2bd1
Member
[SIZE=12pt]I got my 2007 FJR back in Feb and I cruised this forum and put about 12,000 miles on her 'as is' before deciding what needed fixing. I got it all back together a few weeks ago and have put down some more miles and can now report in with some miscellaneous thoughts, hints, how-tos, and observations. Hopefully someone will get some value out of this post.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt] [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]What got fixed/installed:[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Vista Cruise throttle lock[/SIZE][SIZE=14pt] - I used the Yamaha dual cable version and mounted it using the "grind off the tab and screw it to the throttle housing method" discussed in the link. I drilled the throttle lock on a drill press and then transferred the hole location to the housing.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]
[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Be careful to keep the center of the lock on center with the throttle tube in its natural at-rest position. The throttle tube "floats" in the throttle housing and if you push it off it's natural position, or fail to transfer the hole location accurately you will end up having the centers off and then you will have to grind the center of the throttle lock to get it to work correctly. Screw this up badly enough and you might not even be able to fix it. Once you drill the hole take the time to split the throttle housing and blow the chips out. Use a very short screw, just long enough for the tip to penetrate the housing and don't over-tighten it. All the stress on the screw is in shear so it doesn't need much holding power. [/SIZE][SIZE=14pt] [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt][/SIZE]https://whistlergroup.com/
[SIZE=14pt]Whistler radar detector[/SIZE][SIZE=14pt] - This is the first radar detector I've ever owned and its purchase was motivated by getting my first ever speeding ticket. I actually got the citation driving a rental car, but it served to make the point that speed enforcement in my area is more about revenue collection than safety and I do not intend to be making further donations to the local coffers. One small town I regularly travel through is actually in the top ten in the state for percentage of their budget funded from traffic fines. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]There is another thread on this forum right now regarding which is the "best radar detector". I'll add my 2 cents here: it's any one you have and know how to use! It seems to me that like any tool the skill of the operator plays a huge role in the outcome. As I become a more skilled radar detector operator perhaps I will develop a finer appreciation and the need for a better tool.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]I really wanted to do a stealth installation. The Whistler is lends itself to that in that all the components are modular and connected by cables. My original thought was to hide the antenna unit under the fairing nose, but after measuring everything it appeared that there would not be enough clearance there when the front fork was at full compression. In installing it I also did not want to alter the bike, and wanted to be able to reverse the installation. So I gave up on the stealth idea and decided to hang it off the right mirror. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]I could have (should have?) used lighter gauge aluminum for this complex curve bracket, but I decided to go with a thickness equal to the rubber spacer under the mirror so I wouldn't have to mess with shims. This meant that forming it took quite a while to get the right shape, all the pre-drilled antenna holes lined up, and the antenna angle and pitch all correct.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]
[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Next up were the temperature probe and the remote LED warning light. The probe went inside one of the fairing intakes and is just visible in the photo above. Its that little nubby thing in the v below the bracket. The LED went up on the dash and aimed right at my eyeballs.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]
[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]I used something called museum putty (or earthquake putty if you are from California) to mount the probe and the light. The putty is extremely sticky, but will come off clean from just about any surface, so it is non-permanent and can be repositioned easily if you don't like your first attempt. Unfortunately it is white in color but with road dirt it will darken up. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]The display head was an easy mount to the threaded lug on the clutch master cylinder using the supplied bracket and a little bending to get it at the right viewing angle.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]
