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Old May 13th, 2022, 07:50 PM   #41
DannoXYZ
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use some calipers to measure wire-diameter on spring. We can make some good guesses as to alloy used and calculate spring-rate.

Also measure gap between coils at tightly-wound end.
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Old May 13th, 2022, 07:57 PM   #42
Bob KellyIII
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I think I found a scale that would work......at " https://www.amazon.com/CooPee-Platform-Capacity-Shipping-Weighing/dp/B08DNYGF7J/ref=sr_1_18_sspa?crid=3D5903GMQF3Y9&keywords=scale+for+packages&qid=1652495873&s prefix=SCALE,aps,295&sr=8-18-spons&psc=1" .....(without the quotes)
660lb should get it to compress some ! twice the weight of the bike after all ! LOL
.....
....I might get that .... and see what these springs actually are....
I've noticed that the Race tech spring' number is just a part number and it does not tell you the spring rate... the weight they gave me on the invoice is 500 lbs so it varies alot of what they say it is and what you actually get.... I would almost bet you the number is it's actual rate ,not what they say it is.... "it's close enough...ship it!"...LOL.
...
Bob......
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Old May 13th, 2022, 08:09 PM   #43
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I have some real nice calipers now... I can do that ! I also have some micrometers but I am not real sure how to read the silly things HAHAHA
in all my years of motorcycling I've never needed them you can easily tell when the piston is wore out because of the slop in the cylinder you don't need a feeler gauge or Micrometer to know that ! end play of crank shafts can be done with a feeler gauge if you set up a bolt and bar set up... but 90% of the time if it's got end play in the crank that you can feel it needs new bearings anyway ! LOL.....
.....
anyway..... I'll see if I can do dat...
Later !
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Old May 14th, 2022, 08:56 PM   #44
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OK good news I think I found the problem BESIDES the spring....
I got to looking at the shock in the vice it moves up and down nicely but with alot of resistance as a shock should....
I got looking at the length of the springs and the length of the threads and it hit me..... the shock must be kept from bottoming out it's only got about
4" or 5 " of travel in the shock itself did I screw it up by taking out all the preload ? with the shock fully extended and the spring on the shock ( the stock one) there is about 1" of threads left on the bottom of the upper part of the shock when the adjusting nuts finally contact the spring and there is about 4" of threads above that..... so when I backed off the pre-load nuts to the top of the shock the bike lowered accordingly... the problem is the shock is bottomed out in this position and the spring is not being compressed at all
....and I wonder why it rides so hard !?!?! of course it rides hard the shock is bottomed out !!!!! when I lower the pre-load that action moves the shock piston closer to the bottom.... but when the shock's stroke is so short you do not have that much to play with.....
SO.... what I've done, and am going to do .... is put the preload adjustment nuts at the top of the spring (and lock them there) with the shock fully extended....that will give me MAXIMUM shock travel....and unfortunately maximum seat height too... I think the only way to get the seat height lower is a lowering kit or make up my own horseshoe/dog bone
....
....
"who would'a thunk it" that backing off the preload nuts would bottom out the shock ? that never once crossed my mind, but that is what is going on on this bike.... all this time it was My screwup of not understanding the system it's used in ! AURGH !
I have no doubt it will still ride like a truck... a tall truck mind you but still a very hard ride because before I did anything to that bike I rode it down Hoy road and it liked to beat me to death.... so I don't expect any change
but at least it won't be bottomed out all the time !
Oh well Live and learn !
....

at least I took the Triumph out for a ride today had to push it the last 200 feet to the gas pump because I ran out of gas and blew a fuze at the same time.... still can't figure that one out ! LOL....
and Yes I had to clean the pilot jets to get it to run good again....
I'm hoping the new gas and the run will make her happier now....
....
later all !
Bob.......
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Old May 15th, 2022, 04:12 PM   #45
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Bob, don't quite understand your "bottomed out shock" idea. Please post photos of shock:

