COFSTA

Bluetooth GMRS radio + Sena proved its viability so I'm returning the borrowed SMH10 and ordered a Sena 20s. 20s is now on 4th generation firmware so fingers crossed Sena squashed enough bugs that it isn't a POS.

Can't be a proper hoon without decent suspension so Ohlins gets pulled from the FJR next week and sent to Rick @ Cogent for rebuild. Depending on degree of motivation I've got a low mileage Gen II stock rear shock for temporary replacement or the FJR could remain out of order until Rick returns the Ohlins. Also, time for a front fork flush on both FJR and DRZ.

I've found the stock DRZ fuel tank impractically small, plus no fuel gauge, so it's getting a Clarke oversize 3.9 gallon tank. I've got my eye on a WV rally for decrepit old farts using small DS bikes in June of next year with an idea to drive the DRZ to the rally. Not too many people do x-country on a DRZ so there should be karma or some such extra effort points for that.

Why not send the shock back to Ohlins? They have excellent turn-around on rebuilds, about 1 week usually.

I have some history with Cogent and that's where the shock came from. The folks at Ohlins are great too though - you can't go wrong either way.

LeeDavis wrote:I have some history with Cogent

If you speak with Rick or Joyce, please tell them Ed Henderson says "hey"... known them 10+ years (probably closer to 15) via the Bandit community, and they've always been super-nice folks.

Lee, I too am doing a fork fluid flush. I may hold off until I talk to Rick at Cogent to see if I need a different spring rate. Can I ask what oil you use as a replacement? And what weight? I know our valving and spring rate may be different but I'm curious. I plan on giving Rick a call about an Ohlins and will suggest a shock like you have. I'll let you know what Rick suggests. Congrats on the new Sena setup!

yamadog wrote:Lee, I too am doing a "fork fluid flush"....

Betcha can't say that 3 times fast.

yamadog wrote:Lee, I too am doing a fork fluid flush. I may hold off until I talk to Rick at Cogent to see if I need a different spring rate. Can I ask what oil you use as a replacement? And what weight? I know our valving and spring rate may be different but I'm curious. I plan on giving Rick a call about an Ohlins and will suggest a shock like you have. I'll let you know what Rick suggests. Congrats on the new Sena setup!

I have custom built cartridges on the front forks that use a very light 2.5 weight oil. You would probably be doing something a little different than that so yes, talk to Rick - he'll get you sorted out.

Fork fluid flush..fork fluid flush..fork fluid flush!!!

Thanks Lee. I too use 2.5 wt oil. Per several forums, believe it or not, the stock oil used in the FJR equates to 2.5 as the Jap oil is very poor.

I rode with Jeff yesterday - returned the borrowed Sena SMH10 - and got to configure my new 20s with the Motorola GMRS. Jeff said the 20s sounded as clear as a wired Starcom or Autocom. I put my helmet shield both up and down and moved the mike to various spots. According to Jeff, none of that made any difference - it all worked. With the 20s 4th gen firmware it's hard to know what issues Sena fixed since the initial release but for me the microphone is a major improvement over the SMH10.

Were you and Jeff using the GMRS or direct pairing?

beemerbob wrote:Were you and Jeff using the GMRS or direct pairing?

GMRS - Jeff is using all wired with a Starcom and Midland GMRS radio.

Oh--I thought he used SMH10.

beemerbob wrote:Oh--I thought he used SMH10.

No, he purchased an SMH10 some years ago but it didn't do what he wanted so he never implemented it. That's the one I borrowed from him.

Chipping away... The Clarke fuel tank delivered yesterday and I installed. They did a good job with the fit so it was an easy job. None of the after market tanks will win any beauty contests and this is no exception but it's worth it to get the additional range. The Clarke adds 1.3 gallons over stock.

You suppose that tank would hold a coat of paint?

beemerbob wrote:You suppose that tank would hold a coat of paint?

Krylon Fusion paint would probably work. It's given me good results with the "poly" type plastics and is what I used to paint all the panels and fenders on the KLR.

The upgrades plan escalated to winter riding ability for the DRZ. It's too much fun to put away.

Hand guards, like the windshield, will help ward off the cold blast.



