MadScientist

I think if you try the Chinese levers, you may be pleasantly surprised. I was a little leery about it at first, but that was almost a decade ago now. I will say the fit and machining isn't always perfect, since I've installed a few sets on different bikes now and some have required a shim or a bushing to improve the up and down slop. Hell, if you don't like them I bet you can unload them here for what you paid. That and a set costs about 1/3 of the price of one ASV lever. For that kind of savings, I'll do a little work to improve the fit. Oh, and try to avoid anything with red anodizing since it fades to a hideous pink color.

All the speed bleeders in the world won't help you if the master is airlocked.

Thank you both for the input, I think I'll go check out the aprilia forum.

Thanks for the input. About the stators, I thought I read somewhere that the last 2 years have a slightly different design but I can't find it now. Any idea if this is the case? VFR4Lee - did you have stator problems? I don't know the precise differences between LA and Sydney climates, but perhaps this is a problem exacerbated by high ambient temperatures.

The opportunity to pick up a low mileage, mildly farkled 2nd gen Tuono has presented itself to me. Anybody here own one now or in the past? What did you have trouble with or hate about it? Any good mature forums without a bunch of owner circle jerk going on? I've long been dreaming of a replacement for my long gone Monster with a big, high(ish) revving twin, with a good chassis and brakes. On a related note, the 599 will be moving on soon if the Tuono deal goes through.

If you haven't already ordered a front sprocket, I (and probably others) prefer the OEM version with the polymer bumper. Like the one shown here: http://www.jtsprockets.com/catalogue/sprocket/JTF339RB/ Your current front sprocket is aftermarket.

Two potential mechanical culprits this sounds kind of like: 1. Vacuum leak - those lines are almost 20 years old. When I rebuilt mine there were a few questionable looking lines. 2. Fuel Pressure Regulator - the internal vacuum diaphragm and gaskets break down leading to fuel pouring through the vacuum line and into the #3 cylinder throttle body. Could be electrical gremlins or dirty injectors. Additionally, if the bike sat for some years, there may have been rust in the tank that subsequently plugged up the in-tank fuel filter. I'd lay off the O2 sensors for now. Eliminating them may identify the O2 sensors as the culprit, but it may also make diagnosis more troublesome.

I don't know if this play is going to work, but HD has to do something. They basically just sell one type of bike in about 20 variations, but they are all still "cruisers". I'm interested to see how the "streetfighter" will do, considering the bikes it is supposed to compete against "...the likes of the Aprilia Tuono, Ducati Monster and BMW S1000R" carry a massive advantage in prestige and refinement in the sector. HD better be prepared to sell at bargain basement to get a toehold, because nobody considering one of those 3 bikes is going to pay a premium just to have H-D on the tank.

I can confirm that the skidmarx hugger has a smooth top, however it has 3 small holes to mount the brake line brackets. These can be easily plugged with plastic automotive plugs or ignored. I used plugs that look like this:

I just noticed R19 is missing from the bottom(?) side of the board, there may not have been a resistor installed at that position though. Check out the solder pads for evidence of broken solder and maybe check in the potting material to see if it got stuck upon removal. R64, R65, and R68 appear to have virgin solder pads, so I think they were not installed. This is somewhat common, I would bet they are populated on different versions of the board. I assume you know a diode allows directional control of current flow. You may have to try both orientations when you replace it, unless you were able to determine the direction of the original diode. Thanks for the pictures!

Kev, did you replace the radiator cap? Pressurization of the cooling system leads to higher coolant density and better heat transfer. At least it's an easy swap...

The merge collector looks nearly identical to that in the 5th gen and 6th gen kits. It is not really a performance oriented design, if that is your goal. You might save a little weight by dropping the catalyst, but I don't think I would bother unless your OEM headers are damaged in some way.

My usual engine temperature for cold weather riding (<45 F) is 168 F. If the outdoor temperature is above 60 F, I rarely see engine temps below 180 F. This is with a brand new $30 price gouged OEM t-stat.

Great job removing the coating from the board, it usually doesn't come off very easily. You will want to replace the burned diode with another to provide the same reverse current protection of the original. I HATE soldering SMDs, especially semiconductors and capacitors because the heat of the soldering iron can easily damage them. If you don't have a flux pen already, you might want to consider getting one. Putting a light coating of flux on the terminals of the diode and the PCB will encourage the flow of solder into the joint and reduce the time the components are exposed to heat. The other method I use is to melt a tiny amount of solder onto the pads, place the component on top and hold it in place as I re-melt the solder on the pads. I'm sure DynoJet is not thrilled that you got the potting/conformal coating off the board. I wouldn't mind some more detailed pictures of the front and back of the board, if possible.

Don't know about current ownership, but it looks like they started out that way. https://www.penskeshocks.com/about-us/