FJR

Well, Beth, Dan and Ray aren't here yet so I can get another post in.

Here is Ray's 2005 Yamaha FJR1300.

While looking for bikes for the trip, Ray figured he could still get a better price for a bike here in Michigan, ride it to CA and keep it as his personal bike. Based on the 'blue book' value of this bike and what the previous owner owed on it, he definitely got a great deal.

The only maintenance I did on this bike (beyond winterizing it) was to change the oil and filter. The filter is the only easy maintenance on this machine. Just getting the batter out required disassembly of most of the right side fairing. Adding coolant requires the left side fairing be mostly removed. I'm not sure what they were thinking of when they designed the maintainability of this bike. I think the engineers were Detroit rejects. Why would you put the battery up under the fairing by the handle bars? Why have that much weight up there? Every other bike puts the battery under the seat. Get the center of gravity lower and improve the handling. Even changing the spark plugs requires you to pull the gas tank off (as well as the seat and side panels). Oh well, enough of my rant. It has been a good education. I'll be hard pressd to buy a bike with this much plastic around the vitals. God bless the Valkyrie.

Here is a shot of the 'command center' on the FJR. Ray has added a 12 volt outlet to run an XM radio, MP3 player, Intercom and FMRS radio.

You can almost see the tint to the new windshield that has been added. The original windshield, even though electronically adjustable, doesn't have enough area to keep the wind off the driver. Ray got this windshield and it looks pretty cool from the drivers seat.

We don't have the tank protector installed yet - still need to wax the bodywork.

Gettng at the fuse box to wire in all the goodies was another excercise in electronical gymnastics. It's got a really cool electrically protected glove box, but the access to the fuse box is miserable.

The prior owner made an adaptor to move the top trunk back about 2 inches to give the passenger a little more room. Can't hardly tell that it isn't 'stock', so it's a pretty good concept and job.

With all of the stuff I've been ordering for this trip, every time a box shows up on the porch (daily) Kathy questions my investing skills. The other day a huge box was delivered and I couldn't remember ordering anything that big. It turns out the Ray had ordered new tires for the FJR. Life expectency for the original tires was getting near and he didn't want to risk replacing them in the middle of nowhere. Since Ray's billing address is California, and the tires were bought in Michigan and even shipped to a Michigan address, he didn't have to pay any sales tax. Kind of an interesting loophole; have somebody out of state order the item for you but have it shipped to your address. Kathy and Ray looked for a place to get the tires mounted. The dealer that I use mainly said they'd be able to get his bike in sometime after memorial day - we'll be somewhere in New Mexico or Arizona then. They found a shop in Ionia, about 30 miles from here, and got them installed in under 3 hours.
Here's the other 'mod' Ray has added to his bike - a butt cushion. Both of the Goldwing's have gel seats and since the FJR is basically a 'cafe' style, the seat is not that cushy. Should be a good seat for the next couple of weeks.

You can kind of see sticking out in the left side of the picture a 'cramp buster' on the throttle. I've added these to both of the Goldwings. These things are outstanding on a long cruise. You only need to rest your palm on the lever to maintain your speed. Not quite as sophisticated as a cruise control, but better than gripping the grip for hours at a time.

Apparently this bike has an aftermarket exhaust. Not obtrusive, but I've got nothing to compare it to. Both of the Goldwings are pretty loud by Goldwing standards, but nowhere near some of the V-Twins you hear going down the highway. Oh well - 'Loud Pipes Save Lives'.

Well, Beth, Dan and Ray just got here (plus their crazy dog) so, I'm going to head up for dinner. I'll keep the computer on in case we have some interesting developments during the final preparations.

Here is a picture of the cake Kathy got for the trip:

I sure wish she was going to be on my back seat for the next two weeks!