Midrsv
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Everything posted by Midrsv
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Jerry, I have first hand experience with 2 Unigo trailers. Mine, which was one of the first 5 or so trailers built in Ohio and one that my riding buddy has which was bought a year later. There have been no problems with the fiberglass on either one. The lid design and hinge mechanism on my friends trailer is improved over mine. Mine is OK but the new one has a little smoother finish around the edges. I really don't see any load shifting at all. We use soft side bags and once things are in place they stay. The inside of the trailer is lined with a carpet type material so that helps things stay in place and pads the walls. See the photos. Dennis
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As has been mentioned, the tounge weight of the Unigo is heavier than 2 wheel trailers but it has not proven to be a problem. When loaded for a 12 day trip the tounge weight on my trailer was 37 lbs. While that may sound heavy it doesn't impact the handling. When we travel with the trailer the only things in the trunk and side bags are our rain gear and jackets which are light weight. I load the heavier items in the rear of the trailer with light weight items in the toward the front of the trailer. Since the trailer isn't very tall this keeps the weigh low and the the center of gravity much lower than if I had the bags and trunk stuffed. Riding 2 up it doesn't change the ride of the bike and I usually keep about 25 lbs of air in the rear shock. I think Unigo had some quality problems when they were made in New Zealand. In '06 Schoolhouse began building them in Ohio and they have made some subtle design improvements. I've had no problems with the trailer at all. I've travelled extensively with guys towing 2 wheel trailers and they work well too. But they all agree that the Unigo is handy at the end of the day when it rolls into the room with us. Dennis
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Squid's right, I do have a Unigo and I would buy it again. The trailer is small and for me that was a good thing. I ddin't want a trailer that could hold 400-500 lbs because I knew my wife would fill it up. I just don't want that much extra weight pushing me in a hard stop. The trailer fully loaded probalby on weighs about 150 lbs. I've taken it on two cross country trips of over 3500 miles each. It easily stores enough stuff for a 10 to 12 day trip. The first trip we just used luggage that we already had, small bags stuffed in the trailer. Things were tight. Last year I bought the Unigo bags that fit the trailer and they allowed much better space utilization and I would highly recommend them. As has been said, you really don't know the trailer is back there and I like that it follows the same track as the bike. So if you dodge a hole you don't have to worry about the trailer wheel hitting it. The only time you feel the trailer is when you take the bike off the side stand because you have to balance the trailer as well. A big bonus with the Unigo and one that I understimated was the ability to roll it into the hotel at night. That is especially helpful if you are staying somewhere for a few days. You don't have to leave it chained to a pole in the parking lot. There are better values in trailers I'll admit. However, for my use I decided to bite the bullet on this one because it enabled me to limit the load. Photos of my trailer can be found at http://www.traynorphoto.com/unigo/ Some of the photos are large and will take some time to load because I was trying to show some detail. Let me know if you have any further questions. Dennis
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I'm interested. I have been looking at that idea as well but lack the skills to make it happen. Could a field be added to the user profiles here to allow people to add their coordinates? This is a great idea. Dennis
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My father passed away peacefully on Wed morning with all of his immediate family by his side. He truly was a good man. One I was proud to have as my father. Throughout my life he was always there to help, encourage and even criticise both my brother and I. He lived a very full life of 83 years of which 62 were while married to my mother. He retired from the Lexington KY police dept with 29 years of service. Fortunately he was able to enjoy retirement for 25 years. Attached is his photo taken in about 1974. He will be missed. Dennis
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I'll answer for my wife. She has and Olympia Air Glide. It is a mesh jacket with a zip out waterproof liner. It's good from about 45 degrees to 85 degrees. http://store.bobsbmw.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=2123 http://www.olympiamotosports.com/ladiesairglide/ladiesairglide.htm DT
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I've always had trouble finding a good riding jacket that fit me well. Being on the heavy side when I find a jacket that fits at the waist the arms hang down to my knees. The elbow pads become forearm pads. Last weekend I went to the Atlanta MC show for the specific purpose of looking for a jacket and I found one that works. It is a Fieldsheer Aqua Sport. http://www.fieldsheer.com/2008site/IE/product/AquasSportsJacket.htm I spoke with the Fieldsheer rep and they make jackets in 2 cuts. One for cut narrower for trim riders and one that is more full cut for us middle age wide bodies. This is the first jacket I've found with pads that is comfortable with all of the pads where they are supposed to be. This is my first exposure to Fieldsheer. It looks like a well made jacket but I had never heard of the brand before. If this works as good as I expect I want to get a warm weather jacket also. They have a mesh jacket with a zip out liner that has the same cut. http://www.fieldsheer.com/2008site/IE/product/TourTempTXJacket.htm Seems like the only brands the local dealers around me carry are Joe Rocket and River Road which never work for me. I just wanted to pass this along in case any other riders have the same problem finding jacket with a little fuller cut. DT
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I like the HJC CL33. It has an attached flip up shield. I find them to be comfortable and one saved my head last year when it broke a windshield. DT
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I recently bought the air/hydraulic lift from HF just before Christmas. While it appears to be cheaply made from China it does seem to work OK. It took me a couple of uses to get the hang of getting the bike tied down to suit me. I found that the wheel chock/clamp doesn't work if you pull all the way to the front stop. I put a 4x4 block in front of the stop and with that the clamp hits the tire properly. I leave the clamp tightened so that it takes a bit of effort to push it into the stop. I then get off very carefully and the bike is held until I can secure it with straps. As for the lift actuator it works fine. The air cylinder just actuates pump for the hydraulic cylinder to raise the lift. Not real fast but certainly more convenient than pumping with you foot. Overall I'm statisfied with the unit. If I ran a shop and needed to use it daily I would probably buy something more substantial. But for occasional use this one is fine. DT
