i need a rear brake rotor

[ocpianoman]

My A14 has been languishing in the garage since late April, waiting for me to stop procrastinating and get it back on the road. Finally did just that, using a used head from an '05, EagleMike's doo, shorter contraction spring, etc. The original doo was still held down by the bolt, but was in two pieces. The spring had no tension left but was still in place, intact. Left the cylinder, piston and rings undisturbed as there were no marks on the cylinder walls with 23.9k miles showing on the odo. Took the time to remove the clutch cover and found the screen amazingly clean. Left it off in case I dropped stuff down the abyss, which I didn't, but that pesky washer/spacer behind the doo sprocket found it's way through that big hole twice! Since I had the subframe off to get the backbone tube welded, I installed the carb first, then the subframe. Easy that way! Getting the cylinder head on was a struggle until I dropped the radiator out of the way, then it was a piece of cake. It kept knocking the carrot and rubber spacer out of place until I dropped the radiator. My original head with the seriously-burned, leaky and ovoid LH exhaust valve will go to Cary in Decatur for a pre-stage valve job and be kept as a spare. Rode about 140 miles yesterday. Initial impressions are that it's a better freeway bike than my GS450 as far as stability goes, even on Kenda 50/50 tires. The motor seems like it will rumble along at 5k rpm and 72mph or so, for forever without breaking a sweat. Of course it's got lots of cold air cooling it at the moment. The tires seem to grip well on dry cold asphalt but I was overdoing the inputs on the bars big time in the twisties and do not have the same confidence yet as with my other bikes. I have favorite routes that I ride to test bikes so I know the roads well and can get an idea how different bikes behave. Someone is selling a set of BT45's practically new, in sizes 90/90-21 and 110/90-18, take-offs from a recently purchase dual-sport. 110 might be too narrow for the rear of the KLR. I have a BT45 on the front of the GS450 and it works great in that application. The KLR suspension front and rear needs attention. The bike soaks up the bumps extremely well as would be expected from long travel suspension on the street. But, the forks twist under braking, and the fork seals are shot, as are the steering bearings. Tightened up the triple trees which helped only a bit. The bike will not track straight when riding no-hands, wants to fall to the left, probably due to the twisting under braking. A fork brace is on the wishlist, as are some aftermarket springs. Any suggestions? I already know about Progressives, got 'em on two other bikes. Any better choices? The rear needs to be disassembled and lubed, but that all can wait till I get a few miles logged. The beast quit after only 100 miles shortly after purchase in April, so I've got some catching up to do! It'll give my VX800 some much needed rest. It's had 20k miles piled on since March '06, up to 60k now, and it's a much rarer bike, harder to find parts for. The GS450 has had it easy since the VX showed up and gets ridden just enough to keep its juices flowing. This KLR is not going to win any beauty contests! It will be my beater bike and daily driver as long as it will hold up. I think for this cold weather the Thermo-Bob is almost a prerequisite. Lots of temp variation without it. I wonder if the trucker trick of blocking off part of the airflow to the radiator will help in the absence of the Thermo-Bob? Used Engine Ice for coolant. I like that it's ethylene glycol free, non-toxic and biodegradable. Looks like grape Kool-aid. Anyway, enough typing for now. Xmas with the family will be tomorrow, so for now it's time to go out and enjoy my present to myself. Hope everyone is having a Joyous day with their families! - ian

[ocpianoman]

Just returned from a 100 mile KLR ride. Diamond Bar (91765) to Mt. Baldy Village, west to Azusa Canyon and home again, more or less. Gassed up and got 150 miles from 2.8 gallons, or 53.57 mpg. That makes me happy! Azusa Canyon is a twisty, reasonably fast road that I can sanely ride at 50mph most of the way. Sportbike guys can haul butt up there but it's not wise! I was not at all confident pushing the KLR up to 50mph corner speeds on the Kenda tires. The bike seems more stable and grippy turning right than left for some reason. When I first got back into canyon carving I was better at turning left than right for quite a while as evidenced by the Avon AM20 on the front of the GS450 that wore out the left shoulder before the right or the center. After seeing that I worked on taking right handers a little faster, but only when I could see around them! I think I'm wearing my tires a little more evenly these days. So, what it is about the KLR? The twisted forks? the tires? I'm getting to where I'm not overdoing the inputs on the bars and find that less lean and less body english is required with this bike than the 520lb. VX800. At around 400lbs. the KLR weighs about the same and has about the same power as the GS450, but it is lots taller and the high CofG has to be taken into account. Yet, it seems just as flickable as the GS450 but I just don't get the confidence from the Kenda tires just yet, it feels like the front is lots closer to letting go suddenly than what makes me comfortable. I'm curious to try some street tires on the KLR. Anybody done that and care to share? What tires? pressures? I'm interested in 21in. front tires, not SM 17-inchers...

