My new ride

[XJOK2PLAY]

Interesting! Small world, huh?

Yes, Steve's a good guy. He has a lot of videos on YouTube.
He started out as a C10 owner, came up with lots of mods for his own bike, word spread, and he became "The C10 Guru" guy.

Then he got a C14, saw a few of it's difficiencies, and came up with his own flash for his bike. When he compared it side by side w/ a friend's heavily modded C14 that had dyno'd 162 RWHP doing rollons, Steve's stock bike w/ just his flash literally would walk away every time! To make sure it wasn't the rider, he then traded bikes w/ his friend. Steve's bike still walked away, so it wasn't the rider making the difference. His friend had a full Area P exhaust, pulled secondary flies, PCV w/ autotune... it would start to come on strong and gain back after reaching 8000 rpm...
Word spread, and after lots of dyno testing (using the same dyno Ricky Gadson's mechanic uses for his bike), he started doing them for us guys on COG. The EVO flash (his latest version and the one I have) is like his 6th version.
He posted his stock bike's dyno chart in the beginning. Kawasaki's fueling maps had several places in various rpm's that reflected dips in the powerband. From 2-3000 rpm, it was very rich, and slow to climb. Then it would rocket upward, to another dip around 5000, then around 5700 it would go ballistic to 8000, where it would dip again, until the 9700 rpm redline.
The EVO chart shows linear, straight line power, from 2000 rpm to 9700.
No dips. In the realworld, using the old "butt dyno", I can sure tell the chart's not lying. The biggest improvement comes in the low rpm smoothness.

The C14 in stock form has a very "notchy" throttle. It's a dual cable system, but it can be very jerky at low speeds. It really annoyed me a few years back when I went to XSSE and rode Deal's Gap and the Dragon. Since Steve's flash... that problem's gone, and it's smooth as silk.

Yes, when it comes to C10's and now C14's...Steve's the man.

[XJOK2PLAY]

http://cycle-ergo.com/

Put yourself on it and see how it fits. FJR and XS1100 share the same miserable knee bend for me.

In stock form, C14 is 13 degrees lean. After adjustments, mine is now 7-8. About the same as the 11.
Has better room for knee bend than an 11, too!

[Bigfoot]

Harry,
Is your seat stock or aftermarket?

My stock seat was pretty soft. It was ok for a couple hours, then the hurt would set in. Good seat changed all that. Now I can ride all day.

It has an aftermarket Corbin seat on it. Pretty comfortable. The furthest I have ridden it so far is down to Wichita which is around 250 miles. It was fairly comfortable with the exception of my throttle hand cramping up some. It was very gusty wind side wind so my white knuckle grip might have had something to do with that.

I have two adjustments to make to the bike and I think it will be very good for me for long distances. I have short arms so I know what you mean about the pressure on your hands and wrists. I am going to install some setback risers that should take care of that problem. I also have an aftermarket cruise control that I need to get out there and figure out how to install.

Upcoming trip in July to Colorado and then on to Idaho will include some 750+ mile days so I plan to have it done before then.

[HalfCentury]

I had the neck and upper back discomfort when I started with my 2003 FJR. The torso lean angle was a killer. I am 5'8" with an average inseam. I cannot flat foot the bike when stopped.

I installed an LSL triple tree clamp that adapts for normal handlebar risers. Then I added a Rox Riser and some cool chrome 7/8" handlebars. I sort of hate the stock handlebars. This required new longer clutch and brake cables to be fabricated.

Now my sitting position is about the same as my XJ1100.

This past week I installed Kuryakyn ISO grips and an Atlas throttle lock. Friday I rode for about an hour to test out the ISO grips and the throttle lock. These two farkles are outstanding for the older FJRs.

In two weeks I am taking a multi-day moto camping trip to the Blue Ridge Parkway. We will be camping at Meadows of Dan and riding all over that area.

[HalfCentury]

Here is the picture of the handlebars providing an upright pull-back. The stock mirrors are useless with this seating position so I added Mikes XS mirrors. You can see the highway pegs. The Atlas throttle lock is visible.

[madmax-im]

Totally agree with Bonz..i too have had 2 ST1100s both had to be farkled with comfort options in order to really become a comfortable scoot...for me it came down to 3 things...Adjustable helibars..MCL Hwy Blades(pegs) and a Russell Day Long saddle..with those 3 things I could ride 1000 miles in one ride and still be comfortable...oh and the electronic cruise control was da bomb...mondo comfort..so Greg your statement is not entirely accurate..but based on limited experience you have formed an erroneous conclusion..YMMV
The XS1100 hasnt got a thing on the FJR1300..its light years behind the FJR in every respect... I am now considering one for my next ride..yeah I know what i said a few days ago..Marty has me pegged...

