Have you ever had someone compliment you on the look of your bike?  Today was such a nice day I rode my motorcycle to work today.  I had two people complement me on how “sharp” my bike looked.  As much as I would like to take credit for these complements they really need to go to the designers at Suzuki.  The first time I saw an SV650 I thought that it was striking.  

My wife Katy took this picture.  Feel free to download it and share it with friends.

Today was a beautiful sunny day, perfect weather for a Memorial Day ride.  My wife Katy, who rides a Honda Nighthalk 250, and I set off with no place in particular to go.  Traveling back roads and state highways we made a zigzagging path through small towns of Berrien County.  While riding along I found two things blog worthy.  First towns are what making riding in southwest Michigan interesting.  Almost every road is flat and nearly straight with farmland on both sides.  Each town is slightly different but they all have several things in common.  First every town has a bar.  Today there were motorcycles parked at every bar we passed.  Next each town has a church many look run down or deserted.  Every town also has a feel.  Some towns feel dirty and rundown while others feel clean and well maintained.  With a lot of industries closing down many of the small towns around here are becoming more and more rundown. 

The second blog worthy item from our ride is the number of motorcycles that were on the road.  It seemed that everyone who had a bike was riding.  We passed by Harleys, Yamahas, Suzukis, and one Kawasaki.  I noted a large bias toward cruiser style motorcycles–3 or 4 to one.  I find this interesting. It is fun to see the verity of motorcycles on the road.

Next time I hope to have some SV650 pictures suitable for desktop backgrounds.

I forgot to post this video the other day when I was showing how to build a camera mount.  Here is the type of video you get from this mount.

Prepare for a summer of pictures.  I have created a motorcycle camera mount for less than $10.  There are still a few kinks to work out but the design works fine.  Here is a list of parts and the basics of the assembly. 

Parts:

1)    One Targus suction cup travel tripod

2)    One generic magnetic mounting platform (Can be e found at most hardware stores)

3)    One ¼”-20 4” pan head screw

4)    Two ¼” fender washer

5)    Two ¼”-20 nuts

5)    One piece of foam rubber padding;

Steps:

1)    First you must disassemble the Targus portable tripod.  There is a small hex setscrew that needs to be removed.  Then remove the main setscrew.  This will allow the platform mechanism to come off.  

2)    Next remove the lug from suction cup base.  It is screwed on and held in place by lock-tight type glue.  I found I could grab the lug with a pair of pliers and unscrew the base by hand.  It took a fair amount of force but it unscrewed cleanly.  You will also need to clean out the dried up lock-tight residue.

3)    Place a washer on the screw and run it through the mounting hole in the magnetic base.  Place the second washer on top of the base and screw the nut on tight.

4)    Slip the second nut on and spin it down an inch or so.  It will be a jam-nut.  Screw on the mounting lug removed from the suction cup base.  Spin the jam-nut back up and tighten.   

5)    Re-place the platform assembly back on the lug and screw in the setscrews. 

6)    Last cover the base of the magnet with foam rubber or other type of protective padding that will protect the motorcycles paint job.

You now have a motorcycle mount for a small camera.  I’ll leave size of camera to your discretion based on how well the magnet sticks to your tank.  This magnet did not hold as well to my tank as I would like for a long ride but did fine for short planned out rides.  I’m going to keep looking for a better magnetic mount.

Check out this little gizmo.  Bags-Connection makes this camera mount.  It clips onto their standard tank mount bracket normally used to hold tank bags.    It has a limited amount of dampening built in and an adjustable camera platform.

Pashnit Moto products makes a camera mount with a simpler design and fewer movable parts.  To mount this unit you replace three of the gas tank ring screws.  The problem is you need tools to remove it.  As an add-on package to this unit you can get a mount that takes the place of the rear foot peg.  You can use it to mount a review-view camera.

The problem with both of these products is the price.  They range from $75 to $200.  I’m thinking that there must be a cheaper way.  Next time watch for my attempts to create a camera mount for my SV650.   

