Bike update
Well, the guys at the bike shop looked at my bike, and as it turned out, “something complicated and electrical” was a little bit of an exaggeration. It turned out that some wire in the middle of the engine somewhere had gotten shaken loose. Putting it back and screwing it in tight made the bike go perfectly well, with nothing else they could find wrong. I could have done that myself, even, if only I’d had the tools and time to take all the fairing off the bike, someplace to put it when I was working, and the ability to puzzle it all back together again afterwards without bring in terror of my bike spontaneously disassembling itself on the expressway. I think some things I’ll just leave to the pros.
Of course tonight it’s snowing, meaning no way in hell am I going to be driving it home in that, and the bike shop’s closed tomorrow (because bike shops close on Wednesdays in Japan), so I won’t get it back until Thursday. Sad face.
Maybe I should get myself a naked bike so I can at least see the engine when things go wrong.
My bike is naked. To change my oil there is only one piece of plastic to be removed, near the drain plug. That’s very convenient.
The electrical work required by my additions have mostly involved the wiring harnesses accessible under the seat, and the bits which run up to the handle bar, which I replaced after a crash very slightly bent it.
On only one occasion did I have to remove one of the miniature fairings, but it was just a couple allen bolts and the wiring bits to my front turn signals (which are embedded in each fairing).
Like most naked bikes, the wind hits you in the chest and under the chin pretty hard. I am considering an after-market deflector.