BMW R1200R R1150R/T F800 K1200R R1100R/T R1250R RnineT Message Board

I've replaced the machine screws with stainless steel sheet metal screws. They very nicely cut threads into the plastic license plate bracket, so I don't have to worry about the nuts at all.

Don, You and I have come down on opposite sides of this issue in the past, so I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree about this. It does amuse me, however, that you think you have to bribe a dealer's service department in order to get them to act reasonably and do their jobs. Do you do this wi...

In order for a manufacturer to deny warranty coverage due to a user modification, the modification must have something to do with the part or system that failed. For example, if you install auxiliary lights and you tap into the headlight circuit because you want your new lights to come on with the h...

I have an "EnginAir" pump that I've used on other bikes. I haven't yet bought/made the adapter that would let me use it on the RR, but I can't see any reason it wouldn't work. It's much lighter, smaller, and lower in cost than any of the electric pumps, but you do need to carry a spark plu...

I have the SW Motech. Nice finish, good ergos for me--I no longer get sore wrists after a couple of hours riding. I bought them from Twisted Throttle, which I believe is a first-rate vendor. Two warnings: 1. With the barbacks installed, the brake line is just a bit too short with the bar at full rig...

Actually, Don, I'm surprised that you take the position you do. IIRC, you're a veteran of Corporate America, so I'm pretty sure you know about transfer costs and overhead. Those staff attorneys may just be sitting around waiting for your call, but they're not billing your cost center until they star...

I'll leave it to the lawyers among us to explain the details of the Magnuson-Moss Act, but the short answer is that a manufacturer cannot deny warranty coverage because recommended maintenance is performed by other than authorized dealers or with other than official factory parts. In the case of DIY...

I had my dealer do the 600 mile service. They didn't do a bad job (took about 3 hours) and they charged me just under $300. Then I had it back last fall for the brake line and antenna ring recalls. Their work was so sloppy that I vowed to not ever see them again. I could list everything they screwed...

The "acronym" is probably just to identify the manufacturer of the bolts. A few years ago, there was an issue about counterfeit, sub-standard metric bolts being supplied to the DOD, so a law was passed requiring imported metric hardware to by identifiable by source. Of course, that doesn't...

Dan, do you have the standard 35 watt bulbs or the 50s?

AFAIK, the cheek pads on the RF-1000 are removable (and adjustable for size), but not the entire interior padding. Please correct me if that's not true.

I've been a Shoei fan for years, ever since I walked away from a fairly hard hit when a comatose cager knocked my bike out from under me. I currently use an RF-900, soon to be replaced by a RF-1000. It also helps that Shoei's importer sells helmets to MSF instructors at dealer cost :) My only compla...

Looking for something else, of course, I stumbled across a publication by the East Penn Mfg Co. They are allegedly the "world's largest and most modern independent battery manufacturer." I'm not quite sure what that means, but I do know that they make the AGM batteries sold by Westco. Lots...

Why not leave your headlight alone and modulate your auxiliary lights? The best answer would be alternating modulation (look at a locomotive approaching a grade crossing), but that of course would require a different kind of modulator. Even if you modulate both aux lights together, you won't have to...

Bill, The obvious question is did you measure your rotor thickness when you changed the pads the first time? Or when the bike was new? I can't comment on the relative metallurgy, but I've had EBC HH pads on my Honda for about 22000 miles with no significant rotor wear. OTOH, I do think that using up...

The problem with AAA is that most of their business is with cars, so chances are the contractor who shows up has never handled a motorcycle before. I'd really rather not have him learn on my bike. The roadside assistance service previously run by the Honda club got good marks in that regard. But the...

Bill, I think you're reading things into the Blackstone paper that aren't quite there. They say to use the lightest oil possible, but that's only from an efficiency standpoint. They also only say, in the context of single-viscosity vs. multigrade, that the advantage of the thinner oil on start-up is...

Probably so, Bill. But the question is what spec needs to be reconsidered? I doubt it's a capacity issue. Should the choice of AGM be questioned? AGM batteries have been around a while now and are not considered especially failure-prone. Is the dark current of our electronics excessive? Maybe, but o...

You said it right the first time, Don. My response must not have been clear

And I agree that you can't find straight 90 very easily any more. So you have to wonder why BMW calls for 90 weight in the service DVD. Is it more available in Europe?

Bill, What you say is true, and it would matter if the oil drained out of the oil lines and the bearing surfaces. But that's not really what happens. When you turn an engine off, the crankshaft (for example) settles to the bottom of the bearing bore, displacing a small amount of oil, but, for the mo...