elizilla

I can't advise on what size to get, because none of them fit me close enough for this question to even matter. Men's sizes only, bah! My one piece was roomie enough from waist up to carry a week's worth of groceries inside it, and tight enough at the hips to keep any of those groceries from sliding down into the legs. I have no kids, but if I were one of those parents who wears their baby in a sling I could have worn it inside the 'stich and no one would have known I was endangering an infant.

If you have relatively little hair on your arms and legs, the lining sticks to your skin. If it's raining or hot, this can get pretty unpleasant. I suspect the folks who say they wear them over shorts and t-shirts are a bit more furry than I am. I always wore long sleeve t-shirts and light cotton pants under mine. A 'stich that fits womanly hips will have a gigantic neck, which rain runs down the back of. And they leak at the crotch. But they dry really fast once the rain stops, so the leaking is mostly only a problem when it's cold out. I sometimes put a rainsuit over mine in the cold. Even with all the vents closed, they're drafty. A thin bicycling windbreaker over my Gerbing jacket and under the 'stich, is better than a fleece, without bulking me up nearly as much. They are the easiest full gear to live with - fast to put on, fast to take off, you don't have to find a private place to change your clothes. And I crashed mine on the freeway and got up uninjured, not even bruised, from an accident that totaled my bike. Get the sport ellipse on the back, and the forward rotated sleeves, if you want to wear it on a VFR. Oh, and don't get their back protector. If you want a back protector get a separate one that you buckle onto your body, or figure out some other way to attach it besides what they provide. The back protectors don't fit precisely enough into the suits to match the velcro perfectly, and where they aren't quite right, the velcro tabs on the back protector tear up the lining, and the lining is what's supposed to be water proof. It can't keep water out, if it has big shredded holes in it.

I am glad to hear that he is OK! He has certainly had more than his share of difficulties on this trip, eh? Think of it this way, though... it will all be grist for the story mill, next year at T-Mac. :cheerleader:

My XL Shoei won't fit in an E360, even with the document holder removed, but the medium and small passenger helmets I sometimes carry, fit just fine.

My RF-1000 doesn't let any rain in except what runs down the inside of the shield after a while. And usually by the time it starts doing that, it's an improvement compared to all the fog. :idea3: I don't let it fret me, even in an all day frog strangler. My earlier RF-series helmets performed the same in rain. Back in the RF-800 days I tried the Fog City shield liner. It was very effective against fog, and more durable than I expected. But while I keep meaning to get another, I never quite get around to it. And I don't miss the starring at night.

Ed, glad to hear they have finally fixed you up. Hopefully you won't have any more difficulties!

Well, if they are still stalling you tomorrow, get it out before they close, and I will come up there and get you. I have the truck with chocks and tie-downs, it won't be too hard.

Well, if you want me to come up there with my truck and get you and the bike this evening, I'd be happy to do so. I've got all the tools we could need, some spare parts and some experience, and this forum has a wealth of knowledge, so you're not stuck with just whatever this dealer is willing to do for you. Plus you won't be stranded at a hotel if you come here - I'll lend you something to ride until your bike is ready again, and we can put you up. You have my number.

I'm at least two hours away from Fremont, but if it would help any you are welcome to borrow my VFR for your ride up into Canada, and we can fix your bike here or take it to a shop locally. I could drive up and get you after work Monday, or if you can get someone to bring you here you can get it from me sooner.

Cross the plains in August? No thanks. I try to time my cross country rides for times when the kiddies are in school and the heat is less intense. :) I just never happened to get to Louisiana. It's not on the way to anywhere I've been going. I'm sure eventually I'll get there but there's no big rush. I suspect I'll get to Newfoundland or Manitoba first.

I've been running Hyperlites on my bikes for years. These are the flashing LED aux brake lights. They are great, I'd get those first if I were you. I installed a set of these Skene Photon Blaster front lights on my new bike. I thought they seemed a good compromise between driving lights and a full-on headlight modulator. They have this interesting effect, where if you look straight at them, they seem to be solid on, but if you don't focus on the bike, they look like they're flickering. It draws the eye. I put them down on either side of the forks, which gives me a wider spread with the lights, too, and hopefully that improves visibility. Also, unlike a headlight modulator, you don't have to turn them off at night. I'm pleased with them so far.

