Igofar Reviews

[Larry Fine]

It's a good thing you caught him before he retired.

 

[ToddC]

I was wondering where the heck he was hiding the last few days...??? How is that new garage..?? Got lights?
You are a lucky man, to have the Whisper so close. Larry is...the MAN!!
T

 

[Igofar]

From what I understand so far, Igofar makes himself available to help people like me posting on this forum make repairs. I for one, appreciate his assistance!

I believe he should think about running for President!

That's it, I need a red hat....Make ST's Great Again

 

[ToddC]

That's it, I need a red hat....Make ST's Great Again

Where ya been?? How's that new garage?? Got lights yet??
Inquiring minds need to know.....
T

 

[Igofar]

Life's been getting in the way lately....
Still don't have but a single light in the garage.
Hope to get it wired up soon.
Did get a couple trinity stainless steel tables with shelves to go on each side of my stainless steel toolbox.

 

[ToddC]

Life's been getting in the way lately....
Still don't have but a single light in the garage.
Hope to get it wired up soon.
Did get a couple trinity stainless steel tables with shelves to go on each side of my stainless steel toolbox.

An even bigger question......
How's those chompers doin? Eating corn on the cob yet? Hope it is going smoothly.
T

 

[skidgillen]

Kudos to Larry the ST1300 Whisperer. Talked to him the other day on the phone for almost an hour and half. This man is a wealth of knowledge and a credit to his community, especially us. If you think about tackling a project on your ST call Larry first so you don't go down the wrong rabbit hole so to speak. Thanks Larry.

 

[ELC]

I just got off the phone with Larry, who responded to my post about the code 26 on Shirley's bike.
All I can say is Wow! I learned more in a 90 minute conversation with him than I have in all the time I've owned an ST.
I hope I can remember half of what he told me.
What an amazing asset for the ST community.

Eric
IBA # 531

 

[Jevers]

I just got off the phone with Larry, who responded to my post about the code 26 on Shirley's bike.
All I can say is Wow! I learned more in a 90 minute conversation with him than I have in all the time I've owned an ST.
I hope I can remember half of what he told me.
What an amazing asset for the ST community.

Eric
IBA # 531

+1 on the kudos for Larry! He provided me with a wealth of information. I'm still whittling down the list of items to check, flush, grease, replace, etc. Thank you again, Larry! Jevers p.s. I was able to "pay it forward " at the boat launch just a few minutes ago. This gentleman waited to launch, got his boat in and the battery was dead. I loaned him my jumper cables and off he went.

 

[paulcb]

Got a little help from Larry again. I was working on my bother's ST1300 today and the clutch needed flushing, something I've done several times on several bikes, including my ST11, but never on an ST13. Pop the two lower panels off, access the slave cylinder and look for the nipple. ??? I looked and looked and couldn't find it. How can there be no nipple on the slave? My bother forgot to bring his ST1300 service manual, so a quick call to Larry and he explained to me where it was in about 5 seconds... I would have never guessed there was an extension for the nipple, clever design by Honda, makes flushing very easy. 20 minutes later we were all done and buttoned up. Thanks again Larry for saving me some time and frustration!

 

[Pop-Pop]

You forgot that I removed and detail stripped all your brake calipers, removed the rear wheel and tore your rear hub apart and cleaned out the dampeners, checked all your wheel & driven bearings, checked your splines and put moly paste on them, cleaned the boot scuffs off your mufflers, lubricated your shifter linkage, serviced your preload adjuster and set your damping, lubricated all your locks and latches, tightened the hinges in your saddlebags, replaced lost or damaged grommets and clips/pins, Replaced your air filter, did your timing chain adjustment, polished the fork tubes, greased your SMC pivot bearings, trimmed your engine head covers, replaced your sparkplugs, lubed and cleaned your clutch and brake lever pivot points, cleaned your coolant overflow tank, removed yellow road paint off the bodywork, then took it for a test ride and blew through that photo radar trap! But who's keeping track
Thanks for having enough faith in me to come all this way and allow me to help you dial your bike in for you.
It was my pleasure.
Oh, and the wife loved the cookies!
Larry

U b da man! Next time i'm in Arizona........

 

[TourNut]

Thanks Igofar for your battery recommendation in other threads , besides the ST1300 , that battery also fits my '05 Aero 750 & John Deere X324 .
In a pinch , I can swap around batteries that way .

 

[ScottyG]

Thank you Larry!!

I have an ST1100 and Larry's specialty is the ST1300. He still spent time with me and was very sincere about putting me in touch with others that may get me back on the road again. It's really refreshing to get involved in a "community" of enthusiasts that are looking to help in any way they can. His advice encouraged me to follow through and hopefully in a small way I can give back to the community. Thanks again!!!!

ScottyG. Colorado

 

[Mikedo]

Review for Igofar and the .

