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

[Wintersdark]

1 hour ago, wordsmith said:

Thanks, wd.   My impression is that the difference between the narrower GT's 'bars and wider Gen1 Tracer 'bars is appreciably more than the half-inch you mention, maybe up around 4" or 5" or thereabouts.   But I'll have to dig into it a bit more: I did read it in some specs some time ago.   I very much doubt I'd have detected a difference of only half-an-inch!   

The original wider Gen1 'bars might not fit the GT without some/ a lot of work due to the mass of additional controls on the GT 'bars - cruise-control etc.

I certainly haven't measured (or even seen a gen 1 tracer in person - FJ's are very, very uncommon bikes here), just going off the review articles I read in regards to the 2019 GT vs. the 2018 FJ.  Maybe the older FJ bars where wider yet?  

For sure, the control cables aren't nearly long enough to support a couple inches per side, so that'd be way more work than it's worth IMHO.

[wordsmith]

2 hours ago, Wintersdark said:

For sure, the control cables aren't nearly long enough to support a couple inches per side, so that'd be way more work than it's worth IMHO.

I definitely drink to that!

[Trambo]

15 hours ago, wordsmith said:

YMMV and FWIW an' all that, I found that I preferred the very wide OE bars on my last Gen1 Tracer over the somewhat narrower 'bars on the GT.   The Gen1 seemed to me to give the very comfortable ergos that I'd become used to on previous BMW GSs - very flat, very wide, very comfy, very accommodating of my preferred sit-up-and-beg stance.   Pix below courtesy cycle-ergo.   YMMV and FWIW an' all that...

I'm with my brother-from-down-under on this. 
I'm 6'1" with good reach, though. For me the Gen1 ergos are almost perfect. I can kick back on a long slab and relax, I can also lean up into the bars and do the Dragon Hustle when called for, the stockers just work well for me. Longer bars for my apelike arms is a bonus, I never feel cramped in any position and they just work for me. As WS said though, YMMV and to each their own... I swapped the stock bars on my naked SV-650 for better bars years back and was happy as a lark. Every person is unique and requires different fit and sit to be comfy. Find what works for you, and fix it. Seat, pegs, bars, levers can all make a "meh" bike a stellar "Ride of My Life". Make it yours. That's why the aftermarket is so cool.

[norcal616]

Proper rear shock arrived 🥰... 

[betoney]

44 minutes ago, norcal616 said:

Proper rear shock arrived 🥰... 

Proper shock, indeed!  Looks good. 👍 

How did you get a red spring?  My buddy and I both have that same Penske shock, his from Stoltec and mine from Traxxion Dynamics and they both came with dark blue springs.

BTW, you are going to LOVE that shock, once it gets dialed in it is AMAZING!!

[norcal616]

45 minutes ago, betoney said:

Proper shock, indeed!  Looks good. 👍 

How did you get a red spring?  My buddy and I both have that same Penske shock, his from Stoltec and mine from Traxxion Dynamics and they both came with dark blue springs.

BTW, you are going to LOVE that shock, once it gets dialed in it is AMAZING!!

I dunno on the spring color?? Its made by Eibach... the spring color wouldn't have mattered to me as it was gonna be covered in the neoprene shock sleeve I have... 

I'm almost done with the suspension upgrade... just got to install the rear shock and fill the forks and what not...then daydream till spring...

[Wintersdark]

Buckled down to learn to mount tires, and get my Anlas Wintergrip M+S tires mounted up for the winter.  Despite many hours of youtubing, using rim protectors, and struggling with tire irons, I managed to damage the bead on the rear significantly, and scratch up my rim pretty severely.  

Not normally a quitter, but there's a point where you need to recognize that you're doing something *wrong*.  I figure I'll wait till I can get a stand, as doing it on the floor is just not working for me.  I figure my problem is that with the width of the tire and it's stiffness, I can't get the "top" bead into the drop channel because the floor pushes the bottom sidewall up too much.  

So, after hours of struggle, I took the rims and wheels in to a shop to have them mounted.  They used a bead sealant on the now severely mangled rear tire, and hopefully it'll last.  

