Only those who can understand the method should be trying to using it -- but it isn't rocket science, it is fairly easy if you actually try to do it.

We'll all talk you through it,  Ralfyguy

First step is to find the spot where you always park your bike -- can you see the side window from that spot (enough light, etc).   Turn your handle bars the way you always leave them when you get off the bike, everything same same.

Now fill your oil up until the oil just peeps over the bottom edge of the oil window.

 
Ralfyguy,

Why are you confused?   You see a fellow rider who has competed his side stand HOT TEST analysis on his own bike and He Understands How It Works.

Your first step is to find your spot and set your oil level -- your second step is to do the HOT TEST to verify your chosen level poses no issues for you or your bike.

Having done this, you can be a happy and secure side stander who, if he bends on his side stand swing arm any knows enough now to repeat his side stand test to make sure he has stayed nice and safe.


==============


Now, Drunken -- if you glued a side stand puck (a pavement penetration protector) to the bottom of your side stand foot you would pick up HOT TEST clearance off its thickness on about a 1:1 ratio from what you have told us so far.   Pavement penetration is bad, right?   A wee little extra bit of oil clearance is good, right?

Two goods make a double Woopieee !!         last time I checked anyway .....




My side stand puck is a 4" long, 1" wide,  1/2" thick super magnet that I use to trip stop light sensors


-- so mine is a triple good Woopie !!!

You are so right on all counts.
As I said before, if that is the case, there is no point in all this BS SS stuff ! But,......who is qualified to determine what "overfilled" is ??
Just because OF says it, doesn't make it gospel. And I for one don't believe it, only because I have proved it not to be true.
Even the talk of bikes spitting oil seems to have come from no where, because I haven't read of even one case of it happening. Maybe I missed it.
If filling to the low line on the side stand works on my "standard" bike, then it should work on all "standard" bikes. That is why I put up the poll,...to determine which bikes are standard. But if you are like most the others....as the poll shows, and don't care,....and are afraid to try the "low line SS fill" method, then forget the whole "SS check" thing.
I myself think this whole SS thing has gotten blown way out of porportion. It works great for me, and anymore, thats all I care

I'm outta here !

Ralfyguy has just now rediscovered the points made two side stand wars back that caused the HOT CHECK to come into being -- oil expands, our bikes are different from each other and the side stands are not at the same angle.  Welcome to 3 months ago, you are finally catching up with the discussion.

And yes, Ralfyguy, ideally you might want half a glass empty on a hot test but trouble doesn't start until a full glass is seen -- you need to get that particular point right or else you are just lobbing hand grenades into the discussion (which in a side stand war is normal enough behavior , but the other folks simply need to recognize what that smoking knobby oval form means when it lands at their feet).  

Routy is upset that I take conservative positions on these things, this one being that logically, you don't want your oil level getting up into your crank space above the oil shelf.  You can get away with it short term, we all do each time we hit the brakes going down hill -- but conservatively you don't want to do it all the time.  

Another conservative point that Routy may not like  -- once the oil is over the window in the hot test you simply don't know how high it really goes.  Over the window is "unmonitored territory".

Now, the fact nobody is seeing copious amounts of oil in their air boxes does tend to support Routy's position that this may not be harmful, but I still can't recommend people going past a full window on a hot test -- jest can't do it.   Conservative, you know.


===============


What is a list member to do?  

If you want to side stand, do the Hot Test once on your bike to see what the angle of your side stand combined with the expansion rate of your favorite oil really really does.  Two folks have seen that they shouldn't side stand on their bikes out of the dozen or so who are currently doing it.

    heck if somebody wasn't going to fail the test why would we be saying you need to do it ....


Interesting point discovered this time around the barn, if you added a side stand puck to your side stand (something the folks down South need in the asphalt softening hot summer months anyway) you would pick up some hot test clearance.    


   Jest think of it as carrying your wooden block around with you all the time ....

ralfyguy wrote on 08/12/11 at 07:42:54:


Yes, these bikes sure can take a lot of abuse, eh?

Gyrobob wrote on 08/12/11 at 08:02:58:

Why you mean I abuse mine?

ralfyguy wrote on 08/12/11 at 08:52:33:


I'm not sure I understand.

Are you saying you abuse your bike?

Or are you saying you think I think you abuse your bike?

ralfyguy wrote on 08/12/11 at 12:50:02:



Sounds typical of this bike.  They are great machines, eh?  Glad you are having a good time with it.