Month: June 2014 | Moto-Abruzzo

28/06/201426/05/2016

Ruba-dub-dub …… one Capo to scrub!

As we fast approach the fun and games of ACIM, I figured it was time to reintroduce the Capo to two things frequently lacking in its life ……. washing and polishing. Yes, the hose pipe, chamois leather and Salvol autosol have been dragged out, dusted off and liberally applied to said Capo. My how she twinkles now, well as much as matt paint can ever twinkle that is!

Unfortunately for the Capo, there has been one cleaning job on the list that I’ve been putting off, and I have to admit that the list was written several years ago – the rear wheel refurb! After a couple of cold ones, I finally mustered up the courage to tackle the gunked on grease, the lashings of welded road crud and the inevitable rusty nipples. It nearly had the better of me once or twice, but tenacity and sheer bloody-mindedness (plus a couple more cold ones!) saw the job through to the bitter end. And here’s the finished article, not too shabby if I do say so myself ….. and that chain/sprocket have now got a whopping 38,730 miles on them!!!

Before it all went back together, the Scottoiler dual-injector was checked over as were all the bearings, seals and cush-drive rubbers – and of course it would have been remiss of me to have not taken the front sprocket cover off and give it a Mk1 eyeball check – looks OK for now, but I’ll get one on order! 😉

25/06/201425/06/2014

So long and thanks for all the fish….

Someone recently contacted me and asked if I’d been banned from the AF1 Caponord forum ………… and I guess the question shouldn’t have come as a surprise if I’d thought about it!

The answer is that no I wasn’t banned several weeks ago, but chose to ask Edd at AF1 to close my account – my choice. Why? Firstly, I’d steadily became disillusioned with the way the content was heading, especially after January and also felt that my own input was no longer of any real value. Secondly once the decision was made, cyber security –I’m not going to leave accounts open on the internet that I don’t intend to use, be it AF1 or any other website for that matter. That’s it, no mystery! 🙂

I’ll close by saying that I wish the AF1 team all the best and really appreciate the sterling work they do hosting these forums, it’s just time for moto-abruzzo to move on in another direction.

24/06/201426/05/2016

mccruise ……. active electronic motorcycle cruise control Pt1.

Let me start by saying that as of now, the cruise control project I’ve been working on has been put on hold indefinitely ………. why?

A couple of weeks ago I contacted MCCruise in Australia about buying a couple of parts to make my own cruise control install go a little easier – off the shelf stuff, not impossible to do myself, but just easier to purchase rather than make. After a lengthy phone call with Tony Guymer, I was convinced to take an in-depth look at the new electric servo kit* with the view to fitting it to the Capo. Unfortunately, of the current 120+ kits they make, none are for Aprilia. I’d have to start with a universal kit.

Now I’ll say loud and clear, here and now …… I’m not keen on the word ‘universal’. So the idea of a universal kit just doesn’t do it for me at all and that goes for a cruise control. Maybe it’s just me, but I hate the one-size-fits-all approach to anything, they never quite look right, not factory-fit enough for me I guess. No, it has to be a bespoke kit to fit the Capo and this is where Tony eventually sold me on the idea.

Tony suggested that if I were to get some data from the Capo – measurements, connector types and locations, wiring routes and mounting places for the main units, then between us we could map out a bespoke fitment kit, a kit as close to plug’n play as is possible. Now I like that idea and being able to get involved is the icing on the techie cake for me!

So last week the Capo was stripped …… dozens of photographs, pages of notes and CAD plans for mounting brackets were compiled and sent to the MCCruise in-tray. After a few quick techie emails back and forth, Tony gave the green light on the kit and as you read this it should be working its way across the planet to little old me! 😀

I just hope that after all this time, effort and expense my wobbly-wrist appreciates it! 😉

At the end of the day, they need to sell 10+ kits for it to be viable for them, so to offer a helping hand I’m hoping to have something to show at ACIM in a few weeks time and I’ll also stick a few flyers on the bike when its parked up to nudge a bit of interest.

