Dr. Overkill

I've had both a Warrior and a 400EX for my wife. The warrior was a PIG. It weighs like 25 or 50 lbs more than the 400EX, has a harsher ride, and felt gutless. The only thing the Warrior had that the EX doesn't is reverse, but she never used it anyway. The EX is still somewhat gutless IMO, but it's a lot more affordable than a newer 450. _d

Enter "shift pro" in the search. You'll get a few threads. I'm probably going to install one some day. _d

I wish you the best of luck, but I'm a lil' skeptical. I've read about these giveaways at malls (usually they're giving away a car, though). They're just a means of getting a list of names, addresses, phone numbers, which they they sell to marketing firms. Since the national Do Not Call list came online, they had to get more creative about it, but they do have ways of getting your consent to sell your info. The phone call could have been the equivalent of replying to the "please remove me" link in spam email--all it does is confirm that they got a live address. Good luck anyway, though! _dennis

I had a Garmin GPS II+ for a few years, with their handlebar mount: http://members.cox.net/dr.overkill/banshee5.JPG I had to get the middle of my Ricky Stator handlebar clamp machined out to fit it: http://members.cox.net/dr.overkill/banshee4.JPG And then I also had to shave some material off the bottom side of the clamp because it was too thick to fit under the bar. But it was great having it mounted there because it was protected by the crossbar--no worries in a rollover. But I *did* have vibration problems. The batteries would wear little rings in each other and lose continuity. I solved that by using the 12v car lighter adapter and hard wiring it to the 12v battery I had on the bike. I kept the lighter adapter plug so I could still use the GPS in the car (though I never did). _dennis

I've used both Skate IIs and Sand Star rears, found them comparable in the SOTP test. Now, for front tires, I loooooooove the Sand Stars with the dual ribs. They blow away single-rib fronts. At least, when the front end is on the ground _dennis

Gang, I've been seeing various posts here and in other threads and I never see anyone recommend pilots over 30. My buddy (long time MXer) helped me jet my 'shee (and his...he got the same pipes). I have Pro Circuit pipes and single K&N/ProFlow, otherwise stock. We ended up using 32.5 pilot jets. Is that just way off the scale? I'm running 310 mains (he said the plugs looked tolerable with 300s but that it smelled lean when riding behind me ) It also has an Alba needle, but I didn't write down which clip we put it on. Slide gap was .043". I also didn't write down how many turns out the airscrews were set. But does a 32.5 sound reasonable? My bike runs great, but it does smoke like a mo-fo when it's cold, something my older bike didn't do nearly as much. Thanks! _dennis

I've been looking at this too. $69 plus $8 shipping...the shipping seems a bit expensive for that little thing. The manufacturer's site (http://www.shiftpro.com/shift-pro_new_001.htm) lists it at $69.95 but doesn't list their shipping. Might be a couple bux cheaper to go with them if their shipping is more reasonable (they're just up in Corona, a few zip codes to the north of me ) _dennis

My Clymer manual says "do not overfill it." It emphasizes the "not" so I'd be a little wary. Not that Clymer is the ultimate authority, but still... _dennis

Gang, I changed the gear oil in my 'shee today. I'm currently using Maxima MTL 80w. Based on what several folks have said here, I plan to switch to BelRay Gear Saver 85w, so I picked up a couple liters of it to have on hand. Anyhow, I filled up the bike with the last of my Maxima, fired it up for a couple minutes, let it set for a couple more, then checked the level, and it was low. Not even to the bottom of the dipstick. I put an even 1500cc in it, too. What's up with that?!? So I ended up having to pour in, dunno, maybe another 50-75cc of the BelRay to get it up a smidge onto the dipstick. I figured that this is probably ok, because whenever you switch oils, there's always going to be some of the old stuff that didn't drain out, so there's always a little mixing. Couldn't hurt, right? But these two oils look really different from one another: the Maxima looking more like engine oil and the BelRay more like a thick ATF. Any worries about this? Regardless, next time I change it out, it will probably be 99% BelRay and 1% leftover Maxima in the case that didn't drain out. Comments? _dennis

...or you have them metallic-ceramic coated: http://members.cox.net/dr.overkill/banshee1.JPG Zero blue _dennis

Yep, I had one. It had a 100w output and a 160w output. He had a lot of problems with them (I got lucky) and the manufacturer refused to take his advice on fixing it, so he stopped carrying them and switched to the 200w single-output model. _d

Changes in which direction? Do the reeds tend to richen or lean the system? Thanks! _d

