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3 Oct 2012
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Join Date: Nov 2011
Location: Scottish Borders
Posts: 24
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Prepping XTe for winter commute
Hi folks
I'm getting my 2002 xt ready for winter commute,full service, Tkc 80's, screen and heated grips.
I was also wanting to fit some extra lights for seeing the edge of the road better using 55w bulbs, but I'm not too sure if the bike can handle the extra draw or not.
Any help would be good
Thanks
Mike
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3 Oct 2012
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R.I.P. 25 November 2021
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4 Oct 2012
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Together with heated grips you should safely be able to use another 35-50w or so.
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10 Oct 2012
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Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: Bexhill, East Sussex, England, UK
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In winter I Wash / hose down the machine at least ONCE weekly with clean water.
Then - simply cover the whole thing in Duck Oil or WD40 type spray.... Top up after each wash.
I swear by this for Winter. Keeps everything well protected from salt and rust etc.. I should have shares in WD40!
Oh, don't put any on the brake disks/pads.  (but caliper units can be coated if very careful).
TKC80's are 50-50 tyres (and expensive). If you commute on tarmac mostly, then a better allround tyre might prove better. I fitted Michelin SIRAC's to mine (70% road - 30% light trails).
Stay warm and safe.
__________________
Triumph Bonneville 800 (2004), Yamaha XT600E (1999), Honda XBR500 (1986).
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10 Oct 2012
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Handlebar muffs (best over the handguards) and two-finger-and-thumb gloves a size bigger than your usual will make the heated grips redundant for the first hour or so. If the extra lights are eating into the battery you get longer and on the first daylight run get ahead. Retaining the heat from what you've eaten and what the grips make also warms the whole hand not just the palm.
Andy
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11 Oct 2012
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I do the same as kentfallen - regular wash/hose down, spray with WD-40 or similar, and I always add a drop of machine oil to pivots/levers and exposed bits of cable too.
I considered TKC-80s for the winter commute, but decided against it. We don't get much snow, but have a lot of rain, and my only serious 'off' on the road was using 50/50 tyres in the wet, so I stuck with a road pattern. Avon Distanzia are cheap and very sticky, wet or dry. I haven't managed to get them to break away yet. Being a soft compound, they don't last well, but I can live with that. Highly recommended.
Edit: I am thinking of fitting a pair of these:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1508186096...84.m1438.l2649
They are LED, so probably better as position lights rather then driving lights, but you need all the help you can get on these dark mornings. They only draw 3W between them, so not an issue for power use. Ignore the BMW in the title, they are universal fit. The illustrations show them fitted close to the indicators, which I reckon is a bad idea as the light could obscure your turn signal from oncoming traffic.
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