Wednesday, Apr 25 2018 [7,406 miles]
I got off to a late start this afternoon. I put the tank and saddle back on the bike so I could give it a test ride to warm up the oil prior to changing. The ride was to the local O’Reilly to pick up some brake fluid.
When I got on the bike I felt a difference. If I noticed anything at all with the stock suspension it was the long sag of the front end. I’m about 190 pounds geared up. I can only imagine what heavier guys felt. This time I noticed a slight sag in front and rear. I don’t think I ever noticed rear sag, before. Much better. The ride to and from the store felt good, too.
After test ride
Draining hot oil
Don’t like this
After the test ride I put the bike back on the stand and drained the now hot oil. I found more than the usual fuzz on the drain plug. I expect the kind of sludge that you can’t feel when rubbed between your fingers. There was that, but also a nest of very fine shavings – almost like a very fine steel wool.
Changing filter, too
I like magnets
Extra magnet for oil
I changed the oil filter. The magnet around the oil filter only picked up the expected sludge. I got another chance to use my newly purchased telescoping to pull the spring out of the drained oil where it’d dropped.
Fresh oil
Bash plate re-installed
I installed a new filter. I re-used the O-ring – it looked fine. I filled the bike with fresh oil then let it run for a bit to fill the new filter. While it was running I checked for leaks. None found. I stopped the engine and after waiting a bit for the oil to settle I added more until the level was at the full mark. The engine was now cool enough to re-install the bash plate.
Brake fluid reservoir
Yep, needs changing
Tomorrow I’ll flush the brakes. I’ll probably have to remove the tank again to get to the rear brake reservoir. Before cleaning up I thought I’d test the fluid in the front reservoir. It took several tries to get a usable picture. Most of the time the fluid tested at <3% water – the one usable picture tested at >4%. In either case it needs to be flushed.
Thursday, Apr 26 2018 [7,414 miles]
quick flush front
rear reservoir
I did a quick flush of the front and rear brakes this morning. Quick, in that I didn’t remove brake pads, clean caliper, retract pistons, and other things that I’d normally do as part of a brake service. Next time. I did run about 3 reservoirs full of brake fluid through each circuit. The brakes feel good.
I removed the tank to get at the rear reservoir. I could have unscrewed the reservoir from its mounting bracket and moved it away from the tank, but I’m klutzy enough that I could see myself bumping a full reservoir dangling at the end of a brake line, spilling brake fluid all over the place. Besides, it doesn’t take all that much time to remove the side panels, seat, and tank.
heat troller installed
I hooked up my heat troller before putting the saddle back on the bike. It’s not quite warm enough to do without during early morning or night rides.
The service is done. I’ve cleaned everything that I’m going to clean, put away all the tools save a few used during the brake flush that are drying out, and updated my service log. Time to ride.