1. Bare shock with no spring, showing all adjustment threads. With ruler showing eyelet-to-eyelet length

2. Shock with spring in "bottomed out" configuration

3. Shock in new "not bottomed out" config

Thx
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Old May 15th, 2022, 10:06 PM   #46
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I can't do that buddy I put the shock back in the bike with the stock spring
it does compress a bit when you take it off the side stand and stand it up ... but when I sit on it it's no give at all.... weird !
.... the shock itself has a 2" stroke believe it or not !
and with that short of a stroke you can adjust up the pre-load nuts to the point of the shock bottoming out and the nuts are completely clear of the spring
as you adjust up the preload nuts you drop the shock piston in it's cylinder
if you do that far enough you'll bottom out the piston in the shock !
as the swing arm comes up and the frame of the bike goes down the shock is compressed I had it all the way backed out on the pre-load nuts to get the seat as low as possible.... bad move ! at the most you can go about 1/2" with this shock and spring and that's probably WHY they put such a heavy spring in there with only 2" of travel before bottoming out it doesn't leave much wiggle room
so I put the pre-load nuts at the top of the spring with the shock fully extended on the bench and locked the nuts together there....then put it all back together.... and yes Now I can only touch with the balls of my feet not flat footed anymore.... Phittttt !
but I want that full extent of that short travel shock which I probably have now.... ( not that I would bet on it by any means, LOL.because you can see it compress a little when taking it off the side stand ) not much but some.
I didn't take it out for a ride today I got fussing with the Triumph instead
I'll do that tomorrow .... I expect the same hard ride I had when I first rode it... but at least I know it is not bottoming out because the way I had it.
I expect it to be hard now, although I have let the air out of the air shock and that should help some but I aired up the rear tire again so it's going to be rough ! but at least on the big bumps there might be some cushion their wasn't any before a lump of asphalt on Hoy road would literally dislodge my helmet ! and I strap it down good too ! that is because I was riding it with the shock bottomed out and the spring had no effect...it wasn't even in the picture ! now the spring will be working and we'll see how bad it is !
sense the first ride I have been fine tuning this suspension I got the front forks real close to the point of not diving when the front brake is applied
which is good, and I loosened up the rear shock because they had it on the hardest slowest position now it is as fast as it can go !
although I am not real sure that is going in the right direction or not on the rear shock I figure the faster reaction should give me the smoothest ride
it will also catapult me over the handle bars because there is LESS dampening too... so if that becomes a problem I'll turn it down in the back.
.....
Yes My initial quest for flat footed ness on the RX4 has been a boondoggle !
a total screw up because of that short stroke in the shock the only way to lower that bike in the rear is with a lowering kit, or for me to make one myself !....... the front forks will go back up...I haven't done that yet but I will
but I will not put them all the way flush with the triple trees... I'll leave some rake in it because I like the quicker steering that provides !
.....
yah a 17" shock with only 2" of travel boggles the mind at least 4" of threads for the preload nuts so you can back them all the way off and bottom out the shock...... it's the only bike I have ever messed with that you can do that !
I guess they used a part they had on hand because it makes no sense at all !
....
Normally when you back off the preload to the top of the shock you have plenty of travel left in the shock to function... that worked on the XR650L I had ... but not on this beast you back off the preload nuts and it bottoms out the shock completely ! STUPID beyond words !
....
oh and the center to center on the suspension is 2.75" not quite 3" just so you know... LOL....
....
did that answer your questions ?
....
Bob.....
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Old May 16th, 2022, 01:25 AM   #47
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bob KellyIII View Post
did that answer your questions ?
....
Bob.....
Not really. I'll work up some pictures for you to verify if I understand you correctly.

Also with 1:3 rocker ratio, 2" travel on shock is 6" range on swingarm!

