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Looking For Opinions: Touring Mods

mzflorida said:
These are great suggestions! Maybe an automatic chain oiler would be a good idea. I do have a full tool kit for the bike that, funnily enough considering my post above, that I got for free from Revzilla. The tire kit is a great suggestion and I do have one.
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I had an automatic chain/wheel oiler in the earlier days, but with the modern O ring chains I really not as enthusiastic about the automatic chain oilers. (Oh no, not a chain lube thread) but I have had excellent service with DuPont chain wax on several bikes with a lot of miles on the chain/sprockets.
 
Great tip above, but in lieu of a GPS, you can download as many offline maps as you want with Google Maps to your phone. Works great if you know your route! If you're phone isn't water resistant, just put it in a ziploc bag on your handlebars. Not great when it's sunny but no problem in rainy weather.
 
CamaroEric said:
Great tip above, but in lieu of a GPS, you can download as many offline maps as you want with Google Maps to your phone. Works great if you know your route! If you're phone isn't water resistant, just put it in a ziploc bag on your handlebars. Not great when it's sunny but no problem in rainy weather.
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I tried using my I-phone on the handlebars but the bike shook so much I was afraid it would mess up the electronics/camera in the phone
 
CamaroEric said:
Great tip above, but in lieu of a GPS, you can download as many offline maps as you want with Google Maps to your phone. Works great if you know your route! If you're phone isn't water resistant, just put it in a ziploc bag on your handlebars. Not great when it's sunny but no problem in rainy weather.
Click to expand...
Using the phone as a do-all device is popular and convenient. I prefer a dedicated, IPX7 waterproof GPS unit for mapping. I prefer to keep the phone (and satellite radio, if equipped) on my person, in case I am separated from the bike in a crash and can’t get back to the motorcycle.
 
I live on the west coast and have made the trip east and back a few times. There is good advice in most of these posts. I wonder about the need to carry gas though. Maybe in Canada? I once carried gas all the way through the Yukon and up to Prudhoe Bay and never needed it. In all my experiences in the western states, needing gas would take unusual route planning, a crazy headwind, and a windstorm to take out the power so gas pumps were out. That can happen, but the NC's 3.7 gallons will cover a lot of ground if you plan accordingly. Otherwise a lot of great tips. I find when crossing the country that other mods to you and your gear matter too. Being comfortable on the bike is crucial. Be sure you and your gear can deal with rain and heat. Earplugs reduce fatigue. Going slower is less fatiguing than going faster. Consider planning for a day off or a short day every two or three days to visit a park or museum. Being from Florida you know that water and sunblock are your friends. Just a minor item but, heading west in the summer an early start with an early stop gives you less sun in your eyes and less heat (especially in the southwest). Switching that when eastbound, using a later start and riding into the early evening keeps the sun off your face a bit, if that matters. When you have to stay in a big city, finding a hotel on the far side lets you head out as the commuters head in. As others have said, a GPS is better than relying on cell service alone in the rural areas out west. The NC is pretty reliable so carry tools to adjust and lube the chain and plug and inflate tires. Good luck and good travels!
 
I've used a retired phone on my bars, downloaded maps of Florida to the SD card, and connected that device to the hotspot on my current phone. @670cc a smart watch with cellular and fall detection might also be something for you to consider. Upon detecting a fall your pre-determined contacts are notified. Also they have an sos button that you could hold against a tooth or something if you did not have use of your hands.
 
ddennis669 said:
I live on the west coast and have made the trip east and back a few times. There is good advice in most of these posts. I wonder about the need to carry gas though. Maybe in Canada? I once carried gas all the way through the Yukon and up to Prudhoe Bay and never needed it. In all my experiences in the western states, needing gas would take unusual route planning, a crazy headwind, and a windstorm to take out the power so gas pumps were out. That can happen, but the NC's 3.7 gallons will cover a lot of ground if you plan accordingly. Otherwise a lot of great tips. I find when crossing the country that other mods to you and your gear matter too. Being comfortable on the bike is crucial. Be sure you and your gear can deal with rain and heat. Earplugs reduce fatigue. Going slower is less fatiguing than going faster. Consider planning for a day off or a short day every two or three days to visit a park or museum. Being from Florida you know that water and sunblock are your friends. Just a minor item but, heading west in the summer an early start with an early stop gives you less sun in your eyes and less heat (especially in the southwest). Switching that when eastbound, using a later start and riding into the early evening keeps the sun off your face a bit, if that matters. When you have to stay in a big city, finding a hotel on the far side lets you head out as the commuters head in. As others have said, a GPS is better than relying on cell service alone in the rural areas out west. The NC is pretty reliable so carry tools to adjust and lube the chain and plug and inflate tires. Good luck and good travels!
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Thank you very much!
 
Everyone has different expectations and needs for navigation. I use my phone on the bike and in the car to find addresses or locations in an A to B type of use. I'm usually not concerned with the route selection. I am here but need to go there. It works great for the most part.