Ducati’s SportClassic caught my eye from across the room.  The dealer had it tucked back in the corner behind some sport bikes.  Compared to the average sport bike this was the coolest looking bike on the floor.  I appreciate the designers making a new bike feel old.  Triumph does this with the Scrambler but the Ducati reminds me of a fast café racer.  With a 992 cc fuel-injected engine producing 92 hp and 67 lb-ft of torque probably goes faster than any of the original café racers.

The Triumph Speed Triple is what a naked bike should be.  In my opinion the Speed Triple is one of the most unique naked bike packages on the market.  First Triumph put a three-cylinder 1050cc engine on a bike that only weighs 416 pounds.  Producing 131 horsepower this bike can go from 0 to 60 in 3.8 seconds.

Next Triumph made a frame that accented the design of the bike.  This frame is tucked under the fuel take and provides the same visual elements as a pinstripe would–accenting the visually interesting parts of the bike, fuel tank and engine, without getting in the way.

Last they made the Speed Triple look aggressive and mean.  The dual headlights and the matte black frame along with the riding position give this bike somewhat of an aggressive look.  Many people replace the dual headlights with a single round light.  I like the look of the dual headlights.  It is one of the unique things that make the Speed Triple stand out from its Japanese competitors. 

When I was looking at bikes to purchase what discouraged me from purchasing this bike was the very intense maintenance cost.  There were major services scheduled almost every year.  Parts and labor were expensive and hard to find compared to the major Japanese brands.  While the initial purchase prices were inline these service items pushed me toward the Suzuki.  But I really like the look and design of the Triumph Speed Triple.

It’s time to wash the bike.  Now what?  While shopping for bikes back in February I remembered stumbling onto Triumphs website.  Triumph publishes very detailed instructions for washing their motorcycles.  It turns out there were several things that I have always done wrong.  First, I’ve always thought that more pressure is better.  It cleans faster with less elbow grease.  I did not realize that that extreme pressure can force water into bearings, and other sealed areas.  Extreme water pressure can also force water into electrical boxes that are only designed to resist water from rain. 

Second, I always figured that the stronger the soap the better it would clean.  Super concentrated soap may not rinse off properly leaving a filmy residue.  The wrong type of soap can also be a problem.  I have used dish soap in the past.  Many dish soaps have a high sodium chloride, AKA salt, content.  This can cause premature corrosion.  It is best to use an automotive soap and mix it according to the directions.

The last thing that I’ve always done wrong is abrasives.  A little steel wool will shine chrome up nicely.  It works by wearing away the top layer of chrome.  After years it will no longer shine.  Only use the strong abrasives for restoring a neglected bike.  It is much better to keep the chrome shiny by washing it regularly.    

By the end of the day I had spend about $30 in soap, micro fiber wash-rags and soft brushes but my bike is now clean and free of bug carcasses.  

If you would like detailed instructions of how to wash a bike visit Triumph’s “How to Clean Your Bike” page.

A small piece of plastic that can make riding much more enjoyable.  Have you ever been riding along and had your right hand cramp up from squeezing the throttle?  If you have this is the gizmo for you: the Crampbuster.  I stumbled on the Crampbuster while I was browsing an accessory rack at Life Cycle in Kalamazoo, MI.  It interested me enough that I spent eleven dollars and installed the Crampbuster on my bike while still in the parking lot.  Installation was extremely simple you just bend it open and slip it on the end of your handlebars.  Once on it has a ratcheting type grip on your throttle only moving round opposite the throttle for adjustment.  Once riding I found that I needed to rotate it way out of the way for city driving, but when on the highway it preformed exactly as advertised.  The cramp buster provides a very nice ledge to rest my hand on and uses the weight of my hand to keep tension on the throttle.

My suggestion to anyone who is interested in trying this device is be careful.  When I first installed it I had it at an angle that made city stop and go driving very difficult.  It took a few minutes but I soon learned to adjust it while driving.  I suggest trying it out for the first time on some side roads where you can get a feel for its position without hindering traffic.