Mounting Garmin GPS

[johndaub]

I tried to get advice for removing a stem nut here to install a ram type mount for my Garmin. None of it seemed to be practical for me (air gun, etc.). I had my burly son give it a try and with all of his might could not get it to budge. Therefore, I decided to take it to the dealer before we round off the nut or ding the bike with the wrench. As long as I was going to have it at the dealer, I decided to have them run the Garmin power cable as well since I really do not have the time before EOM.

To put on the new stem nut and run the power cable, the dealer said that since it was not in the book, he estimated up to two hours ($190). I said that that sounded high but he said that running the power cable might require removing the tank as well as the side panel. He did say that I would be billed actual time but he had to put in an estimate. What do you think the time for a stem nut change and Garmin power cable install should be for an experienced mechanic (since at $95/hour he better be experienced!)? Thank you.

 

[sonicspeed]

i did both myself

 

[painman]

If you take the side panel off, tank, etc., yes two hours is not out of line. IMO though no side panel needs to come of nor does the tank. I could ride over and give you a hand and even possibly do lunch, but it would take me a few days to get there as I'm in CA.

Just take your time if you do it and use a breaker bar for the nut and don't get carried away. It will come loose. I'm disabled and did mine. Installed the stem-mount, removed the small panel over the battery only and I took my time and it took about an hour. I would say one could really, do it in about 30 to 40 minutes easy.

While your at it the best thing to do if you haven't already, and I need to do this myself, is install a BlueSea fuse box, usually under the seat and you'll have more connections for later farkles. There are threads here about how to do this install and even the stem-mount install. It's worth looking into and do it yourself if possible. Keep us updated. PM. <><

 

[jmdaniel]

Keep your money in your pocket. That whole job won't take you more than an hour. $190? Save your money, and use it to buy:

- 1/2" torque wrench. (around $50 at Sears for the non-digital version)

- 36 mm 12-point socket. ($7.95 at Sears)

- eyelet electrical connection to run straight to battery (around $5.00 for 10 of them at Autozone)

You'll have approximately $130 left when you are done, and the tools.

When popping the stem nut, use a 1/2" breaker bar, or if you don't have one of those, a 2 to 3 foot pipe slipped over the end of your ratchet. Leverage RULES! Just have someone push down on the socket while you are on the end of the breaker bar or pipe, to prevent slippage. The 12 point socket will help prevent that as well. And of course, towel up the top of the tank, to prevent scratches, should slippage occur.

No tank removal needed; hell, I didn't even touch my tank to install the Heli risers. Just pull the fairing cover over the battery, attach your power lead to the battery, using the eyelet connector, and put the cover back on.

Easy-cheesy...

 

[Sagebrush]

I'm always concerned when I ask a dealer about a service and get an idiot reply. I wouldn't want them to touch my bike. Even the sales manager knew where my FJR's battery is. This is a very easy job, a couple screws and two plastic fastners and the battery cover comes off. Buy the tools to remove and replace the stem nut, the dealer will probably screw something up anyway. Get to know the FJR, I've found it easy to work on.

The stem nut is a quick R&R and the tools don't cost much, check out Advance Auto for the socket, ask for an axle nut socket... 36mm. I had to use a breaker bar on mine, it was very tight.

 

[jmdaniel]

The stem nut is a quick R&R and the tools don't cost much, check out Advance Auto for the socket, ask for an axle nut socket... 36mm.

Spend the $7.95 for the 12 point from Craftsman; and you'll mar the soft stem nut a whole lot less.... and then you have the socket.

 

[SkooterG]

Well, I would recommend a 6 pt socket.

 

[jmdaniel]

Well, I would recommend a 6 pt socket.

Hmmm.... I did a little research, and I guess I would agree, with one qualifier. I would go with a brand new 12 pt. socket, over a loaner 6 pt. The one I borrowed from Autozone, when I put my stem nut mount on the first time, had some miles on it, and didn't grab as well as my new 12 pt., the second time I put that mount on.

 

[kurt]

I put a wrap of tape around the nut first. It prevented marring and snugged up the fit a bit.

