Please Look for Motorcycles

I found out this morning that my uncle was killed in a motorcycle accident.  Please don't construe this as a ploy for sympathy.  In all honesty, I was not that close to my uncle.  Instead, take this as a plea to watch out for motorcycles.  My uncle, by all accounts, was a safe rider who always wore his riding gear.  Unfortunately, it didn't stop an idiot from pulling out in front of him, and taking his life.  I ask this not only as the nephew of someone who died in a bike accident, but also as a rider, and as the father of a rider. The life you save may be mine, or my daughter's.

Evaluating the Sena SMH10 Bluetooth Headset

When I purchased my new helmet last month, I also decided to upgrade my Bluetooth headset.  My decision to upgrade was partially because my previous Bluetooth setup was hard-wired into my old helmet, and partially because I wanted a set, so that I could communicate with my daughters, who frequently ride on the back of my bike.

After a lot of research, I chose the Sena SMH10 headset, and I'm happy with my purchase.  Installation was simple and straight-forward.  The only difficulty I had was finding the proper position for the speakers, and that wasn't a real problem... just a bit of trial and error.

Sound quality is far superior to what I had with my old helmet.  I was able to receive phone calls and communicate with passengers at freeway speeds.  I was able to hear music at freeway speeds, but the sound quality wasn't that good.  This, however, is still a massive improvement over the old system, which was effectively useless at speeds above 45 MPH or so.  The two things I've noticed aren't directly related to the headset itself... One is that the headset mounts in such a way that opening and closing the sun visor on my helmet is a bit problematic.  The other is that, because I'm an animated speaker, people tend to look at me like I'm crazy, because when I talk to my passenger, I tend to nod, shake my head and so forth.  With all of the Bluetooth headsets available for phones in general these days, you'd think that people would be a bit more used to this, but I guess not.

It's very simple to switch back and forth between the intercom and the phone, fast forward or rewind music, and increase/decrease volume via a dial.  My daughter, who's a bit shorter than me, wishes that the dial didn't stick out so far from the helmet, because she usually looks over my left shoulder, and it blocks her view a bit, but this was an offhand comment, not a consistent complaint.

While the set isn't as clear as a set of Beats, you really can't expect that from a motorcycle headset.  That said though, the sound quality is adequate enough to play music (unless you're on the freeway) and good enough to communicate with a passenger or take a phone call even at freeway speeds.

Evaluating the Daytona Twin Tec TC88A Igntion Module

It seems like I've constantly been tweaking my Sportster since I bought it.  When I purchased it new, it was a bone stock, baseline 2006 Sportster 883.  Over the years, I've put on aftermarket exhaust and intake (paid the Harley tax), done the 1200 conversion, added cams, and had the heads ported and planed.  Each change made a noticeable improvement in performance.  My most recent addition was installing the TC88A Ignition Module.  It was definitely money well spent.

Installation was a breeze.  I had the old module out, and the new module installed in less than 30 minutes.  I should state that this ignition module is really designed for Twin Cam engines.  What this means to Sportster owners is that you won't get the maximum benefit unless you purchase the USB cable as well, which means an extra $75 to $100 on top of the ignition module, because it's a separate purchase.  With the USB cable, you can connect your computer to the ignition module and modify the module with a surprising degree of detail.  You can also save these modifications and even download mods that others have made from the Internet and upload them to your ignition module.

Learning all of this during the research phase saved me a lot of work.  I downloaded a couple of very popular maps before my ignition module even arrived, and made a couple of small modifications to them.

Some of the modifications you can make...
-Control the RPM of the rev limiter

-Control the timing advance, based on Manifold Air Pressure, RPM, etc.

-Offset the timing of the rear cylinder.  This supposedly keeps the rear cylinder cooler and prevents pre-detonation (pinging).  You do this by retarding the timing on the rear cylinder.  I set mine back 2 degrees.

-Recalibrate your speedometer/odometer

I'm still doing some minor fine-tuning, but overall here's what I've noticed:  The adjustable rev limiter is awesome.  I set mine at 6500 per my mechanic's recommendation, and I can hit 40 MPH in first gear!  I have noticeably more power in the low and mid range.  All of this comes with no noticeable decrease in fuel economy.

I can, without a doubt, wholeheartedly recommend this ignition module for anyone considering it.  It was easy to install, it's easy to configure, and the increase in performance is noticeable.

An Unexpectedly Excellent Day

Who'd have thought that I'd write this on a Monday?  It started out with work.  Usually, I have to drive about 30 miles to work, but I got to work in town today, meaning I drove for about five minutes.  The work day was kind of light, so I got off a bit early.  My wife and I bought a new memory foam bed, which was delivered today.  We had originally planned to recycle the old bed, but a friend wanted it, so he got our old bed.  I got off of work early enough to go for a motorcycle ride with my daughter.

But here's the absolutely best part.  About six years ago, I lost my wedding ring.  I looked all over the place for that ring, but never found it... until today.  When my friend picked up my old bed, my wife found my wedding ring.

A slew of small things fell in line to make this a great day.

Working out with Fatties, Oldies and Wimps

Last week was spring break.  It was kind of nice.  The usual gym rats and high schoolers were out of town, so the gym was almost empty.  Instead, what I saw was a gym full of fatties, oldies and wimps.  There were fat bodies in the pool, a couple of whom were so large that I suspect they noticeably raised the water level when the entered the water.  There were fat bodies huffing and puffing as they walked -- yes, walked -- around the track.  There were old people and wimps who actually used the machines without any weights!  Apparently, adding five or ten pounds was more than they could handle.  As I saw this group of misfits hanging around the gym, working up a sweat to zero pounds, or huffing and puffing at a snail's pace as I effortlessly lapped time and again around the track, one thought kept running through my mind...