[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]I like to use black spiral wrap when I'm making up wiring harnesses and you can see it here. There are actually four wires coming out of the display head, and they join up with the left heated grip wire and continue down into the fairing. The spiral wrap keeps everything together, it's easy to have wires entering/leaving the loom at any point, and you can repeatedly wind-unwind-re-wind it as you work out the position and routing of everything. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]So far the whole thing seems to work as advertised. Light goes off, I slow down, so far so good! The LED is very bright and even though it is not directly in my line of sight it is quite noticeable. When I purchased the detector I also got their wireless helmet LED indicator module. It mounts via Velcro to the side of your helmet and allows you to position the LED in your field of view. I haven't installed it yet and may not even do it as the dash mounted LED may be enough. [/SIZE][SIZE=14pt] [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt][/SIZE]https://www.hotgrips.com/
[SIZE=14pt]Hot Grips heated grips-[/SIZE][SIZE=14pt] The manufacturer claims to have invented the heated grip in 1976 and have been refining their design since then. They are a little larger in diameter than the stock grips. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]The grips have a unique ribbed pattern on the inside which is to limit heat transfer to the bars. They pull only 2.5~3 amps as a result of not having to heat the bars so much and they are plenty hot, almost to the point of not being able to hold them when on full. I think the stock Yamaha heated grip connections might have enough capacity to run them, but as I was going to do a power terminal block for powering other farkles I went ahead and ran my own connections for the grips. [/SIZE][SIZE=14pt] [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]For the ground, I drilled and tapped this small lug on the left side of the frame.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]
[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]I did not use their hi-low two position control switch. I set mine up with the rotary controller and used the Yamaha heated grip controller location in the left dash panel. I've driven other FJRs with the Yamaha grips and I like the ability to select what ever heat setting is appropriate. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]These grips must be glued on using heat resistant epoxy, so they are a permanent installation. Don't bother with getting the bar end weight spacing washers, none of them were right.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]
[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]I ended up using a 6mm washer to space the right side, and no spacer was needed on the left. In fact there was a small gap on the left side so I glued an o-ring to the bar weight to seal this up and give everything a finished look. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]The grips perform as advertised and I'm happy with the result. They certainly get very hot, and it's nice to know that no matter what gloves I might be wearing that day that they will be warm enough. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Power tap for heated clothing- I'm going to use a BMW style connector but for the moment its on back order with the supplier. All my electric clothing has the power cord on the left side so I went ahead and ran a 16 gauge wire down to the spot where I'll mount the power jack on this threaded lug.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]
[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]I'll need to make up a small bracket for this, but the location is perfect for this use as well as providing a good ground connection. Right now I'm using a co-axial connector and just leaving the pigtail stuffed between the seat and tank.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]
[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Relay and terminal block to power everything- A trip to Radio Shack and I was ready to go. No point in going into much detail here as this topic is well discussed on the forum. I decided to use the Yamaha heated grip wire (the blue connector) as my trigger for the relay. I located both the relay and the terminal behind the upper right dash panel. I tried to find a place to secure it to but ended up just leaving everything loose. Between the small area it is jammed into and all the wires going to it, it is pretty well restrained and should not be a problem. I've found that sometimes restraining wires too tightly has the opposite effect as they seem to fail if bound too tightly and are forced to flex at a specific small pressure point. [/SIZE][SIZE=14pt]https://www.zianet.com/GenMar/https://www.zianet.com/GenMar/[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]GenMar bar risers[/SIZE][SIZE=14pt] – First, let's be clear in that they do not move the bars the advertised 1" up and ½" back. The risers are 1" thick, and mount between the top triple clamp and the handlebars. Now think about this for a moment, the angle of the triple clamp is a slope and the thickness of the riser forms the hypotenuse of a right triangle, with the right angle legs being the rise and run of the slope.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]
[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Remember your 9th grade geometry and the Pythagorean Theorem?[/SIZE]
If your hypotenuse is 1" there is simply no way the run can also be 1". On top of this, the actual surface the bars mount to is nearly almost horizontal, so the amount of pull back is negligible. I attempted to point this out to a customer service rep, but he stuck to his 1" up x ½" back claim. Oh well, buyer beware.
