12 volt Pressure Washer

Love it or loath it cleaning a bike is the one thing that needs to be done if you want to keep it looking good. Even more so in the winter months with all the salt on the roads, it helps to prevent any rust buildup. There seem to be many ways to clean a bike, pressure washers, hoses, buckets. With the layout of my house I am unable to get any mains water out to the bike. This leaves me with the only other option, the bucket. Not any more!

I have never really liked using pressure washers, it is too easy to get that little too close and take off the paint etc. However I discovered a non-mains 12v pressure washer. This has three benefits over a mains version. Firstly it runs off of 12v, so you can use it to wash your bike anywhere (within reason it is a bit bulky!). Secondly it stores its own water supply so no need for hose pipes. Thirdly, as it is only 12v it can't get anywhere near the pressures of a mains version. This one can get up to 130psi, compare that to over 1000psi for mains. However for washing a vehicle it is more then enough. You can also set the nozzle to go from a jet to a wide, almost misting, spray. The latter giving good volume of water to wash off the soap.

It is able to store 17ltrs of water and consumes about 60watts of power when in use. Given most bikes batteries are around 10Ah that would give you a run time of 2 hours continuous use. It gets through its water in about 6 minutes and most bikes can be rinsed twice (once before washing, once after) on about a tank and a half, assuming it isn't heavily soiled.

Of the few complaints I have the most annoying is the power lead. It is just that little bit too short. True the way I power it isn't the way most would think (see below) but even coming from the bike it makes it a little hard to move it fully out of the way. And that is the other aspect, it only comes with a cigarette/cigar light type power plug. I would have liked to have seen the option of alligator clips to connect directly to the battery, does make it a little tricky to connect to a bike.

Having used it now for a couple of times I can honestly say it is so much better then using the 'throw a bucket of water' method. It is simpler and uses much less water. Plus we have a 12v solar system that I can run it off of so don't even have to worry about using the bikes battery or the power costing me anything.

Good

• Low pressure means unlikely to damage paintwork etc.
• Good flow rate.
• Holds own water supply.
• Able to run it wherever there is a source of 12v.
• Good way to get around a hosepipe ban ;)

Bad

• Although technically portable, not something you can carry on a bike easily.
• Could do with a longer 12v lead.

MOT time again

It has to be one of the more annoying things that being a motorist in the UK requires, the dreaded MOT.

Firstly my horn is pathetic, rarther then a good firm sound it is more: 'peep peep', so maybe an upgrade will be needed. However it got through the test with only the rearwheel close to the legal limit. Now that is done the brought the road tax and now road legal for the next year. The next expense is insurance not until next month though!

End of restriction!

Well my 2 years are over and now I can ride any bike I want :D

Given that it has taken time to have some nice(r) weather I have been able to get the bike out and remove the restrictor kit from it. Not only does the engine seem to be running better now, but the increase in power (albeit a small increase the GS500 isn't known for its power) from 33bhp to its native 47bhp. Not much but does enable a far better acceleration curve and is able to maintain its speed even with a strong headwind on the motorway.

Now to look at replacing it!

Yet more mirrors

Back in September I had to change the mirrors on the bike as the factory ones had stopped being able to hold its position. So I brought some (very) cheap mirrors from Busters. To be honest they are pants. The picture on the right shows what has happened to the arms, the chrome has died and allowed the metal underneath to rust out. This has left it looking rather, well rubbish. Mind you for only £12 they have done better then I really expected, although I wasn't expecting them to fail like this!

So looking at "intobikes" website I found some new ones by Motrax. A little under £15 each, however I was a little confused as to how to order them. The order from Busters to the old ones was simple, it included both mirrors. However intobikes have it listed as "left or right". As I wasn't sure is this meant that I had to specify a left or right mirror I emailed them. To be honest I wasn't impressed with the reply, it came across as slightly terse. As it turns out the mirrors are literally left or right and by spinning the mirror around on the arm, it can be swapped over.

A few days after ordering they turned up and I installed them very quickly and they look great. Much better then the round mirrors it came with as standard.

Almost ready

Well I hope anyway! Parts turned up on Saturday and it is going to be installed tomorrow so fingers crossed I should be able to pick the bike up by the end of day.

Don't get me started and woohoo!

So had a call from NR again today. Thanks to their dedicated work the problem with my bike is now known; a sticky valve due to its shim(?) being too tight. I'll admit my knowledge on the components of engines is limited! Anyhow, the bike has been a pain in the proverbial as to gain access to the valve the engine needed to come out. The exhaust bolts are fused to the engine and would need to be drilled out, so to save money they have removed the engine with exhaust attached. Next while gaining access to the innards of the engine one of the engine bolts was badly corroded and snapped, again this will need to be drilled out by the looks of it.

Aside from that problems with corroded and snapping bolts at least the problem is now known and should be fixable. Although not given a time, I am hopeful I will be able to pick the bike up this Friday.

New chain and sprocket

How long has it been since I posted last?! Well to be honest there hasn't been much to write about this month. Had a tooth fall apart which facilitated a visit to the dentist, on about the wettest day of the year. However I was kept totally dry by my Frank Thomas jacket and Richa trousers (textiles rule!).

Biggest thing this month was getting the chain and sprocket set changed on the bike. Now I probably should have done this myself however it is too cold to work on the bike much this time of the year, and such a fiddly job, I left it with Just Motorcycles. Not only were they able to fit me in the very next day after I called, but it was finished in a single afternoon. I wonder if that speed is simply because there may be less work this time of year? In any case, if you have a major bit of work to be done to a bike, now would be a good time of year to have it looked at!

