Hi Everyone! Brand new to the forum!

[ryanschoebel]

Hi Everybody, I am brand new to both this forum, and motorcycles in general!  I bought my first motorcycle 3 months ago, and it is a 1985 Fj1100.  I am not completely useless, and have fixed a few things, (faulty fuel gauge, 2 turn signals not lighting up, super simple stuff like that).  I love this bike so far, and am having a blast both learning to ride it, and working on it, and making it my own. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

[aviationfred]

  Welcome to the forum. You mentioned that this is the first motorcycle that you have purchased. These big brutes do demand respect and good throttle control. In OEM form the brakes and suspension leaves something to be desired. Especially after 30+ years of use and possible neglect. I would highly recommend inspecting the front brake calipers for a possible rebuild. If it has the OEM rubber brake lines, I suggest changing them to braided stainless lines. We love photos of FJ's and would love to see your. Also let us know what part of the world you hail from and maybe pin yourself on the zee maps. You may be able to see if there are other members near you.



Fred

[red]

Hi Everybody, I am brand new to both this forum, and motorcycles in general!  I bought my first motorcycle 3 months ago, and it is a 1985 Fj1100.  I am not completely useless, and have fixed a few things, (faulty fuel gauge, 2 turn signals not lighting up, super simple stuff like that).  I love this bike so far, and am having a blast both learning to ride it, and working on it, and making it my own. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Ryan,

You did not say how long ago this bike was on the road, but if it has been a while, then first thing, replace all the hydraulic fluids (clutch and brakes) with new.  The fluid type you need is written on the covers near the hand levers.  The old fluid can absorb water over time, and if the brakes get hot, the water can boil, locking the brakes solid.  I recommend SpeedBleeders instead of the usual brake bleed fittings, but either way, old hydraulic fluid can be bad news.  Locking a brake on the road can be deadly, and you can not release that hot locked brake without a bleeder-size wrench.  If you ever feel a brake lever getting hard (no free play in the lever), stop immediately - this is extremely serious.

Look in the sight glass for the oil level, and change the oil immediately if it smells like gasoline, or looks milky.

You won't have many tire options with the 16" rims, but I run my FJ1100 on Pirelli Sport Demon tires (bias ply) and they are very good tires.  The Avon radials may be better, but I have not tried them yet.  Old rubber (more than five or six years) is not to be trusted with the power and weight of the FJ,
https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=11

Did you get an Owners Manual?  You can find Haynes and Clymer maintenance manuals, and OEM factory manuals in hard copy.  Any manuals you find on a CD are pirated.

There is a lot to know, so learn how, before you try "how fast."      

[FJmonkey]

Welcome Ryan, plenty of support and knowledge here for you and your FJ.  Now that you are here, imagine you are at an FJ rally after the day's ride and you are sitting around the campfire with us. Telling lies about how fast we were, the best oil and tires, and what roads we ride tomorrow.

[ryanschoebel]

Welcome to the forum. You mentioned that this is the first motorcycle that you have purchased. These big brutes do demand respect and good throttle control. In OEM form the brakes and suspension leaves something to be desired. Especially after 30+ years of use and possible neglect. I would highly recommend inspecting the front brake calipers for a possible rebuild. If it has the OEM rubber brake lines, I suggest changing them to braided stainless lines. We love photos of FJ's and would love to see your. Also let us know what part of the world you hail from and maybe pin yourself on the zee maps. You may be able to see if there are other members near you.



Fred

Hi Fred, thanks for the advice! It sure has been an adventure learning to ride, but i am having a lot of fun with it. I have just been taking it around the neighborhood, learning how the clutch and throttle likes to handle.  Im just getting a hang of it haha. I did do an inspection on the bike (to the best of my knowledge), and the previous owner took very good care of the bike. It has good records, but i will certainly look into changing those lines out! I think i have a leak on the right side of my front fork, but i am gonna keep an eye on it. I did pin myself on the zee map earlier, i hail from Phoenix AZ, and there are a few members out in Mesa. And i will definitely be posting some pictures, as soon as i clean her up a bit! I need new plastics for the whole front (fairings?), as it has been dropped a few times in the past. I hope to get her looking new again soon!

Thanks again,
Ryan

[ryanschoebel]

Hi Everybody, I am brand new to both this forum, and motorcycles in general!  I bought my first motorcycle 3 months ago, and it is a 1985 Fj1100.  I am not completely useless, and have fixed a few things, (faulty fuel gauge, 2 turn signals not lighting up, super simple stuff like that).  I love this bike so far, and am having a blast both learning to ride it, and working on it, and making it my own. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Ryan,

You did not say how long ago this bike was on the road, but if it has been a while, then first thing, replace all the hydraulic fluids (clutch and brakes) with new.  The fluid type you need is written on the covers near the hand levers.  The old fluid can absorb water over time, and if the brakes get hot, the water can boil, locking the brakes solid.  I recommend SpeedBleeders instead of the usual brake bleed fittings, but either way, old hydraulic fluid can be bad news.  Locking a brake on the road can be deadly, and you can not release that hot locked brake without a bleeder-size wrench.  If you ever feel a brake lever getting hard (no free play in the lever), stop immediately - this is extremely serious.

Look in the sight glass for the oil level, and change the oil immediately if it smells like gasoline, or looks milky.

You won't have many tire options with the 16" rims, but I run my FJ1100 on Pirelli Sport Demon tires (bias ply) and they are very good tires.  The Avon radials may be better, but I have not tried them yet.  Old rubber (more than five or six years) is not to be trusted with the power and weight of the FJ,
https://www.tirerack.com/tires/tiretech/techpage.jsp?techid=11

Did you get an Owners Manual?  You can find Haynes and Clymer maintenance manuals, and OEM factory manuals in hard copy.  Any manuals you find on a CD are pirated.

There is a lot to know, so learn how, before you try "how fast."      

Hi Red, thanks for the advice! Thats all very good things to know, and i will check them first thing tomorrow. I do need a manual for sure, as the bike didnt come with one. To be honest, im not sure how long the bike has been on the road.  It is an '85, and has 18,740~ on the odo. Not sure if thats good or bad, or just normal haha. Im definitely keeping it tame for now, and will get into the faster, funner stuff when im a little more confident!   

Thanks again,
Ryan

[CutterBill]

An FJ... as a first bike?   

[ryanschoebel]

An FJ... as a first bike?   

Yup! And I'm doing just fine so far .  New doesn't have to mean dumb.

Ryan

[FJmonkey]

Ryan, your pin is approved and is visible to all.

[ryanschoebel]

Ryan, your pin is approved and is visible to all.

Thank you!! I appreciate it!

[red]

Ryan,

The FJ is a lot of bike, for any new rider.  Stay in the lower half of the RPM band, for now.  If you can find a Motorcycle Safety Course around there, that will be a large help to you.

PM (Private Message) coming your way.

[ryanschoebel]

Ryan,

The FJ is a lot of bike, for any new rider.  Stay in the lower half of the RPM band, for now.  If you can find a Motorcycle Safety Course around there, that will be a large help to you.

PM (Private Message) coming your way.

Hey Red,

Sent a message back, thank you. And yeah, sounds good. I don't think I've even gone above 5000 to 5500 yet. And I took a course, knowing that it would help. I took it before I ever even tried to ride haha.

Thanks
Ryan