Performing Webslinger Mod

Tools needed:

•  Phillips #0, #1, #2
• Diagonal cutters
• 4mm Allen wrench

1. Cover tank with protective towel or blanket

 

2. Remove plastic chrome meter bezel using 4mm Allen wrench.  Remove 2 front, 2 rear 4mm button head bolts.  Careful not to lose the rear rubber grommets or front metal collars. 

3. Using long-reach Phillips #2 screwdriver, remove two truss head screws (one each side) connecting meter unit to handlebars.  Left side note: carefully remove zip tie affixing wire bundle to holder with diagonal cutters.

4. Remove the following six Phillips #1 screws. (Do not remove two recessed or wire bundle stay.)
1. Four around unit perimeter (one top, three bottom)
2. Two at upper corners
3. Black plastic housing will come off.  Careful not to lose the rubber seal between the two halves.

 

5. Pull off speedometer needle.

6. Remove two speedometer dial screws using a Phillips #0.  Pull off OEM dial face and set aside; it will not be reused.

7. Place custom dial face in unit, secure with the two Phillips #0 screws.  Be sure to remove any fingerprints or smudges before securing.

8. Reinsert needle and key ignition to “ON” position, allowing needle to sweep. Note where needle lands and readjust if necessary by removing and reinserting needle.

9. Reinstall the housing with the six Phillips #1 screws (4 perimeter, 2 corners). Be sure black rubber seal is properly seated.

10. Reinstall meter unit from underneath with the 2 truss head screws.

11. Reinstall plastic chrome meter bezel using 4mm Allen wrench.

12. Go for test ride, and enjoy!

Jack's O2 Mod

Installed in minutes today.  Can't wait to get out and try it!

This mod is intended to reduce the throttle surging of the 1300 at low speeds, particularly in conjunction with intake and exhaust modifications.  This "module" is a simple resistor that fools the oxygen sensor (located just before the catalytic converter on the stock muffler), into thinking that it is running a little more lean than reality.  Ideally, 14.7:1 A:F is what the ECU is expecting.  Jack's Mod makes the ECU think the output is leaner than 14.7:1. The ECU in turn tries to compensate for this "trick" and bumps up the amount of fuel, thus enriching the mix a bit to eliminate the surging and backfiring.

More details later.....

Custom Speedometer Dial

Thanks to Webslinger, Butterfly has a new set of wings!
Talk about professional - this guy worked with me on two dials, creating several different styles based off pics I sent of Butterfly's custom paint.  I contacted him late Friday night, Saturday we rallied emails back and forth on the design, and by Thursday it was installed (mailed from Seattle to Ohio)!  The new dial is made of high-temperature Lexan with a UV-resistant printed vinyl overlay.

Here's the how-to!

Roadhouse Slip-On Repack

Thanks to another forum member on the Delphi 1300 site, I bought a gently used Roadhouse slip-on. It sounds great, but there is a bit of a harshness that comes about these mufflers after a few thousand miles of use.  Read on to find out why your stock muffler never needed repacked, yet aftermarkets will.

There are two means to quiet the exhaust systems found on most street bikes today: restrictive and absorption mufflers. 

The stock muffler falls under the restrictive category.  It uses a steel baffle design, which causes disruption of the sound waves by redirecting them through a series of plates, or baffles.  These baffles are permanent, and unless corrosion is an issue, never really need replaced.  They restrict the amount of air flowing out and disrupt the air flow pattern.

In contrast, most aftermarket pipes, which are notably louder in volume, are absorption-type systems.  They do not have plates to redirect sound at all, so these are called "cores".  They use consumable products like fiberglass or stainless "steel wool" to soak up the waves, sometimes in conjunction with a perforated core. Over time, the packing burns and disintegrates and the bike sounds progressively louder. To return to the original sound, the core must be repacked with some heat-tolerant material.

There are no true "baffles" on the Roadhouse Slip-Ons.  If you hold the muffler to the light, you will notice the catalytic converter is gone, and you will be able to see straight through it. The standard core has perforations and indentations downward into the path of the outward airflow.  The quiet core also has indentations, but these protrude even further into the hollow center of the muffler, causing additional airflow disruption. Not quite as much as a baffle, but enough to prevent the straight-through tunneling effect of a solid core (think in comparison to straight pipes, Cherry Bombs, etc).

So, how do we quiet the Roadhouse Slip-On?  Two ways - either repack the standard core with more sound absorbing (yet flame-proof) material, or install the quiet core.

To remove the Slip-On's core, you will need to remove the slash tip and the retaining bolt.  The tip is removed with two bolts, one on the underside and the other on the tire-side.  The core's retaining bolt is just beside the tip underneath.  Now for the fun part of removing the core itself.  I found that a paint can opener (the type with a teardrop handle at one end and a little lip at the other) works well.  Hook the lip onto the first perforation you can grab, and give a gentle yank.  This may have been a little more difficult because of the prior use, but a pair of pliers wrapped in a towel should work on newer mufflers.

Once I removed the core, I noticed that about 1/3 of the original packing was pretty well scorched and disintegrated.  I unwrapped the fiberglass portion to reveal a small segment of stainless "steel wool" which was also scorched, but usable.

My local Ace Hardware had stove door rope (for wood burning and pellet stoves) which is high temperature, and pretty dense.  These come in 7' lengths, so I bought two packages.  I tied the ends of the rope to the first and last rows of perforations, and wrapped the rope taut over the steel wool.  Reinstall and ride.  This should be closer to the standard core. 

I also placed the original fiberglass mat back over the rope.

Roadhouse Slip-On

Kaaaapowwwww!

