Nomad Blog since Day One.

I bought my 2004 Nomad August 15th, 2003, so it is 5 years old now. This is the record of what we've been through together in the garage. I've been keeping it over at Motorcycle-USA.com. It's a great site, but I don't go there much anymore since I joined KawaNOW.

I decided I didn't want to lose this info, and so I'm going to cross-post it here from MCUSA. Also, I hate to keep sending folks there to see it when they could see it here if I wasn't to lazy to do this.

I won't migrate every post, but certainly all the ones that are important as a log of my service, repair, riding experiences, and modification activities.

It will help me to have it here, and I hope it helps some of you as well.

[blowndodge]

You have my approval on that Cadd! We can always used "updated" info on what you've done and posted in the past.

Thanks, BD.

I know a lot of this will read like a travel log and not a service log. I hope people will read it anyway to see what went through my head as I came to know one of the greatest bikes I'll ever own....Cadd.

(8/9/2003....The Prelude...)

I took the wife to our local Honda/Yamaha/Suzuki/Kawasaki dealer today, to look at new cruisers.


Kinda interesting to compare them side by side. So far, I'd only seen pictures.


My observations:


The Honda VTX 1800 was very clean looking, but they didn't have the bagger model in stock. No VTX 1300 in stock either. The radiator didn't look as bad as I thought it would. Overall, it's a real looker, but heavy!


The Yamaha Roadstar Silverado 1600 ('03 model) looks nice from the side, but there's a lot of ugly black plumbing right up front. Not having a radiator, I thought that the front of the motor would look cleaner. It really didn't. The seats seemed nice, but the leather bags looked cheap & unfinished. I didn't like the tires much either. The huge chrome slabs on the windshield were just too much.


The Suzuki Volusia 1500 had the same problem up front. The oil cooler & black plastic battery box spoil the front of the engine. Not being water cooled, I thought it would look cleaner. It didn't. I liked the seats a lot. I didn't like the gas tank arangement. The phoney tank looks cheap. The side covers looked bulbous & ugly.


The Kawasaki Vulcan Nomad 1500 looked very bulky (not as much as the ugly Volusia though) but it seemed less top-heavy than the other bikes: even those without windshields & bags. I liked the tires better than the other bikes. The fiberglass bags were very nice. The seats were second-best to the Suzuki, but still quite substantial. I didn't like the windshield lowers, but they come off. The radiator looks plain but not offensive, but the downtubes seem very broad for a V-bike, and there's ugly bosses on the downtubes. Perhaps they're for mounting a chrome radiator cover? With one, it would look almost as nice as the VTX up front, and I like the rear of the Vulcan better. I liked the controls the best too. I thought the fork lowers looked strange (as on most of the others) but quite substantial. It's cheaper than the VTX by quite a lot.


I haven't ridden any of these bikes yet, but so far Kawasaki is in the lead by a nose. VTX second, Roadstar third, and Volusia dead last. They should have a VTX Retro in next week, so I'll go compare some more then.

(8/15/03.....Day One...AM)

Well, assuming that our check has cleared at the bank, today will be the day.

I've got some 40 year old scotch waitin' for the post-purchase (and post-ride!) festivities.

So if I don't make a lot of sense later, you'll know why.

And if I don't show up at all tonight, it means that I started ridin' and didn't turn around.

(8/15/2003....Day One....PM)

<----New owner of:

2004 Kawasaki Nomad 1500 Fi

Blue & Silver, bone stock
$15,094 cash, incl. tax, reg, delivery, new helmet & gloves.

As of 9:45 AM this morning.

Total mileage so far: 18

Coments:

It thumps more than I thought it would.
Low speed handling better than expected.
Had to get used to the clutch.
My briefcase wont fit in the hard bags.
Why does an F.I. bike have a choke knob?
Rode right to work.
Everybody drooled.
and...
I'm still shaking from the adrenaline, even though
I haven't had it over 45 MPH yet.

More later,
Cadd.

(Took me a bit to figure out, but it wasn't adrenaline.

I got a good whiff of that black paint burning off the convertor, and it made me sick.

WAAAUGH!

I had a hard time eating lunch. But since I did, I'm feeling a bit better.)

