MattR
New Member
The purpose of this thread will be to show off my personal goals/timeline with mods to my bike while hopefully inspiring others and answering any questions about anything done to the bike and possibly getting my own questions answered if any come up 
My plan at first was to have a very capable touring machine that could also handle light off-road duty. However after some thinking I mainly was just going to be doing long distance trips with it along with being a daily driver, and having really no public off-road trails here in Upstate New York, I realized I would be better off making it mostly a dedicated touring machine. I still love the look that knobbies add to the bike. So without further ado here is my modification thread, enjoy!
Mods done:
-Tech Spec tank grips (High Fusion)
-Danmoto Carbon exhaust with adjustable baffle
-2" Rox Risers
-Ram 2 ball mount, cup holder, gps holder
-Honda OEM upper air deflector
-Throttle Boss (Cramp buster)
-Reflective Wheel Stripes
-Red Plasti Dip
-CNC China shorty adjustable levers
-Puig dark smoke windscreen
Mods ordered: None
Mods wanted:
-Puig Engine Guard
-Adjustable Highway Pegs
-Airhawk 2 seat cushion
-Puig Fender Extender
-Puig Rear Hugger
-Black Sump Protector
Picture Timeline
Here's when I first brought her home
Started customization with stickers and Tech Spec tank grips (Fairly easy and straight forward install, had a little trouble keeping the top grip on frunk from having wrinkles but with a little work and smoothing with heat I got them 99% out) Definitely love the extra grip and protection, grip helps when standing too but I will agree they are a bit pricey.
Then the Danmoto exhaust came I like how it opens it up and really brings out the growl of the engine without being too obnoxious IMO, however for nighttime riding or if I find it too noisey I routed the adjuster to my handlebars and can easily close the internal baffles until satisfied. I also like the decent weight loss between stock.
Then what we all fear happened, lost the rear end going around a round-a-bout in the rain just 3 weeks after bringing her home. Luckily it was a low speed slide and I walked away only with a bruised elbow and no damage to gear. The bike took it better than I expected but damage was done. The left engine case and handle bar weight got minor scratches. The bars got slightly bent (I ordered new ones and will swap them out during winter but for now the bent ones are do-able). The black upper plastic part got a real small scratch other than that plastics were fine. Shift lever got bent but I was able to bend it back to normal. Here's the bar end and engine case after being painted. (The bar end looks silver from the reflection but is black and normally rotated underneath so its not seen)
Honda air deflectors, wheel stripes, and Throttle boss were next to arrive and be put on. I also had plasti-dipped the skid plate all black (Didn't like the middle grey part). I will agree that the Honda wind deflectors are priced quite high even at dealer pricing. However there was a noticeable difference with them, they guide the air to the outside and around my legs instead of directly at them. Due to their position this allows the warm air from the engine to be guided from the fairing vent to the inside of my legs providing warmth on cooler rides. I have only ridden in a real light mist so I can't comment on rain performance yet. Having used throttle bosses before I knew it was a must for long distance riding.
Ordered red plasti dip and decided to go over the current red plastics to give them some protection and add a matte look to them and I think it makes it look and feel tougher than before. I drew inspiration from a picture someone posted in a thread and also painted the middle part of the skid plate red. I also did the back of the windshield with some leftover black plastidip I had left.
The levers finally came the next week and I was able to get rid of that darn non-adjustable clutch that I always had to reach for, and I don't consider myself to have short fingers. Also Honda, why an adjustable brake but not clutch?? That made me scratch my head. Anyway I love the Black/Red color and am digging the shortys (first time putting shortys on a bike). I did have to grind down the pivot point on the brake lever so that it would operate smoothly and return to it's normal position after being squeezed. So just a heads up there, the clutch lever was fine though and after some grinding the brake worked perfect too.
And just yesterday my Puig windscreen arrived and I was able to install it and go for a ride to test it out. I do ride with a modular helmet and it isn't the most expensive one so it has a bit of air leakage around the modular part. The wind noise was bearable with the stock windscreen on however I was planning on starting to use ear plugs to help cut down the noise. My biggest peeve was all the wind blasting my chest and helmet with the stock on and I knew I needed more protection for those long day rides.
Enter the puig, it does an excellent job of redirecting the wind around me and I noticed the side parts that stick out really help to keep the wind off my hands thus taking away my desire for handguards. Just as I anticipated it did drive more air towards the top of my helmet and this extra burst of air drove the wind noise up too much for my comfort above 45mph. Luckily I have ear plugs from playing in a band that close up after a certain decibel to block out unwanted noise and got to try them out today on the ride to work and WOW what a difference. They helped tremendously and made the bike super comfortable to ride at higher speeds, they did make things much quieter which kinda brought a slight sense of loneliness. That was quickly shaken off as I enjoyed the now even more comfortable ride. I want to look into wireless or wired speakers that help protect your ears from noise and can also be used to play music for those longer rides or solo rides.
