Badly fueled

Synchronizing the throttle bodies didn't not cure the bad mileage on the big S. It's still difficult to start, hard to work with in town, stalling at traffic lights and eating gas like a thirsty camel. With this fueling problem unsolved, I don't want to move forward to the next steps like sorting the suspension or brakes. The project's stuck.

I took contact with a pro tuner in the Netherlands last week. The plan is to pay him a visit next week (Saturday anyone ?) with the bike so he remaps the RapidBike module. I hope he can sort this all out once for all. In the short conversation we had, he suggested I should revert to the standard ignition cables. So for the fourth time, I swapped these cables this afternoon.

And since the side panels were down and the tank was put away, it also was a good occasion to find a new place for the diagnostic USB plug as it will be needed when on the dyno to access and optimize the current fueling map. I squeezed the plug just between the airbox and the left frame spar.

Sharp Katanas

When it comes to Suzuki Katanas, some waste time in endless expensive accurate restorations, some others in tricky transformations, but all end up with a piece of motorcycle history that drags a lot of attention these days. There are countless efforts out there to prove that Katanas are now back on the roads as premium classics.

But there's another way to enjoy the unforgettable Katana look. Unicorn Japan supply parts to alter more "modern" Suzuki motorcycles like GSF1200 and GSX1400. The result is absolutely stunning.

I've got to find an old Bandit ... ;D

Rapid bike installed

As with a couple of other things, I took some time last week to fit the Rapid Bike module on the R1100S. It was a rather easy job, but once installed it caused the bike to be more difficult to start even with the choke trigger fully pulled. Add to this a disastrous gas mileage that makes me think the lean air/fuel ratio is now history and you can guess my reaction. More money thrown at trying to solve issues, more problems.

Apart from these new issues, the bike's absolutely flying with its new programmable injection module. It pulls  continuously with force in the whole rev range in a deeper than ever exhaust sound. The engine produces a much smoother torque curve and the famous 4500 rpm flat spot has almost disappeared. It was raining when I took it for its test ride, so there's certainly more to discover later, but a difference could be felt.

Now, the starting issue, a much higher idle speed and the rather short tank range made me think I was in for a "carb" synch, so I plugged my faithful Twinmax and gave the synch screws a spin. I ended up with both screws completely tightened, a sensibly lowered idle speed and an effective choke trigger. I also put the Power FRK module down just to see if it has something to do with it. 

Test ride is planned for tomorrow starting with a full tank of gas.

Collapsed BST

Pictures of what appears to be a collapsed BST carbon wheel showed up on the Pelican Parts forum the other day. Given the price for a pair, I would understand the owner, who's fortunately said to be alive and far from badly wounded, to be pissed as hell.

Ok then, what's to be learned from all this ? Well first, BST (standing for Black Stone Tek) wheels are light and hollow. Then, given the look of the inner threads, you could honestly ask yourself if you get the quality you expensively paid for. To me, BST wheels are so pricey that even with a 50% rebate I'd still think twice before buying (and I'm not trying to minimize their impact on the bike's flickabillity). Finally, don't get me wrong, carbon wheels, with Öhlins USD forks (or more recently Showa BPF forks) or TTX shocks, are still the climax when it comes to motorcycle upgrades.

Royal Enfield Fury

Can anyone keep me one of these ?

This is the new Royal Enfield Fury. I hope what the ultra classic British motorcycle company is actually trying to achieve with the new Fury is to target younger customers, otherwise that would mean I'm really getting old this time.

Prettier rear end

This is what I've worked on last week. I've tried to make the rear end prettier while certainly a little lighter too. Again I had this parts gathering dust for several months now and finally took some time to fit them on the BMW. 

So here it is before the parts swap ...

... and after the turn signal lenses and the licence plate holder were changed

The main point here, I have to admit, was the look enhancement while trying to stay more or less road legal. Weight gain is hardly over 200g, but that's another 200g that makes the bike 1kg lighter now with the bar ends swap (don't know if you've noticed that already).

The indicator bulbs are still clear ones making the signals to flash way too bright. I still have to replace them with orange tinted ones. Front turn signals are still ugly orange ones, so I guess I'll be looking to arrange that soon.

Miob's bikes

I've just come to realize I haven't pointed you out yet to this great website : Miob's bike. This kind dutch man buys cheap classic bikes and restores them as tasteful Cafe Racers. And he does that on his own on his spare time !

Plus he has built one of the finest BMW Cafe Racers out there. One I would really love to give it a try ;)

White stems

Last week, as the list of things to do on the R1100S wasn't really reducing, I decided I would brave the freezing temperatures and start to strike out some of the lines on the list.

This is what I did : 

- drained and replaced the clutch fluid

- changed the damaged clutch master cylinder cap

- dropped the exhaust down pipes and drilled them

Pics ? Sure :

And a last one. I just hate what I see on this one : white valve stems, which only prove what we already know about how bad the injection is currently set up. Look at these valves ! It looks as if they were made of plastic. A cure is on its way ...

Ducati red

First official pictures of Rossi dressed in red ... and a bit of yellow of course.

Oh and let's not forget the brave Nicky who's having less press coverage these days, go figure ...

And since wer're on the MotoGP topic, Yamaha have lost their Fiat sponsorship and are still looking for a main sponsor deal, while Ducati - who had already signed with AMG in late 2010 - have announced this week a new deal with Diesel.

Me ? Being partial ? Yeah maybe ...

Rapid Bike box

In order to sort the fueling issues we (the dyno guy, Robert from Foster Performance and I) discovered on the R1100S just after the Laser complete exhaust system had been fitted, I've been recommended a Rapid Bike box. Everyone goes with a Power Commander to remap an ECU, but these Rapid Bike boxes are powerful italian technology worth every penny.

Anyway, Foster Performance have been very keen on pointing me out that they were currently having a clearance sale on Rapid Bike boxes for the R1100S. Add to this an attractive euro-to-dollar conversion (well, at the time of the deal) and a promise on custom maps to start to work from and fit my specific needs, and I couldn't decline.

The box arrived a couple of weeks ago as you can guess from the picture below. It hasn't been installed yet, but from what I've seen today (story soon to be covered in another post), I can't wait any more time to fit it.

Displayed in picture (clockwise) : 

- Rapid Bike software + custom maps

- USB cable to connect on laptop

- Quick shifter

- Wire harness that plugs on both Bosh injectors

- Rapid Bike module (center)