Well, I tried

 

[koth442]

5 hours ago, Wintersdark said:

Buckled down to learn to mount tires, and get my Anlas Wintergrip M+S tires mounted up for the winter.  Despite many hours of youtubing, using rim protectors, and struggling with tire irons, I managed to damage the bead on the rear significantly, and scratch up my rim pretty severely.  

Not normally a quitter, but there's a point where you need to recognize that you're doing something *wrong*.  I figure I'll wait till I can get a stand, as doing it on the floor is just not working for me.  I figure my problem is that with the width of the tire and it's stiffness, I can't get the "top" bead into the drop channel because the floor pushes the bottom sidewall up too much.  

So, after hours of struggle, I took the rims and wheels in to a shop to have them mounted.  They used a bead sealant on the now severely mangled rear tire, and hopefully it'll last.  

Well, I tried

 

Don't give up hope yet; I've done just that myself, tire still sealed and worked. 

[BugsInTeeth]

watch that tire very carefully .....it may leak air into the area between the tire and the inner liner...

if so, it will feel "bumpy"  and  have a small swelled spot, maybe so small you may not be able to see it,

but you might be able to feel it running your hand over it...

the Inner Liner runs out over the bead surface and up the side of the bead surface a bit....if (when), you beak that,

it can, and usually does, lead to all kinds of trouble with that tire.....

keep a VERY close eye on your tire pressure......

EDITED TO ADD  :

I wasn't going to say this, but after some thought, decided to  :

I would NOT run that tire.

[Wintersdark]

45 minutes ago, koth442 said:

Don't give up hope yet; I've done just that myself, tire still sealed and worked. 

Yeah, had a shop change them, and coat that with bead sealant.  Seems to be holding air, which is good.  I'd be real sad if I had to replace the tire, as it's both not cheap and very difficult to get here.  Bad enough that I scratched up the rim.  

Got the front back on yesterday, today will see the rear hung and then a trial run in the snowy -15 weather.  Don't really expect good performance in actual snow, but gotta test it.  

They're beastly looking tires.

[BugsInTeeth]

if you must run it....keep your speed down ... that is a disaster waiting to hurt you.....

[Wintersdark]

49 minutes ago, BugsInTeeth said:

watch that tire very carefully .....it may leak air into the area between the tire and the inner liner...

if so, it will feel "bumpy"  and  have a small swelled spot, maybe so small you may not be able to see it,

but you might be able to feel it running your hand over it...

the Inner Liner runs out over the bead surface and up the side of the bead surface a bit....if (when), you beak that,

it can, and usually does, lead to all kinds of trouble with that tire.....

keep a VERY close eye on your tire pressure......

EDITED TO ADD  :

I wasn't going to say this, but after some thought, decided to  :

I would NOT run that tire.

Well, I don't have the money to replace it right now, and the tire I removed (while very good) is wildly more dangerous for me to ride.  The stock Dunlop's are utter trash below zero, no traction at all, and murderous on ice.  I miss my Road 5's.

Upside is, being a winter tire, by nature I won't be pushing them hard.  Gotta keep the bike mostly upright and ride carefully all the time.

That said, any deformation and it goes.  I don't run tires on anything with wierd bumps and such.

[BugsInTeeth]

exactly.....if you do watch the pressure closely, and Feel that area, ( I would MARK it so I knew where  it is), every time before

you ride, you may get by with it for the winter....on clear dry roads however I wouldn't be trusting it at any speed......

[chitown]

Tire changing is mostly technique so if one is fighting me I usually take a break before trying to muscle it. None of my rims are scratch free but they work and touch up paint is cheap . No mention of heat so I'll mention that I preheat all my tires before mounting. Tires will sit in the sun before mounting and if there's no sun I'll lay a running heat gun or hair dryer in the tire for awhile. 

 

[1moreroad]

7 hours ago, Wintersdark said:

Buckled down to learn to mount tires, and get my Anlas Wintergrip M+S tires mounted up for the winter.  Despite many hours of youtubing, using rim protectors, and struggling with tire irons, I managed to damage the bead on the rear significantly, and scratch up my rim pretty severely.  

I change bicycle tires in less than 5 minutes. *In theory* moto tires should be identical. Somehow I struggled repeatedly. When I found shops that can install tires for about $25 each, I was done and let them do it.  Takes them 30 to 45 minutes and no scratches or scuffing.