Bilt Adventure Explorer Review / Return

Last October, I posted about the Bilt Adventure Explorer helmet and how it piqued my interest.

On 5/03, I ordered the Explorer in hi-viz from CycleGear.  When it finally arrived, I was impressed with what I got for $99.  Nice bright paint, a spring loaded internal sun shield and decent construction. The removable liner is a bit rough but nothing terrible. However, when I put it on my melon, I was disappointed.  Following their size chart, I ordered a small but this fit like a medium.  Normally I wear an XS but between the measurements on the size chart and the reviews stating it runs small, I thought the small would be a safe bet.

I called CycleGear's toll free number and waited in queue for about 12 minutes. After my long wait, the agent answered, said they would cover return shipping for the exchange and to just put a note in the box stating what size I would like.  So far so good.  The helmet shipped back on 5/08 and they received it on 5/10.  Having not heard any details from them by 5/22, I called customer service. The agent apologized for the delay and processed my return while we were on the phone. Cool, things are looking up.

With my new smaller lid on it's way, I was looking forward to finally having a new helmet.  My Caberg V2 is past it's prime, it's from 2006 and my M2R helmet is toast.  The XS Adventure arrived on the 5/28.  I rode home, excited to take it out for a spin.  However, that excitement turned to disappointment again.  The XS fit just like the small.  I checked the box, XS.  I checked the helmet, tagged as an XS on the visor.  I checked the removable liner, XS.  I checked under the removable liner,the EPS liner is labeled S.  What the hell?

I called CycleGear and I was placed back into the eternal queue. After 15+ minutes, I finally got to speak to an agent.  He said that Bilt uses two shell sizes and then different liners to adjust for fit.  I agreed and said "Different EPS liners but this has a Small EPS liner and an XS removable liner.".  He said that's how they size it down from small to XS, by using a thicker removable liner.  I was kind of pissed off at this point and really disappointed in Bilt's helmet construction.  The next day, I called the Louisville store and spoke with a very helpful salesman who checked another XS just to make sure my helmet wasn't a fluke.  Turns out, it's not.  The only difference between the Small and XS is a few millimeters of foam/cloth.  With removable liners compressing over time, I don't see how this size can give safe and secure fit.

The lid is now on it's way back to California.  If you choose to buy from CycleGear, be aware the sizing from Bilt can be crazy and the "hassle free" return page references a mythical return/exchange form but I have yet to be able to find it. (You have to call and have it emailed to you.)

I don't want you to think that CycleGear is 100% crap because it isn't.  This is just my rant about unsatisfactory product sizing and construction (and some minor nit picking about customer service).  I ordered a pair of Bilt Cyara gloves for Shrewsieq that are an absolute steal at $15 and there are other products that CG sells that I'd like to buy.  I'll just travel down to the store in Louisville, KY to make my purchases.  I think this has spoiled my online helmet shopping for awhile.

I still want a DS styled helmet but I don't have the scratch to buy the ICON Variant Construct (which has a dedicated Sm/XS shell), so I'll probably try the S&S SS2500, Fly Trekker or AFX FX-39.  

*UPDATE*
I called CycleGear to obtain a copy of the mythical Return/Exchange form and the wait time was only 6 minutes today.  Getting better.  =]

the quest for ethanol free gasoline

On Saturday, ShrewsieQ and I rode north to a Co-Op station in Hamilton County in search of ethanol free gas.  I found the lonely additive free pump and filled the Ulysses up with delicious 91+ octane.  It requires at least 91 and I usually feed it a steady diet of 93 if I can.   With the frame full, we headed to World Market to fill up or own tanks with imported snacks.

Last year, we rode around on the Yamaha and ended up at World Market for snacks.  Since it was threatening rain, we parked on the curb under the overhang and had our snack.

This year, we followed the same tradition even without the threat of rain.  We're rebels.  

I realized I should have taken more pictures, like of the pump, our snacks and my lovely wife.  I am lame.

Unk

The 18th marked one year since Unk took the big ride fated for us all. 

 He was truly one of a kind.  

Grape Ape

I have to admit, I would love to have this but it needs a few cans of flat black to suit my tastes.

http://swmi.craigslist.org/mcy/3786648080.html

Good luck with the sale Dave.  If I had the spare $$$, I'd buy your hack. 

(I'm developing a serious sidecar lust.)

The thunder! The lightning!

