What Did You Do to Your RX3 Today?

rjmorel · 06-07-2016, 04:06 PM

today with all the bright sun I thought I would take off my instrument cover and see about taking off the darkened mast that makes it hard to see lights in day light. It's the black thingy below the redline side of the tach. Easy peasy to do. 100% better to see. What where you thinking Zong?
1)unbolt instrument cluster, unhook cable connection
2)unscrew 6 screws that hold instrument face onto speedo body
3) take a razor blade or sharp knife and break off the flash on the 2 pins that hold mask on. Don't break pins if you want to ever reinstall the mask.
4) remove mask and keep it in your owner's manual for future what ever.
5)reassemble in reverse order.

vickytulla · 07-11-2018, 08:03 AM

Excellent.... now I know what I would be doing tonight... when My super half is asleep

Quote:

Originally Posted by rjmorel

Easy peasy to do. 100% better to see. What where you thinking Zong?

sqwert · 07-11-2018, 10:41 PM

300 kit from NZbrakelathe finally broken in. Back to Mobil 1. Very nice. Nice to have more low and mid range power. Top end is about the same on flat, a couple faster on up hills, a couple slower on down hills. Speed is a lot more consistent overall. Paved winding roads keep it in 6th until curves so tight 30mph is too fast. Just a fraction of the downshifting there used to be. Of course, if you want to make time, downshifting is now an option, no longer a requirement.

CSC's 19-inch front wheel and bigger rotor now mounted. Speedometer is still optimistic. Considering a taller tire, perhaps a 110/90-19, 3.50-19, or 4.00-19. Taller tire lessens rake so adds highway stability. Tightened up the stem a bit more, seems to chase the wobbles away. New Kenda adventure style tires on both ends. Set of 6-ply Kenda cruiser tires in stock sizes on the way. Supposed to have good traction and wear. About 99% of my miles are pavement these days.

New bigger rotor for front brake working well, takes about twice the squeeze to make work at low speeds when cold, half the squeeze works well at speed. Typical of metallic pads.

CSC billet, skid plate, and original design center stand installed. Center stand is useless without help. CSC now has a redesigned center stand that is supposed to work a lot better.

CSC LED bulb installed. Odd pattern, gap between low on ground too close, high in trees, not on road. Tiny bit brighter than SYLVANIA 9003/H4 SilverStar Ultra Halogen but pattern is not full like halogen bulbs. Going back to a pair of 4x6 headlights with both high/low with J. W. Speaker military spec bulbs or active motorcycle bulbs with auto turn illumination after court fight with dumb cop.

Over 10,000 miles (16,000 kilometers) on OEM chain and sprockets, about half a mark until out of slot set is so worn. Did get enough miles out of the set to figure out 14/44 tooth counts are still a bit high for my low speed maneuvering so going with 14/46 this time. New chain and sprockets going on tomorrow as soon as new tires arrive. Would have done chain and sprockets today but car needed brakes bled and decided to shredded alternator belt, 97F (36C) and I got hot and needed a shower. Bad.

Been a busy vacation.

Working_ZS · 07-12-2018, 02:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sqwert

CSC billet, skid plate, and original design center stand installed. Center stand is useless without help. CSC now has a redesigned center stand that is supposed to work a lot better.

CSC LED bulb installed. Odd pattern, gap between low on ground too close, high in trees, not on road. Tiny bit brighter than SYLVANIA 9003/H4 SilverStar Ultra Halogen but pattern is not full like halogen bulbs. Going back to a pair of 4x6 headlights with both high/low with J. W. Speaker military spec bulbs or active motorcycle bulbs with auto turn illumination after court fight with dumb cop.

Been a busy vacation.

Regarding the center stand, yes, the redesigned one works much better. It's one piece and allows you to put the bike up on it without assistance,
just like every other center stand out there. It does have interference with the side stand, though, so you have to put the side stand down first and then the lower the center stand. Raising requires the reverse, center stand up first and then the side stand.

For the H4 headlight bulb, there is a much better alternative to CSC's offering available: GENSSI's Elite model. It is available off of eBay, in both 2 packs for cars and singles for motorcycles. It features LED emitters that match the size and location of the filaments on halogen H4 bulbs as well as having a low beam cutoff, so it functions correctly with the RX3's headlight reflector. At least it does with the newer, late 2015 and on US / Canada headlight assemblies. I can't say anything for the early 2015 models, so you might need to upgrade yours if that is what you have in order to reap the benefits of the GENSSI bulb. I can say that it puts out a lot more lumens than the stock OEM 35 watt H4, in the proper light dispersal pattern, and does not overheat and melt the headlight reflector since it uses the same 35 watts as the stock bulb. I consider the bike unsuitable for night riding with the OEM bulb unless you have added auxiliary lights or installed this GENSSI unit.

