Winter farkle plans

[Ken]

Well the bike has been in storage for nearly three weeks already. Snow is on the ground. Chrstmas is around the corner. All of this can mean only one thing. It's time to plan for Winter bike projects :)

For me, this starts with reaching down to make sure I am going to keep my current bike. And I will. My oldest is a year from college. Wife will likely need a new vehicle next year. I still love the long distance rides. But not ready for a Wing, just yet.

So, what to do with the bike in the off season? Is any mod necessary? Not really. I've added what I consider to be the essential mods - seat, bar risers, top box, and extra lights.

One thing that annoys me about my bike is the horn. A 1300cc bike should not have a horn that sounds like it belongs on my kid's Razor Scooter. So I'm thinking that some FIAMM Highway Blasters may be a nice addition. It would be nice to have a horn that gets the attention of an unfocused, phone talkin', coffee sippin', cager. So this one I guess I would consider an essential mod. It's a safety farkle honey! :)

The other thing I'm considering is a communication system. I ride 2-up a lot. Daughter, son, and wife all love to ride. It would be very cool to be able to talk. And since I also have a phone, mp3 player, and GPS, I'd like one that will work all of these components. I'd also like to look harder at Bluetooth devices and try to rid myself of cords and a spaghetti mess on my dashboard.

What is everyone else planning? Or am I the only one here that lives in a limited riding season climate? I hope not :)

[crazykz]

Oh I have a list of crap planned but a lot of it is just up keep on the farkle setup. I need to replace some small audio cables and redo some fasteners.

On the mods side I'm gearing up for a set of PIAA 910's with the BLM brackets. I'm also trying to setup a map light. I've found a set of super bright LED's that I'm trying to figure out how to mount them and put them in something for protection.

I'm planning on adding an XM radio over winter since Crutchfield screwed up and offered the Roady2 for $20 for about a day before they caught it and I ordered 2 of them. Score!

If you're looking for an intercom setup Autocom was offering their units for half off. Not sure that's still running or not though.
http://www.autocomamerica.com/docs/products_details.cfm?productID=22


Another alternative that I have been using is the MIT IMC-100:
http://www.sierra-mc.com/products.asp?cat=160

Both are great. With the Autocom you will need to purchase another headset. The MIT-100 will come with 4 headsets and includes the PTT setup.

Good luck with the winter to-do list.

Curt

[racer1735]

This is my first winter with the ST....plans are to install a quartet harness, XM Satellite Radio (thanks to a great sponsorship offer) along with the associated mounting bracket and cables, as well as a powerlet for trickle-charging the battery. Was going to raise the windscreen, but couldn't wait and have already done that (with great results).

Sad fact is that from Dec. 1 - March 1 the bike is in its 'winter layover' portion of the insurance so will sit (alongside my XL600R) in my shop.

[HOG SLYR]

Hopefully I'll ride most of the winter :D Only farkle plan at the moment for a rainy/snowy day is adding a noise filter to my radio. As for the intercom question I'm using the Autocom with Satellite radio (Sirius), cell phone and radar detector tied to it. I'm amazed at how well it works. I never thought I'd like the intercom but it's great two up! Must be getting old :eek:

[Horst]

Valves and Carb Synch .... got everything else I need ... :D

Farkles are for wimps ... sure I got a seat, speed control and a few other things but some of you go waaaaay overboard ! .... to each his own ... :)

RIDE LONG AND PROSPER ... :biker:

[newbornst1300]

Well the bike has been in storage for nearly three weeks already. Snow is on the ground. Chrstmas is around the corner. All of this can mean only one thing. It's time to plan for Winter bike projects :)
One thing that annoys me about my bike is the horn. A 1300cc bike should not have a horn that sounds like it belongs on my kid's Razor Scooter. So I'm thinking that some FIAMM Highway Blasters may be a nice addition. It would be nice to have a horn that gets the attention of an unfocused, phone talkin', coffee sippin', cager. So this one I guess I would consider an essential mod. It's a safety farkle honey! :)

I went with the Stebel compact air horn to replace the wimpy stock horn.
Adding some rear powerlets, Audiovox cruise, and heated grips over the winter.
Also doing the valve clearance check and brake/clutch fluid change while the plastic is off.
Nice to get the mtce out of the way so that it doesn't interrupt riding during the nice weather.

[Blrfl]

So I'm thinking that some FIAMM Highway Blasters may be a nice addition. It would be nice to have a horn that gets the attention of an unfocused, phone talkin', coffee sippin', cager.

This is a cheap, easy project that's absolutely worth it in terms of safety and entertainment value. I've had mine in a couple of months and I still look for excuses to give 'em a blast.

I bought this bracket (http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=4594320246) and they installed quite nicely. You have to loosen the bracket and swing the horns out of the way if you want to open the radiator cap, but since the plastic has to come off for that anyway, it's not a big deal.

--Mark