Service
Service
OLD HELMET DISPOSAL HARLEY VACUUM LEAK CLljTCH OIL 101 -> BEST USED BIKE -> POOR PLUG LIFE
RAY NIERLICH
Dylan Hoffman’s Suzuki uses the same oil for the engine, gearbox, and clutch. Even if his oil looks this clean, acids that build up overtime make regular changes necessary.
HELMET DESTRUCTION PARTY?
Q: Do you have any ideas for disposing of used helmets? I have a large collection, some crashed but most not. The helmets are out of date and should not be used. Short of a Sawzall and a few blades, any thoughts or suggestions would be helpful.
BILL CRAMER
CLEVELAND, OH
A: Call the Bonhams auction house immediately. You won't believe what some guys will plunk
down for what looks to me like junk at a vintage bike auction. Spread rumors that perhaps Hailwood wore one of the helmets once. It sounds like you have the makings of a great “bash” party! Invite your biker friends to bring any old helmets to add to your pile. Kegger, couple of sledgehammers, lots of gloves and goggles, and maybe $20 a swing donated to Ride for Kids.
HOT-START HARLEY
I own a stock 2007 HarleyDavidson Road Glide. After the ® bike gets hot and I shut it off for a short time, it will not start easily. It’s like the bike is flooded. If I keep cranking, it will eventually start. The shop says it is the nature of the beast and could not find anything wrong, but I think surely something can be done. When cold it cranks right up with no problems. What are your thoughts?
R. HELTON KNOXVILLE, TN
AH All injected. Harleys When since an ’07 EFI are engine fuel B heat soaks, it will go lean. A carbureted engine will go rich. Chances are your bike is going too lean. Hard hot restarting isn’t a common complaint on late-model Harleys, so it is worth investigating further. If you go to a Harley dealer, they can hook your bike up to what Harley calls “digital tech” and scan it. This scan will tell them the position of the intake air sensor motor (idle speed stepper). Too small an opening means an air leak somewhere, resulting in a lean condition. If it is going lean, the most common cause is
a vacuum leak at the rubber seals on the intake collar. Replacing the seals is a simple job, so you could just pull the intake and replace these to rule them out as the problem.
CLUTCH OIL 101
I just picked myself a 1983 Suzuki GS1100G and tore it * down for the most part to check that everything was in working order. It’s the first pre-2000s bike I’ve worked on and the first bike I’ve ever owned.
I can’t find anywhere that says how much oil to put in the clutch. It’s an 18-plate clutch, but I’m not sure if that affects anything. I don’t want to burn out the clutch because it’s only got 3,500 miles on it, so some help would be greatly appreciated.
DYLAN HOFFMAN
CYCLEWORLD.COM
AB quarts First off, of the oil when manual the calls filter for is 3.2 also changed, which you imply saying you “tore it down.” I’d fill with a bit less than 3 quarts and check the sight glass on the lower right side of the engine, hike most modern bikes, your GS has a wet clutch and gear primary drive, meaning it is inside the cases and runs in the same oil that lubricates the engine and gearbox. The number of plates in a clutch doesn’t have any relation as to whether it is wet or dry.
On bikes with a separate chain primary drive (modern HarleyDavidsons, most vintage British bikes), the idea is to try to keep the clutch as dry as possible while getting just enough lubrication for the chain and sprockets. When a true dry clutch is used, as on a lot of recent Ducati models, they work well and don’t pollute the crankcase oil with fiber particles but can be noisy.
Whenever I put new friction plates in a wet-clutch engine, I soak the plates in a little of the oil I’m going to use for the engine. An old habit that probably isn’t even necessary. The important bit is to remember to use motorcycle-specific oil that is suitable for wet clutches, not automotive oil which is too slippery because of the special friction reducers.
GOT A MECHANICAL OR TECHNICAL PROBLEM with your beloved ride? Perhaps we can help. Contact us at cwservice@cycleworld.com with your questions. We cannot guarantee a reply to every inquiry.
LONG AND SHORT OF IT
I have a 2013 Harley-Davidson FLD Switchback. I have a touring * seat and backrest for long rides and weekend trips with the wife plus a solo seat for when I take off the bags for cruising around town. The long muffler is ugly without the bags! Can I safely buy shorter pipes and interchange them with the different configurations? Will this affect engine performance or, worse, damage the engine?
PHIL EENEI STATEN ISLAND, NY
A Go ahead and fit the pipe you
like. Remember, your bike has a B 2-into-i exhaust. It isn’t the length that is so important so much as the flow rates and noise levels. If backpressure is reduced with the new pipe, it will be best to remap the fuel mixture to match. If the mixture is leaned out, exhaust valve temperatures will go up some, possibly shortening their life very slightly. All fuel-injected engines made in the last 30 years have upgraded exhaust valve materials. These materials are to suit the higher combustion temps resulting from the leaner FI mixtures, so any shorter valve life may only be theoretical rather than observed. Buy something stylish from one of the aftermarket H-D suppliers or Harley’s own Screamin’
Eagle line and live it up.
LOWER YOUR CONC? NO!
