What did you do to your bike today?

[Crazcnuk]

They were just being 'safe' as many crankcase cleaners are not good to drive with.

[exquized1]

Today is a beautiful day out so I am going out to open the carbs and clean them on the 80 std. Will also be adding the new coils to the 79 special. If all goes well the 80 will start today.

[Bigfoot]

Yes the directions on the can as well as the Seafoam website say it is safe to run the engine with Seafoam in the oil, but I would also be wary of running it that way for an extended period of time. I haven't heard of anyone having engine problems because of it so you should be fine after an oil change.

[79XS11F]

I used my 79 bike to get to work as I have been doing on a regular basis these last few weeks. The weather is to die for.
Rob

[Crazcnuk]

I found out why the headlight wasn't working, after following the smoldering wiring.

The PO had replaced the RH handlebar switch with one from a newer model. The newer switches have a ground wire (black) in the harness, which the PO had wired to the headlight power feed (Blue).

It's been on there who knows how long (at least a year) and the other night it decided to ground and melted a few of the wires.

Now the headlight works properly, and I 've stopped blowing either the headlight or the main ignition fuses.

the bike even ran better after fixing that.

[tcoop]

pulled the valve cover. saw the cam chain all bunched up. Removed the cams and reset them to Top Dead Center. Now I only need a good battery.

[grahamfam3]

After receiving the replacement seat cover from JC Whitney, took the seat to an upholstery shop to have the foam replaced and the cover installed.

I'm still wondering if I should have seen about some kind of gel insert to be installed inside the seat?

Any thoughts? It won't be done for about a week, so I have some time.

[3Phase]

I took a short ~100 mile ride through the canyons to the coast and back just for grins. On the way out to the coast a guy on a spankin' new red Sportster hit the guard rail on Topanga Canyon. His bike was still up top but he was over the rail and off the cliff down in the trees and rocks in the canyon.

On the way back from the coast I discovered that Kanan Road has just been repaved all the way from the Pacific Coast Highway to the 101 freeway -- 12 miles of brand new asphalt that hasn't even been painted yet! It was smooth as glass with just the little fluttery temporary tags for lane markers and almost no traffic.

The new oil cooler got a slight workout but it did its job.

[CatatonicBug]

the bike even ran better after fixing that.

Of course! You stopped the smoke from leaking out!

I'm still wondering if I should have seen about some kind of gel insert to be installed inside the seat?

Any thoughts? It won't be done for about a week, so I have some time.

Some people warn that the gel inserts really soak up sunshine, and can get painfully hot when the bike sits out in the sun for a while. I don't have any personal experience to back that up, but I thought I'd throw that in there.

I took a short ~100 mile ride through the canyons to the coast and back just for grins. On the way out to the coast a guy on a spankin' new red Sportster hit the guard rail on Topanga Canyon. His bike was still up top but he was over the rail and off the cliff down in the trees and rocks in the canyon.

On the way back from the coast I discovered that Kanan Road has just been repaved all the way from the Pacific Coast Highway to the 101 freeway -- 12 miles of brand new asphalt that hasn't even been painted yet! It was smooth as glass with just the little fluttery temporary tags for lane markers and almost no traffic.

The new oil cooler got a slight workout but it did its job.

Making me miss my home turf!! I grew up in Oxnard, so I know right where you're talking about! PCH is a really nice route, even if you're going nowhere.

[Rasputin]

Got all my newly painted parts home. Every painted part for the 78E, the 79SF and the 81LH are all now a black cherry color. When I get them mounted up I will post some pics. Whoopee!!!!

[3Phase]

Making me miss my home turf!! I grew up in Oxnard, so I know right where you're talking about! PCH is a really nice route, even if you're going nowhere.

Right on! When are you coming out for a ride?

There are still a bunch of construction signs and the three tunnels haven't been redone yet so the approaches are a little dicey but now that I know what's going on for the whole road I think I'll ride it the other way out to the coast tomorrow and take Decker Canyon back.

I'm still getting used to having hard bags and bars on the bike. Lane sharing is getting easier as I retrain muscle memory for the wider tail on the bike. There's no appreciable weight difference but I'm still not comfortable on hairpins with 1,000 foot cliffs.

I'll probably need a new rear tire before the Cali Rally in June.

[petejw]

i replaced my iridium plugs back with the standard
ngk plugs and got rid of my engine knock.

i also readjusted front and rear suspension after
replacing the fork oil from atf to 20wt fork oil,
i also reduced the preload in the forks.
i also had the rear set to hard, dropping the spring
to the softest setting and the dampening down to 2.
the bike rides/handles so much better and smoother
than before, and no more harsh jolts from sharp peaks
in the road way. so one very good day indeed.

[TexinMaine]

Put on some saddlebags, Thank you suckerpunch! The seat design is a bit frustrating but after a few "What moron designed this??" I got it all put back together and snugged up. I also changed my oil and filter. I compared the new oil and the old with the Seafoam added and I really didnt see much difference in the thickness, perhaps on a molecular level, but it seemed o.k.. and of course had to go for a ride, rechecked plug and filter and no sign of any leaks.

[draketrumpet]

Got mad at it...

...it wanted to wobble and I got sick of it. I took everything in front of the handlebars and the front MC off today. Gonna be a few weeks before it moves again, but everything in front of the gas tank is getting a thorough going over.

[wylie coyote]

It snowed here again last night and some today, so I sat and stared at the bike, then went to work.......yee haw