icepick

Good advice on the no-last-minute-maintenance.

Jury is still out on tires. I could pre-order some and have them waiting about halfway through the trip for a change. Or I could switch to a higher mileage tire (ala the Uly tire).

I guess I'll rip the voltmeter off the XX and install it on the 'bird. I'll grab a new-model R/R to have as a spare, as its plug and play.

GPS is a done deal - I have several, and after traveling with one, I'm almost terrified to leave home without it!

The seat... man, I wish I still had my old Corbin. I'll probably send the stocker out to Sargeant. I went 7k on the XX a couple of years ago with a Sargeant, it worked out great until the last day of the ride (12 hours laying down on the seat - there were residual "issues" from doing that). I spent six hours on my KTM 530 EXC this weekend, and I'm still hurtin' - like sitting on a 2x4, about the same width and cushiness.

Still working on fuel capacity. I'm going to look into the VFR tank, but still looking at the XX tank as a donor.

Thanks for the ideas!

Mike

speedhawk

i take a long trip once a year and last year was the first on my superhawk. 3600 miles from dallas to colorado ( all over ). I use dunlop qualifiers and rode about 2000 miles on them before the trip and 2000 or so after so i got around 8000 out of them all together. nice and hard so they last but seem to grip pretty good as well. i ride on them HARD. ( back went bald before the front ) just change the a couple weeks before you go. check all your other fluids. the stock seat worked fine for me... but then again i rode a KLR650 with a stock seat before that. if you dont know what that is... its about 3 inches more narrow than the SH seat. some people like handle bar risers to get you sitting upright a bit more for comfort. personally.... i did a 500 mile day the first day, and it killed me. the second day i was just recovering from the first day, and i never got worse than that. i was ready to keep on going every day after that. when i pulled in the driveway back in dallas, i litterally threw my crap off the bike, took a shower, and got back on it and rode another 2 hours with my friends that were cruisin town when i got home. i loved the bike on the 3600 mile trip! the one thing that happened to me on the trip was the little bunji cord lug on the back passenger bracket rattled off.... also nearly tumped my duffle bag off the back seat..

All i can suggest to you is get you some new tires.. ride about a 300 miles day on a saturday, and do it again on sunday. and maybe try that 2 or 3 times. also, pack your gear a couple weeks ahead of time and ride with it!! you will have a minimum of 5 bugs to work out of i garuntee you that!! change your oil a couple nights before, and pack a can of chain lube for every 500 miles and you should be set!!
hope there was a little bit of usfull knowlege or tips here that can help somebody!

P.S. Me and my buddies are doing our longest ride yet. 8 states in 8 days. should be fun and challenging for me and the old bird.

speedhawk

I also got severely hooked on these long trips about years ago and with high gas prices my biggest hobby is taking its toll! me and my buddy are planning a shorter trip to panama city fl, and i just did the math from dallas... at CURRENT gas prices its about 200 bucks for the old hawk. and thats not as long as these other trips....

Thumper

I am looking at some of these for my SuperMoto

They are suppossed to be excellent street and off road tires with a sport type compund and form but durable enough for off road conditions


http://www.onoffroad.com/Merchant2/m...AL-SPORT-TIRES

nnjhawk02

1. Don't book any hotels / motels before hand - ride until U don't want to anymore. Then find a place & call their 800 # to book - it'll be cheaper.

2. GoreTex raingear

3. Givi Top case - function over form

4. Eclipse Fastpack Seatpack as a tail bag

5. Take pics & show us ur trip

Be Safe

Maybe I'll see U on the road - heading to MotoGP @ Indy this Sept. via West Va.

RK1

I don't have a problem with fuel range because my VTR gets good mpg and I seldom want to ride more than an hour and a half or so without a break.

When I do ride areas where stations might be farther apart than my tank will take me, I pack some gas on the back of the bike.

