What did you do to your FJ-tracer-gt today?

[cman]

That seat does look comfy and a lot more padding on the seat than the FJ09.

I gotta say the only time the FJ's seat bothered me was towards then end of a 260 mile out trip I took.  But, I race bicycles and if you've seen the seats on those, well... you get the idea. 
I now have 60 miles on the XSR and it definitely is comfortable.  I plan to do some longer rides this weekend to help eat up the break-in miles.

[wordsmith]

[strong]Drilled a hole[/strong] in the black rubber bung that fits behind the front seat release-catch (have you ever seen such a clunky thing on a motorbike?   Almost as bad as the nearby seat height adjustment system!)
 
Used a short bit of copper wire to form a loop to make removal of the bung easy, but on the last Tracer a thin zip-tie did the same job..
 
Also – [strong]ordered the Bagster seat[/strong], model #5355Z Ready Lux, with the optional Bultex foam. ETA 5-6 weeks – will report on its arrival and first rides.
 
[em]Wordsmith (’39 model) - Brisbane, Queensland, Australia[/em]
 
[em]2015 Matte Grey MT - 09 Tracer – now at 346km.
Stebel Magnum horn; 2” ‘blind-spot’ auxiliary mirrors; Third Gear mini top-box; lots more coming.[/em]
[em]http://i.imgur.com/nPayS1a.jpg[/em][em]
 
[/em]
 
 

[fzkenm]

That seat does look comfy and a lot more padding on the seat than the FJ09.

I gotta say the only time the FJ's seat bothered me was towards then end of a 260 mile out trip I took.  But, I race bicycles and if you've seen the seats on those, well... you get the idea. 
I now have 60 miles on the XSR and it definitely is comfortable.  I plan to do some longer rides this weekend to help eat up the break-in miles.

Hey cman, are you saying you got an XSR-09 in ADDITION to your FJ-09? A) Wayyyyy jealous
B) What's the comparison?  FJ better longer rides, XSR better city and Both equal but in different ways in the twisties?????
The CP3 is such a visceral motor, it seems it would lend itself to many applications.  ( I had a 2014 FZ.  Replaced it with the FJ.  Both are extremely engaging.  The FZ was most notable for its light weight (415 full tank), but the suspension was calibrated for someone under 175 #'s.  FJ has a great instrument cluster, center stand, ABS & TC and the suspension is firmed up, but could be better.  Both move through twisties quite enjoyably )
The "slipper clutch" looks interesting (never had one), but not really liking the reduced info cluster and no center stand of the XSR.
Tell us more.  Please......
 
 

[cman]

I gotta say the only time the FJ's seat bothered me was towards then end of a 260 mile out trip I took.  But, I race bicycles and if you've seen the seats on those, well... you get the idea. 
I now have 60 miles on the XSR and it definitely is comfortable.  I plan to do some longer rides this weekend to help eat up the break-in miles.

Hey cman, are you saying you got an XSR-09 in ADDITION to your FJ-09? A) Wayyyyy jealous
B) What's the comparison?  FJ better longer rides, XSR better city and Both equal but in different ways in the twisties?????
The CP3 is such a visceral motor, it seems it would lend itself to many applications.  ( I had a 2014 FZ.  Replaced it with the FJ.  Both are extremely engaging.  The FZ was most notable for its light weight (415 full tank), but the suspension was calibrated for someone under 175 #'s.  FJ has a great instrument cluster, center stand, ABS & TC and the suspension is firmed up, but could be better.  Both move through twisties quite enjoyably )
The "slipper clutch" looks interesting (never had one), but not really liking the reduced info cluster and no center stand of the XSR.
Tell us more.  Please......
 

No, no, I traded in the FJ-09.  I just wasn't using it like I thought it would (long trips, carrying stuff, etc.) and after riding a naked, I was amazed at how quiet and calm a bike could be from a wind noise / buffeting perspective.  Also, the XSR just spoke to me.  I really like the styling. 
As far as a comparison, I've only put 60 miles on it, so I only have some initial thoughts.
 
The XSR is very quiet in the wind noise department and very stable.  I haven't taken it on any twisties (not even sure there are any in Dallas that would qualify), but I think she's going to be just as nimble as the FJ-09.  She definitely wanted to turn into a couple of turns where I was playing around a little, but the FJ would have done the same.
 