Very heavy sound to it, not tinny, no barking, no crackling.  Just a deep heavy thump. It took a while of "sweet persuasion" to get it to fit properly.  The OEM lead pipe heat shield was a little out of line for the muffler, but that could be due to "Butterfly" being lowered. Maybe. Doesn't matter because just about all slip-ons require some tweaking.  I guess if it just goes on in 15 minutes or less you are considered fortunate.

Read my Repacking for more info.....

J&M CB Radio

As an amature radio enthusiast, I felt at home with the installation of the J&M CB radio. 

I cannot emphasize enough the importance of the following:

• QUALITY antenna 
• QUALITY feedline
• SUFFICIENT ground

Honestly, I do not care for the J&M brand antenna - it does not cut the mustard in terms of build quality and grounding abilities. 

Antenna...
I would use a more sturdy Firestik or Wilson brand fiberglass antenna.  With the saddlebags installed, the 3' antenna works fine.  However, I do not recommend going with a shorty 2' stick because the radiation pattern will be blocked if you follow my mounting suggestion. Regardless of the style, opt for the adjustable tunable tip model (those with a screw top). Cut-to-tune antennae are more difficult because they are easy to over-shorten (cut down too far) and once this happens the antenna is about as good as garbage.

Feedline...
I know it is somewhat pricey per foot, but you can get away with a weaker ground plane that motorcycles provide by using higher quality, ultra low loss coaxial cable.  I opted for Times Microwave LMR400 Ultra Flex.  This is an outdoor cable that can take a pounding. The center conductor of Ultra Flex is stranded (not solid), so it can make the tight bends required for bike install without the concern of breaking the core. Any ham or electronics retailer should be able to locate this for you.  Also check Ebay for premade cables.

Grounding your setup...
Motorcycles pose a significant challenge for providing sufficient amount of grounding material because they are small, lightweight and often use plastics.  The V-Star Customs are particularly difficult because of the plastic rear fender.  Ideally, the following should be observed:

• Use 12ga wire as a minimum if a separate ground wire is used. This is the case of the J&M brand, and they skimp on the ground wire - I recommend a braided copper strap.
• Use as much coax feedline as you can during the install. 
• You MUST have at least 9 contiguous square feet of metallic grounding material.  The frame and fenders of most bikes can provide this if there are no insulating bushings to prevent the contiguous surface. If 9sq/ft are not directly available, install approx 17' of feedline (RG-8X is fine), and do not coil it.
• Try to minimize anything that blocks the radiating pattern of the antenna (luggage, flags, etc). The antenna is most efficient when it has a direct path to the recipient.

Mounting your antenna on a V-Star 950/1300 Tourers...

The 950 and 1300 Tourers provide an excellent antenna mounting point on their saddlebag mounts. A simple piece of angle iron can be cut and used as a bracket for attaching the antenna to the mount.

Your local truck stop carries a multitude of CB install and test equipment.  A few things you will want to pick up there are:

• a SWR meter (to measure efficiency so that you don't burn up your new transmitter - YES, it CAN easily happen if a solid ground is not achieved)
• the antenna
• a stud mount to connect the antenna to the angle iron bracket.

Here's another view with the saddlebag removed:

Installing the radio...

One tip is to loosen the tank to feed the coax cable and J&M connections through easier.  Make connections per J&M's instructions. You may also want to use dielectric grease between the male and female connections.  It is a non-conductive sealant to ward off moisture and corrosion at the connection points. The 1300 has a really handy neck cover where the bulk of the connections can be hidden.  The front is an Allen head bolt and the rear is a screw-type pop rivet.  Once both fasteners are removed, the neck cover comes off like a clam shell.

Finishing up the job....

This is where the SWR meter comes in handy.  Connect the meter between the antenna and radio.  Tune the radio to channel 10, on low power.  Key the mike and watch where the needle spikes.  Ideally, the SWR should be as close to 1 as possible. Anything up to 2.5 is acceptable, but the closer to 1, the better your buddies will hear your transmission.  Move down to channel 1 (the motorcyclist's channel) and again key the mike.  Observe where the needle spikes.

• If the SWR on channel 1 is higher than channel 10, then the system is short (physically and electrically). You will need to tune your antenna up by lengthening your tip. 
• If the SWR of channel 1 is lower than channel 10, then the system is long. You will need to tune your antenna down.  This is where an adjustable tip antenna is preferred.

If you have tuned your antenna to the longest setting and are still experiencing high SWR, then there is insufficient ground.  If you have observed all the standard rules of grounding, then you need to get creative with creating a ground.  You can add spring coils (again, found at truck stops), a heavier mounting stud, a longer (4') antenna, adding a metal plate behind the fender, etc.

Each time you test SWR, be sure you will be in a similar condition as when you will transmit.  For example, test in an open area away from walls or other conductors, install luggage or have a passenger sit on the seat, and always replace the protective dust cap - even THAT will change your SWR.

Here's a good source for CB info and troubleshooting: http://www.firestik.com/Tech_Docs.htm

Enjoy the ride!

  

73! ... oh, wait, wrong band. Uh, "Over and out good buddy!"

Rear Fender Rack

Another Star Genuine accessory that changes the look of the 1300.  To install, you need to remove the passenger seat and mounting hardware. 

• Remove the Driver's seat using the ignition key.
• Remove two hex head bolts facing forward under the passenger seat.
• Slide passenger seat forward to pull off.
• Remove the two hex bolts that attach the seat retainer to the fender.  
• Store or sell your passenger seat.  If you store it, use the original seat holes to save the mounting hardware.
• Use provided spacers for fender rack.
• Use blue Locktite and carefully tighten. 
• Enjoy!