Since the new set has been replaced, the bike pulls so much better and a lot smoother. Well worth keeping up on maintaining a chain and ensuring the is is lubed and tightened to its specs. That is why mine was replaced, if I had looked after it better I could have kept the old one.

The only other thing to have happened, actually on my way home from picking the bike up from above, was the glue failing on the heated grips. I opened up the old girl accelerated away, then suddenly lost power as the throttle closed slightly. Thankfully I wasn't far from home and gently got her back and applied loads more glue. Hopefully it won't happen again.

Valve Cover Gasket

1 week in and it seems that the leak fro the valve cover gasket has been stopped. So far I can find no indication of the leak coming back so fingers crossed that is solved. One little thing is to make sure that you have the bike on very level ground before checking your oil level. I thought the road just outside of my house was reasonably level, however I check last time by bringing it into the garage (defiantly level) and it showed that I had a sump full of oil. Outside on the road it was saying I was getting a little low.

Valve cover gasket

I have had a persistent leak on the no.2 cylinder valve cover. Spent the morning replacing it, surprisingly it went really well. The biggest problem was getting the cover to come off, but a bit of timber and a hammer soon got that off. One thing that I found out about it was that the Haynes Manual suggests that this can be done without removing the engine. Now this is technically true, however it fails to mention that you need to also remove the breather cap to be able to get it out from under the frame. Other then that it was reasonably easy to change.

Now comes the time to see if it really does stop this annoying leak.

Oh and my tickets for the NEC Motorbike show turned up this week, really looking forward to it now!

New Mirrors

I have always had problems with my right side mirror with it not holding its position. This didn't use to be a major problem, just and inconvenience of having to adjust it regularly. However recently it became harder and harder to get it to keep in place, and now refuses to give me any view other then the floor. Had it been the left side I wouldn't have worried so much, but as it was the right it makes overtaking much harder as I am unable to see what traffic is coming up behind me. So I brought some new ones from Busters. As the bike is merely to get me through my restricted period on my license I didn't want to have to spend a fortune replacing them. Hunting through Busters website turned up a pair for a mere £12. I was worried that they may be really poor quality but decided to give them a go.

As always with Busters the item was in my hands a short two days later (well with my neighbor two days later, I wasn't in when it was delivered!). Once I had them I got them installed on the bike. Unlike the ones that I have taken off, the new ones have a slight reduction in the reflected image. I guess, should they have been factory fitted, it would have the little sticker saying; "Warning, objects may appear smaller then they actually are!". This seems to be a good thing in reality as it shows less of my shoulder and more of the road around me. Have yet to take them out on a good old road trip but hopefully they will be as good, if not better, then the last pair!

Cleaning the bike

After riding in some wet weather, the bike had started to get a bit of a mud bath. Although it wasn't a sunny day, the weather held off and I was able to give the bike a good clean. As there were lots of minor scratches over the tank I also used my 3 part system I brought for my car (boo hiss!). It starts with a paint primer which is a bit like a T-cut, then a polish and finally a carbonara wax. You can see the result below, but the tank is siilky smooth and while not all of the scratches have been removed (new paint job really), it is far better now.

Adjusted idle speed

Got home from work on Monday and the engine was idling at almost 1.8k, although not the same problem as the 3k+ idle issue I still have. This was just the bike being warm and running too fast. So tweaked the idle speed adjuster down to the more appropriate speed of 1.2k rpm. Only problem was that I forgot and as it now idles slower the bike stalled because it wasn't up to running temperature. Oops!

Screen update

Just a little update. After having spent the weekend riding with my new screen, I had to re-adjust it after having moved my headlight up a bit. The adjustment means that the screen is a little more upright but provides a little more wind protection so I don't have to lean as far down to be fully protected.

Screen and Tyre

After having spent all week looking forward to the weekend when I am going for a nice ride to visit friends, I went to work on my bike yesterday and as I wheeled it out of the garage I saw a dreaded screw stuck in my rear tyre. Not what I want two days before I am due to do a 160mile trip! Thankfully the guys a Just Motorcycles have been able to fit me in to replace the rear tyre. I have also brought from them a cargo net costing a mear £1.50, bargin!

The screen turned up yesterday, considering that it was posted at 7:55pm it is impressive that it turned up this quickly, top marks for speed to Busters. Overall it was very easy to fit. Simply removing the bolts that secure the headlamp, fitting the two brackets supplied with the pack then connecting the screen to the brackets. Personally I think it finishes off the front of the bike, will find out tomorrow if it is actually any good. For £30 can't complain though!

Oil change isn't fun

Having brought my bike back in September I have not been sure when it last had its oil changed. So as I am looking at going to a friends house next weekend who lives a fair distance, which seems like a good precaution to change the oil. Read up on the net using the GS500 Wiki for guidance as well as my Haynes manual. The process is quite simple really, remove sump plug, empty the oil, open up the oil filter and drain. Replace the sump plug with a new washer, replace oil filter and gasket (remember to grease it), fill with oil.

The whole process went smoothly, except the oil catch tray I brought from Halfords is rubbish! When the oil came out it poured faster then I thought, it hit the grooves on the tray and spurted over the road. It is a six litre black gerry-can style cost about £4.50, avoid!

Another thing that was accomplished today was changing the lamps on the console to LEDs. Here is a picture, unfortunately I couldn't time getting the indicators, but it is as bright as the neutral lamp.