Heading south... hopefully all the way...

[jrzyguy]

Originally Posted by rockymountainoyster

Hey Jim,
Garufa in Zacatecas is where we had dinner. I didn't try the one in SMA. It is right up the street, towards the Jardin, from Posada de Las Monjas. Don't know where you are today but hope you got to SMA and are at Las Monjas, good affordable place with parking and you can walk everywhere. There are so many great restaurants there. Make sure to go to La Mesa Grande on corner of Zacateros and Pila Seca, great coffee, pan chocolate, nice staff, way cheaper and better than the corporate coffee up at the Jardin. I am in Mexico City for a couple of days and then flying to Chile on Tuesday. Will be back in a month. Went to SMA for 3 days stayed for three weeks. How long are you planning to be down here in Mex?

David

Thanks for the recommendations. I arrived in San Miguel de Allende last evening. I agree that it's a beautiful city and understand why you extended your visit. It is upscale Mexico, for sure! I'm staying at the Hostel Inn, several blocks north of the main plaza, where I reconnected with Matt W. I will definitely return to the SMA area to spend more time on my way back north, but my short range plan is to meet Matt in Mexico City on Wednesday morning (he returned to his family's place in M.C. this afternoon). From there we (Matt, his brother-in-law and I) will travel to Oaxaca, Puerto Escondido, then work our way east and into Guatemala (to Tikal). At that point, Matt will continue south and I'll likely continue east into Belize and then up to the Yucatan. I expect to be in Mexico another 4-5 weeks.
I'm sure you'll have a fabulous time in Chile...hope you intend to keep your report going while you're there. Looking forward to getting together with you when you return!
Jim

[jrzyguy]

Originally Posted by RW66

Jim
It was nice ridding with you yesterday. Let me know if you ever get back in the area and if you have time maybe I could have the pleasure of showing you a couple of more places.
Hope you got to SMA ok. If you stop at the Garufa to eat, tell the owner you bring him saludos from Fresnillo. The owner of the Garufa in SMA is from Fresnillo and his mother works for a good friend of mine.
Keep the reports comming. Great job.
Travel safe
Roy

Roy, Thanks for showing me around...the local touch is always better. The afternoon ride to SMA was smooth. Got in just before dark...perfect timing! I'll look for Garufa (feeling like a good piece of meat) and will pass on your saludos. Hope to see you again when I'm in the Zac. area!
Jim

[jrzyguy]

My bike is running perfectly...it feels so good! Roy, a friend from Fresnillo (25 miles north of Zacatecas) and I met this morning...Roy is showing me around. We're parked at the rear of a church in Asientos, south of Zacatecas. We are about to take a tour of the church, including a series of tunnels below the church and grounds.



The tunnel system was dug for a number of reasons...one of which was to drain moisture away from the church and to prevent it from wicking up into the walls, causing premature deterioration. The tunnels also served as tombs. A local silver mine financed the church's construction.

From Asientos, Roy and I rode over to San Jose de Gracie, where Roy treated me to a lake-front lunch! Thanks again, Roy!



While rolling through Delores Hildago, I saw this group riding their horses to the young lady's quinceañera. It is the 15th birthday coming-of-age celebration Latina girls dream about. They invited me to the party, but I was underdressed.



Her dress nearly covered the horse as well. A surprise encounter like this one is what I love about traveling in Mexico!

[going south]

I am glad you are back on the road again, been following the whole way... love the pic's... keep it up...

[rockymountainoyster]

Jim,
Maybe we can connect in Yucatan or Palenque...when I get back from Chile I am going to head to Veracruz and I then down south and to Yucatan. Amazing that after all of that the bike problem was stator...how much is the place where you are staying in SMA.? I stayed at a motel the other night for 160 pesos...very clean no tell motel kind of place.

[smilin jack]

Originally Posted by going south

I am glad you are back on the road again, been following the whole way... love the pic's... keep it up...

My 2006 DR had similar problems. Over a several month period it wouldn't start cold. Took it to a shop the first time and they rebuilt the top end at 42K miles. Low compression they said. It ran a few weeks that way but then wouldn't start cold again. Spark was very small but blue. Then NO spark.

Read on advrider about the bad pick-up coil problems others were having, so ohmed the pick-up wires where they enter the CDI box. Open circuit= broken wire in pick-up coil. Ordered an aftermarket one from
http://www.regulatorrectifier.com/catalog/Suzuki-96
and installed it. The bike fired up immediately and has run now for almost 10K. The bike will turn 50K on this tank of fuel. The coil was about $40us.



The pickup coil is just below the gear in this photo. I only cut the two wires on the old pick-up coil, pushed the new wires thru the grommet and soldered together outside the engine. The soldered joints were shrink wrapped and taped after dielectric grease was applied.

Glad you found the problem.

Dave

[jrzyguy]

Originally Posted by going south

I am glad you are back on the road again, been following the whole way... love the pic's... keep it up...

Big smiles...thanks!

[jrzyguy]

Originally Posted by smilin jack

My 2006 DR had similar problems. Over a several month period it wouldn't start cold. Took it to a shop the first time and they rebuilt the top end at 42K miles. Low compression they said. It ran a few weeks that way but then wouldn't start cold again. Spark was very small but blue. Then NO spark.

