ArthurKnowles Posted May 10, 2009 Posted May 10, 2009 Well I made it back from Sparks NV where I picked up my new R1200RT in Titan Silver Metallic paint. My thanks to Lane and his crew at Sierra BMW. They did a great job prepping the motorcycle for the ride back. And a special thanks to Taeko and the Zonta Club. If you'd like a larger pic, you can see it on my web site at http://www.nt-guru.com/motorcycle/motorcycle.htm The ride back was fun. Too a point! I really need to do something about the leg room. My knees defintiely had a long term issue with the ergonomics. I'll have to think about Sahara Highway pegs or Suburban Machinery's footpeg extensions. What I did this trip is just let my legs hang out a bit in the airstream. Just to give them some releief. It might have helped more to stop more often. I only made two stops. The first to meet SageRider (thanks for lunch by the way!) and then for gas. I also need better wind protection. I'm planning to buy a ZTechnic large windshield for it. The hardest part was breaking in the engine, but by the time I hit 400+ miles I could put it in sixth @ 70~80 mph without lugging the motor. Prior to that I was beginning to wonder if I would ever get a chance to use 6th gear (wondering if I had to be doing 90+ to use it or not). I know it is more fo an overdrive gear than anythign else, but ... I rode home most of the way in 5th. Using the lower gears for in-town or curvy mountain roads. Trying to keep it between 3 and 5 thousand RPM and not exceeding 4K for the first 100 miles was the toughest part of the ride. The only time I exceeded 5K was when I passed a slower moving vehicle. That was rare as I didn't want to stress the motorcycle on the ride home. But it has 515 miles on it now and is ready to ridden to the dealer on Friday for its 600 mile service (it'll have about 575 miles on it then). Then I can try it out on a commute to work. I can already say it feels much lighter and quicker than my 96 RT. Surprisingly nimble. I didn't expect it to feel that way. Took a bit of getting used to (about 5 minutes actually with a big grin on my face). The clutch took longer. It was a bit grabby at first, but that changed. Or I changed. As it works just fine now. I'm defintiely looking forward to putting some miles on it in the future.
lvnvbiker Posted May 10, 2009 Posted May 10, 2009 Congrats on the new ride! I would give it a bit before making any changes to the bike, you may end up saving a good chunk of change if you do. I found mine to be a bit off at first but allmost all of the little issues went away after my body became accustomed to the new bike and riding position. In the end the only thing that I have on mine are a set of bar-backs, everything else is stock and other than wanting a new seat no other adjustments ended up being necessary. Also, IMO, the most important thing while breaking in a new motor is to not sit a any constant RPM for long, and to use a bunch of compression braking to help the rings seat properly. You realy get a very limited time to get a good ring seal and oil useage and to a degree engine performance depend on getting it right. I wish you many years of bugs in you teeth grins, and excessive amount of fun!
Lmar Posted May 10, 2009 Posted May 10, 2009 I would give it a bit before making any changes to the bike, you may end up saving a good chunk of change if you do. I found mine to be a bit off at first but allmost all of the little issues went away after my body became accustomed to the new bike and riding position. I agree. As I spend more time on mine, I am finding the issues I had on my first drive home are not that big of an issue. The more I ride it, the better it feels.
SageRider Posted May 10, 2009 Posted May 10, 2009 It was great to see that big smile on your face!!! Congrats and many happy miles....
ArthurKnowles Posted May 11, 2009 Author Posted May 11, 2009 Yeah, I had a big grin on all the way home too. Still do. Thankfully I missed the bugs in my teeth this time around, but the bugs didn't miss. Bugs on the windshield. Bugs in the radiator. Bugs in the motor fins. Bugs in and on the tire rims (got no clue there as that was a first for me). I had bugs just about everywhere except me (and even there I had a few bugs hit me, just didn't leave a mark). As for the break in, I'm sure SageRider can tell you the motor is well broken in by now. It's had a LOT of variability in rpm, load, etc. during the trip. It really is a good trip in the 7000 feet area. Below that it got hot. I was reading 95+ on the board computer. Not sure how accurate it was, but I was glad I sent my hot weather and cold weatehr gear and rode home using the hot gear. It was still comfortable for the cooler areas too. I'm also familiar with my own body to know that I must have a way to cahnge the ergonomics or I will not be able to keep the motorcycle. I'm getting too old. My body has been telling me for years that all the fun I had when I was younger and said to all ... "Well when I get older I'll pay the price for the fun I'm having now"... is coming to roost. I have to do something as letting my legs hang out in the breeze isn't a solution and could be too dangerous. I just have to figure out what type of pegs to get. I'm undecided as I'm thinking about cylinder cover/engine protections too and maybe there is set I can use to put pegs on it instead of buying bars and Sahara pegs. The Touratech state they don't fit the 09s so I'll have to look at Wunderlich and see what they offer. Does BMW make a set? Same goes for a windshield. At full extension the buffetting on my helmet is unacceptable. I do not, and will not, wear ear plugs. Due to my kidney hereditary defect my ear canals are small and the sensation of plugs makes me much more uncomfortable. I want/need an air bubble (I'm going to buy a better/quiter helmet too and am considering the Shuberth C3) to quite it down. I can deal with the air flow caused by gusts, trucks, etc. more than I can with the noise levels. In fact, coming back there is a streach of road where they have signs out about the gusts. Kind of reminded me of my college days in Wyoming on a KZ-400. You are leaning over and still going straight down the road. Only it was 15 degrees vs. the 35~45 in Wyoming (I was in serious high winds out there and too dumb toi think it might be a issue - at least they wqere constant unlike my trip back). I only had a breif time to test a ZTechnic sheild on my R1100RT, but it did a really good job compared to the tall BMW sheild on it now. Both were the same size. I figure the ZTechnic 2" tall model will do the same for the R1200RT. If not, I can return it. Down the road I have to cionsider a top case. I'm buyng a plate now so I can use my older E50 Givi top case on my 1100. But I'll either buy the BMW or Givi E55 later. I already have electrical modifications I will do when I can get around to it. Like install my FZ-1 fusebox. I bought it for my LT, then sold the LT before I used it. That will power my GPS, auxillary lights, what ever I decide for music, and maybe an intercom. I never even considered plugging it all in to the CanBus circuit. I might install a HID upgrade for the headlights. I need to do more research and check on available space for the ballasts first. Plus I need to do more riding on it to know for sure. The stock lights do a pretty good job on low. Didn't have a chance to try the high beams. If I decide on a HID upgrade, I may not need auxilary lights either. Maybe jsut some running lights (like hyperlights) to let people know I am on a motorcycle. Wow, this got longer than I planned. Hope it's not too long. Guess I'm still on "happy" adrenaline with the ride (i./e. motorcycle & trip home).