About 15 minutes before I get off of work, ShrewsieQ calls and says I might want to head home now since the sky is black and the wind is picking up.  I look out the windows and see some clouds and a generally calm sky.   Puzzled I ask her what direction she is facing. Before she has time to answer, I turn around and see a wall of black through the windows on the other side of the building.  Hmmm.  Time to gear up and get moving!

I throw on my Belstaff Adventure jacket, Aerostich AD1 pants and my JR Sonic boots, and haul butt down to the parking lot.  As I'm warming up the Uly, the wind starts to pick up.  I guestimate that I have time to get home before the sky opens up.  So, I pack my rain jacket in the side case, strap on my helmet and hit the road.  About 1/3 of the way home, I see cars in the oncoming lane with their wipers on, completely soaked.  Crap.  Time to pull over and throw on my rain jacket.  Keep in mind, I've never worn this rain jacket since my TourMaster Transition II is "waterproof".   The bright yellow Teknic rain jacket fits well over the Belstaff, except the sleeves are about 4 inches too short.  

With the hatches all battened down, I hit the road and then the sky breaks free.  Visibility drops, so I adjust my speed accordingly.  The Bridgestone Battlax tires have always done well in the wet and the Uly has smooth power delivery, so traction is good.  Using the Sena SMH5 and Siri, I send Shrewsieq a message updating her that I'm dry and safe.  

Dry with the exception of my hands, so I click the grip heaters to low and concentrate on trying to see out of my rain splattered visor.  (Mental note, find my glove squeegee.)  Thankfully, the ride home was uneventful.  I pull into the driveway after crossing some flash floods and see she has the garage door cracked open and ready for my arrival.  (Mental note #2, research garage door openers and #3, my wife is awesome.)

I peel off my gear and find only my hands and the bottom of my work pants are wet.  Had I tucked my pants into my boots, they would be dry.  No infamous Aerostich wet crotch and no leaks from the Teknic jacket.   However, rain has some how got between the clear layer and the reflective layer on the reflective stripes.  Not sure how that affects the visibility.  

All in all, I actually like riding in the rain, assuming I can see. 

The basics of motorcycle protective gear

      If you ask anybody about what is the best motorcycle protective gear they will all have different opinions. An opinion is a view or judgment formed about something, not necessarily based on fact or knowledge.  This article talks mainly about jacket armor but pant armor is pretty much the same and of course wear helmets, boots and something to cover the first thing that will hit the ground, gloves.

     As the calendar slowly turns and the temperatures slowly rise, riding season is finally coming. With the dreams of a new riding season come the dreams of new riding gear. These days protective gear is more than long pants, long sleeve shirt, gloves, high top shoes and a helmet. The new armor is more than the foam I remember from many years ago. I started riding at the age of 12 and always wore long pants, long sleeve shirts (where we used to ride, the weeds used to hurt whipping by at 40 mph) hiking boots, gloves, helmet (thanks Mom) and sunglasses. Really not until my legal riding age did I do the cool thing of shorts, t-shirt, flip-flops and sunglasses I was lucky never had to have any expensive skin grafts. Man I was Stupid Cool, now I would just say Stupid Lucky.

     From what I have read there are basically four types of armor:
#1 Foam Armor 

My first and the 1st type of protection was purchased along with my KLR. After my disability had put me down for a while and I wasn't able to get up off the ground as quickly as I used to beforehand. While shopping for the KLR I looked at some Firstgear mesh jackets and pants that had a simple foam padding in the proper areas. I had already purchased a nice helmet with DOT and Snell safety ratings. The foam protection really did not provide any real protection other than skid protection which meant no more cleaning out road rash with a green scouring pad.The foam was an open-cell foam covered in thin nylon only about a 1/2" thick.

The foam is exactly what is says it is “foam” which is the least expensive of all the types of armor, but it offers minimal protection. Although foam is thick and dispenses force well, it is suited only to low-impact accidents, which is what you always hope for at the most in a crash.

