MacDuncan

Ten day forecast looks good. Leaning that direction. Thanks Amgems.

Great info. Thanks to you all. I will pick up a CR 2430 soon and see what that does. That sure would be a nice easy fix if it works. Otherwise, I will soon begin replacing pieces and parts. It was pulsating when the bike was not running. I know some flashlights pulsate to indicate a low battery, so there is some logic there, but I didn't make the association to that being a possibility on an orange motorcycle! Heck, I had no idea that there was a mini battery in the cluster and I have been down in there a few times checking connectors. Good detective work from afar I appreciate the brainstorming and diagnoses.

Well weirdrider, although I laughed out loud when I first read your post, and was about to throw a snappy reply back to ya, but it makes about as much sense as what I have found at KTMtalk and other sites. There seems to be some gremlins surrounding this issue. I may continue to prod and poke all connectors, heck - maybe check the GROUND too! But really, not just off or on or not working, or buttons don't function... but pulsating brightness??? Must be cold and cluster battery weak

Worked on the bike a bit today and noticed that the instrument cluster brightness was pulsating when I checked hours and miles (at about .5 second increments). I always found it odd that the odometer info can be read independently of the bike key being turned on or not. Regardless, I have had a bit of hard starting lately, but plan to check valves and mixture, etc. Has a new battery. Almost all stock set-up. Any thoughts on possible reasons for pulsating brightness of odometer display while bike is off and key is not turned on?

That is a good read CID, Thanks. Pretty cool magazine too. It really adds some clarity to why some folks like the big bikes, and some folks like the smaller ones, even though packing the smaller ones for overnights can be more challenging because the Blender and crock pot often have to be left behind . And nice to hear that even some experienced "Big Bike" riders prefer the small bikes on the BDR's on occasion. It wouldn't surprise me if SDAR gets a few questions in the very near future about the riding conditions on Section 1 sent to them from out of state riders coming here to begin the CABDR South. I have ridden it a few times already, but not on a big bike. I wonder if some SDAR Big Bike riders have a report for that soft section from the river to Indian Pass summit yet, from a big bike perspective? I think a couple of you were going out to ride that road before it was officially a BDR. Maybe, no big for the experienced big bike rider.

Hey Danger Dave, there are quite a few members with wee-stroms or V-stroms, I have one, and from my understanding, most of us have installed most parts as needed as owners, just like you do. Maybe share where you live more specifically so folks in that area can guide you to a shop, or to look at their stroms (also look at the stromtroopers web site for info too). I am sure a few members would offer that support. However, before you get too deep into it, note that there are 2 main camps of thought with the V-strom community when discussing adventures, and you will have to ride various terrain to decide which camp you want to mainly participate in before you spend a lot of money on that bike for rough riding. One group of owners will take it anywhere and try anything. Others consider it to be their road bike for interstate travel, commuting, camping from it, zipping through the local mountains, or to ride mostly smooth dirt roads as the most rough terrain to get to a remote campsite. As was shared, most folks install a skid plate asap as a first step regardless of the intended use. Your next steps should be to cruise down to Borrego and roam on some jeep roads (I will attach a map), or ride the perimeter road at Corral Canyon, or ride out to Picacho (preferably with a friend) to see which type of v-strom rider you might prefer to be in the future. Then, you can buy more parts for it, or buy a smaller off-road orientated bike to be used for gnarly rocks and deep sand. The first reply was by Weirdrider, who is likely one of the more knowledgeable v-strom riders on the site. He might offer more in-depth narrative and opinion, as he would take his v-strom to places I would never take mine. Hope that offers some insight. Good luck, Cheers. Local jeep road map for Borrego: abdsp_Park_Map201704.pdf And, Car camping style from the v-strom in Joshua Tree (and Oracle thought I carried a bunch of stuff on my 525 when camping - my vstrom carries a bunch more! - haha)

SoCalMule wrote: Had a great day yesterday CID! Thank you for a very fun exploration adventure! 😊 CID, Bagstr, PB and Amgems, as SoCalMule shared, thanks for a great day of riding. A fantastic route with all sorts of stuff to keep aware of as we roamed the desert. I really enjoyed navigating all the peaks on Superstition along a route that seemed to barely exist, rocky climbs next to sandy climbs.... and zipping through the wide open desert without anyone there (except the phantom SDAR member who we could only hear through the radio -haha ). Although, my legs were a bit tired hiking Cowles today due to those whoops -ouch. Hope the rest of you have avoided any day-after soreness. Here is the Flying Amgems: Here is the cast of Rat-Patrol before SDAR: Here they are after: There always seems to be one bike that stands alone And an owner trying to find the way in - smiles! Luckily, I had a signal mirror to guide him! Well done to all of you! Thanks.

In, thanks CID, I still haven't got a moto ride in yet this holiday break, so looking forward to it. Amgems, you can borrow a rotopax gallon if you want to, I have 2. Your post here about carrying gas prompted me to post a pic on the fuel thread post for fun. Although I might carry one also as a back up. I'll throw them in the truck as an option, either way ok.

Just like Socal mule, I often carry 2 fuel bottles in a wolfman saddle, but sometimes there is a need for more. There seems to be some long sections on the CABDR that could warrant a bigger tank. I might have to finally put on a 6.6 gallon monster tank. Or, strap on some rotopax, as seen in this pic of some yoyo going through Goler Canyon, as everything is big in Death Valley - haha

Nice thread, especially since I carry fuel a bunch due to solo non-specific destination rides, and get lost on occasion. I am most confident with the rotopax jugs. I have biffed in Death Valley, in the rocks, with 2 gallons strapped on a luggage rack. Lots of things would break before those jugs would. I also have a couple decent size dents in my MSR bottles from taking a nap in rocks while carrying bottles in the saddle bags. The holsters work great to keep gas on the outside of pack. As Bowers shared, my main concern, which might be the bottom line for a decision, is just how much "Bang-Bam-Boom" can be done to the container before it breaks or leaks. !!Carried on the non-exhaust side only ! Maybe it is about time to see some pics of the different carry options to keep this thread alive. Let us see how you are carrying, especially a bladder on your back - yikes-ish.

