Bird Flys Again!
05-31-2007, 08:49 PM
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Bird Flys Again!
Went for the first shakedown ride tonight and we're not perfect but we're back!
Greg, the new forks assembled flawlessly but I could not get them to "shake" with the top clamp set. They feel good but only did about 50-60 miles.
We got in a little traffic and the fan kicked on. I heard this little ticking sound - it happened a couple times. When we got to the local Thursday night bike night I found out the fan is broken. There is a piece missing from the blades and the outer housing has broken free from one of it's mounting points. Could be crash damage but it's on the wrong side of the bike. The left radiator was bent (slightly) but I suppose the two could push on each other at the moment of impact. Or ****, I could have just picked up a rock - who knows.
Surprisingly, I have parts left over. There will be a sale. Soon. I would like to thank all the forum members who sent parts.
OK, a little about the pictures. I used Galfer braided lines because one of the regular lines was broken when the Helis rotated on impact. I used the red ones with the gold tips to match the gixxer calipers. I'm not sure I would do it again
The top bridge was a mess when it arrived. This was part of the parts that included the semi-cut-down lower that was sold to us as Superhawk parts. Every time I think of that transaction it leaves a sour note in my mouth but - if you fleagay - you pay!
I digress! These mini-sandblasters from Harbor Freight are a trick method of regenerating good used parts. The shots of both the lower and the top bridge were blasted with the finest sand available (comes from one of our concrete supply houses $8/100lbs) and then clear-coated. The clear-coat stuff dries really fast so you can build up coats quickly. Drys hard too! Those triples are fully torqued in and the bolts did not mar.
And then the finished product. R-6 Mirrors suck. New plastics are great but I guess that means new excuses will be the rule of the day.
The new PP in front has not run in and I'm not sure it likes leading this Dunlop 208 down the road. I did check my pressures before we went out. We went down a stretch of pavement that had been ground in the last week or so. This went on for several hundred yards and a couple times I had to get up out of the grooves. The new rear is paid for at the shop so now that I got the front end down, I can jack up the rear for a couple hours to get that changed out.
I'm going to put a tank or two of new fuel through her and then sort this fan/radiator/lump in the fairing thing out. Also going to do the MCCT's then. They are sitting in the parts bin. We're taking the bikes up through the county this weekend. I'm just going to jerk the guts to the fan out and hope to keep moving.
It is awfully good to have her back on the road. She took a big hit. I did my measurements carefully and I'm confident that she's straight all the way back. Everything just bolted up perfectly. The fairings were a wrestling match but hey - they're fairings - count on it. I have to go through that **** on the VFR every time I do an oil change. It's amazing to me how enduring the plastics are on these bikes. It's good quality stuff. When I finally got mine to "pop" and "crack" together it was a tight as anybody's one piece. I was pleasantly surprised and impressed with Honda quality.
Greg, the new forks assembled flawlessly but I could not get them to "shake" with the top clamp set. They feel good but only did about 50-60 miles.
We got in a little traffic and the fan kicked on. I heard this little ticking sound - it happened a couple times. When we got to the local Thursday night bike night I found out the fan is broken. There is a piece missing from the blades and the outer housing has broken free from one of it's mounting points. Could be crash damage but it's on the wrong side of the bike. The left radiator was bent (slightly) but I suppose the two could push on each other at the moment of impact. Or ****, I could have just picked up a rock - who knows.
Surprisingly, I have parts left over. There will be a sale. Soon. I would like to thank all the forum members who sent parts.
OK, a little about the pictures. I used Galfer braided lines because one of the regular lines was broken when the Helis rotated on impact. I used the red ones with the gold tips to match the gixxer calipers. I'm not sure I would do it again
The top bridge was a mess when it arrived. This was part of the parts that included the semi-cut-down lower that was sold to us as Superhawk parts. Every time I think of that transaction it leaves a sour note in my mouth but - if you fleagay - you pay!
I digress! These mini-sandblasters from Harbor Freight are a trick method of regenerating good used parts. The shots of both the lower and the top bridge were blasted with the finest sand available (comes from one of our concrete supply houses $8/100lbs) and then clear-coated. The clear-coat stuff dries really fast so you can build up coats quickly. Drys hard too! Those triples are fully torqued in and the bolts did not mar.
And then the finished product. R-6 Mirrors suck. New plastics are great but I guess that means new excuses will be the rule of the day.