I use a motorcycle GPS differently. I choose the route from A to B and it's often full of shaping points in order to stay on carefully selected roads and highways. It's easy to build, store, and transfer these often complex routes or tracks using mapping software provided by the company that sells the GPS. If I meet a friend 50 miles away for coffee before riding a 150 mile route of paved and unpaved roads that he has planned, it's easy to transfer his route to my GPS in about 15 seconds. An easy way to build, save, and share routes and using phone and tablets does not exist yet to my knowledge. If there is please share it.

A dedicated MC GPS is weather and vibration proof and can be used on the fly with gloved hands. The information presented on different screens is editable to show what the rider wants to see. A phone may work fine in many situations but for me it would not work as well as a $400 GPS does right out of the box.
 
*** changed links to screenshots... ***
*** nuance that I have an NC700x and not a 750x... but offering ideas on how I've made mine more comfortable for longer riding ***

Might want to consider removal padding on the seat, too, along with changing it. I like having that ability to remove and add padding while on long rides depending on what my butt is telling me.

1708704236205.png - I got this for my bike to get my phone, camera, and USB charger off my handlebars. I have not had any issues (other than having to modify the arms a bit for clearancing with my windscreen), and I used some moderately stiff rubber spacers mounted to the dash, and I get very little vibration at all.

1708704266638.png - I got these to try out. They weren't too expensive. They bolted right up (though the stock lower fairing had to be persuaded to go back on). I put some cheapy highway pegs on them, and I was thinking about using these to attach some sort of lower wind protection. Without the highway pegs, I can still use these to put my feet up on or stretch my legs out on.

1708696257663.png
 
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Curt said:
*** nuance that I have an NC700x and not a 750x... but offering ideas on how I've made mine more comfortable for longer riding ***

Might want to consider removal padding on the seat, too, along with changing it. I like having that ability to remove and add padding while on long rides depending on what my butt is telling me.

https://a.co/d/9EVJLYe - I got this for my bike to get my phone, camera, and USB charger off my handlebars. I have not had any issues (other than having to modify the arms a bit for clearancing with my windscreen), and I used some moderately stiff rubber spacers mounted to the dash, and I get very little vibration at all.

https://a.co/d/hmpcb6L - I got these to try out. They weren't too expensive. They bolted right up (though the stock lower fairing had to be persuaded to go back on). I put some cheapy highway pegs on them, and I was thinking about using these to attach some sort of lower wind protection. Without the highway pegs, I can still use these to put my feet up on or stretch my legs out on.

View attachment 53619
Click to expand...
The links given are corrupted or incorrect.
 
the Ferret said:
This is a brilliant idea Lee

in the past I have used black electrical tape for that purpose
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IMG_6811.jpeg
Plus with the blue on black you might be taken for a FOP contributor or Back The Blue supporter with attendant courtesies.

I had cataract surgery 2 months ago and riding into a low sun really bothers me so I add a strip of painter's masking tape under the black electrical tape that was already on the sun visor.
 
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I am considering my first ride to see family on both coasts so this thread is very valuable and thought-provoking. One part especially interesting is the use of GPS on trips which I use as well. I am curious as to what others are using as some mention the potential challenge of downloading maps or perhaps weak signals encountered as riding. Just to make mention I use TomTom Go Naviagtion (Pixel 6a/Android 14) and have for many years, one of the major reasons being that whatever maps I choose are fully downloaded on the cell phone. It is a storage hog at 10gb but I find that not worrying about updating or weak signals is a major plus, and you can reduce the total storage used by limiting the state maps downloaded. I use a Peak Design to mount the cp case on the bar from the Madstaad windshield.
 
The Phoenix said:
I am considering my first ride to see family on both coasts so this thread is very valuable and thought-provoking. One part especially interesting is the use of GPS on trips which I use as well. I am curious as to what others are using as some mention the potential challenge of downloading maps or perhaps weak signals encountered as riding. Just to make mention I use TomTom Go Naviagtion (Pixel 6a/Android 14) and have for many years, one of the major reasons being that whatever maps I choose are fully downloaded on the cell phone. It is a storage hog at 10gb but I find that not worrying about updating or weak signals is a major plus, and you can reduce the total storage used by limiting the state maps downloaded. I use a Peak Design to mount the cp case on the bar from the Madstaad windshield.
Click to expand...
I use a dedicated Garmin GPS. It’s waterproof, and the maps are always loaded. It has no dependence on cellular or wi-fi signals. Works well with motorcycling gloves.
 
670cc said:
I use a dedicated Garmin GPS. It’s waterproof, and the maps are always loaded. It has no dependence on cellular or wi-fi signals. Works well with motorcycling gloves.
Click to expand...
That's a great option 670cc. I guess at the time I just saw any GPS as an additional item to bring along but it is certainly something that I will consider the next time I find myself looking.
 
Late on the GPS conversation but……. I find that Scenic iOS app is fantastic. It has downloaded maps that update quite regularly. A fun feature is the round trip function. Tell it what direction you want to explore, tell about how far you want to ride, then tell it what type ride you want. I have found a bunch of cool roads in an area that I thought I knew every pig trail around. I have an inexpensive Alliexpress gps gadget mounted above my speedometer that is linked to my phone which is now safely in my pocket, (which is another thing I recently learned why!)
 
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