This is great for all you aspiring action Videographers including myself. Thanks to David Peckham for putting this great piece together… Check him out…

http://www.vimeo.com/user2000205

Maximum Exposure: Rigging a Motorcycle with FilmTools from Peckhammer on Vimeo.

Now for the fun part! Where the materials will go and what the final look will be. It was a fairly easy process. Steve took out his handy tailor’s chalk and started drawing sections  where the different materials could be used. We quickly looked a several options.

I can see how you could get carried away but I was disciplined enough to stick to my original plan “clean and simple” and to compliment the overall design and shape of the bike.

I selected two marine grade materials in black, a carbon fiber look and a flat smooth surface. I opted to not have decorative piping or stitch work but a clean no seam look. So here it is. I am quite pleased with the end result.

This was a great experience for me. I learned a lot and have a great product to boot. I want to thank Steve at Mac’s Upholstery for all the extra effort he put in.

Have You Ever Thought About A Custom Motorcycle Seat? I have. Part 1
http://www.shobaby.com/blog.php?user=17&blogentry_id=69

Have You Ever Thought About A Custom Motorcycle Seat? I have. Part 2
http://www.shobaby.com/blog.php?user=17&blogentry_id=70

Have You Ever Thought About A Custom Motorcycle Seat? I have. Part 3
http://www.shobaby.com/blog.php?user=17&blogentry_id=72

Mac’s Upholstery

http://www.mactops.com/
5015 15^th Ave NW
Seattle, WA 98017
206 783 1696

After the initial input was given to Steve he was now able to shape and form the new seat.  Because of my requirements he suggested using dense foam as a core for added support because there would not be much material for the seat.

After the new shape was created he covered the foam with a temporary material and mounted the seat on the pan… Now this was the fun part… It was time for me to ride. I was given the opportunity to ride for as long as I wanted in order to provide input to fine tune the seat. It didn’t take me long to realize an adjustment I need… As you can see by the photo below I wanted the seat to be as flat as possible. 

Fast forward Steve made the adjustment and here is what the final shape ended up being.

Fast forward... Steve made the adjustment and here is the final shape.

Have You Ever Thought About A Custom Motorcycle Seat? I have. Part 1
http://www.shobaby.com/blog.php?user=17&blogentry_id=69

Have You Ever Thought About A Custom Motorcycle Seat? I have. Part 2
http://www.shobaby.com/blog.php?user=17&blogentry_id=70

Mac’s Upholstery
http://www.mactops.com/
5015 15^th Ave NW
Seattle, WA 98017
206 783 1696

The first step to making a custom seat was the first meeting to discuss my expectations for my saddle. I had my bike delivered to Mac’s prior so Steve (saddle artist) could get a sense of what he was dealing with. I guess I should explain what was important to me. I have a very small inseam and I am stepping up to a larger bike. I need to have a sense of control and balance when the bike is at a stop. You guessed it… lower the seat as much as possible to achieve as close to flat footed as possible.

Priorities:

1.     Functional- Lower seat for most stability at a stop. 2 up riding.

2.     Comfort – Best possible comfort with minimal padding

3.     Aesthetics – Match Euro design.

The challenge. My seat and cover were molded together making it impossible to remove the cover and reshape the foam. Removing the seat cover/foam and separating it from the seat pan was what was needed. Then start from scratch. Steve suggested before he rough cuts new foam to trim an area in the seat pan allowing me better stand over clearance. Great idea. I left knowing we were on the same page and comfortable he would cut the new seat foam shape accordingly.

Have You Ever Thought About A Custom Motorcycle Seat? I have. Part 1
http://www.shobaby.com/blog.php?user=17&blogentry_id=69 

Mac’s Upholstery
http://www.mactops.com/
5015 15^th Ave NW
Seattle, WA 98017
206 783 1696

There are various reasons you would consider a custom seat for your motorcycle. You are having issues with your stock seat and have eliminated aftermarket seats as an option. The first hurdle is justifying if you feel it is even worth doing because it is a time consuming and costly process. You already have an idea of your requirements for aesthetics, comfort and functionality. You have also looked at, researched, and touched custom seats, which have given you ideas and inspiration for your own creation.

