captainscarlet

Before doing anything else you want to set the rider sag. This means adjusting the preload at the front and back so that approximately 30% of the available suspension travel is used up with you sitting on the bike in your normal riding gear. On the GT this means roughly 41 mm of travel front and back. What you do is lift the front of the bike so the wheel is off the ground and measure the exposed tube at the bottom of the fork leg. Then get on the bike, feet on the pegs and steadying yourself against a wall or similar get a nearby assistant to take the same measurement. The difference between the unloaded and loaded measurement is your rider sag and as mentioned you're looking for around 41 mm. Do the same at the rear. Put the bike on the centre stand and from the axle measure to a fixed point on the bodywork directly above the rear axle. Get on the bike again and ask your assistant to take the same measurement again. If you have less than 41 mm then you need to reduce preload, which in turn means that if you have more than 41 mm rider sag you need to add preload. Once you've got your preload dialed in you can start fiddling with rebound. Here you are looking for the suspension to quickly and smoothly, without bouncing up and down, return to it's rest position having been compressed. You can test this in the garage by pushing firmly down and then releasing the handlebars to compress the front forks. At the rear simply push down firmly on the rear seat and release. I made 3 videos to demonstrate what you're looking for in terms of rebound, which you can find here: Once you've got rebound dialed in in the garage you can fine tune it on some of your favourite roads. CS

Seems like you're also pretty interested in how your fuel consumption is doing. 😋 CS

Too be honest I've never really cared about fuel consumption on my bikes. They're essentially toys. As long as I have a rough idea of how far I can go on a full tank that's all I need to know. I never trust in-vehicle fuel consumption gauges. The only way to properly measure consumption is to fill the tank, ride until almost empty, fill the tank again and check based on distance travelled against fuel put in. This I do with my car, but never on the bike. CS

IMHO no additional hardware is needed. The "problem" is due to poorly adjusted suspension and the rider holding on too tight. I have seen many claim on this board that they are not holding on too tight, but I would have to disagree. It is simply a definition of what too tight is. I recently completed a trip to the UK from Sweden via Denmark, Germany and Holland. Those nice Germans have provided kilometre after kilometre of high speed test track in the form of Autobahns. I took the opportunity to experiment at speeds up to and exceeding 200 km/h, that's 125 mph in old money. I could at will order up a smooth wobble free ride or a wobble depending on how I held onto the bars. For info I had Yamaha's semi-rigid Euro panniers fitted and a Givi 40 litre topbox. The trick to a wobble free ride is to grip the right bar sufficiently to hold the throttle in position, but no more. Your left hand should have en extremely light grip on the bar. Your fingers are simply wrapped around the bar but not really gripping it. Your upper body is held in position by your stomach/abdomenal muscles and NOT your arms. At higher speeds there is turbulence on our bikes. Whether we realise it or not this turbulence on our arms and upper body is constantly providing small steering inputs to the bars. It is these that induce the wobble. I'm willing to bet that most people experiencing a wobble are holding themselves in position on their bikes with their arms and not their upper body. The arms being battered by the wind make small steering inputs and create a wobble. CS

Haha! I don't change my pants....sorry bike as frequently as you, although so far it has been about once every two years on average. The Tracer is the bike I've kept the longest at 4.5 years. However I have this nagging itch to change to a KTM. I'm also with you on the tinkering side of things. It's the only upside of the long Swedish winter; plenty of time for fiddling. CS

Congratulations. Although I must confess I feel like Ripley waking up after 57 years drifting through the core systems. Didn't you just buy a brand new 2015 red Tracer? What have I missed? CS

You won't blow the fuse. I've just completed a 6000km trip to the UK. I had my phone plugged into a USB adapter in the 12v socket on the left of the dash. On the right I had installed a double USB socket in the empty space which had my iPhone 6 Plus plugged in on navigation duty. Both the right and left sockets we're rated at 2.1 plus amps. With the standard 2 amp fuses in the fusebox I never had a problem, even with the chargers going several hours each day. Plug in, ride and relax. CS

After my recent tour of the UK I have personally experienced how completely ineffective the factory fitted rear hugger is. From the 2 week trip we had only 1 day of rain, but under that single day the back end of the bike was completely caked in cack. It seems to me that the factory hugger acts more like a giant plastic whisk spreading muck all over the swingarm and other parts of the rear of the bike. Having done some research it looks to me like the two best aftermarket options are from R&G and Skidmarx. Both these alternatives offer better side coverage. I have enclosed two pictures below to illustrate; R&G on the left and Skidmarx on the right: It seems to me the Skidmarx provides the best protection. What I'm less keen on is the glossy finish on the Skidmarx hugger which doesn't really match the generally matte finish on my 2015 Tracer. Price wise they both cost around £90 to £100. Skidmarx offer their hugger in carbon which might better match the Tracer but that costs £150. Can any of you who have one of the above provide some feedback. CS