Good on you!  Keep it up!  You see, despite what you may think, fat body, old dude, or prepubescent wimp, I relate to you more than I do to the stereotypical gym rat.  Yeah, you may not see a lot of fat on me, and I have a relatively toned physique, I relate to you far more than I do to the gym rats.  Though I'm in decent shape, I didn't get that way overnight.  It took discipline and dedication.  I hope that it's a dedication that you're in the early stages of developing.  I remember where I started, and as a nerd at heart, I hope I never forget.

What I'm trying to say, (poorly, I may add) is that I support you in your endeavor to become a healthier you.  You may think we're all looking at you... judging you... deriding you in our minds.  But that's not the case.  Most of us are silently cheering you on.  Keep it up, folks!  You can do it!  The only difference between you and me (especially the oldies and wimps) is that I've been working out a bit longer than you.  Never forget that.

Evaluating the LS2 FF386 Modular Motorcycle Helmet

After owning my Vega V-Tune motorcycle helmet for about three years, it was time to upgrade.  I had a couple of reasons for upgrading, but the primary one was that the bluetooth on the Vega went belly-up.  This is my third motorcycle helmet, and with each purchase, I learn a bit more.  My first helmet, an entry-level Bell helmet protected my head, but that's about it.  It was heavy, and had none of the nice-to-have features of a higher-end helmet.

The V-Tune was a step up, but isn't something that I'd buy again.  It was lighter, but it was kind of cheaply built.  It was noisy, and the bluetooth was effectively useless at highway speed.  I was also disappointed that it went belly-up after less than three years.

This time, I decided to buy the helmet and bluetooth module separately.  I went this route for a couple of reasons that I will discuss later.  The bluetooth I purchased is the Sena SMH10, but I haven't finished evaluating that yet.  That will come in a separate write-up.  For now, let's get back to the helmet.

Let me start off by saying that I like the LS2 better than the Vega in every possible way.  The construction is far more solid, without adding a significant amount of weight.  It's a little bit heavier, but I believe that's more a function of purchasing a modular helmet this time.  The V-Tune isn't modular.  The external visor on the LS2 doesn't vibrate like the V-tune did.  The field of vision on the LS2 is clear and undistorted.  The V-Tune distorted things a bit in the periphery.  The drop-down sun visor is sturdier.  It's not quite as dark as the V-Tune, but I didn't see that as a problem at all.  The LS2 does a far superior job of keeping out environmental noise (which helps for bluetooth communication) and wind.  It's not absolutely silent... I can still hear wind noise (obviously) and the sound of my engine/exhaust (which I like... it makes me feel more in tune with my bike), but again, it's better than the V-Tune.

Since it's still early in the year, I kept the vents closed, so I can't yet say much about warm-weather airflow.  I also can't say much about airflow with the visor partially opened.  One thing I can say though, is that I'd like to see an anti-fog feature on the clear visor.  The sun visor didn't fog up at all, but at stop lights I had to open the primary visor to prevent fogging.  I also haven't yet spent a lot of time using the modular opening.  My main reason for getting a modular helmet is so that I can talk to other riders who don't have bluetooth when I'm at stop lights and so forth.  I have opened the modular face once or twice, and I've noticed that it's a tad difficult to close it from the fully opened position.  This might work itself out over time, but I did notice it.

One last negative with my specific configuration.  The sun visor opens and closes via buttons on the right side of the helmet.  This is very close to where the bluetooth headset is mounted.  As a result, the microphone boom is kind of in the way of raising and lowering the sun visor.  I don't see this as a problem during the summer months, but it's a bit problematic when I'm wearing thick gloves.

While my configuration isn't perfect, I am pleased with the initial performance of my rig.  The LS2 helmet is far superior to the Vega helmet, and the Sena bluetooth module is (based on what I've tested so far) is head and shoulders above the bluetooth that came with the V-Tune.  As I said, I will do further testing on the Sena bluetooth and write a separate review in the not-too distant future.

Since this is a review of the helmet, let me wrap up by saying that the LS2 is a solid helmet with a lot of features and a good price range.  The only thing I really would like is anti-fogging on the primary visor and for the sun visor open/close lever to be located where the V-Tune open/close lever is located.  Overall though, I fully recommend the LS2 FF386.

Oh yeah, I bought the LS2 at J&P Cycles.

Finally, here's a link to my original review of the Vega V-Tune helmet.

Dumb$h!+'s Latest

DumbSh!+, for those of you who don't know, is my daughter's sleazebag, deadbeat ex-boyfriend... the one who was just recently took a plea bargain on a first degree burglary charge, who's facing first degree theft charges, who has two assault charges pending, and who can't find enough time to visit his son for one hour, twice a week.  Yeah, that dumb$h!+.

Well, daughter filed her 2013 taxes last week, and they were rejected due to a problem with her adjusted gross income.  Long story short, we found out that ex-boyfriend and his crooked (or incompetent) accountant flied their 2012 taxes claiming married filing jointly.

My daughter will nowf be filing an amended 2012 return, along with a note of explanation.  If everything turns out as I hope, the IRS will be paying dumb$h!+ a visit in the not-too-distant future.