[SIZE=14pt]Installation was fairly easy and about a ½ hour job. Lay a towel or some other pad across the top of your fuel tank and you can set the bars on the tank top as you work. Try to keep them as close to upright as possible so air is not introduced into the hydraulics, and check their operation upon reassemble before you just zoom off. When you go to cut the heavy wire cable guides a set of bolt cutters is preferable to a saw as you are less likely to slip and damage something. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]The product is well made and does relocate the bars up and back the maximum amount possible while using the stock cables and hydraulic hoses. I'm not particularly short (5'11"), but the roads I regularly travel are not twisty so I like to sit more upright and the new location is more comfortable. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]California Scientific windshield[/SIZE][SIZE=14pt]- I have to say I was a little disappointed when it came out of the box. The shield is laser cut and the edges were not polished as well as they should be, particularly the bottom edges. This may not sound like a big deal, and its not right up to the point where you scratch the back of your hand while cleaning under the shield. Luckily its easy to fix with some sandpaper and elbow grease. I just don't think that's an acceptable part of any installation procedure and shows a certain lack of attention to detail in what is otherwise a fine product. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Installation is pretty straight forward. They include stainless screws to replace the stock plastic ones. The curve of the shield did not seem to be quite as close a match to the metal bracket it is bolted to, but then manufacturing variance in the shield is probably one of the reasons why the Yamaha engineers choose to rubber mount the stock shield. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]While I had the dash apart I also disconnected the plug that causes the shield to lower when the key is turned off. This is much better and I'm not sure what the logic is behind this piece of Yamaha engineering. Perhaps cycling the screen mechanism every time the bike is used is a scheme to sell more service parts. Nah, they wouldn't do that, would they? [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]The Cal Sci website has some nice instructions on how to pick the right shield height. I ran through them and came up with 2.5~3.5" so I went with their +3.5 figuring I could cut it down a little if it turned out to be too much. I'll keep my stock shield to use as a "summer shield" and maybe cut it down a bit to deal with our hot summers. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]So far I like the +3.5" height. The extra width is nice and keeps the air flow off my hands which boosts the performance of the heated grips. Backpressure does not seem to be notably different from stock, but I do have a different wind noise that I didn't have before. In all fairness I hesitate to blame the shield for this as it could just as easily be the radar detector disturbing the air flow. At any rate, it's not annoying, and the shield is a big improvement for winter riding. [/SIZE][SIZE=14pt][/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt] [/SIZE][SIZE=14pt]A note about the weird big green key fob- When the OEMs moved the ignition key switch up to the dash it certainly made things more convenient but it also meant that if you used any kind of a key chain you were guaranteed to mess up the finish around the key area. This always bugged me so I began not keeping my bike keys on any kind of a key ring. In order to reduce the likely hood of loosing a single loose key I got into the habit of putting my key into my glove and stuffing the gloves inside my helmet as soon as I got off the bike. The problem was that the keys would often work themselves down into the glove fingers and would be tough to get out. So now I take the key and a big blob of epoxy putty and form a new giant size key head on the key. [/SIZE]
Keep the rubber side down, and the shiny side up!
[SIZE=14pt] [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]What got fixed/installed:[/SIZE]
- [SIZE=14pt]Throttle return spring [/SIZE]
- [SIZE=14pt]Vista Cruise throttle lock [/SIZE]
- [SIZE=14pt]Whistler radar detector [/SIZE]
- [SIZE=14pt]Hot Grips heated grips [/SIZE]
- [SIZE=14pt]Power tap for heated clothing [/SIZE]
- [SIZE=14pt]Relay and terminal block to power everything [/SIZE]
- [SIZE=14pt]GenMar bar risers [/SIZE]
- [SIZE=14pt]Cal Sci windshield[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Vista Cruise throttle lock[/SIZE][SIZE=14pt] - I used the Yamaha dual cable version and mounted it using the "grind off the tab and screw it to the throttle housing method" discussed in the link. I drilled the throttle lock on a drill press and then transferred the hole location to the housing.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]
[SIZE=14pt]Be careful to keep the center of the lock on center with the throttle tube in its natural at-rest position. The throttle tube "floats" in the throttle housing and if you push it off it's natural position, or fail to transfer the hole location accurately you will end up having the centers off and then you will have to grind the center of the throttle lock to get it to work correctly. Screw this up badly enough and you might not even be able to fix it. Once you drill the hole take the time to split the throttle housing and blow the chips out. Use a very short screw, just long enough for the tip to penetrate the housing and don't over-tighten it. All the stress on the screw is in shear so it doesn't need much holding power. [/SIZE][SIZE=14pt] [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt][/SIZE]https://whistlergroup.com/
[SIZE=14pt]Whistler radar detector[/SIZE][SIZE=14pt] - This is the first radar detector I've ever owned and its purchase was motivated by getting my first ever speeding ticket. I actually got the citation driving a rental car, but it served to make the point that speed enforcement in my area is more about revenue collection than safety and I do not intend to be making further donations to the local coffers. One small town I regularly travel through is actually in the top ten in the state for percentage of their budget funded from traffic fines. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]There is another thread on this forum right now regarding which is the "best radar detector". I'll add my 2 cents here: it's any one you have and know how to use! It seems to me that like any tool the skill of the operator plays a huge role in the outcome. As I become a more skilled radar detector operator perhaps I will develop a finer appreciation and the need for a better tool.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]I really wanted to do a stealth installation. The Whistler is lends itself to that in that all the components are modular and connected by cables. My original thought was to hide the antenna unit under the fairing nose, but after measuring everything it appeared that there would not be enough clearance there when the front fork was at full compression. In installing it I also did not want to alter the bike, and wanted to be able to reverse the installation. So I gave up on the stealth idea and decided to hang it off the right mirror. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]I could have (should have?) used lighter gauge aluminum for this complex curve bracket, but I decided to go with a thickness equal to the rubber spacer under the mirror so I wouldn't have to mess with shims. This meant that forming it took quite a while to get the right shape, all the pre-drilled antenna holes lined up, and the antenna angle and pitch all correct.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]