So lets just say you have some ideas and decided a custom seat is what you want to do and experience. Well, now what? Of course… duh! find a place. For me not so easy… There are so many places that can literally do a custom seat. But is it the right place? Here is what I did… I search the local motorcycle forums and reviews for companies that have a lot of experience making custom seats. (Lots of opinions here) A big part for me in selecting a place was where I would be able to meet and interact with the actual maker. I am a relationship guy and want to be actively involved in the process start to finish. That really narrowed down the field to two in the Seattle area. Note - I added a California vendor link below as I continued to hear great things about there product and processes. If you are comfortable with a saddle done remotely maybe worth considering.

Have You Ever Thought About A Custom Motorcycle Seat? I have. Part 2
http://www.shobaby.com/blog.php?user=17&blogentry_id=70

http://www.mactops.com/
5015 15^th Ave NW
Seattle, WA 98017
206 783 1696

http://www.richscustomseats.com/
http://www.rickmayercycle.com/

I selected Mac’s Upholstery in Seattle. I won’t get into why… but lets just say they were the best fit for me, no pun intended.  

After a lot of thought and research I purchased a 2008 BMW F800ST. It was my first bike.  I kept hearing a comment while doing my research. That was, you need to give the bike some gas when letting out the clutch or it would stall. Well that happened to me, not the first time but it has happened. OK, no worries. As I started riding the bike, I noticed the throttle and engine were not very smooth at low rpm’s and low speed. It was jerky and never gave me full confidence. It always felt like it might stall. Being a newbie and thinking hmmm I guess that is normal, I just made it a point to make sure I was geared so my rpm’s stayed in the 3000 range and that I had a sufficient amount of throttle while taking off from a stand still. I also religiously used my friction zone with sufficient throttle on slow tight turns.

I added an aftermarket slip-on pipe (Remus Hexacone) that accentuated the above symptoms and added an additional lean bogging condition up-shifting from 1^st to 2^nd. There was also a fair amount of back firing or popping on deceleration also a lean fuel symptom.  I had my bike on a Dyno and was told BMW motorcycles were fuel mapped on the lean side for emissions standards. The Dyno showed a lean fuel mixture at low RPM’s. After a discussion with the tuner, I realized without extensively modifying the engine mapping there was not much that could be done, until I found the Booster Plug. 

This is a really small unit that compliments the existing BMW engine tune. Basically it tells the O2 sensor to richen up the low rpm fuel mixture a specified percentage and maintains this percentage even with fluctuating outside ambient temperature. Adjusting to ambient temperature is a benefit most “like” devices are not able to achieve.  It didn’t affect my overall fuel mileage either! If you would like to learn about this device click on this link: http://www.boosterplug.com/?menu=1 Jens the inventor is extremely knowledgeable and you can tell reading about the R&D of his product.

After a few tanks of fuel and several hundreds of miles with the Booster Plug installed, I can tell you my bike is so much smoother and responsive at lower rpm’s. I noticed the difference immediately. It has made a remarkable difference in the ride quality and confidence I have at low rpm and speed. The installation was easy. You can follow this link http://www.shobaby.com/blog.php?user=17&blogentry_id=25 for installation on a F800ST.

Overall:

Shipping:                                   Quick ship from Denmark and included in the price

Product Quality:                        Well made with quality components

Installation:                                Very easy and simple

Performance:                             Excellent! Great improvement on the ride quality at low rpm

Price:                                          Great value

Booster Plug Installation on my F800ST

http://www.boosterplug.com/

On the website it says you can install it in 10 minutes and I see no reason why you couldn’t… but before I begin I need to tell all of you I tend to take my time and enjoy pondering during the process so if it seems a bit over the top you understand. So here goes…

I received my package via Post. It came like this.

