Treats for my Fat Bob

ianran

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Been playing on my Fat Bob for just over 4000 miles, a knee op in March and Covid has kept my miles down since I got it in October.

I added slip-ons, a rack and a screen some while ago and had been contemplating completing a Stage 1 on it.

One thing I hated from day one was the original Dunlop tyres, so Got round to putting some Avon's on the Fat Bob yesterday. Chalk and cheese! Original Dunlop's are really not suited to English roads.

Also popped on a pair of £23 mirrors that had longer stems, was amazed that they still had "Objects in the Rear View etc." on them. I can now see the road behind me and not just my elbows.

While I was at it I fitted a Vance & Hines FP3, made a noticeable seat of the pants difference, I quickened up the throttle on it while I was playing. I will leave it for a couple of tanks of petrol then set it on Auto-tune to see what happens.

Finally, got round to curing the stiff gear change. Are Harley that tight that they cannot afford a squirt of grease on the gear lever shaft? A bit of clean up with wet and dry and a dab of grease and hey presto slicker than the day I picked it up!
To be fair BMW are the same, if you have a 1200 /1250 GS I would recommend you dismantle the gear lever and silicone grease it up, will transform your gear changes.
 
Remember to run your Avon's a few PSI over stock..... i normally go 4-5psi
 
twizzle said:
Remember to run your Avon's a few PSI over stock..... i normally go 4-5psi
Click to expand...

Didnt know that, got them fitted at Northants Vtwin they do seem to know there stuff although I got told off as its dirty :blast
 
Gave the bike a bit of a run into Wales on Saturday @280 miles. FP3 seems to have cleaned up the running and made it a much nicer bike to be on

Tyres are a revelation, the bike already handled well for a Harley but now, whilst its no GSXR1000, it does change direction and corner significantly better than before.
We rode around the Elan Valley Reservoir, given the drizzly conditions and the state of the road it behaved admirably.

I have one small caveat, when slowing down, as it drops I get a bit of a tank slapper at slow speed, holding bars clears it, just seems to be a bit more "sensitive" !
May have to mess with the air pressure to see if it makes a difference.
 
twizzle said:
Remember to run your Avon's a few PSI over stock..... i normally go 4-5psi
Click to expand...

I run mine at 36 psi front and 42 psi rear. And they are a total game changer for this bike!
 
adm1 said:
I run mine at 36 psi front and 42 psi rear. And they are a total game changer for this bike!
Click to expand...

Totally agree, they work well. Did have a couple of slippy metal man hole cover moments, I think they coat them in Teflon in Wales!

The other game changer was my £23 mirrors, didn't look any worse than the Harley ones and meant I could see anyone receding in to the distance behind me :green gri
 
ianran said:
Gave the bike a bit of a run into Wales on Saturday @280 miles. FP3 seems to have cleaned up the running and made it a much nicer bike to be on

Tyres are a revelation, the bike already handled well for a Harley but now, whilst its no GSXR1000, it does change direction and corner significantly better than before.
We rode around the Elan Valley Reservoir, given the drizzly conditions and the state of the road it behaved admirably.

I have one small caveat, when slowing down, as it drops I get a bit of a tank slapper at slow speed, holding bars clears it, just seems to be a bit more "sensitive" !
May have to mess with the air pressure to see if it makes a difference.
Click to expand...

Try adjusting the shock might be a tad to soft ..yeah I got brand new V rod mirrors on.mine a big difference tho still can't see till I'm doing 40 mph + and at 70 there still..
 
ianran said:
One thing I hated from day one was the original Dunlop tyres, so Got round to putting some Avon's on the Fat Bob yesterday. Chalk and cheese! Original Dunlop's are really not suited to English roads.
Click to expand...

Which Avon's did you put on it? I find the same with the Dunlops, very squirmy over manhole covers,white lines etc.:eek:
 
Harley Dunlops are made of concrete and should be binned ASAP - sadly they last longer then a wet weekend in January...

I use Avon Cobras on the Glide - very good they are too....
 
twizzle said:
Harley Dunlops are made of concrete and should be binned ASAP - sadly they last longer then a wet weekend in January...

I use Avon Cobras on the Glide - very good they are too....
Click to expand...

Held out for 4000 miles and then got sick of them, much nicer ride now.
 
Added an FP3 to go with my S&S slip ons.
Just completed an auto tune and found it makes it a more pleasanter ride.
Still a bit of vibes at 80 plus mph ( when on a private road of course) but not as bad as it was.
Does pull cleaner through the Rev range now.
 
RichieS said:
What’s an FP3? Looking to pull the trigger on a Low Rider S very soon
Click to expand...

It’s a tuning box from V&H, let’s you do various things to the ecu to help with better running and some other stuff.....google is your friend.

Lots of people say they are poo, and an equal amount have found them to work well as long as you’re not turning your bike into a fare breathing monster.
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
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