Where did you ride today?

I was thinking as I rode north to the North Cascades National Highway that I've done this ride before...many times...and even several times in one season. But each time lifts me up mentally, and each time something changes. so each time is unique in its own way.

Many people call this the "American Alps". I think you can see why...

This is on Hwy 9 heading north before turning onto Hwy 20 (North Cascades Highway)

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This is heading into Darrington Hwy 530. Can you imagine living at the foot of those mountains? The residents of Darrington do.

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Gorge Lake is off to the right. Diablo is on the left where you see the turnoff.

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Lunch break

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Across the road from where I ate lunch. I got down on the ground to get that pic...the mountains rise that high and so close to the road.

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Turning around to head home.

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FWIW, I turned over 10K on the bike. Bought it last July. MPG was 61.8.

Chris
 
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The weather was perfect. The sun finally came out and while we do not have majestic snow covered peaks or winding ocean fronted roads I did mange to take my ST1300 on the short loop that includes Ida and Tom Bean Texas. This was the first outing since the fork rebuild and brake fluid change. I can report no fork leaks, a pleasant ride and brakes that are a wee bit more savage than they used to be. (the rear brake peddle works now without slop.) It just gets better and better.

(edit) I did it again. I couldn't resist another ride. We get so few perfect riding days in my part of Texas. It's either rain (actually storms), ice or amazingly hot. Today the sun was shining in a big blue sky, the wing was light out of the north, mid sixties and I was riding on one of the best motorcycle I have had the privilege to own. It was just wonderful.
 
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After painting primer in the stairwell (lots of ladder work) I was exhausted. But I wanted to get a ride in anyway so went out on a short 32 miles out in the country. Still keeping the RPMs below 4000 so kept to country roads. Used my Google Maps GPS to watch how close the speedo is to actual. Figured out it is about 6.7% optimistic. More offset than my AK and my older Rav4. I find almost every vehicle is optimistic by some degree.

Only 12 more miles of keeping the RPM under 4000. I currently have 238 miles on the bike. After that the recommended limit is 6000 RPM. I should be able to go any legal speed in Iowa with that... including I-80 or I-35. 4000 RPM in 6th gear = 50 MPH actual (53 MPH on the meter). That will go until I get 400 miles on the odometer and then it's just moderate riding up to 600 miles where I'll do the break-in oil/filter change. I should be able to get that done by the end of the month.

I will say it is very different seeing and hearing a much higher engine rev for any given speed and also very hard to keep it under 4000 RPM just going through the gears. Even for me who is a very conservative rider. This bike wants to get up to at least 5000 RPM for each upshift. I guess that's the Ninja heritage of the engine and transmission. This engine starts to lug at close to 2500 RPM. Up to now I've been riding a motorcycle dressed as a scooter. Now I'm riding a sports bike dressed as a cruiser!
 
Too late now, but I'd forget about the 4000 rpm break in method. ;)

Just a question to ponder...when you buy a demo bike, does anyone really think the rider ever thinks about the 4000 rpm limit? Nah... We buy it and it runs perfectly forever.

I had two Suzuki Burgman 400s. With the first one, I tried to ride it gently though it is impossible with a CVT rubber-band tranny to keep the rpms under 4000. I put 48K on that bike. Then bought a leftover 2008, identical except the color. On that one, I took the opposite method for break-in. The bike had 20 miles on it when I picked it up in Port Angeles, WA. I immediately took it out to the road heading to Hurricane Ridge in the Olympic National Park, revving it as hard as I could, backing off the throttle. On and off, like I believe the Motoman break-in method is. I think I had 38K on that bike before I sold it.

Both bikes ran the same afterward. Neither bike used oil before they hit the oil change interval. I did my SS1000 on the 2008 Burgman and after it was like "is that all you can think of for a challenge?".

My next door neighbor was a machinist. He was the guy you went to with your Ferrari to have the heads redone. I asked him about the two break-in methods one afternoon...and got a Master's thesis on the effects on the cylinder wear and rings, oil, etc. I'd say 95% went over my head, but even the 5% I picked up, was impressive. He basically said to ride it hard for the first 100 miles or so to get the rings seated properly. After that, there was nothing you could do.

