Touring on the SV650

[Ohio_Danimal]

Originally Posted by Niles

So I picked up an '03 sv650s a few days ago for a little over a thousand dollars. Other than a few scratches on the fairing it's a great runner. I put a couple hundred miles on it right away (in December! In OHIO!) and I can see why people like this motor so much.

Do those of you without the rear fender or factory license plate holder have any complaints about water/dirt/anything else when riding in the rain or in general? The previous owner pulled the factory stuff off.
I'd like to get the lower fairings and get everything painted at once when I fix the scratches. If anyone has any input on a good source or gotchas I'm all ears. Other than that I'm thinking hard bags, GPS mount, and run out the Odometer.

I can also see immediately why people swap out the stock seat and suspension.
Oh and I'm pretty impressed with the lights too. My last bike didn't give me as good of a field of view at night. Really useful for watching out for deer.

Hey Niles. NE Ohio here too
Whereabout do you live?
We should ride in the Spring. I know every inch of this state and most others to the south and east.

I wouldn't bother with the repaint if it's not that bad. There's plenty of opportunity out there to fuck up a new paint job if you know what I mean.
Also, would be willing to show you in person all different options for RAM mounts, etc. I have tried them all at one time or another on my SV.
Stock seat is first to go There are a few options for rebuilding the stock seatbase that cost less than Corbin or Sargent, but my experience with the other two leaves me preferring Corbin. If you can put up with the bullshit from the company, their seats are great.
Suspension can be upgraded fairly cheaply to vastly improve stock forks. I even have a ZX636 shock you can have that'll bolt right up and work great (although it is sprung for a heavier rider, 200 lb range).

As far as the rear wheel rain issue once the factory shovel fender is gone, yes, you will get more thrown up towards your back, but a hugger keeps the inner fender/shock area clean.

Another wishing it were warm picture:

[Niles]

Hey Dan, I'm in Solon. There's a couple of guys in the Streetsboro area that like to go out on longer weekend rides too.
Thanks for the advice on the seat and rear fender. From what I understand doing springs and emulators in the front with an upgraded rear shock takes the bike from ok to pretty good for very little money.
For now I plan to machine something to mount my phone as my GPS. As for the paint, I hear you. I've made a hobby out of rebuilding cars so I've gotten pretty good at this sort of thing, and anyway the one side couldn't get a lot worse.

[Ohio_Danimal]

Originally Posted by Niles

Hey Dan, I'm in Solon. There's a couple of guys in the Streetsboro area that like to go out on longer weekend rides too.
Thanks for the advice on the seat and rear fender. From what I understand doing springs and emulators in the front with an upgraded rear shock takes the bike from ok to pretty good for very little money.
For now I plan to machine something to mount my phone as my GPS. As for the paint, I hear you. I've made a hobby out of rebuilding cars so I've gotten pretty good at this sort of thing, and anyway the one side couldn't get a lot worse.

Niles,

I work in Solon on Cochran Rd.! (am there as we speak) I commute often during the season, and have a wonderful route I take home to Cuyahoga Falls. One of my buddies that I ride with lives in Solon too, so I am often in the area.

I wouldn't bother using the phone as a GPS...been there and not glove friendly even with finger puppies. I travel a lot and the cell phone is an item important enough to be stashed away safely.

Get a Nuvi 765T used and cover it with a ziplock in bad weather. It is the only non-Zumo that has the same extras (A2DP BT stereo, MP3 player). They can be had for under $60 bucks.

Another taste of Spring

[GI_JO_NATHAN]

Originally Posted by Ohio_Danimal

Get a Nuvi 765T used and cover it with a ziplock in bad weather. It is the only non-Zumo that has the same extras (A2DP BT stereo, MP3 player). They can be had for under $60 bucks.

Do you know if that one has the road speeds on it?

[Ohio_Danimal]

Originally Posted by GI_JO_NATHAN

Do you know if that one has the road speeds on it?

I think so (I run a Zumo 550 myself)...my riding buddy just got the 765T and I do remember him saying it gave him a speed warning.

Easy Google search should answer that.

RAM makes a clip for the 765T that only costs $10 too.

[gentlemanjim]

A bit of a mini tour fo parts of Florida most people never see.

http://www.motorcycleclassics.com/mc...m_medium=email

[gentlemanjim]

To relive stress onmy wrists I think a simple solution would be to put the cip-ops on top of the tree raising the bar and lowering the fron end to match my lowering link. Has anyone done this mid?
1. Does doing as I suggested raise the bar suffciently like going tubular?
2. What is the width of the clip-ons compared to a "N" tubular bar?

[ducnut]

Originally Posted by gentlemanjim

To relive stress onmy wrists I think a simple solution would be to put the cip-ops on top of the tree raising the bar and lowering the fron end to match my lowering link. Has anyone done this mid?

You won't have enough fork tube, above the clamp, to clamp the clip-on to. I lowered my GF's as far as I could, based on actual travel on the male fork tubes versus the distance between the front fender and fairing. There isn't much fork tube, above the clamp. I lowered the rear to the point that the hugger just hits the undertray upon full compression. In lieu of what you suggest, I went with Helibars. However, if I were to do it again, I'd go with Convertibars, as they offer infinite adjustability.

