Advice for newbie in Ca.

[MVF]

Hi all, I've been reading everything I could find here while waiting for my FJR to come in (sometime next month is all the dealer will say) and trying to sell my FZ1. Meanwhile, thanks to you good folks, I've ordered a backrest and rack from Girauld, and a set of Skyway's Delrin sliders. I've also been looking around for a set of grips, and getting together my checklist for when the guys at the dealership put my bike together.

I'm hoping to get some tips to avoid learning things the hard way. I'm coming off a background of sporting standards (Nighthawk S, Bandit 1200, FZ1). Lots of splitting traffic while commuting and some pretty spirited canyon carving (though no all out racing in years). Also, lots of 2 up on the weekends, as my wife loves to ride.

This seems to be a pretty common transition here, so if anything sticks in your memory that you wished someone had told you about your move to the FJR, please share it here. This will definitely be the biggest, heaviest bike I've had yet, but the ones I've sat on didn't feel that bad.

Any help will be appreciated. Thanks, Mike :blink:

 

[HIGHLANDER]

MVF,

congats on almost having a FJR !

My warning would be to watch your corner entry speed. The FJR is so smooth and quiet you can be 40mph over where you should be aproaching the corner !! It'll sneak up on you quickly !

 

[V GER]

+1

At first, the feel of this machine at serious velocities is very deceptive.

Find some clean, quiet twisties to get acquainted.

Also, spend some time in a big parking lot learning the behavior of the braking system.

It is inspiring!

 

[keithaba]

Heed this warning, yee it cost you many dollars. Have someone help you with the center stand until you get used to it. NEVER leave the kickstand down when you take the bike off the center stand, your toes and wallet will thank you....

Other than that have a hell of a time and learn to muscle this beast through corners. It holds lines well, but you really have to throw it into corners at higher speeds. (of coarse I only weigh 160 so that doesn't help).

Other than that... ENJOY and ride safe!!!!

 

[madmike2]

<snip>Lots of splitting traffic while commuting and some pretty spirited canyon carving (though no all out racing in years). Also, lots of 2 up on the weekends, as my wife loves to ride.
This seems to be a pretty common transition here, so if anything sticks in your memory that you wished someone had told you about your move to the FJR, please share it here. This will definitely be the biggest, heaviest bike I've had yet, but the ones I've sat on didn't feel that bad.

I came from heavy baggers, an XS1100 and a Concours, but....though this bike feels like a lighter toy when you're moving, it never really LOSES its heft. It remains a 650 lb. sport-touring bike and will never warn you when you are close to being over your head. If you ride it as you would your FZ-1 when 2-up, you'll not have a problem. As said above, it is sneaky fast being so smooth your senses don't pick up any signal as to your road speed. Learn to ride by your gauges: When the speedo says 80 mph, that's how fast you're going even if it feels like 40 or 50mph.

I "lane share" when commuting and have never had a problem. Just remember that the side cases are almost as wide as your mirrors, so if the mirrors are close.... :dribble: I have FZ-1 mirrors on my '05 (yes, they fit on an '06-'7 NewGen fairing) so my mirrors are a bit higher and wider, so I use them like cat's whiskers. If it seems too close, I don't go. That didn't stop me from "splitting" for 35 miles Saturday night from Fairfield to the Yolo Causeway in Sac. :yahoo:

Welcome to the collective! :clapping:

 

[odot]

My advice is to move out of kalifornia asap.

 

[madmike2]

My advice is to move out of kalifornia asap.

But we gots lotsa trees fer parkin'. En we alluz git tuh "lane share". :yahoo: En we gots coast-ile rodes en moun-tin rodes en they be only a cupple hunnert miles apart en goe fer hunnerts en hunnerts uh miles North up en South down. :clapping:

 

[TruWrecks]

But we gots lotsa trees fer parkin'. En we alluz git tuh "lane share". :yahoo: En we gots coast-ile rodes en moun-tin rodes en they be only a cupple hunnert miles apart en goe fer hunnerts en hunnerts uh miles North up en South down. :clapping:

I got a head-ache just reading that...

Welcome aboard! Enjoy the ride. The 07's are very nimble for a sport tourer. B)

 

[OrangevaleFJR]

Wheelies at 5500 rpm - so after break in, the first time you decide to get on it, you might lift the front accidently. It happened to me

 

[Chips]

Congrats on the pending delivery. Coming off an FZ1 myself, I'll say that this is a heavy bike to maneuver around the garage but once moving, it feels less top heavy than the FZ1. Here's a hint if you're short: I'm 5'7" and have to remember to stand on the pegs when mounting and dismounting so I don't scrape the right sidecase with my boot. The center stand is the same effort of the FZ1 if you place your right hand on the passenger grab rail instead of the handle they provide under the seat area. Hope that helps.