Vacations - more work than work, in my opinion.

sqwert · 07-13-2018, 12:15 AM

Working_ZS, Thanks for the heads up on the centerstand.

You are correct the stock 35 watt H4 is not safe. However, the GENSSI Elite conversions are not legal. That is why I rigged up a pair of military specification LEDs from J. W. Speaker. Not cheap, but they light well and meet DOT specs. I had to take those off because a police officer decided they are illegal. They are 100% legal right down to the "DOT" mark cast into the bullet proof lens. See, I intend to allow this 19-year old with a badge and a pistol for which he can't buy bullets to make a fool of himself in the courtroom. My brother-in-law, who happens to be a way higher up in law enforcement, printed off the legal codes for me to present to the judge to make my case. These headlights meet new NHTSA regulations that haven't even gone into effect, yet.

Two speaker headlights alone light roads better than the Harley Daylighter LED 3 light system without blinding oncoming drivers. Once I get my Speakers back on the bike I have 2 more to mount on the low bars as auxiliary lights.

I am thinking about these next: http://www.jwspeaker.com/products/ad...91-adaptive-2/ They are super expensive so might be a while.

sqwert · 07-14-2018, 12:46 AM

No problem swapping out the countershaft sprocket.

No problem hacksawing the old, worn chain.

Pulled the wheel and went after the wheel sprocket. First, on the floor with a ratchet. Nope. Then reassembled the bike and just turned over the engine in first. Still in gear, had my grandson stand on the pedal. Nope. Disassembled the wheel again, clamped the old sprocket in an antique iron vice on a solid table. Impact socket and breaker bar, about 300 pounds/foot (400+n/m). Nope.

Broke out the torch, applied heat, melted the plastic in the nuts. Nope.

Half inch hand impact and 2.5 pound,(1.2kg) sledge hammer. 3 or 4 smart whacks on each nut and they came off easily with a ratchet.

6-point holes for bolt heads are now 12-point holes. I have plenty of Permatex Red for reassembly, Having to purchase another sprocket mount and hardware before the new sprocket wears out due to sloppy initial assembly pisses me off.

Never got around to changing the tire. Too hot, too pissed. Seems like every project I start on this bike is cursed.

sqwert · 07-14-2018, 05:26 PM

Wheel sprocket and chain fell together like they were supposed to. Noticed rear tire had a slow leak.

Anyone else consistently having problems changing tubes on the RX3? Seems to me I'm working 10 times harder than normal to get tires on and off, punctured 2 of last 3 tubes.

I did notice the parts of the rim from the vertical part of the bead to the vertical part that drops to the spokes wider by far than any other rim I have. The part of the rim where the spoke nuts are is very narrow. Put the tire bead over the spokes and can not lever the tire bead across the tire because not enough tire bead to stretch over the rim.

Working 4-6 hours in 100+F heat with 98% humidity and no breeze is a form of cruel and unusual punishment, isn't it? Neighbor will be here soon. He has an extra tube for his KLR, same size as RX3.

06-07-2016, 04:06 PM	#1
rjmorel Join Date: May 2007 Location: Warshington Posts: 928	Blinded by the lights today with all the bright sun I thought I would take off my instrument cover and see about taking off the darkened mast that makes it hard to see lights in day light. It's the black thingy below the redline side of the tach. Easy peasy to do. 100% better to see. What where you thinking Zong? 1)unbolt instrument cluster, unhook cable connection 2)unscrew 6 screws that hold instrument face onto speedo body 3) take a razor blade or sharp knife and break off the flash on the 2 pins that hold mask on. Don't break pins if you want to ever reinstall the mask. 4) remove mask and keep it in your owner's manual for future what ever. 5)reassemble in reverse order. __________________ Live Zong, and Prosper
	5

