2015: What did you do to/with your NC700 today?

[drdubb]

Last night I installed a set of Symtec heated grip warmers under the OEM grips and installed the harness for my heated jacket and gloves. It's still in the 80's F here but now all the wiring installations I planned to do are done.

This evening I installed a set of Cogent Dynamics drop-in cartridge emulators in the forks.

Would like to hear your opinion of the cogent product.

 

[drdubb]

I met Dracula yesterday.

Went for a nice country ride yesterday and on the way home I smelled BBQ. I turned into a small string of shops and found the source of my olfactory pleasure. However, the real pleasure was seeing a Moro Guzzi Stelvio in the parking lot. The owner was having some 'que, so I joined him. He's Romanian, named Victor, and his ADV name is Dracula. The Stelvio was the other consideration when I bought the NC. If I had followed emotions rather than logic, I'd be on a Stelvio now.

 

[Old Can Ride]

If I had followed emotions rather than logic, I'd be on a Stelvio now.

Emotions usually get one in big trouble.

 

[TigerDude]

Rode this route:

Quad County Figure Eight | Georgia Motorcycle Roads and Rides | MotorcycleRoads.com

What a great day.

 

[Deleted member 1183]

If I had followed emotions rather than logic, I'd be on a Stelvio now.

I have a friend who owns a Stelvio. One day we were out for a spin and his starter motor overheated and failed. We all thought "time to start pushing". However there was no need. He was carrying a spare starter motor in one of his panniers and the problem was eventually sorted. Seems it was a well known problem and he was well prepared. European bikes, great to ride but can be a real pain to own.

 

[pismocycleguy]

I have a friend who owns a Stelvio. One day we were out for a spin and his starter motor overheated and failed. We all thought "time to start pushing". However there was no need. He was carrying a spare starter motor in one of his panniers and the problem was eventually sorted. Seems it was a well known problem and he was well prepared. European bikes, great to ride but can be a real pain to own.

Does the "European Bikes" problem apply to your Triumph as well?
Or is it considered a "United Kingdom" bike?

 

[dduelin]

I have a friend who owns a Stelvio. One day we were out for a spin and his starter motor overheated and failed. We all thought "time to start pushing". However there was no need. He was carrying a spare starter motor in one of his panniers and the problem was eventually sorted. Seems it was a well known problem and he was well prepared. European bikes, great to ride but can be a real pain to own.

That story is one to pull out when people start talking about those certain bikes that have soul and those that do not.

 

[dduelin]

Would like to hear your opinion of the cogent product.

It's my second purchase of DDCs for the 700. I upgraded suspension on my first NCX late in my ownership so when I got the second one it was one of the first things I did. It makes that kind of difference.

 

[Deckyon]

I have the Cogent, just need to get it installed. It is more than I want to do on my own.

 

[Olythom]

New Roadsmart II tires... Or tyres... Whichever you prefer. Zero miles on them so far. At this rate, they'll last forever.

 

[Deleted member 1183]

Does the "European Bikes" problem apply to your Triumph as well?
Or is it considered a "United Kingdom" bike?

It certainly does apply to the Triumph. The list.....new cylinderhead, valves and guides, new rear bevel drive, new clutch, and new ECU . It has never let me down on the road in 30,000kms but I am under no illusion that it could. It was purchased around the same time as my NC. The NC had a new wheel bearing.

Yes, it is a European bike . I have two of them currently (Triumph & KTM) alongside two Hondas of which one is 25 years old. The Hondas are trouble free. My other European bike, a KTM 690 Enduro is not as bad as the Triumph for replacement of bits, but it does have a problematic EFI system and also needs plenty of TLC.

 

[dduelin]

I installed this mud flap/shock protector. I cut it from a piece of rubber 3 mm thick. It moves out of the way for cleaning that area of the bike and keeps wheel fling off the shock when in place. It's roughly 140 mm wide at the top and 185 mm long, tapering to 130 mm at the bottom so it fits between down in the U of the swing arm. The swing arm has two plastic covers and the bottom corners of the flap rubs against those and protects the painted area. I really did this Friday and road tested it Saturday. An earlier version on the 2012 was 1 mm thick and the wind pushed it against the tire which rubbed away the bottom of the flap. This one is stiff enough to stay in place while flexing with swing arm movement.

