I'd put a new seat/seat pad near the top of the list. I've been out for 4+ hours at a stretch. Anywhere from the one hour to ninety minute mark and my hams are hurting.

 

good luck with the mods!! I have a 14 tooth front sprocket I got on ebay from mopedmotion and I really like it

 

Hey Johnyaddy, got to agree about the seat,
but the list is just in sort of "Front to Back" not priority.

Bit of a damp old day today, so been making up the fork preload spacers.

Top right of the pic


One leg spacer installed.


It gives me about a 15mm preload on the forks.
My forks sag around 26mm with my weight on it
So hopefully the 15mm will give me enough lift.
I can't take credit for this mod. It's all down to Brian S on the "Other forum"

I also made up the Handle bar risers, but fugged them up.
Drilled them 8mm clearance, rather than 8mm tapping size
So poss have another go tomorrow
Dog

 

Got my Handlebar risers done today
Didn't turn out too bad.
They give me a rise of about 70mm,
which with the Renthals should be about the same as stock.
Just got to give them a polish up and they can be fitted




Dog

 

Nice job on the preload bits!

 

Did the airbox mod today.
Just to finish off the intake nicely I made up an alloy bellmouth.
(Not my idea, thanks to Brian S again)





I also fitted the Metz ME7 tyres.
130/70/12 front and rear.
I did have to lift the front fender slightly to clear the bigger tyre.





Dog

 

Looking good! Like those tires. I'm trying to decide if I'll follow the herd and put on some Michelin Power Pures, or find something else. I kind of like some of the chunkier tread patterns I've seen, but don't know how they'll perform. I deal with pretty rough roads and frequently puddles from sudden rain showers, so I have to pay a little attention to how the tires function, as opposed to just picking what I think looks cool.

 

Ok today I thought I would pull the seat apart.
See what I could fug up...
OMG is that foam hard, no wonder it's uncomfortable





I think the best and easiest option would be to cut out part of the foam and replace with something softer.
But I want something a bit more comfy on long rides.
So I dismantled one of my old scooter seats to get the foam
Then cut and reshaped it to fit the Grom seat pan.



I covered it with the old scooter seat cover.
I will replace it with something better if it works ok



Fitted to the bike, just got to wait for it to stop fugin raining to give it a test.
In the garage it certainly feels better.....Watch this space. layful:




In case your wondering, no I aint finished the exhaust yet.

Dog

 

Got another couple of things ticked off my list today.

Made up the Throwover supports.
Ok they my look overkill, but they serve 2 purposes.
One to hold the bags.
Second to give extra support to the rear rack.
I'm not leaving them on the bike permanently, only fit the for my hol's
It's only a couple of bolts to remove them anyway










Second job of the day was to fit the MRA Screen I bought a couple of weeks ago.
I originally planed to fit a Tyga instrument screen,
but when I see the MRA one I just had to have it.
The Tyga screen didn't go to waste, I donated it to my wife's bike.....Generous hu ??






Dog

 

Dog

Great design and fabrication! I have access to a cnc router that can cut wood, about 1/4 inch aluminum (haven't tried, but we were told that), and plastics. No access to a welder. If I wasn't going to use metal, do you think lexan plastic would work in the same geometry as your setup? I am wondering if it would wobble in the wind. Thanks!

 

I so need a set of these, been using mine for 200 mile journey each way to work using soft panniers. Been really nervous about scratching he panels so a set of these would be ideal.

Think I'll have to ask my brother to make a set for me.

Top job!

 

Very nice fabrication!

 

How you like the MRA windshield? Noticeable changes in top speed?

 

I like the look of it, I doubt it'll make much difference to my top speed though.
I'm too much of a barn door.......:shocked:

Dog

 

Great build.


Sent from my iPhone using HondaGrom.net

 

Been a glorious week here so managed to get out and put a few hundred miles on the Grom.

I started off with the 14t front sproket.
It's fine for running around but get's a bit buzzy on a long trip.
So now gone back to a 15t front.
I may look out for a +1 rear, which should be a happy medium.

