1moreroad

To the OP - if you're looking for 1 pair, look for mesh or well vented pants from name brands with CE armor and an insulated and a water proof zip in liners. Those offer the most versatility. Don't worry about saving $100 since a good pair of pants can last 10+ years. If you're willing to trade weather versatility for convenience, look at single layer waterproof pants. You'll trade venting for better waterproofing and no need to pull over to zip in liners. Gore tex is the industry standard and IIRC Fort9 said that Dainese and Goretex were the most waterproof layers. These will run maybe $500 and up. If you need convenience getting in and out of pants - like commuting - nobody does that better than Aerostich. I'm critical of 'stich because they should innovate more but they do commuter pants better than anyone else I've tried. I did discover that the hip armor for the Transit suit is MUCH more comfortable than the old foam pads they still sell for the AD1s. So my main pants are AD1s with Transit hip pads.

Glad you're ok. Have a feeling something that big would have taken out a skid plate AND cracked the oil pan. Hopefully you get a good salvage price for it.

Put a skid plate on it first. I learned my lesson. 😁

R9 based on the FZ09 could be fun. Lower front end will put more weight over it. I would think you'd want it to rev a little quicker than the Tracer. It could be a competitor to the Ducati Supersport line. Maybe a 9/10 Ninja 1000.

Chain tension? CCT or valves?

How do you change your oil with that skid plate?

I understood Ienatsch to say that trail braking is to load the front suspension, not to slow the bike. Better to trail brake into the corner than coast into a corner with no control over the suspension. What I haven't seen him write about is rolling through a corner on "neutral throttle" with just enough throttle to counteract the acceleration of the curve to hold a steady speed vs go in fast then trail brake to the apex. Neutral throttle should set the suspension like trail braking. There will be more weight on the rear, but the rider will be in control. I'm guessing "neutral throttle" is what @fjray is describing. @duckie - I think pashnit.com had a motorcycle LA TO SF route that went over some of those roads. A few of the roads were hoary, but a group of friends started a December LA to Monterey ride weekend tradition that use some of those roads. Thanks for reminding me of them.

Thanks for this.

Thanks for this

Chamois butter or some other water based lubricant (think KY but thicker) Chamois Butt'r™ Non-greasy Skin Lubricant for Cyclists - Chamois, GoStik, Embrocation Chamois Butt'r non-greasy skin... Bicycle shorts. Just bought these. MUCH cheaper and did well on shorter bicycle rides so far. The Black Bibs No Labels. No B.S. Undeniably... Do NOT wear underwear under bike shorts. Or try to ride a bicycle with an original, old school Flite saddle and any seat will feel plush.

I was. I was less than 1.5 hours from home so my son picked me up in our pickup truck. I'm very frustrated that it took AAA an extra 1.5 hours to let me know that the tow truck they promised was on its way was never on its way. I switched to AAA after 2 years ago the AMA roadside assistance contractor told me - no joke - they only tow cars. 65 to 70 mph. 2 lane state highway in the middle of farm land. Gentle curves. No gravel around when we drove back past. No people or other cars around that I saw. I was surprised about the size of the hole, too. Probably why I could ride more than a mile while leaking oil. The hole is high enough that I'm not sure a skid plate would have mattered. I'm very thankful that I was able to pull into a rest stop. The shoulder where it happened was only a couple inches wide with a ditch on either side of the road. I'm also thankful that Arkansas House in Jasper and Lemley's in Calico Rock offered me a credit for a future stay. They are both small, local motels with no refund policies on the day of arrival. Looking forward to this trip before the end of the year.

Put a hole in the oil pan. Looks like a rock hit it. 70 miles into a planned 1000 mile weekend. Just sitting waiting for AAA to flatbed the bike home. Can I just drop the oil pan to replace it or do I have to pull the whole exhaust? EDIT TO ADD: AAA can't find a towing service to get the bike. It would have saved me an 1.5 hours if I would have known that and I could have gotten my son to come pick me up. So now AMA and AAA have refused to pick me up in the MS Delta. EDITED AGAIN: Traced the oil leak over a mile back from the traffic light where I noticed the leak. Nothing. No dip. No bump. Just a random rock.