The new PP in front has not run in and I'm not sure it likes leading this Dunlop 208 down the road. I did check my pressures before we went out. We went down a stretch of pavement that had been ground in the last week or so. This went on for several hundred yards and a couple times I had to get up out of the grooves. The new rear is paid for at the shop so now that I got the front end down, I can jack up the rear for a couple hours to get that changed out.
I'm going to put a tank or two of new fuel through her and then sort this fan/radiator/lump in the fairing thing out. Also going to do the MCCT's then. They are sitting in the parts bin. We're taking the bikes up through the county this weekend. I'm just going to jerk the guts to the fan out and hope to keep moving.
It is awfully good to have her back on the road. She took a big hit. I did my measurements carefully and I'm confident that she's straight all the way back. Everything just bolted up perfectly. The fairings were a wrestling match but hey - they're fairings - count on it. I have to go through that **** on the VFR every time I do an oil change. It's amazing to me how enduring the plastics are on these bikes. It's good quality stuff. When I finally got mine to "pop" and "crack" together it was a tight as anybody's one piece. I was pleasantly surprised and impressed with Honda quality.
05-31-2007, 10:34 PM
#2
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Well buddy, it's about damned time!!! Whaddya mean about the "shake" thing? Looks really good, Doug. You did a super job on that upper triple. Check the fan fuse if it's not running at all. Not quite sure if I followed the whole fan thing. Does the fan spin or not? Does the motor come on but the blades don't turn? I'm cornfused! 
05-31-2007, 10:47 PM
#3
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Yeah well it's like major broke - taken a hit - pieces missing! The outer shroud of the fan is loose and banging around. The fan blades themselves are missing a piece.
No worries, I think I can nurse her around for a couple hundred - really just want to get all the old fuel out. It's been over three months.
No worries, I think I can nurse her around for a couple hundred - really just want to get all the old fuel out. It's been over three months.
06-01-2007, 05:30 AM
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Now bring your lazy azz to the Gap for the Rally...Even though your slow with that red bike and all, if you cruise 150 miles per day, and you leave today, you might make it there by next Fri!!!!!LMAO
Good to have you back on her, I am sure she missed you...Remember, objects in front of you are dummer than they appear!! Especially people in cages...
Good to have you back on her, I am sure she missed you...Remember, objects in front of you are dummer than they appear!! Especially people in cages...
06-01-2007, 06:17 AM
#7
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Congrats Doug, looks sweet. Nice to have you back! Just make sure none of the left over parts belong on the bike I remember a comedian used to do an act about how when you build a bbq grill there are always parts left over and something about burning off your eyebrows LOL.
I remember a comedian used to do an act about how when you build a bbq grill there are always parts left over and something about burning off your eyebrows LOL.
06-01-2007, 11:05 AM
#8
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10-4 Captain! All the parts that are left over are spare parts - duplicate orders, parts that didn't quite measure up or parts that were bought in a group. I had to pass on Mikster's hugger because of the freight rates - besides another member on his side of the bridge had shown some interest in it so I still have to cross that bridge. Likely to join my quandry about the hugger now is my choice of front signals. I'm afraid this is going to be one of those highly personal preference things like exhaust note and color of the bike. I just can't make myself put a hot skillet on my new plastics and I'm not a real fan of the flush mounts that I installed in back.
Thanks to all of you for your kind words. It was really good to be back out with her and I was tempted more than once to really get into it but I am a lot closer to 16K miles than I remembered so before I jump all over her I want to get the MCCT's installed.
I'm going to tear the fan housing down this afternoon and will post up what I find. I still think it's curious to have this kind of damage on the other side of the bike. I'm pretty good at damage inspection so I will have to do some detective work before I know for sure what happened.
ROT Rally is in Austin this weekend so if any of you are going stay away from the squids and keep the rubber side down
Thanks to all of you for your kind words. It was really good to be back out with her and I was tempted more than once to really get into it but I am a lot closer to 16K miles than I remembered so before I jump all over her I want to get the MCCT's installed.
I'm going to tear the fan housing down this afternoon and will post up what I find. I still think it's curious to have this kind of damage on the other side of the bike. I'm pretty good at damage inspection so I will have to do some detective work before I know for sure what happened.
ROT Rally is in Austin this weekend so if any of you are going stay away from the squids and keep the rubber side down
06-02-2007, 04:40 PM
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For those curious minds, the rear part of the fender blade impacted the right rad and pushed it up. Even after the install of the new plastics I hadn't realized this. Everything "pushed in and up" but it was a tight fit. Now I know why. The rad was completely pushed up above its little stantion bar that runs off of the bottom of the block.
