Big Dog aka Prius

[regbd]

I've read the stories in the posts about our electrical gremlins. I now have more first hand experience.

Blasting down the highway in the left lane at about 70 mph and all of sudden the tach blinks then goes blank. (BTW: That's the first time that tach has worked in weeks!!)

(Did I forget to mention it was 10 pm? Oh yeah, and it was a Saturday night on a packed I-25 heading to downtown Denver.) So I did what any self respecting BD owner would do; squeezed the clutch and started signaling with the right hand. Okay, maybe is was more like demanding!

(Gotta cross 4 lanes to get to the shoulder. Make way bit**es…..I'm coming through!!) I smiled politely and nodded as the nice lady in the Volvo passed me since my loud barking dog had been neutered and became a silent Prius clone.

In the two years I've been privileged to own this beast, I've always enjoyed the PERFORMANCE aspect of that Vance & Hines PA system. (It had nothing to do with announcing my presence to cell phone zombies in cars, downshifting and roaring through tunnels, intentionally setting off car alarms in whole parking garages, or it doubling as a leaf blower in the driveway. Honest!!!) But I digress.

It is amazing the clarity of mind you get when silently coasting through that much traffic… did I mail the life insurance check or set it up on EFT? Do I really want to be the pushing this 700 lb beast out of traffic? Who's a good enough friend to call at 10:30 on Saturday for help, if I can't limp this thing home?

Do I actually hear the tires against the road and the gears in the tranny?

My angels were with me that night though. I got across the lanes to the shoulder then coasted until it stopped. (I'm thinking each foot it coasts is a foot I don't have to push.)

After turning it on and off several times and putzing with the key switch, I determined that it was indeed the switch. It was so loose the key rattling around in the socket. I got it tweeked enough that I was able to limp home only stalling twice along the way.

Crisis averted, no life insurance payout for my daughter.. yet again; and my Dog is still the most fun I've ever had fully clothed.

Then the saga of a replacement switch began. I posted something that might be helpful about sources for a replacement switch in the Tech Section.

Enjoy your rides, my friends.

 

[chubs]

I've read the stories in the posts about our electrical gremlins. I now have more first hand experience.

Blasting down the highway in the left lane at about 70 mph and all of sudden the tach blinks then goes blank. (BTW: That's the first time that tach has worked in weeks!!)

(Did I forget to mention it was 10 pm? Oh yeah, and it was a Saturday night on a packed I-25 heading to downtown Denver.) So I did what any self respecting BD owner would do; squeezed the clutch and started signaling with the right hand. Okay, maybe is was more like demanding!

(Gotta cross 4 lanes to get to the shoulder. Make way bit**es…..I'm coming through!!) I smiled politely and nodded as the nice lady in the Volvo passed me since my loud barking dog had been neutered and became a silent Prius clone.

In the two years I've been privileged to own this beast, I've always enjoyed the PERFORMANCE aspect of that Vance & Hines PA system. (It had nothing to do with announcing my presence to cell phone zombies in cars, downshifting and roaring through tunnels, intentionally setting off car alarms in whole parking garages, or it doubling as a leaf blower in the driveway. Honest!!!) But I digress.

It is amazing the clarity of mind you get when silently coasting through that much traffic… did I mail the life insurance check or set it up on EFT? Do I really want to be the pushing this 700 lb beast out of traffic? Who's a good enough friend to call at 10:30 on Saturday for help, if I can't limp this thing home?

Do I actually hear the tires against the road and the gears in the tranny?

My angels were with me that night though. I got across the lanes to the shoulder then coasted until it stopped. (I'm thinking each foot it coasts is a foot I don't have to push.)

After turning it on and off several times and putzing with the key switch, I determined that it was indeed the switch. It was so loose the key rattling around in the socket. I got it tweeked enough that I was able to limp home only stalling twice along the way.

Crisis averted, no life insurance payout for my daughter.. yet again; and my Dog is still the most fun I've ever had fully clothed.

Then the saga of a replacement switch began. I posted something that might be helpful about sources for a replacement switch in the Tech Section.

Enjoy your rides, my friends.

 

[Mr. Wright]

That's a feeling a lot of us have felt, but my Dog is still #1 in my book

 

[Mr. Wright]

Yup, that about says it all

 

[chubs]

I've read the stories in the posts about our electrical gremlins. I now have more first hand experience.

Blasting down the highway in the left lane at about 70 mph and all of sudden the tach blinks then goes blank. (BTW: That's the first time that tach has worked in weeks!!)

(Did I forget to mention it was 10 pm? Oh yeah, and it was a Saturday night on a packed I-25 heading to downtown Denver.) So I did what any self respecting BD owner would do; squeezed the clutch and started signaling with the right hand. Okay, maybe is was more like demanding!

(Gotta cross 4 lanes to get to the shoulder. Make way bit**es…..I'm coming through!!) I smiled politely and nodded as the nice lady in the Volvo passed me since my loud barking dog had been neutered and became a silent Prius clone.