*Tech details in Pt2. / **Fitment details in Pt2. as well, kind of a Pt2+ I suppose!

10/06/2014

TuneECU Andoid app in the pipeline!

I just popped over to the TuneECU website and saw a ‘NEW’ one-liner tucked away below the latest TuneLibrary.dll download link on the front page ……. I almost missed it, did a double take and followed the link in a flash ….. and I’m glad I did! It certainly looks like those clever folks have been busy, three nice screenshots of an Android TuneECU app. Shown below courtesy of Tom.

So I fired off an email asking for permission to use the screenshots and to enquire if the software would work with the Caponord and although not 100% sure at the moment, Tom’s pretty sure it will …. he just needs more information back from the programmer. So bookmark tuneecu.com and keep watching!

08/06/201426/05/2016

New fault code

Aprilia Caponord ETV1000 Rally-Raid. A tacho .... but not just any old tacho, oh no. In fact if Carlsberg and M&S made tacho's...... A few days ago while doing a bit of investigating for an AF1 forum member regarding the tachometer signal from the ECU, more specifically what would he observe on a multimeter instead of an oscilloscope, I momentarily shorted the tacho line against the chassis with the bike running. The tacho shut down and the bike just kept chugging along quite happily – no EFI light, no tacho. Recycling the ignition bought the tacho back to life and it’s been fine ever since ……… but two points came out of this that may be of use to other owners.

Check for a fault code with TuneECU – ‘P1386 Tachometer, open circuit or short to ground’
When the ignition switch is first turned on the Tacho line should show a solid DC battery voltage – if you don’t see this the ECU may well have shut down the output to protect it. Only once the engine starts will you see this signal:-

Aprilia Caponord ETV1000 Rally-Raid tachometer signal

Anyway, just a quick observation, a new (to me) fault code …. one to file away in the compendium of Capo facts. It certainly proves that the tacho signal isn’t just a ‘dumb’ signal, it’s one the ECU monitors and protects as neccessary by shutting it down.

07/06/2014

That’ll teach me!

Hi all ….. a quick post about the cruise control and a word of caution!

I finally got the cruise control servo unit mounted into the tool-tray of the Capo today. A relatively straight forward job, requiring only a minor rework of one of the mounting lugs, a new bracket fabricating and a couple of holes drilled in the under-tray.

The old throttle cable was removed from the unit and a new 6mm Teflon lined sheath fitted ready to run forward to the throttle bodies. It fits a treat down the side of the two 30A fuses and there’s already a cut-out in the undertray for it to run through, talk about made for the job! I’ll refit the old in-line adjuster and look at routing it along the engine/throttle bodies next week. So far so good!!! 😀

And so everything had gone beautifully, with a final firm slap the rear seat was locked in place …………. Only to realise that the key would no longer release it! Yes the dreaded can’t-remove-the-rear-seat syndrome. My fault entirely, as I should have checked the cable-outer was secure at the latch when I put the luggage rack/deck back in place. So here for your info is how to sort out what seems a very daunting situation to be in. Others may have a different technique, but this one worked for me.

Firstly stop twisting the key harder and harder, while bashing the seat in a vein hope it will pop off ….. it won’t ….. The noise you can hear when you turn the key is simply the cable outer and spring moving – NOT the latch.

Secondly, remove the rear deck bolts (x4). Of course you may have to remove a topbox and associated mounting plate first – no one said it was going to be easy! Now grip the deck just above the rear light and lift, at the same time slide something like a ½” drive 12” extension into the gap to hold the deck up. You’ll need to get the extension right the way in, enough to expose the latch mechanism. With the mechanism visible, slide a flat bar or long screwdriver in and gently push on the tab where the cable end is visible – from the rear of the bike, push to the left. And you should hear a satisfying click as the seat pops up. Reseat the cable-outer, reassemble the bike and sink a cold beer, you’ve earned it!

What a muppet …. anyway, I hope you’ve learned a little something from my foolishness and don’t make the same mistake!

……. now to connect the servo unit to the throttles.