Brock

Hi Wandering Dane, I felt the same. I picked up my 2021 this spring and thought the suspension was terrible. Major shoulder and wrist jarring over small bumps even on the 'street' suspension mode. I checked the preload settings and they were at the recommended start or 'normal' position per the manual. So in blatant disregard for the recommendations I backed the front preload off to 1.5 turns from the 7 recommended and the rear off a couple of clicks (I don't remember the number). It transformed the bike. It's great on our less than perfect roads now and still performs really well out in the twisty turnies. I might but another click back in the rear (top box and bags), but if anything I might take bit more out of the front preload nuts. I wonder if there's an issue in assembly that leads to this. There could be 'built in' assembly preload on some forks. Anyway, backing it off made the world of difference on my T9GT. Like you I've been around the block, riding since '67, eight years in vintage racing (VRRA), too many old bikes in the shed and 350K+ on my last sport touring bike (2000 R100RT). Now I think it's a really nice bike. A Madstaat screen took care of the buffeting and wind blast and I'm a happy camper. Cheers, Brock

After 1500 miles on my new '2021 Tracer GT 9 with the stock fairing I found it intolerable and ordered a 24" Madstad. Aside from one small niggle I could not be more pleased. Installation went smoothly with everything fitting correctly. Nothing interferes with the bars, mirrors or signals at full lock. I set the angle about midway and took a ride. The difference was immediately felt and after another 600 miles or so including a 120 mile blast at an average 85 mph it's just fine. Zero buffeting, visor up on the full coverage up to around 70 mph and the wind noise is way down. I may play with the adjustment just to see but I'm a happy rider right now. As for the one small niggle, Madstad shipped 6mm plate mounting bolts and the '21 Tracer takes 5mm. As I had some in the shed it wasn't a big deal. I'll let them know in case it wasn't a packaging error. Cheers, Brock

There's always the old trick of doing one wheel at a time 🙂

Again, thanks for all your thoughts. I felt I'd been privileged with the community on BMWSportTouring with the RT and this forum seems just as solid. To 'Heavy': I ran the 518 and area roads twice this year. I'm a bit jealous that I don't live up there but it's close enough to visit. In May I host a small vintage event in Maple Ontario. Please consider yourself invited. It'll be posted on the CVMG.ca website. To 'Maximo': When I first saw the XS650 I was 19, running my Bultaco Metralla Mk2. The Yamaha made a similar impression as the first CB750 I saw on the road. I've never had a chance to ride the 650 on the street but did in the VRRA endurance races for a couple of years. To '2and3cylinders': I had to laugh about your comment about the RT's power compared to the Yamaha. As it happened, on the ride home on the RT that day I thought to myself 'Am I the boiled frog, not noticing the power going down over the years?'. It wasn't the years, the Tracer is really fast! I know it's not a liter class sport-bike but it's a revelation for me. I think the word intimidating came to mind on my first ride. I'll get over that. As for age and background, I had my 70th over a year ago. Background is harder. Highlights would be elevator mechanic, custom painter, software developer and retired old guy. Around 1970 I dove into British bikes until a particularly perfidious Norton Fastback drove me to Japanese (Water Buffalo) machinery. There's lots of other stuff better reserved for over a beer/meal. No comment on the California roads. I've made it down there three times and it's been a stellar experience each time. Cheers, Brock

Thanks for the welcome. Perhaps better as a separate thread but as I haven't picked the bike up yet, does anyone know of any pitfalls I might look for with the dealer prep? Cheers, B

Though that's pretty thrilling so far. I've been thinking a Tracer 900 would be my next bike since they came out. The first thing to catch my eye was the weight (light) and the price (reasonable). By 2019 I was pretty much ready to get one but then the covid experience cut annual mileage down and my Beemer kept on running strong. A friend in Ontario bought one three years ago and last fall while spending an overnight at his place he said 'Why don't you take mine out for a spin in the morning'. The spin was a 30 mile romp around a beautiful loop road near Bancroft ON. Between riding a new bike for the first time, not wanting to hurt a friend's pride and joy, and the roads still holding some morning dew under the trees, I came no where near thrashing it though it was the power that left the biggest impression. After the January 6th bike show in Toronto and nearly buying a new red 2022, I called other dealers and found a new silver 2021. I liked the colour better, the bikes are identical as far as I can tell, and a bit over $3k less on the price convinced me, I signed the papers Saturday and am now an owner without a bike. It'll be long wait to mid-March. So that's the story. As for me I've been riding since I was 15. This is my third Yamaha. My first bike was a '64 YA-6 125cc and a 79 XS1100 filled the shed for nearly 18 years. Spanish (Bultaco Metralla Mk2) and Brit (Norton, Triumph, BSA) bikes filled my youth along with a 75 Water Buffalo and a '77 R100/7. The BMW R1100RT I bought in the spring of 2000 now is nearly 23 years old and has over 350K kms on it. While it's running great, the clutch spines failed at 160k and it's well over double that now. The clock is ticking and I'm not comfortable heading out on a long (to the coasts) trip any more. It's time for the new ride. I used to race with the VRRA and am currently active with the CVMG in Canada. They're great folks and support a vibrant vintage scene. My shed is mostly full of older (60's) bikes and the Tracer won't be a lonely triple, I'll park it next to my '69 Rocket Three. Most of my riding is touring, the twistier the route the better. I've spent some time on this forum and it seems like a great resource for tech and accessory information, not to mention camaraderie. I look forward to participating once I've actually got the bike in hand. Maybe there will be a warm week in February. Cheers, Brock

New guy to the forum but I thought I'd chime in on why I believe most but not all speedos read high. Back in the pre-electronic era new speedos had a range of accuracy, lets call it 5% up or down from accurate, probably on a bell curve. If the speedo is reading high, no problem, if it's reading low however then there's the problem of manufacturer liability for traffic violations. Police vehicles had 'authority' speedometers installed which had been individually calibrated for accuracy. This was back in the 60's and 70's Not so with the mass production, built down to a price. The manufacturers just printed the speed scale so the lowest reading speedos showed correctly and all the rest read high. In 56 years of owning vehicles I've never had a vehicle show a lower speed than accurate. The best was my 2004 Astrovan, reading a mere one MPH high, one of the worst was my 2000 BMW RT1100 (60 mph shown, 55 on gps). Most newer vehicles are better but still never read low. It's kph not mph now and the speedos In support of this odometers have always seemed MUCH more accurate yet they're driven by the same cable or sensor. I don't get my new 2021 Tracer 9 GT for another two months (it's a bit wintry here in February and March) but it's nice to know a flash can take care of it if I need to. Cheers, B