I use clean one quart oil bottles. I give them a bit of a squeeze and hold it as I fill and cap them so they won't pressurize if temps go up. Bring along a small funnel and you're all set.

doggerman

I used to carry my tools in a 2x2 baby blanket/shop towel.Roll it up tight its a bundle .Roll it up lose its flat.Use it as a work surface.It deadens the bounce of a small bolt.Wipe your hands on it.........I've done the Gas in an oil container thing,dirtroad sections come to mind.Tire wise,How much extra wieght are you straping to the bike.
As an experiment I just went through a set of metzler sport touring tires,used as sport tires.And even though Im going back to the M3's they were good tires.They were plenty sticky enough,I was happy.So I wouldn't worry that much about performance with a higher millage tire. And the side wall seemed a bit stiffer,which might be some thing to think of for dirtroads.Gravel roads can be fun,FLAT TRACK STYLE.You got frame sliders ?
Side mounted raidiators. Hmmmmm you got me thinking maybe I need a road trip.

speedhawk

i have avons on my klr and they do well.. but ive never tried them on my SH

skokievtr

Using oil bottles is not such a good idea. Their caps are very prone to popping off or even split open if compressed or banged around. I use a couple of camps stove fuel bottles. MSR has a nice little 33 oz aluminum bottle http://www.usoutdoorstore.com/outlet...tle-33-oz.html but there are other makers. I cut the neck off a Chevron Techron fuel treatment bottle a shaved the OD of the spout to fit in the neck of the fuel bottle to work as a funnel that I store in a freezer-weight ziplock bag. I applied some peel n stick Velcro to the outside of the fuel bottles and the hook side to the inside of the larger Ventura system bag to keep the bottles in place. I also carry real neato 1L HDPE black plastic mini Gerry can which has a nozzle that fits inside made in da faderland I picked up maybe 35 years ago I keep white gas in it for my ancient Svea 123 stove which can be used as another petrol bottle in a pinch. Have never found one since though I found these http://www.stowers.co.nz/product13.htm

My "big tank" carries an extra gallon or so but even at best 36 mpg, when you were foolish and did not stop when you had the chance or did not know the next gas station was too far...

On long trips I carry a spare headlight bulb in a plastic tube, a tire pump I made from the guts of a small C-H based on a mod I saw in MCN that plugs into my twin cig lighter outlet that in turn plugs intothe coaxial power outlet for my vest that also ties into my Battery Tender. I can charge my phone and run the GPS off the same coaxial outlet. I carry a CO2 tire filler and at least 10 cartridges plus a tire plug kit, extra tools, a half roll of duct tape flattened, zip ties, cig lighter grade hot glue, spare keys, a first aid kit, a couple of space blankets, contact & med ID card, a multitool, mini vice grips, medium & heavy gauge insulated wire, a mini-multimeter, fuses, spark plugs, a collapsable water bottle, cooking gear, and dozens of other little but essential items like even a collapsable sink!

Sorry to get off the thread but I'm getting ready for a trip. After 35+ years motorcycle camping, I've seen smart people do stupid things and learned from them and my own mistakes. Of course I'm always ready, willing and able to make new ones when the chance presents itself.

RK1

skokie;

I've never had trouble with the plastic bottles but you do have to be careful. I've always left some air on top after squeezing them and leaving them sucking on the underside of the cap. I've always packed them upright in a separate crush proof container. But I think you are right. Truly leakproof (better test it) metal containers would be a better, worry free method.

icepick

Thanks for all the comments! I'm starting to get more psyched for the trip.

It will be an ultralight camping trip, not much in the way of loading the bike - same package as was planned for the 530EXC, so it is fairly light at around 35 pounds including tent. My emergency/spare/repair kit will be largely the same, with the addition of the 'hawk specific bulbs and fuses. I hadn't thought to wrap it all in a towel of sorts, good tip!

I have Avon Distanzias installed now, but the jury is out on whether they will last 4k. Looks like most who have used them for any distance have spent most of their time on-road, and I will be spending probably 50% of the time off-pavement. That may increase tread life some, I hope.

My luggage will be soft saddlebags and a Wolfman u-shaped waterproof pack. I have a Ventura and an entire stable of top/tail packs, but this is the combo i prefer for off-road sections - the weight stays low.

I was hoping to cut into the SH and XX tanks this weekend, but it looks as if my weekend was planned by others at this point - maybe I'll mess with it next week. I'm hoping to get around 6 gallons out of the hybrid tank, as some of the folks I'm going with carry 12 onboard - always tough to be the party-pooper on not taking that interesting road 'cause you're short on fuel.

I hope to order the fairing in the next couple of weeks and begin on the skidplate. Not any progress since last fall on the project, but what is done so far is here:

http://paochow.com/forum/index.php?topic=15.0

Thanks again for all the suggestions!

lazn

As for what R/R to use, I know the R1 is a popular swap, as is GSXR units. However even one off of a GX550 works from what I hear, any 5 wire R/R should work.. Just get one with big fins.

I actually have a later model Honda unit with fins that is a drop in replacement in mine, no problems with it. However my original unfinned one went and took my battery with it shortly after I got the bike.