Whats Happening This Coming Weekend?

Very good question! For over a month I have been collecting all of the parts necessary to install new 12" handlebars on my Street Glide. As you can imagine I'm pretty excited about that. Handle bars are one of those high expense items that is sometimes difficult to follow through with purchasing. Between the cost of the bars themselves and all of the necessary extensions, most riders will not even attempt self installation. Paying to have it done will greatly increase your cost on this project.

I will be putting together a video of the process. There is a LOT that has to be done to install these on a 2012 model so most of the video will be showing the processes involved with very little detail as to how to perform each process. For instance, the brake lines have to be replaced with longer lines and bled. I won't describe the details of bleeding the lines, I'll just say you have to bleed the lines and a short clip of performing the process. On a positive note, I already have videos to perform a lot of the processes it will take to install the bars already. Bleeding brake lines, removing the outer fairing, removing the ignition, removing and lubricating the clutch cable, and adjusting the clutch cable are all videos I already have available which will pertain directly to what will be required to complete the install.

This probably will not be something most people will want to attempt. A lot can go wrong and if each task is not performed thoroughly and correctly it could cause a failure on the road and put the riders life at risk. If you have not worked on bikes in depth for a good amount of time, if you don't have a service manual, if your not sure you have the proper tools, and if your not sure about what parts you need without having to ask, then you probably shouldn't undertake this installation yourself. You really need to be comfortable to the point of not even thinking about it on things like the intricacies of performing a full brake job, or clutch adjustment both from the clutch basket to the cable, some in depth knowledge of wiring, and just the overall comfort and confidence of tearing down and rebuilding a lot of the mechanical and electrical systems of the bike. I'm not trying to discourage anyone, I'm putting the realistic situation out there.

I'll go into more depth when I post the video on the processes necessary to accomplish this project from start to finish but here is a list of parts that have to be changed out to make this happen on the 2012 Street Glide. The processes to change them out is where it can get difficult.

I went with Paul Yaffe 12" Monkey Bagger Bars
12-15" throttle by wire assembly
12-15" brake lines including the junction
12-15" clutch cable
12-15" wiring extensions
1 quart 20W-50 Screaming Eagle Syn3 oil
Snap ring for pivot pin on clutch
O-ring for transmission drain plug
O-ring for clutch cable
Clutch cover gasket
Dot 4 Brake Fluid

It will take about a week to compile the video, write the post, and get pictures up once its complete so check back in a couple weeks!

Ride Strong Ride Safe

How to Install Slip-Ons on a 2013 Harley Davidson Softail Deluxe

This is another one of those easy to do upgrades but sometimes getting a visual before you begin can be of help.

Slip-ons are a cost effective and easy way to give your bike more of the sound you want. They are also an important part of the aesthetics of the bike and most people want to add some form of customization to personalize it.

Another great point of slip-ons is you don't usually have to perform any stage-1 upgrades. Slip-ons are designed to replace only the muffler on the bike, not the entire exhaust from the cylinder head. If you do decide to put straight pipes on the bike for example, this would require you to perform a complete stage-1 upgrade along with the exhaust and bring your cost to well over $1000 in most cases. This post is not going to cover the particulars of a stage-1 upgrade since we don't have to do that in the case of most slip-ons. If you want a very good detailed outline of what a stage-1 upgrade consists of the following link will give you more information than you probably want to know.

Stage-1 Upgrade

There are I would say three main reasons people put slip-ons on their bike.

1- Visual customization

2- Improved Sound

3- Cost over a complete exhaust upgrade

Visual- There are a LOT of slip-ons out there from various manufacturers and before making any hasty decisions you might want to take a few days to explore the options. If not, you have a good chance of running into regret the next time you go to a bike event and see someone else's slip-ons and wish you had gotten theirs instead. Again, take your time, do some research, try to get an idea of what your wanting your bike to look like as a whole, not just at the muffler level.

Improved Sound- This point is more difficult than the visual. You simply won't know what they sound like by seeing them online or even on the shelf at a bike shop. Again, take your time and start listening to other bikes at events. When one rolls by with the sound you like ask the rider what type of slip-ons or even complete exhaust upgrade they performed. Doing this will help you make the right choice without regret. Slip-ons have a great degree of sound difference. A lot of our HOG Chapter will put Rinehart's on their bikes which give it a loud snapping, crackling sound. I went with Vance & Hines 4" rounds which have deep rumbling tone. Even within the same manufacturer, a different style can have a different sound so it's best to listen to a bunch of them first preferably on the same bike you have.