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Old May 22nd, 2022, 05:29 PM   #48
Bob KellyIII
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Well I just came back from a ride on the RX4.... a short ride but down my favorite bumpy road... and the bike is alot better riding now.... I can live with it that way.... it's still a tad on the hard side but so much better than it was it is unreal.... I put in a 400~450lb/in. Spring... I had to make a spacer because the spring was so short but I did get it to work.... and I lowered the pre-load a bit and that also helped I can touch flat footed with both feet but I have to work at it.... ( it's not like I had it before but close)....
I was hoping to hit the invisible bump that always knocks the bejesus out of me ....and sure enough I did.... and instead of launching me it was just a OOF bump.... that one gets the front and rear always... on every bike I have !
funny thing is you can't see it.... or I would go around it so I call it the invisible bump !....LOL....
all in all it is a firm ride , not squishy at all but there is give to it now instead of the bumps being volant,they are more rounded ...about like a NORMAL BIKE !!!!! hahahahaha !
all in all I am quite pleased I'll live with it this way !
so it's time to put some miles on this puppy !
.....
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Old May 24th, 2022, 05:16 PM   #49
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I took the RX4 out for a ride a bit ago.... it ran great and rode fairly good this time
I filled the tank with premium, to see if it will idle better as it misses a beat every once in a while at idle and coughs when you take it off idle some times....
seems to be running a tad better but I really can't tell at the moment...
I took it for about a 30 min ride and found I could finally relax on it which is something new..... i straightened out my arms and just crused along at about 70mph on the freeway
and then turned off onto a back road.... I decided to go the long way home and I wish I hadn't as I came up to a stop sign and put my foot down and the weight shifted and I couldn't hold it up and it fell over....again ! that pissed me off ! that thing is darn near as heavy as the 1100 honda I had and I never dropped that thing because the seat height was 28" not 32" I told the wife when I got home that if I can't find a way to lower that Pig I will sell it ! it's too heavy to be that tall ! at least for me !
right now I noticed that when I was putting my feet down I was only touching with the balls of my feet on either side ..... and to add aggravation to frustration, when it layed over the gas cap was leaking like it was half open ...gas ran everywhere I probably lost a half a gallon of gas before I got it back up on it's wheels ! when I got home I invistigated the gas tank cap... it indeed was locked i opened it and the O ring was indeed in place.... I closed it and noticed it was about 1/16" from being flush i pushed down real hard and heard a click...and it stayed there I thought OH COME ON !!!!
it looked like it was completely closed but it wasn't ! ...
I tell ya I am having more trouble with this bike than I ever had with a bike ...and it's all because of me .... I'm thinking maybe I should give up riding all together if I can't keep a motorcycle upright I shouldn't be on one ! talk about frustrating !
......
Bob......
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Old May 24th, 2022, 08:15 PM   #50
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fighting laws of physics again!

While you're teetering on four contact points, it's like 4-legged table with 2 short legs. With bike perfectly vertical, impossible to tell which way it's gonna lean. And you don't have firm footing on either side to catch it!

Now 3-legged tables never teeter-totter! Physics, triangle, most stable support. Bike's got 2 points on ground already. You only need one foot on ground to complete triangle. If you intentionally lean it 1" to either side, you know for sure it's NOT gonna tip the other way. Scoot one ass-cheek off to that side as you're leaning it over 1" and you have full foot contact AND weight on that foot for traction and support.

Wise person once told me: "Rather than trying to cover entire World in leather, just wear shoes!"

Now close your eyes and IMAGINE... seeing yourself going all over the World... anywhere you wanna go... And imagine finding all sorts of fun and awesome bikes... The imagine yourself hopping on any bike, anywhere in entire World... and riding it and having loads of fun... and never dropping it! Wouldn't that be so much FUN!?? Being able to ride any bike anywhere in entire World, knowing... for sure... 100%... positively and absolutely... that it cannot get away from you and fall over???