 

[MVF]

Thanks all for the great replies! Looks like it's unanimous in favor of deceptive speed- very grateful for that little bit of warning!

Keithaba- thanks for chiming in with the advice about the sidestand- I always used to make sure it was down before coming off the centerstand. I guess that would not have been a good idea on the FJR. I'm guessing you probably saved me some paint or a ruptured disk!

odot- Did you get confused and think this was a firearms forum? I put up with our whacked gun laws for the pleasure of riding here! Like Madmike2 said (kinda) I can be in the mountains (lots of them), at the beach (lots of them too) or in the desert- all within an hour. And I'm not sure I'd ride during the week at all if I had to sit (stand?) in traffic- lane splitting is the only way to go!

Chips- I'm only 5'8", so I'm sure that will come in handy. I guess the sidestand is pretty sturdy? I thought it felt like the CG was lower on the showroom, but I figured that was because no fluids. Really can't wait to check it out on the street after hearing this! Good news about the centerstand too, as I never had any problem with getting the FZ1 up (-that goes to you, too Orangevale- not that I wheelie that much, but when its all just power it is kind of fun! Thanks for the heads up.)

Thank you all for the welcome and your replies. I thought that at my age and with all the bikes I've had, waiting for this one wouldn't be any big deal- BUT I CAN'T WAIT!!! I am seriously buggin'!

 

[roadrash]

CAUTION, When your lane spliting with the stock mirrors the bags are about an inch wider than your mirrors and when your in very slow and tight traffic and weave across a lane you may clip a car with your bag.

:huh:

I love california too, It's nice to be so close to beaches, mountians and deserts. Maybe I will see you riding in santa barbara area.

B)

 

[designeraccd]

As my "nearest" mountains are over 300 miles away, I sometimes-almost-miss living in lalaland....however. Of course our Winters, like now, do get a bit long.

The new, improved FJR is a gr8 all around street bike, but as others have advised: watch it until you get used to the combo of power and weight. While the big bike is no crotch rocket (except compared to an ST 1300...) they are very respectable canyon carvers. Have fun with the new bike! DFO

 

[dbx]

If you haven't done so already, I recommend browsing thru the appropriate Bin o' Facts for your year.

1st Gen Bin o' Facts

2nd Gen Bin o' Facts

There are also some great threads specifically targeted to riders new to the FJR, such as this one:

New Owner Info

Congrats on your new ride! :clapping:

dbx

 

[MVF]

Thanks Roadrash- another very good tip!.

Uh, dbx, why are you using a picture of my girlfriend for your avatar? (Thanks for the links)

 

[madmike2]

I'd like to chime in on the two things mentioned in your subtitle.

ABS: While you are bedding your brakes (We all DO that, don't we?) make sure you take the rear to the point of activating the ABS, then you'll know where that threshhold is. Once you've established that, while practicing your "emergency" stops with the front brakes, keep moving that threshhold up. I have only activated the front ABS once, and that when someone pulled out of a service station driveway in front of me. They work!

Linked Brakes: The Yamaha system only links one front piston with the rear brakes, so the "linkage" is relatively benign. IOW, the rear is not linked with front brake application, the front is only linked 16% (?) with the rear brake. You can pretty much ride it like any other bike.

 

[Silver Penguin]

Excellent choice of bike. May it bring you a lot of pleasure.

+1 on watching the speed until you get used to the bike. Tis very sneaky at getting fast when you're not looking. On the way to work one morning, I'm crossing six lanes of busy traffic to get to the HOV lane. Once into my chosen lane, I'm ready to open her up and get some speed going. Looked down and saw that I was already at 100+ Sure didn't feel that fast.

Watch the side stand auto-retractor. It's programmed to work when your bike is parked in front of a large audience. As you either walk away from the bike, or try to mount the bike, the side stand retracts and the bike falls over. Suggest that you check for full engagement of the stand every deployment.

Think about quitting any other hobbies and pastimes you have, because this bike is SOOOO much fun to ride, that you will no longer have time for anything else.

Jill

 

[SANFRANFJR]

+1
At first, the feel of this machine at serious velocities is very deceptive.

Find some clean, quiet twisties to get acquainted.

Also, spend some time in a big parking lot learning the behavior of the braking system.

It is inspiring!

+++ on that.

Also, as I found out, when you ride off the lot the brake pads will be brand new. The rear pedal especially will feel almost useless. I spent a little time going back and forth, wearing them in. After that.....it's stop on a dime time.

Enjoy.

Kirk