CharlesW

The manufacturer's of the two motorcycle jackets I own both recommended Nikwax. Seems to work for me on boots, gloves, and jackets. http://www.nikwax.com/en-us/index.php I happen to use the Leather Restorer. http://www.nikwax.com/en-us/products/productdetail.php?productid=254&itemid=-1&fabricid=-1

Not exactly off-topic, but a different area of leather care. 303 is recommended for UV protection of many products including leather. Would using a conditioner and the 303 alternately be of benefit? Such as a conditioner one month, 303 the next. My new leather jacket has a lot of red leather and I would like to keep it red rather than pink.

The filters being oiled are designed to be used after oiling. K&N being one of the best known. http://www.knfilters.com/ DON'T oil a conventional paper pleated filter.

Depends on the dealer and also depends on the sales person's impression of the person requesting the test ride. My test ride of my VFR had three conditions. Helmet required and either bring it back when I was done with it or stop in and pay for it.

RWR, you are not alone. PM sent.

One thing worth looking at is free "lifetime" map updates that are included with many Garmin units now. My 205W came with only one update a couple of years ago, but a lot of them now include the "lifetime" updates.

Do a Google search for "Helmet Chin Curtain" and you willl find all sorts of information. I have one on a HJC helmet and it does a good job of reducing the cold wind under the chin bar. I don't really notice that it does much for reducing wind noise, but since I wear earplugs and am 1/2 deaf, I am not a good judge of that. They are less than $10 and easy to install between the helmet shell and the liner. I have heard that they contribute to face shield fogging, but it isn't a problem with my PinLock shield.

I recently purchased a Speed and Strength "Moment of Truth" leather jacket from these people and while I don't have a review of the jacket just yet, the company really put forth the extra effort to make my purchase satisfactory. This is my first new fitted leather jacket and I had no idea what to expect when I first tried it on. It seemed like it was at least a size or two small. I contacted them and they told me to return it if I wasn't happy with it, but that much of the stiffness would go away with some wearing of the coat which would help the fit. Guess what, they were right. I'm not only happy with the fit now, I was so impressed with their customer service and follow up (3 emails to be sure I was satisfied) that I felt they deserved some recognition. Here's a link. http://www.motorcyclecloseouts.com/

Good question. Loose and they are probably noisy. Tight and they ???????????????? Maybe there isn't any indication until you do burn some valves.

3dcycle beat me to it. In the past I have seen the hood, tank, whatever protector film recommended to protect that area. I have the Tank Slapper stuff on my tank, not the 3M but the static cling product. It does look like either product would work. I just quit using mine. (Mostly because I added a FastPack tail bag. Works great for hauling stuff, but didn't make me a bit faster.)

Just a thought about overall fitment. I have only the Genmar risers with stock bars and I was not completely comfortable with the amount of clip-on clamping area I had after their installation. I raised the fork tubes 5mm and that seems to be a good move. At least for me. The 5 mm fork tube raise is often suggested for quicker turn-in. Turn-in may be a little quicker, but not a lot different. No adverse effects that I can notice. Stock setting was 41 mm to the top of the fork tube from the triple clamp. I'm now at 46 mm.

The only "overpants" I own are Icon and I didn't think there was anyway in the world the knee armor was going to ever be in a place where it did any good. Instead, I use strap-on knee/shin guards which seem like they might be in the right place on an initial impact. Does she even need the zippered openings? Some of the women's pants have almost a bell bottom lower leg. Also, not to rain on your parade, but I rarely ever wear the overpants. I can usually get by with jeans wherever I'm going so I just wear Kevlar lined jeans. I don't think I would buy the overpants again.

I was lucky enough to find a seamstress through a fabric store in my area. She replaced a zipper on one armored textile jacket and added a couple of velcro tabs on the cuffs of another. Just ask some of the employees. It so happened that the woman that did the work for me was an employee of the store, but she did her sewing work from her home.

While the combination may fit the forks OK, you might have some clearance problems with the fairing. I also doubt that the stock brake line, clutch line, throttle cables will work with that much rise.

Just an aside. I almost didn't buy the VFR because of my concern about the nuisance of taking care of a chain. Yeah, it's more work than the shafties, but spraying some chain lube every 300 to 500 miles hasn't been too bad. Takes longer to put down some newspaper to catch the overspray than it does to actually lube the chain. I use the DuPont Chain-Saver and occasionally really soak the chain and sprockets. That soaking is the extent of my chain cleaning.