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Old May 25th, 2022, 12:43 AM   #51
Bob KellyIII
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LOL the power of positive thinking !?!
..... In other words Ride it like a Tall bike Bob.... stop treating it like a small dirt bike and you'll do better ! ..... and I have to agree totally on that because I think that is what I've been doing ! it's not a light bike, and it's tall to me.
And that combination is getting to me !
....
I think it's time to take a brake from that beast and give "Miss Piggy" a rest !
....
I have a plan to make a new 'LONGER"lower link for the RX4 now....
we'll see how that turns out LOL... I'll buy some 1/4" 1.5" bar stock and go from there....
.....
I got 151 Miles on it now ! LOL....
....
Bob....
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Old May 25th, 2022, 01:00 AM   #52
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Longer dog-bones will also reduce leverage-ratio, giving you softer ride...
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Old May 25th, 2022, 02:53 AM   #53
Bob KellyIII
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Thats good to know as the 400~450lb spring I have in there now is a bit on the hard side.... a little softer would be nice....
on the ride this afternoon I went on a road that when I first got the bike I took it on and it beat me to death, today it was noticable but not too bad...
there is cracks about every 12 ft in the pavement that have been patched but it is a rough road.... no doubt I had to slow down the first time I went on it but this time I took it at 55mph or so ...
so it's getting there....
it's weird ..I bought a 450cc bike because I wanted something smaller than a 650cc and lighter and closer to the ground... what I got was a 450cc bike 40hp
and capable of 80mph with no problem , but a bike that weighs more than a KLR 650 ! I didn't think the weight would be that big of a factor but boy was I so wrong... the Triumph is alot lighter out there as it's weight is low with the RX4 the COG is at my crotch ! instead of mid calf like the Triumph....
.... if I was 20 years younger there would be no problem in fact it would probably be riding on the bottomed out shock but at 68yrs old that hard stuff is not my cup of tea anymore !
..... so it's back to lowering the bike again this 32" seat height is not for me
.... I was actually joking about falling over at a stop sign ...till I did that today.... it's embarrassing and maddening to be thrown off your bike at a stop ! lol.....
i DID learn something today though,.... one the gas cap needs to be completely flush and don't use the front brake to hold the bike until you stop moving completely I was still moving at walking speed and when I hit the brake, the weight shifted to the right and just kept on going !
with a smaller lighter bike that maneuver wouldn't have been a problem but with this bike.... it was a problem ! my right foot was on the rear brake and by the time it got to the ground it was already too far to arrest the movement !.... stupid,stupid, stupid ! but I am learning what not to do on the bike !
.....
.... tonight my back and shoulders are killing me I'm sure I pulled several mussels ! getting that thing upright again....
....
I think alot of my problems is trying to get back to the place where I was 30 years ago in my riding,... being without a reliable bike for 5 years and not constantly riding one, definitely puts one on the down hill side again...
things that I used to do without even thinking about it, like stopping today
are different than they used to be !
....
and I'm wondering now if this is the bike for me or not... super heavy and too tall is a bad combination in my book no matter your age !
....
I do not think I could shave off 20lbs off that bike even if I went into it really hard to get every last ounce ! and 20lbs is a drop in the bucket with it ...it needs to loose 150 lbs not just 20lbs ! even if I removed everything on it down to the frame and engine and gas tank I bet I would only gain 50lbs and it would look like hell !
.... I had the muffler off last week and to my surprise it was not that heavy at all.... I was shocked ! every Honda I've ever owned had a boat anchor for a muffler !!!!
....
it's a good bike... I'm just not sure it's good for me !
....
I find myself whishing I still had my XR650L Honda that I finally got to fit me
but alas it melted in the Ranch fire along with my 5 other bikes !
but that was a Dirt bike you could ride on the street, I want a street bike you can ride on the dirt.... there is a difference ! ( LOL mostly in weight I guess!)
....
ahh well.... it'll all come out in the wash, as my father used to say !
I'm not giving up on it but 2 times of it falling over on me makes me really mad ! why would they make a frigging bike so tall ? I know they can make them lower but they don't do that !
... maybe I need to Ride the Triumph more ! HAHAHAHA !
....
later !
Bob....
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Old May 25th, 2022, 07:19 AM   #54
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That is very frustrating Bob. It sounds like that rx4 is just a tall, heavy bike. If I were you, I would stick to the Triumph and the Ninja!