[SIZE=14pt]Next up were the temperature probe and the remote LED warning light. The probe went inside one of the fairing intakes and is just visible in the photo above. Its that little nubby thing in the v below the bracket. The LED went up on the dash and aimed right at my eyeballs.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]
[SIZE=14pt]I used something called museum putty (or earthquake putty if you are from California) to mount the probe and the light. The putty is extremely sticky, but will come off clean from just about any surface, so it is non-permanent and can be repositioned easily if you don't like your first attempt. Unfortunately it is white in color but with road dirt it will darken up. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]The display head was an easy mount to the threaded lug on the clutch master cylinder using the supplied bracket and a little bending to get it at the right viewing angle.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]
[SIZE=14pt]I like to use black spiral wrap when I'm making up wiring harnesses and you can see it here. There are actually four wires coming out of the display head, and they join up with the left heated grip wire and continue down into the fairing. The spiral wrap keeps everything together, it's easy to have wires entering/leaving the loom at any point, and you can repeatedly wind-unwind-re-wind it as you work out the position and routing of everything. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]So far the whole thing seems to work as advertised. Light goes off, I slow down, so far so good! The LED is very bright and even though it is not directly in my line of sight it is quite noticeable. When I purchased the detector I also got their wireless helmet LED indicator module. It mounts via Velcro to the side of your helmet and allows you to position the LED in your field of view. I haven't installed it yet and may not even do it as the dash mounted LED may be enough. [/SIZE][SIZE=14pt] [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt][/SIZE]https://www.hotgrips.com/
[SIZE=14pt]Hot Grips heated grips-[/SIZE][SIZE=14pt] The manufacturer claims to have invented the heated grip in 1976 and have been refining their design since then. They are a little larger in diameter than the stock grips. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]The grips have a unique ribbed pattern on the inside which is to limit heat transfer to the bars. They pull only 2.5~3 amps as a result of not having to heat the bars so much and they are plenty hot, almost to the point of not being able to hold them when on full. I think the stock Yamaha heated grip connections might have enough capacity to run them, but as I was going to do a power terminal block for powering other farkles I went ahead and ran my own connections for the grips. [/SIZE][SIZE=14pt] [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]For the ground, I drilled and tapped this small lug on the left side of the frame.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]
[SIZE=14pt]I did not use their hi-low two position control switch. I set mine up with the rotary controller and used the Yamaha heated grip controller location in the left dash panel. I've driven other FJRs with the Yamaha grips and I like the ability to select what ever heat setting is appropriate. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]These grips must be glued on using heat resistant epoxy, so they are a permanent installation. Don't bother with getting the bar end weight spacing washers, none of them were right.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]
[SIZE=14pt]I ended up using a 6mm washer to space the right side, and no spacer was needed on the left. In fact there was a small gap on the left side so I glued an o-ring to the bar weight to seal this up and give everything a finished look. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]The grips perform as advertised and I'm happy with the result. They certainly get very hot, and it's nice to know that no matter what gloves I might be wearing that day that they will be warm enough. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Power tap for heated clothing- I'm going to use a BMW style connector but for the moment its on back order with the supplier. All my electric clothing has the power cord on the left side so I went ahead and ran a 16 gauge wire down to the spot where I'll mount the power jack on this threaded lug.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]
[SIZE=14pt]I'll need to make up a small bracket for this, but the location is perfect for this use as well as providing a good ground connection. Right now I'm using a co-axial connector and just leaving the pigtail stuffed between the seat and tank.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=12pt]
[SIZE=14pt]Relay and terminal block to power everything- A trip to Radio Shack and I was ready to go. No point in going into much detail here as this topic is well discussed on the forum. I decided to use the Yamaha heated grip wire (the blue connector) as my trigger for the relay. I located both the relay and the terminal behind the upper right dash panel. I tried to find a place to secure it to but ended up just leaving everything loose. Between the small area it is jammed into and all the wires going to it, it is pretty well restrained and should not be a problem. I've found that sometimes restraining wires too tightly has the opposite effect as they seem to fail if bound too tightly and are forced to flex at a specific small pressure point. [/SIZE][SIZE=14pt]https://www.zianet.com/GenMar/https://www.zianet.com/GenMar/[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]GenMar bar risers[/SIZE][SIZE=14pt] – First, let's be clear in that they do not move the bars the advertised 1" up and ½" back. The risers are 1" thick, and mount between the top triple clamp and the handlebars. Now think about this for a moment, the angle of the triple clamp is a slope and the thickness of the riser forms the hypotenuse of a right triangle, with the right angle legs being the rise and run of the slope.[/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]
[SIZE=14pt]Remember your 9th grade geometry and the Pythagorean Theorem?[/SIZE]
If your hypotenuse is 1" there is simply no way the run can also be 1". On top of this, the actual surface the bars mount to is nearly almost horizontal, so the amount of pull back is negligible. I attempted to point this out to a customer service rep, but he stuck to his 1" up x ½" back claim. Oh well, buyer beware.
