[ashwin.terminat]

Originally Posted by girimajiananth

Probably . I had upgraded the bulbs on Indica long ago from stock bulb to a higher wattage philips bulb. Slowly the reflector lost its shine and the light throw became very poor over the years. We had to replace the reflectors.

I read that you have upgraded the bore kit , will the ASS service your bike ?
If not where do you get it serviced ?

Being in Bangalore, I'm sure you agree that a reflector going kaput after a few years is worth the safety that it lends on our potholed and ill lit roads.

And well, the A.S.C does service the bike. They don't really know if it's their bore or not I guess. But nevertheless, they have serviced the bike once after I got the big bore. But never again.

I give it to Mohan Automobiles on Kanakapura Main Road in Basavanagudi. His garage is opposite to the Corner House there. I can vouch for his work. Does a good job, genuine chap who will never suggest a replacement unless absolutely necessary.

[ashwin.terminat]

Update!

I gave the bike for service 2 days ago. Lots of work to be done. Will get the bike on Monday.

1) Battery Change - Exide. Rs. 1,350 (Bike wouldn't switch on properly if I ride with the headlights on for a while)
2) Oil Leakage From Head Due To Stripping of Threads That Hold The Head Cover(?) - Rs. 600 (He said this can be fixed at a Lathe Workshop)
3) Clutch Bell Play - Rs. 600 (He said this can also be fixed at a Lathe Workshop). He even showed me the play. He says it's supposed to have no play or minimal play.
4) Front Fork Oil Change
5) General Service - Rs. 500
6) Engine Oil Change - Rs. 650 (I assume that is how much Honda Throttle costs?)
7) Chain Lube Job - Rs. 90

I specifically got him to clean the Oil Strainer and the Oil Filter. They've never been cleaned right from the time I bought the bike.

Except for the Engine Oil Change, these are the maximum costs he has quoted. He estimates the bill to amount to Rs. 4,000. Are these costs reasonable or am I being ripped off?

[aargee]

Sorry to say Ashwin, that the day you have given ur bike for "joeled" you're taken for a ride

These are just other short rides. If you want to check, pls compare with any stock vehicle to see if these type of issues appear in 40000 km & decide for yourself

Knock off the chain lube, you can do it yourself. The general service thing can be knocked off depending ur rapport with Honda ASC

Engine oil costing Rs 650 is Honda throttle, its good one, but if you were in Chennai, I could've helped you with even superior Shell 10W40 for almost the same price, but I guess you have no choice now

[ashwin.terminat]

Originally Posted by aargee

Sorry to say Ashwin, that the day you have given ur bike for "joeled" you're taken for a ride.

These are just other short rides. If you want to check, pls compare with any stock vehicle to see if these type of issues appear in 40000 km & decide for yourself

Knock off the chain lube, you can do it yourself. The general service thing can be knocked off depending ur rapport with Honda ASC

Engine oil costing Rs 650 is Honda throttle, its good one, but if you were in Chennai, I could've helped you with even superior Shell 10W40 for almost the same price, but I guess you have no choice now

I'm sorry, aargee. But I don't entirely agree with your views. Out of all the things I've mentioned, the only thing that could possibly be tied with the Big Bore is perhaps the Clutch Bell Play. It would be very helpful if someone could shed light on when such problems usually occur. Keeping in mind that earlier on, I used to love taking off from Traffic Signals.

Apart from that, the Battery going weak after 3 years and 27,000km is usual I think. Even my brother's absolutely stock Pulsar 150 had to have its battery replaced at 25,000km.

Front Fork Oil change, I asked him to change it as per the maintenance schedule I got from Hero Honda when I bought the bike.

Oil Leakage from the Head has been an issue ever since I tried to adjust the valve clearances myself. I think I tightened the Head Cover bolts too hard. The head has been leaking since then.

I don't really see any issue that my bike is facing because of it being Joel'ed. Even my mileage has been consistently at 46kmpl. While I've barely gotten above 43kmpl before. My riding habits haven't really changed much. I still do like to blip the throttle once in a while

Well, I have tried the Motul 300V earlier. But it was 10W40. So, I've decided to try Honda Throttle this time. I believe you're talking about Shell Advance Ultra? But it's 10W40 too. I feel the bike behaves best with the recommended 10W30.

And this is a local mech, not a ASC. I've wondered what the Chain Lube costs where. I assume it involves washing the chain with diesel and what not.

[aargee]

Yes chain cleaning in Hunk is simple Diesel or Petrol wash which is simple straight forward method & that is why I said you can do it yourself, which barely costs Rs 30 even washed with Petrol...the most expensive option. If you had a chain guard, even washing the guard is part of water wash

[ashwin.terminat]

Posting here all the bills I got for today. Excluding the Honda Throttle, which cost me Rs. 504. So, all inclusive, the service cost me 3428 + 504 = Rs. 3,932. The bike definitely feels better. And gear shifts seem a lot slicker now. The front suspension is also a bit more stiff and adds a lot of stability to the bike.