#2 Hard Armor    

 My second and the 2nd type of protective armor came when I bought the Ducati, I figured since I was buying a lot more power I should also have a lot more protection. The other reason for the "more" protection was I saw a friend of mine get rear ended the morning of the Indy 500. That morning his GSXR became a hood ornament on an SUV and my friend never really recovered. I purchased an Alpinestars leather jacket. It was a heavy jacket

with excellent abrasion resistance due to the 1.2-1.4mm full grain leather and had CE-Certified elbow, shoulder and back protection that felt like an injection molded plastic resin lined with foam. This injection molded armor is good in both impact and abrasion and holds it's shape very well. The downside of the injection molded armor is while it hold it's shape very well it can be slightly uncomfortable while wearing and may need adjustment more often. 
The hard armor was not necessarily the most comfortable armor to wear but I thought provided excellent protection during my Ducati crash. A couple friends and I were tearing up the curves on 135 when I hit some grave in a ≈40 mph turn. I slid approximately 30 feet on my right side until the edge of the road where I was ejected over the bike and landed on my back. The hard armor provided excellent impact absorption and skid protection, luckily with all the protection I was wearing I was relatively unharmed, the only damage was the bike and my pride.

#3 Memory Foam Armor

The memory foam is not a piece of armor that I have owned or had the opportunity to try. From what I have read the BMW PE armor offers good impact protection while being able to conform to your body better than a lot of CE-approved armor. We do have a member of the blog that does use the BMW PE armor and I will let red review this one.
Red stated "I'm using the BMW armor in my British Motorcycle Gear Adventure jacket, so I had to cut down the back pad and trim the elbow pads. If the jacket has been hanging weird or on a skinny hanger, the armor will mold to that shape. When the armor is cold, it's very stiff and takes a little while to warm and soften up. Once it's warmed up and molded to your body, it's extremely comfortable, unlike armor with a hard plastic shell.  I can tell you that during a low speed dump, landing on an elbow and back pad, I didn't feel a thing."(red)

#4 Strain Sensitive Armor - D3O

My first experience with D3O armor was in my Klim Badlands jacket. When

I first read about D3O armor I was intrigued  as to how it worked. Have you ever seen or preformed the science experiment where you mix corn starch and water to a certain consistency and when you stick your hand into it it feels gooey.  When you strike it or slap it at impact like speeds it solidifies then returns to the liquid state. The D3O armor works in the same way where it give great impact absorption from wrecks and hits yet remain soft and flexible when wearing every day. The D3O remains soft and flexible even in cold temperatures as we tested earlier in January by myself, red and McMark on our sub-freezing ride. The US ski team also now uses D30 armor in their ski suits. D3O provides tested and CE certified body armor solutions for the Motorcycle market. These light and flexible components are integrated as back protectors, shoulder pads, elbow pads, hip pads and knee pads, providing the world’s leading brands with comfortable protection.
From what I have experienced and read the "pro's" for the D3O are the great flexibility that gives you the ultimate protection packed into the slimmest low profile armor on the market. The "con's" I have not yet discovered, I am a big fan.

 

Thank you Sky News for the great video.

Adios Teknic

Looks like Teknic has closed down according this thread on ADVrider. Their homepage is blank and my Google-fu only turned up a lot of vendors selling Teknic gear at closeout prices.  I'll update this post if I find any additional info.

They make some good kit, hopefully it's just a rumor.

RTW Day 2013

In anticipation of Ride To Work Day this year, I mailed a letter to the Mayor's office requesting to make the 3rd Monday in June official RTW Day!  I submitted the official application this morning.

This could be a great step towards creating a better motorcycle culture for Indianapolis!

goin' south

Thanks to RideApart, I found this blog: Alex's Motorcycle Adventure.




The only thing I can say is.... I'm jealous.

Lunch in Anderson Indiana

This past Friday I had the day off and after a bit of house work I decided to take a trip to Anderson Indiana on the motorcycle.With no particular destination in mind, I took to the back roads.

After some gentle curves and picturesque views, I was dumped out into downtown Anderson. I planned on grabbing a bite to eat and then ride around a bit checking out the city. Much of the area is still recovering from the recent rain which has caused many floods throughout Indiana.

I hadn't looked at a map before coming to Anderson so I had little sense of where I was in the city. After a bit of cruising around the streets, I decided to use the GPS to find a local diner or cafe.

The GPS pulled up 2 interesting eateries. The first was Lemon Drop and the second was Gene's Root Beer. The idea of a root beer clinched the decision. I'll hit the Lemon Drop next time.

Diligently following the GPS, I was dumped into a waste land which had a Fallout flair to it. I'm not sure what this area had been in the past, but the whole lot was a mix of concrete, loose gravel, glass and weeds. After a few careful laps I was greeted by a locked gate which signaled that I would need to find another way.