(8/15/03....Day One....Late PM)

Day One
28 Miles

I rode the new Nomad home from work 10 miles.

It's a bit louder than I thought it would be. Just right really.
Just a smidgen louder than a stock H-D Road King.
It weighs a smigen more.
I's a smidgen longer.
The engine is a smidgen bigger.
The hardbags are a smidgen smaller.
The price was like $5000 less.


Otherwise it rumbles & thumps (and even once "spit") just like a real Milwaukee paint shaker; though the bars & mirrors don't vibrate as much.
And it shifts a little smoother.


If I'd bought a Harley, it would have had to be a used one, or finance part of it.
No way was I going into debt, after just getting out from one (the old house.) I spent every dime Judy would allow me to...plus $94.


Anyhow, I've had it up to 50 MPH now. I'm taking it pretty easy on the break-in miles. By the time it hits 500 miles, I'll have taken it up the mountain a couple times, real easy, with Judy on back; and I'll have had it to 100 maybe once, solo.


I'm also taking it easy on me too, untill I get me sea-legs back solid. I've been off bikes for several years now (save an occasional short ride on a borrowed honda). I don't get enough exercise for a grown man, since I bunged up my knee.


I don't mind tellin' you, the first five minutes were sorta scary. This is the heavest thing I've ever ridden, and by almost 300 lbs the heavest I've ever owned. It took a bit of practice to "get" the hydraulic clutch, and I stalled it on the first couple attempts at starting out. But after a couple 20 minute sessions in stop & go rush hour traffic, I'm feeling my cheerieos again, and I can tell that I'm going to have a fine time with it.


I did some tight idle-speed S's, O's and 8's in the parking lot tonight, and never dabbed or even thought about it. It's geared for the highway, but it appears that it will smoke right off the line (once I decide it's broken in enough for a good hard launch.)


Now all I'm missin' is some vacation time to enjoy it. That's gonna be scarce, as we've got more work than we can do between now and Christmas. Plus, Judy's back at work, and her new class will be in Monday.


Cheers all,

(8/14/2003)
Day 2
42 miles

Well it's not virgin any more.

I hit some bug-splat when I took it out this morning.

I went for a doughnut run, which somehow turned into a 10 mile jaunt up the freeway.

I kept it between 50 and 65, accelerating & decellerating slowly the whole time.

I took one half-hearted sprint up to 75, but only kept it there a few seconds.

Shifting on the freeway turns out to be much smoother and faster than a Harley, though around town it's a little notchy in the lower gears.

Perhaps that will smooth out, or perhaps it's just me that needs to smooth out. It's sure different from everything else I've had.

I started using the heel part of the heel & toe shifter, and it works nice. I still have to think about where the brake pedal is though. It's not that far forward for my leg, it's just not where a Jap bike usually puts it. At first, I found myself using the front brake almost exclusively, but I'm forcing myself to use the back one too.

The brakes are the smoothest I've ever had.

The clutch seems to be getting smoother too, or maybe that's just me getting smoother. Hard to say.

Things have to break in a bit.

I'm more jazzed than the first time I rode it.

(8/16/2003...PM)
Day 2
91 miles

I did couple trips today with Judy on the back.
She did really well and likes it more than I'd imagined.

Used 2.7 gallons in 75 miles.
This thing gets about the same mileage as my Pontiac Bonneville,
but must have premium gas. The Pontiac will burn regular.

We did 25 miles in the heat of the afternoon. (100 F today in Clovis.)
I took off the lowers today, and was glad I did.
Rode about half in town, half on open country roads. All straight, no twisties.

Did another 19 about 9:30 PM, when it had cooled down a lot.
All straight in-town boulevards & expressways, No freeways yet with Judy.

Some more observations after riding two-up:

Top speed achieved two-up was 55 MPH. Mostly we did 30~45 MPH.

This bike hardly knows you've got a passenger.
It actually rides smoother and straighter with one.
I wonder how much pressue is in the air shocks?

The tool kit is hard to get to.
It's behind a locked plastic side cover that wouldn't stop a determined hamster,
behind a second plastic snap-in panel, and stuffed under the charcoal canister.

We definately need a sissy bar. I surprised Judy a couple times when she wasn't quite ready.
I don't dare open the throttle hard until we get one. Besides, still have 400 break-in miles to go.

