I finally made it to my favorite motorcycle accessory shop recently, Discount Motorcycle Parts in Eugene.
Steve and Annette have run the shop for over 15 years and are helpful, knowledgeable and always friendly. We wander in there to look around, try stuff on and Annette will check up on us to see if we have any questions and then leaves us alone, but is always available when needed. I think that is why I like the shop so much, I am not jumped on as soon as I walk in the door and we are not followed or badgered around the store and out the door like other shops. I don't alway purchase something when I visit but I do more often than not. They stock a wide variety of accessories, pretty much everything you'd need and they will order whatever they don't stock which arrives within days.
As a bonus, there is a great bagel shop a few doors down in the same strip, The Daily Bagel. This is a great little shop and whom I assume is the owner makes it a point to greet you when you walk in the door and his service is above and beyond. I haven't had a chance to chat with him as he is busy, but I will make a point to at least get his name next time I'm in. Great sandwiches, service and staff.
Sure beats the fast food joints.
Anyway, the cold, dark months of fall and winter have me looking for ways to extend or improve the riding season. I wrote a little while back about riding in the rain and how I managed with this challenge but I never overcame the visibility issue. Until now. I talked to Steve about the Pinlock visor system to eliminate fogging and found out that a universal kit it is unavailable but he recommended the FogCity pro Shield instead.
While Steve was actually showing me how to install it, a customer came in with his visor in hand to buy another FogCity insert to replace his old one. I asked him how he liked it and I interrupted myself with "duh, you're in here to buy another one".
I got home, installed it and couldn't wait to try it the next morning. I can't believe how well it worked, I can breathe again! I used to wear glasses behind my visor because I had to ride with my visor open for venting, but this only created another surface to fog up. I tossed the glasses in my saddlebags and now just use the visor, closed. I do open it to vent while stopped at traffic lights as condensation will form inside the visor but it quickly clears up when on the move again. The insert creates a pocket of air between the visor and insert and creates a minor halo effect with oncoming lights but not nearly as bad as fogging does. For less than $20 bucks, I highly recommend it.
The next problem to deal with was lighting, I can't see anything in the dark and rain with just the stock headlight, so driving lights were in order. I researched lighting and found positive reviews on the Optronics QH-7CC Competition Series Round Driving Lights and I didn't want to spend a small fortune on lighting that didn't mount or wouldn't work, so to ebay I went.
These lights are also available through JCWhitney but CarParts accepts Paypal, are a wee bit cheaper and are quicker to ship.
These lights are great, I've mounted them under my headlight and they light up the road very well.
I haven't had oncoming cars flash their lights at me for being too bright, but the guys at work tell me they are bright. I wired them direct to the distribution block and relay for my horn and heated grips without a switch, but I may have to install a courtesy switch for group rides.
I'll do that when I wire my new LED signal/running lights this week. More reviews and plugs to come.
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ROFL , wow , I just finished putting the EXACT same mini / fog lights on my Speedmaster in the exact same mount configuration ( as I wanted more "see me" factor up front ). Did it as I was replacing my HEadlight( SEE:"PAin in the Ass"> half the wiring harness is crammed into that headlight bucket ! ) I wired mine direct to the headlight plug on "brights" , hopefully they aren't gonna blow a fuse with the extra draw when I flash brights . I want no extra switches , but I also dislike the light bar side-by-side for extra lighting , disturbs the "look" of the bike . Oh btw , if you decide to change your headlight , most mounting post bolts do NOT fit the Triumph yoke hole . I had to dremel mine out and THEN tap it for the bolt size to get the new headlight mount ON the yoke ...
ReplyDeleteEMail is fyrpryde@yahoo.com if you want pics of my bike / projects . ( just recieved saddlebags - hard- black gloss finish ) now I just need ghost mounts ...
I was wondering about the light bar altering the look of the bike too, but with the saddlebags mounted it looks 'heavy' in the backside. I think a light bar would balance it out a bit, wait until you get your ghost brackets and bags mounted and you'll see what I mean. I don't like the exposed ends of the Triumph light bar but Kuryakyn makes a billet aluminum one that is nice, but I can't remember where I saw it.
ReplyDeleteI am always interested in pics.
Yes , kuryakn has good stuff , (proud of it tho) , I bought ISO pegs to replace my previous owner outdated Kuryakyn's , since I had the K's mounting I stayed with them , $40 thru Ebay . Also have a nice little Slipstreamer windshield 'Spitfire'-Not tall, enuff to push the bugs and wind to the top of my helmet instead of my face (I'm 6'2") A little buffetting but less annoying by far . The hard bags I got are pretty narrow (less internal space than I wanted) but I also don't want 'fat' bags , so I'll live with them . The temp here swings SO wildly that I must have a place for gloves , reflective vest , Winter pants (it may not be Oregon but it gets SO windy here) I've rode from Las Vegas to Roseburg ( about 25 yrs ago ) pretty country (Esp Mt Shasta), if you havene't been thru the redwood forest go see it. Nicer rides there , flat here ( NW Tx , near OK border -yes border , not state line lol). Secede!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the reminder. I used to buy a lot of things from them, but haven't worked in Eugene for two and a half years. The store and the bagel shop will make it worth making the trip!
ReplyDeleteOk , Took the bike out for a ride to the local HArley shoppe (closest Triumph dealer is in Dallas). After chatting about possible local MC runs , I go to start and leave - mild clicking - no starter ,,,, hmm ( also , no headlight). K let's see, I have to be home in 15 min to switch to car for picking up son ... "Hey fellas , can I get a push start ?" I groan internally as I ask , since this says that Triumphs are unreliable . Next morning troubleshooting shows headlight fuse blown , Makes sense , I kind of expected it with the mini fog-lights piggy backed on the headlight . But , the starter has two separate fuses for it , therefore the headlight fuse should NOT disable the starter relay .... but it did . Replace the fuse and rewire the fog lights to an empty slot on the fuse block (3 hours work). Used a black rocker switch on that carb cover over the battery for on/off ( almost looks OEM ). Saddlebags Installed , Tall OEM backrest installed , seat recovered & searching for Corbin backrest for rider.
ReplyDeleteThe anti-fog visor is a must. I can't believe what a difference it made.
ReplyDeleteMy pin-lock anti-fog visor, balaclava, and warm gloves have made winter riding bearable. Now that the gravel on the roads seems to have been mostly swept up, I need to get the bike back out...