The suspension/ride seems more comfortable on the stock settings than the FJ was.  The FJ seemed harsh over bumps with the stock settings (I'm 210-220#), the XSR seems to soak up the bumps better.  That could be a combination of the different seat and the suspension though.  It certainly never made me "nervous" in the few corners I took and on a couple of the rougher roads I rode on, it was easier to control the throttle.
 
That last bit (about throttle control) could also be that I think they've smoothed out the fueling / throttle even more.  I've read how snatchy the FZ-09 is (was?) and how the FJ-09 is much better.  But, even the FJ can be snatchy at low throttle inputs especially on rough roads.  That was a big reason I had 2wheeldynoworks flash my ECU.  The XSR is very smooth and I had no problems over the same roads I would take the FJ over!  She still has pep, don't get me wrong and once I've got a few more miles in her, I'll play around with A mode.  But, in STD, she's smooth.
 

[zachd]

I noticed the handguard displacers on the install instructions as well, but when I got the kit they were not there. Since I contacted Puig regarding the handguard displacers prior to ordering and used their recommended vendor. Puig sent me the displacers free of charge direct from Spain. It was a little annoying, but glad I contacted them ahead of time.

Thanks for the tid-bit. After reading this, I actually sent them an email saying I had bought the kit from Revzilla, and did not receive them in the package. 
Their reply:
 
 
Hello Zachary:
 
Yes please, email us the purchase receipt and we will supply the handguards displacer at no charge.
 
Also, please confirm the shipping address.
 
Thank you for your interest.
 
 
 
Score!!! Thanks!

[wordsmith]

This is just a ‘teaser’ for both thee and me while I await delivery of my new seat. Many years and many bikes have proved to me that nothing about motorbikes is more subjective than seat comfort, and more money has probably been spent/ wasted in the fruitless search for the Holy Grail than on any other part of the bike. Been there, done that…
 
By way of a lead-in, I’m now on my second new Tracer, and like so many others found the OE seat on both bikes to be an abomination (YMMV, of course). Since I like to do regular long-ish day rides of up to about 450km, and a couple of long interstate multi-day tours each year of some thousands of kilometres, seat comfort has always been important.
 
On my first Tracer (April 2015) I took advantage of a special Forum offer of 30% off (IIRC) from sponsor company Seat Concepts, and purchased their three-piece kit. This consisted of foam and cover for the rider seat, and matching cover only for the pillion seat (I never carry a pillion), to be installed onto the OE seat pan/ base.
 
Lacking a suitable staple-gun I had to get my local car and boat upholsterer to do the fitting, and he did a very good job for $90.  The finished Seat Concepts job is pictured below, and looked pretty good.
 
It gave some improvement in comfort and support, which – although nothing startling – was acceptable, and I later put in two consecutive days each of 580km on that seat in reasonable comfort: I doubt I’d have made the trip on the OE seat.   I should also say that the harsh OE suspension had by this time been tweaked to give better compliance - again, it was a little better but still far from plush.
 
Fast forward to the present: I knew when I ordered my new Tracer that the seat would have to be improved as soon as possible. This was quickly confirmed on the very short ride home from the dealership after collecting the new bike last week – my seat-bones began to ache almost immediately! A couple of later 120km – 200km outings have confirmed that view.
 
Choices were considered, including the current Seat Concepts kit.  There are also local motorcycle seat-makers whose products have a good reputation, but they may have little or no experience with the Tracer, and I didn’t want to be a guinea-pig.
 
Reading favourable comments on this Forum about seats produced by the French company BAGSTER – whose tank-covers I’d seen and admired for a long time – I decided to bite the bullet on their product, ordering their Ready Lux model 5355Z with premium Bultex foam in both seats, with my choice of stitching and embroidery colour from an extensive menu of options.
 
I ordered through the Australian distributor (Carlisle Accessories) at the mind-boggling cost of AUD549 (GBP295, Euro404, USD460 at time of ordering), and a lead-time of 5-6 weeks has been given.
 
For comparison, the new Bagster seat has cost me about AUD120 [em]more[/em] than the current Seat Concepts kit (including local fitting), so I hope it is going to be worthwhile.   Thinking further about the cost, I recall that I’ve seen prices for other well-regarded seats, mainly in the USA market, around the USD500 mark, so my USD460 delivered to my door doesn’t seem too bad.
 
Another comparison may be useful in that the Bagster seat comes fully fitted to a new Bagster-design pan, whereas most alternatives seem to re-use the OE pan, which it’s been suggested leads in some way to the discomfort levels.
 
