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Henry Martin spends his nights writing fiction and poetry, which predominately deals with the often-overlooked aspects of humanity. He is the author of three novels: Escaping Barcelona, Finding Eivissa, and Eluding Reality; a short story collection, Coffee, Cigarettes, and Murderous Thoughts; and a poetry collection, The Silence Before Dawn. His most recent published project is a collection of Photostories in five volumes under the KSHM Project umbrella, for which he collaborated with Australian photographer Karl Strand, combining one of a kind images with short stories and vignettes. He is currently working on his next novel narrated in two opposing points of view. He lives with his family in the Northeast.

Sunday, January 20, 2013

WR Farkles

It was actually above freezing this weekend (not for long though), so I made my way to the garage and started working on the WR250R.

The bike came to me pretty much stock, so there was a "need" to get some goodies (or, as I explained to my better half: "Honey, I do need that skidplate, you wouldn't want me to break the engine case and get stuck in the woods, would you?" )

A big thumbs up to SoloRacer for fair prices and speedy delivery. Also to Revzilla for the same.

I used SoloRacer for Flatland Racing skidplate and radiator guard, a license plate bracket, new tailight, and turn signals.
Revzilla got some business form me for a Wolfman Enduro bag (cheaper than Wolfman direct AND free shipping).

I started with the taillight and turn signals. That's where I had my 'idiot' moment. I took the parts to the living room, crimped and soldered all my connections, and then I found out that the mounting nuts won't slip over the connectors. Yeah, wasted time. But, with some pushing, pulling, and cussing, I was able to get the connectors apart again, and fixed the issue.

The next issue I had was with the license plate bracket. It was bent (at the factory, I assume), a little too much, and there was no way I could mount the license plate on it.

A couple of decent whacks with a hammer and a wooden block got it where it needed to be. 


 The front turn signals were easy
Next I tackled the radiator guard. It is a solid little piece, well made, but it could have been engineered a little better. I'm not sure that I'll keep it. It is rugged, yet I feel it doesn't offer enough protection from behind and down at the bottom of the radiator. Also, I wish it would be a true wrap-around design. The way it mounts, it leaves a little bit of the radiator closest to frame exposed. At that location, I'm not worried about rocks, but a small branch could easily get to the core if it came at the right angle.
Mounting this was easy, except at the end when I struggled to attach the side plastics back. There just isn't enough room. I managed to reuse stock bolts, but I had to push my allen wrench through the slots in the guard to tighten them.


The skidplate was the easiest to mount. It is very rugged, well engineered with ample protection, and the bends and welds are of great quality. Easy mounting with four provided bolts. I used a thick piece of rubber at four points were the skidplate ended up touching the frame - both to prevent vibration and protect the frame.


 Finally, I attached my homemade rear rack.


The Enduro tankbag is a good fit, and suits the bike rather well. It doesn't interfere with my riding position at all.

Now I just have to wait for the snow to melt so I can hit some trails. The last thing on the list (for now) is a front sprocket cover and a case saver, but I didn't order those yet.

I love the way the tailsection cleaned up with the aftermarket lights and bracket.







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