Do any of these reed-related mods require rejetting? _dennis

I got mine from Chaparral. _d

I had 6 years on my last Banshee, never had a lick of trouble with the TORS. I'd leave it alone, but if you have to dig into the carbs for another reason some day, remove it then. _d

What's the max you'd want to advance the timing on an internally stock (just pipes, aibox, jetted) engine--if you still want to be able to run on 91 octane? And would that setting be pushing it on hot (90+F) trips? _dennis

I loved having a GPS receiver on my old bike: http://members.cox.net/dr.overkill/banshee5.JPG http://members.cox.net/dr.overkill/banshee4.JPG It was a Garmin GPS II+. The GPS V is, I think, the current version. I used their handlebar mount, with a little bit of trimming to narrow the underside of the mount enough to fit under the bar with it clamped down. I can't wait to put another GPS receiver on my current bike, but it's a ways off. I highly recommend using a vibration-isolating mount, but if you don't (like in my case above) definitely hardwire it to a 12v battery on the bike. The vibration causes the AA batteries to rotate against each other and for some reason they will cut out sometimes, turning off the unit. No fun having to repeatedly turn it back on (which requires some time to locate the sats each time). At least that's what has happened to me, as well as some others I've read about. Once I wired mine into the bike's battery, it never shut down on me again. Besides, then you can run it with the backlighting on all the time at night without worrying about draining the AA batteries I think it draws about 0.75 watts max. _dennis

That's what I put on my bike. Seems be getting more negatives than positives on this board, but at least my bike will be unique--if a bit fugly in some people's eyes--out at Glamis I'm curious about the sticker graphics on the bike you posted pix of. I didn't see any offered by Maier when I bought mine, so I wonder if they're new or if someone adapted them from another fender application? _dennis

My previous bike had Bills pipes. Had 'em Jet Hot coated: http://members.cox.net/dr.overkill/banshee1.JPG http://members.cox.net/dr.overkill/banshee3.JPG The bike came from Alba with the pipes and their jetting, and I loved it. My current bike had Pro Circuits on it, and it was a total dog until a buddy of mine helped me re-jet it. I don't know how the previous owner tolerated it--it had no bottom or mid range whatsoever, sounded like it was running cold all the time except at wide-open throttle. Now that it's tuned better, it still doesn't have quite the mid-range that my bike had with the Bills, but it's much much better. I was told that the Pro Circuit pipes are simiilar to FMF Fatties, too, so I don't know who to believe, because I wouldn't say that the Bills were comparable to the Pro Circuits (as would be implied by the Bills=FMF=ProCircuit logic). The Bills pipes tuck up better than my Pro Circuits, too, so the Bills don't get as much melted boot junk on them. _dennis

Gang, While nosing around Alba's site, I saw a few brackets for relocating the ignition key under the seat ( http://alba.buyol.com/Group/JKF69LL86TTLU4VY.htm ). I moved my keyswitch on my old bike to the plastic by the gas tank ( http://members.cox.net/dr.overkill/banshee5.JPG ). IIRC, the wires were *just* long enough. So do these aftermarket relocators come with a pigtail to extend the wires, or can one unweave the existing wires wherever they snake around so that it reaches this, or do you have to cut-n-splice 'em yourself? Just wondering, since there's an $11 price gap between a couple of those that Alba is selling and I thought maybe the more expensive one came with an extension (probably just paying for a name and nifty machining thanx, _dennis

I saw a bunch on the wall at Alba yesterday. They don't list one specifically for the Banshee on their website ( http://alba.buyol.com/Group/YYMCLYHIUVI12P3E.htm ) but if you give them a call, I'm sure they'll hook you up 858/486-4380. _dennis

Koo, thanx guys! _d

Gang, I didn't realize that I'd need a flywheel holder tool last night when I removed the wheel from my bike. I managed to get it, though, buzzing off the nut with an impact wrench. So my question is how to hold the flywheel when I reinstall it? Will I have to kick down $ for the holder tool or is there a way to rig it that won't damage anything? I think the torque spec for the nut was only like 56 ft-lb, so it's not a lot of torque on it. I would be leery of installing it with the impact wrench for fear of over-torquing it. thanks! _dennis

It's only $9.99 at Alba (although I don't know what their shipping will run). http://alba.buyol.com/Item/DS001001.htm _dennis

Gang, What tools are needed to pull the flywheel? Will an impact wrench and a generic wheel puller do, or does it require a special wheel puller or other tools? thanks, _dennis