple months ago. There is NO WAY I'm going to be able to "properly fix" the bike unless I luck out and find the problem is insanely simple to remedy and the work involved in getting the bike torn down to that stage just puts me off...even when I'm working in a garage. I have to have time to work on stuff because once I get annoyed, I start making mistakes...so the only smart think is to walk away until I calm down and can focus. Last thing I want to do is make things worse if I run into headaches trying to fix the problem. I might tear the front end down today...maybe not. I'm still muddling over if I want to risk it. Once it's apart, I have no means to go to town for parts.

Well, he did see it from a different perspective. Because getting to the cause of the problem was a lot of work and I was looking at ending my vacation because I didn't need to get ticketed for a non-working headlamp, we started talking about other headlight options (sticking one one), and the guy commented about "if you could just wire one bulb right to the battery.... :icon_think: :icon_doh: :icon_clap: Then I realized that the HIDs use blade connectors right into the stock OEM plugs. Two lengths of wires with female blade connectors to my FuzeBlock switched power would give me one working headlamp again. I was thinking of "fixing" the problem. He was thinking of "patching" the problem.

Problem semi-solved. One guy (electrical engineer) suggested just running a new hot and ground wire to switched power so one of my headlights works until I get home and have time to properly tear it down and find the problem. Less than $10 in parts from the hardware store. Such a simple idea. So, tomorrow I'll get some wire and adapters and run the bottom lamp to my Fuzeblock to tide me over for the rest of the trip. People say my rear signals are working enough to be seen.

I was afraid of that. If I have to remove the front cowl to try and fix this, I won't likely do it on the road. I have no sheltered space to work in and I'd hate to get things in pieces and run into a problem. BTW, I have my shop manual with me, so I do have the wiring schematic if I need it.

Where would I look on the bike for it?

I can double-check, but all the other electrics work fine (that I can tell). My voltmeter is reading within spec. A couple tenths of a volt lower than normal, but I think that's because it's not compensating for the lamps being on (14.4v).

I've lost my head lamps and turn signals aren't working properly. I can't find the "why" for any of this. My fuses are okay, and the head lamps are not on the same circuit as the turn signals. Tail and stop lights work. Observation shows my rear turn signals flash. My front turn signals are lit, but when engaged, they barely flash and my flasher goes CLICK CLICK CLICK faster than normal. Both low and high beam (HID) flicker when engaged but will not ignite. I don't know when this started today exactly. There was a moment where I pulled over and stopped but changed my mind. When I went to turn the bike back on, the speedometer went from 0 to max and back to 0 like the new bikes do (but the XX does not). Later, on the highway, I noticed my turn signals were not working (dash indicators didn't flash). However, there was moment when I went to use the turn signal (habit) and it worked normally. I tried turning on my high beam and it went back to not working. Got back to the hotel. Took apart the switch cluster on the left side...where the high/low and turn signal switches are. I figured that was where the problem was, but I see nothing wrong. Sprayed some WD-40...put in some dielectric grease, but nothing helped. Took off the windscreen and a couple of panels to get a better look behind and around the instrument cluster, but I can't find any loose or shorted wires. I'm clueless as to where the fault is or what caused it. What buggers me is that there is that the headlamp and turn signals are separate circuits. I'd think a short would blow the fuses. This appears to be more of the circuit(s) grounding out, but again, I see no sign of an exposed wire...of course to be certain, I'd have to tear down the front end and get the front cowling off...something I do not want to attempt while on vacation. HELP!

Pematex AND you gotta strip a lot of hardware off to get it back on without it being knocked off. I got the cover off through the top, but I had to loosen the radiator and fan and carefully work it in from the front. Every time I tried to go back in the way I got it off, it got knocked loose.

I had below 13v at idle the other day. Another day had it going to 14v almost right away. Started to worry, but the test says something like 13.5v or higher at 2,500 and not over 15.5v at 5,000+. What it does otherwise doesn't seem to matter as it's a matter of how charged the battery is at the time.

OEM filter from any fair dealing Honda shop is $40. I get about 2 year's use out of one. On odd winters I gently brush out any debris from the intake side and clean out the airbox. I only do this because I find the K&N costs me a touch more in gas mileage, but I saved the K&N in case I ever want to go back to it. Of course, my PCII is programed to produce maximum gas mileage, so there's no incentive to go aftermarket on filter and pipes.