[gentlemanjim]

Originally Posted by ducnut

You won't have enough fork tube, above the clamp, to clamp the clip-on to. I lowered my GF's as far as I could, based on actual travel on the male fork tubes versus the distance between the front fender and lower triple clamp. There isn't much fork tube, above the clamp. I lowered the rear to the point that the hugger just hits the undertray upon full compression. In lieu of what you suggest, I went with Helibars. However, if I were to do it again, I'd go with Convertibars, as they offer infinite adjustability.

I haven't got my SV yet, but it seems the space occupied by the clip on under the triple is equal to the space required on top of the triple. So there should be adequate equal and adequaate space.

[ducnut]

Originally Posted by gentlemanjim

I haven't got my SV yet, but it seems the space occupied by the clip on under the triple is equal to the space required on top of the triple. So there should be adequate equal and adequaate space.

Let me try again.

With the fork tubes slid up as far as I dare to, this is what's showing above the clamp.


This shows how high the Helibars are, in relation to the top clamp.


This is a shot of the lowered frontend. The distance from the fork's dust seal to the bottom clamp is just a bit less than the distance from the front fender to the bottom of the clamp. The forks are slid up as far as I can and not have the fender smacking the fairing. Also, these forks have been internally lowered. An SV can't be made much lower.


This is a shot of the undertail. I tried to show the marks where the hugger has been touching it, on full suspension compression.

[gentlemanjim]

Thanks for the gret illustration and information. One last thought and I'll move on. What if the forks were not internally lowered?

[ducnut]

Originally Posted by gentlemanjim

Thanks for the gret illustration and information. One last thought and I'll move on. What if the forks were not internally lowered?

A few things come into play: the male tube will slide in only so far before it bottoms out, the springs will only collapse so far before they coil bind, spacer length, and the oil level will affect how far the forks will compress.

You can look on your male tube and see how far the forks have been compressing and measure that. Then, compare that measurent to what the distance is between your fender and underside of the fairing and go from there. Just be sure that you don't allow the fender to hit the fairing, as that can lock up the front wheel and potentially cause you to crash.

I chose internal lowering because my GF is small and we were changing the springs to a lower rate. While doing that, the spacers were shortened. The oil level was adjusted, to keep them from having a harsh bottoming out. Before doing the frontend work and changing the shock, the tires would come completely off the ground going over bumps. Now, I never see daylight when she hits bumps. She reports the bike rides much better and she feels better connected to the ground. When I ride the bike, both ends will bottom out. But, it's not really harsh.

[blue72beetle]

Here's my touring machines. Last year I rode the '02 to Wisconsin for a mini-SV rally up there, then took it down to The Dragon and had a blast. Now I'm working on converting the '03 into a sport-touring bike, and putting some luggage on it much like Danimal's.

Hey Danimal, you sure do see a lot of beautiful scenery on your rides. Ohio isn't too far, I'd love to ride with you sometime this coming season if you don't mind the company.

Before leaving for Wisconsin:


Some of the WI group:


Small dam in Ohio:


Cherohala Skyway:


Along the Dragon, NC side:


My 2003, my new favorite:

[Ohio_Danimal]

Originally Posted by blue72beetle

Here's my touring machines. Last year I rode the '02 to Wisconsin for a mini-SV rally up there, then took it down to The Dragon and had a blast. Now I'm working on converting the '03 into a sport-touring bike, and putting some luggage on it much like Danimal's.

Hey Danimal, you sure do see a lot of beautiful scenery on your rides. Ohio isn't too far, I'd love to ride with you sometime this coming season if you don't mind the company.

Hey Beet! Welcome welcome welcome to my thread!

This place is vastly different than SVRider my friend, as you will see. No endless supply of threads asking the same crap over and over. Lots of love for miles here with Inmates.
Ohio does have a lot of beautiful scenery, you're right. I would be more than happy to show you around some time. Most every weekend I am out on the road.
Speaking of SVRider, I am planning on attending the National Rally this year (my first!) and was wondering if you'll be there as well.
I have been to a bunch of the Ohio SVRider Fall rallys, but have never had vacation time available in June for the National Rally (was always taking my son to baseball tournaments around the country during June...he's playing College ball now, so that time is MINE!!!)
Good to see you continuing with the copper 2nd Gen.

Man I am so sick of Winter already...and the cold shit just got started. C'mon Spring!

[blue72beetle]

Originally Posted by Ohio_Danimal

Hey Beet! Welcome welcome welcome to my thread!

This place is vastly different than SVRider my friend, as you will see. No endless supply of threads asking the same crap over and over. Lots of love for miles here with Inmates.
Ohio does have a lot of beautiful scenery, you're right. I would be more than happy to show you around some time. Most every weekend I am out on the road.
Speaking of SVRider, I am planning on attending the National Rally this year (my first!) and was wondering if you'll be there as well.
I have been to a bunch of the Ohio SVRider Fall rallys, but have never had vacation time available in June for the National Rally (was always taking my son to baseball tournaments around the country during June...he's playing College ball now, so that time is MINE!!!)
Good to see you continuing with the copper 2nd Gen.

Man I am so sick of Winter already...and the cold shit just got started. C'mon Spring!

I will be going to the Rally for sure! I made sure to get plenty of time off around June. Just gotta figure out lodging or camping or whatever.
I bought an arctic suit so I was riding up until Christmas day, but I think it's not leaving the garage until spring comes now that the snow has stuck around.