I remember years ago when my Dad was retiring and riding a bit more, he and I were leaving his neighborhood when I realized I had lost him. He had gotten his foot caught on the right peg and rolled his bike onto the grass on his neighbor's front lawn. It can certainly happen to any of us, regardless of height. He's over 6' tall and was riding a gz250! To be honest, I suspect he was too tall for the bike, sort of like frog legs on a little bike, but either way, tip-overs happen.

I've had heavy bikes (like my old Shadow 1100, like yours), and tall heavy bikes like my bmw, or even my old Honda Hurricane. I'm so happy with my little 250 now it makes me wonder if I even need my SV. We find what fits.
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Old May 25th, 2022, 04:54 PM   #55
Bob KellyIII
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Thanks Drew ! Yah **** happens , that is just the way it is .... I'm not having very good luck lately with anything as I think I just burned up the weed eater too.... silly thing had been not wanting to stay running and I re tuned the carb and got it running real good again.... but 5 minutes into the grass cutting it bogged down and died.... now no compression to amount to anything...
and I am sure I put chainsaw gas in it too.... time for a new one I guess
seems like everything I touch lately goes to pot ! LOL...
I think I'll try my hand at the lawn mower now and see if I can brake it too !
HAHAHAHHAHA !

90 degrees here today I think summer finally got here !
.... and not a single blossom on the apple trees that last snow fall and freeze took them out so no apples this year ! the deer will not be happy about that !
....
Bob.....
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Old May 25th, 2022, 09:25 PM   #56
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There's an answer for all these problems you've been having...


