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Area51 Project Foreman - 2013 Update, Repairs & Mods:
March 13, 2013 Goulds ATV Rip & Coyote Hunting. Great snow run on the bike with Maffer and his new Maxxis Mudzillas!
April 9, 2013: Project Foreman continues to run well, this year I took on a couple maintenance items and upgrades to make the bike even better to ride. On the list would be properly fixing the muffler, replace a leaking rear engine oil seal, and replacing the aftermarket steel foot guards installed on the bike when purchased new.
To replace the rear output shaft oil seal you either have to take the engine out or remove the rear swing arm. It's much easier to remove the swing arm especially if you have the right tools.
I made these tools a couple years ago when I replaced the swing arm bearings. Some people use a hammer and chisel to remove the lock ring, but it's hard to get at and you can't properly torque the ring. These were made from an old 3/4" drive socket and extension and work well.
The seal was removed by putting a pan head screw into the seal and removing with a claw hammer. The new seal was tapped into place with a large socket.
With repairs completed it was on to upgrading to Foreman Electric Shift model full floorboards which are strong and keep you much cleaner than foot pegs. I purchased the plastic floor board, floor board support bracket, and floorboard boot grip new from Honda One.
The floorboard support bracket bolts in place of the original foot pegs using eth same bolts.
Surprisingly the Standard Shift chassis does not have the front mounting studs for the front of the floor board bracket. I improvised a quick solution pre-drilling and installing 3/16" sheet metal bolts coated with red locktite. These have held up well over the years with not troubles at all (2017).
For the right side I also had to order the ES model foot brake pedal, as it's a different shape than the S model to fit over the floor board.
The floor board itself is held in place with two bolts in the boot grip, two Allan bolts at the edge of the black fender extensions, and push pin clips in the rest of the holes.
The floor boards only required very minor trimming for the foot shift to work properly. The bike will be much cleaner to ride now, feet more protected and the front & rear fenders are a lot more sturdy now that they are joined in the middle.
In May it was time to replace the noisy original muffler that I had to gut a few years ago when the baffles let go.
I managed to find an OEM factory replacement on EBay which ended up being from a Foreman 400 but was identical to the 450. Installation was straight forward with a new gasket and the bike sounded great.
August 26, 2013 Rip in Bay Roberts during Steve Smith's visit home!
Southern Shore Moose Hunting 2013 Part One. This was my first moose license and I was eager to get out in the country. I made several trips with Mark French, a few solo outings and this awesome run to Back River with Dad and Maffer which got a little western!
November 9, 2013. This week Mark French picked up his brand new 2014 Yamaha Grizzly and he wanted to get out for a break in ride. We rode the old railway line from Middle Gull Pond to Whitbourne, all went well but our hands were absolutely freezing by the time we got back after dark. This led to the next upgrade for Project Foreman.
After nearly freezing to death on the ride with French and his new Grizzly, I installed a Heat Demon heated grip & thumb warmer kit purchased from Honda One. This is a fantastic kit with 5 different heat settings that makes a huge improvement in comfort while late Fall and Winter riding.
The kit is has low amp draw and wired easily to the 12v cigarette lighter plug in the gauge pod as recommended. This ensures the kit turns off with the key.
Moose hunting success November 2013. In late November I joined Bassan and crew in Trepassey where I filled my Moose tags on the first day. In fact both Troy and I were successful minutes apart so we had 2 animals to get out of the country.
Project Foreman didn't mind the work for the journey out, crossing Marsh, boggy trails, and a decent run on gravel trail.
Its been a busy year with a lot of significant improvements to my Project Foreman that will make it even more of a pleasure to ride for years to come!
February 14, 2014 Annual Cabin Trip saw the return of Project Foreman to the Sooley Cabin near Whitbourne as there really wasn't enough snow for the sleds, particularly after this rain soaked slush froze solid.
After a very busy summer purchasing our first house, moving, renovating/repairs/painting, in August with still more work to do, Maffer and I took the day to enjoy an Airport Fence trail ride leaving from the new house in Torbay.
In preparation for Moose hunting in November, I installed a new LED light bar on project Foreman. This is a 12" unit I had kicking around the garage, it replaces the two old halogen fog lights in the bumper and should make a big difference nighttime riding.
Trepassey moose hunt with Peter, Blaine, Troy and Eddie November 7, 2014
Cheers, MIKE
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Copyright © 2011 Michael Smith
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