The second thing that came to light on these shitty French lanes.
With all the potholes the rear suspension kept bottoming out.

Had a look around for a better rear shock.
I couldn't get my budget to run to an Ohlins shock
The YSS looks OK, but Euro dealer is out of stock at the mo.
So for a temp solution I decided to make up a spacer to preload the spring a bit.

Taking the shock to bits was the easy part.


Made the spacer 12mm, which seemed a sensible place to start.



Getting the whole lot back together was a bitch, but finally done it.



Refitted it and the results were great.
No more bottoming out over every dimple and pebble.




So any Lardys looking for a cheap fix, this'll do it.

Dog

 

Ok so me and Mrs took another trip out today.
Went to Oradore Sur Glan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oradour-sur-Glane
Clocked about 150miles or so.
Wanted to give the rear shock mod a good testing



Seemed the 12mm rear shock preload was a bit of overkill.
Didn't bottom out, but gave a really harsh ride.
So when we got back decided to cut it down to 8mm.
I'll try that a bit later see if it's any better.





Dog

 

pappy this is awesome.. i think i might have to end up doing a shim as well on the rear shock until i can afford to get a better one... how are you getting the spring off? did you make a spring compression tool?

 

Yea made up a couple of strong backs with angle iron and some 8mm studding.
Must admit to it being a bit of a c**t to do.
Taking it apart as standard was OK,
but compressing it with the extra shim was a real shit !!!

Don't go to 12mm though, it don't need it and is a really harsh ride
I'll post back how the 8mm works later.

Pappy Dog

 

ok cool.. take some pics of your compression setup..

 

pics of your compression setup..

As promised, well BR I did say don't expect a fantastic setup......
It was only knocked up to do the job.
The top piece of metal was slotted to allow it to go over the center shaft.
Doesn't show up well in the pic

Scrap bin spring compressor:
Ok it's not a Grom shock, but ya get the idea.

O

Dog

 

Sorry BR forgot the pics, been busy.
I'll try and remember tomorrow.
Don't get your hopes up for some fantastic setup...:crazy:
Just a couple of bits of metal I found in my scrap bin, and some 8mm threaded bar....

 

Looking good, Dog. I like what you have done so far. I like riding long distance as well. Only thing different from you is that my grom is still stock. But for the riding I do, it's good enough for me. Specially because of the fuel economy. I'll be riding just over 400 miles in a day. And around 1000 miles in 3 days. I might look into doing similar mods once I feel like I'm ready to cross the US. Subscribed!

Sent from my SCH-I435 using HondaGrom.net mobile app

 

Specially because of the fuel economy.

Yea gota love that fuel economy...
400miles a day though, makes my ass hurt just thinking about it.
Best I've managed is about 250 miles in one day, 3 days in a row.
But only used about 25 liters of fuel :cool-new:

 

Nice build dog!

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I537 using HondaGrom.net mobile app

 

How did you get the rear shock spring off?

 

I completed my trip! Are you planning on riding longer distance per day on your Grom with your suspension setup or are you mainly concerned about comfort for your current achievement?

Sent from my SCH-I435 using HondaGrom.net mobile app

 

Sorry Ven0m0us,I Missed your post.
My goal is to achieve a good touring bike from my Grom.
So comfort at distance is what I require.
In-fact I've just ordered a pair of Race-Tech upgrade fork springs.
Hopefully they're arrive before my trip next month.

Dog

 

Update on my build.
It's been chucking it down with rain for the last week.
So decided to do a few bits to my Grom.

First was to fit an extra tail/brake light.
I did this because with all my luggage on the standard light was a bit obscured.
So for safety and legal reasons I fitted this:



Second job was fit the Tyga 35t rear sprocket.
I tried the 14t front, and although it was great around town it got a bit "buzzy" on a long trip.
Hopefully the extra tooth on the rear will still get me to the red line.
I certainly cant with stock gearing
But can easily with the 14t:





Last job, if you hadn't already noticed...
I painted my wheels Red.
No reason, just thought it looked nice.





Just waiting for my Race-Tech springs to arrive, then I think I'm done.

Dog