In the city, if I'm coming up to a light and there's another rider in my rear view, I'll pull up well onto the left side of the lane. That way they can pull up next to me, and two bikes have more chance of tripping those magnetic loop traffic lights than one - it's all good. Sometimes they assume this means they should go first pulling out from the light. Squids are especially likely to do this. You can't assume that random squids know that the rider on the left goes first. And some cruisers will then try to ride side-by-side, which I certainly won't do. So I watch out for that, especially if we're in the left turn lane. And I either let them go, or get away myself. But pulled up and stopped? Certainly, feel free to pull up next to me. I'll even wave them up next to me if it's a bad traffic signal - we'll never get a turn if we are straggled out so far that no one can trip the light. When I'm the following rider, I don't pull up next to someone I don't know unless I'm pretty sure they know I am there, and they're obviously making space by moving to the extreme left side of the lane. Unless, of course, I'm in my own neighborhood and I know we're at one of the bad traffic signals - I will then crowd them. I try to be as polite as I can, but I'm not going to wait forever for the light just because the rider in front of me doesn't know how to trip those lights.

I ran E45 sidebags on my V65 Sabre, and took them all over the USA and Canada, frequently so overloaded that I had to sit on them to close them, and I never had a problem with leaks. If yours are leaking I'd say there's something that's not right about them. You should let Givi know - I bet they'll fix you up.

I own these boots. I've been wearing them for two or three years now, and they have been waterproof. Twice now I have been caught in all-day frog stranglers and every item of my gear has leaked, except for these boots. I've also tested them by dropping my VFR on my foot, in a parking situation where the rider parking next to me dropped his bike on me and we went down like dominos. I was trapped until two guys came and lifted the two bikes off me. The boot completely protected my foot and ankle; it didn't hurt and I didn't even have any bruising. However they do squeak. I use that standard silicone spray that the auto parts store sells for using to grease plastic hinges and whatnot. Spray a bunch of it down under the articulated armor plates, and it stops the squeaking until the next heavy rain. Also, they are really hot. I recently bought a pair of vented Sidis to wear in warm dry weather.

Your riding jacket can make a big difference as well. When I wear my all-weather textile gear, I notice a lot more buffeting, as compared to my fitted leathers.

Iron Pony is awesome. It's about three hours away from my house but it's so much fun to go there, that lately I have been making a habit of riding down there and taking the wheels off in their parking lot when I need tires. However, ultimately it's really the Parts Unlimited catalog your local Honda dealer orders from, made flesh. The ability to see and touch all those items, and try them on for size, and get the instant gratification of taking them home today, is an awesome thing and I love it. But there are a lot of brands that I find desirable, that are not distributed through that particular channel, and which are not found there. So here are a few other shops: The Vanson factory store in Fall River MA. Vanson makes high quality racing leathers. I had a nightmare ordeal getting them to actually get the work done when I ordered a custom size, bad enough that I wouldn't recommend custom Vanson leathers to anyone. But if you can walk in there and find something you like already made, you can buy it on the spot. And there must have been thousands of beautiful riding jackets in that room, including some clearance and factory second items that were screaming deals. I do so wish I wore a standard size! Adventure Motostuff in Carson City NV. This is a great place to see large selections from brands that are popular with the adventure touring and sport touring crowds, which are not widely distributed through channels like the Parts Unlimited catalog. Givi, Krauser, PIAA, Ram Mounts, Gerbing, etc. I'm told that the Twisted Throttle store in Rhode Island is similar but I haven't been there (yet). I guess Amotostuff is the place to visit on your trip west, and Twisted Throttle is the place to visit if your trip takes you east. :laughing6-hehe:

I actually took one of my spare openers and mounted it behind my fairing as well so it was out of sight. I soldered some wires to the traces inside the opener and mounted a momentary toggle switch to the dash surround. Nobody can see anything except the toggle switch. :blush: For years I velcroed a garage door remote someplace like that, on every bike. It works fine, but I've lost a few due to forgetting to stow them safely when it rains, and I also have to remember to take them off and pocket them when I leave the bike parked in public places, so they don't go walkabout. When I stow them, I often forget to put them back on the bike before I get home, so then I have to search my pockets before I can open the door. None of this is that terrible, or I would have put together a better solution sooner. But the Flash2Pass unit is nice and convenient and never gets lost or rained out. And since he already owns it, received it as a gift, he might as well take full advantage of it by installing it correctly.

