[TCP]

Second oil change last night at 700 miles. 

Simple process all in all.

Took about an hour from warm up to clean up.

About 1/4 cubic centimeter of metallic sludge on the magnetic oil plug, and a small amount of iron filings on the sump screen  plug.  Nothing in the screen at all. 

Less than I expected actually.

No really large pieces either time.

Now a bit of remedial bolt tightening and good to go again.

Caseman

[Ducati Scotty]

The stock chain is not the greatest, some seem to die very early deaths.  If your sprockets are still good do yourself a favor and get a good quality aftermarket chain now before it eats the sprockets and you've got to replace them too.

Scott

[Arizoni]

Just another day at the weekly custom/collector car show.

I parked next to two rebuilt Triumph Bonnies  and then sit back to watch the crowd give a casual look at the Triumphs and then stand and stare at my RE G5, pointing and smiling while they asked me questions. 

I really think the Triumph guys were upset by this. 

[bman734]

Went to the International bike show here in Cleveland yesterday and there was an RE custom built by my dealer as one of the show bikes. While all the fancy customs drew large crowds with ohhs and ahhs, that lonely little RE C5 was a hit on it's own. I stood around to hear the reactions of those who were admiring it and one of the most common comments that I overheard was that it's too bad that they don't make them like they used to. Well after I informed them that this was a new production bike for the most part they would look at me in disbelief and wonder. Keep in mind that very little was changed on the bike, about $3,000 in add on parts, IE, larger wheels, efi cone muffler, handle bars reversed, and a different seat, essentially he made it into a sort of cafe racer. It truly was mostly factory.
Made me feel good again about my decision to buy one of these things.
After seeing all these bikes I still feel like I made the right choice for me.
Spring weather where are you!!!???

[Arizoni]

I'm in Phoenix, Arizona where the high temperatures are around 74 F (23 C) with lows around 45 F (7.2 C).  Great riding weather.

Except for the turn signals, crash bar, luggage rack and 7" headlight my G5 Deluxe is basically stock.  Chrome and black.

Most of the people admiring it are also surprised that it's new saying things like, "It looks like motorcycles looked back in the '60's." 

I explain that it is basically a 1955 motorcycle design with a 2009 engine that kept its old fashioned pushrod operated OHV , single cylinder design.
They nod approvingly. 

[eggman65]

First oil change...300 miles on my 2010 C5. Job went well. Had some iron filings on the two magnetic drain plugs and some fibers, gasket material, and crud on the sump screen... but nothing extra ordinary for a new engine breaking in.

I replaced the oil filter, cleaned the screen, reused all original gaskets (o rings). Did the "far right tilt" to get a fair bit more old oil out of the bike.
Added about two quarts of Castrol 20w-50 semi syn blend that I scored for just $3.95 per quart at Advanced Auto. My bike had the "E-Z Oil Cap" and I am sure it made reinstalling the oil filter cover much less stressful had it been a collection of loose o- rings, spring, and pressure plate!

[Arizoni]

Hopefully your Castrol oil doesn't have "friction reducing" or claim to increase your fuel mileage.

The oils made for use in cars often have stuff that claims to do these things.  This is fine for cars but for motorcycles which have "wet clutches" in them it can cause problems.

The UCE powered bikes use the engines oil to lubricate the clutch (and the transmission gears) and some of the new low friction ingrediants can cause the clutch  plates to slip.  That's why the Owners Manual says the oil must meet JASO MA standards.

I think that all of the current oils that are made for motorcycles meet the JASO MA standard even though some of them don't say it.

[Jack Leis]

    Went down to the dealer where I bought my G5 last September to get the bar end weights that they thought I must not have needed. Im hoping for some positive results because the vibration and tingling in my hands is driving me nuts. I want to test them out  but the wind is howling here in So Cal. Maybe this afternoon I can muster up the courage to go to Bigfoot country to check them out. Yes I said Bigfoot ! He has been spotted. . . . . . . allegedly !

[Ducati Scotty]

Bar end wieghts make a WORLD of difference.  If you want to take it to the next level get something like these:
http://www.jettin.com/ProductBarEnds.htm
The heavy 15 oz. ones, or any similarly heavy bar ends.  The Jettin ones are inexpensive and nice, I believe you can mount a CRG mirror to them if you want.  Some of the stock Kawasaki Ninja weights form the 250, 500 adn 650 are pretty hefty and I think will fit.  It will change your life.

Scott

[Jack Leis]

  Thanks Scotty !

[Russkie]

Today I am getting ready for 3 weeks on unsealed trails in South Is of NZ, so I installed a bash plate for the river crossings, lined my tool box with the electronics in it with rubber and tape to make it as waterproof as possible, cut a cover from core board (for sale realestate sign) for the airfilter side and taped it in to make the air chamber as dustfree as possible from the ill fitting tool box door.

[Russkie]

Scotty,
What type of replacement chain do you suggest?

[Ducati Scotty]

Any decent name brand 530 chain should do.  I went with a DID non-o-ring style. 

My choice for non-oring was for a few reasons.  My original chain died at 6000 miles.  I usually replace the chain and sprockets together to maximize the life of both.  The sprockets still looked pretty good.  Bing a bit broke at the time I didn't want to get new sprockets and I didn't want to spend $120 on an o-ring chain that might die anyway if the sprckets went in 3000 miles.  So I went with a $35 traditional chain.

I also wanted to see how long a non-oring chain would last if well maintained.  I'm not opposed to saving $80 every time I buy a chain.  And I also installed a LoobMan oiler for it at the same time.

On the C5 I think most o-ring chains should fit.  On the G5 I'm not sure.  And if you have a larger than stock on either bike I can't say for sure.  Get one locally and see if it fits, if it goes through smooth you should be fine.

Tho-ring chains are great and usually last 10k plus even with very infrequent oiling and cleaning.

Scott

[Ducati Scotty]

Today I am getting ready for 3 weeks on unsealed trails in South Is of NZ, so I installed a bash plate for the river crossings, lined my tool box with the electronics in it with rubber and tape to make it as waterproof as possible, cut a cover from core board (for sale realestate sign) for the airfilter side and taped it in to make the air chamber as dustfree as possible from the ill fitting tool box door.

Russkie, you can get a retrofit cover that fits inside your airbox and seals it much better.  This is a free warranty item from the dealer.

Scott

[Jack Leis]

  The bar end weights made a tremendous difference on reducing the vibration on my G5. I rode for 40 minutes and experienced no hand discomfort. They really helped visibility of the bar end mirrors too . HAPPY IN SAN BERNARDINO .