The fan was obviously destroyed by the impact of the wreck. I have a hunch that when the fender splattered it probably "slapped" all the parts around it. Damn glad it missed the new header!
The fan was obviously destroyed by the impact of the wreck. I have a hunch that when the fender splattered it probably "slapped" all the parts around it. Damn glad it missed the new header!
06-02-2007, 05:09 PM
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Join Date: May 2007
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Hi what a coincidence I just put a new fan in my 2002 model this morning as I found a broken mount and the shroud had been scored,still have not ran it yet,did not have to take the fairing off to do it,this is only the 2nd time posting from New Brunswick Canada.Got to go watch the Hockey Cheers
06-03-2007, 07:20 AM
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Now bring your lazy azz to the Gap for the Rally...Even though your slow with that red bike and all, if you cruise 150 miles per day, and you leave today, you might make it there by next Fri!!!!!LMAO
Good to have you back on her, I am sure she missed you...Remember, objects in front of you are dummer than they appear!! Especially people in cages...
Good to have you back on her, I am sure she missed you...Remember, objects in front of you are dummer than they appear!! Especially people in cages...
If I do a 150 a day starting now I should get there by NEXT year 
"dummer than they appear" no, ****! I'm glad I got mine out of the way early for this season! I hope all of you are safe on the rally.
06-03-2007, 04:53 PM
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Thanks, Neil! All the best, man! We got out about 1PM - had to put the fairings back on and had to sort how hot this bitch wanted to run or not. The fan used come on when the indicator got just over the second marker. I've been driving this part of town for twenty years so I know the sequence of the lights. I've been hauling heavy **** all over this part of the counties for the same time and that teaches you too. Patience, Patience, Patience - the first light the kid and I come up to he pulls past me in the lane to my right and gives me the "wind it up" signal. By the time I got to the traffic ahead I was back at 10mph and who needs a ******* fan!
Superhawk sounds solid all the way. I am delighted after my little scare the other night. Had a couple opportunities to "advance through traffic at an aggressive rate"
The bitch is back!
Biggest hoot of the day was the kid on the VFR. He's never been on anything fast enough to stay with the Superhawk. He rode the VFR on my first shakedown run to bike night last Thursday night. We get back to the shop today after a run up the freeway for a couple miles from the last light and he says, "When you took off, I followed you through and it spun the back tire shifting into second."
Didn't wheelie like a ******* CBR - squat and ggooooo!
He's just not used to the follow-thru torque of the V-design. By the end of the day he was using the power band very well. Claims he loves the motorcycle. Who wouldn't - it was serviced before you got on it.
Despite the bullshit that fathers and sons go through at this age, we ride well and good together and we haven't done that for a while. I'm faster with him and he's faster with me. We're safer when we go fast together. I motion for him to tuck in behind me he knows to do it because his lane could go to **** and I have BTDT. I know the flow of the highway. We blow through.
This afternoon I could hear him coming. The VFR is still running the D&D that I got from Lou. All or most of the packing is out and when you're in it - it's talking!!! When he rode his CBR and I rode the 'Hawk his saying was, "I heard him coming and there he goes." Now it's, "When he got into it, we went together."
The day rocked, no fan, no problem, pick your route carefully, travel with friends
Superhawk sounds solid all the way. I am delighted after my little scare the other night. Had a couple opportunities to "advance through traffic at an aggressive rate"
The bitch is back!Biggest hoot of the day was the kid on the VFR. He's never been on anything fast enough to stay with the Superhawk. He rode the VFR on my first shakedown run to bike night last Thursday night. We get back to the shop today after a run up the freeway for a couple miles from the last light and he says, "When you took off, I followed you through and it spun the back tire shifting into second."
Didn't wheelie like a ******* CBR - squat and ggooooo!
He's just not used to the follow-thru torque of the V-design. By the end of the day he was using the power band very well. Claims he loves the motorcycle. Who wouldn't - it was serviced before you got on it.
Despite the bullshit that fathers and sons go through at this age, we ride well and good together and we haven't done that for a while. I'm faster with him and he's faster with me. We're safer when we go fast together. I motion for him to tuck in behind me he knows to do it because his lane could go to **** and I have BTDT. I know the flow of the highway. We blow through.
This afternoon I could hear him coming. The VFR is still running the D&D that I got from Lou. All or most of the packing is out and when you're in it - it's talking!!! When he rode his CBR and I rode the 'Hawk his saying was, "I heard him coming and there he goes." Now it's, "When he got into it, we went together."
The day rocked, no fan, no problem, pick your route carefully, travel with friends
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