Yet another KLRE650...

Have you seen this? www.tubliss.com

Yep. I have two issues with those. One is the pain of installation and tire changes.

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The other issue, and much more importantly, is that the system is not available for a 17" rim.

http://www.motorcycle-superstore.com/2/9/203/28640/ITEM/Neutech-The-TUbliss-Core.aspx



Other than that - seems like a great system and I think it's a good value. I've never heard anything bad about them.

Wow - just saw a whole lotta farkles available for the KLR on the Procycle site - I love how they have it broken down by bike. Everything on that page fits my bike - which is awesome since often you see cool stuff but it doesn't fit the KLR.

Regardless of what I do about the wheels, I'm likely to upgrade the front brake with the Warp9 front rotor kit on that Procycle site... one may or may not have been ordered. I still hate the front brake - so weak. This will most certainly help... I wonder what kind of difference a 19" wheel and a new rotor will make...

A little more power, but much more rideable. Smoother all around - I like it.



Still unsure of what to do about the wheels, I need to make a decision soon though. I liberated the front hub - I'll definitely go for a 19" rim, possibly a little wider. I'm up against another (short) deployment, so I don't think I have time to send the stuff off to Woody's. To be honest, I'm not 100% sure it's worth the money considering I'm not too hard on bikes and the cost is really high.

I may just have the front relaced locally and try to seal the rims myself for a tubeless conversion.

Well, pulled the trigger on the front rim. I took the hub to Lemon Grove Cycle and hopefully I sell a new wheel here shortly. I went with a wider rim (2.5") so that I can run a 110 front tire for more road grip as well. I would have liked to spruce up the rear as well, but I think the factory rims are aluminum anyway, so I don't see much bang for the buck in redoing the rear, although stainless spokes would be nice.

The rear rim in the meantime got the old rubber stripped, wheel checked for damaged/loose spokes, and cleaned up (relatively speaking).

I got the rear rim cleaned up with WD-40, sand paper, a wire brush, and denatured alcohol. I also bought "amazing goop" (recommended for sealing rims in the aforementioned ADV thread), so I'll be ready to rock as soon as the new front comes in. I figured I should both wheels at the same time.

New rear tires is here - front is on order. Once I start the sealing process I'll try to take pics.

Wow - didn't realize how much bigger the new rotor was going to be...

So - it's a been a week since I dropped off the hub and was hoping for a phone call today. If I didn't get it, I figured I would call tomorrow and see how the work was going.

Today, I got my phone call... except the news is that dimpled rims are out of stock and I can go with non-dimpled rims instead. WTF? :huh It takes you a week to figure this out? Awesome. They want to know if I want to wait a month for the dimpled rims.





Remember me? I'm the guy that came into your shop in uniform telling you he's three weeks before deployment and would like some work done? No, I can not wait a month. Please get your shit in order. Fuck.

Man alive - what a shop. They called me today to tell me my parts were in... I called them back (b/c they left a message) - and they were like 'yup, your parts are in!'

It really caught them off-guard when I told them the parts weren't for me, but for them to build my wheel. "So... you're building it, right?" - "Oh... yeah... Yeah! We will be soon!"

Holy shit dude.

Brake rotor looks nice, sucks about your wheel. I hate it when companies are clueless.

Thanks! Shit happens, but patience overcomes all... As aloof as the place is, they got the wheel done quickly after everything was spelled out for them, and I picked up the the new baby today!

The work seemed ok, but there were a couple of sharp burrs that I pulled off before putting on a new rim strip and tube. Yes, tube - short on time now, I ditched all efforts to go tubeless... maybe someday. Also concerning was the fact that I wasn't sure I'd be able to set the bead on the wheels since my air compressor went bye-bye to the storage unit.

Wheels and the caliper adapter for the larger rotor went on with fresh grease w/o a hitch. I mounted the rear tire on backwards, then went back and fixed it, then got the front on. Even all that went smoothly - I think I'm getting the hang of this whole tube thing! I think my problems earlier all stemmed from not using enough lube. :huh

Anyway - took her for a spin and absolutely adore this bike. Can't think of a better bike for any kind of money. Seriously. Just bombed around the neighborhood, but the handling is awesome. Obviously, new rubber doesn't hurt, but the 19" rim settled the front end a lot - much more stable now. The front tire is a 110 width on a 19x2.5" Excel Takasago rim.

I had to use the front brake a bunch to get her set in to the new rotor, but it works well now. Brakes are finally where they should be stock. They're not crazy strong now, but certainly respectable. I was a little concerned about how the bike would look with the new wheel since I've seen some KLR's with a SM setup and wasn't hot about it; I think it's great now, looks better than stock, IMO - I like the look of the larger rotor as well.

Between the wheel and the Dyno - this is a much improved ride. Money well wasted. I still can't believe this bike turned out.