Bill_Walker Posted May 11, 2009 Posted May 11, 2009 Congrats on the win, and on being able to swap the GS for the RT! Since you already had an RT, you probably know this, but I'll mention it just in case. You do know that the seat height is adjustable, right? I adjust mine for a comfortable knee angle. Sure, I can't flat-foot the bike, but that's never (well, hardly ever) been a problem.
SWB Posted May 11, 2009 Posted May 11, 2009 Congrats on the win, and on being able to swap the GS for the RT! Since you already had an RT, you probably know this, but I'll mention it just in case. You do know that the seat height is adjustable, right? I adjust mine for a comfortable knee angle. Sure, I can't flat-foot the bike, but that's never (well, hardly ever) been a problem. Ditto here. Raising the seat up or down a notch can make it feel like an entirely different ride. Shoulder pain, knee pain, all that can be solved with a very small adjustment. It's really amazing how much of a difference it can make. Plus, I have Sargent seats (came with the bike) and they are probably the "low" seat version. I'm 6'2" and ..um.. kinda heavy. Not a great fit. Then I decided to try the stock seats for the first time on Friday, just because I had them, and man-oh-man I would have never dreamed how much of a difference those things made. I mean, they SEEM like good seats, but the rear portion of the soft-gel-seat compressed and pinched my butt. I knew within a mile from home that I had made a huge mistake, but I was late for work, so I forged on. (Worked out OK, though, the butt pain went away entirely after I ran out of gas on the I5 carpool lane, swerved across 5 lanes of traffic to hit the off-ramp I was just about passed, bled speed from 80mph down to about 5 mph as soon as I hit the UPHILL ramp, and ended up pushing my 500+lb bike up 100' of the rest of the off-ramp where I could finally park it. My back, butt, legs, and soul pretty much hurt the rest of the day, and I never thought about the stocker seats again. ). By and large, the Sargent seats (which are made of fairly stiff foam) are pretty comfortable. I'd still like to try a Russell Day-long leather quilted seat at some point. They just look more comfortable than the Sargent's I have now. I wouldn't give up on the bike until you've tried adjusting the seats or tried some after market seats. The peg position is your thing, but I think the R1200RT is every bit as comfortable as my R1100RT with the comfort seat, and feels far more balanced to boot. Congrats.. very happy for you. Enjoy your new ride. Scott
ArthurKnowles Posted May 12, 2009 Author Posted May 12, 2009 Thanks for the encouraging words, but there is no way I even considered giving up on the RT. I rode the motorcycle home on the low position with the standard seat (I'm almost flat footed when I stop), but my low seat is being shipped out to me. I'll try that one too, but suspect if I were to keep it I'd have it converted to a custom seat. A bit more padding and comfort and I supect it would be close to the stock height and much more comfortable. But it really wasn't the seat that was an issue. It's the foot position. On my 96 I'm almost at a 90 degree bend at the knee. I'll have to sit on it again and maybe get a pic for comparision just to make sure I'm not imagining things. On the 09 though, it's more 70 degrees. It's a sharpe bend with my feet well behind my knees. Almost like my hips and feet are in the same plane. Not comfortable for me at all on long runs. I'll need to find a way to change leg position for longer rides. FWIW, I drive a Escape Hybrid (SUV) for the same reason. I need a 90 degree position or wider angle. Kind of leaves SUV, min-vans, or possibly a truck. My wife's Prius is bad. Her previous car a Kia Rio Cinco was torture. I'll need to get my wife to snap a pic and see if a set of bar backs would help my posture and riding ergonomics for my knees on the 09. Truthfully all I might need is more of a break between fill-ups. It'll go 300 miles or more between refills. That's 4~5 hours at a strech. I was in good shape the first 4 hours, it was the last 4 that the knee pain became really noticable. But it was still a fun ride. I'm really surprised by home nimble and quick it is compared to my 96.
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