Went and got the new rack....dealer was useless and an embarrassment to the product that he is the agent for here in the most populous state of Australia. I will call the importer/Aus Agent during the week. Anyway, as they had no interest in fitting the $2K purchase at their "workshop" (almost glad now they didn't) I left the old rack on to collect the new one. Loaded it up alone (again they could not be bothered helping) and strapped it on for the 1.5hrs drive through Friday peak "hour" traffic in Sydney..... I was happy that it was still safely attached when I got home.... .....not sure when I will get it fitted, need to get the old one off and sold (or stored up in the garage ceiling till it is sold) and then this is a two person job to adjust and fit.
Recent purchase, 09 DR650 in like new shape, under 5k miles. Changed out the tires, fuel tank, seat, add skid plate and hand guards so far. Great machine for running around out here!
125cc Hondas worked for me. For a while. Monkey then GROM. 100MPG and a lot fun everywhere except interstates. Enough power to enjoy it but not enough to qet stupid. Awesome if you have a short commute. More than five-ten miles and you trade for a bigger bike. Thats when it gets serious. And dangerous. I miss my GROM every day but it wasn't a good fit for my commute and lifestyle. DR400 and 650s are great dailys and allow you to weave through the overlanders/influencers/drone flyers and get to neat places without much hassle. Royal Enfield Himalayan is fun. The next Gen, bigger version, will be more fun as long as they keep the weight down. A tarp and a small backpack and you are good for a week of adventures.
Ha ha, I can appreciate that! I waited until I was nearly 40 and my kids were mostly raised before I purchased my first real commuter, still had problems and had to trade my 1200 for a 250 to keep my driving record clean! 650 singles are my sweet spot, enough to carry camping gear and keep up with traffic.... not enough to go straight to jail and get bike impounded HA ha ha!
I have had a bike since I was 4....still have a pair, The Zombie Express (XT600e) and an FJ1200. Living in Sydney made me realise how much I don't like riding among the idiots here.
Picked up the fenders to start the Denali front end swap in my K2500. Also found a second battery tray and some other little parts I've been after.
Did more work on the Pilot the other day with my buddy. First project was fixing a vapor barrier that got messed up fixing a window modulator change a few months back. first was the rear springs and shocks on day one. Hardest part was getting the isolators and bump stops. Actually had to get those from Honda. Man those were $$$ day 2 was front strut assemblies The ride is so much better now. It’s hard to believe how you don’t realize the change over a long time as it degrades. The change sure shows up when you fix it though!
Finally got around to getting that new rack on the roof !!! Clean shaven with the old one hung in the roof of the garage and advertised for sale !! Legs put together yesterday before the storms hit... Big Box... Inside.... Legs on.... Ready to lift.... Mrs Andy is just on five feet tall..... needless to say we needed a platform to assist !! Test drive....
I have a set of plates and quick release pins to mount a set of Maxtrax boards across the rack however I need to modify them a little (add an additional set of holes) so I can have the boards sitting across the front of the rack. Unfortunately I have run out of time to get that job done before I hit the road tomorrow for a week away.
The one issue I have with the K9 Rack is that it is the least common of the best flat/modular racks sold here. This means that aftermarket suppliers cater less for it than they do for the other three comparable brands. Now I knew his going it so I can’t really complain. Eezi-Awn (maker) have a product for each of my applications so far (shovel holders and MaxTrax base) but they are less appealing than some of the local players and frankly, in comparison, a little clunky. Anyway…..I love my Fiskars shovel so it was going to get attached. The brackets for this needed drilling for the 6mm hardware that the K9 Rack uses on the outside bars (most others use 8mm). I found a set that I figured would be close and they have worked out just fine…. I will in daily driving add a couple of cable ties around the handle and back to the brackets more to deter the random idiot in the car park from detaching it than concern over how secure the clamps are, also – better safe than sorry. Now as @Jeff Randall had already told me I could not consider myself a man at all if I didn't have at least one set of recovery boards hung off this thing I needed to act but the MaxTrax bases took a little more work, well care, I really wanted them to go across the rack and many want to run along. I got a set I hoped would have suitable mounting holes (as you can see there are many options) but none worked. I have actually mounted these facing inward as for other applications they should be pointing to the sides. When I was trying to find a way for these to work I found that the would perfectly centre the boards across the rack with about 1mm clearance for the nuts holding the pins to the brackets. Those brackets would need some new holes to align with the tracks, and it worked out at least... And with the boards mounted..... And finally, scattered a bunch of tie-down rings about (they can obviously be moved anywhere along the tracks to work for the specific needs)...
Just back from the workshop with a new set of 300-700kg rated parabolic springs in the back, quick snap..... .... I was not going to replace the shackles and pins as it already had upgraded jobbies that can be greased however they were stuffed so in went new ones as well. Besides the softer ride (with no loss of carrying capacity of lift) I also saved 60kgs in weight between these and the old up-rated set.
Very nice! I need to study up on Parabolic springs. But I'm actually looking to sell off the Nissan next year and get a Jeep so I'll be back to coils.
…. That’s like saying “I am going on a bender and will catch The Clap” ……starts well but then you botch the landing !
I'm tired of the lacking aftermarket support for the Nissans and complete lack of a solid front axle. I want to go harder than Nissan or Broyota will go.
