Road Trip

Hey all!

It's been a while since I had time to hang out here!

My Son has decided to attend the MMI Yamaha Cert. course in Phoenix, AZ and we will be road tripping down from Ohio next week. Taking turns piloting the Seca that I gave the boy as a graduation present last year and driving the car.

This will be the first time the bike has been ridden more than 300mi. on a trip since I got her.

New rubber front and back. Fresh oil and filter. Valve clearances checked. New rear brake shoes and front pads.

I hope we are not expecting too much out of the old girl. She has been very reliable to date. The only real issue I've had was some debris from the fuel tank clogging the no. 4 carb fuel feed and that was easily taken care of with a quick carb cleaning and installation of a fuel line filter.

My son decided he liked the stock look better than my custom touches so we took everything back to factory except for the exhaust and the handle bar covers which are in pretty sorry shape after being left to rot in garage for the last 5 years or so. He hopes to do a complete restore on it in his spare time whilst learning how to be a real motorcycle mechanic.

 

Sounds like fun. Do you both drive more-or-less your own route or do you plan to stick together? I wonder if that is doable with a bike and a car.

 

Thirty year old brake lines, master cylinder, caliper seals?

Please read: http://xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=41400.html and http://xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=41403.html

 

We'll be sticking together and rotating from bike to car.

My Son has never ridden more 30 miles at a time and it's been 20 years since I have gone further than 300mi. in a session, though I've been coast to coast more than a few times in my youth.

 

bigfitz52,

I rebuilt the calipers and replaced the brake lines 3 years ago. Haven't done anything to the master cylinder but it did get flushed when I did the calipers and lines.

 

pickup would sure be nice to haul it through the big cities then ride it on the open roads. all the gravy and none of the grit

 

We're heading out today. Planning on five days easy riding stopping at KOA along the way.

 

Wish you luck and hope for a safe trip. I'm getting anxious for my road trip to the Smoky Mountains in a few weeks

 

have a safe trip!

 

Just did an 800 round trip road trip last week. Too many miles for one day, but plenty fun. Have a blast!

 

Well, we made 470mi today. The Boy only let have the scoot for the last 60! The selfish little ingrate!



Here she sits in Cave City, KY



Cal, contemplating the universe.



Our home for the night.

 

I happen to have the same windscreen. How was the buffeting? I'm 5'10 and can't find a way to get rid of the buffeting. I've adjusted the thing high and low; with varying amounts of rake, and can't get my helmet into clean air. It's most noticeable with a headwind.
I think I either need to get taller, or cut the screen down by 4".

 

I had the "Hell Fire" windscreen on it whe it was mine. My son didn't like it so he went to the smaller "Spit Fire". Mine was better for riding, his looks nicer. Pick yer poison. He also got rid of the forward controls and drag bars. I have to admit the stock controls are better for the long haul than my set up was.

 

Well, day 2 was as disappointing as day 1 was grand!

Got a nice early start under an overcast, hazy sky. Cal was riding lead and we stopped for some supplies that we thought we could do without to save cargo space. Wrong! Nothing opened till 9am so the early start was wasted. Hit the road about 10:00 in rain gear with slight drizzle(the boy still riding). The rain took a nasty turn after an hour or so. Still rideable but not fun. At the first gas stop Cal asked me to take over riding as he was wet and cold. I geared up and hit the road. I made it another hundred miles or so before the rain turned into a deluge and soaked me to the bone right through my Goretex. I could not see my instrument cluster as the rain was splashing the through the visor/helmet seam. So, we called it quits and found a cheap motel to dry off and get some rest.

Day three was dry but the construction in Arkansas was a nightmare. We only made 350 miles in the stop and go mode.

We're heading out from Sallisaw, OK this morning with the hubristic intention of seeing Albuquerque tonight.

 

Nice ride. Gotta be great spending time with your son on something of an adventure.

 

Yeah, we're having a blast! I think Cal is a little over whelmed by the extent of the adventure part
I know the long hours in the saddle are more work than he expected but he's a trooper. Not one complaint and always rarin' to go.

The winds in OK and Northern Tejas were brutal today. The cross winds and eddies were near enough to flip the wheels out from under us. Today's ride was a workout for sure. We didn't come close to Albuquerque. I knew that was too much to expect but I like to set lofty goals. So here we sit in Tucumcari, NM with 32 mph winds battering our little tent. Fortunately there is a nice rec room at the campgrounds where we can get out of the weather.

We experienced an odd, non catastrophic electrical problem with the Seca today. I'll start a thread in the xjchat area to see if any of the wizards can give any insight.

 

Sorry I'm not much help with your minor electrical issue. Hopefully somebody else has more to say about that. I just hope you've made it safely across that "tornado alley", safely. And by all means, post more pictures!

 

Best of luck on that cross country. Love being able to take those trips with my dad. One of the best times I ever had with him was a 3 day excursion on bikes around Michigan.
Hope it's worth the drive for the classes.

 

We made it to Phoenix without any major issues. I'm actually surprised that ther were no real problems. I'm just not usually that lucky.

Still trying to track down the warning light thing but it does not seem to effect the bike in any way other than being annoying.

We didn't get many pictures due to trying to make up time lost early on and I'm having trouble uploading the few I have. I'll get em posted when I get back to home base.

 

Morning sky over Tucumcari, NM

 

Yeah this was a fun little road trip. I think luvmy40 is making it seem a bit nicer than it was. I had loads of fun no doubt and it was great spending the week with him, but it was such a long haul.

 

Hey Luvmy40. Sounds like a good time. Even a rainy day on a road trip is still part of a road trip.

I just had a 700 mile ride with my buddy on a Rocky Mtn cruise for 4 days.


**K-Moe, I have an 82 Maxim, and the same Spit Fire windshield.

It took a while to get it right, but I have an angle that closely matches the forks, but the bottom sits an inch above my headlamp (the big round one).

That was the only way to get it just right, and I use a child safety corner bumper (stiff foam) attached to the lamp to support it and prevent vibe. The top of your lamp is probably about the same as mine. And I'm 5'8".