Dan M

I know it is not what you asked, but if you haven't, sort your suspension. A few more horsepower is nothing compared to what you will realize with a proper suspension set up. That said, Mike Rich pistons made a noticeable difference with my bikes power after the mufflers, crossover, air box mod and PCIII.

OBND indicated that it is cranking but cranking slowly. That tells me the trigger circuit is functioning. Once the solenoid is pulled (to complete the crank circuit), the trigger has done it's job. The trouble is between the battery, the big wires and the starter at that point.

Voltage drop is the way to go to insure your connections are good. Do it while attempting to crank. It does sound like a weak battery. Check battery voltage while attempting to crank. If it is cranking slow and voltage stays up (above 11) you probably have a bad connection on the large cable or ground. If voltage drops low (9 or less) and it barely cranks you battery is probably weak. High starter amp draw will give the same symptoms but it is unlikely both old and new starters are bad.

I once had a customer (many years ago) seeking help after a quick oil place had drained the manual trans on his VW Rabbit and over filled the engine. When he returned with a smoking car, they corrected the oil level and instead of refilling the gear box they poured gear oil onto the clutch / flywheel. Now with a slipping clutch he did not want to go back again and showed up on our door step When calling the quick lube owner with the news he just said fix it and send him the bill. Not even a question. I guess he was used to it.

You didn't hurt anything in 3 miles. Probably cleaned it up some.

You can leave everything hooked up. Your ECU will not be harmed.

Reason enough to stay offline.

Why would anyone buy or ride something they didn't like? I truly wanted to like the new Buells. The engineering has always been innovative and when the 1125 was announced I thought, finally a modern engine in an American sport bike. The bottom line though is they just didn't do anything for me visually and while the 1125 had no track record yet the reliability of the air cooled units certainly was suspect. In my eye the CR was better but there is just other stuff out there I would pick first. My comments were not snide, just observations and impressions. I don't like to see any business fail or become victim of the current economic climate, but many, many have. Blame Harley, they pulled the plug. If this move by them pisses you off and makes you depressed, I feel for you.

The vid is of an almost teary eyed Eric Buell announcing there will be no more production of his beloved bikes. Dropping Buell and selling MV seems somewhat knee jerk to me. Looks like Harley is scrambling. Getting back to basics so to speak. I'm not much of a fan of either Harley or Buell. The latest Buells showed some promise but IMO were too ugly to ride and like the parent company's Harleys reliability has always been a bit suspect. I wonder if they would have been as quick to cut them loose if they were still using HD motors in all of the bikes.

Maybe get a hold of one of these.

They'll last longer than if you let them go low like in winter months. If you keep them charged anyway the life should be similar. I like the convenience of the tender, plug them in and forget about it. Have been using them for many years with no issues. All Battery Tenders are OK for AGM. The "Plus" is recommended for Gel. http://batterytender.com/selection_guide.p...044dc7e11b02813

YIKES! Cylinders OK? Does not take long for sand to do damage. Not to hijack or start a debate but for my money it's paper filters on road going stuff.

cool...

This is interesting. A ceramic coating will insulate the piston crown from combustion temps but not reduce combustion temps. As GM indicated if there is a hot spot on the crown, ceramic may help but more likely the hot item that is igniting the mix is (was) red hot carbon. The coating may be hard and smooth enough to reduce carbon build up and help some over time. It would be good to know if the pistons are "clean" after a several thousand miles. We discussed this at some length a year ago (link below). I feel that the typical V11 that is prone to knocking does it for more than one reason, usually runs too rich at idle building carbon and too lean in the problem area (hmm, that 3000/5000RPM slight throttle problem area again.--- don't worry, I won't say the T word) causing combustion temps that are too high and heating the carbon to the point of igniting the mix. http://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?...=13981&st=0

Good one Bertie. Gotta love Django.

one of my favorites - see post 208 of this thread

From the bottom up: No argument. Just baffled as usual. Can you find a post where I was trolling for an argument? If you have followed this thread, it was me that said hydraulic was superior to friction. It is about 8 posts back if you can't find it. IMO with modern hydraulic technology there is not much value of friction dampers. Possibly the reason they are no longer used. I know what sine waves are Dave. What I don't understand is you. Are you saying that you've studied handlebar oscillation frequency electronically? Viewed the sine wave on an oscilloscope? Measured the effects of both types of dampers? Also, are you suggesting that the use of roller bearings and hydraulic dampers on motorcycle steering heads is too modern so we should explore outdated methods like plain bearing with grease zerks and friction dampers?? Just looking for clarification, not an argument.

What?

Yea, the Adventure is a giant. Bigger, wider and heavier than the regular GS. Like riding a bull. I've had no BMW reliability issues. The tall screen, hand guards and heated grips add a lot of comfort when the weather turns wet & cold. My buddy has a Sprint ST. Nice bike, great motor. A little too sporty on the riding position and good but not great wind & weather protection for long distance work IMO. He is about 5'8" and is OK on it. Leg room is a little tight for me at 5'11" - may be fine for a young guy like you. The VFR also gets great reviews although I've never ridden one. Like the ST, it favors the sporty side of sport touring. The Valkyrie is a terrific bike if you are leaning toward a cruiser. I had one for 6 years. Lots of lower leg heat in the summer, a plus in bad weather. Probably the best riding position of any cruiser although I found that it got to my lower back if doing 300 miles or more. Somehow the RT with only a slight lean forward and more leg room is good for all day. 600+ mile days are no problem.

The BMW LT and Goldwing are kings of the luxo barges. They do a good job of it but are a little too car like for me. R series BMWs are made to order for the long distance stuff with comfort and great handling for a big bike. I love my RT when doing long days or riding two up. It's relative light weight and short wheel base make it great in the twisties too. Last winter I did Baja on a R1200GS (rental) and it also is a great all day bike with a comfortable seat decent wind screen and impressive handling. A number of years ago one of the mags did a sport touring comparison of the R1150RT, K1200GT, FJR1300 and maybe the Honda ST (not certain about the fourth bike) The RT had the weakest motor and was the oldest model but most testers placed it high on the list because it was the most fun to ride. The newer R1200RT is lighter and has more power. It has been out since '05 so there are probably many good used ones out there.

Tapered rollers are perfect for the application. Hard to imagine why you would do anything else. If you want damping a hydraulic damper is far better than friction. Friction has no account for speed. Hydraulic can be valved for firm damping against high speed inputs yet softer on low speed inputs. Not so with friction. That's the whole idea isn't it? As GM said "they did it back in the before time". Why would you go backward now in the after time?

Tough call. If you can compare head temp side to side to see if the right is indeed hotter, that might give you a clue if anything is wrong. An infrared gun works well for this. Lean running can cause more head temp. If your bike is running fine and making no unusual noises, I wouldn't worry too much. I noticed more seat heat after I had a gel pad installed in my seat. They seem to hold heat more.

Hmm, plain bearings in the steering head. Who would have thought? (I mean besides Dave) There are a few who have installed mechanical oil pressure gauges, might be a good place to tee in for oil pressure and route to the steering head with a return to the crankcase. Interesting... I say you give it a shot Dave. Let us know how it works out. One more thing, that built in adjustable damping you speak of. How does it work? You see, sometimes I get cars in with worn plain bearings and the associated knock. I would be a hero to the customer if I could adjust it out for them.

Got to agree with Hubert on this one. Squirt grease in the mechanism, drop a few bulbs in (and leave them in there? do I get this right?) Then call the unit junk because it malfunctions. Hmmm....