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I was at the show this weekend also. Unfortunately we couldn't stick around to meet at 2:00. We toured the show on Saturday and then this morning I stopped back by as the show opened to pick up a jacket (Fieldsheer) that I looked at on Saturday. I thought all of the chrome on the grey Venture was a bit over the top. Overall a pretty good show. DT
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Kit, Congrats on the new bike. Last Oct I looked at the wings again to replace my '04 RSV. I have 4 riding buddies with GL1800s and they were really lobbying for me to jump to the Honda. I went to the dealer and looked. I rode my friend's bike and like you mentioned, it had more power and features. But after just a few minutes my legs were cramping from the peg position. I just couldn't make my peace with the comfort of the bike. So I went back to an '07. Maybe when I replace these knees I'll try one again. Does your wing have the built in GPS? Hope not since you just got your Zumo. Wish you the best of luck with Wing. DT
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Sorry it has taken me so long to get back to you guys. I did try the gloves on a 30 minute ride at about 30 degrees. My fingers and hands stayed warm. They seem to warm the back of your hand and I couldn't say I felt any heat in the fingers. They don't get hot, just a bit warm. Each glove takes 4 AA batteries. I don't know how they would be on a really long ride yet. But for the money, they are OK. I wouldn't spend much more on them. DT
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Too late, I just purchased them online just before checking this... DT
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I plan on attending the show this weekend. Should get there in the early afternoon on Saturday. I'm not sure if we'll go back to the show on Sunday or not but I'm sure that I won't be there late enough to meet everyone at 2:00 on Sunday. DT
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Is the show worthwhile? How long does it take to go through it? Just trying to determine if it is worth the 6 hr drive to get there. DT
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A non-weekend date would work best for me since I'll be travelling on the weekends. DT
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I hope to be there for a couple of days. I'm not sure what days they will be. I should be able to adjust to meet up with as many of you as possible. DT
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The best solution that I have found is a Zumo 550 GPS with MP3, bluetooth and XM capabilities. In addition to a very good gps, with a microphone cable and a connection to the bike's audio aux input you get MP3 to both rider and passenger and when my cell phone rings it will sound in the headset and a caller ID will show on the GPS display. You can choose to answer or ignore the call. On my system the passenger can hear the phone conversation but can not speak. Others hear have stated that their passenger can talk on the phone also. The 550 is a little pricey but I think it is worth the extra money. You can also spend a little more and add the XM adapter. DT
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I would have to vote for Progressive. I totaled my bike in Sept. Had the wreck on a Thursday and had a settlement check on the following Tuesday which was very fair. Actually better than fair. The adjuster that I worked with was very prompt and courteous. When it is time to renew my auto policies I plan to check them out for auto insurance. DT
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Kit, I just checked the box my 550 came in and the unlock code was on a yellow sheet that came in the package. It is a small printed page and the code was on the bottom of the sheet next to a bar code. DT
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Kit, the unit comes with all of the maps preloaded so you don't need to install the software if all you want to do is use the GPS only. The DVD is if you want to install the maps to computer in order to create routes and then load them to the GPS unit. The code is an anti-piracy feature Garmin uses and it should be found on the packaging somewhere. DT
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Revocation of your license is one thing. That is consistent punishment (for bikes) for the crime. However, forfeiture of the bike is really wrong. I can break the law on a $200 beater or $25,000 tour bike. That causes a big discrepancy in punishment when you have to forfeit you bike. I didn't read anything in there about getting it back. Dennis
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A friend just sent this to me: http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Documents/loaddoc.aspx?FileName=_h0137__.doc&DocumentType=Bill&BillNumber=0137&Session=2008 Seems the Florida legislature wants to confiscate your bike and revoke your motorcycle license for 10 years if you are cited for reckless driving or caught speeding 30 or more mph over the limit. Do they also do this for cage drivers? While I think there is little risk of me going 30 over, I still don't like the wording of this. Maybe I'll just stay out of Florida. DT
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I'm like Kit, change tires well before they get to the wear bars. I'll never win a high mileage tire contest. I would be changing that one. DT
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Pitbull, I have a similar story regarding how I got back on a bike after having been off of one for 15 years or so. In June of 2004, the day before my birthday I was at work and a coworker came and got me and told me I was needed in the parking lot because someone cut a corner too close and had hit my Tahoe. I was pissed. How could that happen because there was so much room. So everyone followed me to the parking lot expecting to see a good a** kickin'. When I got outside I looked toward my truck and it wasn't there. In it's place was a new Vstar 1100 with a banner on it. As I walked out somewhat puzzled my wife came out from behind a car with a big grin on her face and I knew then what was going on. My wife had gone to the dealership and made the deal on the bike and then worked with a neighbor to have him ride it over and swap it for my truck. She had bought it about 3 weeks earlier and had it stored in another neighbors garage. Other than her getting a very bad deal from the dealer it was a very good day. I think I'll keep her. DT
