Just a quick post to update on Shorai batteries. As you may remember, I tried a Shorai LFX18A1-BS12 in the Capo and had mixed results. Mixed enough to swap back to a standard battery anyway! In my case, the battery became unpredictable below 12-14c, above that the bike started every time, below that …….. well let’s just say it could take a while!
Anyway, it appears that Shorai have changed the battery specified for the Caponord/Futura to the higher capacity LFX21A6-BS12. They are available via EBay(UK) at about £135+ with postage bringing it to an eye watering sum in the region of £190 … then I’m sure Customs & Excise will want a slice as well!
After last time, I think I’ll give it a pass. The chunky high-capacity lead-acid YTX14 is doing a sterling job for less than half the price, but if it’s your idea of under-saddle bling then go and fill your boots by all means. 😀
I can’t believe that the Aprilia heated grips have been on for 5 years, boy how time flies! Over that time they’ve worked perfectly and I can’t justify replacing them any time soon. What I do need to do however, is replace the rubber grip as the originals look tired and are well worn. In truth, they could probably last another year or two as they’re not split yet, just look worn. And I don’t like my RR looking shabby!
I ordered a set of Ariete 02624/L grips from Caprimoto here in Italy and they arrived within 24hrs, fantastic. They cropped up on a thread on the AF1 forum a few months ago as a viable alternative, as the Aprilia ones appear to be unavailable except as a complete unit. I’ve written about the fun and games of grip replacement and thoughts on upgrading the original Aprilia heated grip elements in a separate page. Click here.
No, not the mighty V990 Rotax, more the tidily-tiny stepper motor that runs the speedometer and tachometer. An unobtrusive little thing with a hefty replacement price tag of between £30-£50 each.
The B-0410-116-530 stepper motor is also used in a variety of cars from Audi, Fiat, Renault and Citroen. Anyway, I had a duff one on a board and decided to remove it and poke/prod/measure its internals for digital posterity. Here’s a couple of images of the little darling. I’ll be adding a Dashboard page shortly with lots more info on the motor and the circuit board along with plenty of ‘how to’ tips to hopefully save you a few bob on repairs by doing it yourself and avoiding the pitfalls that leave you with an expensive paper-weight!
Hot on the previous post and the delivery of the Futura dashboard from Arv, here’s a photo of the hybrid (Franken-Capo) dashboard in the Rally-Raid.
The calibration of the needles was compared to TuneECU (Tacho) and the trusty Garmin GPS (Speedo) and everything is absolutely fine. I’m pleased to say it’s been a complete success and something I can tick off the RR’s wish list. It’s not a very big list, just has some awkward or expensive items on it!
Hooking up the netbook to the ECU when datalogging has always been a pain. Seats off, fumble around for the Molex connector, run the cable under the seats, refit the seats …… and away we go. So when I saw a neat little MIL style connector that Andy has fitted to his Capo, I couldn’t help asking about it.
Turns out it’s made by Deutsch Autosport and they make a whole range of high quality connectors specifically for the motorsport industry. Here’s a link to the catalogue. Anyway, all-round nice guy that he is, Andy made me a chassis socket and plug assembly with 300mm of loom at each end. Not only that, he popped them in the post to Italy … and they arrived a couple of days ago. And I must say ….. WOW! ….. beautifully machined and fully waterproof with a nice machined cap to keep the greeblies out.
So now I’ve reworked my old TuneBoy cable and installed the connector on the dash. I’ve used shielded cable back to the original molex plug to reduce interference on the data lines and it all works fine.
So it only remains to say a big thank you to Andy for doing this for me. I owe you one! Now if you’re thinking of hot-footing it over to the AF1 forum to send Andy a PM – don’t. This was a one-off kindness and he won’t be making any more, so please don’t ask.
I first noticed it about a year ago – the ease with which the rear mudguard scratched. Then the flaking started, it was as though the plastic was turning to powder, all very unsightly! So I ordered a new one last May (2012) – AP8126706. It finally arrived in the UK about a month ago!
A quick internet search on UV damage to plastics proved quite interesting. It seems that they add the plastics equivalent to sun-cream or sun-block to the mixture before it’s injection moulded and this converts UV to heat rather than causing the plastic to decompose. Maybe Aprilia skimped on the Factor 50 when they moulded mine! 😀
Yes it was 12 years ago I bought the Scottoiler ‘Touring’ package and a twin-feeder as an upgrade. It was all fitted to my lovely Kawasaki ZRX1200, then a year later swapped to a Triumph Trophy 1200 where it did several years sterling service. Later it spent a couple of years on the shelf before being dusted off and fitted to a Blackbird. Then in 2008 it went onto the Caponord where it worked faultlessly until earlier this year.
I noticed a steady decline in the amount of oil being fed to the chain and adjusting the RMV (Reservoir Metering Valve) made no difference. The fault turned out to be a clogged twin-feed. I tried blowing it out and using vacuum to suck out the blockage, but nothing worked. In the end I bought a new one and cut the old one open to try and find the culprit. It turns out that inside lives a piece of foam that acts like a reservoir and this had broken down into mush and was blocking every passageway.
The new one only took a few minutes to replace and oil flow was restored. I’ve worked out that this kit has well over 220,000 miles under its belt and that equates to a purchase/running cost of about £1.65 per 1,000 miles. In truth though it is starting to show its age, the flow rate seems to be less adjustable that it once was which I’m putting down to the rubber diaphragm hardening with time. Before winter I’ll replace the RMV completely (about £42) and hope this one lasts another 12 years!
