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

[Rick123]

3 hours ago, Garybinnyc said:

Looks good! What shoes are they? 

Thanks. Shinko E-705 trail Master front and Dunlop Trailsmart on the rear.

Edited May 2, 2021 by Rick123

[HigHTauR]

On 4/13/2021 at 4:02 AM, Clem Fandango said:

Installed new mirrors. They stay put and don’t vibrate.  I think they look better than the stockers too.

what mirrors are this? They look good 🙂

 

[keithu]

 

I took the Öhlins shock out for a longer test ride this morning. I rode out to Alsea Falls, then continued into the Oregon coast range on Lobster Valley Road, and finally returned to the Willamette Valley on OR-34. It was a good mix of twisties and sweepers with some rough pavement, and some almost new. 

This shock makes me realize how much I've been riding around the crap stock suspension. I'll definitely have the forks done next winter.

 

 

I was glad I refitted the coffee cup holder, it was a bit chilly in the coast range.

[betoney]

@keithu - Glad you are enjoying the shock and I love the photos. 👍🏻

[Clegg78]

@keithu  Thats awesome! It is a killer good shock in the rear.   I will say though the thing that transformed the bike even more for me was the fork. The FKS/NIX30 fork is just fantastic.

[Clegg78]

46 minutes ago, keithu said:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

@keithu 

Can we talk for a second about what's on the back of the bike?   I see what looks like Aluminum aviation grade fittings and a braided hose?  That an aux fuel tank? I am perplexed, impressed, concerned and possibly scared all at the same time  

[keithu]

19 minutes ago, Clegg78 said:

@keithu 

Can we talk for a second about what's on the back of the bike?   I see what looks like Aluminum aviation grade fittings and a braided hose?  That an aux fuel tank? I am perplexed, impressed, concerned and possibly scared all at the same time  

Yes it's an aux fuel cell. Details about that project can be found here:

 

[Clegg78]

5 minutes ago, keithu said:

Yes it's an aux fuel cell. Details about that project can be found here:

 

whoa!... thats really something!

[Wintersdark]

19 hours ago, keithu said:

I mounted the Öhlins rear shock. Wow, that lower shock bolt is a PITA.

I took a little 50 mile test ride around some local roads, focusing on twisties with imperfect pavement. I wouldn't go so far as to say the shock is transformative, but it's a significant improvement. With my weight and the bike setup I had the OEM at max preload and it would still bottom or wallow while also having no real bump compliance. The Öhlins feels planted yet plush, and I never scraped the bash plate.I don't have sag set properly yet. My wife is away on a girls weekend and my dog Lily can't hold a measuring tape for shit. But it was still revelatory to have a properly sprung shock for once. Being able to adjust preload on the fly is pretty cool, too; I've never had a bike with this feature.

Right?  I recently replaced my rear spring, and god damn was that bottom shock bolt a pain in the butt.  You basically need to take apart the linkages there, and it's not TOO hard to get it off when you've got the bike on the center stand and play with the rear tire height, but getting those bolts back in afterwards is a lot more difficult than you'd imagine.  

I thought the top bolt would be tough because it's so inset and there's hoses and wires in the way and only small access areas in the frame, but it was surprisingly easy once I worked out a good way to get the washer on and off without losing it in the tail of the bike, but that bottom bolt sucked.  Get wrenches on the bolts and you can turn them like 1/16th of a turn at a time.

So, mine's still the stock shock, but it's got an appropriate spring for my weight now (or at least, way more appropriate - it's a 110N spring) and I got the sag set up successfully, and it definitely does feel a LOT more stable through bumpy corners and moves way more smoothly.  My first time with any part of a suspension set to my weight, and it's really nice. 

But.

Now the inadequacy of the fork is painfully obvious.

 

@betoney talked about this in suspension threads and damn, was he ever right.  I have new springs for my forks but haven't yet installed them, and where I used to be pretty happy with the forks (despite setting sag being impossible) it's REALLY apparent how much of a problem they are now that the rear moves correctly.  It really, really highlights the inadequacy. 

Edited May 2, 2021 by Wintersdark

[keithu]

I think the lower shock bolt would be easier with a stubby 14mm wrench, which I did not have. I've no idea how anyone torques that nut, I just made mine as snug as possible with a box end wrench.

[betoney]

1 hour ago, Wintersdark said:

Right?  I recently replaced my rear spring, and god damn was that bottom shock bolt a pain in the butt.  You basically need to take apart the linkages there, and it's not TOO hard to get it off when you've got the bike on the center stand and play with the rear tire height, but getting those bolts back in afterwards is a lot more difficult than you'd imagine.  

I thought the top bolt would be tough because it's so inset and there's hoses and wires in the way and only small access areas in the frame, but it was surprisingly easy once I worked out a good way to get the washer on and off without losing it in the tail of the bike, but that bottom bolt sucked.  Get wrenches on the bolts and you can turn them like 1/16th of a turn at a time.

 

 

7 minutes ago, keithu said:

I think the lower shock bolt would be easier with a stubby 14mm wrench, which I did not have. I've no idea how anyone torques that nut, I just made mine as snug as possible with a box end wrench.

For future reference, this process is much easier by first removing the rear wheel and 2nd removing the linkage from the swingarm.  On the right side of the swingarm is a hole through which you can see a nut, remove that nut and the bolt, now with the wheel out of the way, the swingarm moves freely up and down giving you access to the bottom of the shock.  The first time I removed the shock I was cursing up a storm.  Also- these wrenches are a godsend when working in those tight spaces.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/CRAFTSMAN-7-Piece-Metric-Flex-Reversible-Ratchet-Set/1003096290

[Clegg78]

16 minutes ago, keithu said:

I think the lower shock bolt would be easier with a stubby 14mm wrench, which I did not have. I've no idea how anyone torques that nut, I just made mine as snug as possible with a box end wrench.

You think using something like this on a ratchet would help?   (would still take a while, but  was curious). 

[draco_1967]

On 5/1/2021 at 5:04 PM, Wintersdark said:

NGL, I'm a huge fan of the color scheme:

I'd do it to mine, but I've been a chicken looking at the scoops and tank itself.  Wrapping the lower triangular panels was challenging as it was - though in all honestly they're probably harder due to the corners.  When you don't have to deal with those panels, though, that's definitely an advantage

 

Looks awesome!

Thanks! Yeah, the front vent panels were a pain. I used two pieces of vinyl and knifeless tape. The tank was not as bad as I was expecting. The little panels under the seat were tough too. 

I am undecided if wrapping I any easier than painting. Yeah, there is a lot of prep for paint, but it goes on easier and looks better (when done by a hack like me at least).

On 5/1/2021 at 4:01 PM, betoney said:

The end result looks great from here.  I really like the white with red accents.  Maybe some red rim stripes to tie it all in?

Yes, I think some rim tape is in order. 

[Clem Fandango]

9 hours ago, HigHTauR said:

 

They’re Kiwav (who I’ve read make a lot of OEM mirrors for manufacturers).  I picked them up on eBay. 

[Warchild]

10 hours ago, keithu said:

I think the lower shock bolt would be easier with a stubby 14mm wrench, which I did not have. I've no idea how anyone torques that nut, I just made mine as snug as possible with a box end wrench.

 

I'll be doing this same procedure before the end of the month.... I am ready!  👍 👍 👍