Puttin' On My Lowers

Back in Illinois it seemed like every weekend I had a project or two that needed done or had been on the back burner for too long. With a big Victorian, a garage full of old cars and a bike, it seemed I was always doing something. That was OK with me usually, except when I had to paint the house which was a royal pain, time-consuming, dangerous and tiring.

It changed when I moved here: no old cars, apartments don't need mowing,  painting or the such.  It is with relish, then when confronted with something manly to do on a weekend.   It didn't take long, but it worked out well.

Wind buffeting on a bike can tire you out.  Riding a motorcycle takes about three times more mental calculating than driving a car.  That is tiring enough without the added chore of having to fight the wind.  I had a set of lowers on my old Kawi and liked not only the form but also the function.  In searching Yamaha forums and biking sites I discovered Buck's Lowers.   He is an elderly fellow who makes them out in his garage and his lowers are regarded as the best around.  Expensive but well worth the price.  I ordered a set and they arrived in a box with enough wrapping to take care of most of my Christmas presents coming up.

Instructions were included as well as a pictorial on the web.  It's usually a struggle for me because invariably a bolt will stick, a nut will break, a do-hinky won't fit, I won't have the right tool or something just won't work out.  I steeled my nerves, girded my loins, and went out to see if I could still do this kind of thing successfully.

This is a blurry picture but this represents all of the pieces.  2 Plexiglas panels, a chrome bar they go on, and an assortment of nuts and bolts to put it all together.  I had some trouble with the instructions first off because it didn't make sense to me.  Logically I thought you place the panels on the chrome bar and put a rubber washer on both ends and put the lock nuts on.  Simple enough, but no, the instructions were just a bit different.  Instead, the trick after I read and looked at the pictures long enough was to sandwich the panels with rubber washers then place on the chrome bar.  The panels are, then independent of the chrome strip.  Huh.  I get it now.

Here is the finished lowers ready to be placed on the bike.  

Now here comes the tricky part:  having all the necessary tools.  I needed a 5 mm hex wrench, and I had one.  So far. so good.  The next hurdle was in twisting the light bolts out of the triple tree without screwing up the hex hole on the bolt if it is really tight.  There was some rust on them so I held my breath and twisted.  It worked.  They loosened and came out just as the instructions noted.

And then the other side.  Two bolts, two chances to screw it up, break a wrench, turn the hex hole into a circular one, but I'll be danged if they both didn't come out with ease.  I sure WD-40'ed those suckers for their trip back in, too.  Excellent.  So far, so good.  I am a weekend warrior god.

Next we had to place the lowers up against the empty bolt holes and reinsert the bolts.  I wasn't too worried about this part however, there is a spacer in there that could come out if messed with too much.  Neither on, however, came out and I reinserted the bolts, tightened them and now the big test.  When I ordered the lowers, you have to designate standard or different ones based on "Cobra bars".  I didn't have any idea, so I asked him via email what I needed.  I thought Cobra bars were the light attachments people buy for their headlights (three lights instead of one) and so he said standard was what I needed.  Turned out Cobra bars refer to engine guards and when the first package arrived, they didn't fit, instead hitting the guards and making my turn radius much wider.   

Buck told me I needed the ones for Cobra bar and I was the first person he'd dealt with who had Lindby bars.  When I first got the bike there was no engine guard, and no guard means limited places for feet on long trips.  I purchased a Lindby powder coated black bar to match my blacked out areas of the bike.  And no I didn't put it on, I had Yamaha place do it.  That's how lacking I usually am with biking stuff.

I tightened all the bolts and sat on it.  This was the true test.  Would they work on a bike guard bar he had never worked with before?  Yes!  It all worked.  It fit like a glove, all the bolts did as promised, no trips to the hardware store, and I now have some spiffy looking lowers to keep me fresh and alert when riding.  I am more than a weekend warrior god.  I am the god weekend warrior gods look up to. 

I took her out for a brief spin and noticed an appreciable lack of wind buffeting.  Sure, they create a bit more drag and my bike is thirsty to begin with, but as long as I'm somewhere near gas I should be OK.  If/when I travel West again (hint hint), where gas is sparse, I will carry with me a container just in case.

A project completed successfully.  My manly esteem has been nourished,  my man-card renewed.  Find a project soon, readers, and replenish your success tank, too.