Guru
September 7th, 2008, 04:24 AM
Tech Tips
· BelRay transmission oil. Much smoother shifts and seems to be less vibration. (adsp7)
· NeverDull: easiest shine material to deal with. Comes in a round short can, cotton material impregnated with metal polish. Small enough to keep in your saddle bag. (adsp7)
· Wire sodering connection: available at some parts stores now. Wire connection in both ends, flame from ordinary lighter will melt the connection ends. Slip some shrink wrap over wire before starting, then expose shrink wrap to flame after you have it in place. (adsp7)
· Light duty “Lock Tite” will keep your threads from backing out without needing too much force to remove. Simple silicone will work in many instances. (adsp7)
· “Star” washers will help you keep a good grounded connection on wires, comes in all sizes, also will help stop nuts from backing out. (adsp7)
· So far the RainEx hasn’t discolored a plexiglass windshield, but use at your own risk. (adsp7)
· Pam cooking oil spray will help stop the LoveBugs from sticking as much. Seems to work much better on toolbags, porous surfaces. (adsp7)
· Water-proofing boot polish holds up longer on saddle bags than standard saddle soap. (adsp7)
· Ask for the Heavy Duty electrical connections for wiring. Only use this kind for battery terminals. (adsp7)
· If you try to save some money by using Simple Green versus S-100 as a cleaning chemical, and find it very hard to get the suds off, you can chase the Simple Green (after you try to hose it off) with some Windex, it will make the Simple Green let go. (adsp7)
· On Harleys, the aftermarket Kryptonite headlight replacement set up will last many times longer than a standard sealed beam. (adsp7)
· Be careful with Avon tires, they have a longer break in time than Dunlops. You have to wear them a little before they stop slipping. (adsp7)
· The Harley version of the Thunder Slide Kit for your carb works great. Technically the piston for the carb is worked over with emory cloth to round the bottom edges and about 1/3 of the carb return spring is clipped off. All this gives it much more throttle response and a little better flow. (adsp7)
· “Pig Spit” WILL make your faded out paint on your bike engine look better. Holds up pretty good. Make sure you don’t get this or other similar product on your tire treads, unless you like pain. (adsp7)
· If you want to replace the headlight on your Sportster or DX series Harley be aware that the headlight is a giant electrical junction box for your bike. If you aren’t an electrical wiz you might want this done in a shop. You can have a separate junction box installed on the bike frame and make your headlight a two wire replacement, plus the grounding wire. (adsp7)
· If you want, or have to go with a Heavy Duty starter for your bike, know ahead of time that the pretty chrome cover you paid $45 for will not fit anymore. Do NOT remove the two bolts holding your starter together to make the cover fit, you may mess up your windings. (adsp7)
· A cheap battery or “Joe’s” replacement battery for any bike is not going to hold up for you. Buy your battery at a bike shop. (adsp7)
· Oil coolers: Factory mechanics will tell you these are from the devil because they won’t allow your oil to get hot enough to bake out impurities (water). All up to you, but if you change your oil in some reasonable time frame what is your worry? The cooler will keep your oil temp usually no higher than about 125*F and you don’t have to painfully listen to your valves vibrating out of the engine when you get caught in traffic. You can buy one that looks like a tiny radiator or you can buy the 10” long skinny rounds ones. Manufacturer is in our Links section. (adsp7)
· Mirror vibration on your Harley? Buy some foam adhesive backed little round mirrors at Walmart. They will fit on the glass face of your stock mirrors, either round or rectangular, and you will be able to see THINGS. They even give you more lateral vision, real handy when in close traffic. Be aware that “Things in your mirrors are closer than you think”. (adsp7)
· Your nice new T-Bag is NOT water-proof. Buy some large garbage bags to pack clothes inside your T-Bag. (adsp7)
· Even on a new bike you will need a standard electrical connections and pliers kit (Walmart,etc) for your tool bag and some 1/16” pliable wire to keep on hand. I wired my foot brake together with this and rode 150 miles to the next welding shop. The brake linkage was 100 miles old, right out of the box. (adsp7)
· Go ahead and buy the Water-Proof cover for your sleeping bag. You can’t even sleep in that thing wet in a motel if it is soggy. (adsp7)