When I took my ST1300 out this spring for a ride I found the rear brake "locked" on. I thought I might free it up by working the pedals and levers. This caused it to lock on even tighter. I reached out through the forum and messaged Igofar. Having read many posts and suggestions I thought he'd have some ideas.

I was going to trailer the bike to the dealer and have them diagnose and repair it. While I do some very light maintenance, I'm not 100% comfortable with more involved things. The most I'd done before was take apart the power windscreen and attempt a repair (I got the new gear in but the cables are done in. Maybe this fall I'll take them out and reverse)...but back to the review. Also, full disclosure it may have been several years from when the brakes and clutch were last bled.

Larry (Igofar) convinced me that the SMC was the problem, and based on what I'd already read, I agreed in any case (certainly not knowing any better). He sent me a parts list then convinced me that I could do it myself and not to trust others to bleed these bikes properly in any case. Parts were ordered in May. SMC was on backorder until mid-July. Arrangements were made to fix later and make contact at that time to get some last-minute instructions.

Well, Larry was up late this past Friday (in the garage, I might add), but we managed to miss each other, and I managed to get the old SMC off and the new one put on, but I figured I'd wait for the bleed until I could get some additional tips. Then, being impatient, I started on it Saturday morning and sent an email advising of such. I got the full bleed done with the help of some documents sourced from the forum and after watching a couple of videos. The rear pedal felt great, but the lever felt a bit mushy. (don't tell Larry but I went out for a short rest ride then). I figured a ride might help...it did not.

Then, knowing the age of the maple syrup (we're in Canada here, so it seemed the right colour) in the clutch master cylinder, I figured it was in need of some attention as well, and hey I had some Dot 4 fluid yet to be used, so I tackled that next. The bleed went well, but many, many, many bubbles (did I mention a lot of bubbles yet?) kept coming out of the tube during the pulses of the lever. The fluid went from a lovely orange to brand new clear, but still had air as evidence by the lack of swing in the lever before engagement. The lever was literally just being released as the clutch engaged (see the ride listed above that did not happen Larry.)

Finally, I picked up the phone on Saturday afternoon and called. I got an immediate answer and we went straight to the clutch first. We discussed in some detail the design of the master cylinder and the air-trapping points based on the manufacturing and casting. He made suggestions that made sense to me and I could easily achieve. This meant I had to re-lower (thankfully brake fluid is relatively cheap) the volume of fluid to be able to turn the steering head full lock in both directions while tapping and bouncing the grips to help promote air movement and then snapping the lever to create a rush of fluid that would carry the bubbles. So after a night of rest that is what I did this Sunday morning, after a trip to Canadian Tire (see it's that Canada thing again) for another bottle of their best Dot 4. While doing this process at least one major bubble came out and I'm not sure if more, but I believe the lever felt better. Oh, while looking in that area and over the phone we also diagnosed a worn bushing in the lever that depresses the clutch piston. Like this. It still works but is quite badly galled.

We also discussed the brakes and how the bleed went. He made the suggestion to "pressurize" the system and leave it this way for several hours (overnight is several hours) and then free it in the AM. I used zip ties around the handle to pull the lever in and a paint can on top of the pedal to depress it (had to be steadied but stayed there). After removing straps and having already done all the tapping and left-righting for the clutch fix the lever seemed much stiffer. The pedal was still good. I believe the air that was trapped may have made its way to the master cylinder and is no longer a problem.

I went for a good 30 km ride today and everything felt great. The clutch has literally never felt better and the brakes are the best they've ever been.

I would not have tackled this work without the push from Larry. I would have to have looked up parts myself, but he sent me the parts numbers and required quantities back in May when I first started this project. I would have spent upwards of $500-700 at the dealer for this work at $100 an hour.

I suggest taking him up on the phone call BEFORE you do the work. You'll get extra tips that just don't seem to make it on the page. You'll get directed to look at things that you had not even considered looking at, that clearly need replacing (Monday). And you'll learn new skills and become more comfortable taking care of your bike.

Larry, thank you so very much. I know I caused you some grief when you saw the state of that master cylinder. I promise to bleed those brakes and clutch annually from now on. I was happy to have your help and learn from you in the process. I managed to save some $$ and likely have better brakes now than if I took it into the dealer. I also learned some new things that help me feel more confident in doing this kind of work again.

Again, THANKS. Another Igofar save in my books.

Mike Domony

 

[Sadlsor]

Everything you said about the SMC mirrors my experience with the WCP and @Igofar , as well.
Fortunately, I rescued my bike at a young enough age, that the SMC was all that was needed. No clutch bushing repair was necessary, and the clutch had not deteriorated.

 

[Igofar]

Review for Igofar and the .

When I took my ST1300 out this spring for a ride I found the rear brake "locked" on. I thought I might free it up by working the pedals and levers. This caused it to lock on even tighter. I reached out through the forum and messaged Igofar. Having read many posts and suggestions I thought he'd have some ideas.