[SIZE=14pt]Installation was fairly easy and about a ½ hour job. Lay a towel or some other pad across the top of your fuel tank and you can set the bars on the tank top as you work. Try to keep them as close to upright as possible so air is not introduced into the hydraulics, and check their operation upon reassemble before you just zoom off. When you go to cut the heavy wire cable guides a set of bolt cutters is preferable to a saw as you are less likely to slip and damage something. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]The product is well made and does relocate the bars up and back the maximum amount possible while using the stock cables and hydraulic hoses. I'm not particularly short (5'11"), but the roads I regularly travel are not twisty so I like to sit more upright and the new location is more comfortable. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]California Scientific windshield[/SIZE][SIZE=14pt]- I have to say I was a little disappointed when it came out of the box. The shield is laser cut and the edges were not polished as well as they should be, particularly the bottom edges. This may not sound like a big deal, and its not right up to the point where you scratch the back of your hand while cleaning under the shield. Luckily its easy to fix with some sandpaper and elbow grease. I just don't think that's an acceptable part of any installation procedure and shows a certain lack of attention to detail in what is otherwise a fine product. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]Installation is pretty straight forward. They include stainless screws to replace the stock plastic ones. The curve of the shield did not seem to be quite as close a match to the metal bracket it is bolted to, but then manufacturing variance in the shield is probably one of the reasons why the Yamaha engineers choose to rubber mount the stock shield. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]While I had the dash apart I also disconnected the plug that causes the shield to lower when the key is turned off. This is much better and I'm not sure what the logic is behind this piece of Yamaha engineering. Perhaps cycling the screen mechanism every time the bike is used is a scheme to sell more service parts. Nah, they wouldn't do that, would they? [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]The Cal Sci website has some nice instructions on how to pick the right shield height. I ran through them and came up with 2.5~3.5" so I went with their +3.5 figuring I could cut it down a little if it turned out to be too much. I'll keep my stock shield to use as a "summer shield" and maybe cut it down a bit to deal with our hot summers. [/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt]So far I like the +3.5" height. The extra width is nice and keeps the air flow off my hands which boosts the performance of the heated grips. Backpressure does not seem to be notably different from stock, but I do have a different wind noise that I didn't have before. In all fairness I hesitate to blame the shield for this as it could just as easily be the radar detector disturbing the air flow. At any rate, it's not annoying, and the shield is a big improvement for winter riding. [/SIZE][SIZE=14pt][/SIZE]
[SIZE=14pt] [/SIZE][SIZE=14pt]A note about the weird big green key fob- When the OEMs moved the ignition key switch up to the dash it certainly made things more convenient but it also meant that if you used any kind of a key chain you were guaranteed to mess up the finish around the key area. This always bugged me so I began not keeping my bike keys on any kind of a key ring. In order to reduce the likely hood of loosing a single loose key I got into the habit of putting my key into my glove and stuffing the gloves inside my helmet as soon as I got off the bike. The problem was that the keys would often work themselves down into the glove fingers and would be tough to get out. So now I take the key and a big blob of epoxy putty and form a new giant size key head on the key. [/SIZE]
Keep the rubber side down, and the shiny side up!
)