· Throw that $100 hunting rain suit back in your truck where it belongs for hunting. The zipper flaps will NOT keep out water. Buy a standard Stearn’s triple overlay zipper flap jacket and stay dry. Cost, about $30. (adsp7)
· Don’t laugh at those $9 goggles with the thick foam eye pieces you saw at the rally. They WILL fit over your prescription glasses and you can get them in clear, amber (for nights) and 3 shades of smoke for day riding. (adsp7)
· Elastic straps do work better than non-elastic for the bottoms of your rain suit or leathers, both at the feet and wrists. Stays in place better and gives you more of a chance to keep the rain from walking up into your clothes. (adsp7)
· Most Harley shops now sell a rain boot. Slips over the toe of your riding boots and the sheath comes up to your knees, velcros around the back of your legs after you fold the sheath over. Cost, about $45. (adsp7)
· Make a copy and put your bike title, tag receipt, insurance sheet and inspection sticker in a sandwich bag and keep it in your gas tank leather console pouch. You can always find it and you can’t sale a bike with a copy. (adsp7)
· Want some new pipes for your bike: make sure whoever makes them made them with heat shields and has a written guarantee against them turning colors. (adsp7)
· A fork lock won’t keep your bike from being stolen, nothing much will. Extra insurance is a good thick Kryptonite cable. Double wrap it through the rear wheel and frame and around a post that is cemented in the ground. Make sure the cable can’t be slipped over the top of the post. (adsp7)
· If you like that “almost going dead thump” you can get from idling your bike down but find you have some recurring electrical or battery problems you might want to know that Harley calls for a very near 1000 RPM idle speed. (adsp7)
· Want some blacked out pipes, or anything else blacked out but don’t know what will hold up? Try some John Deere black exhaust paint. (adsp7)
· Finding yourself loosing balance when stopping at red lights and stop signs? You are looking down. Keep yourself looking level and forward and ease into the stop. Whether stopping or when riding, when that big bucket head of yours moves, your body and your bike moves with it. (adsp7)
· BelRay transmission oil. Much smoother shifts and seems to be less vibration. (adsp7)
· NeverDull: easiest shine material to deal with. Comes in a round short can, cotton material impregnated with metal polish. Small enough to keep in your saddle bag. (adsp7)
· Wire sodering connection: available at some parts stores now. Wire connection in both ends, flame from ordinary lighter will melt the connection ends. Slip some shrink wrap over wire before starting, then expose shrink wrap to flame after you have it in place. (adsp7)
· Light duty “Lock Tite” will keep your threads from backing out without needing too much force to remove. Simple silicone will work in many instances. (adsp7)
· “Star” washers will help you keep a good grounded connection on wires, comes in all sizes, also will help stop nuts from backing out. (adsp7)
· So far the RainEx hasn’t discolored a plexiglass windshield, but use at your own risk. (adsp7)
· Pam cooking oil spray will help stop the LoveBugs from sticking as much. Seems to work much better on toolbags, porous surfaces. (adsp7)
· Water-proofing boot polish holds up longer on saddle bags than standard saddle soap. (adsp7)
· Ask for the Heavy Duty electrical connections for wiring. Only use this kind for battery terminals. (adsp7)
· If you try to save some money by using Simple Green versus S-100 as a cleaning chemical, and find it very hard to get the suds off, you can chase the Simple Green (after you try to hose it off) with some Windex, it will make the Simple Green let go. (adsp7)
· On Harleys, the aftermarket Kryptonite headlight replacement set up will last many times longer than a standard sealed beam. (adsp7)
· Be careful with Avon tires, they have a longer break in time than Dunlops. You have to wear them a little before they stop slipping. (adsp7)
· The Harley version of the Thunder Slide Kit for your carb works great. Technically the piston for the carb is worked over with emory cloth to round the bottom edges and about 1/3 of the carb return spring is clipped off. All this gives it much more throttle response and a little better flow. (adsp7)
· “Pig Spit” WILL make your faded out paint on your bike engine look better. Holds up pretty good. Make sure you don’t get this or other similar product on your tire treads, unless you like pain. (adsp7)