Hey, it's getting much better than a tire thread. It's starting to read like an oil thread. For those that are having a problem finding O-ring chain, Motorcycle Super Store lists quite a few of them. If they have them available, chances are your local dealer would also be able to get them. I do a lot of research on-line, but I like to support my local dealer when it's time to buy. Just a little off-topic. (Hey, it's my thread) How do you actually determine when a chain is at the end of its life? I have used the pull away from the sprocket test since I don't really know a "right" way. That's where I try to pull the chain away from the rear sprocket at the 3:00 o'clock position. Pulls away, chain or sprockets are worn, doesn't pull away, probably still good. I have not needed to adjust my chain in the 27,000+ miles I have ridden the bike. Started at and still at about 1-3/8" slack per the manual. Rear sprocket doesn't have any hooks in it and doesn't show any wear, but chances are the only way to be sure would be to check it against a new sprocket. Wear on the rear sprocket is probably easy to see, but how many ever look at the front sprocket? I do plan to replace chain and sprockets together when I decide it's time. I ask all these questions not only because I am dense, but also because I have ridden shaft drive bikes since 1983.

That's good. The tire threads led me to Michelin Pilot Road 2s.

I certainly didn't realize that X-ring chain had been around for 20 years. Seems like if it was all that much better it would have taken over as the chain of choice. I have read the various articles that talk about the difference in design, but I was more interested in comments from actual users of the X-ring chain. For those of you that have used the O-ring and the X-ring chain, can you compare them? Did you notice any difference in performance? (Asked mainly because less drag seems to be one of the selling points of the X-Ring chain.) Did you have increased chain life? Would you buy the X-ring chain again? The 60,000+ miles on the X-ring chain sounds impressive. My RK which I think is a basic O-ring has 27,000+ on it since I bought the bike used and seems to be going strong. I have no idea as to the total miles on it. The bike now has 47,000+ and I doubt that it is the original chain.

Any experience with "X" ring chains? Better, worse than "O" ring? My RK "O" ring chain has done a great job and I think I will probably replace it with the same thing, but maybe I should look into the new "X" ring chains. Latest and greatest or just another alternative?

Another thing to look at. The tech replaced a slider bushing that was worn quite a lot on one of my fork legs. (The one that was leaking) He thought that might have contributed to the leaking fork seal. Bike had 42,000 miles on it at the time.

I think every man should have at least one, but why in the world would you ever want two.

If your bike is actually bright red, go to your Honda parts department and order R157 Italian Red in a touch-up bottle.

14 foot-pounds. See Item #5. Honda Installation Instructions . 1. Remove the clip-ring on top of the fork tube above the handlebar. On some models you will need to move the front brake hose out of the clip that pulls the slack in the hose up to the fork tube, just above the lower triple clamp. Loosen the pinch bolt on the handlebar and remove the bar from the top of the forks, leaving the controls in place. 2. Place riser on top of the fork crown, where the handlebar had been, with the 8mm bolt face down and in the same notch in the fork crown that the pinch bolt in the fork crown goes through. The handlebar has a cast-in locator pin on the side of the bar as to go into the same notch. 3. Place the handlebar on top of the riser block with the locator pin on the handlebar lined up with the small hole above the 8mm bolt on the bottom side of the riser block. 4. Insert the small tube with the metal cap down through the top of the handlebar to cover the preload adjuster. This is just for looks and will help to keep the upper part of the handlebar and preload adjuster neat. 5. Tighten the pinch bolt on the handlebar and you are finished. Torque 8mm bolts to 14 foot-pounds. 6. Start the engine and turn the handlebars all the way to left and right to make sure none of the controls bind. VTR models: The front brake hose is too short, so we supply a small aluminum bracket so you can raise the brake hose on the front of the bottom triple clamp. The junction is held on with one 6mm bolt. Remove the bolt and install aluminum bracket to triple clamp with bolt supplied and then refit junction to aluminum bracket with stock bolt in threaded hole. This will move the junction up 1/2" so you don't have to replace the brake hose. F4 models: The handlebar riser with the chamferred edge should be installed on the right side. Also, for maximum handlebar clamping grip on the fork tube, it is recommended that the fork tubes be raised in the triple clamp by 5 millimeters. DO NOT remove the fork caps from the fork tubes. - Please read the instructions at least twice.

I had the same basic idea but I didn't want quite that large of a wing. (FWIW, I don't consider plain silver to be ugly, just plain.) Also, not an Arai.