My Shadow just rolled over 20k going home from work last week. I am also going to Big Bend next week so I have a laundry list of maintenance I need to do
before riding 1200+ miles.
New front tire - this is the easy one. I picked up a 206F from eBay at a great price. Friend has a tire machine. I just need to pick up some lead to balance it. It only needs a little. The previous tire went almost 15k.
Fork oil - while the tire was off, I planned to replace the oil since it is 9 years old and I noticed the front end would pogo after a day of riding. I upped the grade to 15W. Getting the fender off and back on was a bear. I think my other bikes weren't as wedged together as this one. As a tip to others, you don't have to remove the upper windshield clamp to remove the forks. Just have to loosen them and they are still attached to the upper triple clamp.
Battery - no worries. I just replaced it 6 months ago and the electrolyte level looked great.
Air filter - my bike came with a K&N. As you know, the Shadow flows air from the inside surface of the element to the outside. That makes it tricky to clean. I had to use a pot from the kitchen to soak the element in warm water and Dawn dish soap. It's clean enough and drying out before I re-oil it.
I also wanted to wire in 4-way flashers but will save it for next time.
Everything is still apart and I won't be able to do any work this weekend. I hope I don't run out of time.
New front tire - this is the easy one. I picked up a 206F from eBay at a great price. Friend has a tire machine. I just need to pick up some lead to balance it. It only needs a little. The previous tire went almost 15k.
Fork oil - while the tire was off, I planned to replace the oil since it is 9 years old and I noticed the front end would pogo after a day of riding. I upped the grade to 15W. Getting the fender off and back on was a bear. I think my other bikes weren't as wedged together as this one. As a tip to others, you don't have to remove the upper windshield clamp to remove the forks. Just have to loosen them and they are still attached to the upper triple clamp.
Battery - no worries. I just replaced it 6 months ago and the electrolyte level looked great.
Air filter - my bike came with a K&N. As you know, the Shadow flows air from the inside surface of the element to the outside. That makes it tricky to clean. I had to use a pot from the kitchen to soak the element in warm water and Dawn dish soap. It's clean enough and drying out before I re-oil it.
I also wanted to wire in 4-way flashers but will save it for next time.
Everything is still apart and I won't be able to do any work this weekend. I hope I don't run out of time.