· If you want to replace the headlight on your Sportster or DX series Harley be aware that the headlight is a giant electrical junction box for your bike. If you aren’t an electrical wiz you might want this done in a shop. You can have a separate junction box installed on the bike frame and make your headlight a two wire replacement, plus the grounding wire. (adsp7)
· If you want, or have to go with a Heavy Duty starter for your bike, know ahead of time that the pretty chrome cover you paid $45 for will not fit anymore. Do NOT remove the two bolts holding your starter together to make the cover fit, you may mess up your windings. (adsp7)
· A cheap battery or “Joe’s” replacement battery for any bike is not going to hold up for you. Buy your battery at a bike shop. (adsp7)
· Oil coolers: Factory mechanics will tell you these are from the devil because they won’t allow your oil to get hot enough to bake out impurities (water). All up to you, but if you change your oil in some reasonable time frame what is your worry? The cooler will keep your oil temp usually no higher than about 125*F and you don’t have to painfully listen to your valves vibrating out of the engine when you get caught in traffic. You can buy one that looks like a tiny radiator or you can buy the 10” long skinny rounds ones. Manufacturer is in our Links section. (adsp7)
· Mirror vibration on your Harley? Buy some foam adhesive backed little round mirrors at Walmart. They will fit on the glass face of your stock mirrors, either round or rectangular, and you will be able to see THINGS. They even give you more lateral vision, real handy when in close traffic. Be aware that “Things in your mirrors are closer than you think”. (adsp7)
· Your nice new T-Bag is NOT water-proof. Buy some large garbage bags to pack clothes inside your T-Bag. (adsp7)
· Even on a new bike you will need a standard electrical connections and pliers kit (Walmart,etc) for your tool bag and some 1/16” pliable wire to keep on hand. I wired my foot brake together with this and rode 150 miles to the next welding shop. The brake linkage was 100 miles old, right out of the box. (adsp7)
· Go ahead and buy the Water-Proof cover for your sleeping bag. You can’t even sleep in that thing wet in a motel if it is soggy. (adsp7)
· Throw that $100 hunting rain suit back in your truck where it belongs for hunting. The zipper flaps will NOT keep out water. Buy a standard Stearn’s triple overlay zipper flap jacket and stay dry. Cost, about $30. (adsp7)
· Don’t laugh at those $9 goggles with the thick foam eye pieces you saw at the rally. They WILL fit over your prescription glasses and you can get them in clear, amber (for nights) and 3 shades of smoke for day riding. (adsp7)
· Elastic straps do work better than non-elastic for the bottoms of your rain suit or leathers, both at the feet and wrists. Stays in place better and gives you more of a chance to keep the rain from walking up into your clothes. (adsp7)
· Most Harley shops now sell a rain boot. Slips over the toe of your riding boots and the sheath comes up to your knees, velcros around the back of your legs after you fold the sheath over. Cost, about $45. (adsp7)
· Make a copy and put your bike title, tag receipt, insurance sheet and inspection sticker in a sandwich bag and keep it in your gas tank leather console pouch. You can always find it and you can’t sale a bike with a copy. (adsp7)
· Want some new pipes for your bike: make sure whoever makes them made them with heat shields and has a written guarantee against them turning colors. (adsp7)
· A fork lock won’t keep your bike from being stolen, nothing much will. Extra insurance is a good thick Kryptonite cable. Double wrap it through the rear wheel and frame and around a post that is cemented in the ground. Make sure the cable can’t be slipped over the top of the post. (adsp7)
· If you like that “almost going dead thump” you can get from idling your bike down but find you have some recurring electrical or battery problems you might want to know that Harley calls for a very near 1000 RPM idle speed. (adsp7)
· Want some blacked out pipes, or anything else blacked out but don’t know what will hold up? Try some John Deere black exhaust paint. (adsp7)
· Finding yourself loosing balance when stopping at red lights and stop signs? You are looking down. Keep yourself looking level and forward and ease into the stop. Whether stopping or when riding, when that big bucket head of yours moves, your body and your bike moves with it. (adsp7)