How NOT to do Post-Winter Maintenance!!!

[Techrat]

I probably should be posting this in THE BAR (comedy) section of this forum but here goes. I never would have believed that getting my bike ready for summer would have been such a pain. Working in a storage space dimly lit but I had a flashlight. I had three tasks. Re-install the battery, install my new Barkbusters, and clean the chain. How hard could it be?

1) Re-install the battery - Five minute job, right? NOPE!!! Couldn't get the freaking clip that holds the battery back on. Finally got it on after five minutes of messing with it. Installed the positive terminal screw. Attempted to install the negative terminal. The screw kept turning and turning. Took out the screw and looking around with my flashlight, the nut that holds the screw had fell out. Found it and put it back in. While trying again, the screw fell. It didn't land in the bottom of freakin Frunk, it had to fall inbetween the plastics and into the bowels of the bike. Removed the battery. After shaking the bike and almost making it fall over, I had to take a couple of the fairings off to locate it. And somehow it had lodged itself in between some cables. Had to use a pair of needle-nose to get it out. Finally got everything installed. Tested it. The display can on. The time was wrong but I was not about to try to figure out how to adjust it right then and there. Total time ONE HOUR.

2) Install new Barkbusters - Twenty minute job. Not even. Heard that the screws that they send with the kit are too short, so I ordered 3 sets of longer ones from England, since they are metrics bolts and not carried by most retailers in the U.S. After laying out every part, I thought I was ready. NOPE!!! First instructions - Disassemble current hand grips and remove internal weights. Unfortunately and unbeknown to me the instructions were written for the OEM grips that come with the bike. I had the dealer replace those stupid things with Kuryakyn ISO Grips, which are bigger and have a much better feel. Taking them apart was out of the question, so I figured I'd bypass this step and try assembling the rest. The instructions are more vague than those stick drawings you get when trying to put together furniture from IKEA. Tried a U-Tube video but the guy seemed more interested in showing all the little parts that came with the kit then actually how to put them on the freakin' bike!!!

Finally figured it out and after "air-assembling" them, realized that I could leave the OEM internal weights in the bars but I'd have to buy some M6 bolts to secure the ends instead of the M8 bolts that came with the kit (or the longer ones that I ordered all the way from England). After TWO HOURS, I figured it was time to cut my losses and try again later.

Stop by Home Depot on the way home. Luckily they carried a few metric sized nuts and bolts. So I picked up a pair of M6 X 80mm bolts. Not as thick or sturdy as the M8 X 75mm ones that come with the kit (or the 80mm, 90mm or 100m ones I ordered) but they should work in a pinch. I'll be completing the install in a couple of days.

3) Clean the chain - The easiest bike maintenance you can do. Ten minutes tops. NOPE!!! I remembered that I didn't have time to clean the chain when I was putting it away last September. It was dark and I was freezing and several cars had tried to kill me, literally. So I just jacked it up and put the cover over it. Fast forward to today. The chain had grown a layer of rust on most of the links. I ride street and it wasn't raining so its not like I had rode through any puddles, so I couldn't figure for the life of me why there was so much rust on the chain in an indoors facility. I hadn't brought my grunge brush or any rust removing solvent. All I had was a rag and a can of chain wax. I put as much effort as I could using chain wax as rust remover. I did a pretty good job but I know that the chain life has been shortened a little bit. Another HALF HOUR off my life.

In short, what should have been FORTY minutes of routine maintenance took over THREE AND A HALF hours and was still not complete. Maybe I'm just blowing off steam or maybe I should get the "Most Incompetent Wrencher" award for the year. Either way, I'm just glad that I'll be ready to ride soon.

Techrat.

 

[happy]

Now....do everything in reverse again.
And repeat 3 times...
You will get better at it

[emoji9][emoji23]

Sent from my MI MAX using Tapatalk

 

[Jos]

Shit can happen. But trice in a row is a good score

Reading your exploits brought some "simple job gone wrong" memories, the worst being loosing a screw "somewhere" in the bike. A friend of mine even dropped a nut in the spark plug pit once. Straight in the cylinder it went. Good thing it was an aluminium block and we could use a (properly shaped) magnet tied to a string to get it back.

