General Trip questions

[vivisected]

Hello fellow gs riders,
So im going on my first long ride next week (aug 4) and I had a few questions:
First things first, im doing some pre-ride maintenance and I read on bikecliff's page that rotella 15w40 diesel engine oil is a decent/cheap choice for an oil change. I was wondering if that goes for GS450s aswell? (I assume it does, just didnt want to blow up my bike or anything like that because its a twin engine GS)
Also going to do chain maintenance and was wondering if anyone had a decent way of making sure that the rear wheel is properly aligned. Right now I go by the index marks as instructed, just wondering if there was any other way to verify things are lining up right.

Thats it for the technical stuff, but i had a few long distance specific questions aswell:
Im going to be traveling about 450 miles (Springfield MA to Rockville MD, mostly on I84 in Conn, NY and Penn and I83 in Penn to avoid I95 and NJ's helmet laws) on an '88 GS 450LJ.
Since this bike is an air cooled model (as are all the GSs right?) do I need to give it a rest to let it cool down? I planned to myself when gassing up (every 100 mi or so) and depending on how my back is doing, maybe turn it into a 2 day trip when i reach scranton area (about half way, 200 mi, through the trip) and stay at a motel/hotel. But if i do decide to ride the whole way in one day, is there any amount of mandatory cool down, or can I ride with reckless abandonment (concerning the temperature atleast)
Also, whats less taxing on the engine? Slower pace for a longer trip? or Faster pace for a shorter trip? I was gonna do somewhere in the middle (95 being fastest and backroads PA being longest-so Im doing PA highway mostly)
Anything else i should keep in mind for such a long trip?

Thanks guys!

P.S. - Ive been doing practice runs of 100-150 round trip miles out to the worceter area and that seems to be no sweat at all, so I think this isnt too long of a ride to undertake, even if it is on a tiny 450.

[cowboyup3371]

The length of time won't matter for cooling as long as you pay attention to your oil. However, consider how much fun are you looking for. Yes riding the highway (slab) is fast but that's mostly a straight line with a bunch of crazies. Getting on the back roads leads you to things you don't normally see. Are you in a rush to get back home? Let the road tell you what to do.

But yea, give yourself some break time out of the saddle. It will help you regain some composure so you don't fall asleep out there as well as rest your butt, back, and other body parts.

[Steve]

If you are just trying to get there, why are you stopping half-way there, and after only three or four hours of riding?

Overall, on any longer trip, figure on averaging no more than 50 mph. That means that 450 miles will take you about 9 hours. That will include your gas stops, meals and butt breaks. If you start at 8 am, you should be there by 5 pm, unless you stop to see some sights.

Although the bike will handle the higher speeds on the freeway, your nerves will definitely be shot. By the time you get to highway speeds, you won't have very much in reserve to maintain speeds going up hills, so plan on staying in the right lane and being a rolling roadblock. I think you would do better on the two-lane roads or the four-lane, non-freeway roads.

Curious: you are avoiding NJ because of helmet laws? I thought MD had them, too.
Sorry, but changing a route to avoid having to wear a helmet just does not make sense to me.

.

[1_v8_merc]

MD has helmet laws as well.
They are very strict too.

Since you're avoiding NJ, count me OUT from helping you now, in the event that you need assistance!
I'm putting a big ass sign on my garage that reads "NOPE!"

[tom203]

You're traveling thru one of the East Coast's most congested areas . Your nerves will be frayed coping with monster SUVs' pulling boats , trucks , etc., so plan on a extra rest stops to save your sanity. A helmet would seem to be a good companion, no matter how much freedom you crave!

[vivisected]

If you are just trying to get there, why are you stopping half-way there, and after only three or four hours of riding?