 

[Fubar]

I had to put my breaker bar on the nut but with little effort it came loose. The key here is a quality socket and a breaker bar. I had my impact wrench set out on my bench to break it loose if I had to, but it came loose with a little ass behind it. :lol: Didn't have to break out the heavy calibers.

 

[johndaub]

Well, I ended up letting the dealer rob me. As I said, they would bill actual time so I risked it and assumed the mechanic would do the entire job quickly. In the end, they billed me 2 hours just like the desk jockey guessed. When I questioned it, they said that they used their most experienced mechanic and 2 hours was the actual time. They had the mechanic come out and explain what he did so that I would understand why it took that much time. He did not seem happy about it. Anyway, this is the summary:

Stem nut change 0.5 hour ($47.50): He used an airgun to loosen the stem nut and then had to properly torque the replacement nut. He said time was spent properly padding the tank to make sure it would not get damaged.

Garmin power cord install 1.0 hour ($95): He removed the fairing so that he could determine the best routing which is different for every bike. It took time to figure out the best routing so that there would not be any problem with the steering. He also had to crimp on some eyelets (I guess that was the supplies for $9 which was additional).

Battery tender cord install 0.5 hour ($47.50): He had to determine the best routing for the cord (good thing he already had the fairing off or else this would have cost as much as the Garmin power cord). Also, since the cord already had eyelets, I did not have to pay $9 for eyelets.

Well, I saved myself buying another torque wrench ($60) and a breaker bar ($50). But, maybe I saved myself a big dent in the tank!

 

[raclow]

Still too much money. If it took you two days, at your leisure, you could have done this install.

Just sayin.......

 

[jmdaniel]

Your money. As long as you're happy.

 

[Sagebrush]

Removed the faring, yeah sure...... It took me one beer to do mine......

You don't need to remove anything more than the battery cover. So many dealers suck so bad when it comes to service. When I had my KTM I used Fun Cycles in NC and they were the only dealer that I've dealt with that only charged for the actuall time spent on my bike. Even tire changes were reasonable.

At least you got it done with no further drama, time to go ride and play with GPS routes....

 

[BuilderBob]

I did mine in less than an hour, maybe less than 30 minutes. Of course, I wired the cradle directly to the battery, so I didn't have to waste time looking for a switched circuit. It was easy. The stem nut came off without much fuss as well.

 

[ponyfool]

Some people just aren't comfortable wrenching. Don't fault them for it. Some people need to see it done before venturing out on their own, again, don't fault them for it. The fact still remains, this guy has a great bike, with a cool GPS mount to go out and enjoy. The ability to wrench doesn't always have a direct correlation to how much fun you have while riding!

Go out and enjoy!

Some people just aren't comfortable wrenching. Don't fault them for it. Some people need to see it done before venturing out on their own, again, don't fault them for it. The fact still remains, this guy has a great bike, with a cool GPS mount to go out and enjoy. The ability to wrench doesn't always have a direct correlation to how much fun you have while riding!

Go out and enjoy!

 

[jmdaniel]

Some people just aren't comfortable wrenching. Don't fault them for it. Some people need to see it done before venturing out on their own, again, don't fault them for it. The fact still remains, this guy has a great bike, with a cool GPS mount to go out and enjoy. The ability to wrench doesn't always have a direct correlation to how much fun you have while riding!
Go out and enjoy!

Some people just aren't comfortable wrenching. Don't fault them for it. Some people need to see it done before venturing out on their own, again, don't fault them for it. The fact still remains, this guy has a great bike, with a cool GPS mount to go out and enjoy. The ability to wrench doesn't always have a direct correlation to how much fun you have while riding!

Go out and enjoy!

Gunny +1

Gunny +1

 

[Rondo777]

Sorry to hear you got robbed so badly. As long as your happy with the result. You should deff get the tools need to remove that yourself, I believe its every 12k you need to retourque the steering head, you dont want to pay them every time. I dont know why they had to get under your tank to hook up power for gps, I went straight to the fuse box in the battery compartment and found a swiched fust to tap into. I think I did the entire install in less then 30 mins and have had no issues in over a year. Toss a towel over the tank when wotning around it, 3 seconds. I cant even believe they tried to tell you they charged time to prep the tank to avail scratches? AVOID THEM WHEN EVER POSSIBLE.