 

[Red Rider]

Murphy’s Law is alive and well. I always assume the job will
A. Cost more than I figured
B. Take longer than I thought
C. Not go smoothly the first time; wrong or missing parts, require a tool I don’t have on hand, etc.

With that gloomy outlook in mind, I dive right in!

You’re gonna be that much wiser the next time you tackle the beastie. And you’ll feel ten times better after you finish the task yourself vs. paying someone else to do it (hopefully )

 

[b_rubenstein]

ACE Hardware stores (at least in my area - Central FL) carry metric hardware; including various SS bolts, including socket head, washers and nuts.

Chain wax won't do much good for rust, particularly if moisture got past the O-rings and there's corrosion on the inner pins and bushings. You may be in for an extended lesson on replacing chains. Unless you see obvious sings of wear on the sprockets, they don't have to be changed.

 

[jjtj2]

I feel your pain. Over the winter I decided to

1) Add my own 12 volt socket to the frunk. Installed no problem. Glad Honda put a mark in the place to drill the hole…. Otherwise I am sure I would have messed this up.

2) Now decided to install Rox 2" riser. After I got the handlebars apart, I discovered that the parking brake cable (DCT bike) was waaaaay too short for 2" risers. Put handlebars back together.

3) Install automatic oiler. Discover that there is no good place to put the pump or the oil reservoir because the NC is so compact. Took multiple nights of try it here and see if the body panels will fit, move it there and see if body panels will fit. Once placed, went to wire it. Drop the only Positap that I have under the gas tank. Order new ones and wait a week. Wire up the pump. Start replacing body panels and drop one of the special clips under the gas tank. Order new ones. Wait a week. Get panels almost finished putting on and decide to:

4) Install STS (Safe Turn Signal). Take panels back off. Trace turn signal wires. Cut wires and install STS wires. Disassemble turn signal housing. Breaking it in the process and discovering that you can't disassemble the turn signal because of the DCT like you can with a non DCT. Decide to take it to the dealer. Try to remember how to put back on panels since they have been off for 5 weeks and you can’t remember the exact order they came off and which push fittings go where. Part of the problem is the wife moved the piece of cardboard that you everything laid out in the order that you took it off and now it is all mixed up. In process of putting on the panels, there is a special hex head shoulder bolt near the front of the bike that holds on one of the body panels. Can't get it started and bugger up the threads so bad that the bolt will not start on the nut. Order new bolt. Wait a week. Put body panels back on and wait 3 weeks for snow to stop so I can take it to the dealer to replace the turn signal housing.

 

[Red Rider]

I feel your pain. Over the winter I decided to

1) Add my own 12 volt socket to the frunk. Installed no problem. Glad Honda put a mark in the place to drill the hole…. Otherwise I am sure I would have messed this up.

2) Now decided to install Rox 2" riser. After I got the handlebars apart, I discovered that the parking brake cable (DCT bike) was waaaaay too short for 2" risers. Put handlebars back together.

3) Install automatic oiler. Discover that there is no good place to put the pump or the oil reservoir because the NC is so compact. Took multiple nights of try it here and see if the body panels will fit, move it there and see if body panels will fit. Once placed, went to wire it. Drop the only Positap that I have under the gas tank. Order new ones and wait a week. Wire up the pump. Start replacing body panels and drop one of the special clips under the gas tank. Order new ones. Wait a week. Get panels almost finished putting on and decide to:

4) Install STS (Safe Turn Signal). Take panels back off. Trace turn signal wires. Cut wires and install STS wires. Disassemble turn signal housing. Breaking it in the process and discovering that you can't disassemble the turn signal because of the DCT like you can with a non DCT. Decide to take it to the dealer. Try to remember how to put back on panels since they have been off for 5 weeks and you can’t remember the exact order they came off and which push fittings go where. Part of the problem is the wife moved the piece of cardboard that you everything laid out in the order that you took it off and now it is all mixed up. In process of putting on the panels, there is a special hex head shoulder bolt near the front of the bike that holds on one of the body panels. Can't get it started and bugger up the threads so bad that the bolt will not start on the nut. Order new bolt. Wait a week. Put body panels back on and wait 3 weeks for snow to stop so I can take it to the dealer to replace the turn signal housing.