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, "ocpianoman" wrote: > > My A14 has been languishing in the garage since late April, waiting > for me to stop procrastinating and get it back on the road. Finally > did just that, using a used head from an '05, EagleMike's doo, shorter > contraction spring, etc. The original doo was still held down by the > bolt, but was in two pieces. The spring had no tension left but was > still in place, intact. Left the cylinder, piston and rings > undisturbed as there were no marks on the cylinder walls with 23.9k > miles showing on the odo. Took the time to remove the clutch cover and > found the screen amazingly clean. Left it off in case I dropped stuff > down the abyss, which I didn't, but that pesky washer/spacer behind > the doo sprocket found it's way through that big hole twice! Since I > had the subframe off to get the backbone tube welded, I installed the > carb first, then the subframe. Easy that way! Getting the cylinder > head on was a struggle until I dropped the radiator out of the way, > then it was a piece of cake. It kept knocking the carrot and rubber > spacer out of place until I dropped the radiator. My original head > with the seriously-burned, leaky and ovoid LH exhaust valve will go to > Cary in Decatur for a pre-stage valve job and be kept as a spare. > > Rode about 140 miles yesterday. Initial impressions are that it's a > better freeway bike than my GS450 as far as stability goes, even on > Kenda 50/50 tires. The motor seems like it will rumble along at 5k rpm > and 72mph or so, for forever without breaking a sweat. Of course it's > got lots of cold air cooling it at the moment. The tires seem to grip > well on dry cold asphalt but I was overdoing the inputs on the bars > big time in the twisties and do not have the same confidence yet as > with my other bikes. I have favorite routes that I ride to test bikes > so I know the roads well and can get an idea how different bikes > behave. Someone is selling a set of BT45's practically new, in sizes > 90/90-21 and 110/90-18, take-offs from a recently purchase dual-sport. > 110 might be too narrow for the rear of the KLR. I have a BT45 on the > front of the GS450 and it works great in that application. > > The KLR suspension front and rear needs attention. The bike soaks up > the bumps extremely well as would be expected from long travel > suspension on the street. But, the forks twist under braking, and the > fork seals are shot, as are the steering bearings. Tightened up the > triple trees which helped only a bit. The bike will not track straight > when riding no-hands, wants to fall to the left, probably due to the > twisting under braking. A fork brace is on the wishlist, as are some > aftermarket springs. Any suggestions? I already know about > Progressives, got 'em on two other bikes. Any better choices? The rear > needs to be disassembled and lubed, but that all can wait till I get a > few miles logged. The beast quit after only 100 miles shortly after > purchase in April, so I've got some catching up to do! It'll give my > VX800 some much needed rest. It's had 20k miles piled on since March > '06, up to 60k now, and it's a much rarer bike, harder to find parts > for. The GS450 has had it easy since the VX showed up and gets ridden > just enough to keep its juices flowing. This KLR is not going to win > any beauty contests! It will be my beater bike and daily driver as > long as it will hold up. I think for this cold weather the Thermo-Bob > is almost a prerequisite. Lots of temp variation without it. I wonder > if the trucker trick of blocking off part of the airflow to the > radiator will help in the absence of the Thermo-Bob? Used Engine Ice > for coolant. I like that it's ethylene glycol free, non-toxic and > biodegradable. Looks like grape Kool-aid. > > Anyway, enough typing for now. Xmas with the family will be tomorrow, > so for now it's time to go out and enjoy my present to myself. > > Hope everyone is having a Joyous day with their families! - ian >

[Jud Jones]

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, "Gary" wrote:

> > OK I scored a brake rotor,

That's one of those expressions I hate to hear a motorcyclist use, on the order of "Let's hit the road" and "It's time to crash".

[Gary LaRue]

Hi Ian; Using Engine Ice, huh? I had never heard of it and had to google it to find out. Sounds like a great option for me, but I think I'll wait for the warranty to expire first. After all, wouldn't want to give them any excuse to argue about who's fault it is if anything happens. After that, I think the Thermo-bob and Engine Ice both. C-ya; Lash [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[Harry Seifert]

For a 90/10 or a 95/5 street oriented tire, I've used both the Michelin Sirac and the Pirelli Scorpion S/T. They're available in the 17" and 21" stock sizes, stick very well on dry asphalt and seem to last for 5,000+ miles. Fred's got 'em as well as SouthwestMotoTires in AZ. I'm currently running very street oriented Michelin Activs in 120/70 18 and 140/80 17 on my street KLR. Others in my small circle of friends run Bridgestone BattleAx BT's in the same sizes on their street oriented KLRs. For my limited dirtly skills, the stock Dunlops are good enough for my limited fire road and hard pack desert forays. When the stock Dunlops go away, I'll fit a different, knobbier set of Dunlops or Pirellis on the stock wheels. Buddy bseifert71@...

