Two-Up Riding

[Jadon01]

Just wondering how much two-up riding everybody does on their FZ...
Any passenger complaints..? Anyone use electronic two-way communication..?

 

[CrazyBiker]

Occasionally once in a month or so. I use some cheapo ebay wired communication system that works really well. Runs on 2 AAA batteries. Here is the link: eBay Motors: Motorcycle Helmet Intercom Rider to Passenger FREE GIFT (item 150303873968 end time Oct-17-08 20:02:56 PDT)

 

[BranNwebster]

Hopefully Corekneelius will chime in on this one. I've never seen anyone ride 2 up like him.

 

[Doorag]

Thanks for that. I might give it a try as well. My wife rides pillion about once a month and it would be nice to have something cheap and cheerful so we could chat. We don't really do enough riding to warrant a hugely expensive set-up.

To answer the question - no complaints from my wife she loves it. (and the bike )

 

[MarinaFazer]

It'd be sweet to have a com unit, but hand signals will do...but in the canyons scrapin' pegs, you don't wanna go one handed

I ride two up a lot, and her only complaint is pretty verbatim like this: "When we went to Mexico (150 miles each way) the first hour was fun, but then we were just sitting there not moving. That wasn't fun and my legs started to hurt and my tailbone got sore. But the other weekend in Malibu was GREAT! All the twists and turns never really gave me a chance to have a sore butt or legs since we focused on the turns."

moral of the story: road trips are great and all, but boring when you go in a straight line. Stop often if that's the case. If you can take side routes that are twistier and fun, she'll have a better time being tossed around back there ...attached is a picture of proof of a smile when it comes to great canyon carving!!!

 

[RyanK]

My wife and I ride about once a month. I'm going to check into your el-cheapo communicaitons device. Thanks.

Oh yeah, keep it twisty. Straight=sore butt...

 

[MarinaFazer]

Occasionally once in a month or so. I use some cheapo ebay wired communication system that works really well. Runs on 2 AAA batteries. Here is the link: eBay Motors: Motorcycle Helmet Intercom Rider to Passenger FREE GIFT (item 150303873968 end time Oct-17-08 20:02:56 PDT)

How well does that really work? For conversations or the occasional, "HEY, look at that!!"?

If it's decent enough to just say some words back and forth, this would be a godsend.

I've put removable earphones in my helmet for music, so I'd have to choose between music and her ...hmmmmm.....but seriously, that's another option. Put earphones in (not earbuds) since they have great sound under 80mph, and then get those headphone jacks that split in to 2 and have her control the ipod for shared music.......just no Coldplay.

 

[CrazyBiker]

It works great .. I need to find a solution to tuck in the mic more as it amplifies the exhaust note .. infact all expensive comm systems also amplify wind and exhaust sound so I am happy. It may become too loud on the interstate but for canyon carving it works like a charm and sucks so less power. You can hook up your ipod and gps too with the auxillary input. You may anyway try it as it costs really peanuts plus you get free throttle rockers too.

MarinaFazer, I think your inbuilt helmet headphones will work great too. I want to put in a inbuilt headphone system in my helmets. Any good suggestions?

 

[MarinaFazer]

I guess I can spare $30 to this setup...lemme wait for my next paycheck since I've just gotten a few toys the past two weeks lol

 

[CrazyBiker]

ebay search throws up some more options: motorcycle intercom, eBay Motors, Electronics items on eBay.com

It is less than $30. And some other sellers have it for $21. It is made my Euro Designs

This one has more pictures http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/FREE...m14QQhashZitem260298721317QQitemZ260298721317

 

[MarinaFazer]

funny, this is something I was looking for compared to getting a chatterbox or something super expensive. I don't mind being wired to the passenger...this is great! I think I may just get one.

How often do you use yours? SOund quality is nice for cruising around town. Any chance on the frwy? I doubt it if I can hardly hear my earphones which are 3 times the size haha

 

[CrazyBiker]

funny, this is something I was looking for compared to getting a chatterbox or something super expensive. I don't mind being wired to the passenger...this is great! I think I may just get one.

How often do you use yours? SOund quality is nice for cruising around town. Any chance on the frwy? I doubt it if I can hardly hear my earphones which are 3 times the size haha

It is pretty good, IMMV. On freeways you need to tuck in the mic otherwise it amplifies exhaust and wind noise. Another thing is you need to delicately put your helmet on once you wear it. For that I want some built-in headphones for my helmet. That will reduce the hardware I need to carry around too. I have seen some helmet speakers but not headphones. Any recommendations?

 

[MarinaFazer]

I have seen some helmet speakers but not headphones. Any recommendations?

Check out these Koss headphones: CLICK HERE

I bought these at Radioshack for $20. The earclips are removable. Place the scratch velcro pieces on either side of where the clip attaches. Glue the soft velcro side inside the helmet where they'll help hold the earphones against your ear in the proper spot.

Now you have removable headphones. Just going to the market? Pull out the headphones! They sound great...way better than earbuds I've tried. also a plus, when not playing music, they DO dampen outside noise like earplugs. I can still hear music at 80mph on the frwy with these (granted not crystal clear...but like you'd expect)

Pros: CHEAP, !!!REMOVABLE!!!, great sound quality, take em out, put the clips back on and go for a run!

Cons: still wired

wired fix: get a male to male 4ft (or however long) cord and a female/female connector. stuff extra headphone cable behind back helmet padding. Connect headphones to female connector. now if you pull out the male/male cord, you still have headphones in with no wires hanging out the helmet!

 

[steveindenmark]

Don`t buy one of these cheap intercoms because once you get over 20mph they don`t work. They get an awful static in them.

I have done 1000s of miles with Jannie on the back and we have Starcom Advanced which works well for us. I am looking to get a totally bluetooth system now. Maybe a Dianese bluetooth or Scala.

Until you have used a good motorbike intercom you think the hand signals and taps are good enough but once you have used one it opens another world...providing you like your partner.

Having no intercom at all is far better than having a bad or cheap one so save your money.

Steve

 

[Wildcard]

My girl and I ride around town all the time. We stick to simple hand gestures. When we stop at light we resort to yelling at each other haha.

 

[necrotimus]

For that cheap of a price I would do it regardless of quality. It will make your wife happy until you can get better. I had a similar dilema but for bike to bike comms. My options were spend 50 bucks or 400. I spent 50 and am saving for the bluetooth. My wife is much happier now because even with horrible background noise it makes her feel more comfortable and can at least communicate what she needs to. No you can't hold a conversation but it is a step up from hand gestures.

 

[CrazyBiker]

I hardly get any static and the background wind, exhaust noise can be minimized by covering the lower portion of the helmet.

 

[Denver_FZ6]

Done a bit, couple day trips up to Rocky Mountain Nat'l Park, and a few dinners around town. The rear seat offers less support than front, and GF tends to get saddle sore after a few hours, so nice to be able to have places to stop and sight see.

Bike does OK with pillon, but can really "feel" the extra weight, particularly during starts, or slow maneuvers. Good news is that once you're back to one-up, bike feels that much more responsive! I increased rear spring to 5 or 6 setting, helps reduce sag.

No comm yet, just hand signals :Flip:, (heh). May fabricate something from the Koss headphones. At low speed it's sufficient to lift visors and speak up.

 

[CrazyBiker]

For 2-up don't go lower than the max setting - 7 for the rear preload. For my R6 forks I kept 4 preload 2 rebound&comp

 

[VEGASRIDER]

Were starting to run out of original threads as far a topics and ideas on this forum.

http://www.600riders.com/forum/touring/7200-communication-devices.html