Too funny (uh, from a distance of course) seems like a good time to limp into the dealer and trade for a new 2018.

 

[potter0o]

Find my rear wheel bearing need to be replaced. Order a blind bearing puller which takes over a week to arrive. The puller is so cheap that the threads on the puller strip out before the collet is tight enough to pull it out. Fight for refund and pound bearings out the old fashioned way.

Replacing chain on bike with cheap chain tool. On first attempt I use the smallest pin to try to break the chain. Pin turns into a pretzel and doesn't break chain. I have to fight to get tool apart to get right pin in. Trying to press chain with tool...over press it. Try to rivet chain with same tool but chain is harder than tool. Think tool may have bad metal so take to store for replacement. Cut off rivet and re-rivet with newer version of same tool. Same problem. Take tool back to store for refund. Order quality tool and rivet from Japan.

Fails and foibles

 

[L.B.S.]

Simple valve check, oil change and antifreeze replacement, right?



Auuuugh!

Radiator support bracket bolt sheared off in the aluminum. The steel bolt had become one with the engine, combining to form a new element on the Periodic Table; Sonofa*****ium.





Also, I can no longer in clear conscious disparage the Gorilla Honda employs to install the oil filters, making them so difficult to remove the first time. This last filter went on no differently than any of the past filters I've installed in the last 40+ years. Very lightly hand tightened, with new oil on the O-ring. It would not budge, and promptly snapped off the nut welded to the Honda OEM oil filter wrench.

Made two of my screwdrivers into pretzels, would not budge. Ended up hammering a 12" socket extension through the filter, and the way the metal walls of the filter were tearing, I was sure it would self destruct before spinning off, but it finally gave in and released it's death grip.








Drilled out the broken bolt, and tapped an M8-1.25 hole in way less time than it took to remove the filter, lol

 

[Red Rider]

Simple valve check, oil change and antifreeze replacement, right?

View attachment 36162

Auuuugh!

Radiator support bracket bolt sheared off in the aluminum. The steel bolt had become one with the engine, combining to form a new element on the Periodic Table; Sonofa*****ium.

View attachment 36163



Also, I can no longer in clear conscious disparage the Gorilla Honda employs to install the oil filters, making them so difficult to remove the first time. This last filter went on no differently than any of the past filters I've installed in the last 40+ years. Very lightly hand tightened, with new oil on the O-ring. It would not budge, and promptly snapped off the nut welded to the Honda OEM oil filter wrench.

Made two of my screwdrivers into pretzels, would not budge. Ended up hammering a 12" socket extension through the filter, and the way the metal walls of the filter were tearing, I was sure it would self destruct before spinning off, but it finally gave in and released it's death grip.

View attachment 36164

View attachment 36165

View attachment 36166


Drilled out the broken bolt, and tapped an M8-1.25 hole in way less time than it took to remove the filter, lol

Uhm... almost hate to ask... how were the valves?

 

[Jos]

Oh yeah, I guess they use an impact gun for the filter to make sure it doesn't come off First removal has been a struggle on all my bikes.

 

[L.B.S.]

Uhm... almost hate to ask... how were the valves?

I'm sooooo glad I checked, the other hassles notwithstanding! I was only past the inspection interval by a couple thousand miles, but 6 out of 8 valves were too tight, with only one intake on cyl #1 and one exhaust on cyl #2 being barely in spec.

I opened them all up to a lighter drag feel than my norm on the feeler gauges, so hopefully that will be the last time I find them too tight.

 

[Red Rider]

I'm sooooo glad I checked, the other hassles notwithstanding! I was only past the inspection interval by a couple thousand miles, but 6 out of 8 valves were too tight, with only one intake on cyl #1 and one exhaust on cyl #2 being barely in spec.

I opened them all up to a lighter drag feel than my norm on the feeler gauges, so hopefully that will be the last time I find them too tight.

Well, at least that eased some of the pain knowing your attention to the valves was warranted. I’m surprised, tho, most posts on valve checks (that I’ve come across) seem to indicate no adjustment needed. Guess it’s really not smart to skip the process.