I’ll report on my experiences with the new seat when it has been fitted and tried on the road. Pray for me…
 
[em]Wordsmith[/em] [em]('39 model)[/em] - [em]Brisbane, Queensland, Australia[/em][em]
[/em][em]below - the Seat Concepts product from last year's bike[/em]
http://i.imgur.com/TZMqUQS.jpg
 

[wordsmith]

The XSR is very quiet in the wind noise department and very stable.  I haven't taken it on any twisties (not even sure there are any in Dallas that would qualify), but I think she's going to be just as nimble as the FJ-09.  She definitely wanted to turn into a couple of turns where I was playing around a little, but the FJ would have done the same.
 
The suspension/ride seems more comfortable on the stock settings than the FJ was.  The FJ seemed harsh over bumps with the stock settings (I'm 210-220#), the XSR seems to soak up the bumps better.  That could be a combination of the different seat and the suspension though.  It certainly never made me "nervous" in the few corners I took and on a couple of the rougher roads I rode on, it was easier to control the throttle.
 
That last bit (about throttle control) could also be that I think they've smoothed out the fueling / throttle even more.  I've read how snatchy the FZ-09 is (was?) and how the FJ-09 is much better.  But, even the FJ can be snatchy at low throttle inputs especially on rough roads.  That was a big reason I had 2wheeldynoworks flash my ECU.  The XSR is very smooth and I had no problems over the same roads I would take the FJ over!  She still has pep, don't get me wrong and once I've got a few more miles in her, I'll play around with A mode.  But, in STD, she's smooth.

My dealer has offered me use of an XSR for a few hours while mine is having its first 1000km service shortly.   I'll probably take him up on it - it will make for an interesting comparison. [em]Wordsmith[/em]
 

[cman]

The XSR is very quiet in the wind noise department and very stable.  I haven't taken it on any twisties (not even sure there are any in Dallas that would qualify), but I think she's going to be just as nimble as the FJ-09.  She definitely wanted to turn into a couple of turns where I was playing around a little, but the FJ would have done the same. 
The suspension/ride seems more comfortable on the stock settings than the FJ was.  The FJ seemed harsh over bumps with the stock settings (I'm 210-220#), the XSR seems to soak up the bumps better.  That could be a combination of the different seat and the suspension though.  It certainly never made me "nervous" in the few corners I took and on a couple of the rougher roads I rode on, it was easier to control the throttle.
 
That last bit (about throttle control) could also be that I think they've smoothed out the fueling / throttle even more.  I've read how snatchy the FZ-09 is (was?) and how the FJ-09 is much better.  But, even the FJ can be snatchy at low throttle inputs especially on rough roads.  That was a big reason I had 2wheeldynoworks flash my ECU.  The XSR is very smooth and I had no problems over the same roads I would take the FJ over!  She still has pep, don't get me wrong and once I've got a few more miles in her, I'll play around with A mode.  But, in STD, she's smooth.

My dealer has offered me use of an XSR for a few hours while mine is having its first 1000km service shortly.   I'll probably take him up on it - it will make for an interesting comparison. [em]Wordsmith[/em]

You should.  I'd be curious what your thoughts are. 
I'm still VERY new to motorcycles, so I'm not even sure how to compare them properly.

[duhs10]

The other day I put some orange stripes on the FJ with some striping tape.  I also put Motodynamic flush mount turn signals, integrated taillight, and fender eliminator.
 
Today I put some wheel stripes to match the orange striping..
 

 
 
 

[fitrider82]

Looks great!

[oldfart]

Just changed my original front tire with 10,900 miles on the bike.! Pretty good, huh? (Original rear lasted 6,500).

[beanburnham]

Installed some tank protectors, courtesy of crowtdog, and OES frame sliders

[fitrider82]

Just changed my original front tire with 10,900 miles on the bike.! Pretty good, huh? (Original rear lasted 6,500).

Which model of tire are you replacing it with? 

[oldfart]

Just changed my original front tire with 10,900 miles on the bike.! Pretty good, huh? (Original rear lasted 6,500).

Which model of tire are you replacing it with? 

Dunlap Roadsmart II...basically the US version of the original tire. If it ain't broke.... 

[builderbob]

Took the forks off and boxed them up for shipment to FBI in Asheville, where David Behrend will work his magic on them. He's also setting up an Ohlins shock with remote preload adjuster for me.