I installed one of these in the NT. It was hard to find a spot near the headlight for the tap, so I considered making a separate switch for it, but couldn't decide where to put it. I finally went back to the wiring diagram and traced the wiring back to find a spot under the left sidecover where I could tap the high beam circuit. It works great and I couldn't be happier - this is an awesome mod! I am going to buy some more transmitters and do the other bikes as well. Like was said upthread, I would think that if you attached it to the turn signal, it would go on the second flash, then reverse on the fourth flash, unless you are quick to turn the signal off after just the right number of flashes, which would be a pain. I say use the high beam, just like they instruct. It works well and it's very elegant not to have to add another switch.

Invite her to select something off the newenough.com site. And take her somewhere to try on some helmets since you can't just fit them via mail order.

OK, here's my alterations tale. I'm 5'11 and female, and have a narrow waist even for a woman. All the women's stuff is too short. Men's pants are hopeless and I've now had more than one pair of leather pants custom made, at a cost I shudder to think of. But at least men's jackets are potentially OK. The main difficulty I have with the jackets, is that men's waists are lower than women's, and their hips are narrower. Jackets that fit me in the shoulders and have a good sleeve length, are often way too tight at the hem, because the point where they nip in for a man's waist, falls closer to my hips. I recently picked up this Fieldsheer jacket that was fairly simple, and which fit me in the shoulders and the sleeve length. In between, it's lumpy. I'd ignore that, except that when something fits so poorly, the armor doesn't stay where it should; it migrates. But this jacket seemed more easily altered than most. It's unlined, and not too complex. Complex things with a hundred pockets and multiple layers are impossible. Also, this jacket has some stretch, so it's softer and more forgiving than most. Here's the before picture. Note that it has a velcro waist adjustment. On a guy, this would actually fall at a narrow point. on me, it's at the hips and every time I move, it's going to ride up. Fortunately with the straps apart, it's large enough, though it's still a little tighter there, than I would like. Here's the work in progress picture. I moved the adjustment straps up, not just to my waist, but slightly higher, because that fits best while sitting on a bike. I actually sewed the back end of the straps to the widest spot on the back armor, so when it's strapped in place, that back protector shouldn't go anywhere. Next, I'm planning to accentuate the shirt-tail hem shape just a little, so the spot where it is tight at the bottom edge, won't ride up. I'd just shorten it altogether, but then the pockets would become a problem - they need the length in front. And I'd have to move the zipper, ick. Though I guess if I move the zipper I could also make the neck opening smaller, lol! But the harder part is actually going to be the sleeves. Notice how wide they are on me. I need to move the anchor points of the straps, farther apart. I might attach them to the armor pockets as well; that will keep the elbows in place if they slide down the road. I haven't decided whether to try to take any of the excess fabric out. That would be a big job, and also, I'd have to figure out what to do with the "FIELDSHEER" labels. They're embroidered so I can't just remove them, and they'd look stupid cut off at the ends. So if I do that, I'll hide them under a reflective strip or a piece of decorative trim. I'm not going to change the waterproof liner. It's thin, and who cares if it's all bunchy in there under the jacket? The outside shell is the important part, it's what keeps the armor where it belongs. By the time I finish this, I'll have more hours into it, than if I made a jacket from scratch. But the materials are hard to source and there aren't any patterns so I'd have to fiddle a lot anyways. Usually the men's size medium jackets are the best for me, but this one is actually a small. I'm almost wondering if I should have started with an XS! The saleswoman at Iron Pony said the Fieldsheer stuff runs large and she wasn't kidding. Anyway, yeah, alterations are a pain!

Heh. I should post some picture of the jacket I've been altering this weekend. I took a before pic, and I could take a work-in-progress pic this evening. Hmmmm, brb...

Having ridden behind you for half a day, I thought you did just fine. I felt happy behind you, so if you were overmatched so was I. And I didn't feel overmatched.

I made it home about an hour ago. I already miss you guys. Nicole is right, we need to do more of these things!

I am not yet home. But that is OK; I wasn't planning to get home until tomorrow. I am in a motel room in Kentucky. Yes, I did see Sam at the former CRoT, where I had stopped to rest because I am having trouble with my left foot swelling up inside my boot. I am going to go home tomorrow by way of Iron Pony, and check out boots there. Anyway, I had a blast this weekend and I cannot wait for the next Tmac!

