Brand new michelin road 6 pair 120/70/17, 180/55/17  £250, Collection from Chessington, Surrey

Hi All, covered over 7k on my k1300r since January. The bike is frankly EPIC but I have come to the conclusion that the rear shock requires replacement. The usual problem with shocks is that they loose damping and become soft, but this is the opposite- Its  hard and uncompliant in comfort mode but just bearable as long as the roads are not too bad. in normal or sport mode forget it- its like are hardtail  I have stripped down the shock linkages and greased all the needle rollers but this has made little difference. To remove the shock it appears that the swinging arm has to be removed amongst other things. Has anyone replaced the rear shock and can it be done without swinging arm removal?  Thanks in anticipation

Well, picked up my bike after the 18k service and got about a mile down the road and the temperature gauge had shot up to 5 bars
never seen this before. Found a clear stretch of road and got up to around 60mph and it dropped back down. The radiator was obviously removed as part of the service and was told by the mechanic that the rad was in good condition. When I got home, I looked at the level in the expansion tank and it was low. topped it up and , after reading recommendations on this forum, removed the central stone guard from the front of the radiator. Went out for a ride again and now all is well- mainly 3 bars and 4 in slow traffic :winkthumbs:I highly recommend removing the stone guard. My question is - the cooling system was vacuum filled and properly bled, could there have still been an air lock or a stuck thermostat?- 5 bars after a mile is a concern Is it wise to run without a thermostat? On sunday, rode around 150 miles and all is OK. Still love the bike even with all its foibles

Doctor Doctor you have got to help me. I have a very embarrassing  condition. . certainly, says the doctor, whats the problem?
"Well doctor, every time I break wind it makes the sound "hooonda"- Listen, Im going to fart now-sure enough the sound was "hoooonda"
Well , said the doctor, thats very strange!. Please could you remove your trousers and let me have a look inside your rear passage. So the doctor gets his bright light and has a good inspection "found the problem- You have an abscess  in your passage" Oh doctor is it serious- will I have to have an operation?  No, says the doctor it wont cause you any problems at all. Just remember that "Abscess makes the fart go Honda   

Hi all, I have owned my current K1300r now for around 5 months. It had only 14k miles on it but in a neglected state. It ran ok but had dubious service history. It had a current MOT but looked cosmetically poor. I carried out basic servicing- oil, filter, drive oil change. The air filter snorkel had been cut off and a K and N filter installed which was covered with what I can only describe as a birds nest of debris!!
Since then, I have covered around 4k miles. Have to say that the performance is intoxicating and  my driving license will be at risk without firm self control . During the refurb process, I have found that the rear shock is very hard- It has ESA and set to comfort with one rider it is very uncompliant- every bump in the road is like being on a pogo stick and the shock is transmitted up my spine causing great discomfort. Apart from the ESA adjustment, is there any manual shock adjustment to damping or pre load and is hard suspension the norm on a K?