Kawasaki Concours Forum
The C10, aka Kawasaki Concours - The Original => The Bike - C10 => Topic started by: Engraverwilliam on March 25, 2015, 12:42:46 PM
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Getting the valves and carbs done. brakes and a whole laundry list of everything else front to back top to bottom.
I am leaving her in VERY capable hands!
This place freaken great.
They told me when I scheduled my appointment that I will not recognize her (performance wise) when I get her back.
They told me it will feel like a whole new bike.
https://www.facebook.com/HUDSONMOTORCYCLES/photos_stream (https://www.facebook.com/HUDSONMOTORCYCLES/photos_stream)
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Congratulation's.
When you get her back,, come ride with us!
Ride safe, Ted
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Congrats.
But that must be costing you enough to buy a whole new 2001 Concoursa and some!
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600 bucks + parts not too bad with all that they are doing 8)
Considering I intended to do this with my last bike but neglected it instead...then tried to save some pennies and screwed up the carbs pretty bad, stripped the valve cover bolts, tore the gasket....(my new montra "I am not a motorcycle mechanic")
This is a very nice motorcycle that I intend on keeping around for some time.
So the money investment is worth it.
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Great!
Too many people think: "This bike was cheap, so I'll cheap out on maintenance as well!"
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Good attitude. Big picture, maintenance is cheap. I've seen many cars that were in outstanding condition at 250K miles because the owners were on top of their maintenance.
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I am curious, what are they doing to the carbs?
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$600 for full service, including valve adjustment and carb service? That's a remarkable bargain. As I recall, just a full service with valve adjustment runs upwards of $400.
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as far as what they are doing to the carbs. (I am not a motorcycle mechanic) I have to trust that they will do whatever is needed. They stand by thier work so.....that is to say, that when I pulled up this morning, the guy walked up and said Whoa that bike is running very rich! I said yeah the 2nd carb is hemoraging a little. He said to me...A little? I can smell it from here! No worries we will take care of all that....
edit: meant to say the bike was running rich...
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I just ask because one of the things that really needs to be done is ultrasonic cleaning to really get out the gunk. At least IMO. I am not sure they will take the time to do that.
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Engraverwilliam, let us know how it feels to get the full service :finger_fing11:
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Good maintenance is worth good money. Unfortunately, even if they do a perfect job on the carbs, you'll still have OEM carbs that are just nice and clean. You won't be getting the important mods that SISF has come up with that cure some of the OEM problems, no 2-minute mod, no bowl drains tubes, etc. Those mods alone are worth pulling the carbs and sending them to SISF rather than having the dealer just clean and reinstall the OEM units, I think. I did those mods myself, so the labor cost me nothing but a couple of beers. If that's not possible for you, consider sending them to Steve.
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wow. 600 for all that work. that seems like a great deal.
how many miles do you have on your 2002 Conc?
let us know how she runs afterwards.
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Sparrow has 63k new tires and a new battery. I am real surprised that she ran so well even with the leaky carb and the terrible gas miliage. She peals my face off. I am excited to see how she drives when she is running the way she is supposed too. I will find out next week. I will also post the list of work done. I am out of town at the moment.
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The thing about finding good service is how rare it's been for many of us. If I knew a good local mechanic, I doubt I'd pull another screw.
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Engraverwilliam, I want to wish you good luck on this undertaking and I hope it works out for you. If not, remember what Nosmo had to say about SISF.
JD
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Good maintenance is worth good money. Unfortunately, even if they do a perfect job on the carbs, you'll still have OEM carbs that are just nice and clean. You won't be getting the important mods that SISF has come up with that cure some of the OEM problems, no 2-minute mod, no bowl drains tubes, etc. Those mods alone are worth pulling the carbs and sending them to SISF rather than having the dealer just clean and reinstall the OEM units, I think. I did those mods myself, so the labor cost me nothing but a couple of beers. If that's not possible for you, consider sending them to Steve.
:goodpost:
Engraverwilliam That is very good advice
You need overflow tubes. These are very important. Please look into this.
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:goodpost:
Engraverwilliam That is very good advice
You need overflow tubes. These are very important. Please look into this.
+2
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Can you link me the info about the tubes. the other mods too. so I may look into it.
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Here is Steve's web site. Many threads on his work on this forum and COG forum.
https://sites.google.com/site/shoodabenengineering/home
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Thanks for that!
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Don't thank gPink. :o :o He just spent some more of your money. But, it will be money well spent.
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I prefer the term...'enabler'.
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I prefer the term...'enabler'.
:thumbs: :thumbs:
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Ok so I read the website above. With the tubes on the bottom of the carbs, isn't that the same as just attaching a tube to the little nipple and draining the float bowls periodically but cracking open the Allan screw? I mean this method DOES make it look a bit easier. With these tubes attached, do you you leave it as an open system? Or are those brass tubes not normally inside the bowls? As I said before I love riding but fixing isn't my strongest point.
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The tubes are overflow tubes. They do not come on these carbs. If your petcock develops a leak it can back into the cylinders and when you try to start it you can create some serious damage to the engine. With these tubes in, instead of overflowing into the cylinders it goes out the tubes thereby saving your engine.
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The overflow tubes in the carbs are nothing new. They used to be installed in practically all motorcycle carbs (at least all the ones I've seen). Yes, installing them does make it a "more open air system". But, your bowls are already vented to either a charcoal canister or the atmosphere depending on whether or not it's a California bike. They are not for periodic draining and you would hope they are never needed. But, as Tim said, if your vacuum actuated petcock does fail along with a float bowl needle failure they will prevent the fuel level from getting high enough in the carb bowls that it drains into the cylinders. Recommend you do a search on "Hydrolock" and decide if they are worth the expense.
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Got a call yesterday that they found a small leak in the coolant reservoir. They gave it a temp fix for me and ordered a new one (per my request $50) I will be taking it back next Sat for the replacement. So far it is only 8 am they do not open until 9am hehe. I will update this post once I get her home and let you know the differences I feel in riding her post Shop.
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The small leak was probably caused by too long of screws being installed in the lower fairing.
Be sure to tell them to use ONLY the correct length screws. in the bottom holes
Ride safe, Ted
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The small leak was probably caused by too long of screws being installed in the lower fairing.
Be sure to tell them to use ONLY the correct length screws. in the bottom holes
Ride safe, Ted
It's pretty easy when you are removing the fairing screws to get these mixed up. Not all of them are the same length. I have a flat box I use with a bunch of holes punched in one side, in a 'matching pattern' to where the bolts come off of the fairing, which I insert the screws in as I remove them, to help me make sure that I put the screws back in the same hole I removed them from.
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where are these little screws? front edge parallel to the ground of perpendicular to the ground?
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Got to Hudson. Walked over to where my bike was after paying for my service. Stuck the key in and touched the starter. She sounds like a brand new bike! No more gas smell or hesitation on the throttle. My wife even walked over and said 'Wow she sounds a lot better!" The ride home confirmed that the work was top notch. I used to be vibrated to hell untill sixth gear now all is smooth as silk. with only the "normal" buz of the connie. My wife even bought me a gremlin bell!
(https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xfa1/t31.0-8/11079505_10202614281797649_7159429388189489196_o.jpg)
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Congrats. Bike nice too.
Now what all did you get done?
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(http://i.imgur.com/LAfzFNH.jpg)
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looks like a thorough check.
was most of the bike within specs or did you have to do lots of work?
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Reservoir needed fixing where the hose connects. They said everything else was fine and just re-specked as it was all put back together. Valves and carbs adjusted accordingly. Looks like they might have ultrasounded the carbs they are shiny again and as I said before, the thing really purrs now,.
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where are these little screws? front edge parallel to the ground of perpendicular to the ground?
Perpendicular to the ground. The offending screws that can harm the coolant reservoir are the two that go up from the bottom of the belly pan, into the steel cross-brace that supports the reservoir. If you put in ones that are too long, they will extend through the nutplates and wear through the bottom of the reservoir.
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So what was the final bill? $128.66 was just parts, correct? The last service I had done at a dealership, they charged me $400 and lied about changing the plugs. Sure sounds like you have a good dealership. They do exist, if rare.
That being said, pretty sure they didn't "Clean, Adjust and lube drive chain"...
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Yeah parts. They are not a dealership. Thast is to say, ... they do have a few bikes for sale but they are repair, performance and gear focused. The showroom including bikes is rather small compared to the massive workshop in the back. BTW I was smart, I put a sharpie mark on my plugs and battery and a liquid paper dot on my valve gasket per a suggestion I saw on another site once. Plugs are new gasket was changed battery is still my original. Just a small and easy thing to do to track the honesty of a repair shop.
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Don't think mechanics are stupid. I used to see that crap then change the parts and put the marks back on the new parts. I had NO problem pulling the new plugs or whatever out to show the jerk that owned the vehicle that the parts had in fact been changed when they complained. If you have such a distrust for an establishment, do the work yourself.
Just my .02
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Oh. I don't have those screws. long gone. I figure there are 6 holding the belly fairing. 2 more won't make a difference.
Perpendicular to the ground. The offending screws that can harm the coolant reservoir are the two that go up from the bottom of the belly pan, into the steel cross-brace that supports the reservoir. If you put in ones that are too long, they will extend through the nutplates and wear through the bottom of the reservoir.
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Engraverwilliam, I am glad everything worked out for you. Sounds like you have found a good shop. Safe riding. JD
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Don't think mechanics are stupid. I used to see that crap then change the parts and put the marks back on the new parts. I had NO problem pulling the new plugs or whatever out to show the jerk that owned the vehicle that the parts had in fact been changed when they complained. If you have such a distrust for an establishment, do the work yourself.
Just my .02
Considering it is the first time he has used this shop I think it reasonable and prudent to check out their work on your bike. I don't have a problem with checking it out period as I always go by the motto, "Trust but Verify".
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Exactly! This shop is awesome and has a great rep. But I was leaving the bike for a week while out of town to be worked on. When I went to pick up the bike they verified and pointed out and had me take it for a test to be sure I was a happy rider.
After riding it on my commute this morning I can confirm a 100% difference in the quality of the ride. They did great. No regrets on the cash spent.
Thanks all for partisipating in my little discussion here.