I’ve been looking at the hugger you linked to. What’s the colour like compared to the rest of the bike? It appears to be very glossy on the listing. Also what is that bellypan you have? CS

Today I have mostly been removing the tank and airbox in preparation for the imminent arrival of my Translogic quickshifter. To those of you who have removed the tank, how on earth did you get the breather hoses off?! Mine simply wouldn't budge. In the end I lifted the tank off with them still attached. CS

Today I have mostly been ordering one of these: Meta title-translogic-intellishift- quickshift JYSKRACING.DK Meta description-translogic-intellishift- quickshift And for no other reason than I bloody well want one! CS

The indicators sit in the same vertical plane as the rear tail light. The distance from indicator tip to indicator tip is 38 cm. CS

That is great news. I am also 5'10". Unfortunately my first ride looks to be some way off as it is still snowing here.....😭 CS

I don't know about giant. The Swedish standard is 17 cm x 15 cm and according to Google, the US tag measures 18 cm x 10 cm. So there´s not what you'd call a huge difference in size. Still I'm quite happy for my plate to double as a mudguard as it keeps the bike clean. CS

Today I have installed one of these: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Yamaha-MT-09-Tail-Tidy-Fender-Eliminator-2013-2014-2015-2016-MT09-Tracer/162420952247?hash=item25d10b0cb7:g:21EAAOSwtaRa50PD It is a really good bit of kit and at £25 very reasonably priced. I think the likes of R&G and others are charging stupid money for similar offerings. It is robust metal, well painted and includes a led number plate light plus all the fasteners required to fit it to the bike. It is compatible with the Tracer's existing indicators as well as aftermarket versions. The bikes existing wiring is used intact apart from cutting the number plate light cable at the number plate light end to fit the new number plate light. The kit also makes use of the first bracket attached to the underneath of the bike. The rest of the tail unit goes. Happily it is also compatible with my Yamaha semi-rigid panniers. A couple of pics below. CS

No I don't think you're missing anything. I'm guessing/hoping that it should be possible given that the Razor R is essentially the same shock with a remote reservoir. CS

Today I set the preload on the rear shock and I have to say it was a royal pain in the neck to do. I removed the left hand rear footrest hanger but even then I could only get maybe a 1/4 turn with the provided collar spanner. Also, in order to be able to grip the next tooth I had to first use a padded screwdriver/punch to tap the preload collar round a bit more to get at the next tooth. Then it was a case of rinse and repeat to add the two full turns of preload I needed to get where I wanted to be. Further down the line I may or may not invest in a remote preload adjuster. CS

Not so much a "what have I done today" as a "what have I done this winter". I bought my Tracer new in 2015 and for whatever reason left it more or less bog standard (Evotech radiator guard and Hepco & Becker crash bars) for the first three years. Last year I put on KTM hand guards, Oxford heated grips, Kev's O2 mod and a Scorpion silencer. I also finally got around to adjusting the standard suspension for me. This year, the last two months, I have relatively speaking excelled myself. Givi M7 luggage rack and fitting kit Givi V40N top box Givi BF23 tanklock ring Givi MT505 tank bag FACO windscreen model no. 28435 Cosmo windscreen GPS bracket Ultimateaddons iPhone 6 plus case with quick release mount Double USB charger (mounted in the right hand socket space) Pirelli Angel GT tyres front and rear No-name black right angle tyre valves K-tech fork springs (9.0 Nm) Redline Extralight suspension fluid (8.3 CSt@40) K-tech Razor R Light rear shock No-name black 6 mm paddock stand bobbins I think that's it. The other thing I have done as a result of the above is equip myself with tyre changing equipment and fork servicing equipment. These tool purchases were made for less than the cost of a dealer doing the actual work so I consider them to be "free". Plus I can now perform these tasks at no cost in the future. CS

Well I'm no engineer but I'll give it a go. I would say that the OEM shock is just bulky, heavy and unsophisticated. For example the preload collar just looks like they poured some metal into a poorly made mould and thought "that'll do". The K-tech feels very solid in the hand and, in contrast, it feels like each bit has been engineered based on what it needs to do. I'm no expert but I would compare it to a BMW and a pick-up truck..... All IMHO. CS