On my new route to Gene's Root Beer, I did pass the Lemon Drop and noticed it had drawn a large lunch crowd. Next time I'm in Anderson I'll stop in for a burger.

Gene's Root Beer, located off of Scatterfield Road, had drawn its own crowd of locals. When I pulled the bike in, I was greeted by a friendly staff member who was happy to see me riding.



Gene's Root Beer had your standard Drive-in fare but what caught my eye was the tenderloin. I've been waiting for the right time to derail my diet, so I ordered a tenderloin sandwich, fries and a Root Beer. Sitting on one of the picnic tables, my order was brought out to me. I chatted with the server, who was anxiously waiting to get her husbands bike out when he recovers from a recent shoulder injury.



It was a good Friday. The weather was warm, the ride was good, and the sandwich was what I had hoped it would be.

Mating Ritual: AFX FX-140 Helmet & SENA SMH10 Motorcycle Headset Review

After a short jaunt with Red and ShrewsieQ, who were both outfitted with SENA SMH5's, I made the decision to purchase the SENA SMH10.  As lovely has the Seca II sounds roaring down the road at 80mph, there were times when I needed a distraction from all the calming solitude.  

The overall consensus from the reviews I read where the that SENA SMH10's speakers were powerful enough to provide clear audio at highways speeds and the SMH10 sync's well with an iPhone via bluetooth. So I gave it shot.

AFX FX140 Helmet with SENA SMH10

My needs

1) With my often short window of available ride time, I needed a way of communicating to my wife.

2) I needed a way of communicating my intentions to other riders rather than my previous method,
which looked like I was the guy trapped a gorilla costume from the movie Trading Places.

3) I have dreams of being able to blog on the road. (More to come)

Mating the AFX FX140 with the SENA SMH10
Opening up the box revealed the minimally packaged SENA SMH10 bluetooth module and boom mic base attachment. The box included a thick manual, clamp style mounting hardware, optional sticky mounting hardware, sticky backed velcro for the speakers, usb charging cable, and a DC charging cable.

SENA SMH10 Bluetooth Module and Base

Charging and Mounting Accessories

The mating ritual began by mounting the base to the helmet. Due to the SENA SMH10 being able to only mount on the left side of the helmet, this gave me the most grief when trying to mount the unit onto the AFX FX140.

SENA SMH10 Mounted to AFX FX140 Helmet

The visor slider on the FX140 is located in the sweet spot for the SMH10. Due to the slider's position and the visor mechanism inside the helmet shell, I had to mount the SMH10 farther back than I would like. This mounting location positioned the fixed boom mic on the SMH10 slightly off to the left of my mouth where I would rather it be directly in front.

SMH10 Performance

Before I synced the SMH10 to my phone, I gave it a full charge and updated the firmware via usb.

Though the boom mic was slightly out of place I decided to give the unit a test ride. 

Test 1 consisted of me walking around the house playing with the various features of the unit while getting used to the controls. The unit is very easy to turn on, even with heavy gloved hands. A multi function rocker serves as a button and volume control. Just behind the the rocker on the backside of the unit is a button to active various phone features.

Paring my iPhone with the SENA SMH10, and presumably any other bluetooth device, was a breeze and not unlike any other bluetooth device on the market today. Once the phone and SMH10 had been paired I was able to activate various features such as voice dialing, listening to music and recording audio to my Audio Memos application where I plan to record audio logs.

Testing the mic, I called various friends whose response where positive about the sound quality.

The sound quality is a bit tinny but loud, very loud. I where foam ear plugs under my helmet and I have no issues hearing the SMH10.

On to the road test. Starting up some low volume tunes. I headed out of neighborhood and made my first on road call. Pressing the phone button on the back of the SMH10 activates iPhone's voice calling feature. The SMH10 successfully made the call however, my music continued to play through the speakers. This issue was taken care of after I restarted my iPhone. 

At 60mph I was able to have two successful phone calls. Each person I talked with said that the audio was clear and they were amazed I was speaking to them while riding a motorcycle.

Update

I've put a view rides the SMH10 now and I only have good things to say. The system is easy to use, pairs great with my iPhone, and has excellent battery life. Over the next few weeks I'll test the unit with Audio Memo's  to see if I can generated some decent audio recordings on the road.

