phpaul

With traction control on (which it always is unless you intentionally turn it off) the very worst you will get is "bunny hops" and you'd have to work at it to manage even that in "B" mode. Wide Open Throttle in 1st gear will do it in Standard Mode, never tried it in "B" mode. I think you'd be happier with the Tracer, but I might be just a bit biased... The CP3 engine is just as happy pulling from 2000 RPM as it is screaming down the road at redline. One of the reasons I love this bike so much. Perfectly adequate commuter, pretty decent tourer with a few farkles, and all you have to do to get your crotch-rocket jollies is bump it into "A" mode and grab a big handful of that throttle. Never ridden or even looked seriously at a CB500X, so can't compare riding position, but I will say that the ergonomics of the Tracer are perfect for this crippled up old fart that absolutely can NOT ride a full-on sport bike OR a cruiser.

That looks interesting, and in my target price range too. Thanks! If it's convenient, I'd appreciate a picture of it on your FJ but don't go out of your way to get one.

I've cruised the topic and found the Saddlemen Tunnel bag which I REALLY like, but the "tunnel" portion is only 12 inches wide, tapering to 9 inches. The passenger portion of my Corbin, which is where the bag would sit, is 14 inches wide with little or no taper. So, 2 questions: 1. Would the standard Saddlemen bag sit on the seat okay? I'd MUCH prefer not to remove the grab handles. 2. If not, any recommendations for a fairly large tail bag that will work with the Corbin? My soft saddlebags died of old age, I don't have the need (or frankly the money) to go to hard bags. Just need a place to stash a rain suit and the occasional loaf of milk and quart of bread.

Nice! Glad you jumped on that deal, you won't regret it.

What @betony said. I've been caught a few times, and I have a decent-ish 1 piece rain suit because Stuff Happens, but I HATE riding in the rain. Or the cold. Or too much wind. Or too hot. Riding is supposed to be FUN. If I'm miserable, I'm not having fun. One reason the whole Iron Butt thing eludes me. If I'm tired and my butt is numb clear to my eyebrows, I'm not having fun, I'm enduring. Not what I ride for and after 50+ years of riding, I got nothing to prove.

I don't remember for sure, and I didn't keep it as it was a quick and dirty and pretty crude. 1 inch I think.

That's exactly what I did. Made the tool out of a scrap of EMT I had laying around.

You ain't alone..... That's comforting...

Took that ride today. 51°, lots of sun. Discovered 3 things: 1. I was underdressed, particularly in the glove department. 2. My natural tendency to be a wuss is getting stronger with age. 3. I think I missed peak color. Took my favorite ride out through pond country and nothing jumped out at me as picture worthy. Still, it was one more ride...

Sweet Mother of Pearl! I'd like to ride that. Once. They'd need a crew with a rescue tool standing by to pry my fingers off the bars and a crowbar to break the suction between my butt and the seat when I was done...

Usually, October presents plenty of riding opportunities here in coastal Maine. Days in the 50's are still common. This year, so far, has been a bust. 40's and rain. Bleah. 40's I might do. Rain, no way. I HATE riding in the rain. It's bad enough being away from home and getting caught in it. Intentionally setting out in it? No way, no how. The bike is ready and my gear still hangs over the back of the chair here in the den, so if a nice day pops up, I'm ready. I did run my textile jacket through the dry cleaners and put it away, but the lined leather is still out. About the first week of November, it's unlikely (tho not impossible) that there'll riding weather so I wash and wax the bike and hook up the battery tender. Still a matter of 5 minutes to be ready to ride just in case. About the only thing I have on tap for this Winter is a new chain and sprockets and maybe change out the antifreeze. Everything else is set up the way I want it as is. I need to find other projects to keep me busy. I don't really mind the cold weather or the snow so much, but I'm easily bored and sitting around the house will drive me over the edge pretty quickly.

I suspect you are all correct in saying there wouldn't be a detectable difference. Just rediscovering what a great engine the CP triple is!

I've been running 87 Octane E10 since new. I tried 91 Octane E10 and couldn't detect any change in performance or mileage so I went back to 87 for the price. We FINALLY got a station more-or-less in my area (25 miles away) that's stocking non-ethanol 90 Octane gas. Fairly significant price premium ($3.319 vs $2.849) but I wanted to try it just for giggles. My seat-of-the-pants dynamometer says "Horry Sheet!" Some of this is explained by the fact that I spent the previous hour or two donking around the back roads in "B" mode, gawping at the purdy leaves. After filling up, I left it in "A" mode. But, subjectively, even allowing for the mode change, it sure seems like it pulls harder, revs cleaner and has noticeably less "burbling" at idle. Has anyone else done a comparison?

Yup. I'm getting close to a nekkid FJ! No hand guards, no wind screen. Just much nicer all around IMHO, and better looking too. Now if I could just do something about those Gah Doffle alien insect headlight nacelles...

I might have to get me a tunnel bag like that dedsxy. Not right now tho, Murphy has been a busy esso bee at my house this month between the truck, the furnace and the pressure tank on my well.