Having just read Cruizin's post on the low level of traffic on Tech tips I thought I would describe my recent work fitting a K-tech shock. This is not a particularly difficult job and many have done it before me. I will add a few pictures later but for now I will describe the process involved: Bike on centre stand or paddock stand. The shock is held in place by two bolts. The upper bolt includes a bolt, a nut and a washer. The lower bolt includes a bolt, a nut and two washers. Remove the upper bolt first, access through the hole in the frame. Working on the right side of the bike use a socket and extension (socket size to follow) to remove the nut. I put duct tape around the hole in the frame to avoid scratching it. I found I could loosen the nut without holding the bolt on the left hand side. Carefully remove the socket ensuring the nut doesn't fall out of the end of the socket. Next you need to get the washer off the bolt without dropping it. I chose to use a small telescopic magnet and grab the washer before pulling it through the hole in the frame. Using a punch/screwdriver tap the bolt out from the right hand side and remove the bolt with your fingers on the left hand side. This can be a bit fiddly as various cables and tubing on the left make it difficult to get at the bolt. At the rear lift the swingarm/rear wheel so that the nut and bolt holding the bottom of the shock are above the top of the swingarm allowing you to get a socket on the nut. I put duct tape on the swingarm to stop me scratching it with the socket/extension. Undo the nut on the right hand side and remove the nut and washer. To remove the bolt, lower the swing arm again and use the hollow space on the inside of the swingarm to get the bolt and second washer out. Carefully lift the OEM shock out rearwards over the rear hugger.......and throw it in the bin! 😋 Fitting the new shock is in classic style the reverse of removal however it may vary depending on whether the shock you're fitting has a remote reservoir etc. In my case the new shock had no remote reservoir. Slide the new shock into position from the rear. Raise the swingarm/rear wheel and slide the bolt and washer into the base of the new shock and attach the washer and nut on the right hand side. Tighten the nut on the right hand side to 44 Nm. You will probably need to hold the bolt on the left hand side to get the nut tight. Raise the swingarm/rear wheel and hold the shock so it slides into position in the upper mounting. I pushed a screwdriver in from the right hand side to hold the shock in place whilst pushing the bolt in from the left hand side. The bolt may be a bit stubborn to get in. I used a punch/screwdriver to drive the bolt home. Place the washer back on the upper bolt from the right hand side. I used my telescopic magnet again to carefully slide the washer over the bolt. Attach the nut to the bolt from the right hand side and tighten to 44 Nm. To prevent the nut falling out of my socket I put a little dab of grease inside the socket. Again you will probably need to hold the bolt on the left hand side to get the nut tight. Stand back and admire your handywork before covering the bike up again because you can't go out and ride it because it's -20 degrees Celsius outside. 😱 Below is a picture of the new K-tech shock next to the OEM shock. The K-tech is much lighter and also of a smaller diameter than the OEM. CS

I bought from a local paint supplier. Any decent paint shop should be able to mix up the correct colour. There are also numerous online suppliers. I initially tried my local Yamaha dealer but they were no help. CS

The wheels are DPBM15 which is Yamaha Deep Purple Blue Metallic. It may also be called DPBMC. I've just bought some touch-up paint in that colour. The side panels are BWM2. You can get all the paint code info from the Yamaha online parts catalogue: Parts Catalogue WWW.YAMAHA-MOTOR.EU If you select the part you're interested in, for example the wheels, there is a "Remarks" button in the part list that you can click on. It then gives you the paint code or other relevant additional information. CS

As I have mentioned in other threads I am in the process of updating my suspension. At the front end this means new K-tech springs at 9.0 Nm and obviously fresh oil. I have trawled the numerous threads on this board and have understood that a fork oil with a low cST value is what's required. On that basis I have bought some of this stuff: Red Line Synthetic Oil. ExtraLight 2.5wt Suspension Fluid WWW.REDLINEOIL.COM Popular in NASCAR's professional categories, motocross, and road racing, where top engineers try to run the lightest fluid possible that maintains its viscosity and stability. It has a cST value of 8.3. I received two bottles of the stuff yesterday and confess I'm now a little unsure. It is very fluid and to my untrained eye looks more like blue coloured water! Have I gone too light? CS

You may be interested to know that KTM hand guards bolt straight on without any modification required. CS

This evening I have mostly been fitting my new Faco screen: and my Ultimateaddons phone case: CS