wessie

acquired a 7mm open ended spanner and removed the foot peg trouser catchers

Surely this situation is where the B mode comes into its own... L of S He commutes in London - A mode is needed for the traffic light grand prix...

Your last paragraph is very pertinent. If you feel this gives you better throttle control then it will improve your confidence which will make you a safer and maybe better rider. One thing, if you were experiencing the throttle opening as you went over bumps, are your arms and grip on the bars relaxed? Your arms act like shock absorbers and if they are rigid or your grip is tight or tense then this will amplify the effect on the throttle. This was something that I developed as a relatively inexperienced rider after transferring from a large trailie to a sports bike. It took me a while to work out what was happening.

select from the multiple choice answers A) misses the point B) defeats the purpose C) A and B

I don't know much about Lithium batteries in auto-electrical systems, apart from they are significantly more costly. The SPS LIPO10A seems to be an alternative to the standard YTZ10S - it has a whopping 210 CCA i.e. 20 more than the Yuasa YZ10s and 10 less than the larger Yuasa. It weighs in at 870g against 3.2kg for the Yuasa, so saves 2.3kg. In the UK it costs £130, so about twice the cost of the Yuasa. That 2kg might be useful to a racer but on a sports touring bike? Same with the fast charge ability: on a total loss system like on an enduro racing bike then yes, that is a useful feature but on a high mileage touring bike? I think not but YMMV. I have met a number of UK based MT09 Tracer owners and all of them, including me, could enhance the performance of their bikes more by a personal weight loss programme, rather than trying to shave a bit off the bike. As I said above, the OE Yuasa is still going strong in my old Super Tenere 5.5 years after leaving the factory. There's nothing about the Li-on technology that convinces me it is worth the additional cost over a quality AGM battery in a road bike application.

A battery like this Motobatt with terminals you can switch around to get side access would be good for the MT09 Tracer as it would make adding accessory wiring easier as you do not need to lift the battery to loosen the terminals. It has 10Ah but only 160CCA, which is 30CCA lower than the original Yuasa. Motobatt has developed a substantial reputation in the UK despite the relatively cheap price. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MOTOBATT-MBTX9U-YTX9-BS-CTX9-BS-YTZ12S-YT12ABS-YTZ14S-/160924286750 - handily this is from a local to me shop in Gloucester that has recently re-opened, as previously I could only source Motobatt online.

As it seems we have had summer and autumn is with us now it's May, I had the seat off my bike to meddle. I noticed there is a 2cm spacer at the base of the battery (the opposite end to the terminals as it is lay in one side). You can see the grey foam spacer in this picture I took when writing up my seat mod, next to the red fuse holder. So, with my electrical engineer's hat on, I went to the ever useful Tayna website to get the dimensions of the Yuasa YTZ10S fitted to the bike. These are 150mm x 87mm x 93mm. It is the 93mm dimension that has been added to by the spacer. The electrical specification of the Yuasa YTZ10S is a capacity of 8.6Ah and it has 190 CCA (cold cranking amps). My battery has VRLA written on it which means valve regulated lead acid. This means the battery is either a gel type or an AGM (absorbed glass mat) type. Everything you need to know about VRLA batteries is in this useful wikipedia article. A VRLA battery is important as once sealed they will not leak, hence being able to fit it on it's side. So, I decided to look up which batteries are available with the same 150x87mm dimension but a height of 110mm or less. Again using the ever so useful Tayna website that lets you filter by each of the dimensions and the very important VRLA/AGM I found the Yuasa YTZ12S or YTZ14S will fit. They are both 110mm in height. Spec: YTZ12S, 215 CCA and 11Ah YTZ14S 230CCA and 11.2Ah It seems Yuasa does not make these batteries now, but there are alternative makes available including some very good brands like Westco, Varta and Motobatt. Hopefully it will be quite some time before anyone needs a new battery. The original Yuasa was still on my Super Tenere when sold, it was 5 years old and had done 20,000 miles. It rarely needed a charge as the bike was used all year and the AGM technology is great at keeping a charge if not used for a couple of weeks or even months. The reason I have written this thread now is that some owners who live in cold climates and use the bike over winter may find upgrading to a battery with 40 more cold cranking amps makes starting on very cold morning easier. Those who do short journeys or run a lot of accessories may find having the extra storage capacity of the 11Ah battery could mean there is less need to put the battery on to charge at night. For those in the UK, a genuine Yuasa YTZ10S replacement is about £70 from the MDS shop on Ebay. Tayna will sell you a Numax for a little over £30 or an excellent Westco for under £65. There is an Ebay shop selling a FIAMM branded battery (I thought they only made filters) for under £30. Prices for the larger batteries are very similar. If anyone has questions about batteries please ask them here. If you have another question about electrical matters please use the search facility (button at the top of the page, not the one on the right inside the thread) and if your question has not been asked before, please start a new thread. I will ask the mods to keep this thread specifically on topic about batteries. I cannot guarantee to answer all electrical questions. Batteries are something I have knowledge and experience of but I'm not an auto-technician. My background is working on the electronics you find in Xerox products and is a decade out of date, but the laws of physics don't change!

change down a gear to keep it above 4500rpm. Sometimes I just leave it in 4th gear, especially on twisty roads in the hills, as you can pull from almost a standstill up to an indicated 130mph. In this respect it is a lot like a 1 litre, inline 4.

