Technical manual

[fitrx]

Some people like myself enjoy the mechanical aspects of the machine as much as riding it. I thoroughly enjoy digging into the bike to see what makes it tick. It is almost as much fun as leaning it over through the twisties. But then I have a degree in mechanical engineering which they warned me would forever give me a twisted view of the world.
Others like yourself apparently, find maintenance to be just a chore. I suggest that you take it to a mechanic for service. It will save you the agony of reading the sevice manual and trying to figure out how the bike works. Good luck.

John

"to see what makes it tick" hehe, that's funny, no pun intended?

Actually, I won't trust a mechanic because I know that there is a high probability that I will wait days for the work to be done, pay an exorbitant fee, and ultimately have to finish the job myself, if I want it done right.

I really don't mind the work, as long as the learning curve isn't "unnecessarily" extensive...thus my comment on the manual. I don't believe that learning to do the maintenance and repairs on the bike should to be a puzzle to resolve. Why sould one have to resort to internet forums and blogs for general maintenance proceedures. Such resources as these should be reserved for greater ideas, ideas regarding customization and social interaction. If I liked puzzles, I would have bought a Ribik's cube and not a bike. I kind of outgrew taking things apart, just to see how they work, a number of years ago.

 

[madmike2]

But then I have a degree in mechanical engineering which they warned me would forever give me a twisted view of the world.John

Don't you remember the speech at graduation? "The world will never conform to the engineering principles and formulae you've learned at this institution......" :lol: IOW, its not your twisted view but the world's twisted response. :yahoo:

Why sould one have to resort to internet forums and blogs for general maintenance proceedures.

Like changing the oil and filter? Changing the air filter? TBS? :huh:
JUST KIDDING!!! Partially, these things are happening as manufacturers and dealers are trying to create an atmosphere where an owner "must" take his bike to the shop. In fact, according the the AMA, there has been some discussion in the halls of congress about passing laws concerning this very thing. Thank God I don't have a BMW. While it may not be true, I've heard anecdotal rumors that only the dealers have specialized tools and testing equipment and the needed apparatus to read the computer and reset warnings, etc.

One thing about the service manual, it certainly ferrets out those who should not be doing "deeper" work on their FJR but it doesn't help someone, like me, who has a fairly firm grasp on the basics but needs "help" in the details.

Long long ago, in a far far distant place, there were few with the knowledge needed and manuals were nearly non-existent. Thankfully people like Bounce, HMarc, Warchild and Torch were able to "do" the work and post commentary with pictures to help the rest of us. That is part of the lore of FJR history and remains the same today. Having the FJR websites and links to what capable people have done is a good thing.

Do I wish the manual was more like a Clymer's for my XS1100 or the Connie. Yeah sure, you betch'a! But then, I'm building my own library from the others mentioned above. And their pictures are better! :yahoo: Speaking of the Concours: How 'bout COG. Better than the FJR forum, but then after 20 years of practice and experience.....

SO let's all agree: It SHOULD be better! It probably isn't going to change.....(see opening quote and my comment).

 

[biggjohn]

"to see what makes it tick" hehe, that's funny, no pun intended?
Actually, I won't trust a mechanic because I know that there is a high probability that I will wait days for the work to be done, pay an exorbitant fee, and ultimately have to finish the job myself, if I want it done right.

I really don't mind the work, as long as the learning curve isn't "unnecessarily" extensive...thus my comment on the manual. I don't believe that learning to do the maintenance and repairs on the bike should to be a puzzle to resolve. Why sould one have to resort to internet forums and blogs for general maintenance proceedures. Such resources as these should be reserved for greater ideas, ideas regarding customization and social interaction. If I liked puzzles, I would have bought a Ribik's cube and not a bike. I kind of outgrew taking things apart, just to see how they work, a number of years ago.

I agree 100% about your reasons not to trust a mechanic. I have been burned too many times. If someone is going to screw it up, it might as well be me.

I don't have the manual yet, but I have never seen one for a car or a bike that contained the nitty gritty details about routine maintenance procedures. They are usually better for the more in depth procedures like rebuilding an engine.

I think you are selling this forum short if you only think it is only for "greater ideas, ideas regarding customization and social interaction". As I stated previously this site contains a vast pool of knowledge and experience. There are people here who understand the intricate details of this machine better than I bet most any Yamaha trained mechanic. The only ones who possibly know more about the machine are the engineers who designed it.

Go spend some time in the Bin-O-Facts and the links from it and you should be amazed by some of the detailed procedures that people have documented for us. They contain the steps in great detail, warnings about the gotchas, not to mention the "eight-by-ten colour glossy photographs with circles

and arrows and a paragraph on the back of each one explaining what each

one was". I really appreciate their efforts.

I never cared much for the Rubiks cube, but I hope I never outgrow the fascination with taking things apart. These days I usually get them put back together and working again. :yahoo:

John

 

[biggjohn]

But then I have a degree in mechanical engineering which they warned me would forever give me a twisted view of the world.John

Don't you remember the speech at graduation? "The world will never conform to the engineering principles and formulae you've learned at this institution......" :lol: IOW, its not your twisted view but the world's twisted response. :yahoo:

You are absolutely correct about the worlds twisted response, engineers probably have the most realistic view of the world. To the optimist, the glass is half full. To the pessimist, the glass is half empty. To the engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.

John

 

[Wolfhound]

Fred H sells an awesome set of discs that show step by step how to for anything on the Goldwing. Wish we had that for the FJR . . .

 

[clutchless1]

Just like anything printed on the market today as repair a manuals goes, we need to learn the so called jargan. I agree some manufacturers manuals are easier to follow than the one for the FJR, but by reading and sometimes re-reading you will start to understand what it is they're trying to tell you. In a word they are sometimes frustrating because there is so much you need to know and understand before attempting to make any repair or adjustment.

These manuals are also laid out for the repair tech who in most cases has had some type of schooling in order to understand the bike and the manual. If you think you're confused with one bike and one manual try and walk in the shoes of a typical repair tech. Not only do they have to have some idea of what the manual is showing them, but they need to have the training and ability to make the repairs on these bikes. Put this together with some models changing from year to year even if ever so slightly, but just enough to throw even the most educated tech off every now and then.

The most important thing about not only this manual but others as well is the simple fact we need to be humble when reading and trying to understand the info that is there for us to evaluate and then properly make the repair. By saying you have a hard time understanding is a positive thing, this is the first step in properly diagnosing and repairing your bike because now you are asking questions just making sure you are correct in what you are reading and understanding. It's the people who say there is nothing to this stuff (unless you have done repairs to the same bike numerous times using the same manual, or are a full tilt repair tech) who are most often the ones who get themself into a screwed up situation because they didn't quite understand what it was they were supposed to understand in the first place.

When I made repairs to a Harley I used to own I not only had the factory repair manual, but the parts manual as well. I don't know if Yamaha has such a thing as a parts manual for the FJR, but both together makes a ton of difference when it comes to reading and understanding what it is you're working on. Someone else gave us all a web site to the Yamaha parts site that not only gives us the part number, but also gives us all an exploded view of the part we are having trouble with. I think the manual does exactly what it's supposed to do, we just need to use all of the tools in the arsonal that are available to us like using the exploded views along with the repair manual.

 

[HaulinAshe]

I'm happy that I can actually purchase a service manual and lookup my own parts on the web. Try that with a Honda product!

I'm happy that the Yami service manual has English rather than Jenglish text.

If I could just figure out some way to make all the pages smudge proof. Those drool stains are just... yucky!!!