She's too tired

BigDogRick

BigDogRick

Well-Known Member
Well, after 100,000 miles of good life the day has come to put the ol' 107" down. She spent her last 30,000 miles as a 111" square engine - re-bored and rebuilt in a Milwaukee machine shop during our days in Wisconsin. That happened after the main bearing failed as Celeste and I made the trek form Phoenix to Wisconsin the first time. We did it again later after we were married but she was on her Harley Fat Boy instead of her Honda Shadow. Anyway, I have big plans for that old chasis and already spoke to Shannon (Mr. Wright) about giving her some love this summer as I planned to ride her there for that and other miscellaneous issues (like installing the new Dash and Speedo I picked up from Eric). She needs all new controls routed through the beach bars to mate up with Shannon's complete rewire of the bike. All great plans but, alas, she did not last long enough to make the trek from Phoenix to Missouri for TLC. Instead it looks like a completely new motor. My research tells me that the S&S 111 is the new "old reliable" for the kind of riding I do that the 107 always was. You see, the plan is for me to complete the three big projects I have going all this year and into first quarter next as a commercial general contractor and take three months from late April/early May next year to ride the four corners plus a tail of the US, Canada, and Mexico. Specifically, I have a bucket list item to ride my ol' girl to every contiguous US state, Canadian Province, and few Mexican States while we are at it. She has 40 states on her odometer now and just needs four in New England and four in the Pacific NW. Need to add a few Canadian Provinces to round it out. So it will be Phoenix to Key West to Newfoundland to Seattle, to Cabo San Lucas and back to Phoenix. Will need to ID some reliable v-twin shops in New England and the Pacific NW for planned maintenance and the rest will go like it's gone for the past 22 years So far as unplanned issues go. I have had great good fortune finding what i need from a service/repair perspective anywhere I have needed it. That's why I old-school rewired the bike as a Evo bike on steroids. Looks like the one upgrade I may get out of a new crate motor is compression releases - and frankly I'm a little leary of them. We'll see how that plays out in the next couple of weeks. Anyway, looking forward to a running a forum travelogue for the next six months or so as all of this comes to fruition.
 
SKOGDOG

SKOGDOG

One of the old ones.
Well I’m no KaptinAmerika, but I did put on about 30,000 trouble free miles on the 111 in my Bulldog Bagger. There were some issues with my fuel pump, but the engine performance was flawless. (assuming you’ll go with a carb) That bike was smoother because it had rubber mounts with less vibration than the K9. The 111’ is a square engine (I’m remembering 4 1/8X 4 1/8) which S&S claims is smoother and delivers the torque you want for touring. I found this to be true. Expect mileage like an evo—low 40’s. Your ride would definitely be on my bucket list and now I’m officially jealous—wish you were coming through our region so Blacktopper and I could buy you lunch this time, Amigo….haven’t seen you since we came through Phoenix and met up there.
I can’t wait to read your trip posts.
 
BigDogRick

BigDogRick

Well-Known Member
SKOGDOG said:
Well I’m no KaptinAmerika, but I did put on about 30,000 trouble free miles on the 111 in my Bulldog Bagger. There were some issues with my fuel pump, but the engine performance was flawless. (assuming you’ll go with a carb) That bike was smoother because it had rubber mounts with less vibration than the K9. The 111’ is a square engine (I’m remembering 4 1/8X 4 1/8) which S&S claims is smoother and delivers the torque you want for touring. I found this to be true. Expect mileage like an evo—low 40’s. Your ride would definitely be on my bucket list and now I’m officially jealous—wish you were coming through our region so Blacktopper and I could buy you lunch this time, Amigo….haven’t seen you since we came through Phoenix and met up there.
I can’t wait to read your trip posts.
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I started a PM with Kap'n and he pretty much confirmed my default sentiments. I would be both fortunate and better off (slightly) if I found a new107 on the shelf or even a low mileage used. They don't make it any more. And y'know when the ride is about the road, Kansas might just be the best way to Key West after all.
 
BigDogRick

BigDogRick

Well-Known Member
Overhaul will include new Worx nitrogen charged rear shocks, new front fork seals on my Road King front end, new motor mounts and transmission mounts, full realignment, and a repair to my apparently over-worn rear bearing/axle assembly. Got some metal shavings and some wabble back there. I have felt it for the past year as my rear end did the twerk around big long curves at high speed.
 
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Mickmorris

Mickmorris

Well Known Member
Supporting Member
BigDogRick said:
Overhaul will include new Worx nitrogen charged rear shocks, new front fork seals on my Road King front end, new motor mounts and transmission mounts, full realignment, and a repair to my apparently over-worn rear bearing/axle assembly. Got some metal shavings and some wabble back there. I have felt it for the past year as my rear end did the twerk around big long curves at high speed.
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Love my Worx shocks. FXR swing arm?
 
BigDogRick

BigDogRick

Well-Known Member
7F8BB499-09CD-4126-A69C-E27890B889AE.jpeg
This is the before. For the sake of the new members who have acquired vintage sports and vintage classics, I don't expect to achieve a different look, just new components. Things to know: the floorboards are new moving my default foot placement forward about three inches. They are "banana boards" intended to give me multiple options for my foot placement on long rides. If you haven't done it, the fatigue at your hip for your legs is one of the most critical endurance issues. Having the ability to move your feet and change the angle of your legs and the center point of your spine at your seat are all key to an 800 mile day vs a 400 mile day. I also mounted risers and pull backs on the bars to raise and move the grips back (up 3" back 2"). The net result of these changes was to rotate my body into an inclined position more like a softail riding position. This as opposed to a more upright sport riding stance. This had pretty profound impact on the center of gravity of the bike. The vintage classic and vintage sport geometry is eccentricly balanced with a heavy front end. Different from a Harley. If you have not perceived it yet, the distance from your triple tree to the backrest of your seat is a full 5" longer than a Harley. I rely on this implicently with my 6'-5" body and 36" inseam for a comfortable riding position. Doing the mods that I did with the floorboards and controls/floorboards and the pull back bars lightened the front end of my bike significantly. This has other fatigue ramifications as it makes me hang on my bars when I ride with much less support for my lower back. Not an issue when I have a t-bag mounted behind me to lean against but definitely a compromise on 300 mile weekend runs. The advantage of a sport bike riding position is the more vertical position of your spine and it's a ability to withstand jolt. When you "slouch" your spine is more susceptible to fatigue and shock. Since the mods that make long rides more geometrically comfortable have been made, I find that I must straighten up when I cross a cattle guard or a bridge approach to relieve the jolt of the bump transmitted up through my chassis on shorter rides.
 
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Mickmorris

Mickmorris

Well Known Member
Supporting Member
BigDogRick said:
Yes. BD had a custom swing arm fabricated and chromed on the Millenium Vintage Classics. We are rebuilding the bushings at the frame mount while we have it apart. Second time for the ol' girl. First time for the shocks.
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I just rebuilt my fxr swing arm & purchased the bushings from bare knuckle performance on the recommendation from Eric. Not sure what type you are planning on using but I was very impressed with the design & ease of installation of the bushings Eric recommended. Keep us posted on your progress. Always great to see that work taking place.
 
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