Mega-Ride, April 23, 2021

[Wintersdark]

14 hours ago, Warchild said:

Oooooooh, yes. Never travel without the 110v Warm-N-Safe liner, at any time of the year. I can't even set it on high without the possibility of leaving burn marks.  And I use LDComfort long-sleeve and long johns - very warm stuff. And I have all manner of layers clothing that comes from LDRiding for 25 years. Truly, in this instance, only the fingers were the real issue - nothing else. But it was enough, apparently, to give me an attitude problem.  😕

Aren't they stunning? They came off the all-silver very first year FJR1300... 2003 (though it was a calendar year 2002). My friend had them done up in this paint in 2005.  He says these bags are mine, now, and he actually told me it's fine if I want to paint them the same gloss black as I had the Tracer done. There is no possible way I could bring myself to do that.

Here they are at a Rest Area in northern Nevada yesterday afternoon: 

The color scheme itself is wonderful, but really, the paint job itself is spectacular.  That red looks so deep and shiny.  I'm in love 😃

But yeah, heated gloves (or glove liners) IMHO is just a must have.  I don't do a lot of winter long distance riding (being Canadian, there's a very real danger of getting stuck somewhere inconvenient) but I ride in very cold weather daily.  Heated grips are wonderful, but IMHO just not good enough if you're travelling at anything over urban street speed.  Maybe better handguards fixes that; I've never had a set - the Tracer handguards are the first I've ever had.  I've got both heated gloves and glove liners, they plug into the sleeves of my heated jacket liner.  Kind of spendy at about $150, but absolutely worth it to have warm and toasty digits all the time.  

Tough choice, though.  Glove liners appear a more cost effective option but the problem is while (like jacket liners) they're really slender, you still need to have room for them under your gloves, which basically necessitates a second pair of motorcycle gloves that are a size larger than what you'd regularly wear.  This does allow you to wear the gloves you like and have them heated though: a really good choice here is a pair of waterproof gloves to go over the liners.  On the other hand, full heated gloves significantly reduce your glove style/armor/bulk options but simplify the process.  My heated gloves work really well (better than the liners, on account of being more insulated than the gloves I wear over them), but they're bulkier than I like and I can't fit my jacket sleeve over the longer, bulky cuffs, but also can't fit it under them either, which is kind of annoying forcing the jacket sleeves to bunch up.  Big forearms are a hassle.

Seriously, though, heated gloves are like... well, any heated gear really.  Once you've got them, you never want to go back.  Cold hands suck, and even with good heated grips, the best you manage is the inside of your hands being warm and your fingertips and the tops of your hands freezing if it's actually cold out.  Heated grips are still good with them, though.   

 

[Warchild]

23 hours ago, Wintersdark said:

Seriously, though, heated gloves are like... well, any heated gear really.  Once you've got them, you never want to go back.

Oh, I can believe that!  Since the Waldo approach seems reasonable and only $79, I have a set of those babies on order.

Decent handguards that are further enhanced with additional covering have a tendency to look like ass.  Here is a set of Puig handguard enhancements on my S1000XR's factory handguards.... while they look a bit humongous, there is no denying that are pretty effective. They cover both upper hands and lower fingers, and are close enough to the grips that they don't leave weird swirling dirty air that just tends to freeze up fingers:

 

[bigorangecntry07]

I have these ready to put on the bike for that reason, 

Two Point Mount - Barkbusters Moto

 I will likely leave the plastic off in the summer for more air on the hands, but should make a noticeable difference in the winter and rain. 

 

[keithu]

15 minutes ago, bigorangecntry07 said:

I have these ready to put on the bike for that reason, 

Two Point Mount - Barkbusters Moto

 I will likely leave the plastic off in the summer for more air on the hands, but should make a noticeable difference in the winter and rain. 

 

The Barkbuster Storm works much better than stock, but on longer rides in sub-40 temps fingers still get a little cold.

Also, IMO the two-point mount is unnecessary. I have the single-point mount and they are extremely solid, with zero vibration or movement at any speed. If anyone is considering the Barkbusters I recommend the single point because they're much easier to install.

[Wintersdark]

3 hours ago, keithu said:

The Barkbuster Storm works much better than stock, but on longer rides in sub-40 temps fingers still get a little cold.

Also, IMO the two-point mount is unnecessary. I have the single-point mount and they are extremely solid, with zero vibration or movement at any speed. If anyone is considering the Barkbusters I recommend the single point because they're much easier to install.