In the two years I've been privileged to own this beast, I've always enjoyed the PERFORMANCE aspect of that Vance & Hines PA system. (It had nothing to do with announcing my presence to cell phone zombies in cars, downshifting and roaring through tunnels, intentionally setting off car alarms in whole parking garages, or it doubling as a leaf blower in the driveway. Honest!!!) But I digress.

It is amazing the clarity of mind you get when silently coasting through that much traffic… did I mail the life insurance check or set it up on EFT? Do I really want to be the pushing this 700 lb beast out of traffic? Who's a good enough friend to call at 10:30 on Saturday for help, if I can't limp this thing home?

Do I actually hear the tires against the road and the gears in the tranny?

My angels were with me that night though. I got across the lanes to the shoulder then coasted until it stopped. (I'm thinking each foot it coasts is a foot I don't have to push.)

After turning it on and off several times and putzing with the key switch, I determined that it was indeed the switch. It was so loose the key rattling around in the socket. I got it tweeked enough that I was able to limp home only stalling twice along the way.

Crisis averted, no life insurance payout for my daughter.. yet again; and my Dog is still the most fun I've ever had fully clothed.

Then the saga of a replacement switch began. I posted something that might be helpful about sources for a replacement switch in the Tech Section.

Enjoy your rides, my friends.

Yup, that about says it all

It's really amazing how you can go from cruising down the road, smiling at all the people admiring that beautiful machine, to feeling like a total loser pushing that once lovely, dead beast down the side of the street. That feeling of your heart falling toward your butt when the symphony from those cool custom pipes suddenly go mute. On the plus side; bugs don't sting nearly as bad at walking speed.

 

[regbd]

I'm with you Mr. Wright. My Dog is aces too.

In order for the GF to be more comfortable on the longer rides, I was contemplating a Street Glide. (Yeah, I just threw up in my mouth a little too!)

But I'd forgotten about the Bulldog. So now I'm thinking a Bulldog Bagger would be a nice addition to the pound and I won't see one every 13 seconds when I go out for a spin.

 

[woodbutcher]

looking at your join date, i can't believe you have only posted 6 times since joining back in '09. the write-up was great and thoroughly enjoyable. thank you! but in all honesty, i hope it's that long before you have another problem out of the bike. come back more often.

 

[regbd]

Hey Chubs,
I must be a massive narcissist. Even when I'm pushing mine, I'm smiling, and thinking, you losers wish you had a machine this sexy to push!!

 

[chubs]

Hey Chubs,
I must be a massive narcissist. Even when I'm pushing mine, I'm smiling, and thinking, you losers wish you had a machine this sexy to push!!

Have to agree with ya on that point. It just seems to me, that those loud pipes mean economy, and that sudden silence means " Oh crap, how much is this gonna cost?"

 

[regbd]

Hello Woodbutcher,
For the last two years I'd been lucky not to have anything other than routine maintenance and repairing items neglected by the last owner. Plus, my business had me so swamped I was severely distracted.

I set a goal to get in at least 100 ride days per year from here on out. (Meaning that I can get in at least 1 1/2 hrs of riding for it to count.) Living in Colorado will really help that goal.

The good people on this site, such as yourself, make it worth interacting more. Thanks for the encouragement.

Regb

 

[regbd]

Chubs, most of the times mine went silent was because it ran out of gas. (Four times in two years. I'd be embarrassed if the the darn thing didn't look and sound so good.)

But with the overrun on mine, that snarling and popping must be part of it. I think most of the fuel must be going out of the tailpipe. I've had people pull up next to me at night and say, "Badass bike man and I love the flames coming out of the tailpipe." LOL

 

[chubs]

Sounds like she might be runnin a little bit on the fat side, but the flames are neat at night.

 

[regbd]

Thanks for the insight. We'll have to tweak that a little bit.

 

[roadie1389]

I had to push once because I ran out of gas. I cussed that SOB out for the 1/2 mile I had to push it at 5:00 PM traffic. At least it was the service road. Reserve my ass.

 

[chubs]

I had to push once because I ran out of gas. I cussed that SOB out for the 1/2 mile I had to push it at 5:00 PM traffic. At least it was the service road. Reserve my ass.

The bitch gets heavy after a while don't it?

 

[roadie1389]

The bitch gets heavy after a while don't it?

Serves me right. I was running hard up the service road passed some chick and then got stopped at the light. Soon as the light changed, kurplunk, dead!

 

[Mr. Wright]

Sooo what did we learn from this?

 

[chubs]

Serves me right. I was running hard up the service road passed some chick and then got stopped at the light. Soon as the light changed, kurplunk, dead!

Yeah yeah, runnin hard, passed some chick, red light . what about the chick? Was she cute? got pics?

 

[chubs]

Sooo what did we learn from this?

That if you pass the chick, she probably won't help ya push the scoot?

 

[Mr. Wright]

That if you pass the chick, she probably won't help ya push the scoot?

Close, you for got the showing off part.