But I'll have already farkled my current FJ and not likely I'd start over again. Unless another jihadist deer gets me, again.but many do - just look at all of the used bikes in dealer shops that are 1 or 2 years old and have just 2-3000 miles on them (I'm making a big assumption it is the same in the US as the UK)

It certainly does. Just had this with the UK franchisee for a US product being mentioned in another section of this forum. I'm now waiting for them to come back to me now they know the MT09 family has the same DNA as the FZ09 & FJ09 and can make enquiries with the parent company.

Because they want you to buy one next year when they bring it in as a "model update" Then in 2017 they will bring along other gadgets from the Super Tenere & FJR, like electronic cruise control. All to make last year's model obsolete. Cynic, moi?

When quoting I prefer to use the plain text editor so you can see the quote tags [have words in square brackets] You can access this easily by clicking the BBCode tab at the bottom of every post you make. For an older IT geek like me it is more intuitive to use than the really wonky GUI this forum software presents at times. I prefer the vbulletin format...

I didn't say any of that in the previous post - paulyp has messed up the attributions. In Europe a visor has to be CE marked to be legal on the road. This applies in all European Union countries. There are different regulations for racing, often with different ones in different countries. In the UK we have "ACU Gold certification" - it's a mess. Personally, I just buy a dark visor from Ebay and use it. Usually for half the price of the Shoei one. Neither will have CE certification. I ride to work wearing jeans. I'm an irresponsible rebel.

Do you get a choice of helmets? If not do they custom fit to individual's heads? I have a torrid time trying to get a helmet to fit and it seems I have to go with the Japanese makes as I don't have a Teutonic or Italian shaped head.

Not street legal??? WTFudge? Dark visors aren't street legal in the UK/EU either - doesn't stop riders, including police officers allegedly using them. What is the legal situation in the USA?

bodged my seat base to make the rear slightly lower to reduce that sliding forward feeling http://fj-09.org/thread/1192/wessies-seat-base-mod

It all depends on the age of your RF1200. I think the RF1200 was the same as the XR1100 in Europe. This model has been discontinued by Shoei and the last stocks are in the big warehouse type motorcycle clothing stores at a heavily discounted price. See http://www.shoei-europe.com/discontinued/ The NXR seems to be taking that price point now in Europe and seems identical to the current RF1200 on Shoei's US website Seems you need a helmet that takes the CWR1 visor to get it in the Transitions material http://www.sportsbikeshop.co.uk/motorcycle_parts/content_prod/235433 - £120 in the UK, or 3 times the price of a standard one. I think I'll keep wearing sunglasses! The NXR takes the CWR1 visor. As does the new RF1200, of course. After looking at the US Shoei site it seems Shoei keep the names in the US when they change the model. We always get a different designation which seems clearer, especially if they change the visor (yes, I should be on the stage with puns like that). The latest version of the RF1200 does take the CWR-1 visor, so if you have a recent RF1200, then you should be able to get a Transitions visor as they are on sale in the UK. Of course, if you have an older model with the CW-1 visor then you need a newer helmet. Shoei etches the visor model code on the visor.

originally but it seems to be a brand now for a range of cleaning/lubing products - I have their chain lube & chain cleaner although not used it since fitting the auto-oiler

I swapped my original screen with grosgym's tall screen by Yamaha. I am going to try it on my commute tomorrow, but I'm going to wear my dark visor as I don't want to be seen with something so fugly. Quite a dilemma if it actually works...

@scuff has come out as a traffic cop. I wonder if he ever played ticket snooker? This would explain why in the olden days in the UK, when you got tickets from real officers rather than robots or civil servants hiding inside a camera van, that you were more likely to be done in a red vehicle rather than any other colour. Snooker, is a game similar to pool for those not in the know. The object is to pot balls using a cue and white ball but the scoring system is very different to pool as you accumulate points. You alternate potting red balls (1 point) with balls of another colour (points depend on the colour, black 7, blue 5 for example). So red followed by black, red & blue would score 1+7+1+5=14. I imagine there would be some arrangement where the traffic unit with the lowest score at the end of the shift had to get the doughnuts in, or maybe a weekly tally and get the beers in before a rest day.

I have a standard red Tracer/FJ and it certainly seems to be visible by motorists. Quite a few drivers emerging from side roads have stopped dead as I hurtle into view. It doesn't stop me covering the front brake though, as there is still going to be some myopic individual who really should have had their driver's licence pulled.

It's a good idea to wear earplugs on most rides, unless quite short. Even on an apparently quiet bike, over time the noise levels will damage your hearing.

Shoei XR1100, 5 stars from Sharp. Well vented so a bit breezy for some, so not good for track days but great for trips to southern Europe in summer. You can change the thickness of the cheek pads to get a better fit. I got some of the narrowest ones and it is now a great fit. Like it so much I bought a 2nd one when they were discounted to £249

I like the short Daytona boots made in Germany. Very popular in Europe and to me the best boots on sale. Sadly sold at silly prices in the UK so best to buy them in their home country. The short style fit better than any long boot. My rugby player calf muscles make wearing long boots difficult and I always have to have my trousers on the outside. I also need a very wide fitting and the short boot give easier access. I wear the Daytona Rainbow in summer. I've worn these all day in the office when commuting by bike. In winter I wear similar Daytona Journey which are a bit wider so I can get 3 pairs of socks on if needed. Both boots are goretex lined and have been completely waterproof. Both pairs were bought secondhand from the UKGSer forum for £60 a pair. If needed they can be sent back to Germany to be refurbished.

I did. It's still in situ on the one side. The OE one on the brake side is still present, but this has a plastic washer that was not on the other side. Other solutions include using blue loctite or adding a soft rubber or pvc crush washer which will absorb vibration and mean the knob is not abutted onto the hard plastic of the fascia.