Chris
 
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Daboo said:
My next door neighbor was a machinist. He was the guy you went to with your Ferrari to have the heads redone. I asked him about the two break-in methods one afternoon...and got a Master's thesis on the effects on the cylinder wear and rings, oil, etc. I'd say 95% went over my head, but even the 5% I picked up, was impressive. He basically said to ride it hard for the first 100 miles or so to get the rings seated properly. After that, there was nothing you could do.
Click to expand...
I have no idea about motorcycle engines but with automobile engines they are in essence broken in before you get them, usually before they are even installed in the vehicle. Most engine manufacturer puts them through a really strenuous test procedures that includes running them at RPM's most car drivers would never see. It is not uncommon for owners manuals to not really have a true break-in procedure anymore as a result.

Having written all of that, following what the manufacturers recommends regarding a break-in period can never hurt the engine even if it doesn't do any good, so there is no reason not to follow it.
 
I get the feeling that the engineering people and those writing the owner's manual don't talk to each other. It wouldn't surprise me to find the only reason the warning is still there, is because no one wants to make the decision to pull it out.

Any more, I just ride the bike like I will always ride it. It seems to work. ;)

Chris
 
I agree with @Andrew Shadow, it doesn't hurt to follow what the user manual says. I figure the designers and engineers who made the bike know what they are doing and recommending. I was told Kawasaki puts a special break-in oil in the engine from the factory that needs to be drained at the 600 mile break-in oil change interval. So I'll just stick to that.

Had to go to the dentist at noon so rode the Vulcan S and added another 15 miles. Now I'm past the 250 miles of limiting my riding to 4000 RPM. I now have 254 miles on the odometer. I doubt I'll need to go over the next limit (6000 RPM) even though that is only up to the 400 mile mark per the OM. But no more holding back and short shifting while taking off from a stop. The bike feels more settled at between 4000-5000 RPM anyway and I've heard it really likes running at just over 6000 RPM on the highways.

I do find that even though I don't have highway boards or pegs I can still stretch out my legs by placing the back of my ankles in front of the foot pegs. I think one reason I'm doing fine with the slightly forward foot controls is that my knees don't like to bend so much for very long while riding. I found that to be true even riding my AK where I needed to stretch out my legs once in a while.
 
It was such a nice day out, I just had to take one of my ST1300s out for a little jaunt.

At first, I was just going to do my normal ride, about 50+ miles or so, but as I was riding through a small town near by, I decided to ride down another 10 miles away , to Kolob Canyon, part of ZION NP.

By the time I finished, getting gas and getting home, I did 68 miles.

This is part of my normal route. Around a bunch of farms.

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Kolob Canyon is a 5 mile drive into the park, where there is a turnaround (where the park ends). This is what is at the turn around:

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Short ride into the park, but well worth it! :hat3:
 
Daboo said:
Too late now, but I'd forget about the 4000 rpm break in method. ;)

Just a question to ponder...when you buy a demo bike, does anyone really think the rider ever thinks about the 4000 rpm limit? Nah... We buy it and it runs perfectly forever.

I had two Suzuki Burgman 400s. With the first one, I tried to ride it gently though it is impossible with a CVT rubber-band tranny to keep the rpms under 4000. I put 48K on that bike. Then bought a leftover 2008, identical except the color. On that one, I took the opposite method for break-in. The bike had 20 miles on it when I picked it up in Port Angeles, WA. I immediately took it out to the road heading to Hurricane Ridge in the Olympic National Park, revving it as hard as I could, backing off the throttle. On and off, like I believe the Motoman break-in method is. I think I had 38K on that bike before I sold it.

Both bikes ran the same afterward. Neither bike used oil before they hit the oil change interval. I did my SS1000 on the 2008 Burgman and after it was like "is that all you can think of for a challenge?".

My next door neighbor was a machinist. He was the guy you went to with your Ferrari to have the heads redone. I asked him about the two break-in methods one afternoon...and got a Master's thesis on the effects on the cylinder wear and rings, oil, etc. I'd say 95% went over my head, but even the 5% I picked up, was impressive. He basically said to ride it hard for the first 100 miles or so to get the rings seated properly. After that, there was nothing you could do.

