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Photo by Andy Miller, UK, Taking a rest, Jokulsarlon, Iceland

I haven't been everywhere...
but it's on my list!


Photo by Andy Miller, UK,
Taking a rest,
Jokulsarlon, Iceland



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  #1  
Old 25 Mar 2009
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Africa twin RD04 1990

Hi,
My husband and I let us have for project to cross ameriques from north to south.
This year, we leave 1 month to Canada as try(essay).
We bought Africa Twin RD04 of 1990 with 45000 km from the meter.
We think of changing the bearing of wheel, the bearing of direction , the kit of cogs(sprockets) and chaine and all the filters.
Clean the electric connections.
According to you, what have we to do (on the motorcycle) to avoid the problems?

Thanks ,
See you soon



Moto Aventure Belgique
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  #2  
Old 26 Mar 2009
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Keep the chain loose very loose , as it is supposed to be able to touch the swing arm. Too tight and it wears the output shaft badly.

Fit a mizuki vacuum fuel pump (which has no moving parts) , Africa twins (the RD07 mostly) had a fuel pump issue which caused them to weld themselves together and fail , or bring a spare. These things die every 20,000 miles lest you replace it.

I would also change the fuel filter to a different fatter one and reposition it to be far away as possible from the rear cylinder as it gets hot and you can get vapour lock.

Change the reg/rec or take a spare the RD04 has the reg/rec just above the exhaust , it gets shaken apart by the vibrations and also the heat off the exhaust. It is best to re-wire this to the left side instead and put some cush rubbers on it to protect it from vibration.

Take the starter relay off (its the first thing off the +VE on the battery) and shake it if you can hear small bits inside change it or bring a spare.

Bring a bead breaker for the rear tyre as they cannot be broken on the road with your hands and feet.

If you are crossing central America I would probably fit a second fan to the radiators as I recall my africa only had one fan.

Bring along some different jets , in that if you cross the spine of the Andes you will need different jets to deal with the high altitude.

Wrap around hand guards , if you drop the bike the std hand protectors will not protect the levers.

Cable repair kit, as the clutch springs and the throttle springs are quite meaty and wear the cables fairly quickly.

Thats it really the Africa is a VERY tough bike
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Old 26 Mar 2009
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Thank you very much for this answer, it will be useful for us to organize the travel in best.
In our luggage with tools, we have already foreseen(planned): classic tools, fuses, bulbs, movements of wheels, candles, kit of repair of tire, cable of clutch, cable of accelerator and thus a REG / REC in more.
We have already bought a new éléctric fuel pump from Peitburg and we 'll buy protect hands / control levers.
By,
evilune
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  #4  
Old 27 Mar 2009
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Ken gave good advice. You should also go to

honda trail bike forums for full information on your bike.

This link doesnt work - I don't know why, but just search for the site with that address.
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Old 27 Mar 2009
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I'll go to the site right, thanks .
evi
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  #6  
Old 1 Apr 2009
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Honda's RD04 - great bike

Great bike, I've used mine for travelling on, now has 80.000 kms... I'm happy to share my check list, if you send me an email matthew point mason at skynet point be I'll forward it to you....

I live in Gent, happy to meet up for a chat....

Kind regards
Matthew
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