A dead battery left me packed with no bike to ride for Bagstr's recovery ride, hence... Short version: CABDR 1 and some extra stuff, Sunday or next week. Just sharing potential solo ride thoughts in case someone is interested. A couple riding buds interested, but not sure yet, so this post on SDAR. OR? Long Version Leg 1: CABDR section 1 (120 miles) Yuma to Blythe - gas/snack/go Leg 2: North from Blythe, veer left (west) from CABDR 2 to find Pattons cabin, continue west to Palen pass, head to chiriaco pass (100 miles) gas/snack/go Leg 3: From hiway 10, Red Canyon, east on Bradshaw to Palo Verde (80 miles) gas/snack/go (this leg would be the most likely to skip and head directly to Palo Verde given remaining daylight concerns) Leg 4: Old Palo Verde road to Ogilby rd, to railroad tracks to sidewinder - yuma (80 miles) eat / drink. Goal is to stay away from Ocotillo, O-wells, super-s, glamis, etc... and stay on mostly plated roads. Cheers.

I would use this from the same site, and consider the wolfman holster / holder as well for external strap on. I haven't researched why you shouldn't use water containers except that they may have been built with some plastic or rubber that may disintegrate when in contact with gas. Also, I bought back-up caps, that are not the lock style because the "legal" ones that they come with are often not as user friendly. I https://www.rockymountainatvmc.com/p/839/84881/Cascade-Designs-MSR-Aluminum-Bottle

Not sure about tracks on explorer, sorry. However, I get that you want one device, and I used to have similar thoughts/concerns. My lean away from that is due to the following: 1) I hardwired my GPSMAP 78 because you can leave the backlight on and it has significantly more easy user-friendly interface with tracks on the handlebars when riding. Also, I was pleased to discover how well the signal of the Delorme seemed to go through a drybag, and the material of my hydration system, and maybe around firstaid kits, etc... while deep in my backpack, AND, I have ridden for full days and the power only went from 99% to 92% on a full day (I do carry a charger on multiday trips so if I ever stop at a pub in a small town, I charge while I eat, or use a portable charging device). The bottom line may be that I need both reading glasses and distance glasses .....grrrr .... and the explorer, with such a small screen, about half the size of the Map 78, doesn't allow me to read easily on the fly

Hey Tv, as you research the millions of ways to wander in the wild, you may find that some riders prefer tracks to routes (there seems to be a split camp of thought with this topic, all good). I always use tracks because I do not like to follow the arrow. The arrow has let me down quite a few times. On occasion, if you end up off route, the unit seems to start creating a route of its own to fix your off route boo-boo or additional wander. It feels too restrictive to me (I don't enjoy having the unit tell me where I must go - haha). I simply keep my unit "north" oriented and that keeps me "on-track" even when I see a cool overlook and decide to leave the track to take a look. Also, as a clarifier, might be bad news, but there are quite a few riders who use multi-devices for different needs. I never plan to use my InReach Delorme for navigation (the screen and algorithms are funky). It is only used for 911 emergency, texting when not in cell phone zones, and to let others back in the city see where I am every 10 minutes while wandering around in the wilderness. My delorme rides deep in my backpack and doesn't get to see the light of day. That is very different than my handlebar mounted Garmin GPSMAP 78, which guides my predetermined destinations and used for backtrack when I need to find my way back to camp. I solo ride a bunch and have never had to split tracks. I just took a look at my tracks in Garmin basecamp and many of them seem to have way more points than 500. I have downloaded BDR's from the BDR site, to basecamp on computer, to GPSMAP 78 just fine (maybe my basecamp, or my unit, has a 500 point default setting I do not know about, but I have never purposefully adjusted). In fact, I plan to do some of the CABDR in a couple days and I just downloaded the tracks just fine from CABDR #1, it has about 950 points, if the data it shows are waypoints(?). (NOTE - NOT BDR to Basecamp to Delorme) While riding Crawdaddy's palooza routes before, I laughed out loud a couple times when following tracks from Crawdaddy when I had to turn around 2-3 times on a small jeep road, and then had to stop and zoom-in the screen to about 20 ft wide to find the 10 inch wide single track that I couldn't see with my eyes in order to follow the path, ........ sure, the route would have had an arrow to turn "NOW" as I passed the turn, but I like to ride being able to look down at my unit with my focus being upon an overview map instead of a directional arrow. It allows me to maintain a better sense of where I actually am in regard to valleys, mountains and distant paved roads. By the way, I looked at a bunch of tracks on my unit from Crawdaddy's rides and I did notice that they all seem to be just under 500. Darn, I didn't know that, and I do not know the difference between the BDR downloads, and track installs, sorry. As a possible bizarre perception from watching my riding buddies lead on occasion..... the riders who seem to have a better intuitive sense that they always know which way is north (like knowing that when riding in the USA around noon, your shadow is always pointed North), tracks seem to be preferred. Those who might point in any random direction when asked about north, seem to prefer routes, but I am sure millions of folks might contradict this possibly skewed non-data-driven perception - smiles. Good luck with this topic, as there seems to be infinitely many perceptions and procedures to get it right for each person's individual riding style, and I may have just thrown another wrench into the already confusing post

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