[ashwin.terminat]

Here's a side-by-side comparo of the High and Low beams on the bike. Currently running a Full DC, 55/60W system.

And yes, the oil leakage problems are gone for good. No more oil leakage problems near the head area or anywhere else for that matter.

[ashwin.terminat]

Ran into a small little problem with the bike today.

The fuel tap was pointing to reserve. And everytime I hit speeds of around 70, I could feel the bike stuttering very often. When I opened throttle a little more, the stuttering would go away. I'm not sure if this has to do with the bike being on reserve because I didn't attain such speeds when the bike wasn't on reserve.

As the ride went on, the stuttering seemed to get progressively worse at speeds of 70 odd. But when I went back to around 40-50, it behaved normally.

Any ideas as to why this is happening? (NOTE: The Service Center gave me a CPR6EA9 plug when I asked them for a Hunk plug, still using the same one)

Also, I fear my slow jet is clogged as bike switches off on blipping the throttle a little bit after a little idling, yet mileage I get around 43-44kmpl.

Here are some pictures of the Spark Plug I took after the ride:

[ashwin.terminat]

Looks like the previous problem was caused due to severely tight tappets.

Adjusted the tappets and tuned the carburetor and the bike was behaving properly again.

Better still? I am getting a mileage of 51kmpl now. And this is bound to increase since he bike has still not hit reserve!

Although, from the sound of it, the Rocker Arms seem to have developed too much wear and will need replacement.

[ashwin.terminat]

This is how the Spark Plug looks after the tuning.

[arnabchak]

It is a great bike but whatever was HH thinking when coining this name??

What do you ride? I ride a HUNK!!!

Now how does a sane mind comprehend this?
Nice and short review for a competent yet underrated bike.

Hunk didnot find many takers in the market and vanished. Yet, the engine is a rev happy one with a good FE to boost!!

[ashwin.terminat]

Originally Posted by arnabchak

It is a great bike but whatever was HH thinking when coining this name??

What do you ride? I ride a HUNK!!!

Hunk didnot find many takers in the market and vanished. Yet, the engine is a rev happy one with a good FE to boost!!

Haha, Nomenclature is something Hero has to learn from the other companies. And that sentence, well, can be interpreted in quite a few ways.

The Hunk hasn't vanished as such, it is still in the market! But needs a boost. It's been 4 years since it was revamped and is screaming for one!

30,193km service update!


Got the bike back from Service last night. Cost me Rs. 3,300. It's been 30,193km on the odometer.

Parts changed:

1) Camshaft: Rs. 740. Reason for this was that the bearings of the camshaft had gone kaput. The mechanic showed me the old camshaft and I could feel the grinding on both ends of the camshaft when it is turned. I imagine this premature failure was due to the bad run-in I had followed in the early life of the bike or because of the severely tight tappets that I rode around for 2,400km with!

2) Rocker Arms: Rs. 535(Each is Rs. 267). This was due to play that the rocker arms had developed that was causing a ticking sound that sounded like tappet noise when the engine was hot.

3) Fork Oil Seal: Rs. 166(Both forks). The oil seal on the right fork was finished. And oil was leaking on the fork, albeit a very small amount. I asked him to change the oil seal on both forks.

4) Fork Oil: Rs. 140. Since the oil had leaked from the right fork, there was obviously lesser oil in the right fork than in the left fork. And this could seriously affect the handling. So fork oil was refilled on both forks.

5) Brake Fluid: Rs. 31. Self explanatory.

Spares alone cost me Rs. 1,846

Washing cost me Rs. 80, Service cost me Rs. 490, the Fork Job cost Rs. 300 and the Chain cleaning and lubing cost Rs. 90.

He also plugged the oil head from the head cover by using a gasket sealant this time looks like. He didn't charge me for this because I had given the bike to him for the same problem earlier but yet oil would leak, albeit in very, small small amounts.

In total, it cost me Rs. 2,806. And the Honda Throttle 10W30 Fully Synthetic engine oil cost me Rs. 500. So a grand total of Rs. 3,300.

Result?

The bike is loads smoother now. The annoying ticking noise is gone. The spark plug looks like there is chocolate powder spread over it. There also appears to be lesser knocking when the bike is travelling low speeds.

Overall, very, very pleased with the guy's work. He insisted on showing me the play in the Rocker Arms and the Camshaft Bearings before I decided on changing them altogether. Also, I asked him to change the coneset, but he said that the present steering bearings will easily last another 5000km atleast and that it will not need any replacement, just some adjustment will do

[ashwin.terminat]

This is how the spark plug looks after the service. Getting a FE of 47kmpl in hopeless Marathahalli traffic.




