$50 modification thread

[850 Combat]

I broke a clutch cable yesterday on the way back from Donut Derilicts. It had started acting stiff, for a couple days, and I intended to service it.

I bought a new cable on the way back at Southland Suzuki in Garden Grove. $31.00 with tax for OEM in stock. Gosh it works nicely, and OEM is superior to what I usually get.

It was fortuitious that an old dealer was fairly close by. I remember my brother getting the trans rebuilt there on his X6 iun the sixties (which had been purchased by one of his friened originally from there)

The new cable really works better than the previous aftermarket one did.

[RHODESIA SMITH]

SHARPY? bit of dumb one I suppose, you chuck in a bit of Metholated spirits - ( the purple stuff ) in the fuel tank and you rekon it absorbs moisture and just burns off? hey sounds good to me - can this be true?

[sharpy]

SHARPY? bit of dumb one I suppose, you chuck in a bit of Metholated spirits - ( the purple stuff ) in the fuel tank and you rekon it absorbs moisture and just burns off? hey sounds good to me - can this be true?

Yep. seems to work and been told by smarter people than me. The metho asorbs the water and just gets used like normal petrol. Never had a problem.

[sharpy]

Run so form of upper cylinder lube like STP or Redex and get those carb slides protected. I run 29 smoothies and when i pull them apart there is a film on all the parts protecting them. Dont need much

[bwringer]

Filling up the tank is less than 10 bucks. Makes my bike go faster and I don't have to push it. I can ride it up hills not just down. And it takes less time to get where I'm going.

Two years later, I saw this one and just laaaaaaughed...

[MadCapsule]

This is an awesome thread!

If you're in a bind and need something to remove a bit of light surface rust or a rust stain, a container of Bar Keeper's Friend is under $5.00 and can be found in the cleaning supply aisle of pretty much any supermarket.

Use it like you would Ajax: Either wet the affected area and sprinkle some on and wipe off or sprinkle a bit onto a damp rag and rub it in. Should just rinse right off.

[afholderman]

I bobbed my fender down the other day, cut 3 inches off the back and 6 off the front. Only took a few minutes with tools I already have and gave the front end a totally different look. Add in the cost of some door edge trim to cover the edge until I'm ready to repaint and the total was $8.00.

[davidduarte]

on the twins (which don't have a fuse panel), replace the old glass tube fuse holder with one that takes mini blade fuses. I did this recently on my 450 and just today on my CB200. $5.99 at Ace Hardware (Advance Auto had it for $6.79, those chiseling bastards).

[razor02097]

Sorry to revive an old thread... but I have one mod under $50 I think is worth while...


H4 headlight conversion from candlepower.



It replaces the sealed unit on some of the older bikes.

[7981GS]

Razor, the less expensive route, is to replace the lamp with a Sylvania Silver Star Ultra Halogen headlight bulb for autos.
About $35.00 At least 4 of my bikes have them installed.

Daniel

[razor02097]

Are they 5" headlights? I was thinking about looking for car lamps that would fit, but what is nice about the candlepower one is replacement lamps are H4 which are very common and very cheap.

[7981GS]

Pretty sure that the dual headlamp type are 5"
These seem to last forever! I have had one on one bike for over 25 years.

Daniel

[Tim Tom]

HID Lights

Wow great thread, not sure how I missed it...

Another option, as opposed to a silverstar or other type of beam is an HID light. While I know some people here dislike them, I love mine and love the fact that I can actually see at night.

For under $50 you can get a 35w or 55w hi/low beam HID. Very easy install, and the ballast is a snap to hide under the tank.

I got mine from these guys

http://www.ddmtuning.com/Products/DDM-35W-55W-Single-HiLo-Motorcycle-HID-Kit

A daytime pic of when I did the mod. Notice how cheap gas was then!! Almost a dollar less than now.

[Pendulum]

Wow great thread, not sure how I missed it...

Another option, as opposed to a silverstar or other type of beam is an HID light. While I know some people here dislike them, I love mine and love the fact that I can actually see at night.

For under $50 you can get a 35w or 55w hi/low beam HID. Very easy install, and the ballast is a snap to hide under the tank.

I got mine from these guys

http://www.ddmtuning.com/Products/DDM-35W-55W-Single-HiLo-Motorcycle-HID-Kit

A daytime pic of when I did the mod. Notice how cheap gas was then!! Almost a dollar less than now.

If you run an HID bulb in a halogen housing, please let me know when/where you ride. No vehicle mod ****es me off more. Best if we just stay outta eachothers way.

[Tim Tom]

If you run an HID bulb in a halogen housing, please let me know when/where you ride. No vehicle mod ****es me off more. Best if we just stay outta eachothers way.

I'll be sure to let you know the next time I'm in Arizona.