I was 50km from home and ready to roll. I had my daughter on the back. I went to go and the engine kicked and spluttered. I couldn't get it to rev over 1500. Being on a slight hill I could barely get it to even take off.

Two and a half hours later, I got home. It took me a while to suspect the throttle position switch but once I did, I got the hang of riding like that. With the computer thinking the throttle was closed, the motronic wouldn't allow revving but still had a small range of adjustment. I figure that when I rolled the butterflies open it tried to richen the mixture which gave me a sort of fake throttling. If I opened them too far, it would pulse and kick till I backed it up but I could go up gears and it would gladly give me enough power to stay there. I could not manage any more than 29km/h (yes, I stared at it for two hours ). This was level or downhill, unless the downhill was steep enough to disengage the clutch and roll.

This morning I decided to test my theory. I looked up the clymer to find out where this switch is, reached down and flipped the clip and pulled the plug. Just like that the engine started and ran like normal.

There is some corrosion on the connector but I may just pull the switch and clean it out.

Sometimes, this switch is simply full of water.
It is safe to ride with this switch temporary disabled. The major negative effect is that the engine will back fire when decelerating.

Water eh ? It's been raining here lately.

I spent an hour and a half dreading a particular hill, and whether I'd make it or not. When I got there, I had to go down a few gears. If I stopped completely, I'd have to get a trailer out (lucky I had one on standby). By the time I got to the steepest part of the hill I was back in first at four hundred and fifty revs just waiting for the jolt...but the K surprised me.

If it's just water, I may clean the contacts and just wait it out.

Yet another good place to have at with the DeoxIT as the throttle position sensor has, as you have found out, a profound effect on the rideability of the bike.
Regards,
K-BIKE

Hi K-BIKE,
Nicely understated. My DeOxit came in....so did these.

Good stuff,
The huge benefit of doing things yourself is knowing they are done properly and not finding as a friend did when he noted his steering seemed sort of off not quite as taut after a new tyre and he put it down to mould release compound on the tyre but found when he checked all of the locking Allen screws were only finger tight!
That little lot should keep you out of mischief for a while. While you are in there think about doubling up on the earth wire from battery to engine and from battery to frame earth.

Give all the earths under the tank a good buffing and DeoIT treatment. As you go through, every electrical connection can benefit from a treatment, bikes live in a bad environment for electrics with non waterproof plugs and sockets and rain and humidity.

Kiama is a TOP spot but like Auckland and all coastal areas there is salt spray in the air well up to 5 K inland and humidity when the wind comes off the ocean or the rainforest over to the west after a wet.
Regards,
K-BIKE[b]

The best mechanics these days are truly awesome, but too often now I see the apprentice sent off on his own to figure out a job he's never done before...and when he brings it back wrong the mechanic doesn't do the job over.

I may run into issues but at least I can take my time until I'm satisfied. With help from others such as yourself, and thanks to Crazy Frog I'm also doing the idle gear backlash spring and alternator drive bearing. I never thought of using double earth straps but it sounds straight-forward enough.

Can't wait to get riding again.

The alternator is a bit small not a major but on the small size ampwise at idle the battery is being discharged until the bike is at normal riding speeds at which time it charges well. Cable sizing for our bikes is meagre sadly so extra cable on main runs reduces volt drop.

Relays for the headlights are a big improvement especially the heavy duty kit from Eastern Beaver who do post to Australasia. That enables you to run a much brighter headlight bulb, our K headlights are well designed and even with the brighter 100/90 bulb I have never been flashed by anyone.
Regards,
K-BIKE

I have a HID (metal halide) headlight kit that fits an H4 socket. It has it's own cable run so the relay would be moot. 70W of this is like 200W of halogen. It's not one of those "look at me, I'm blue" types, it has a daylight colour for best vision per watt. I have it in another bike right now, and where the headlight wasn't too well designed to begin with it makes a useful improvement but still shows the original flaws. The K has a much better reflector and I expect this to give better vision than my car. Just the thing for monitoring the wildlife after dark.

You have to be careful when installing these high power bulbs (70,80 and 100w).

These bulbs generate a lot of heat and the bulb socket is made of plastic. I have seen one melted before.
The best way to install it is to add 2 relays.
Keep the original headlight circuit and socket and in stead of plugging the original socket on the bulb, use the highbeam connection to command the relay.
Pull a new good size wire (positive) from the battery and install an inline fuse. Pull a new ground from the frame.
In case of problem, you can quickly disable the new wiring and plug the original socket directly on the bulb.
With the following circuit, the only power pulled from the handlebar switch is the power going to the relay coil.

The great thing about the Eastern Beaver kit http://www.easternbeaver.com/Main/Products/H4_Kits/h4_kits.html these with the ceramic bulb socket are the pinnacle of excellence for connecting brighter lighting and reducing the load on the handlebar switches and factory wiring loom (and resistance to heat). They even use very high quality fully sealed waterproof relays.

I have no connection with Jim at Eastern Beaver other than as a very satisfied customer. Some may claim his kit might be pricey but the quality is superb and fits straight in.

My thoughts on HID is they are very efficient but they do not like being switched on and off for a flash for instance and to make them do Hi and Low beam they often have a mechanism to shift them inside the headlamp shell. If the headlight is not designed by the manufacturer from the start for HID the beam control can be a problem and also in many country's the use of an HID kit in a headlight not made for them is illegal. If that is going to be a problem to you depends upon the law in your country or state and how ticket hungry the tax collector who stops you is.

The relay lighting kit is a great investment and Jim can do specials, my pal had him make a really special loom with all sorts of fancy add ons.

One factor not appreciated by many who live in suburbia but in Australia wildlife is a major problem, not perhaps as bad as the US problems with "hooved rats" but still a problem that can kill you, colliding with even a moderate sized kangaroo let alone a big red can and sadly does kill people.
Regards,
K-BIKE

The kit seems like the way to go for those of us with the need for a pre-prepared solution and I admit that my headlight needs a little help. The halide bulb shift mechanisms aren't as bad as I thought they might be. They direct the beam to what looks like the correct place, and I don't get flashed. Due to more of the energy being converted to light, a 70W halide puts out no more heat than a standard 55W halogen bulb. There is also minimal current drawn through the switch on the handgrip.

Roos can be a drama. At least a fox will continue across the road but a roo will just sit there. Apparently they can not hear low frequency sounds like road rumble and engine roar. I was once unlucky enough to hit an adult grey. It's shoulders hit my right handlebar, breaking a finger and snapping my brake handle clean off.

Wow that was lucky and unlucky, Lucky you were not more badly hurt and unlucky to have it happen at all.

Take care when you ride, can't afford to lose any K100 pilots and their machines!
Regards,
K-BIKE