Can you post a picture of them and how they attach?

[keithu]

10 minutes ago, Wintersdark said:

Can you post a picture of them and how they ach?

See:

The thread starts out with a description of the two-point mount, but you can see my photos at the bottom of the single-point version. They just attach with a bolt in the handlebar end.

[piotrek]

5 hours ago, keithu said:

I have the single-point mount and they are extremely solid, with zero vibration or movement at any speed. If anyone is considering the Barkbusters I recommend the single point because they're much easier to install.

I read your post on the single-point set in 2019 and then decided to try on the two-point set anyway. Should have listened. It was a big fail on my Renthal bars. I returned them. Probably going to go Blizzards for those late fall/early spring weeks.

[Warchild]

28 minutes ago, piotrek said:

 - IBA #66956 - 2015 Yamaha FJ-09

I just picked up on this...  curious if you did any IBA rides on the Tracer?

 

 

[piotrek]

22 hours ago, Warchild said:

I just picked up on this...  curious if you did any IBA rides on the Tracer?

I did the Saddlesore 1000 on the FJ. I healed... and got the T-shirt.

[Warchild]

Follow-up on @Waldo Jeffers solution to frozen fingers...

I tested hese last night out on the High Plains, and they really do work as advertised. They did an extraordinary job at keeping my hands warm. Extra benefit is that can be installed/removed in seconds, and a pliable enough to be folded up/stashed away when not needed. Highly recommended. 👍 Wish I would had had  these on the cold-ass SS1K run.

 

 

 

They have created a discount code for this forum. OBR-TRACER900-10 ... 10% off ! 👍

 

OBR ADV Gear Enduro Grip Mitts

---

Get OBR Grip Mitts for warm and dry hands! Our ¾ open design...

 

 

[betoney]

10 hours ago, Warchild said:

I tested hese last night out on the High Plains, and they really do work as advertised. They did an extraordinary job at keeping my hands warm.  Wish I would had had  these on the cold-ass SS1K run.

ANYTHING that blocks wind and helps keep your hands warm is a benefit.  I like that they are smaller than some of the other brands which seem to come half way up your forearm.  Even though they are advertised as waterproof, I would think you could spray them with Scotchgard or Camp Dry to help further repel water.

[huck]

I have added to the range of this bike by punching a few holes around the top of the filler tube which allows a bunch more fuel into the tank, usually get about 120mi (Depending on speed of course), added KTM hand guards and Madstad screen, and and am comfortable in an AeroStich suit.

I use the Warm n Safe Heat Layer "Shirt" because it is a very thin layer that produces serious heat (and packs small), and winter weight W n S heated gloves. Using the the duel controller, you can control the temp of the gloves and shirt separately. All of this stuff is costly, but lasts for years and certainly makes riding all year possible and enjoyable.

To each his or her own of course, but this is what I use... and it works for me all year as even in summer, some early alpine mornings can be chilly.

Oh, and a much louder horn too!

 

[huck]

By the way, for those of you that haven't been to Denio --- it is a required and much appreciated gas stop a long way from anywhere.

[betoney]

1 hour ago, huck said:

By the way, for those of you that haven't been to Denio --- it is a required and much appreciated gas stop a long way from anywhere.

Ha, yes, that region can leave you in a precarious situation if you miss the previous gas stop or the one of the stations are closed.  There is a whole lot of nothing out there and gas isn't always advertised and often off the highway a bit, like a pump in someones yard.   I actually rode past a pump a few times thinking it was a decorative relic in someones front yard, nope, that was the 'fuel stop'.

[Wintersdark]

17 hours ago, Warchild said:

Follow-up on @Waldo Jeffers solution to frozen fingers...

I tested hese last night out on the High Plains, and they really do work as advertised. They did an extraordinary job at keeping my hands warm. Extra benefit is that can be installed/removed in seconds, and a pliable enough to be folded up/stashed away when not needed. Highly recommended. 👍 Wish I would had had  these on the cold-ass SS1K run.

 

 

 

They have created a discount code for this forum. OBR-TRACER900-10 ... 10% off ! 👍

 

OBR ADV Gear Enduro Grip Mitts

---

Get OBR Grip Mitts for warm and dry hands! Our ¾ open design...

 

 

Oh!  These are perfect!  I'm getting these right now.  I'm reluctant to get big handguards, because I find them atrociously ugly and unnecessary most of the time, but ones that I can just snap on, and aren't those mammoth monstrousities for snowmobile riding?  Yes plz.