@dazzler24 is "of an age" where some people forget things.... Hate to admit I didn't notice the missing range until y'all pointed it out, and I'm only 48. I wonder if there is some sampling bias in age. I started using dial up and then the internet through forums, not social media. I'm a lot more active here than Facebook or Instagram. Maybe younger FJ riders are on the FB groups. There are enough "what oil do you use" posts on there that we all argued to death on esportbike.com or sport-touring.net 10+ years ago

Took me a couple of years to figure out why I like it - trees are cut pretty far off the road for good sight lines. Pavement is in good condition. Low traffic because there are better ways to commute. But I finally realized that almost all the curves are the same. Mostly constant radius, 35 mph yellow signs. You can run the road at "highway speeds" and just ease through the road. I can settle into a rhythm for about 15 minutes on Push unlike few other roads I've ridden. It's not a thrilling road like 123. More Zen.

Take them on a short ride and cruise, don't rail. Slow way down for rough roads both for their comfort and to protect the oil drain bolt (for those of us with 2015s). If they want to tour, trailer to the fun road. Not sure how big the passenger is, but I've been the reluctant passenger on my buddy's R6 when a previous bike had a mechanical with no other transportation option available. We got home ok. If an R6 can handle 350# of rider and passenger...

I think this needs its own thread. Don't bury this in a 500+ page thread about mechanical work!

@petshark best thing you can do is find another FJ or FZ or Tracer or XSR of an owner that thinks it's fine and see what it sounds like. Or develop a good relationship with a mechanic who can take a quick listen/feel for your bike without charging an arm and a leg. My Kawasakis made every bit as much racket as the FJ, so it doesn't bother me. But on this bike and the Kwaks, the difference in sound between normal and CCT going out or valve clatter was small unlike some other bikes that are much smoother/quieter.

This is a heavy cotton (like jeans but not denim) with liner they claim is basically their mesh jacket material. Hotter than a true mesh jacket but looks more like normal clothes. Some of the other riding shirts are basically a relatively thin waxed cotton compared to a jacket or a cotton/Kevlar blend. I think A* shirts are CE AA rated for slide protection so about the same as a lot of jackets out there.

Is it stock except the beak? Any luggage? Go look in the Bikes for Sale section in this site. I'd guess $5500 - $6000 + TTL, so what @CRFan250 is saying. And if it had OE tires, they should replace them with decent new ones as part of the deal. That's definitely a Dunlop Sportmax on the bike. Could be a D222.

They made a modern CBR F2! More modern suspension, frame, brakes, and electronics. A little more torque at half the rpm and probably more hp until the R7 redlines (and the F2 hp will keep climbing). I'm guessing cheaper to insure in the UK and Europe compared to the Ninja 636 since the UK seems to have more of a formula for insurance (US is more arbitrary). So lifetime costs compared to the 636 could be a lot less. I see the same thing with bicycles. Modern gravel bikes are somewhere between 1970s randonneurs and 1990s mountain bikes with all of the modern improvements. (I like this trend, BTW, and my monster cross was my mountain bike 2 years ago) This is not a bad thing, and I think more torque/less hp and modern riding aids will probably be safer for new riders. I don't like that center headlight appearance at any angle besides head on, tho... You are right, but that means that the rider can never make a mistake. I rode a friend's Ninja 1000, and it's a great bike, but it always required precision. The difference between a fantastic Woohoo and an Oh Sh*t was a tiny fraction of a throttle turn. I could see that being immensely rewarding at a track day or a really focused ride in the hills, but mentally exhausting on a tour or a commute. Maybe you get used to it.

Glad you were able to get back on the bike. At the Memphis, TN, dealers if it doesn't say FLXH (or whatever letters) or the word Ultra, you wouldn't know it exists. No mention of the Pan America anywhere on their websites. One of the dealers advertised 1 Livewire right when it came out, but I can't find any reference to that now, either.

Stiffer springs up front and maybe thicker fork oil to get the right sag and change damping (oil should be done under the advice of someone who knows, not me). Parts cost would be cheap, at least.

Maybe it was a 2019 model manufactured in 2018?

SALT Lake City - location checks out. For that much corrosion, you must live on Antelope Island.

A sample of one bike not run-in according to the book. Anecdotes do not equal statistics. "Anecdata" - data analysis on a sample of one. It's a term I learned maybe 10 years ago and very much like. How did this thread break down into a break-in thread?