Cabernet is nearing 6000 miles since being put back on the road last Fall.
Some quick updates:
Stranded?
In those 5500+ miles, I've had one situation where I thought I was stranded. I went into Ace to get some supplies a couple weeks back. All was fine. When I came out, the bike was dead. No lights. Nothing. I pulled the main fuse. Not 30 amp, as it should be, but 15. And it was blown. Luckily, I was at Ace, went in, bought some 30 amp fuses, and installed one. She fired right up. Now, what happened? No idea. (I'm watching things. Maybe lightning doesn't ever strike twice.)
Shocks
New-to-me Progressive rear shocks for Cabernet (e.ay deal). What a difference. Stiffer, yes, and with one-up riding pre-load is at a minimum. But the whole bike feels better.
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They are a little longer than stock (1/2", more or less), but it's barely noticeable and I've got long legs. And I didn't pay anywhere near full, new price, which suits my style.
Tires
I went in for an inspection last week, thinking I'd be just fine. I knew my Shinko Tourmaster rear was getting a bit tired, but I didn't pay enough attention to notice the wear bar situation. I failed over a rear tire. Bad news: I failed. Good news: I've run this bike through a tire in about 9 months.
At the risk of starting some fight I don't want to see emerge, I'm not so pleased by the Tourmasters on the heavy wing. Price is great, and they're sticky/surefooted. But the mileage isn't what I thought she'd be. I was imagining 8-9k, based on other Wing riders' reports. I'm not touring, don't have a heavy load in the rear, weigh 190 or so, rarely ride two-up, and spend most of my riding miles commuting on twisty roads around here.
For a side-by-side comparison, I've got two GL1100s, both Naked and both with '83 alloy wheels. Granted, Cabernet has the bags and crash bars, which come in at maybe 50 pounds - probably more like 30. Also, last Summer, I did 1000+ miles with the Blue Phoenix as a bagger, so it's not that the '83 has seen "lighter" miles.
Cabernet - 5500 miles on Shinko tourmasters
Blue Phoenix - almost 9000 miles on Michelin Commander IIs.
Here's the wear comparison:
- tourmaster
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- commander ii
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The side view, which I don't show here because of the 5-image limit, reveals the expected flat spot at the center of the Shinkos. Even feeling by hand, I can't really sense much if any flat spot at the center of the Michelins.
I've got no other complaints about the Shinko tire. It's been stable in peg-scraping cornering. It kept me safe riding through a Maine winter. (I don't ride in the snow or snow/ice-covered roads, but sand/gravel is real - as are frozen bits of asphalt on tree-lined roads.) It's been stable at highway speeds in the 80-100 mph range. I never really felt like my Shinkos were affecting my confidence.
I've ordered a Commander II for the rear of Cabernet, even though it's twice the price of the Tourmaster.
My thoughts here: If I were putting maybe 1000/1500 miles per year on the bike, a Shinko would be a great bet. I'd get 5 years out of it and replace it as the date code shows expiration time. Makes sense. But Cabernet is rolling about 500 miles per month.
By the way, the Tourmaster front is also near the end of its wear life, which really surprises me.
Surf
Admittedly, what follows is at least semi-tangential to purpose of this forum.
I surf, and I've long wanted to mount a board rack to a bike to enjoy two pleasures of a Maine summer: riding and surfing.
The internet is full of glamour shots with boards on garage-queen or showroom motorcycles, and my approach was inspired by those images. (Curious: Are they really functional - or just a bike or board porn fetish?)
Armed with my new "welding skills" (ha ha!) and a bunch of steel from full dresser Wings, I got busy noodling on a rack for the Cabernet. I took some highway peg crash bar mounts and a bunch of metal from the bumpers around the rear end of either the Blue Phoenix of our parts GL (I don't recall which). I'm using 4 highway peg mounts, two fore and two aft, to handle mounting the rack to the bike.
The result is a solid, stable surfboard rack that I can install/remove in under 5 minutes.
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- Early morning, parking lot near a local break before the summer tourists stream in - and before pay-to-park rules apply.
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I've taken the bike out a couple times with a board on it. Here's a report:
- The rack is affixed firmly enough that I can pull the bike up off the center stand by grabbing it and pulling hard. In other words, It's not some wobbly, flimsy thing. I'm not using thin-walled aluminum or PVC pipe.
- There's no risk of the board ever running into either the front wheel or the handlebars, as there's plenty of clearance in those spots. I HAD TO HAVE THIS right.
- I have about 9" of space between the right side cover and the inside of the surfboard, when mounted in the rack. Given leg angle and the space, I can comfortably, easily, naturally put my foot down at stop signs/lights. I thought I'd need to accommodate the board. I don't need to make ANY adjustments to my foot-down technique, and that's a good thing. Mounting and dismounting are easy and natural.
- I've ridden it with a midlength board installed, and it's easy peasy. I've also taken it out with a 9'6" longboard, which does extend out beyond both the front and rear wheels by about a foot. Obviously, I took it slow at first. But the ride to one local break includes a 50mph stretch. There's no weirdness up to and above 50. (OK. I went to 60 and figured that's more than enough speed. There'll be no run down the highway with this set up.)
- I do need to use a little countersteer input on the left hand to keep her straight, but it's not like I need to muscle it or anything. I'd guess sidecars might have a similar input required given the drag from the third wheel.
- Hi-vis yellow pool noodle foam on the outside helps with conspicuity, or so I'm imagining. Truthfully, my boards are so colorful that they're likely conspicuous enough by themselves. (I had the noodles. Black would have been more biker badass, and pipe insulation would be good.
- The 600-pound Wing is made for loads. A longboard weighs about 25 pounds, so it doesn't really do anything to upset the bike's balance. I'm not sure I'd do this set up with a longboard on a small bike, but many put boards on scooters and even beach cruiser bicycles.
- I need to take right turns mindfully to avoid scraping the "foam," but I've still got a good lean angle available. It's comparable to the angle afforded by highway pegs. I can take pretty tight right at a stop sign, with all the lean that entails. Still, caution is warranted.
- While there are laws in Australia and New Zealand on bike width and overhang, I've been unable to surface any specific road law violated by this set up. It's not 3" off the back of the bike, which would require a flag. It's very well secured, so no issue with a loose load. No doubt, I will get pulled over at some point - which brings me back to the inspection and my failure owing to a worn rear Tourmaster tire.