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HONDA!!!
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Old May 25th, 2022, 09:35 PM   #57
Bob KellyIII
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LOL yah more truth to that than you know I bet !
I have this machine here now and I'm determined to make it work for me !
.....
I'm stubborn.... and committed too ! HA !
.....
Bob.....
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Old May 29th, 2022, 08:43 PM   #58
Bob KellyIII
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OK... an update on the spring thing.... it's still got the 400~450lb spring in it for now...
and I made a lowering link for the rear.... it took me about a week as I am on night shift again ( my sleeping hours are all screwed up) but I did finally get the lower link done and I am pleased with the results ! I went from a seat height of 32" stock down to 29.5" by making a new lower link.... the original lower link on the RX4 has a weird shape to it but I found I don't have to bend the dog bone part of it at all it can fit being straight !
sense I couldn't find 1/4" barstock anywhere I went with 1.25x1/8" barstock...3 layers
cut a center spreader out of a 1" piece of axle shaft drilled a bolt hole through it and then after bolting everything together to make sure the alignment was right I welded everything up..... several screw-ups along the way but the end results is what matters !
the first guesstimate of the hole spacing was way off , but after putting the bike at the wanted height and then measuring the separation needed I drilled 2 more holes and in that configuration everything finally fit ! my original holes were 6-3/8" apart then I moved in 3/4" and drilled another set of holes closer to the pivot and that worked out real good ! ... I can set on the bike now with both feet flat on the ground in my slippers !.... and my legs are slightly bent. it's almost exactly how I had it before but this time I have suspension TOO ! LOL....
it was getting cold out there so I called it a day can I'll finish putting it back together tomorrow and hopefully take her out for a ride!
.... I am hoping that now my suspension problems on this bike are finally fixed....
there won't be any more dropping the bike at stop signs because of the bike being too tall now , so I think it's good to go !
....
the rear tire has about 3"~4" of travel before it will hit the plastic inner fender well
and I expect that will get tore up over time, but that's the price I pay for a shorter bike and it is well worth it. I think my ground clearance has been reduced to about 6" or so but I haven't measured it yet as I don't have the crash plate on it yet !
.....all in all I lowered the bike 2.5" from stock by making my own lower link.
this lower link does NOT have bearings in it so I am considering buying a lowering link for the KTM 690 as it looks like it will fit ...it has bearings in it. ! ($70.00 on Ali Express)
I can probably ride that bike the rest of my life without wearing out the pivot point down there, so I am not real worried about it. LOL....
....
later !
Bob.....
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Old June 2nd, 2022, 12:04 AM   #59
Bob KellyIII
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I didn't have enough energy to take the bike out for a ride today but I did LOOK at it ! LOL
.... and I noticed something I didn't like... there are 2 screw places in the rear under fender for the bike, these protrude down a good 3/4" well at that picitular place it put them about 1/2" away from the tire... ! so I cranked down the pre load at least another 1/2" and I'll give it a try from there so it doesn't look like 29.5" seat height will work at all
we'll see what it does at 29" or what ever it is right now... it didn't seem to change much when setting on it and the bike is still too vertical when on the side stand normially, so I moved it back off the patio so I could get more lean on it.
....
I gott'a do town running tomorrow in the early afternoon but I should have time after that to take her for a short ride and see if that inner fender is going to Rub.....
....
Later !
Bob......
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Old June 18th, 2022, 06:35 AM   #60
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ok a quick update here.... I took it for a short ride and it was draging the rear tire on the plastic fender well on every little bump... by the time I got back it had wore a small hole in the plastic fender well.. but luckilly did not go into the air box. so I did stop in time.
so I pulled the shock again yesterday and replaced the spring with a 500lb spring I had purchased from race tech. I left the new lower link on there and just replaced the spring.....
once buttoned back up I measured the seat height again and it's right at 30"
which is almost 2" lower than stock. I have about 3" clearance between the rear tire and the inner fender well now.... and there is NO give what so ever when sitting on it.... I think I'm going to have to live with it like that !
it might well beat me to death on these bumpy roads but I can still flat foot it !
....
we got alot of rain last night and everything is soaked outside so a test ride will have to wait !
......
Bob......
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Old July 5th, 2022, 03:09 AM   #61
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Well, now I really screwed it up.... I was going to lower the front some more...
that would help in the headlight aiming and handling too... as I only had it down 1.25" from stock.( was going to take it for a late evening ride ,fired it up and turned on the light and the beam was hitting the house about 10ft off the ground !) and sense I lowered the rear 2" ( or more) I should have the front 2" lower as well... so In the dark I decided to lower the front but one of the Allen head bolts didn't want to come loose on the lower triple tree
and the Allen wrench didn't want to fit in there correctly ( I suppose that is where I sheared off the swivel ball off my Allen set sockets at)
anyway, I drove my long Allen wrench in as best I could and put a long wrench on it to try and brake it loose and it just ripped out the octagon in the bolt head
....and that may be near impossible to get out and replace ! AURGH !!!!
...no doubt I need to get the front lower again but I'll have to get that bolt out now.... this is not looking promising at all ! LOL
I think I zigged, when I should have zagged ! LOL
.....
I may have to disassemble the whole front fairing and dash just to get at it better ! and I am not looking forward to that !