The contents contained the booster plug and a print out of the installation schematic you can find here http://www.boosterplug.com/Installation.html

Body work

1.     You need to take off your seat. Unlock seat at the rear of bike

2.     Remove the center panel on the faux tank

3.     Remove the left or right side mirror

4.     Remove either the upper left of right side fairing. (I did both only because I wanted to see where all the places I could mount the external NTC ambient air temp resistor)

Booster Plug Installation

1.     Locate the Air Intake Temperature (AIT) sensor on the top air box. The F800riders forum was a good source to find the location of this sensor. http://f800riders.org/forum/showthread.php?p=369516#post369516

2.     Disconnect the wire connector to the AIT sensor.

3.     Layout where all the connections will go, where you want the Booster Plug stored and where you want to route the NTC ambient air temp resistor.

Note: I decided to route the NTC ambient air temp resistor along the air intake assembly. I used zip ties not overly tight. It doesn’t interfere with you being able to take the air intake assembly on and off.

Here is what my final assembly looks like.

Re-install all the bodywork.

That’s it. 

The 2010 BMW S1000RR continues to impress. This is pretty sick. I found these video segments posted on You Tube by SoloMotoTreinta who acknowledges BMW MOTORRAD AG & BMW MOTORRAD SPAIN, tlfs. 913350505 & 902357902. So I am not sure who to thank but I am glad whomever for sharing this. So much buzz about this bike / engine combination. I am just speechless as the videos speak for themselves.

It comes with no surprise that the people, who know me, know I have a thing for design. To me deciding on products for my F800St it an exercise evaluating aesthetics and functionality. I tend to tip the scales towards aesthetics but if I am in search for a product that needs to be functional than bad functional design it is a game stopper no matter how aesthetically pleasing it is.

http://www.touratech-usa.com/

When I found out Touratech USA was located in my hometown Seattle I decided to check them out. My initial impression was this is a company totally focused on the adventure motorcyclists. It was clear the products they carry were developed over the years with input from hardcore seasoned adventure motorcycle riders. So if you are into adventure riding definitely go check them out. For me I was interested in their system for mounting additional electronics on bikes (gps, radios, phones, etc.) I was focused on a GPS application and really liked their system. I purchased their handle bar riser bracket for my future GPS. (Still on the fence about which GPS unit) Whatever unit I decide I will get the appropriate mount from Touratech as their GPS carriers are lockable and also have dampening for vibration. Did I tell you I like that! :o

http://www.streetline-usa.com/

I was also turned on to a 09 Streetline catalog that showed they were beginning to offer products for sport touring bikes like mine. The 2010 catalog showed an expanded product line including parts for the F800R and F800 ScramblerR bikes. These parts were not available in the US because the bikes are not US imports. Drats! At least I thought. As I looked at some of the products offered for the F800R and ScramblerR, I began to wonder if some of the parts I was interested in would fit my bike. I was sure these bikes must share common parts even though the catalog did not mention fitting the F800ST. What were these parts? I am a carbon fiber junkie and they had carbon pieces to protect the engine casings for the clutch and alternator. Funny the clutch cover was called out in the F800R section and the alternator cover was called out in the F800 ScramblerR section… go figure. They also had a carbon piece you add to the left and right body panel for protection when you have riders. (Hmmm this is a time I went for aesthetics LOL) There was also one other piece I saw that I thought might fit my bike. In the ScramblerR section it showed a Engine guard panel. This was the best engine guard I had seen. The front engine seemed so exposed on my bike. The guys at Touratech USA were very helpful. They found out they could order the parts for me from Germany. The requirement was it would be special order, I had to pay in check of cash up-front and fit or not I would own the part. They could not guarantee product fit for products called out for bikes not available in the US. I can totally understand that. So I gambled! Parts came in this week. THEY  FIT!!! whooo hooo! I visited Touratech USA yesterday and showed them my bike. They were also interested if the parts would fit. I want to thank them for going out of their way to assist me.  In the process I met Tom Myers the President of Touratech USA. Great guy. I look forward to getting to know him better and sharing his vehicle enthusiast story with you. 