When it's 100 F out, the fan kicks on every time you stop.
I wish there was another direction it could blow except on me.

One of the full-floating calipers is floating more than the other.
It rattles a little over sharp bumps. The bolts are all tight.
Faulty machine work? Brakes still very smooth two-up.
No grabbing, squeeking, or fading.

I'm using the rear brake a lot more now. Probably should use the fronts more.

Backing this thing up in a driveway with loose dirt requires almost more traction than I could muster.
I'm gonna feel those calf muscles tonight.

Took Judy in to buy a helmet this morning. Now we have matching helmets & gloves. Ain't we cute.

Got her up to the counter to pay, and what's playing on the video monitor?
Worlds greatest motocross crashes. Guys eating rocks, dirt, trees, and other bikes; once every ten seconds.
A new passenger doesn't need to see that right before her first ride.

Judy says she will increase my life insurance.

Going up the local main drag at 10:00 PM, idiot teenies in ricers want to drag race.
I just smile & let 'em go. I've got a passenger, and my rings aren't seated.

At the next light some kid snears and calls me a poser because I didn't race.
I tell him his muffler's falling off. Sounds like it too.

At the light, he peels out again. Right in front of a cop hiding behind Burger King.
As I turn off onto the expressway, the officer is in hot pursuit.

Break-in continues tomorrow.
Cadd.

(8/17/2003)
Day 3
114 miles

Another stint today in the 100+ heat. Man I'm dehydrated.

The heel shifter is weird. Every time I step on it, I feel like I'm riding an antique.
Oughta have a jockey shifter on the tank.

I'm still looking for some good boots. I went to the Boot Barn, which sells almost every famous American-made boot there is. 15,000 boots in that store, but all their motorcycle boots are made in China. Actually, the Chinese-made boots looked very well made. I just don't want my feet to turn black.

None of the M/C shops I've been to here sell any touring boots, or really much of anything but road racer & motocross stuff.

I'm waiting for the sun to drop before I hit it again. I'm trying not to get too sunburned.

I'd certainly be posting less & riding more, but it's so dang hot.

(8/18/2003)
Day 4
mileage unrecorded

My bass boat just sits in the garage looking at me like I've deserted it.

I lucked out & got the chromed billet sissybar & rack setup on sale at www.buykawasaki.com. I saved about $100 over rongreen's prices, and a whopping $250+ over what the dealer wanted in-store. Should arrive UPS any minute now...

<---stares out window looking for brown truck...

(8/29/2003)

Day 15
447 miles.

I've only honked on it a couple times, and not very hard. She's still on the break-in oil. I have to keep telling myself that. I also let slip to myself (with a smile) that the break-in oil gets changed Monday. But this is still only Friday night.

So far 99.9% of the ride has been back & forth to work on the arrow-straight boulevard, and a couple soda runs about town. 0 to 45. 45 to 0. Blip it up to 50 or so on the boulevard while watching for moto-cops. Ease it back down. Bike has a very mild lean surge at 40 to 50. Right where I'm riding. I don't hold any one speed for more than half a minute. I'll be sooooooo dang happy to fix that surge once the break-in is over.

The speed limit is 40. Rush hour traffic moves at 45~49. Nobody hits 50 unless they want a ticket. Cops on police KZ1000's & Beemer 750's are giving 'em out like jellybeans at rush hours.

I decided that a nightime romp up the freeway was in order. Brand new freeway here. Nice & smooth, high-speed sweepers. Yeah. No cops either. They're all buzy chasin' down Friday night smackups down on the boulevards.

The freeway is all but empty. The night is soothingly cool after the endless weeks of Fresno's desert hot summer. I want to go. The bike want's to go. I try hard to hold it back.

The manual says 63 MPH tops for the first 500 miles. I look down. The speedo's up over 65 already. Crap. We're barely moving.
I try to hover between 55 & 65 for a couple miles, but the engine seems to loaf too much. Shift down to 4th? Or go faster?

Shift down? Who was I kidding? Man it feels smoother past 60. Faster...yes faster is better. It feels even smoother at 70. Speed limit is 65 here. After a mile at 70 I feel guilty. I ease it back down. It's not quite as "planted" at 60. Hmmm... I'll add some air to the tires tomorrow.

