New XF200 owner

[JTCAndrew]

Sorry you had such a Cheesy day...No Pun intended - well maybe. LOL

tHE SUN CAME AND WENT SEVERAL TIME HERE TROUGH OUT THE DAY - sTILL DIDN'T RIDE, BUT GOT THE HANDLEBARS SWAPPED OUT TODAY - i REALLY LIKE THEM - CAN'T WAIT TO TRY THEM OUT.....

[dmmcd]

I finally got the risers installed. They are adjustable by adding or removing spacer plates. I figured what the heck and went for the whole deal, which adds about 1 1/2" of height. I am 6'2" and it feels quite comfortable, but my ride to work tomorrow will show. They look very much higher, but it doesn't really feel that different, I guess. I rotated them back a bit from where they were. No clearance issues, but I did re-adjust the throttle cable to give a bit more play.





I have hand guards that I was going to install, but I noticed that the brake lever is much too long. The guards are the wrap-around type that fit into the end of the bars. So I will need to trim my brake and clutch levers, but I didn't feel like getting into that tonight.

I also changed the oil and filter on Saturday, as I was approaching 500km. My brother borrowed it for a ride on Sunday, and the bike now has just over 600 km on it. It rides better every time I get on it. The only issue I am having right now is a front wheel hop issue when cruising at constant speed. It could be a crappy tire, or really weak fork oil. I want to change the fork oil soon. I need to lift the front end and check the wheel and tire runout.

I got some nice outdoor shots on Friday in my front yard:

[Zugzug]

Hey looks good!

I hear quite often about people having balance issues with the china tires but I have yet to have an issue. These Kingstones are some nice tires for a china tire too. The only tires that I ever had an issue with were a set of dunlops once they were around 50%. If some balancing is needed I think I would go with the beads inside the tire on these rims. I would check to see if theres something else causing the issue first though.

As I recall your brother had a little mishap on it. I would check to see that every thing is still aligned and tightened to spec. Check for dirt in the deep rim grooves, loose spoke or dented rim. Maybe the rotors slightly tweaked. It can be very little and not seen by your eye when the rotors slightly out but you can usually feel it in the brake handle when it pulses.

[FastDoc]

The OEM tires on the Q are quite good. So are the tubes. Check the bead for runout. I bet it's not seated evenly. :wink:

[Weldangrind]

Sweet bike! We have trees with similar blossoms throughout the neighbourhood, and I have the same yellow flowers in my lawn.

[JTCAndrew]

Hey Dan - Glad to see you got the risers on. Looks good! I'll have to keep an eye out for front wheel hop - Have not felt any on mine yet!

[SpudRider]

You bike looks great, DM! Thanks for posting the nice photos. Are those cherry trees in bloom?

Spud

[dmmcd]

I've done a few little tweaks since last posting. I added Acerbis hand guards, which required trimming the levers, but I think they look good and add some protection.

I checked and adjusted the valves. I screwed it up the first time because I was on the wrong stroke, but I got it all sorted out eventually. It only took like 15 minutes to do.

The front wheel had a nasty hop to it. The rim seemed pretty straight and true, but the tire has a bulge at one point. I'm not quite sure what to do about it, but I balanced it and it took 6 weights (1 1/2 oz) but now it is balanced. It doesn't hop as bad, but still does a little. I think adding some real fork oil might help this a little more. I don't want to buy a new tire yet.

The left fork guard lost the screws and almost came off, but it stayed on until I got home. I got some stainless screws and loc-tite and got it back on. By the way, the fork guard fasteners are #10-32. I was looking around for metric, assuming they would be M4 or M5, but turns out they are not.

I bought some 5w fork oil, and that is my next planned modification. I am up to just over 1500 km on the bike, and it runs great and is a ton of fun!

[Weldangrind]

Originally Posted by dmmcd

By the way, the fork guard fasteners are #10-32. I was looking around for metric, assuming they would be M4 or M5, but turns out they are not.

That amazes me! 8O

[SpudRider]

Thanks for the update, DM!

Spud

[dmmcd]

I finally got around to working on the front wheel. I took the tire off and checked the rim, and found a slight bulge in one place. I got out my spoke wrench and got the rim back in round. I re-balanced the wheel also. The front wheel hop is gone and the ride is MUCH smoother now.

I replaced the battery with a Shorai LFX09A2-BS12, which cost $110 shipped. This is an amazing little battery. It almost feels like a pack of Duracell AA when you hold it.

I ordered a 44 tooth JT rear sprocket from Bike Bandit. JTR809.44T is the part number, I had to chat with a customer service guy to find it, because it keeps asking what bike you want it for, and I couldn't find the right bike with the part number I wanted. Cost was $17. I think this should make the commute even more pleasant.

After doing some research, I decided to go with 10W fork oil, I'll use the 5w I bought before on my SV. I don't know if I'll get to that in the near future or not.

Still loving this bike. It is so much fun.

[Moonbloodsflow]

Did you ever replace the front sprocket with the 16t you ordered? If so, how much torque do you think you lost? I've heard it's pretty negligible but wanted to hear your input.

[dmmcd]

Originally Posted by Moonbloodsflow

Did you ever replace the front sprocket with the 16t you ordered? If so, how much torque do you think you lost? I've heard it's pretty negligible but wanted to hear your input.

I did, and don't notice too much of a loss of torque. It is more comfortable in the 50 to 60 mph range, which is where I spend most of my time. I think the 44T rear will make that even better.

I still have to move the needle clip in the carb to the 4th slot, which should give a bit more pep in the mid-throttle and hopefully make up for the gearing changes. The carb is currently stock, which I believe should be in the 3rd position. My brother's XF has the clip moved, but has stock gearing. It feels maybe slightly peppier, but head to head I can take him. Of course, that might be because I weigh 135 lbs and he is closer to 200 lbs...

I have no problem with acceleration, the bike goes when I gas it from a stop. The roll-on power is lacking, i.e. when I am cruising at like 40 mph and want to accelerate to 50. I think the carb adjustment might help that a little. I'm not going to be doing any power wheelies, but it can easily keep up with the cars in front of me.

[dmmcd]

I haven't updated this thread in a while. Guess I've been too busy riding the bike.

I did do a few more mods to the bike, but nothing major. I installed a GPS mount and 12V socket for a trip a while back. I haven't bothered removing it yet. It attaches to the bar clamp. My GPS has a suction cup mount that sticks well to the plate. I put a strap around it just in case, but it stayed put. And the 12V socket is just zip-tied to the riser. The leads have a plug on them which mates to a plug coming from my battery. This way I can disconnect it easily. The plug coming from the battery also supplies juice to my heated vest in the cold months.




I removed the silver grab handle thingies. I always seemed to catch my foot on them. I would not trust them to pick up the bike or allow someone to hold them. They seemed really weak. I removed the passenger pegs anyway.

I cleaned up the tail a bit with a cheap Polysport tail light. I had to fabricate a custom license plate bracket. I took the plate light off the old tail section and used it on the new bracket. It looks pretty clean. The Polysport took a lot more work to get on than I thought, but I like the end result. I thought about cutting off the little tail on the Polysport bracket, but left it on for now. I am still undecided about that.

[FastDoc]

Great bike. 8)

Taillight looks great.

I LOVE the GPS mount.

Good bikes those Q's. :wink: