Bob Hartman

I'm one of the very few who've had a bad experience with a PC545, which apparently lost a cell and wouldn't charge over 10.8V after just over two years. It can happen. I replaced it with a Sigma STX15L-BS ($40ish at the time) which lasted just over 10 years without issue. This means leaving it in the bike in an uninsulated shed during CT winters and finding it not needing a charge in spring. It's finally got the end of its tether. Now that it's knocking on November, and they are out of stock everywhere, I might wait til spring to get another. I've thought about LifePO4 but, at the price ($47 when they come back in stock), I can trade the extra weight for the savings.

The odometer on my ‘02 v11 Le Mans gave up at 21,450 miles. Thinking about going inside to replace the plastic gears so looking for either a replacement speedo or a damaged one that was still counting miles. Scary fiddling with bezels...

Pan was off just long enough to clean it. I dislike dropping the pan but it's the best way to look for issues. If I ever find the filter door nut and filter wrench bought before our last move they will be pressed into service every other change.

Update: All sorted. Not sure why. Checked the old filter, which still had its seal. I thought that was a good suggestion. Drained the oil and dropped the pan again. The new UFI filter looked fine; tight to spec and, once removed, had its seal. Nothing was stuck around where it meets the block. Nothing was blocking the oil pickup or return. But the filter was empty - it had not filled during my little 1/4 mile test ride. Not sure how this could be the filter's fault. Installed a shiny, blue ST3614 - but I filled it with 20w-50 first. Put everything else back the same way I did yesterday. Started the bike and the oil light went out almost before it came on. Went for a storming great ride around Guilford, Higganum, Haddam and Chester. No lights, no problems, no clue. All I can think of is there was a bubble in the system that wasn't allowing oil to flow - at least during my little test. Other than catastrophic pump failure (only $24K miles on this bike), I haven't heard of another reason why this would happen. I will now listen to old wives (just don't tell mine). Bob

Thanks docc, A UFI filter came out after 6K miles (two changes) and I replaced it with one bought at the same time, most likely same batch so the hope is it's not an issue . I install them two-hands tight after lubricating the gasket with engine oil. It's unlikely it spun itself off in a few seconds. My concern is whether (suddenly) it's an issue not to have primed the filter by filling it with oil. Bob

This is a first for me. Drained the oil, dropped the pan - including removal of oil line ('02 Le Mans), removed UFI filter, replaced with identical UFI filter, replaced cleaned pan, line and drain plug, filled with 3.5l of 20W-50. Checked dipstick. No leaks anywhere. All good. 1/4 mile test run. Noticed at the end of the driveway the red light on the dash and thought it was generator. Nope, oil light. Bright red. I did NOT fill the new filter with oil which, truthfully, I've never done before. Before finishing with this oil change, I changed the air filter and battery - so tank was off. Could I have disturbed an electrical connection somewhere? Thanks, Bob

I think the Scura had the light flywheel assembly. Chuck, I should have said turns back and forth on the white wheel, the sort of thing you do dialing in. Replaced the manifold rubbers and cleaned the butterflies and throttle bodies, too. Still, raises the question of whether an injector needs replacing. Only 22,500 miles, but 16 years old...

I’d noticed some new vibration in the handlebars (02 Le Mans, 22.5k mi) and hoped new tires would fix it. That wasn’t the case. When I pull the clutch in at speed and everything smooths out; images in the mirrors become perfect. So it’s engine or transmission related. Adjusted the valves, only one was .001” out. Installed new plugs and adjusted the throttle bodies using vacuum gauges. Surprised to see they needed a few turns on the white knob. This helped at low revs, especially when pulling away. But still the tingling, especially after highway miles. Lubed the shaft splines when changing the tires. I see people getting good results with bar weights but would like to address this at source, given it’s relatively new. Anything I’m overlooking?

My '02 Le Mans doesn't happen to have holes in the buttons, but not a worry now that I'm aware they need attention. Never occurred to me I'd done anything to shift the disc. The misleading surprise was that while riding some diagnostic miles there was no pulsing or any indication anything was amiss other than the handle going to 10% before applying brakes. I've had bikes with floating discs that rattled at idle. That may not be the norm here, but might be a good thing.

Apologies for letting this go; other stuff kept me out of the garage til now. The answer, of course, was a disc. The mystery was everything worked perfectly, the wheel came off for a new tire (installed by me on the Harbor Freight gizmo), the calipers got cleaned in situ, the wheel went back on and the brakes developed issues. No other symptoms, noise, vibration, etc., So the focus was on the brakes and hydraulics. Turns out that one of the discs evidently got leaned on, the outer disc shifted and a floater button or two were too tight to let it return to position. Rotation of the wheel revealed a slight bulge not immediately visible to the naked eye. Application of cleaning lubricant and the rubber mallet got everything to let go and return to shape. Thanks to those who replied, much appreciated!

Can you try that with the front wheel off the ground? If the lever gets pressure again, see if the wheel will turn while the lever has pressure. If so, you probably have a blocked line. I did try that. The wheel is immovable while off the ground and lever has pressure. Release lever, rotate wheel and pressure drops. No leaks anywhere, should have said.

2002 Le Mans with 23K miles. While the front wheel was off for a new tire I decided to clean the calipers. Still connected, pads in, I brought a bucket of water with a little dishwashing liquid up to them and scrubbed with a nylon bristled dish brush. No drama. How much water would they get during a ride in a rainstorm, right? Once reinstalled they pumped right up but as soon as the bike moved the brake lever went to the bar. I bled them, same thing. Bungied the lever back overnight, same thing. Bled the M/C, same thing. The lever gets pressure but loses it the moment the wheel turns. So - removed the calipers, emptied the system, removed the pucks one at a time - all looked and felt fine, although a couple had feint striations of lighter color I couldn't feel. Buckets were perfectly clean. Seals felt fine to my finger and didn't show any visible damage. Reassembled everything using brake fluid as lube. Same thing: Lever pumps up and holds until the bike moves. The odd symptom is the lever pumps up to perfect - and stays like that - until the wheel goes a few rotations. Then all bets are off. I've done loads of brakes in decades if riding without problem so I can't call this one. Anyone know what's going on?

I've been following and enjoying this thread. Other than feeling badly for your aggravation, I have learned a great deal from your accounts and the great information from others. Thanks! One thing: I've noticed you hadn't yet changed the plugs. Despite the good idle, it just seems like one of those easy things worth looking into. At the least, you might swap the plugs around to see if the symptoms change. Got very lucky doing this first on a two-valve Ducati once and can't forget it!

Unscrewed (!) the cap - not pried - and installed the Ram mount. I'm having a difficult time getting it to bulge inside the tube to grab tight. This is simply because the mount mechanism, through which the bolt passes, is threaded. This limits the amount of take-up by the bolt; it just running out of turns by catching tight in the top mount. The solution is to drill out the top piece, near as I can tell - but will do more testing tomorrow.