60 is nice, but who am I kidding. I ease the throttle on slowly and pretend not to notice that the speedo's hit 80. I ease back out of it after a few seconds. I want to goose it hard. Real hard. I can't. It's not ready for abuse at this mileage.

But 80 was whisper smooth. well the engine was whisper smooth. I was expecting more racket from a V-twin. It gets smoother instead of rougher. This is not an Electraglide.

There's a lot of black empty freeway ahead of me now. I notice how well the high-beam lights up the night. I notice that I'm edging 80 again, and I wasn't a second ago. Another second and another microscopic turn of the throttle and I'm at 90. Whoa!
That happend pretty fast considering I was trying not to. I only hold it there for 10 seconds, and I ease back to 65.

Guilt! Man I feel it now. Not the speed limit. Besides I know the speedometer lies. They all lie.

Sheeeesh! I've really violated the break-in! It would serve me right if the pistons started slappin' me around right now.

But they don't. They just whisper. They're so quiet I can just barely hear what they're telling me.

"Did you feel how smooth we sounded at ninety?", they ask. "Do it again!"

Nope. Not tonight. You get another 100 miles through the canyon tomorrow and an oil change first. Then we'll see.

All in good time.

(8/30/2003)
Day 16
583 miles

I check the oil & pump the tires up to 42. This is the day I will flog it a bit for the first time. We warm the engine gently through the town & stop for breakfast before we hit it for real. We will take a cool run down the freeway to see friends in Tulare.

I bumped into the rev limiter once, merging onto the freeway. It was winding smoothly right up to the burbling stumble that takes the wind out of my sails. I forget that this thing won't turn 12,000 RPM like my old Kawasaki. Without a tach, I've no idea how fast she was turning. Sure didn't sound that fast. Did I actually hit 70 in second? I dunno. Too busy riding to look. Too startled by the limiter to think about it right then.

Labor day traffic on old highway 99 was humping pretty good by 10:00 AM. A few folks pass us going 90. We rode an easy 70 ~75 MPH the whole way down. Traffic was a madhouse comming back though. I would have taken the back roads, but I wanted to give it one serious hot run before I change the break-in oil.

We did.

It was over 95 F this afternoon, and most freeway traffic was going 80 to 85 MPH. We accelerate and decellerate; not cruising at all, but driving the engine to work up a little sweat. Burning the $2.20 gasoline with abandon. We had a spanking headwind too. We run it up over and over, gently gaining and loosing ground to trafic.

Several times we hit 90 MPH. Even two-up with a headwind in top gear, 80 to 90 rolls on easily in under two seconds without pegging the throttle. I want to go faster. The bike does too. I'm not sure if Judy really does. The break-in manual says not to. The damn manual wins.

We get a clear spot between the packs of traffic. For the first time I take it gently to WOT, winding (not blasting) from 70 to 90 toward a herd of SUV's, 18 wheelers, and ricers sporting fart cans and funny paint colors. The smooth behaviour of the engine is amazing. I ease it back down to 70.

At 120 miles the reserve light comes on while going down hill. It goes off again going uphill. It comes on for real a mile later. I reduce the speed some more. This exercise seems to be taking more of a toll on us than on the Nomad. We stop for gas and cold drinks.

Gasoline has mysteriously swelled from $2.20 to $2.42 overnight. A curse on you, Shell Oil ! I'm glad I'm not filling the Caprice Classic today.

3.55 gallons fills the tank. 126 miles traveled yields 35.5 MPG. Lousy mileage, but not bad considering how I'd been pissing gas away on purpose.

We cruise the last 10 miles home at a more leasurely pace.

Lessee...total cost of ownership so far? My Casio tells me $26.59 per mile. Worth eveny stinkin' dime of it too.

...and it just gets better from here.

(9/19/2003)

Day 35
1015 miles

Well the break-in miles are over. She's (OK, still doesn't have a name yet) been up to 90 a couple more times, and TCO is down to $15.27/mile.

Gasoline is back down to about $2.09 (premium) and my car is really dirty. The car hasn't been washed in over a month, & was only driven about 30 miles. My second car didn't get driven once.

