| Author | Message | ||
     Vicenzajay |
Thanks - ordered the Hippo Hands for the Blast...I'll report back... | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Hand guards and heated gloves should leave you good all day into the 30's. Into the 20's, somewhat less than all day. Into the teens for shorter distances. It mostly depends on the rest of your gear. Warm body, colds hands-okay. Cold body, warm hands-not so okay! | ||
| Vicenzajay |
In for the first post of December on the board! Seriously, the Hippo Hands for the Blast came in and they work superbly. I was able to go to mid-weight gloves and my commute was comfortable (low to mid 30's - speeds to 70 mph). I think I'm good now for "no heated gear" year-round commuting here in the Pac NW. | ||
| Kenny_gilgore |
Jay, I am glad the Hippo Hands are working out for you. I used them in the NorthEast and rode to Florida for Speed Week every year in late February and returned to Philadelphia in mid March. I also had heated insoles in my boots which were made by the Harley dealer in Lancaster, PA. He made these are far back as 1960. I can't say I was toasty warm, but I was warm enough to ride the first 10 hours with out shutting off the engine. I had a bag of bacon sandwhiches and bottles of chocolate milk in a tank bag that I dined on every time I stopped for gasoline. You need a lot of calories if you are going to ride long distance in sub 30 degree weather. KennyG | ||
| Vicenzajay |
KennyG, Thanks for the recommendation. I got a pair for the Sportster, but the right hand one is incorrectly done. As they've stopped production, I'm going to have to figure out how to wicker that one out myself. I agree on the calories - my commute is only 2.5-3 hours, but given the rain and the cold and wind on Monday, I was ravenous by the time I got down here to Bremerton. I think I'm getting to the point of needing to replace the rear tire - noticed a significant increase of the "squaring" off effect after this week's commute. I've got about 3,400 on the Pirelli at this point...just surprised that there was this much increase in the wear amount after this one ride. I'm guessing that I got some heat related wear (believe it's called "steam inversion") with the water on the road during the 30 minutes of the ride with the showers. Not sure why that's not happened all the other times I've ridden in the rain. Oh well. The Hippo Hands, however, were stellar :-) Jay | ||
| Kenny_gilgore |
Jay, I am glad that the Hippo Hands are working for you. Try contacting the guy that made them and find out about modifications for the Sportster. The vinyl used back in the 70's was Naugahyde. I remember when mine were about 10 years old I had an upholstery shop press grommets in the holes that the cables run through and had them reinforce the seams to keep rain out of them. The shop thought they were easy enough to work on. It takes major balls to ride in the rain as much as you do. I still ride my Blast, or Honda, almost everyday, but at 75 years old I try to avoid rain like the plague. I have trouble seeing in the rain and if I go down it may be my last ride, and that would be the end of the world for me. I think the guys on Buell Riders Online are changing the Pirelli Diablo rear tires at about 3500 miles. Bacon sandwhiches are something I picked up in London, it is almost always cold and wet there, and you can't concentrate when your blood sugar is low because of the calories your body burns trying to keep warm. And you don't have to worry about bacon spoiling. Ride safe and good luck. KennyG | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Pictures? | ||
| Vicenzajay |
Erik, I'll snap some pictures this weekend after the commute back home - they actually (to me) look just fine....got plenty of comments from folks at the ferry when I got there. The toll lady wanted to know all about them. I was surprised at how easy it was to get used to them after reading all the comments about taking it really easy as it would be hard to not see your hands. It was seamless for me except for one start where I fumbled with the emergency cutoff for a second or two before getting it right. | ||
| Vicenzajay |
Okay, Erik, Here is a photo (not really close, but should show the idea) of the bike today on the commute back home. I was parked waiting for the ferry, so I snapped a quick photo with my phone. The Hippo Hands are the bomb for commuting at these temps - 28 degrees today in the sun - so at 60-65 mph I'm sure the wind chill on me was something like -10. The Hippo Hands did fine - that being said, I did wear some good midweight gloves underneath them with 40g of Thinsulate lining.  (Message edited by vicenzajay on December 07, 2013) | ||
| Kenny_gilgore |
Jay, That is the ticket for cold weather 6o MPH riding. I am glad your results are good. KennyG | ||
| Ronbob43 |
I rode yesterday on my little 9 mile commute, but at 70 I no longer have the cojones to ride in the snow we had this morning. I salute you. | ||
| Vicenzajay |
Thanks! When I got home yesterday, I went into hyper-productive mode and changed the oil and filter as well - moved to 15W-50 (Mobil 1 synth) to replace the AMSOIL 20W-50 that was in there as it's COLD here. It's a bit early at 3,500 miles since the last oil change, but given that the bike will probably now sit a bit due to our trip to visit family I figured it was a good time to do it. Next time I do the commute, I'll change the tranny oil - then after the following commute I think it will be time to change the rear tire. The current one is about 1mm above the wear bars - still good for 500-750 miles or so, but I ordered a new one and it's hear. Last but not least - drive belt/rear sprocket are also on order....it's going to be a maintenance filled January :-) (Message edited by vicenzajay on December 08, 2013) | ||