Ok I admit it ….. I posted these shots up on the AF1 forum first, but I thought I’d load them up here for posterity. If you’ve seen them already – tough, get over it! 😉
The Capo and I got caught out on a little muddy patch that appeared after a particularly windy day blew some of the neighbours field across a local road. Harmless when dry, but it took on the consistency of a melted hazelnut choc bar …. the one you left on the car dash when you went shopping last summer, yes that one.
So as I rolled on in, it peeled off with the stone surface wrapping around my wheels and jamming everything solid …… enough to leave stress marks in the plastic where it was trying to lift the mudguard off! Oh joy, what fun! Stuck in Beelzebub’s play-pit on tip-toe and not a soul anywhere in sight to help.
How I got out and back home is just a blur, a snapshot of tears, tantrums and praying to any passing deity within earshot … but we made it. Like Thunderbird 2 on telly, the jet-washer was rolled out and away we went, me blasting away, the sun mercilessly trying to bake this stuff on …. it was a close call I can tell you. This stuff sets like cement!
Note to self …… when it’s winter, fit the bloody winter tyres you Muppet.
Details are out for this years ACIM (Aprilia Caponord International Meet) – can you believe this is the 5th one? This year the event takes place at Flims in Switzerland on the 12th/13th/14th of July. Click on the graphic on the right to go to the website.
[mappress mapid=”1″]
I’m really hoping to attend this year as I’ve missed the last three because of other commitments. With any luck, this ties in very nicely with a trip back to the UK and only takes me about 100km off route, so no excuses really.
Along with Mike081, I attended the first one held in Verbania, North Italy. Since then they’ve certainly played on the ‘International’ aspect with No2 held in Slovenia, No3 in Portugal and No4 in France. These guys put an awful lot of effort into this and it shows. From registration, to the ride-outs and the fantastic choice of restaurants after a fun days riding – meticulous preparation makes it all look seamless.
I’m sure the event will be well represented by the Italian and Eastern European riders, with French and Spanish in strong support …… all we need are a few more souls from the UK to brave the English Channel!
Today, the Capo and I have been together longer than any other bike I’ve owned. On a chilly but bright afternoon five years ago to the day, the Capo pulled up outside the house in Oxford and so began our unbreakable relationship.
In October 2007 I’d ridden my Honda Blackbird over to Italy and whilst I enjoyed running around the mountains, it was increasingly obvious that it was a proverbial fish out of water in this terrain. I needed something like my old BMW R1150GS Adventure again …… and funds most definitely were NOT available for that kind of purchase!
No, the B-Bird had to go and whatever I bought would have to come out of that money. So I racked my feeble brain to try and come up with a viable alternative. It ended up between the Triumph Tiger 955i and the Aprilia Caponord ETV1000. I remembered seeing a Caponord when Motorcycle City collapsed and were rapidly flogging off stock at their Reading branch. One solitary silver Caponord had sat among a sea of discarded cardboard boxes and brochures as the place was stripped. I remember spending some time looking around it, wondering if I could get the £5K asking price together before the doors finally closed in a few hours time. It never happened of course, but the Caponord left a good impression …. I liked it. So I started searching, second-hand prices certainly seemed favourable and throughout the winter of 2007/08 I kept looking.
Meanwhile, I’d come across a post on an obscure motorcycle forum where someone mentioned that they had a ‘Rally-Raid’ version for sale. The thread was several months old and no responses had been posted – I’d give it a go I decided. So I registered and sent the guy a message and waited ………
Photographs emailed to me by the seller in January 2008
A few days later a reply email arrived. The long and the short of it was that yes, the bike was still for sale. currently it resided in Lyon (South France), was UK registered and had covered less than 1,800 miles and no extras or accessories had been added since it was purchased in Lincoln. Only the front fork recall had been done at the 600 miles shake-down service, then it was shipped out of the UK.
Arriving home in Italy – February 2008
Photographs were sent (above) and a deal was struck. I’d ride the B-Bird back to the UK and the Caponord would be delivered about a week later. In the end, everything went like clockwork. On the 20th February 2008, a Wednesday afternoon, the deal was done. The next morning the Insurance, MOT and road tax were sorted and 12 hours later we were winging our way back to Italy through a nippy (-12c) Switzerland.
And so it’s now 5 years on. One sidestand switch, one Sagem coil, a set of front wheel bearings and 65K more on the clock since the journey started. A few shiny trinkets and several practical upgrades make sure it stays as reliable and enjoyable now as it has always been. But has it been worthwhile?
Some photos 2008 – 2013
As the dog on the telly says – oh yes! Overall the Caponord has been as reliable, if not more-so than most other bikes I’ve owned. It’s a wonderfully agile mountain goat on the twisty Gran Sasso mountain play ground and a supremely comfortable and quick workhorse on the 24hr mad-dash pan-European jaunts back home. Certain things are starting to show their age, handle bar grip rubbers and saddles that will need recovering within the year – but the overall finish is still good and the stainless fasteners and alloy frame still twinkle in the sun.
On the 5th September the Capo will have its 10th birthday ( of registration) to celebrate and maybe a surprise or two as well! 😉
Ciao fer now – KarlB
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Just a quick post to update on Shorai batteries. As you may remember, I tried a Shorai LFX18A1-BS12 in the Capo and had mixed results. Mixed enough to swap back to a standard battery anyway! In my case, the battery became unpredictable below 12-14c, above that the bike started every time, below that …….. well let’s just say it could take a while!
alternative, as the Aprilia ones appear to be unavailable except as a complete unit. I’ve written about the fun and games of grip replacement and thoughts on upgrading the original Aprilia heated grip elements in a separate page. 
Today, the Capo and I have been together longer than any other bike I’ve owned. On a chilly but bright afternoon five years ago to the day, the Capo pulled up outside the house in Oxford and so began our unbreakable relationship.