Gas mileage has improved just slightly. Performance seems about the same, though the packing must be blowing out of the mufflers a little. Anyhow it sounds just a tad louder. Not much.

Zero mechanical problems or adjustments required so far, although It will still ping anytime I wanna whack the throttle hard under load at low RPM. That problem probably won't be addressed until the weather gets too bad to ride. That's only about 6 days a year in Fresno.

The luggage rack is still a virgin. Not a bag tied to it yet. I want to remedy that this weekend, but I don't see the wife giving in on some serious chores I've been puttin' off, so we'll probably be limited to a short cruise here or there.

I need a real vacation trip to blow away the old cobwebs in my head.

Meanwhile, I'm stuck here at work.

(10/16/2003)

Day 52...
1870 miles

Bike is covered with bugs, & I'm gonna ride it to work that way. Too burnt to polish this morning.

We did 385 miles this weekend, burned almost 10 gals of gas, & gave the Nomad a bolt-loostening run down some very ancient roads. (As it's a Kawasaki nothing actually came loose.)

Saw lots of bikes in the hills. Got to meet Louemc. Discovered a new event: "Bagger Fest".

(From 10/5/2003)
Double Serendipity and a famous landmark found Pupus and I and the Vulcan Nomad as one of only 2 metric baggers at the first "anual" Bagger Fest in Jamestown California.

In fact, only 3 metrics showed up in the time we were there: ours, one Yamaha Roadstar with conchoed leathers, and Louemc's Suzuki literbike (definately not a bagger).

But the first serendipity part was the fact that we walked (rode) unaware into what is surely to become a very popular foothill biker event in California; never knowing that it was to be at all. The bikes on display were uniformly awesome.

We blasted up the San Joaquin Valley highways towards Sonora for a day in the hills, and had planned to meet Louemc in the Jamestown H-D parking lot for lunch and a tour of the local twisties. We expected him to be easy to identify, riding in on the only sportbike in a Harley dealership. Hah!

Instead, we find a large showing of custom bikes, many more cycle-borne spectators, and no idea of which of the hundred guys might be the one owning the Suzuki TL1000R.

Well the plan was devised to walk around and find the only guy not wearing a Harley shirt, but after some walking that turned out to be a bust; as the only one fitting that description was myself. Geeze...I almost went inside and bought one out of embarassment.

But serendipity was once again our lot, as the first guy I querried turned out to be Lou himself. (Yes, he was wearing a t-shirt emblazoned with a chopped hog on the front...) With luck like that we should have gone right to the new casino, but instead we wound up having lunch at what must surely be one of California's finest Mexican restaurants; the Smoke Cafe in Jamestown.

Jamestown is a historic gold-rush town, and historic railroad town, but we turned down Lou's offer to see the train museum, even though we were interested, but primarily because we went to Jamestown to ride.

And ride we did. We chased Lou's tricked out racer through the most senic, twisty, bumpy, lumpy, humpy, and challenging backroads in Calaveras county. I gotta tell you, that old cat can ride, and several times he had to stop for us to catch up on the big cruiserbike, even though he had surely held back by 60% going through the hills.

We were grinding floorboards and mufflers, bottoming the (well-charged) airshocks, bumping the rev-limiter, edging off the shoulders, and basically flogging the Nomad (and ourselves) beyond a sensible degree in the hopeless task of keeping up. And what a blast it was.

A few hours of blasting about found us buying cold drinks at the Giant Frog Market, in Frogtown (Calaveras county), and a down for a bit off cooling off on the lawn of a local historic landmark.

A quick check revealed that the Nomad still had all it's parts, inspite of the heavy shakedown run she had endured: up and down roads that have never been "straightened" and probably haven't been re-paved since Levis were invented.

So if you guys on the coast think you have some challenging roads, go blast through the back roads of Caleveras County California, and (assuming you make it through with all your mufflers and pegs intact) you will be convinced.

We said goodbye to Lou in Frogtown, and headed to our lodging with friends above Sonora, and another fabulous meal at the Epperson restaurant in Twainhart.