I have a 2010 Kawasaki Concours 1400 that I bought new. I would * like to lower the seat height (I have installed a Corbin seat, which has been reworked and lowered by approximately 3/4 inch.) I’m considering lowering links but am concerned about effects on performance of cornering and overall ride and handling. What can I expect? Any other recommendations to lower the bike would be appreciated.
RICHARD RIEEIONI FARMINGTON, IL
A it. My Lower recommendation: the bike only Don’t as a last do B resort, or buy a different bike. After modifying the seat and buying thicker-soled boots, your only remaining option is to lower the chassis. If you install lowering links, you should drop the fork tubes in the triple clamps too. Dropping the fork tubes requires fitting
bar risers on a Concours. Expect a max of about another inch of lowering, despite claims from suppliers purporting a greater amount. The sidestand and centerstand will need shortening too. These big and fast inline four-cylinder sport-tourers are wide of beam. When
something touches down unexpectedly in midcorner, it may well be a big piece of something important and solid. If you lower the bike, don’t carry a passenger or excessive weight that would compress the suspension and reduce cornering clearance even more.
TIRE REPAIR IN THE STICKS
I live in Alaska, where just about
any long trip takes you either to * or through a remote area. This makes me worry about what I would do if I got a flat tire in such an area. I have a Motion Pro bead breaker/tire spoon tool with which I have succeeded in removing and replacing a tubeless tire on a practice rim lent me by the BMW dealer’s service manager. (I am grateful. I would hate to do this for the first time in the middle of nowhere, and I did learn that I need at least one spoon longer than n inches.) My problem is that I doubt I would be able to reseat the bead using only a hand pump or 12-volt mini-compressor. The practice tire has a tube in it, so I haven’t been able to try it without the tube.
My question: Should I just assume that I will need to use tubes, in which case I will have to remove the tire pressure sending units, or is there some other approach that will work? Is it possible that motorcycle tires reseat
much more easily than automotive tires? Would it make more sense to try to plug punctures without removing the tire, using rubber band-style plugs? If it makes any difference, the bike is a 2014 BMW R1200GS.
BOB REAGAN CHUGIAK, AK
A but Don’t if know I’m stuck about in you, the middle Bob, B of nowhere by myself, with maybe a bear eyeing me, the last thing I’m going to do is hang around to find out if he’s hungry. First, unless you are carrying a spare tire, there’s usually no reason to remove a punctured tubeless tire from the rim. A good plug kit like the Dynaplug (dynaplug.com; $29-99-$69-99) or Stop & Go Plug Gun (stopngo.com; $49.95) hopefully will be all you need. Add a compact electric compressor or just carry plenty of CO2 cartridges to refill.
If the bead happens to come unseated, it can sometimes be helped back on by
using a ratcheting tie-down around the circumference of the tire and then attempting to inflate rapidly. You might even need to remove the valve core to let that CO2 fly in there to first seat the bead. Then replace the core and inflate normally. We’ve even seen a few crazies seat a bead by squirting starting fluid inside the tire and lighting it off, but we can’t recommend that unless you need to scare a bear away too! A spare tube to get you home if you can’t otherwise plug or seat the bead in the field is a good idea too. Just be sure you can remove the factory stem. Channel Bud Ekins at the ISDT and practice dismounting and mounting that baby ahead of time.
MY OIL FILTERS LOOK DIFFERENT
I recently purchased an oil filter from the Triumph dealership,
* part #Ti2i8ooi. When I got home I compared it with a new filter like the one used on my first oil change. The part number was T1210444. The
first mentioned filter has six holes around the outer edge. The T1210444 has eight slightly smaller holes. I have read articles warning of aftermarket filters having inadequate flow properties. Both filters are genuine Triumph parts. The dealership says both will work. I can’t find a part number listed in my owner’s manual for a 2012 Triumph Bonneville T100.
Am I okay using either filter?
RALPH DUNN NEW MATAMORAS, OH
A Yes. Triumph only uses one oil
filter for its entire range of bikes. H Why other manufacturers don’t do the same is beyond me. The T1210444 is an old number and the supersession is the T1218001. The number of holes in the filter doesn’t matter—six larger or eight smaller—that’s just different ways of accomplishing the same thing.
POOR PLUG LIFE
QB Kawasaki I recently bought Concours a new and 2014 was * looking through the owner’s manual, in particular the maintenance section. I saw that Kawasaki recommends the changing of spark plugs every 7,500 miles. I could not believe my eyes. Is this correct?
What are your thoughts? Surely our technology in all areas of the combustion engine has been able to produce plugs that will last longer than 7,500 miles. My Ford F-150 runs like a top with the original plugs at 59,000 miles.
LARRY FISHER CORPUS CHRISTI, TX
AH miles Kawasaki is the has optimum decided change that 7,500 B interval. I doubt it’s essential to change the spark plugs at exactly that mileage, but they won’t last without noticeable wear until the recommended 15,000-mile valve adjustment, so it is logical to do them once in between.
Your bike’s engine is a virtual racehorse compared to that Ford F-150 plow horse. Larger operating temperature swings, higher cylinder pressures, and way more rpm dictate the plugs just don’t last as long. The center electrode wears down in these tough conditions, even though your Concours 14 is fitted with NGK’s best iridium-type plug. CUM
