Doin' The AGM Dance...

Mother Nature has been very finicky lately. It was looking so promising for a while there that I was really hoping to be out on the KLR by now, but alas - we had another blizzard this past weekend. No hyperbole, either - it was a blizzard.

With the roads plowed and the snow starting to melt (again), Mrs. HAL and I headed off to Main Motorsports to pick up a new battery I'd ordered a couple of days earlier. We walked in and had a pleasant conversation with the staff there. Actually, Mrs. HAL had a good way of putting it. She said that walking into that place was like walking into a friendly bar - conversations start up and everyone swaps stories.

After I'd paid for the battery, the fellow at the desk showed me a set of heated grips that they'd just got in. I must admit, I was quite tempted to pick them up on the spot but decided to hold off for a little while. They only pull about 30 watts when set to full, and the KLR can handle that. They'd set me back about a hundred bucks, but then I wouldn't be riding down the highway in traffic with one hand on the radiator trying to warm my fingers up. Very tempting!

Anyway, so here's the battery:
It's a re-branded Yuasa YTX14AHL-BS AGM (absorbed glass mat) battery. It's the same size as the stock KLR battery, and if you look closely you'll notice that there are two things missing: the caps to add water, and the vent port.

That's right - no more fussing with distilled water and no more acid venting/spilling. No more worrying about corroded wiring and wiping down the battery with baking soda every fall. AGM batteries are much more vibration resistant than regular lead-acid batteries, and they'll work well in the cold, too. With luck, no more slow cranking in the morning!

I really, really want to put that battery in and start up the KLR. Must... resist...

I also finally took a picture of the MEFO tires. Well, the rear tire, anyway:

I'm quite excited about these tires - they're supposed to handle similarly to the stock tires (which I quite like) on the street but they're supposed to be much better offroad. They're also supposed to be a much longer wearing tire. Apparently, there are people who regularly get 9000-14000km out of a rear tire. Obviously it's not a fair comparison, but I measured the tread depth on the stock rear tire that's on right now and it's at a little less than 4mm. The tread depth on the MEFO is a little over 11mm! I think the stock tire came in at about 8mm new, and it's considered worn out at 2mm. I'm hoping that the MEFOs will get me out to BC and back on one set!


I brought the rear tire into work and Crash took a quick look at it. He made a good point when he said that if the tires are supposed to last that long, I should be careful on cold days because they'll probably be a lot harder (and more slippery) than what I'm used to. I'll keep an eye out and make sure I try to warm up the tires a bit on cold days before getting out on the roads.

Other than that, I haven't had a lot of time lately to plan, but my ferry/hotel package worked out and has been booked, so that's set.

Safe riding!