I dont suppose you have 2 diffused disks in your back and know what that feels like? If i push too hard and my back/legs go out, then im going nowhere fast, thats why im considering stoping to rest a night along the way, even if im 60mi from my destination

Curious: you are avoiding NJ because of helmet laws? I thought MD had them, too.
Sorry, but changing a route to avoid having to wear a helmet just does not make sense to me.
.

MD does have them, but im spending a majority of my time in Conn and Penn, which doesnt have them...

Im avoiding NJ for many reasons:
1. Ive seen quite enough of I-95
2. Im toting several firearms and Penn. is much more friendly with those matters
3. I dont feel like paying 20 bucks in tolls every 5 feet i travel
4. If i feel like wearing my DOT, my skid lid, or nothing at all on my cranium ill have that choice (just like here at home in MA and MD i dont have that choice, and I wont in NY. But 7 miles away in Conn. (where i ride quite a bit) I do have a choice, and in Penn. too for that matter. Its an opinion thing, and my opinion is that i would like to be comfortable when my head busts open like a pumpkin when i go flying off my bike at 80mph, cause aint no helmet, DOT or not, going to do all that much for me if that happens)
5. I like the route that Penn takes me through when i get to MD, I avoid the NYC traffic, and the Baltimore traffic, so all i have to deal with is north of DC traffic

[tkent02]

Its an opinion thing, and my opinion is that i would like to be comfortable when my head busts open like a pumpkin when i go flying off my bike at 80mph, cause aint no helmet, DOT or not, going to do all that much for me if that happens)

Wow, do you really believe that?
I wouldn't think a head busting open would be comfortable at all.
Entertaining for the rest of us, maybe but certainly not comfortable.
OK, have fun.

Since this bike is an air cooled model (as are all the GSs right?) do I need to give it a rest to let it cool down?

Yep, in hot weather, thirty minutes on, 12 minutes parked to cool the engine.
In winter you only need seven minutes for cooling. In temperatures over 100F, they advise only twenty minutes riding between cooling periods.
It's in the owner's manual, on page 17.

[Baatfam]

...when i go flying off my bike at 80mph, cause aint no helmet, DOT or not, going to do all that much for me if that happens)

Just my $0.02, but I've seen three people I know go down at over 140mph at the track....and walk away with minor bumps and scrapes...
Gear works...

But hey, do what you want...

[vivisected]

But hey, do what you want...

Right there guys ^^ right there

If i want to be stupid and ride without a helmet, its my choice, and none body in my internet talky box aint gonna tell me no different, ya hear! :-P

i may have come off like i was saying that gear doesnt work... It does, im not quite THAT stupid. Its more like, if i wanna crack my nogin open, i have every right to kinda thing. I enjoy riding without a helmet... thats that. Kinda like a guy who smokes, i think its crazy to kill yourself like that, but if he wants to do it, more power to him.

ANYWAYS, that wasnt exactly what this thread was suppose to be about

Anyone gonna help me with my 15w40 oil or rear wheel alignment questions?

[tkent02]

15-40 Rotella is fine.
Just make sure the chain is straight as it goes over the sprockets, and sprocket wear is even on both sides of the sprocket. There's a bunch of threads on different methods of getting things straight if you care to do a search.

[hampshirehog]

Yep, in hot weather, thirty minutes on, 12 minutes parked to cool the engine.
In winter you only need seven minutes for cooling. In temperatures over 100F, they advise only twenty minutes riding between cooling periods.
It's in the owner's manual, on page 17.

Tom, he's riding an '88 450. Are you sure on those figures? I just checked my manual on page 17 and it's about tyre pressures so you might want to double check the page number as well.

Though as mine is about tyre pressures and not tire pressures the manuals might be different in different continents. Does your German part begin on page 44? Do you even have a German language part of the manual?

Tyre in German by the way is reifen but my favourite German word in the manual is auspuff. That's mentioned on page 73 for the first time and you have to be careful not to burn your mittens on it apparently.

Sorry about the wittering on but it's all useful info if you're planning a long trip and could encounter Germans on the way.