Even with this motorcycle, my back pain is sill there but additionally to this I now also have a shoulder pain. I've been told that cruisers aren't actually ideal for riders with a bad back and a naked bike with the feed under the seat offers better sitting posture.
Ergonomics modifications
Six bend handlebars
As for my shoulder pain, I believe it's the same issue as with my computer mouse, when I switched to an ergonomic mouse few years before, it got rid of my shoulder pain by having my palm in a more natural vertical position. So I looked for something similar for a motorcycle and discovered the Six Bend handlebar. The Six Bends not only look cool but they also reduce the reach needed to grab them and they have your hand vertical as if you are shaking someone else's hand.
DIY throttle rocker and throttle lock
To help reduce the tension on the throttle hand I also made a throttle rocker from a piece of PVC pipe painted black. In addition to this, I purchased a throttle lock / cruise control device that attaches to the throttle grip and through friction would keep the throttle in a specific position. This was very helpful for highway rides and it's safely disabled by just twisting the throttle.
Motorcycle grips
To help with hand and wrist comfort I decided to replace the old and hard grips with a set of Avon ones that have softer rubber to reduce the vibrations. They are super comfortable and look really nice.
Replacing foot pegs with mini wing floorboards
The stock foot pegs were transferring a lot of vibration to a small surface area of my feet. I wanted to try floorboards so built one with a piece of pine wood and finding it pretty good I went a buy proper ones that can be better folded if the bike ever tipped over.
Secondary foot pegs
To aid with my sitting posture and support my back I installed a set of secondary foot pegs under the seat. With feet under me, they will help absorbing shocks. The usual forward foot position on a cruiser is not ideal for bad backs since the shocks are transmitted directly to the spine. With the feet under the seat, my legs would act as an extra sets of shock absorbers.
This also allows me three different foot position during my rides.
Feet on front floorboards:
Feet on rear foot pegs:
Feet on floorboard and rear foot pegs:
Motorcycle servicing
Air filter replacement
After buying a second hand motorcycle, it is always a good idea to do a full servicing. I've already changed the oil, oil filter, brake fluid, coolant liquid and cleaned/lubed the chain. One more thing I had to do was to replace the air filter and to my surprise, it was in really bad shape, all dirty and even had a hole in it!
Really good thing I did this servicing. Here is the new filter, my bike can now breathe better.
New tires
The tires that came with the bike were also worn off, still useable but not for very long. So I ordered a new pair. Apparently my Kawasaki VN250 Eliminator was using tire sizes that are not easy to find but my mechanic found a set of Pirelli Route MT66 cruiser tires and I'm quite happy with them, they seem to make the bike more stable and feel smoother on the road.
Fuse replacement
After doing some DIY work, I accidentally dropped a screw under the fuel tank and could not find it. After few days, I realised the radiator fan stopped working and after inspection, the screw I lost dropped in the propeller compartment and was jamming it. Removing the screw did not fix the issue so I continued investigating and found out that the jammed propeller overloaded the fan motor and blown the fuse. An easy change fixed the issue immediately.
Extra mods
The old rearview mirrors were rusty and had been painted black by the previous owner. The paint was getting old and flaky. I swapped them for chrome mirrors that has shorter stems. In the photo below, you can also see a little aluminium box in front of the clutch lever. That is a clutch lever tension reducer usually used for stunt bikes. However, I used it to extend the length of my clutch cable because the six bends handle bar are pulling them back further. For bonus, my clutch lever now feels softer too.
I sometimes take my son on a ride, we would go fishing or swimming at the beach. I needed some extra storage space for taking our gears. So I bought a pair of used saddle bags. I will need to build some brackets for them to keep them away from the exhaust pipe.
There will be more changes to this bike, I want to build those saddle bag brackets but also a rider back rest. Now I just need a bit of time to start the projects.