monterey10 Posted December 19, 2015 Share Posted December 19, 2015 Long time VStrom owner. Long distance Gold Wing owner. Getting a little gray top side. I needed to get into a bike that was lighter. I appreciate all the work other owners have put into their bike and their willingness to share on the Tech posts. I do enjoy distance traveling, but I needed more versatility. On Wednesdays I ride with a bunch of old guys through the tight windy roads of the Santa Cruz Mountains. Next week they'll ride 400 miles to look at light houses up the coast. I look forward to bike camping along the Oregon Washington coast. I must admit that I looked very closely at the Versys 1000lt, but they're selling like hotcakes in these parts and it was hard to find a deal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member ULEWZ Posted December 19, 2015 Premium Member Share Posted December 19, 2015 Long time VStrom owner. Long distance Gold Wing owner. Getting a little gray top side. I needed to get into a bike that was lighter. I appreciate all the work other owners have put into their bike and their willingness to share on the Tech posts.Welcome aboard. I love the Monterey area. Good luck with the new purchase. Make sure you check out the possible loose fasteners and overly tight chain in the new owners post. A government which robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul. George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950) Bikes: 2015 FJ-09, Seat Concepts seat cover and foam, Cal Sci medium screen, rim stripes, factory heated grips, Cortech Dryver tank bag ring, Modified stock exhaust, FlashTune with Graves fuel map, Cree driving lights, Aux power socket. 2012 Street Triple type R (Wifes) 2007 FJR1300 (Sold!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monterey10 Posted December 19, 2015 Author Share Posted December 19, 2015 On the ride home, I heard 6th gear singing. At the house I checked the chain, super tight. The manual says 1/2" slack on the center stand. I read a post that suggested 1" 3/8". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member ULEWZ Posted December 19, 2015 Premium Member Share Posted December 19, 2015 On the ride home, I heard 6th gear singing. At the house I checked the chain, super tight. The manual says 1/2" slack on the center stand. I read a post that suggested 1" 3/8". Some of the top gears are a little noisy, but still normal. 1-3/8 in. is good for the chain. A government which robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul. George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950) Bikes: 2015 FJ-09, Seat Concepts seat cover and foam, Cal Sci medium screen, rim stripes, factory heated grips, Cortech Dryver tank bag ring, Modified stock exhaust, FlashTune with Graves fuel map, Cree driving lights, Aux power socket. 2012 Street Triple type R (Wifes) 2007 FJR1300 (Sold!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member javashot1 Posted December 19, 2015 Premium Member Share Posted December 19, 2015 Welcome! Bit grey on top myself. I was almost a Versus 1000 owner. Would have been if not for a last minute $150 price increase from the Kawasaki dealer. They claimed it was a misquote but I thought I'd go back to the FJ for another look. I made an offer on the FJ I thought was too low but they took it! After spending a little on comfort and performance I've still spent less than I would have on the Versus and I'm very happy with the light weight triple. Mid range power is awesome on this bike when you flash the ECU! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member bugsplatered Posted December 19, 2015 Premium Member Share Posted December 19, 2015 Congratulations and welcome to the forum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member keithu Posted December 20, 2015 Premium Member Share Posted December 20, 2015 Welcome! If you plan to camp along the Oregon coast right now I hope you have a very waterproof tent. We're smack in the middle of a rainpocalypse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patsmith Posted December 20, 2015 Share Posted December 20, 2015 Welcome from Sacramento. Gray on top also. If you head this way for a ride and some ideas of where to ride hit me up. Camping on the coast is always good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monterey10 Posted December 22, 2015 Author Share Posted December 22, 2015 Things that I didn't expect: One of the subtle things I can feel is that the frame is quite stiff. I got used to a moderate amount of frame flex in my current bikes, and even more in the 80s retro bikes. You get used to this over the years. This improved frame stiffness puts more emphasis on the forks and rear shock working well. Hit a bump and the frame wont give for you. The forks and shocks have to do their job. Suspension performance was demonstrated on a moderate ride through the cratered Larkin Valley Road twisty. I felt decent suspension performance in a real world California road. Wouldn't want it any more harsh for riding my mountain roads.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monterey10 Posted December 22, 2015 Author Share Posted December 22, 2015 Irritated: Testimony as to how poor the modern water based paints are. I've given 100% effort to protect the FJs paint from any abuse. And yet, when I filled the gas yesterday, I came away from the station with a tiny ding on my shiny new red tank. A key may have brushed the tank. AAARRRGGG. You used to hit a tank with a hammer and never see so much as a scratch, and I'm already looking and a micro ding on the FJ. The FJ is not different than the others, my 12 Goldwing paint gets wonky if I put a bike over over it. The paint doesn't chip, it just is very soft and takes a plaid pattern from the cover material. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member clint Posted December 22, 2015 Premium Member Share Posted December 22, 2015 Things that I didn't expect: One of the subtle things I can feel is that the frame is quite stiff. I got used to a moderate amount of frame flex in my current bikes, and even more in the 80s retro bikes. You get used to this over the years. This improved frame stiffness puts more emphasis on the forks and rear shock working well. Hit a bump and the frame wont give for you. The forks and shocks have to do their job. Suspension performance was demonstrated on a moderate ride through the cratered Larkin Valley Road twisty. I felt decent suspension performance in a real world California road. Wouldn't want it any more harsh for riding my mountain roads.. The suspension becomes much more compliant after 2k miles or so. In the beginning, I dialed the preload WAY back on the forks and a couple of notches on the rear too. Took care of the initial "harshness" on little bumps. After a few thousand miles, I brought the preload back up a bit as things broke in. Piedmont of NC '15 FJ-09 '94 GTS-1000 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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