On my last ride, while listening to The Pace Podcast, my music was automatically paused for an incoming call. Traveling at about 45 mph, I answered my phone via voice activation. My accountant was on the other end asking "is this a good time to talk." I answered, "its perfect."

a quick trip to Nashville, IN

Just some eye candy to get your through Monday.  

Indy to Cumberland Gap

A friend and fellow Ulysses owner purchased some land in eastern TN near Cumberland Gap.  Eager to put some miles on my bike and take ShrewsieQ on a better trip than our Michigan excursion, we agreed to tag along. 

A few days before the trip, my bike started acting up again.  Weird idle, surging, running hot and extremely poor low speed riding.  With some help from KFR, I double checked the static timing and then moved on to TPS zeroing and reset.  On Friday, we loaded up the bike and went out for a test ride.  Unfortunately, the surging and low speed issues were still there.  My stress level was hitting critical mass.  

 Having replaced all the sensors but the TPS and CPS, I dug back into the fuel system and found this: 

This very well could have been the cause of all my issues.  Knowing that there are many cross compatible parts from domestic cars, I found the correct TPS sensor and started searching the local stores.  The Autozone near my work had one in stock.  

During production of the first generation of bikes, Buell switched TPS models.  The Duralast only fits the original style TPS.  My bike was made in Nov, so I wasn't very hopeful that it would match up. However, the motorcycle gods were on my side.  The new sensor worked perfectly! The idle sounds better than it did when I test rode it, the slow speed riding has improved drastically.  So, to Tennessee we went! 

A tale of two Buells at Waffle House.

(Right after lunch, we saw a pimp at a gas station.  He was wearing a matching red suit and hat.)

With daylight running thin and no good flat spots at Rench's land, we stealth camped here. 

The Church was vacant, so we figured no one would mind if we camped out under the shelter.

We saw/heard a truck with no tail lights or license plate run up and down this road all night.  Running shine?  

Before I left, found a place to stash a spare quart of oil.  Thinking I was clever, I zip tied it 

the bottom of the top case rack.  At some point after we left the church, Rench said he could smell burning oil.  As he checked his bike, I decided to check my oil level.  Glad I did because that's when I noticed this: 

Guess it wasn't a good idea after all. During the ride to get breakfast, my zip tied mess broke free and the quart of oil was rubbing against the rear tire.  It might have been the unavoidable pot holes on the gravel road or it could have been the massive vibrations from the engine finally shaking free the dino-juice.

I made a few laps down a gravel alley to help wear it off before hitting the interstate in search of breakfast. Every right hand curve caused some serious pucker until the 20w50 glaze had worn off. 

Squeezing into one narrow space at our second Waffle House of the trip. 

After lunch, we split up for the remainder of the trip.  Rench had to get home and we were headed to our friends' place in southern IN.  

Much better than sleeping under a church shelter.  

The Buell resting among Ryno's bikes. 

Petey!

Kennedy the Kat

You're handsome author and his lovely wife ShrewsieQ, who handled all the issues of the trip like a champ!

Amazing gluten free pizza.

Random Duc. 

This space reserved for videos as soon as I can edit them.  

The trip was great and the Uly ran perfect! We did about 5 miles of gravel roads (now I really want some TKC80s) while going back and forth to Rench's land.  After hitting a grocery store for supplies and getting some seriously weird looks from people, ShrewsieQ said "Even the cows look at us funny here.".  We can mark three states off now, KY, TN and VA.  Total miles: ____________

Wolfman Rainier Tankbag Mounts for a Buell Ulysses

With a trip to Cumberland Gap, TN coming up, I needed a tank bag for the Ulysses but since it's a tough "tank" to fit, I borrowed Wheels' Wolfman Rainier to see if I like it.  Since there is no mounting kit for the Ulysses and Wheels had modified his, I had to make my own custom straps.

Using the front air box cover screws as mounting points, I used 1" nylon webbing and large eyelets to make mounting straps.  For the rear, I used the front two fan mounting bolts and ran the webbing under my "heat blanket" as anchors.  The bag seems to be pretty secure and I doubt it's going anywhere but as always, a few test rides are in order.

These straps are open ended so, in the future I can add male buckles to fit the stock Wolfman mounts.  I love the pockets in the Rainier but I'm leaning heavily towards the Large Expedition model.

Coming up after the trip, I'll have a ride report and some gear reviews (featuring SENA SMH5 headsets, my Aerostich AD1 pants, DEI Titanium Header Wrap and a whole kit of women's specific gear from ShrewsieQ).