This is how the bike sounded before and after the rocker arms and camshaft change.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dqJ-k6WBhic

[ashwin.terminat]

An upgrade that I have been longing for so long finally came to fruition around 30 hours ago.



Finally upgraded the brakes!

My quest for better brakes began just a few days after I bought the bike. After the euphoria of a new bike died down, the reality check was that the stock brakes were way too spongy. Tried changing pads, fluid, but nothing really helped.

Ray of hope was @Sunnyboi, who suggested a hose + caliper change as he had done on his Karizma. I toyed around with the idea a little bit. Sunny suggested a Pulsar Master Cylinder with the P220 brake hose, as he had done on his ZMA. But I had experience with the old Pulsar brake, the ones from ETS, they were supremely sharp. But I hated them. Why? You could never modulate them. They were, as Sunny put it, the "on" and "off" variety.

I had always appreciated the brakes of the Yamahas. So I went about enquiring about the costs of the Master Cylinders for the 2 main contenders. The FZ and the R15. After hearing the costs, it was an easy decision. Rs. 1200 vs Rs. 4000.

This Monday, I'd gone to Khivraj Bajaj, Kasturba Road and bought the Pulsar 220 Steel Brake Hose. Then on Tuesday(Yesterday), bought the FZ Master Cylinder, which didn't have the lever attached to it nor the brake light switch. Bought the other 2 separately along with the Banjo Bolt from Perfect Riders, Lalbagh Road, Bangalore.


Post which, I headed straight for Sunny's place. He had offered to help me make the swap. And to be fair, I didn't help. He did all the work himself and also made sure it was a thorough job.

I tip my hat to you, @Sunnyboi "Saar"!

He first drained the old DOT3 fluid and flushed it with DOT4 fluid with the old Master Cylinder itself. Then we proceeded to removing the old Master Cylinder and the Brake hose and replaced them with the new ones. Fairly straightforward.

Problems faced were not too many. But one main concern was the length of the hose. It just fits. And you can't route it through the inside of the headlamp assembly. It had to be done from the outside, by the side of the right forks. But not really a concern. This is why I needed a zip-tie. To secure the hose. Also, the FZ Master Cylinder didn't come with the Master Cylinder Kit(or atleast part of it). The assembly did not have the rubber cup like thing, the pushrod and the spring that connects the Lever to the Master Cylinder. Luckily, the ones from the stock Master Cylinder were a direct fit! So that was another another minor headache averted.

Also, the brake light switch of the FZ uses the same kind of connector clips, but they were complicated. The switch was connected to a pin that would end right after the Master Cylinder and there was a extension cable with make clips inside a plastic connector, which wouldn't be able to house the stock brake light switch clips. Removing the extension cable was an option, but the stock wires were too short to reach the clips directly. So Sunny did a stop-gap arrangement to ride away in safety for the day.

The moment of truth was the ride I took soon after. I didn't feel very happy at first, but a few 100m into the ride and a big smile was plastered across my face. The brakes were beautiful. Super sharp! And the feedback was outstanding. I knew exactly when the tyres were going to lock.

Come next day, I wanted to get the brake light switch connections fixed. The exposed wiring stuck out like a sore thumb. I felt that the best option would be to cut short the extension cable and then fit compatible connector clips to the end. I went to Gowri Automobiles, RV Road, Bangalore and asked them for "Horn Connector Clips", just as @shoeb2015 had told me to. The gave the clips. But there was a problem, they were too big. Searched JC Road, SP Road, but didn't get the right size.

Came home and cut the clips using a plier. After some trial and error, got the size right and made the fit. So everything is perfect now!

This is the cost breakdown:

1) Yamaha FZ Master Cylinder - Rs. 1155
2) FZ Brake Lever - Rs. 95
3) FZ Banjo Bolt - Rs. 9
4) FZ Front Brake Light Switch - Rs. 80
5) Pulsar 220 Steel Brake Hose - Rs. 1110
6) FZ Master Cylinder Kit - Rs. 190
7) Zip Tie + Connectors - Rs. 10

Total - Rs. 2649

Some pictures:

A big, big thank you to Sunnyboi, without whom, none of this would've been possible. Be it the idea or the execution!

[ashwin.terminat]

The right mirror is barely useable now. Reason being, the thread for the mirror is located right on top of the handle bar and not near the brake lever as it was with the stock Master Cylinder. Also, the thread reverser is also rendered useless now. So will have to look for CBZ Xtreme mirrors now!

The mirror is visible in the 1st picture with the exposed wiring.

After applying these few fixes:

1) The wiring has been fixed
2) The hose has been secured with a zip-tie

Also, I changed back to the stock CPR8EA9 plug. Mileage is 48.5kmpl now.