Blake and Matt's KLR Adventure

T Minus 3 days and counting

Like Blake, my bike prep is taking longer than expected. I didn't really take into account that the first part of August was going to get wiped out by me having to be at the fair for 11 days. Then while setting up my booth for the fair I hurt my back and that took me out of working on the bike. Many trips to the chiropractor and a day off from work finally allowed me to get to work on the final mods.

Before my trip down to see Blake in July I had installed my heated handgrips but didn't get the electrical connections done since I was waiting for my fuse block to arrive. I chose to upgrade the KLR's standard fuse block to a Centech FB-4 for two reasons. First and foremost, I wanted to consolidate all of the fuses in one location and be able to add two new circuits. Second, the automotive type fuses that the Centech block uses are more readily available and more durable.

I was hoping to install the fuse block down where the sidestand safety switch used to reside (which was removed because they have a habit of failing). Unfortunately I couldn't come up with a way to install it there. Now that I found some right angle connectors it might be possible so after the trip I might try again. In the meantime it got installed where the old one was, under the seat. Not exactly accessible, since on my bike getting to them means I have to remove both panniers, two side covers and the seat.
By bending the leads of the fuse block at an angle, I was just able to get it to fit in the space provided.

I then ran one power lead up to the fairing where it connected to a relay that uses the driving light leads that are normally unused on US models. This provides a way to cut power to the grips, and the accessory outlets when the ignition is turned off so you don't accidently drain the battery.

I used a project box from Radio Shack to house the switch and two 12v outlets. One outlet is your standard automotive cigarette lighter type available from any auto parts store or from Radio Shack. This one is for hooking up my iPod. The second one is for my heated vest, and is commonly known as a BMW style outlet, although I got mine at the local John Deere dealer and is P/N AL25073 (more appropriate for the tractor like KLR). Since my Triumph Sprint ST has this type of outlet as standard equipment, that's what I have on my heated vest and my Battery Tender. Since the switched outlet won't work for a Battery Tender, I installed a second John Deere outlet down by where the sidestand switch was removed. That one is always hot.

I got everything put together but when I tried to get the cover on the project box, one of the leads stuck out about 1/8" too much and I just couldn't get the cover on. So I ripped it all apart, made another trip to Radio Shack for a bigger box, and started over. This also changed how I had planned to mount it. The original box fit great with just double sided foam tape. But the bigger one hit the fairing mounted that way, so being pressed for time I decided to try using Bondo to cement it to the speedometer housing. This allowed me to fill in the gaps between the straight box and the sculpted housing. Then to cover the green Bondo I finished it off with a coating of black caulking. Not exactly the glamourous way to do it, but hey, this is KLR we're talking about. As long as it holds up to off road pounding, I don't really care what it looks like.

The power comes from the relay and then splits off to the switch and the two outlets. The grounds from the grips were joined with the grounds from the two outlets, and then a ground wire was run to the top bolt of the radiator bracket on the right side. (By the way, for power outlets, the center pole is the positive side)

Buttoning everything up, I fired it up and idled it in the garage for a bit just to see if the grips warmed up. Like Blake I was very happy everything appeared to work and nothing smoked or fried. I'll be taking it out tonight for it's first road test, and I'll probably have use for those heated grips.

Less Than a Week to Go!

There's less than a week until we leave, and we're both scrambling like mad to finish our bike prep and get the rest of our gear squared away. This is pretty bad, as it's good practice to finish at least a full week, if not two, in advance of a trip. This gives you ample time to shake out any of the bugs in the modifications you've made, repairing any issues in the comfort of your home garage. Matt's leaving Friday since he has further to go to the rendezvous point; I leave Saturday.

I finished all the wiring on my bike (Kimpex heated grips with Heat-Troller, Signal Dynamics voltage LED) very late on Sunday. Amazingly enough, everything seems to work correctly—no blown fuses or smoking accessories. Earlier in the day I had mounted the new TKC-80 tires, and while re-installing the wheels I noticed that the rear wheel didn't spin freely any longer. The new tire, while taller, didn't seem to have any clearance issues, and I double-checked the spacers on both sides of the wheel, making sure that they were in place. It wasn't until the next day that I thought to double-check the brake pads. Sure enough, the inside pad was a bit crooked in the carrier. I set it straight and the problem was gone.

The front, however, also manifested a problem. While replacing the front caliper, one of the bolts that mounts the caliper adapter to the fork leg stripped out. (Recall that I have an oversized front rotor on my bike.) I called CycleBrakes, who sold me the rotor kit, and was told 1) they don't normally sell the adapter separately, and 2) the person who could possibly authorize such a sale is on vacation until Wednesday. Harumph.

I've taken a couple of rides with the bolt as it is and so far have had no problems. The bolt will turn in either direction, but it won't tighten nor loosen. At this point I'm probably going to just put a blob of RTV over the head of the bolt to keep it from falling out and call it good.

Gettin' Tire'd

My current tires, Michelin Anakees, have served me well for nearly 10,000 miles—amazing mileage that really helps justify their premium pricing. However, they're worn down to about 2 mm of tread depth and I doubt that they'd get me out to Arrowhead Motorsports (about 1,500 miles) without showing cord. So, I needed to buy some new tires before the start of the trip.

The Continental TKC-80s seem to be a good compromise tire: Good compounding to allow for good grip in all conditions on the pavement, and a knobby tread design to help bite into the surface off-road. Some folks get fairly limited mileage out of them (three or four thousand miles), but even that limited mileage will see me through the entire trip without worry.

I'll re-use the standard tubes that I'm using with the Anakees, as they have Ride-On sealant in them. Of course, I'll be bringing along spare tubes, in this case Fly Racing Heavy Duty, but I'll see how well the standard tubes can last.