I measured current draw of my electric jacket and gloves on their low setting at 54W. Not bad but the stock DRZ can't supply that without draining the battery. So, I finished what the prior owner had started and replaced all the lights with LED's. This returned 55W. I took the DRZ out for a 1 hour loop yesterday, starting from my house and back while running my heated gear and the battery was fine at the end. Next up...into the boonies!

DRC Edge LED tail lights w/flashers



Cyclops LED H4 headlight

Have you tried riding behind that headlamp after dark, Lee?

Curious about whether the light actually goes where it's needed.

Interesting. Now I know why the previous owner of my DRZ put the same LED blinkers/taillight on---to free up enough watts to run the heated grips he installed.

I too am interested in how the headlight works, not that you're gonna ride after dark. What did that bulb cost? And have you tested it at typical lower off-road speeds as far as alternator output being able to keep up?

And how fast can you ride on the street and stay warm NOW?

Edit: What did you determine the output of the alternator to be, and the draw from engine electronics?

Hmmmm..wonder how that LED would look on my GS......

I think stator output for the DRZ is somewhere in 180W-200W but that doesn't concern me. I knew from reading other people's experience the DRZ has little power to spare so I just needed to reduce the bike's power requirement by the same or greater amount than is needed to operate my heated gear. The LED lights reduced draw by 55W which is enough to power the 54W to my heated gear. I also did what's called the "Free Power Mod" to my DRZ. It cleans up some wiring to produce a .5V increase back to the battery.

Like other items we sometimes use from small manufacturers (exhausts, power commander...) the LED H4 isn't DOT approved. Here's the manufacturer website with some user reviews. http://www.cyclopsadventuresports.com/3600-Lumen-H4-H6M-LED-Headlight-bulb-_p_83.html# This and other feedback I read was all from people using the LED on the street but you'd have to make your own judgement about running afoul of DOT.

Edit: I was out for the hour test in 40 degrees up to 70mph and not even close to being uncomfortable. Short of ridiculously cold I'm confident I could make it through a typical day ride without problem. The highest I've ever run my heated gear is at the medium setting and that was only for brief stretches.

Shit. No fair. Lee's having all the fun. Did you have to mod anything to get that big housing fitted on the headlight bulb?

Thinking about this---if you *know you're not gonna ride after dark, you could probably get away with a lower rated LED (i.e. cheap) stuffed into the headlight housing. 'Anything' bright would keep the popo away! No way they know whats in there....

Whats the other mod that gives you 1/2 V ?

Did you change the front blinkers to LED?

beemerbob wrote:Shit. No fair. Lee's having all the fun. Did you have to mod anything to get that big housing fitted on the headlight bulb?

Thinking about this---if you *know you're not gonna ride after dark, you could probably get away with a lower rated LED (i.e. cheap) stuffed into the headlight housing. 'Anything' bright would keep the popo away! No way they know whats in there....

Whats the other mod that gives you 1/2 V ?

The DRZ rubber backing doesn't fit with the LED H4 but that light will work underwater so I don't think it matters.

Yeah, all I really care about is making the bike appear legal. However, user feedback indicates the Cyclops LED is brighter than the stock bulb so though I don't plan to run at night I wouldn't be concerned if I had to.

The "Free Power Mod" gains the .5V by wiring directly from the regulator to the battery, bypassing a known failure prone connector and the rest of the wiring harness. Here are the instructions - scroll towards the bottom of the page: http://www.thumpertalk.com/topic/541623-charging-system-diagnoses-plus-the-free-power-mod/

I don't have front blinkers on the bike but it'd be easy enough to add them. The connectors are there in the front wiring harness behind the headlight braket.

Good info--thanks. Turn signals not required on bikes in NC?

Thought about installing a voltage meter to keep tabs on it?

beemerbob wrote:Good info--thanks. Turn signals not required on bikes in NC?

Thought about installing a voltage meter to keep tabs on it?

NC requires headlight, tail light, brake light and license plate light.

Monitoring the electrical system would require installing a good ammeter which is beyond my scope. I'm more of the ride it and see if it works type of person.

Why not just a simple add-on voltmeter? -->> http://stores.advmonster.com/waterproof ... voltmeter/

If it falls below 13V you know you're discharging.

NC does not require turn signals. I had taken the front turn signals off my SV-650 in order to replace them with smaller, brighter, LED turn signals. Before I put the new ones on (I actually liked the look without turn signals) I needed to get inspection for new registration sticker. I was told that they couldn't pass it. He said I needed to either put the front ones on or take the rear off!