I've got the Autocom. I've liked them so well, and the prices have come down so much, that I now own several. I loaned one of them to a friend and he said this in a post elsewhere, just this week: Leaving Herndon at 12:30 on Wednesday, I made for Boston, VA. I've got a friend there, and he had just purchased a Scala Rider G4. Ever since I met kb, I've been working out a good solution for music while riding. I've been the recipient of one of her Autocom + solutions, which is really quite good. in fact, it's the standard that I measure everything else by - I can wear ear plugs, have the volume at a normal level, and have great sound quality. Surprisingly good sound quality. when my buddy told me about the Scala, I was skeptical - he said it was the bomb-diggity solution, and that usually isn't the case... I talked to him about it a bit, and he graciously loaned me a helmet with the Scala. For those that havetn' seen them, the Scala attaches to the side of the helmet, and has speakers and a boom mic that go inside. The attachment was very secure, and I never felt like it was going to come off. Scala says that it's "Water Resistant", and that it's ok in "moderate" rain. that made me a bit nervous, since the past few times I've come back from Tennessee, it's been in frog-strangling rain. One of the nifty cool features of the Scala is that it interfaces with devices via bluetooth. That means it can link up with my phone, so I can play music (a must), I can make and receive calls (nifty, but not critical), and hear my GPS (also a must). Last fall I took a tripand was in some awful rain, and I needed to find a Wal*mart... I pull under some cover and whip out the trusty GPS, which obliges with a route. I slip the GPS back into my tank bag, in the map pocket. but with the rain so bad, I couldn't see it. since it wasn't hooked up to the audio system, I couldn't hear it. it was horribly frustrating, and I've been looking for a solution ever since. The Scala sounded like the perfect solution! I paired the phone and the Scala, popped in my ear plugs and headed out. and very quickly I discovered where the Scala fails: It doesn't have enough output to be heard through the ear plugs, unless it is turned way, or all the way, up, at which point the sound is distorting, and has little to no bass. I was able to make and receive a couple calls while motoring down the highway at 75, and that was really pretty cool. the wind noise in the helmet, however, really affected my hearing the call. so I ended up spending most of the weekend without the benefit of earplugs. The Autocom that I loaned to him, is an old PRO-7 that I bought back in 2003. (It doesn't have the lead to hook to his GPS, but that's not because they aren't available - it's because I didn't have one in the setup I loaned to him, and he hasn't sourced one for himself!) I now have a newer one, an Active-Plus. (Actually I have several - when they were clearanced I bought extras so I could bike mount them, instead of just having one in a tank bag and moving it from bike to bike.) The Active-Plus does all the things the PRO-7 did, but it is smaller and has a few additional features. However it's important to understand that it's not a standalone deal. Both the PRO-7 and the Active-Plus are made for a target audience of loaded tourers, like Wings. These guys have actual car stereos in their bikes, and that is the music source they're designed to use. A car stereo pumps out a LOT more volume than an iPod or a Sansa. And the Autocom doesn't have separate input volume controls for every input - you're supposed to use the device's own volume controls to balance your music with your radar detector and your GPS and your phone. In practice, what this means is that when you feed an iPod into the Autocom, the iPod can't compete with the volume pumped out by every other audio source. So you have to put an inline amplifier into the system. I've now set these systems up on a series of different bikes. The setup I loaned to my friend, has a PIE LD-1 pre-amp between the iPod and the Autocom. This pre-amp is designed for car audio and therefore runs off 12 volt power. They're cheap, about $35, and they include a noise filter. They work quite well. But in the most recent system I set up, I used an Amplirider amp. This one is even better because it has a waterproof remote volume knob that I was able to panel mount on the bike. So now I can put my mp3 player on shuffle and stash it someplace secure and protected from weather, and just turn the volume up and down as needed, even with gloves on. This is the cat's meow, I tell ya! But it is slightly spendier, I think it cost about $70. The helmet speakers in the Autocom headset are designed for this level of volume - you're not overdriving them by putting an amp in, the way you would be overdriving the earbuds designed to go with an iPod. They sound very good even though I'm listening through earplugs, and I've not had any of my headsets blow, even though I've been wearing the same headset long enough for the foam on the outside of the speakers to wear out. Autocom is a UK company, and they went into receivership last year, and their future was looking doubtful. But over the winter they were bought out by the company that makes Starcom. And Starcom has pledged to continue making and supporting Autocoms. I don't know why one company would make two systems designed to do basically the same thing - maybe they will eventually converge them. But after several months of things being back ordered and it not being clear whether they would eventually arrive, new Autocom pieces started flowing again in March, and my long term back-ordered items all came in. Looks like it's going to be OK. I intend to continue using the stuff, since I have so much of it, and it works super well - I've never had a part fail yet and I have used them hard.