KLR You Experienced? I am now...

Re: KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

Just got off the phone with Kawa and they can get me the part - it was a little unclear as to whether or not it's C specific. As the rear subframe on the C is different to the A then it wouldn't surprise me if the part was specific but no matter, I'll get my mitts on the thing in a few days.

Guess it's a double edged sword, the rarity of this bike. Makes finding C-specific parts quite difficult, but I do have a ride that's pretty uncommon. Gotta love that.
 
Re: KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

These just showed up, should be a decent fit with the whole green and steel vibe of the bike

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Got some Spray Max 2K clear on order then it's time to clear the tank. Once I figure out the decal I'll be sticking on the thing Ill be good to go, just gotta make some measurements etc. The 2K stuff worked out pretty well on the CB750 so using it again was a no-brainer. I'll try the gloss this time and see how the brushed steel works with that. One way to find out.
 
Re: KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

Man jimbo, you are really making me miss my little TC185 with this thread.
Only bike i ever regret parting with.
The hi/lo range was the tits for bombing through the woods on low and then flip into the hi five for down the back roads.

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That battery acid is nuts.
We were adding acid to the water in one of our barns, and any steal fittings down stream of the acidifier just corroded to shit within the first year, and that was only at a PH of 4.5.

Glad to see you’ll soon have a proper vehicle for navigating montreal’s springtime streets.
 
Re: KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

Hey Jim, have you tried sourcing your bracket on a KLR forum?

Very nice work so far.
 
Re: KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

Thanks guys, appreciate the good vibes as always...and that Suzuki looks like it's got some gnarly stories to tell...

The KLR forum was my next stop if Kawasaki came up short, but turns out they could get me what I needed and it wasn't crazy expensive either. Good call though.
 
Re: KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

I guess like a lot of you guys do I bag and label everything when I take the bike apart, and take a ton of photos. This morning's breakfast is a bit of a blur let alone where a wire I unplugged 4 months ago is supposed to go. So I bag everything, labelled in big black sharpie letters, ready for the rebuild. To be sure.

Except I don't.

I should, and do with almost everything, but somehow for some reason some parts just slip through the net.

And so I spent 2 hours trying to figure out where the fuck this one - unlabelled - rubber bung and bolt was supposed to go. 2 hours.

Note to self - label everything. Eh-vree-thing.

After that snafu things went swimmingly. Got the airbox on, hooked up the carb, bolted the radiator back on and made a good fist of the wiring harness. It was in a right old state and needed a fair bit of re-wrapping and cleaning up but looks less like a pile of filthy fear under my workbench now and more like the central nervous system of my motorcycle that it is.

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Re: KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

Weather's gone totally tits up, woke up to a foot of snow and car got stuck in a drift. This'll be the last year I fuck around with front wheel drive, leasing something red and with AWD as soon as. Picked up a can of this stuff -

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- it worked great on the Honda so I'm gonna hit the tank with gloss this time and see what gives. The "professional use only" sticker on the lid - pfffffft. Hazardous chemicals and me have a history now. Hoping to clear the tank in the next few days and then finally get to see how it looks with those restored green fairings.

RIP Stephen Hawking. Woke up to that sad news this morning, that dude had game.
 
KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

Tore my thumbnail off this afternoon cleaning up the rear brake caliper. Hurt then, pounding now. I suppose that means I'm about 2mm narrower. A customization I can see no benefit in whatsoever.
 
Re: KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

The Jimbonaut said:
Tore my thumbnail off this afternoon cleaning up the rear brake caliper. Hurt then, pounding now. I suppose that means I'm about 2mm narrower. A customization I can see no benefit in whatsoever.

Cringe!
 
Re: KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

Brodie said:
I feel your pain. Hope the injury doesn't slow you down too much.

Sent from my K6 using DO THE TON mobile app

Compared to the injury you had mate mine wasn't even a graze. I burnt my index, middle and ring fingers on the stove last night - it's a bad week to be a digit on my right hand. Hope you're all good - I've been keeping an eye on your Ugly Punx thread but haven't seen any updates for a while. How did you get on with that saddle?
 
Re: KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

Still waiting to be upholstered. My missus is off work with a broken foot so I have no motorcycle funds at the moment.

Sent from my K6 using DO THE TON mobile app
 
Re: KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

Brodie said:
Still waiting to be upholstered. My missus is off work with a broken foot so I have no motorcycle funds at the moment.

Sent from my K6 using DO THE TON mobile app
Sorry to hear that mate, hope she’s on the mend in no time and you’re back in the saddle


Sent from my iPhone using DO THE TON
 
Re: KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

torn nails suck. I chopped the end of my thumb off about 2 months ago, it's healed but still super sensitive to heat and cold etc.
 
Re: KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

Jim, you need to drink more beer, the can you bought should fit your bike from the looks of these 2 photos. your bike on top. Bike from the site you got your can from. the frame and routing look identical to me, I could be wrong but check it out.

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Maybe they sent the wrong mid-pipe by mistake?
 
Re: KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

I need more beer. Never have truer words been spoken my friend =)

The rear subframe is different on my C (that's an A model in the lower photo) but without looking at them both next to each other I'm not sure what the differences are exactly. The rear brake reservoir bracket is one difference, and maybe some mounting brackets on the frame itself. From what I can tell the mid pipe I have is too short to route around the frame correctly so it's possible I have the wrong one.

It's hard getting to the bottom of it as Lexx is an in-house brand of Rocky Mountain ATV, and there's no Lexx representative per se that I can speak to to find out what the problem may be. I'll take some measurements and make some calls. Really hoping I can make it work - it was about half the price of other brands like FMF, Two Brothers etc but comes very well reviewed.

But regardless of all that, you're right. I need more beer.
 
Re: KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

Exhaust snafus aside for a moment. I've been looking forward to officiating on this particular marriage for some time - the tank and the restored fairings. Got the tank cleared yesterday with SprayMax 2K "Glamour Clear" - it's a high gloss clear coat compared to the satin clear I used on the CB. Gotta say I love this stuff. There's a button on the bottom of the can that you push which activates some kind of hardener in the aerosol - this stuff sprays on smooth and sets hard. It held up great against gas spills on the CB so all being well it'll do the same here too. It's about as good a clear coat as you can buy in a aerosol as far as I can tell - can't speak highly enough of the stuff. You only get about 24 hours from pushing that bottom button to it going off in the can, but I used the whole lot on the tank anyway. But it's brutal on the airways - you gotta dust off your Breaking Bad halloween costume and go full hazmat with this stuff.

Figured I'd try the gloss this time on the tank as the plastic fairings came out with more of a matte finish after all the sanding, which I like. Very happy with the contrast, and starting to see things come together now -

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Aesthetics-wise a bunch more to do - seat still needs re-upholstering and the side panels will be getting a steel panel detail on them sooner or later too. Shaping up.
 
Re: KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

That looks great! I like it and +1 on the spraymax 2K it is as good as you can get, it's the same as pro 2 stage clear you'd use in a body shop and yes you need full respirator and cover all of your skin too as it can get into you from skin contact and eyeballs. I am betting you got the wrong mid pipe as the places your subframe differs are not where the exhaust routes. your header is identical to the A model and I bet the oem exhaust is the same on both models.
 
Re: KLR You Experienced? Err, kinda not really.

Check this pic, I added the A exhaust and it's identical to the C in your pic. I am now convinced if the Lexx won't fit it has the wrong mid pipe. They make a lot of kits for that pipe and getting the mid pipe wrong could easily happen, especially made in China.

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