Read on advrider about the bad pick-up coil problems others were having, so ohmed the pick-up wires where they enter the CDI box. Open circuit= broken wire in pick-up coil. Ordered an aftermarket one from
http://www.regulatorrectifier.com/catalog/Suzuki-96
and installed it. The bike fired up immediately and has run now for almost 10K. The bike will turn 50K on this tank of fuel. The coil was about $40us.



The pickup coil is just below the gear in this photo. I only cut the two wires on the old pick-up coil, pushed the new wires thru the grommet and soldered together outside the engine. The soldered joints were shrink wrapped and taped after dielectric grease was applied.

Glad you found the problem.

Dave

Dave, you are more resourceful then me. But I've learned a lot in this process...thanks for your input! jim

[jrzyguy]

Originally Posted by rockymountainoyster

Jim,
Maybe we can connect in Yucatan or Palenque...when I get back from Chile I am going to head to Veracruz and I then down south and to Yucatan. Amazing that after all of that the bike problem was stator...how much is the place where you are staying in SMA.? I stayed at a motel the other night for 160 pesos...very clean no tell motel kind of place.

Dave, I'll stay optimistic that we can reconnect. I'm amazed at how high my spirits have been lifted since my bike started!
The Hostel Inn has different rates depending on accommodations: 150 for the dorm, 200 for a single private room, and 400 for a bed w/private bath. It's clean and well run. No on-site moto parking...but safe on the street.
I'm having coffee in La Mesa Grande now...thanks for the recommendation! Heading over to Guanajuato (via Dolores Hildago) later this morning. Jim

[jrzyguy]

San Miguel is beautiful, with an amazing main plaza and cathedral watching over all the activities. The influence from expats (U.S. & Canadian) is readily apparent...I'm sure it's a love/hate relationship with the locals. Everyone seems to enjoy the evenings and displays of affection are seen everywhere.

Matt and I walked a bit of the city after breakfast...here is some of what we saw...

























It was a fine Sunday morning with perfect weather for a walk to check out the sights!

[jrzyguy]

Cafe Ole Ole had the bullfighting theme going strong!



Matt definitely had this bull under control!



The Hostel Inn is a short walk from the main plaza! Matt is in our second floor dorm room.



Our bikes were safely parked on the street across from the Hostel. If a rider felt unsure, there was secure parking ($100M) in the neighborhood.



These two were across from the Hostel...keeping the peace! There are lots of dogs in SMA, many seen on rooftop terraces looking down on the street...and letting their presence be known!



The sisters are set up in front of the Cathedral...selling refreshing drinks and memorabilia.



Matt is heading back to his family's home in Mexico City...traveling via Guanajuato! I plan to meet him in M.C. on Wednesday morning.

[jrzyguy]

The clock tower is adjacent to the Cathedral, at the southeast corner of the plaza.



The Cathedral speaks for itself!



I took a walk up to higher ground, out east of the main plaza. Was looking for a good view down onto the city...I think I found what I was looking for!



And one with a wider angle! So far, my preferences are to ride during the day and explore at night!



And before calling it a night, a hamburguesa and Coke from a plaza street vendor finishes things nicely!

[NJMPSteve]

Jim,
Fantastic trip, glad bike is running well now and super pics. Stay safe be well
SteveO

[GSF1200S]

Jrzyguy, this may be ridiculous, but i have an idea about the stator.

As I understand it, the excess wattage produced by the DR650s stator is shunted to ground. As in, there is something, presumably in the voltage regulator, which acts as a form of resistance but nonetheless directs the current to ground. Every action has a reaction- it is well known for example that driving pumps produces a "drag" on the engine reducing output horsepower. This is why many drag cars run underdrive pulleys or remove accessories (like air conditioning) that could potentially rob horsepower from being directed to the wheels.

The only way that an engine is going to "lose" horsepower due to extra "drag" is physical resistance to rotation- the act of generating more electrical power inherently must create more rotational resistance. And since, in this case, a high output stator that has its excess current routed through to ground (with a "load" to prevent a short), it inherently would create more rotational resistance all the time. I am an electrician by trade, but dealing primarily with microelectronics I could be completely wrong here, or might be exaggerating through ignorance the affect this stator could have.

Why is this important? More rotational resistance places more force on each bolt that holds the stator in. Perhaps the stator cover isnt designed to accommodate the extra load as small as it might be, and causes stress fractures in the cover that eventually cause the type of failure you had? Of course, it could also be a failure of the aftermarket stator.

I admit this does sound far-fetched even to me, but I am also considering you mentioned properly torquing the stator bolts and mentioned using loctite on each one- thats going above and beyond what the service manual calls for.

What is anyones thoughts on this?

[jrzyguy]

Originally Posted by NJMPSteve

Jim,
Fantastic trip, glad bike is running well now and super pics. Stay safe be well
SteveO

Steve, Good to hear from you. The DR is running like a Timex...but I don't think it's ready for the track just yet...I've got to get a pipe for it first :) Jim