Daelim S2-250 Updates - Parts 3 & 4

Originally posted Mar 30, 2008:

Doug was able to figure out a problem with Fay-Fay, that occurred after her checkup. It felt as though the brakes were applied all the time, and she would die out whenever I came to a stop. It turns out that there was a problem with the CVT, where the belt was slipping into the "in gear" position, with the engine at idle. He took care of this, and she ran just fine afterwards.

We were planning to meet with Doug and others at Cruisaders on Saturday, to ride our scoots down together to Natchitoches, Louisiana to participate in the Christmas parade there. It was to be a mix of all kinds of bikes, both scooters and motorcycles, and participants were to bring toys that would be donated to children's charities in the area.

I was really looking forward to going this year, so I ordered the tall windshield from CBXmanmotorcyles.com, along with the Givi E-450 top box. While I was at it, I ordered the back rest and light kit as well. Finally, I found that they had the S-250 Service Manual available, so I HAD to get that rare gem... Installing the windshield was a snap, once I was able to consult the manual to see how the OEM windshield was held in. There are four screws that hold the front panel in, then four screws that hold the windshield to the bike. Remember to remove and re-use the rubber grommets that held the OEM screen in, since the new screen didn't come with new grommets.

The top box was a different matter. I was nervous about drilling holes in a brand new (and somewhat expensive top box), but I held my breath and tried it. The supplied template made everything line up just right! As for the light kit, I referred to Crystal's description of her installation of a Givi E-350 on her site GirlBike.Com, without which I would have been stuck trying to figure out how it all fits together from the really poor Givi instructions. When you read her post, then read their instructions, it makes a lot more sense. The Daelim Service manual came to my rescue again by showing me the wiring diagram for the brake lights.

Anyway, I get everything installed, but the light doesn't work! After stressing for a few minutes, I broke out my trusty El-Cheapo multimeter, and start measuring voltage with the brakes on and with them off. I was getting power up to the bottom half of the top box (once I aligned the contacts properly). I went to Radio Shack, bought a set of alligator clip wires to use as extended test leads. This is a really good idea for being able to clamp one end to your test point, and the other to one of the leads of your multimeter. By doing this I found out that the wiring was bad within the light kit housing itself. I'd also bought a spool of solid 22 gauge wiring from my visit to the 'Shack as well, so I disconnected the Givi connector and soldered two wires directly to the circuit board connector in the housing, and extended it to the top contacts. Success! I now had working lights! In order to get to the brake lights, I had to remove both seats (driver and pillion), and the storage compartment underneath. With the help of the Service Manual, it was all pretty straightforward in getting it apart and (more importantly) getting it all back together again.

Back to the trip (I know you think that I was just rambling aimlessly, right?) The temperature had dropped greatly during the week, and the night before I realized that I would need more protection from the elements to keep from freezing on the ride. I searched everywhere, and was finally able to find thermal underwear in Bossier City that fit me, but alas, by the time that I could get to Bossier, get the underwear, and get home to try to meet everyone at Cruisaders, I'd missed my chance! Damn! Better luck next time, I guess. Of course the weather warmed up a few days later, so I held my frustration away by taking a few pics of how Fay-Fay looks right now...