Sunday found us winding our way back through the hills and canyons west of Yosemite, on a fairly leisurely ride back home, by way of Sonora, Chinese Camp, Coulterville, Coarsegold, and Oakhurst. From Sonora to Coarsegold, highway 49 is twisty, clean, and senic, and not too hot in the fall. Traffic was scarce, and bike predominated the route.

From Oakhurst to Fresno, highway41 is a high-speed romp on a well-paved highway full of trees, rock canyon, big hills and high-speed sweepers. We luckily only encountered a few idiots on the highway, and all-in-all had a weekend we will long remember.

Many thanks to Louemc for the wonderful ride, and a lunch that we will be sure to repeat.

(10/26/2003)

Day 71
2353 miles

The Nomad continues to run like a clock, and gets ridden every day. From the beginning I had wanted to install an add-on fuel injection computer, and I finally did so.

I had a lot of people tell me that I should buy a Power Commander, instead of the TFI, but I bought the TFI. Before I ordered my TFI, I talked to 4 dyno shops and they all said to get the Power Commander instead of the TFI. Their reasons all sounded pretty convincing until I asked them the $64,000 question. They all told me the same thing too.

When I asked "What do I do if I want to adjust the mixture?" They said "Bring it in & run it on the dyno (for $200/hour...)" At that point it all just sounded too self-serving. I know better than that. Anybody with a computer can adjust a P.C.

I also decided on a set of Vance & Hines Baggers, as they were well regarded at the various Vulcan clubs. The stuff all showed up yesterday, by Fed-Ex, from Ron Greene Sportscenter in Utah. Good place to get Kawasaki stuff. I spent 4 hours putting the stuff on. I did a careful job & didn't rush anything. I sleeved the new wires in vinyl.

The new Baggers and TFI are on, and I've been for a couple rides (two-up). The first was just with the TFI, and I used the factory recommended settings for a '02 Nomad. No settings were shown for the '04, and I think it must be a bit leaner, as the recommended initial settings still seemed lean (as this bike always has felt.) Just a slight increase on the first pot made a big difference, and I was immediately convinced that the TFI was a good investment even if you do no other mods at all.

Then came the Baggers. Installation was a hassle but they did go together & don't leak so far. The quality of everything was OK for mass-produced stuff, but a couple things bothered me. The nuts & bolts are not stainless: just cad plated. M/C hardware should be chrome or stainless. There were some small burrs on the heatshields, not removed before plating, but the most annoying was the pipes themselves.

Several folks had said that they had to file or grind to get the mufflers on. I found out that this was because the ends of the pipes had a heavy burr, all around, from the pipe cutter, and this was not removed before plating. There were also some minor burrs within the muffler inlet. Five minutes work with a pneumatic die grinder, and they slipped together perfectly. But the burrs were heavy! I pity anybody that has to file them by hand.

As for the sound, well let's just say that I was unprepared. I fired the engine briefly, in the garage and these suckers are LOUD! I must have been a little giddy, because we washed up with all due speed, donned our gear, and hit the road. We drew a lot of stares, I'll say that... I made a big effort to ride quietly until we hit the freeway.

Immediately it was evident that the bike was too lean in the low ranges, and a short jaunt up the freeway proved it to be lean at WOT also. Power was off a tad there. Power was improved at the very lowest ranges, and by a really noticable amount. Before, the lowest speed you could (slowly!) roll-on from in top gear was about 48 MPH. Now it was possible to roll-on smoothly from 35! (Both 4th and 5th gears in the Nomad are overdrive, BTW. 5th is very "high", as the final drive ratio is pretty high to begin with.) Starts from a dead stop were smoother and quicker, on this high-geared machine. Clutch slipping was reduced to almost nil, even two-up.

As it was quite dark, we decided to forego further adjustments. We stopped at the Sonic for desert (hmmm...missed dinner somewhere durring the installation of the baggers...) and rode home.

Today she gets marbleized (a marble in the air injection hose.), and some tuning runs out to the country, and maybe up the mountain a bit. Also some thought as to making the baffles quieter. The installed pipes look great, and sound great, but they're just too frickin' loud for anyone with a conscience. Also, horsepower isn't going to improve a lot until I modify the induction system a bit.

More later.
_____________________
CaddmannQ
AKA
MadNadMann
VROC #11619
'04 Nomad
Nocturne Blue over Phantom Silver