See all photos in my album
http://www.shobaby.com/album.php?user=17&album_id=30

 F800ST Installation of HID’s High and Low Headlight Beams

 I finally got around to installing the HID’s. I selected the HID’s from 1 Off Motorsports

http://1offmotorsports.com/ because of what I have read and the price point. They also had specific applications for my bike. I won’t elaborate on the whole process but talk generally about the product and installation.

1 Off Motorsports

I ordered online, it was very straightforward selecting the model/year wizard etc… the recommended item was displayed. Kewl! The product was processed and shipped quickly. I went with the HI-Lo conversion with 6000K bulbs. The package arrived in 4 days. I laid out all the components as part of my pre planning. I began wondering about something I read in the forums. (I always source the forums for input, suggestions) I was concerned that I might need an additional component to interface with my Canbus  (Controller Area Network) electronic computing devise. I called 1 Off Motorsports. They were very helpful and they confirmed I would need the Canbus decoder. I told them that their website site did not recommend this for my bike. They are aware of that and are working to remedy that under sight. An additional 4 days and I was ready to begin.

Installation

This project is easy to install. I removed the entire headlight assembly from the bike. That offers the best access to try different mounting configurations and fit everything before mounting. Basically you disconnect and remove the existing bulbs and replace them with the HID’s and connect them to the existing wires. The HID’s come covered with clear protective plastic that you break off during installation. (You can get instructions online from 1 Off Motorsports) You will also need to take the back headlight access covers off and using a 1” paddle bit, drill a hole that will be used to pass the wiring harness through the housing to connect the lights. Some filing will be necessary on both sides of the drilled hole for one of the large connector to go threw. If I were to drill the hole again I would use a 7/8” paddle bit because I would like a tighter fit for the rubber grommet on the wiring harness. There are several additional components that are needed for the lights and you will need to determine where is best to mount them. It was difficult for me to mount the components symmetrically so I opted for good access. I did not use the double-sided tape but measured and drilled holes for wire ties that would hold the components securely.

Tested the lights… updated 1/21/2010 There is a substantial increase in brightness. You can't go wrong with this upgrade.

Now that I have finished installing my auxiliary fuse panel it is on to the next winter project, auxiliary lights. Again there are a lot of light options on the market with various power outputs and mounting scenarios for my bike the BMW F800ST. The  www.f800riders.org website offers many threads on this subject. It was funny not much has been said on the forum about the Micro-Flooter which I selected :o)

Here is the website for the Micro-Flooter lights if anyone is interested. http://www.wunderlichamerica.com They make a variety of quality accessories for several BMW models. The parent company is in Germany and the US distributor is in Watsonville, CA

I guess I should start by telling you what my expectation were. I wanted lights that would illuminate the sides and give my bike a pyramid light effect for on coming traffic. Halogens were fine and 55w was generally the norm. I wanted them placed low with a clean mounting solution. This was the only low mount that was mounted on the sides of the body fairing. Aesthetics were important and have a modern style complimenting the German design ethic. I threw a bit of a curve in the project and that was I wanted to use an OEM BMW style switch instead of the one provided.

The kit

It was well packed shipping box and inner box… It came complete with wiring harness, switch, two lights, mounting brackets, light cages and enough fasteners and wire ties to complete the job. The instructions were good. Lights came with brackets on them and you would not use them, hmmm interesting. 

Disassembling the bike. This video does a great job describing how to removing the body panels before you begin the installation. I believe this video was created by the founders of www.f800riders.org so kudos to them for sharing this information.

Mounting

The mounting is straightforward unless you have installed sliders on your bike. If you have sliders then you have to do some modification. First you will need to cut two of the slider mounting collars to the thickness of the auxiliary light bracket because the brackets mount to the same place on the chassis. This will ensure your slider mounting brackets will mount evenly with the addition of the light brackets. You have to do this on both sides of the bike.