[Bigfoot]

Glad to hear you are thinking about getting back in a saddle again Ben.

I am ordering helibars for mine next week. I am not the tallest guy and have short arms so I think it will really help with the long distance comfort. I also have a cruise control to install later this month. It has a corbin seat on it, I think that will be fine. I could really stand to lower it at least an inch but I don't want to sacrifice the handling of the bike, I will just deal with being on the balls of my feet.

[madmax-im]

Harry..glad you are enjoying your FJR..getting it right doesnt always happen overnight. With my ST11s..it wasnt until my 2nd STthat i finally figured it out..stock seats...or previous owners corbins were too low . Once i got the RDL saddle ..it raised me 2" and for me that was magical and finally all my discomforts went away ..

[XJOK2PLAY]

Ben,
An FJR would make a fine bike for you, and I agree w/Harry...
glad to hear you're considering not giving up on riding yet... but couldn't fault you if you did. A close call can make a guy reconsider his luck sometimes.

Harry, I hope your experience with your Corbin seat fairs better than many others I've known that's tried to tour on them. Most Corbins are really hard, and most riders describe them as "concrete."

The C14's stock seat height is 32.1" I have a 32" inseam...
I went through 5 different aftermarket seats with no luck, the last of which was a $500 "used" RDL made for a guy with my measurements. Loved it when I was moving, but stops were scarey, since I could barely reach the ground by tip-toes!
The wings on the bucket raise the thighs, making it a longer reach to the ground. Fortunately, I was able to sell it to another member and broke even...
Lesson learned. Backing a 700#+ bike by tip toes sucked!

It was the optional Kawasaki Gel seat that ended up working for me. Lowered by 1", very comfy, nice looking, with an excellent rough textured seat cover for no sliding around. Filled the bill. And oh... Did NOT affect handling.
Seats aren't cheap, and it seems like every farkle that's for a motocycle costs at least $300...

But once you get it personalized to fit you...it'll be worth it.

[motoman]

Glad to hear you are thinking about getting back in a saddle again Ben.

I am ordering helibars for mine next week. I am not the tallest guy and have short arms so I think it will really help with the long distance comfort. I also have a cruise control to install later this month. It has a corbin seat on it, I think that will be fine. I could really stand to lower it at least an inch but I don't want to sacrifice the handling of the bike, I will just deal with being on the balls of my feet.

The earlier style, fully adjustable heli-bars for the 91-95 ST1100 is what I have on my Venturer......gotta' least mix in a few good options.

[HalfCentury]

Ben

You are welcome to try my FJR. I live not that far from you. My saddle is an RDL. The handlebar pull-back is something like 10".

My handlebar setup is essentially a DIY Heli-bar. I am 5'8" and I cannot flat foot the FJR. Taking it off the center stand is no fun. Backing it uphill into my garage is also no fun. I have learned to deal with both chores. It would probably make a funny Youtube video to see me doing both chores.

Switching from an XJ650 and XJ1100 to the FJR was a shock. The FJR is much taller and a much higher center of gravity. It required most of a year for me to feel any confidence at all making a slow tight U-turn. I have something over 3000 miles on the FJR since I bought it last January.

[madmax-im]

Ben

You are welcome to try my FJR. I live not that far from you. My saddle is an RDL. The handlebar pull-back is something like 10".

My handlebar setup is essentially a DIY Heli-bar. I am 5'8" and I cannot flat foot the FJR. Taking it off the center stand is no fun. Backing it uphill into my garage is also no fun. I have learned to deal with both chores. It would probably make a funny Youtube video to see me doing both chores.

Switching from an XJ650 and XJ1100 to the FJR was a shock. The FJR is much taller and a much higher center of gravity. It required most of a year for me to feel any confidence at all making a slow tight U-turn. I have something over 3000 miles on the FJR since I bought it last January.

Thank you Brian..I'm gonna have to take a rain check on that..BTW I have had several demo rides on a FJR13..I especially liked the electric windscreen as i kept playing with it... My ergos fit perfectly on this bike...much better fit than my Honda STs...both bikes from dealers and had stock seats...they were ok for the demo rides ..but any real riding would shake them out as prolly less comfortable the longer you rode. RDLs are what they say they are Day Long comfort..my azz wouldnt leave home without it...
I try not to back up on any bike but try to circle around and end up facing forward of a parking spot...around garage a swivel type of bike stand...you park the bike on it then you can push around and position it anyway you want to...