Well, that's all my mods so far to date, hope you enjoyed my current and continuing journey as I modify my bike. Please feel free to ask any questions or request any further pictures and I'll try my best to help out.
-Matt
My plan at first was to have a very capable touring machine that could also handle light off-road duty. However after some thinking I mainly was just going to be doing long distance trips with it along with being a daily driver, and having really no public off-road trails here in Upstate New York, I realized I would be better off making it mostly a dedicated touring machine. I still love the look that knobbies add to the bike. So without further ado here is my modification thread, enjoy!Mods done:
-Tech Spec tank grips (High Fusion)
-Danmoto Carbon exhaust with adjustable baffle
-2" Rox Risers
-Ram 2 ball mount, cup holder, gps holder
-Honda OEM upper air deflector
-Throttle Boss (Cramp buster)
-Reflective Wheel Stripes
-Red Plasti Dip
-CNC China shorty adjustable levers
-Puig dark smoke windscreen
Mods ordered: None
Mods wanted:
-Puig Engine Guard
-Adjustable Highway Pegs
-Airhawk 2 seat cushion
-Puig Fender Extender
-Puig Rear Hugger
-Black Sump Protector
Picture Timeline
Here's when I first brought her home
Started customization with stickers and Tech Spec tank grips (Fairly easy and straight forward install, had a little trouble keeping the top grip on frunk from having wrinkles but with a little work and smoothing with heat I got them 99% out) Definitely love the extra grip and protection, grip helps when standing too but I will agree they are a bit pricey.
Then the Danmoto exhaust came
I like how it opens it up and really brings out the growl of the engine without being too obnoxious IMO, however for nighttime riding or if I find it too noisey I routed the adjuster to my handlebars and can easily close the internal baffles until satisfied. I also like the decent weight loss between stock.
Then what we all fear happened, lost the rear end going around a round-a-bout in the rain just 3 weeks after bringing her home. Luckily it was a low speed slide and I walked away only with a bruised elbow and no damage to gear. The bike took it better than I expected but damage was done. The left engine case and handle bar weight got minor scratches. The bars got slightly bent (I ordered new ones and will swap them out during winter but for now the bent ones are do-able). The black upper plastic part got a real small scratch other than that plastics were fine. Shift lever got bent but I was able to bend it back to normal. Here's the bar end and engine case after being painted. (The bar end looks silver from the reflection but is black and normally rotated underneath so its not seen
)
Honda air deflectors, wheel stripes, and Throttle boss were next to arrive and be put on. I also had plasti-dipped the skid plate all black (Didn't like the middle grey part). I will agree that the Honda wind deflectors are priced quite high even at dealer pricing. However there was a noticeable difference with them, they guide the air to the outside and around my legs instead of directly at them. Due to their position this allows the warm air from the engine to be guided from the fairing vent to the inside of my legs providing warmth on cooler rides. I have only ridden in a real light mist so I can't comment on rain performance yet. Having used throttle bosses before I knew it was a must for long distance riding.
Ordered red plasti dip and decided to go over the current red plastics to give them some protection and add a matte look to them and I think it makes it look and feel tougher than before. I drew inspiration from a picture someone posted in a thread and also painted the middle part of the skid plate red. I also did the back of the windshield with some leftover black plastidip I had left.
The levers finally came the next week and I was able to get rid of that darn non-adjustable clutch that I always had to reach for, and I don't consider myself to have short fingers. Also Honda, why an adjustable brake but not clutch?? That made me scratch my head. Anyway I love the Black/Red color and am digging the shortys (first time putting shortys on a bike). I did have to grind down the pivot point on the brake lever so that it would operate smoothly and return to it's normal position after being squeezed. So just a heads up there, the clutch lever was fine though and after some grinding the brake worked perfect too.
And just yesterday my Puig windscreen arrived and I was able to install it and go for a ride to test it out. I do ride with a modular helmet and it isn't the most expensive one so it has a bit of air leakage around the modular part. The wind noise was bearable with the stock windscreen on however I was planning on starting to use ear plugs to help cut down the noise. My biggest peeve was all the wind blasting my chest and helmet with the stock on and I knew I needed more protection for those long day rides.
Enter the puig, it does an excellent job of redirecting the wind around me and I noticed the side parts that stick out really help to keep the wind off my hands thus taking away my desire for handguards. Just as I anticipated it did drive more air towards the top of my helmet and this extra burst of air drove the wind noise up too much for my comfort above 45mph. Luckily I have ear plugs from playing in a band that close up after a certain decibel to block out unwanted noise and got to try them out today on the ride to work and WOW what a difference. They helped tremendously and made the bike super comfortable to ride at higher speeds, they did make things much quieter which kinda brought a slight sense of loneliness. That was quickly shaken off as I enjoyed the now even more comfortable ride. I want to look into wireless or wired speakers that help protect your ears from noise and can also be used to play music for those longer rides or solo rides.
Well, that's all my mods so far to date, hope you enjoyed my current and continuing journey as I modify my bike. Please feel free to ask any questions or request any further pictures and I'll try my best to help out.
-Matt
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