| Vicenzajay |
Had to commute this week in the car... It wasn't fun.... | ||
| Vicenzajay |
Merry Christmas, everyone! Got a chance to do about an hour ride on Christmas' Eve...it was nice :-) | ||
| Blueblast |
Merry Christmas!  | ||
| Vicenzajay |
150+ miles in two days on the Blast...return to home today in light rain resulted in an incredibly dirty bike (the crappy kind of dirt that takes forever to clean). Still a "blast" to have been able to ride - bike is looking respectable again and ready for next week :-) | ||
| Vicenzajay |
Happy New Year everyone - hope 2014 is a blessed one for all. I'll be on the Blast later this afternoon - commuting back to work...another 150 miles or more slated for this week! | ||
| Vicenzajay |
Not a question, but a statement: For all the newbies - just buy the Denso Iridium racing plug for your Blast (IXU01-27). Just do it. I used another iridium (NGK DPRX9EIX), and it was okay. Today (after 9 months) I installed the Denso racing plug. I only got to start up the bike, so my comment is not based on "performance gain" or anything like that. This plug just starts quicker and the engine just idles better with it. It's THAT noticeable. Incredible - only word for it. Again, I must say - "just do it". | ||
| Ezblast |
Right on!!! I'm hopping the new Brisk plug I and some other crazy Blast-a-holics are checking out will have even better results - but it is still in the test mode, however, I do agree - that plug is a night and day difference over the stock plug, and one of the best bangs for the buck you can invest in for any of your Buells - from the Blast to the 1125CR. EZ (Message edited by ezblast on February 21, 2014) | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Concur (with both)! I have enough new, barely used plugs in my tool box. NGK and Screaming Eagle (though I don't know who makes the SE ?) have gone back in the package and replaced by the still better, bottom of the line Densos (at least). The now unobtainable Splitfires Are the only plug I've found worth running in recent years (though I know I may not win points with that choice!) Since new design plugs tend to be pricey, I'll let other spend $$ before I do. Sometimes there is the placebo effect of new parts and $$$ spent. So I rely on certain peoples opinions and trial. Naming some (some, but not all) names: EZ, Swampy, jetlee and Jprovo. | ||
| Vicenzajay |
Took it on a long'ish ride today with the new racing plug. Probably about 70 miles in all, about 15 of those 2-up at the end (picked up my son). Runs like a top....starts up first crank, every time. The bike seems very "peppy", if that makes sense. The real difference, though, is the warmup and idle. This is a night and day difference from the NGK iridium (new also) I had in there. Again - just do it. | ||
| Vicenzajay |
Tomorrow is: New rear tire day! :-) | ||
| Vicenzajay |
And the rear tire is replaced...good stuff. When I swap out both front and rear tires next time (figure 5K miles or so), I'm going to need to replace the wheel bearings. As a quick reference, anyone have the part numbers for front and rear wheel bearings for the Blast? I'll replace the belt at that time as well (current one still good, and I've already bought another one) | ||
| Vicenzajay |
What I've found is 6203 and 6204 for bearing part numbers - is this correct? Best place to buy them? Any specific things I need to ask concerning grease seals, etc.? Thanks! Jay | ||
| Vicenzajay |
How about these for the rear: http://www.ebay.com/itm/All-Balls-Racing-Rear-Whee l-Bearings-Kit-/321133931693?_trksid=p2054897.l427 5 | ||
| Kenny_gilgore |
Jay, My experience with buying bearings, oil seals and "O" rings is it is always less expensive to go to the bearing wholesaler in the town near where you live. Take the old bearings with you and they will be able to cross reference your bearings to the brand that they sell. In many cases you will get the exact same brand that the motorcycle manufacturer used. Kenny G | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Why do you need to replace the wheel bearings? The blast wheels are soft and unnecessary replacement just wears them out and you'll have to repair or replace the wheels much sooner. | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Those bearings should work and a good price for the pair. | ||
| Vicenzajay |
When changing the rear tire, we checked the bearings - they were "notchy" when being moved. They're certainly not as smooth as they should be. That being said, the axle nut is over torqued - I'll get that fixed next weekend at the shop as the guy (good mechanic but not super familiar with Blasts) wants to make it right. Really my fault for not looking up the 48-52 ft. lb. torque for the rear axle nuts in the manual before bringing it in to get the rear tire changed. Cheers, Jay | ||
| Gearheaderiko |
Well, overtorqued can be super bad. Sometimes you can get away with it, sometimes not. Not means bearing failure and/or wheel damage. You're better off loosening and tightening it back up "snug". 50 ft lbs = 50 lbs of weight at the end of a 1 ft bar. The bearings will seem notchy if they've been sitting. Sometimes the grease just hardens up. But if you just ran the bike (a good half hour or so) and the bearings still seem notchy, then replace. |
