KLR650 Only Thread......

I would very much steer clear of them. Whatever it is, they are about the worst place to source it. A friend who bought a KLR after I did bought some farkles and OEM parts from them and played hell for months getting them to either A) ship the parts or B) refund his money. In the end it became some of each after about 6 months of fighting and inaction with them. If you can back out, do so. Just about anyone else selling KLR stuff is better.

I try to get as much as I can from Eagle Mike. I feel he is a person of high integrity and he only supports / sells quality products.

http://eaglemike.com/main.sc

Best regards,

I concur. Mine was pink (red) so I painted it black. But Green is the color I like the most, so when I saw that Ace Hardware was having a plastidip sale, I had to get on it.

Well I have 10 coats. My black spray paint never rubbed off, maybe this will last longer. If not then it may be time to get green plastic.

Plastidip is the cheapest method to get a durable finish. The rubberized material flexes with the plastic.

This would be the best. Bedliner gets rock hard though, sometimes. Some bedliners are rubberized as well, such as MONSTALINER (which has color additives).

I'm glad to hear the bed liner does well. I have an all black klr and at some point I plan to do the plastic and tank in the bed liner. Incidentally, I have read the Harbor Freight product is supposed to be pretty good. Does anyone have any recommendations?

Best regards,

Mine is the stock steel, so no issue there

Well aside from the fact that it has a dent in it...

Weight savings bro!

Also curious about what product to use. Roll on or spray?

I've got two tanks done in professionally sprayed bedliner (because it's tough stuff, and fuel proof). A black tank done in Rhinoliner and another sprayed in green Reflex brand. They both have aged well. Am planning on getting two more tanks done in the green. Here's a closeup... highly textured, will ask 'em to flow it out a bit more next time.

Great idea!

One of my cruiser buddies is already looking for a KLR for himself. Only a matter of time!

Damn. I thought to check BEFORE i made the purchase what their rep was like. Slaps self on head.... yeah I have bought a bunch of stuff from eagle mike before, he was good...

Oh well I have emailed cancelling my order.... let's see if I have to go to visa as well....

When I got my A14 back a few years ago, I stripped it and redid it from front to back ( cept the engine , no need ) . Painted it Forest Green. Looked pretty good. Decided a year later to paint it again. no prep cept wiping it down. This time John Deere Glossy Green. All it needed was yellow wheels. But, due to no prep and the quickly fading purtty green and lots of it peeling off when washing it, now multi colored. Two greens and a bit of black also. It's never gonna be a pretty bike, but very functionable.

Eagle Mike and Arrowhead Motorsports (Fred Hink) are two of my go-to places for KLR stuff. Both reputable, knowledgeable, friendly and fast. That doesn't mean others aren't good, just that these two have proven to be great vendors over and over again.

A new KLR owner started a thread then asked to have the discussion to this thread. Another new KLR owner, however, has asked some questions in that thread.

I want to answer the questions but I want to respect the wishes of that thread's OP.

Since both tach and temperature gauge are erratic it sounds like you are on the right track looking for a loose ground. On your 2001, you should be able to see the ground wire attachment on the back of the instrument cluster. If that's OK, then you may want to clean the multi-wire plug for the instruments.

You'll be able to find rebuild kits for the brake. Could also be oil on the pads but it sounds like you're going over the whole thing anyway.

Diagrams of the battery cover and nearby parts are available on BikeBandit.com, RonAyers.com and others.

I cannot help with an aftermarket hydraulic clutch.

I would not assume that a KLR with 60k miles has had the doohickey replaced. Many riders have ridden KLRs many thousands of miles without ever having a doohickey failure or replacement. Yours sounds like it's been badly maintained, at least recently. If a rider never tightens the counterbalancer tensioner then broken parts may never cause a loose chain. Some work fine. Some fail, usually by having a slack spring, but others by cracking.

Some good advice above.

Clean all electrical contacts, then coat with dielectric grease. This prevents further oxidation of the contacts and repels water.

Brake fluid should be replaced at least every 2 years. Cylinders need to be cleaned nearly as often to remove trash, wear and have the seals checked. Brake fluid is hygroscopic.

Some doo's are fine. Others fail and implode the motor. Be safe, check then adjust regularly. There is a lot written about this. Cheap insurance.

Hydraulic clutch? KLR clutches are 'wet', lubricated by engine oil. Has the release system been converted from cable to hydraulic?

Thanks to Grinnin for letting me know about this thread. I am the "other" inmate asking about the recently aquired KLR.
The clutch actuation has been converted to hydraulic. IT is a Magura kit. It works fine so far.
Generally the bike has been neglected. I think it lived outside its whole life. I got it strewn across the garage currently, with the pile of parts increasing steadily.
I am going to paint the plastics tonight. I guess Krylon Fusion is the norm. The bike is silver /baby poo green combination, so I will stick with something in green. Any input is appreciated. I dont want to paint the the tank.
As far as the temperature gauge being erratic I found broken wire on the temperature sender (the one next to the spark plug). I am assuming that is the one. Maybe tach and temperature gauge issues are not related. Exhaust header is in rough shape and I broke one of the heat shield bolts last night (despite the heating).

I can probably drill it out. Is the KLX header pipe a direct fit? I am scared to attempt to take it of. I am having visions of stud breaking in the head.
Don't want to go into the rabbit hole deeper than I have to.
I will get the doohichey done during "round 2". I want to put it together and ride see what else comes up.

Pictures coming tonight.
Thank you in advance.

Take your time with the prep, or you'll have peeling paint down the road. I give the plastics a good wipe down with acetone before sanding (150 to 220 range) and immediately before spraying. That Krylon Fusion is a good choice.

Yup, that sensor in the head is for temp gauge - you likely found your problem. Tach has it's own input wire, and problems are usually at connectors.

Don't worry about the studs for the header pipe snapping - they're pretty robust. The heatshield bolt that snapped, had same thing happen to me, and I couldn't get it out without damaging the threads, so I drilled & tapped for next size up American Standard size... worked fine.

I'm a Snap-On, Mac or Craftsman tool guy but
I have a box of Harbor Freight tools for loaners.
If it doesn't come back not a big loss.

That is a good one! As loaners! Probably the last time too that they will come asking as well - stripped off or rounded nuts too!

Woohoooo it's green now!!!



I did happen to notice the side fairings being a little bit more grabby, but my legs barely touch them. I don't think I'll have much an issue. As for the tank though, I don't think I want to plasti dip it now, I think I'd rather have a shop paint it or just swap it with an IMS tank.

Regarding coolant: will any green automotive coolant work, or do I need to get something for motorcycles? I'd like to ride it tomorrow but the coolant is 100% water now, and I'd rather not ride with that. The motorcycle dealers are all closed now but the auto parts store is open late....

Regarding the color:
I once over heard a guy talking to one of his buddies wondering why anyone would buy an ugly ass green bike. I told him that it was my ugly ass green bike and I bought that color by choice. I liked it when I bought it and still think it's the best KLR color every.