On the right side of the bike you will need to do some filing on the light bracket for clearance around one of the slider mount collars so the light bracket will have enough clearance to mount properly.

There are two more areas you will need to custom fit. The bottom light bracket ties into one mount point the body panel uses too. It is not a flush fit so you will need to cut a spacer to fill the area between the light bracket and faring. The instructions called out for foam tape to be used but honestly it wasn’t even close to filling the gap.

The final mod is to the switch bracket. You mount the switch to a screw holding other controls on the handlebars. Well the bracket holes don’t line up so you need to file the side of the bracket down in order to line up the holes. After you do that you will also need to cut a small spacer so you will get a good secure fit when re-tightening the mount screw. Yes I ended up using the supplied switch that came with the kit DOH!!!!! @#$%^&*

Everything else fits per instructions.

Wiring

The supplied wiring harness is straightforward too. But as I told you in the beginning I wanted to use an OEM BMW style switch. To make a long story short I was not able to get the switch to work correctly. I tried every bloody combination to get the switch to work. I am sure I am missing something beyond me. It was really frustrating and I finally bailed on the idea (I might revisit this later after I calm myself down)

I resorted back to the switch that came with the kit. It was a relief to actually get the lights to work with a switch. The instructions wanted to tap into a hot wire that was “switched” on the bike. So only power would be supplied to the lights if the bike was running. BMW’s use an electronic brain thingy called a Canbus and you have to be aware of where you can tap into the switched wires so as not to screw with the Canbus protocols. The instructions called out tapping a positive running light wire in the headlight assembly but I resorted to tapping into the GPS adaptor that came with my bike. I ordered the male connector from the dealer.

It comes with open-ended wires you can tap into. So now I have to rave about this product line… it is called Posi-Lock. This is a great system to quickly splice and un-splice lines when you are working out your wire harness connections. Here is their website http://www.posi-lock.com/posilock.html . They worked great. Here is another suggestions. Get your wiring sorted and working first. Then go back and get your routing figured out the way you want. Then size and cut all the wires for a neat final application. I used the posi-locks on everything. Remember I will try again to get the OEM switch to work.

Well that is it… Any installation you will always need stuff, like the right tools, sometimes-additional parts and some creative thinking and patience. But hey that is why we do it for the satisfaction of patting ourselves on the back and saying “Good Job”

The beginning of a new year 2010 yeeeeoooweeee… Or course we all have lots of hopes and expectations. I needed a project to work on. Several of my friends have vehicle enthusiast’s projects underway. Hmmm what could I do???

Let me start by saying one of my interest is being a seasonal motorcycle rider. I am a newbie too. In my garage sits my BMW F800ST. Parked for the winter. Yes I am one of those. I have been frequently visiting the specific forum for my bike. www.f800riders.org a great site with lots of topics for my model. There are so many accessories you can add to my bike. Well you guessed it, I got excited and decided to do the ground work to be able to one day add a few accessories.

I was at my local BMW motorcycle dealership www.ridewest.com for a female pigtail fitting and talked to them about bike accessories in general. It became clear the best solution was to install an auxiliary fuse panel. So I thought hmmm I think I can, I think I can…

Well this past weekend I completely took off all the body work on my bike and began with the install. I went with a Centech AP-1 fuse panel only based on my dealerships recommendation. There are others (typically I do lots of research to decide which one) but hey, I decided based on blind faith the dealership would steer me in the right direction.

The instructions were fairly straight forward. I did find out I have to fuse (not mandatory but recommended) the red positive line from the relay. So I will do that next. The last thing I need to do is connect the fuse panel to a switched hot wire on my bikes harness and not mess up the Canbus… There are a lot of opinions on how and where it needs to be done. I am undecided so I will continue to work this out… Hey the take away… It’s a project and ongoing :o) and now I can look forward to adding more farkles (accessories) Take a look at my photo album to see more specific photos and processes on my ongoing installation. http://shobaby.com/album.php?user=17&album_id=15

More later... stay tuned