Chris
Click to expand...
Here is the proper way to break in an engine,, wait till the end :crackup: :crackup:
 
Hi
I'm a little late on posting stuff. Took the ST1300 for a ride a week or so ago. It was the first semi long ride since going through it some what, brakes, valve check and many other items. Anyway it ran fantastic, took some back roads in the California sierras before everything turns brown, we met at Knights' Ferry.. Had such a good time I forgot to take any pics!!, next time! I traveling with two friends on BMW's. Stopped at Mariposa for lunch and a few people walking by asked about the ST, not the BWM's. I thought that was pretty good. I love this bike,, I'm on the "old side" 71 but not to old to get with it. It's a pleasure to ride, never got tired and it performed flawlessly, 44.8 mpg. I thought it was going to be worse that that because I was screwing around a little :) The pics below are the route taken from the Gamin Tread. Two of them are from Google maps.
 

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ab-buff said:
I traveling with two friends on BMW's. Stopped at Mariposa for lunch and a few people walking by asked about the ST, not the BWM's.
Click to expand...
I had a memorable conversation with a guy at Mt. St. Helens a few years back. I had my 2011 Black NT700V...the little brother to the ST1100/1300. The guy and his buddies were on BMWs and when he walked up, he wanted to know what BMW model I was riding. :D :D :D It was a nice bike.

Chris
 
Had eyelid surgery Friday morning. My right eyelid is still swollen and the Dr says it will likely be that way for up to 2 weeks.
It was impeding my vision Friday and most of yesterday but it wasn't keeping me from seeing out of that eye just fine today. It was actually feeling pretty good. So after the family left after the Mother's Day visiting my wife asked if I was wanting to go for a ride. She sure is being agreeable to me going out to ride. But she also knows I want to get the odometer up to 600 miles and do that first oil/filter change before LOCSTOC.

So I did go for a short ride. Didn't want to push it in case my eye started bothering me along the way. I rode 37 miles today. A little more than I was expecting. Filled the tank since the last bar on the fuel gauge was flashing for the last 6+ miles. I guess I have a lot more miles to go when that bar starts flashing. A 3.7 gallon tank and I only put in 2.849 gallons. I rode 148.2 miles on this tank of gas the first tank that wasn't put in by the dealer. I calculated 52 mpg. Not too bad based on what this bike is spec'd to get. Being a new bike I expect the mpg to increase as I add miles on it. One of the roads I took was a 65 mph speed limit and I found that in 6th gear I was doing around 5300 RPM at that speed, maybe a bit more. I don't have a windshield on this bike... yet. The wind stream force has been light while under 55-60 mph so I was thinking I might not need a shield. At 65 mph the wind stream is a LOT more forceful but still very smooth so we'll see if I want to buy a shield or wait for a time. It was a windy day today so that gives me a good idea what to expect on faster roads. Though I usually prefer to stay on county roads and lesser State highways anyway. Always have.
 
GF had plotted some nice touring for the "Mother's Day" weekend...

so we took a couple days off...

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covered about 1000km/>600miles... with astonishing low traffic, really surprising... :unsure:


she'd booked a nice cabin in the middle of nowhere...

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the silence up there is deafening... ;)


besides the riding "training" (working on our lines, getting the winter-stiffness out...) ze GF wanted to do some stargazing...

so we old fools grabbed some garden-chairs, dragged them a few hundred yards up the trail to a clearance and sat there watching the moon passing by... ;)

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not bad for a phone camera...

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night temps barely above freezing ;)

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PS:
note to myself, stop teasing those young dudes on their squids... you're +60, your motorsickle is a 25 year old barge... behave accordingly... or not... :roflmao:
 
Wasn’t going to ride until FerrySTOC, but it was too nice. Got a email from Harley dealer. I just won’t a Tactical Shelf. Had to go get it. And we did get ice cream. It’s a little warmer today. 57 miles IMG_1676.jpeg
 
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