Brick wrote:NC does not require turn signals. I had taken the front turn signals off my SV-650 in order to replace them with smaller, brighter, LED turn signals. Before I put the new ones on (I actually liked the look without turn signals) I needed to get inspection for new registration sticker. I was told that they couldn't pass it. He said I needed to either put the front ones on or take the rear off!

More nonsense from NCDMV. Lee, I guess you'll need to remove those rear LED blinkers before you take it in for inspection next October.

The regulations can be fuzzy to say the least. I've read official NC sources where one says you have to have 2 mirrors and the other says a single mirror is sufficient.

Well, since it is too cold to go riding I did a couple of upgrades myself. Hyper brake lights and a pair of running lights. Now I hope everyone on the road will see me. Need some warm weather to take the bike out and make sure the running lights are adjusted right. Come on warm weather.

Yarbi wrote:Well, since it is too cold to go riding I did a couple of upgrades myself. Hyper brake lights and a pair of running lights. Now I hope everyone on the road will see me. Need some warm weather to take the bike out and make sure the running lights are adjusted right. Come on warm weather.

Need pics of the new lights!

beemerbob wrote:

Yarbi wrote:Well, since it is too cold to go riding I did a couple of upgrades myself. Hyper brake lights and a pair of running lights. Now I hope everyone on the road will see me. Need some warm weather to take the bike out and make sure the running lights are adjusted right. Come on warm weather.

Need pics of the new lights!

Yep, mods are like rides...without pics it didn't happen!

I went ahead and ordered flashers to use on the front of the DRZ. That will well and truly finish the job and remove any doubt of legality. I've got a small spare battery that will start the bike to carry along on the 1st long heated gear ride. If reality doesn't match theory it'll give me a bail out.

DRC 602 LED Flasher

May not be a factor for you if the signals have internal resistors, or your bike has a solid-state flasher- when I've run LED turnsignals on the Suzukis, I've typically had to add resistors across the turnsignal leads:



...to settle the flasher rate down from a fast blinkblinkblink.

20W may be unnecessarily large, but I got them from the LED provider at the time... never noticed them being even warm to the touch, but I suppose they could get there if you forgot to cancel the signal for several minutes.

Yes, I see where the shrink-tubing has failed on one of these

Yeah, those are oversized fer sure. All you need is a watt rating (at 12 VDC) to match or slightly exceed the draw of the LED flashers--which is probably miniscule.

FYI, the rear LED flashers on mine flash at high speed too so I guess its not a solid state flasher module.

Edit: just re-read your post and you said the resistors are "across" the leads, meaning parallel, not series? That would lower overall resistance a bunch and yes the 20W resistors WOULD get hot.

Ed wrote:...to settle the flasher rate down from a fast blinkblinkblink.

DRC sells a little inline plug-n-play device for this but I haven't seen where the increase in flasher speed is much of an issue. Others may disagree.

....I haven't seen where the increase in flasher speed is much of an issue. Others may disagree.

I agreee, no intention of trying to slow mine down. Unless it was on a predominantly street bike.

When I added the led's to the rear I added the inline plug & play resisters and well I should have used two.
When I added the newest front LEDs turn signals I did not install any delay. To me going a little faster is more noticeable. So if everybody has faster turn signals... it won't be more noticeable! [FLUSHED FACE]

beemerbob wrote:Edit: just re-read your post and you said the resistors are "across" the leads, meaning parallel, not series? That would lower overall
resistance a bunch and yes the 20W resistors WOULD get hot.

For the Clear Alternatives lights I was using, the resistors were parallelled with the bulb (that is, placed between the flasher positive and negative leads). I had room to hang the resistors from the rear subframe with tie-wraps, so the heat wasn't a factor for those bikes.

When I said blinkblinkblink it was probably eight flashes in the time it would take you to say "blinkblinkblink"... stuff like that is unlivably half-assed looking, for me at least.

When I said blinkblinkblink it was probably eight flashes in the time it would take you to say "blinkblinkblink"... stuff like that is unlivably half-assed looking, for me at least.

You mean it looks like something a ninja poser squid wearing shorts and flipflops would have on his trashed sportbike, right dude? (along with some really cool blue FX lighting)