Member Contributer Dutchy Posted August 26, 2016 Member Contributer Share Posted August 26, 2016 Very nice!! You tempt me to go for a VFR1200 to step into redslut's shoes...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Skids Posted August 26, 2016 Member Contributer Share Posted August 26, 2016 1 hour ago, Dutchy said: Very nice!! You tempt me to go for a VFR1200 to step into redslut's shoes...... You wont regret it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crakerjac Posted August 26, 2016 Share Posted August 26, 2016 So... Why the LSL conversion over Helibars? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Yokel Posted August 26, 2016 Author Member Contributer Share Posted August 26, 2016 I wanted to be further back and higher up. Why LSL over Heli-bars? Personal preference.Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darrenk Posted August 27, 2016 Share Posted August 27, 2016 16 hours ago, crakerjac said: So... Why the LSL conversion over Helibars? I've had them both. With the LSL conversion, you can get further back and higher up with all of the stock lines and cables. Still wish it was further back though... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Yokel Posted August 27, 2016 Author Member Contributer Share Posted August 27, 2016 Well, yesterday evening, Santa in the big brown truck dropped off my new Penske shock and Traxxion Dynamics fork springs. Wahoo! I was sitting on the front porch reading a book waiting for UPS to show up, and a guy on a BMW R1200GS was pushing his bike past my house. The headlight was pretty dim. I think I know what happened! Remember kids, unplug your farkles. I introduced myself, and helped push his bike back to my garage to throw it on my charger. Consistently adding to that motorcyclist Karma account. You'll note the little white box on the floor... SHOCK!!!! As any 1200 owner knows, when you open the shop manual and see "Lift Fuel Tank" in the instructions, you just need to book a day. The teardown is fairly significant to get to the bolt that holds the upper collar in the stock unit. The install was pretty straightforward. I did run and get some Moly grease for the bearings and bushings on the dog-bone assembly. The hardest part was deciding where to put the remote reservoir. The hose was a 90 degree, which I will have changed at some point this winter as I don't like the routing. It feels pretty kludged together at this point, but it's IN and it WORKS! No, that's not just the picture, it's a HUGE effing spring. Went with a 1400# spring, and it feels GOOD. Penske provided dyno chart printouts with the shock, as well as tuning instructions. Ordering direct from them is nice and easy, and their tech staff know their stuff. A note about the shock: There is no remote pre-load. If you are on-off with a pillion regularly, this might not be a good choice for you. It's not easy to adjust. It's not a pain in the ass, either... just takes some time and dirty knees. Might wanna pony up the cash for an Ohlins, as they have a remote pre-load. It's a double adjustable unit, and made a VAST difference in the overall feel of the bike, even without sag dialed *exactly* in yet. The adjustments are set via factory equations for my weight and riding style, so I'm not fooling with them quite yet. Around the block felt pretty good at the back... But, the front is now an absolute mess. It is so undersprung, that the steering geometry is abso-friggin-lutely craptastic. It's like I've shoved the fork legs 2" up in the triples. The bike has lost all of its native stability, especially under braking. It's bad. Bad, bad BAD. With worn springs front and rear, it still always felt planted up front unless I was REALLY pushing it... but now, it's just a wet fart. Greasy. Awful. Can't wait to see how the new springs do, then I can start to really get this set up dialed in. All told, the install was cake. It's all the other crap you've got to remove that makes this job take a while. I'm going to take the forks off and take them up to the local shop. I'm having new seals, bushings and stuff put in too, and that's just a bit above my mechanical aptitude. Hope to have them back by the coming weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MotardMenace Posted August 28, 2016 Share Posted August 28, 2016 Coming along nicely and yes you will enjoy the Speigler conversion. It makes a big difference even if you have to give up a little turning radius......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Yokel Posted August 29, 2016 Author Member Contributer Share Posted August 29, 2016 Took the VFR out on an 8 hour ride yesterday. Impressions: The Shock is a monster improvement. Needs some fine tuning, but unwilling to do so until I get the front sprung. It's harsher than I'd like, but part of that may be the completely crap geometry the bike has now, and it's nowhere near balanced. The seat is perfect. The LSL bar conversion needs some tweaking. The angle is different than the stock clipons for my wrists, and I developed some pain in my throttle hand which I never had with the factory set. Dropped them about 3/4 of an inch, and it helped... but that's frustrating as I bought them to get higher. Going to try a few more spots, and if that continues will throw them on the Classifieds section. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Yokel Posted September 1, 2016 Author Member Contributer Share Posted September 1, 2016 Back at it again... Forks are getting new seals, bushings and springs. Hope to have it all back together by Saturday! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Yokel Posted September 4, 2016 Author Member Contributer Share Posted September 4, 2016 Well, the shop failed to get the forks done prior to the weekend. >:( Hope to have forks back prior to NEXT weekend. What have you guys used to get the 1.5" fork measurement dialed back in? I sold my depth micrometers... thinking I may need to make a 1.5" jig to ensure they are mounted right where they should be. Input welcome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Yokel Posted September 17, 2016 Author Member Contributer Share Posted September 17, 2016 Got the forks installed, can't wait to try it out! Spooned on some new rubber too. Still dinking with the LSL bar conversion... Those may wind up on the classifieds as they just may not work for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forum CEO HispanicSlammer Posted September 18, 2016 Forum CEO Share Posted September 18, 2016 On 8/26/2016 at 0:50 AM, Dutchy said: Very nice!! You tempt me to go for a VFR1200 to step into redslut's shoes...... You can get one for a steal here in the States, I must admit the Veefalo has been a solid bike, rides rather well after 50k miles. I have to get the ohlins rebuilt now I put too many miles on her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Yokel Posted September 19, 2016 Author Member Contributer Share Posted September 19, 2016 Alright! Took the bike out yesterday and gave it a good shagging. The LSL bars still need some tweaking, but I think I like them. Seat is the bees knees, and suspension totally changed the big bike. It's flickable now. Loving the changes. Still need to add in some rebound damping, but wow, what a change. Rode all the way to the edge of the tire, no hard parts touched, and it felt very planted. The jury is out still on the front getting re-valved, I think it will be ok! I did have to move the remote reservoir for the shock as the hose was rubbing on the rear swingarm, over the winter I'll pull it and have new fittings installed that allow me to locate it where I want, rather than next to my right ankle. Think I need new steering head bearings too... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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