I was going to trailer the bike to the dealer and have them diagnose and repair it. While I do some very light maintenance, I'm not 100% comfortable with more involved things. The most I'd done before was take apart the power windscreen and attempt a repair (I got the new gear in but the cables are done in. Maybe this fall I'll take them out and reverse)...but back to the review. Also, full disclosure it may have been several years from when the brakes and clutch were last bled.

Larry (Igofar) convinced me that the SMC was the problem, and based on what I'd already read, I agreed in any case (certainly not knowing any better). He sent me a parts list then convinced me that I could do it myself and not to trust others to bleed these bikes properly in any case. Parts were ordered in May. SMC was on backorder until mid-July. Arrangements were made to fix later and make contact at that time to get some last-minute instructions.

Well, Larry was up late this past Friday (in the garage, I might add), but we managed to miss each other, and I managed to get the old SMC off and the new one put on, but I figured I'd wait for the bleed until I could get some additional tips. Then, being impatient, I started on it Saturday morning and sent an email advising of such. I got the full bleed done with the help of some documents sourced from the forum and after watching a couple of videos. The rear pedal felt great, but the lever felt a bit mushy. (don't tell Larry but I went out for a short rest ride then). I figured a ride might help...it did not.

Then, knowing the age of the maple syrup (we're in Canada here, so it seemed the right colour) in the clutch master cylinder, I figured it was in need of some attention as well, and hey I had some Dot 4 fluid yet to be used, so I tackled that next. The bleed went well, but many, many, many bubbles (did I mention a lot of bubbles yet?) kept coming out of the tube during the pulses of the lever. The fluid went from a lovely orange to brand new clear, but still had air as evidence by the lack of swing in the lever before engagement. The lever was literally just being released as the clutch engaged (see the ride listed above that did not happen Larry.)

Finally, I picked up the phone on Saturday afternoon and called. I got an immediate answer and we went straight to the clutch first. We discussed in some detail the design of the master cylinder and the air-trapping points based on the manufacturing and casting. He made suggestions that made sense to me and I could easily achieve. This meant I had to re-lower (thankfully brake fluid is relatively cheap) the volume of fluid to be able to turn the steering head full lock in both directions while tapping and bouncing the grips to help promote air movement and then snapping the lever to create a rush of fluid that would carry the bubbles. So after a night of rest that is what I did this Sunday morning, after a trip to Canadian Tire (see it's that Canada thing again) for another bottle of their best Dot 4. While doing this process at least one major bubble came out and I'm not sure if more, but I believe the lever felt better. Oh, while looking in that area and over the phone we also diagnosed a worn bushing in the lever that depresses the clutch piston. Like this. It still works but is quite badly galled.

We also discussed the brakes and how the bleed went. He made the suggestion to "pressurize" the system and leave it this way for several hours (overnight is several hours) and then free it in the AM. I used zip ties around the handle to pull the lever in and a paint can on top of the pedal to depress it (had to be steadied but stayed there). After removing straps and having already done all the tapping and left-righting for the clutch fix the lever seemed much stiffer. The pedal was still good. I believe the air that was trapped may have made its way to the master cylinder and is no longer a problem.

I went for a good 30 km ride today and everything felt great. The clutch has literally never felt better and the brakes are the best they've ever been.

I would not have tackled this work without the push from Larry. I would have to have looked up parts myself, but he sent me the parts numbers and required quantities back in May when I first started this project. I would have spent upwards of $500-700 at the dealer for this work at $100 an hour.

I suggest taking him up on the phone call BEFORE you do the work. You'll get extra tips that just don't seem to make it on the page. You'll get directed to look at things that you had not even considered looking at, that clearly need replacing (Monday). And you'll learn new skills and become more comfortable taking care of your bike.

Larry, thank you so very much. I know I caused you some grief when you saw the state of that master cylinder. I promise to bleed those brakes and clutch annually from now on. I was happy to have your help and learn from you in the process. I managed to save some $$ and likely have better brakes now than if I took it into the dealer. I also learned some new things that help me feel more confident in doing this kind of work again.

Again, THANKS. Another Igofar save in my books.

Mike Domony

Thanks for the kind words, but it was you that got your hands dirty, nice job!
As far as the clutch lever bushing….I’ve seen worse

 

[Al Gully]

As far as the clutch lever bushing

I lubed my clutch lever bushing up with Honda Moly 60.
Not sure if you guys are lubing them.

 

[Igofar]

I lubed my clutch lever bushing up with Honda Moly 60.
Not sure if you guys are lubing them.

Moly 60 paste would be to thick for that application, Try some normal anti seize instead, the lever will be smoother and easier to use.

 

[Mikedo]

I just bought a new can of anti seize, it will get some when I get it.

 

[Al Gully]

Moly 60 paste would be to thick for that application, Try some normal anti seize instead, the lever will be smoother and easier to use.

I've got an old can of anti seize from my high school days when I rebuilt a few of my engines. Thicker than moly 60 I bet.
I'll give it a shot of oil before trying it out, thanks for the tip.