Picked mine up from it's 12,000 mile dealer service. Now I get to put everything back the way I like it. They "adjust" everything to factory specs so I get to loosen the chain up a little, tuck the battery tender connector back under the seat, adjust the slack in the clutch cable to where I like it (I like full engagement at about half-travel, not all the way out at the end). Obviously some skinny little dweeb "test drove" it after the service as I had a really nice view of my armpits in the mirrors when I hopped aboard... All good tho, fresh plugs and an oil change and it's purring like a kitten.

What's that old saying? "If you have to ask..." LOL Exactly. I could probably swing the bike, it's the divorce that would wipe me out...

Took my '16 in for it's annual inspection. All good. Wandered around the showroom while they were inspecting it and lo and behold! they had a GT on the floor! Here, in lowly East Overshoe! Didn't ask the price, didn't want to know...

I haven't. I like both the naked look and the air flow with it off. I might toss it back on just as an experiment. If I do, I'll let you know the results.

I removed my windshield and was immediately impressed by the smoother air and reduced noise. Lots of reading on this in the windshields forum. Looking at the front of the bike with the windshield removed, it seemed to me like the Transformer Effect (which I don't care for to begin with) was enhanced. The gap between the windshield mount and the bodywork around the headlights just looked odd to me. So, I decided to see if I could fix that and maybe improve airflow (and dampen noise) in the front while I was at it. After trying various templates out of pasteboard, I came up with a shape that filled the gap nicely and didn't look out of place. I made the finish pieces out of aluminum flashing which is available in various colors. I just happened to have a piece of gray that matched closely enough for me. Alternatively, there is a fairly nice "carbon fiber" contact paper that would look nice in that position too. I have a sheet and had actually intended to use it, but liked the color as it was and didn't want to peel the pieces back off to apply the faux carbon fiber. The final pattern was made oversized enough that I could "bow" the piece into place rather than just have a flat plate in there. It follows the lines of the bike better that way, plus it's stronger. Be sure to dry-fit the piece to get all the bends and bows right before applying the tape. There are convenient flat places on the back side of the windshield mount and the body work for a 3/4 inch overlap. It's held in place by 3M Super Strength Molding Tape, their part number 03615. I didn't get the "nose" of the piece quite perfect, but I haven't noticed any issues. Kindly pardon the bug juice in the pictures, I just got back from a ride

Sure. I'll start a new thread with pix.

I understand, and have had that same impression when running without the screen. For a real revelation in mental tricks, remove the factory handguards and see how it feels. I ditched mine a few months ago, and never looked back... love the lighter & more nimble impression from the saddle. Abso-dang-lutely! I lost the windshield and the funky hand guards and LOVE it. Added some air deflectors made out of flashing between the windshield mount and the headlight housing and (again just a seat-of-the-pants observation) it made a noticable difference in turbulence and noise. Just cut out of some color-matched aluminum flashing I happened to have laying around and mounted with 3M double-sided foam tape. This is the second season with them and they've (ahem...allegedly...) survived 3 digit blasts.

...understand the leverage part, living through it. Just thought there was a chance that the eBay lever was somehow significantly worse than others. If buying a Pazzo shorty will not improve the lever force/action, then I won't be buying Pazzo shorty. Having supposedly bought the same product... @betoney likes, and @koth442 doesn't. Curious. I've been watching this thread and the question that's nagging at me hasn't been addressed. What, exactly, is the perceived benefit of shorty levers? Is it strictly an appearance thing? I can't imagine there are any physics-related benefits. In fact, exactly the opposite as noted elsewhere. To each his/her own of course. I've spent a fair chunk of change "improving" my FJ, but beyond moving that hemorrhoid of a license plate/turn signal holder, I haven't done any strictly appearance farkles.

So, I tried the "pull the chain away from the rear sprocket" check and it barely moved. Cleaned and lubed it, adjusted the slack and went for a short test ride, MUCH quieter. At this point the plan is to ride it for the rest of the season and then order a new set as part of the over-winter Farkles and Maintenance Extravaganza.

Resurrecting this thread and adding a bit of drift... I stopped at a store a couple of miles from home after a long ride and didn't bother putting my ear plugs back in. Noticed a LOT of noise from the chain. Bike is approaching 11,000 miles so decided to pull the cover and have a real good look at chain and sprockets. Front sprocket is showing definite signs of wear, rear sprocket looks good, chain is a little dry. Area under the front sprocket cover was disgusting! I've been using Motul paste/wax type lubricant. Haven't taken the chain off to check for side plate wear but after 11K, I'd suspect replacing it would be a good idea. This leads me to a few questions: 1. @betoney, are you happy with your choice of sprockets and chain? 2. Is there a reason that these chains use a peened rivet or break-off screw master link vs. the side-plate-and-clip style I'm used to? Power level too much for the old style master links maybe? 3. I've always heard that it's best to replace chain and sprockets as a set, but the rear sprocket looks pretty much virginal. I don't want to break the chain to get it off until I've decide if, and with what, I'm going to replace it. I'm tempted to replace the front sprocket for now and then do the whole job at the end of the season. Possibly false economy tho.