07-11-2018, 10:41 PM	#3
sqwert Join Date: Jun 2017 Posts: 382	300 kit from NZbrakelathe finally broken in. Back to Mobil 1. Very nice. Nice to have more low and mid range power. Top end is about the same on flat, a couple faster on up hills, a couple slower on down hills. Speed is a lot more consistent overall. Paved winding roads keep it in 6th until curves so tight 30mph is too fast. Just a fraction of the downshifting there used to be. Of course, if you want to make time, downshifting is now an option, no longer a requirement. CSC's 19-inch front wheel and bigger rotor now mounted. Speedometer is still optimistic. Considering a taller tire, perhaps a 110/90-19, 3.50-19, or 4.00-19. Taller tire lessens rake so adds highway stability. Tightened up the stem a bit more, seems to chase the wobbles away. New Kenda adventure style tires on both ends. Set of 6-ply Kenda cruiser tires in stock sizes on the way. Supposed to have good traction and wear. About 99% of my miles are pavement these days. New bigger rotor for front brake working well, takes about twice the squeeze to make work at low speeds when cold, half the squeeze works well at speed. Typical of metallic pads. CSC billet, skid plate, and original design center stand installed. Center stand is useless without help. CSC now has a redesigned center stand that is supposed to work a lot better. CSC LED bulb installed. Odd pattern, gap between low on ground too close, high in trees, not on road. Tiny bit brighter than SYLVANIA 9003/H4 SilverStar Ultra Halogen but pattern is not full like halogen bulbs. Going back to a pair of 4x6 headlights with both high/low with J. W. Speaker military spec bulbs or active motorcycle bulbs with auto turn illumination after court fight with dumb cop. Over 10,000 miles (16,000 kilometers) on OEM chain and sprockets, about half a mark until out of slot set is so worn. Did get enough miles out of the set to figure out 14/44 tooth counts are still a bit high for my low speed maneuvering so going with 14/46 this time. New chain and sprockets going on tomorrow as soon as new tires arrive. Would have done chain and sprockets today but car needed brakes bled and decided to shredded alternator belt, 97F (36C) and I got hot and needed a shower. Bad. Been a busy vacation.
	2

07-13-2018, 12:15 AM	#5
sqwert Join Date: Jun 2017 Posts: 382	Working_ZS, Thanks for the heads up on the centerstand. You are correct the stock 35 watt H4 is not safe. However, the GENSSI Elite conversions are not legal. That is why I rigged up a pair of military specification LEDs from J. W. Speaker. Not cheap, but they light well and meet DOT specs. I had to take those off because a police officer decided they are illegal. They are 100% legal right down to the "DOT" mark cast into the bullet proof lens. See, I intend to allow this 19-year old with a badge and a pistol for which he can't buy bullets to make a fool of himself in the courtroom. My brother-in-law, who happens to be a way higher up in law enforcement, printed off the legal codes for me to present to the judge to make my case. These headlights meet new NHTSA regulations that haven't even gone into effect, yet. Two speaker headlights alone light roads better than the Harley Daylighter LED 3 light system without blinding oncoming drivers. Once I get my Speakers back on the bike I have 2 more to mount on the low bars as auxiliary lights. I am thinking about these next: http://www.jwspeaker.com/products/ad...91-adaptive-2/ They are super expensive so might be a while.
	0

07-14-2018, 12:46 AM	#6
sqwert Join Date: Jun 2017 Posts: 382	No problem swapping out the countershaft sprocket. No problem hacksawing the old, worn chain. Pulled the wheel and went after the wheel sprocket. First, on the floor with a ratchet. Nope. Then reassembled the bike and just turned over the engine in first. Still in gear, had my grandson stand on the pedal. Nope. Disassembled the wheel again, clamped the old sprocket in an antique iron vice on a solid table. Impact socket and breaker bar, about 300 pounds/foot (400+n/m). Nope. Broke out the torch, applied heat, melted the plastic in the nuts. Nope. Half inch hand impact and 2.5 pound,(1.2kg) sledge hammer. 3 or 4 smart whacks on each nut and they came off easily with a ratchet. 6-point holes for bolt heads are now 12-point holes. I have plenty of Permatex Red for reassembly, Having to purchase another sprocket mount and hardware before the new sprocket wears out due to sloppy initial assembly pisses me off. Never got around to changing the tire. Too hot, too pissed. Seems like every project I start on this bike is cursed.
	0

07-14-2018, 05:26 PM	#7
sqwert Join Date: Jun 2017 Posts: 382	Wheel sprocket and chain fell together like they were supposed to. Noticed rear tire had a slow leak. Anyone else consistently having problems changing tubes on the RX3? Seems to me I'm working 10 times harder than normal to get tires on and off, punctured 2 of last 3 tubes. I did notice the parts of the rim from the vertical part of the bead to the vertical part that drops to the spokes wider by far than any other rim I have. The part of the rim where the spoke nuts are is very narrow. Put the tire bead over the spokes and can not lever the tire bead across the tire because not enough tire bead to stretch over the rim. Working 4-6 hours in 100+F heat with 98% humidity and no breeze is a form of cruel and unusual punishment, isn't it? Neighbor will be here soon. He has an extra tube for his KLR, same size as RX3.
	0