Cost- Most slip-ons can be purchased for under $800 all the way down to a couple hundred dollars depending on the bike and manufacturer. Because they are only replacing the muffler, in most cases you wont have to perform that stage-1 upgrade which will push your cost well over $1000 dollars. Be sure to do some research first thought. A stage-1 upgrade becomes necessary because of the change in back flow from the exhaust. If your'e putting a slip-on on the bike that has very little internal mesh or baffles that don't allow for some back pressure, you could still find yourself having to perform a stage-1 upgrade. A little research can go a long ways in preventing this from happening.

Also some people change their stock mufflers for slip-ons is in regards to performance. Each manufacturer claims their slip-ons will increase horse power. Its usually not by much, but you will get a small horse power boost because typical slip-ons will allow easier exhaust pass through. Keep in mind that the horse power gain will be very minor and you probably won't even notice a performance difference.

One last item of importance. If your'e putting on chrome slip-ons, be sure to clean the chrome thoroughly before starting the bike. If there is any residue such as oil, fingerprints, grease, etc. on the chrome and you start the bike, the heat will burn those spots into the chrome and you won't be able to get it out!

How to Install Slip-Ons on a 2013 Harley Davidson Softail Deluxe

Tools for the Road!

Tools for the road! To carry or not to carry? I usually only carry them if were going to be out for the day or longer. When I ride to work though I don't carry tools due to the fact that I'm not going to be anywhere remote where I can't get help. Everyone has an opinion of whether or not they should bother carrying tools. They will add a bit of weight and take up some space. With careful purchasing and planning of your tools you can minimize both of these impacts so that its nearly unnoticeable.

While with our HOG Chapter and with other groups I have seen a few instances where a rider was able to continue on because of the forethought of our Road Captains bringing tools. If they hadn't brought tools, the rider would have had to wait for a tow truck to haul their bike away.

On one occasion a riders floor board fell off because the bolt holding it on came out while he was riding down the road. One of the road captains stopped with him while the rest of the group continued on to the next stop. Fortunately they retrieved the floor board from the side of the road. They didn't have a bolt for it but the road captain had a small spool of bailing wire, pliers, and wire cutters and managed to wire it back on so he could continue the ride.

Another instance occurred on a 911 memorial ride. We were about to leave the fire station, and one bike wouldn't start. After some basic diagnosis the road captains thought the carburetor might be flooded. They pulled out some tools from a saddlebag, pulled the spark plugs, cranked it a few times with the spark plugs out, the excess fuel came out, they put the spark plugs back in, and it started right up.

One other time a rider lost a bolt that held one side of his windshield on. He rode up holding the windshield so it wouldn't fall down. Even though no one had a bold to replace it, one rider had some zip ties and he used those through the windshield and the bolt hole. It worked great and he was able to ride the rest of the day with the windshield attached with zip ties. Was it a perfect fix? No, but it got that rider through the day.

These were small issues and easily fixed but only because our road captains keep some basic tools with them on rides. You won't be able to do major repairs but the tools can certainly help in a lot of cases and with some creativity to get you back on the road enough to get the bike to a shop or home where proper repairs can be made. I know some people say they will just call for a tow and that's fine, but I would much rather have a chance to repair a minor problem than be sitting on the side of the road waiting for hours and dealing with the inconvenience of a tow. And if I don't have the ability to make a repair, then as a last resort call the tow truck. I've seen new bikes with only a couple thousand miles on them breakdown and I've seen bikes with thousands of miles break down. It can happen at any time to any bike.

I have a set of tools that I compiled just for putting in my saddlebags. They were not very expensive and with thoughtful shopping you can have a somewhat compact tool set that won't require much space. I broke my set into two units, a socket set for one saddlebag, and miscellaneous tools for the other. I found a super nice heavy material small tool bag at Harbor Freight for $5.00 for the miscellaneous stuff. Outside of tools I am able to carry a spare turn signal bulb, a quart of oil, a small spool of bailing wire, zip ties, and paper funnels. When we took our 11 day trip to the Blue Ridge Parkway I took all of the tools that will be mentioned below. If you look at the pictures of my bike in the slideshow from that trip you would never know there were that many tools plus clothing, shoes, camera, video equipment, thermos, and rain suite in the bags of my bike.

Here is a link to a downloadable list: What to pack checklist

Here is a list of tools I pack:
SAE Socket & Ratchet set= includes deep set sockets, spark plug socket, extensions
Torx sockets
Crescent wrenches- 2 sizes
Screwdriver- Multi-point interchangable tips
Allen Wrenches- Both SAE and Metric
Channel Locks
Bailing Wire
Paper Funnels
Spare turn signal bulb
Quart of oil
WD40 Lubricant
Wire cutters
Zip Ties
Air pressure gauge
Glow sticks
Utility Knife
Spanner Wrench
Electrical Tape