K11 Owners Group

[drikko]

So now I've had the opportunity to put some miles on the new (to me) Beemer. There's some things that are becoming evident:-

1. The throttle has a lot of slack, ie at least 20 degrees of turn before reaction, so in traffic its has been a bit slam dunk if you know what I mean,shouldn't be too hard to fix.

2. Forks seem to be way too soft, but not apparent when riding. If I'm stopped at the lights (par for the course in Brisbane these days) I can push down on the forks and release. They come back above the starting point a fair way then back to the starting point and stop. I'm used to pushing down and coming back up but not over the starting point. Is this normal or should I up the grade of oil in the forks? No idea what is in there. On the Laverda, when you push down, they just stay there, there's so much seal stiction! Mind you the Laverda suspension is so hard you may as well weld the forks and shocks.....

3. Going down a steep hill I decided to test the ABS on the back. (too gutless to try the front ). It definitely did something, could feel the dirveline slack take up and release several times. Definitely not smooth, but I though this was only due to driveline slack. It was only slow ie about 20mph (when are you guys going to metrificate?). Couldn't really tell if it made a difference or not, but it definitely didn't kick out sideways at all and yes the road sloped off to the left. So I guess it was working. What does the ABS feel like when it is actually working?

4. In the heat ((sorry to talk about it, snowed in people) the fan did work, but at first I thought an F111 was taking off behind me. Are they really noisy all the time when on?

5. Fuel guage all over the place! Will play with that later.

6. Stupid sidestank lockout. First on the list to get rid of!!!!!

7. Front tire is horrible at low speeds, really wobbles as it's worn. Hopefully someone will say the Pirelli is OK to use.

8. Wrists acheing, haven't leaned that far forward for years! Wake up muscles, wake up!!

9. Open throttle and the airbox just roars, can't hear the exhaust over it! Sounds good to me but not sure how it sounds to others. Has any one heard it from a bystanders POV?

Did I like riding it though? You betcha.....

Cheers

D
_________________
K1100RS '97
Laverda RGS 1000 '84
Jim Young Trailer Sailer 5.7M WB

DISCLAIMER:- Anything I say may have been when I was drunk so please don't take it personally.

'Bigamy is having one wife/husband too many. Monogamy is the same.'
Oscar Wilde

[Flying Duck]

[pegasus]

[quote="drikko"]So now I've had the opportunity to put some miles on the new (to me) Beemer. There's some things that are becoming evident:-

1. The throttle has a lot of slack, ie at least 20 degrees of turn before reaction, so in traffic its has been a bit slam dunk if you know what I mean,shouldn't be too hard to fix.

The throttle plate can crack (it is die cast alloy) and subsequently create a gap. I had mine welded, but ended up replacing it with a unit from Motobins that had a throttle lock (rudimentary cruise control).

2. Forks seem to be way too soft, but not apparent when riding. If I'm stopped at the lights (par for the course in Brisbane these days) I can push down on the forks and release. They come back above the starting point a fair way then back to the starting point and stop. I'm used to pushing down and coming back up but not over the starting point. Is this normal or should I up the grade of oil in the forks? No idea what is in there. On the Laverda, when you push down, they just stay there, there's so much seal stiction! Mind you the Laverda suspension is so hard you may as well weld the forks and shocks.....

Have a set of racetech springs here if you are interested. Have a look at previous reports on suspension mods.

3. Going down a steep hill I decided to test the ABS on the back. (too gutless to try the front ). It definitely did something, could feel the dirveline slack take up and release several times. Definitely not smooth, but I though this was only due to driveline slack. It was only slow ie about 20mph (when are you guys going to metrificate?). Couldn't really tell if it made a difference or not, but it definitely didn't kick out sideways at all and yes the road sloped off to the left. So I guess it was working. What does the ABS feel like when it is actually working?

4. In the heat ((sorry to talk about it, snowed in people) the fan did work, but at first I thought an F111 was taking off behind me. Are they really noisy all the time when on?

5. Fuel guage all over the place! Will play with that later.

Another problem is that the fuel gauge sender resistor wires can get worn through. There is a car mob in Melbourne that replaces it, but you lose the low fuel warning light function.

6. Stupid sidestand lockout. First on the list to get rid of!!!!!

7. Front tire is horrible at low speeds, really wobbles as it's worn. Hopefully someone will say the Pirelli is OK to use.

Michelin Pilot Road 2s!

8. Wrists acheing, haven't leaned that far forward for years! Wake up muscles, wake up!!

You get used to it in time!

9. Open throttle and the airbox just roars, can't hear the exhaust over it! Sounds good to me but not sure how it sounds to others. Has any one heard it from a bystanders POV?

Did I like riding it though? You betcha.....

Cheers

Your welcome to come out to my place at Ipswich to talk turkey and compare bikes. I'm not riding much at the moment due to health issues.

cheers,

Andrew

[drikko]

<Is it slack in the cable or is the bike slow to react? If it's the prior then there's no way to adjust slack. Your cable may be stretched and need replacement. If it's the latter then your throttle position sensor might need adjusting/replacing.

<The throttle plate can crack (it is die cast alloy) and subsequently create a gap. I had mine welded, but ended up replacing it with a unit from Motobins that had a throttle lock (rudimentary cruise control).

It definitely feels like cable slack. Surely there's adjusters!! I'll look it over on the weekend.


<The stock springs are a little soft. Some have upgraded to slightly stiffer Race Tech springs. I use Honda red 10 fork oil and am happy with it.

< Have a set of racetech springs here if you are interested. Have a look at previous reports on suspension mods.

The springs feel alright, just not enough damping. Will try the 10W oil then the racetech springs if that doesn't work.

< It's an early ABS system with rather long cycle times.

It's definitely ABS II I thought there supposed to operate smooth. The other thing I though might cause it is the road was dry and very grippy, maybe on a slipperier surface it would be smoother. When it rains next and I'm out will give it a trial.



< The fans are rather loud. Do you wear ear plugs?

Not in traffic, and it was only loud when I was stopped so 'm not worried about it.

<Some of them are damped, some aren't. IF it's bobbing around as the fuel level sensor goes up and down in the tank then the best solution is to replace with a damped one.

<Another problem is that the fuel gauge sender resistor wires can get worn through. There is a car mob in Melbourne that replaces it, but you lose the low fuel warning light function.

Might play with an electronic damping and see if it fixes it. Will look at the level sensor as well.



<Easy fix. Find the connector under the seat and short it out.

DONE!


<Bend at the hips, not at the waist and stick your chest out a bit while riding. Feels a bit weird at first but you get used to it.

<You get used to it in time!

Yep sure will


Will definitely take you up on the offer Andrew, in a couple of weeks maybe ? Will send a PM when I have a better idea of the program. Kids on hols soon...sigh. Why can't they make school 12 months a year?
_________________
K1100RS '97
Laverda RGS 1000 '84
Jim Young Trailer Sailer 5.7M WB

DISCLAIMER:- Anything I say may have been when I was drunk so please don't take it personally.

'Bigamy is having one wife/husband too many. Monogamy is the same.'
Oscar Wilde