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Old July 5th, 2022, 08:57 PM   #62
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well, I got lucky and fixed that without too much problem !
and got the front lowered the 2" I needed.
.....
I haven't aimed the headlight yet but I think it is still way too high.... we'll see.
....
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Old July 5th, 2022, 09:10 PM   #63
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You monster! Snapping bolt heads!!
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Old July 5th, 2022, 11:15 PM   #64
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LOL WORSE I stripped it out like a madman ! the Allen wrench just spun in there ! ..... but I brute forced my way out of the delima I took a SAE socket type allen thingie and put it on an extension ( an old beat up one) and drove the thing into the bolt till it stopped.... it had a real good bite then so I put a lever on my ratchet and it popped loose !
i got real REAL lucky on that one i could see months of work just to get that bolt out but it came out easy !
I've never been a big fan of Allen head bolts because of that reason... usually in the past the Allen wrench would bend or twist or strip out but on this one the bolt itself stripped...... I bet you, I won't make that mistake again on that bike.... I'll be really sure the Allen wrench is bottomed out before I start turning it... HAHAHAHAHAH I have better Allen wrenches now than I had in the past and their not too bad..... but what caused this is the ball swivel end of one of the socket sets snapped off in the bolt.... it's like maybe I should start using those torque wrenches I bought a while back <GRIN>

.....
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Old July 5th, 2022, 11:31 PM   #65
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and from all indications the headlight is NOT adjustable ! you can't tilt it more or less it's like WTF were they thinking just changing tire sizes will make it where you need to adjust the headlight beam... but Nope... there is no provisions for tilting it at all.... I'ed have to take out the entire headlight and dash unit to modify the bracket and elongate the holes to get even a little movement.... high beam looks to be perfectly level not pointed down a touch.
and low beam looks to be about right.
through the years I've come to realize that if you put the high beam just right that the low beam is way too low..... I guess so you won't blind the oncoming car drivers.... that has always been a pet peve with me.... so I usually adjust up the low beam a tad and just run them. that way when there is no one on the highway you can run the high beams and see the deer a long way off....
.... on this bike I dunno what it is going to be like riding at night.....
I used to do a bunch of night riding years ago .... but traffic has tripled sense those days !

Anyway I THINK the work on the RX4 is done ! ....finely!


....
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Old July 6th, 2022, 12:18 PM   #66
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Yeah, separation between high & low beams vary greatly. With 7" round lights, Bosch and Hella have high-beams up in trees when low is set on road. Cibié much, much better.

I've had to use washers to shim headlight-mounting up & down for aiming before, can't remember which bike or car it was on..
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Old July 6th, 2022, 03:09 PM   #67
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Well, I just cured the problem on the RX4.... I took the bottom bolt out !
then bent the bracket down a bit so it would clear the plastic and walla ! it could them move up AND down .... before all it could do was move up a tiny amount... now I can have a 30 degree swing if I want it.... so I pointed it to where it looks right and anchored down the remaining 2 bolts.... so many other bikes I've owned only had 2 bolts on the headlight and the only time they moved is when the bike was dropped.... so I have no doubt the headlight will stay where I put it.....
.... when I was messing with it last night it never dawned on me to take the bolt out..... so I did that a bit ago.... but it still wouldn't pivot downward... I thought what the heck ! ...and that little bracket was the problem... got my big prybar/screwdriver and bent it down about 1/4" and that cured it !....
....

really is weird not to have any provisions in the thing to facilitate headlight aiming..... i mean that is a must.... but I guess it's close enough so get it out the door! .... but it's good to know you can take out the bottom center bolt , bend the bracket and then point the headlight anywhere ya want !
..... the headlight is hooked to the frame like the Ninja 250R is.... it don't turn with the forks which is a shame because I like that ability to point the headlight...... ....
I remember stopping and helping a guy change a front tire on his pickup on old schoolhouse road one time at about 10:30 pm and it was very dark out
he didn't have a flashlight so I parked my bike on the other side of the highway and pointed the headlight at his tire for him.... 2 minutes later he was done ...my bike didn't even have a chance to get hot setting there idling
..hahahaha !.... he was going to the store to get some cigarettes' and it was close to closing time so he had to hurry ! HAHAHAH
.....
it's my wife's birthday today so I think I will take her out to dinner !
.....
Later !
Bob......
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