 

[PadrePoint]

Visiting my son in Ohio on a great day gave me a chance to ride my other NC (that he is stabling and exercizing.)

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[Gibsito]

Installed Hepco and Becker engine guards today, Tusk handguards (just the aluminum backbone) yesterday. I think I'm nearly done with the accessories for awhile. Time to plan a trip.

 

[Therapy]

I saw those at the AIMExpo last weekend at MotoMachines display. They look pretty nice.
Does the mount on the motor part look good?
What made you choose them?

 

[dduelin]

I installed the Honda CB1100 preload adjustable fork caps. Part #51450-MGC-003 that I got from previous posts.

The caps are about 28mm deep compared to about about 18mm for the stock ones and give 15mm of adjustment. I had to make two sets of shorter spacers out of 1" OD PVC pipe to get fork sag in a range where the adjustment allows sag where I wanted it. Stock spacers are 150mm. I cut a set at 138mm and then tried a set at 134mm which allows sag of 41 mm to 53 mm. My target was 45 - right in the middle.

I also learned that a 59 oz bottle of water weighs ~3.75 lbs. I got tired of getting into and out of my riding gear when measuring sag. Digging in the recycle bin I got three empty orange juice bottles and filled them with water. Used as ballast three bottles approximate the weight of boots, jacket, pants, and helmet as measured on my bathroom scale. The three bottles fit in the frunk.

 

[Deleted member 1183]

Well, I rode my NC to the Honda shop to get some oil. When there I decided on the spur of the moment to try out their NC750X DCT demo bike. Other than belt drive scooters I have never previously tried a full auto gearbox on a bike. I initially worried a little that the foot change habits of 45 years would clash with this new and sophisticated technology, but I was to be pleasantly surprised. I very much liked DCT, and in the hour or so that I rode the bike, I very quickly adapted to it. I would now consider DCT when purchasing another Honda if it were applicable. On motorways and large main roads I very much left the full auto mode to its own devices. On tight backroads I used a combination of auto and the downshift paddle. I never found the need for the upshift paddle. There is a sport mode but again I did not like it as it held on to the gears for too long and that is not the manner in which I ride my own NC.

There is of course another aspect to this ride and that is the difference between my 700NC and the 750NC (other than DCT). With regard to the difference in cc's there is a small corresponding increase in overall power, but while it is noticeable it is not huge. The 750 motor is smoother at cruising speeds (70+mph) although one can still feel the pulses of the 270 degree crank at lower revs. The suspension on the 750 is definitely plusher and that is good. The seat is also softer. So there you have it. Any questions, do not hesitate to ask.

 

[Deckyon]

I also learned that a 59 oz bottle of water weighs ~3.75 lbs. I got tired of getting into and out of my riding gear when measuring sag. Digging in the recycle bin I got three empty orange juice bottles and filled them with water. Used as ballast three bottles approximate the weight of boots, jacket, pants, and helmet as measured on my bathroom scale. The three bottles fit in the frunk.

That is all well and good, but the frunk is not where you put your riding gear when riding. You would want to throw this stuff in a backpack instead, get the weight where it would normally be, or as close to as possible. Position matters.

 

[dduelin]

That is all well and good, but the frunk is not where you put your riding gear when riding. You would want to throw this stuff in a backpack instead, get the weight where it would normally be, or as close to as possible. Position matters.

That is a good point. The combined CG of bike and rider is what matters and that is why I placed two bottles side by side in the rear of the frunk with the third on top so as to place the ballast weight as close as possible to my seated weight when in the riding position. The ballasted CG would move forward a little but I didn't worry about the small amount - it's not like putting the ballast in a top case. I did not think to hang the ballast behind me in a back pack. That would move the CG backwards a little though not enough to change F/R weight distribution much.....perhaps as much as I shifted it forward by loading the rear of the frunk. Stiction accounts for about 3 mm so I'm not sure it matters enough to measure.

 

[Adlibgib]

I did my first oil change today. It was even easier than my Pacific Coast. I changed over to Rotella synthetic with a Bosch 3323 oil filter which is a little longer than the stocker.