> [Original Message] > From: ocpianoman > To: DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com> > Date: 12/25/2007 4:39:36 PM > Subject: [DSN_KLR650] Re: It lives! > > Just returned from a 100 mile KLR ride. Diamond Bar (91765) to Mt. > Baldy Village, west to Azusa Canyon and home again, more or less. > Gassed up and got 150 miles from 2.8 gallons, or 53.57 mpg. That makes > me happy! Azusa Canyon is a twisty, reasonably fast road that I can > sanely ride at 50mph most of the way. Sportbike guys can haul butt up > there but it's not wise! I was not at all confident pushing the KLR up > to 50mph corner speeds on the Kenda tires. The bike seems more stable > and grippy turning right than left for some reason. When I first got > back into canyon carving I was better at turning left than right for > quite a while as evidenced by the Avon AM20 on the front of the GS450 > that wore out the left shoulder before the right or the center. After > seeing that I worked on taking right handers a little faster, but only > when I could see around them! I think I'm wearing my tires a little > more evenly these days. So, what it is about the KLR? The twisted > forks? the tires? I'm getting to where I'm not overdoing the inputs on > the bars and find that less lean and less body english is required > with this bike than the 520lb. VX800. At around 400lbs. the KLR weighs > about the same and has about the same power as the GS450, but it is > lots taller and the high CofG has to be taken into account. Yet, it > seems just as flickable as the GS450 but I just don't get the > confidence from the Kenda tires just yet, it feels like the front is > lots closer to letting go suddenly than what makes me comfortable. I'm > curious to try some street tires on the KLR. Anybody done that and > care to share? What tires? pressures? I'm interested in 21in. front > tires, not SM 17-inchers... > > > --- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, "ocpianoman" wrote: > > > > My A14 has been languishing in the garage since late April, waiting > > for me to stop procrastinating and get it back on the road. Finally > > did just that, using a used head from an '05, EagleMike's doo, shorter > > contraction spring, etc. The original doo was still held down by the > > bolt, but was in two pieces. The spring had no tension left but was > > still in place, intact. Left the cylinder, piston and rings > > undisturbed as there were no marks on the cylinder walls with 23.9k > > miles showing on the odo. Took the time to remove the clutch cover and > > found the screen amazingly clean. Left it off in case I dropped stuff > > down the abyss, which I didn't, but that pesky washer/spacer behind > > the doo sprocket found it's way through that big hole twice! Since I > > had the subframe off to get the backbone tube welded, I installed the > > carb first, then the subframe. Easy that way! Getting the cylinder > > head on was a struggle until I dropped the radiator out of the way, > > then it was a piece of cake. It kept knocking the carrot and rubber > > spacer out of place until I dropped the radiator. My original head > > with the seriously-burned, leaky and ovoid LH exhaust valve will go to > > Cary in Decatur for a pre-stage valve job and be kept as a spare. > > > > Rode about 140 miles yesterday. Initial impressions are that it's a > > better freeway bike than my GS450 as far as stability goes, even on > > Kenda 50/50 tires. The motor seems like it will rumble along at 5k rpm > > and 72mph or so, for forever without breaking a sweat. Of course it's > > got lots of cold air cooling it at the moment. The tires seem to grip > > well on dry cold asphalt but I was overdoing the inputs on the bars > > big time in the twisties and do not have the same confidence yet as > > with my other bikes. I have favorite routes that I ride to test bikes > > so I know the roads well and can get an idea how different bikes > > behave. Someone is selling a set of BT45's practically new, in sizes > > 90/90-21 and 110/90-18, take-offs from a recently purchase dual-sport. > > 110 might be too narrow for the rear of the KLR. I have a BT45 on the > > front of the GS450 and it works great in that application. > > > > The KLR suspension front and rear needs attention. The bike soaks up > > the bumps extremely well as would be expected from long travel > > suspension on the street. But, the forks twist under braking, and the > > fork seals are shot, as are the steering bearings. Tightened up the > > triple trees which helped only a bit. The bike will not track straight > > when riding no-hands, wants to fall to the left, probably due to the > > twisting under braking. A fork brace is on the wishlist, as are some > > aftermarket springs. Any suggestions? I already know about > > Progressives, got 'em on two other bikes. Any better choices? The rear > > needs to be disassembled and lubed, but that all can wait till I get a > > few miles logged. The beast quit after only 100 miles shortly after > > purchase in April, so I've got some catching up to do! It'll give my > > VX800 some much needed rest. It's had 20k miles piled on since March > > '06, up to 60k now, and it's a much rarer bike, harder to find parts > > for. The GS450 has had it easy since the VX showed up and gets ridden > > just enough to keep its juices flowing. This KLR is not going to win > > any beauty contests! It will be my beater bike and daily driver as > > long as it will hold up. I think for this cold weather the Thermo-Bob > > is almost a prerequisite. Lots of temp variation without it. I wonder > > if the trucker trick of blocking off part of the airflow to the > > radiator will help in the absence of the Thermo-Bob? Used Engine Ice > > for coolant. I like that it's ethylene glycol free, non-toxic and > > biodegradable. Looks like grape Kool-aid. > > > > Anyway, enough typing for now. Xmas with the family will be tomorrow, > > so for now it's time to go out and enjoy my present to myself. > > > > Hope everyone is having a Joyous day with their families! - ian > > > > > > > List sponsored by Dual Sport News at: www.dualsportnews.com > List FAQ courtesy of Chris Krok at: www.bigcee.com/klr650faq.html > Member Map at: http://www.frappr.com/dsnklr650 > Yahoo! Groups Links > > >