The Honda is easy to service. I usually do service work by myself, and this year I also did the valve adjustment myself. A suitable afternoon job. But sometimes unexpected things come up – even on a Honda.
I made a presentation of the 750X when it was new in the garage. Not much has happened since then, just minor things really. Shortly after I bought the NC, I installed a rear inner fender to protect the shock absorber. It turned out to be less than successful as I had to remove the fender to adjust the preload on the rear spring. It also had a poor attachment, it was strapped on with a cable tie, and vibrated quite a bit, which had a negative effect on the paintwork on the swing arm, so I decided to remove the fender.
MRA windscreen spoiler
I also had a Givi windscreen that was wider and taller than the original windscreen. That wasn’t very successful either, as it created too little wind at lower speeds and more turbulence. The Givi windscreen was more vertical than the original windscreen, which led to a greater distance between me and the windscreen and thus more turbulence. Cutting it down in height didn’t help either.
I had noticed that many people use a spoiler on top of the windscreen, so I bought a removable MRA VSA Type C. It has been with me ever since. It is easy to install and remove, has adjustable height and takes up little space. In the highest position it provides just enough protection from the wind on motorway stretches and is not noticeable when folded to the lowest position. On the hottest days, I take it off and put it in a sock in the frunk or tank bag. (Puig has a similar solution: Puig multi adjustable Visor 2.0.)
Valve servic
I have always changed the oil in my bikes at the start of each season. This year, I delayed the oil change a little and did it at the same time as I had the valves serviced. When you come from a boxer BMW, it can seem a little complicated to service the valves on the Honda NC. The valve cover is positioned in such a way that you have to remove the radiator to get it off. This means that valve adjustment also includes changing the coolant. Perhaps not such a bad idea, as this is something that is usually easy to forget.
I took my time and spent a couple of hours on the project. The valves only needed minimal adjustments, and when I was done, I had a bike with fresh oil and coolant and a new oil filter.
New tyres and new brake disc up front
The Dunlop Mutant tyres have served me very well for two seasons and survived the 2023 Alpine Tour with flying colours. They performed well on gravel roads and were incredibly stable on wet asphalt, and I was never concerned about their grip on dry asphalt either. But in the end, they became a little worn, and unstable on the longitudinal edges and tracks. So even though there was still some tread left, I decided to go for new tyres this season.
I ended up with Bridgestone Battlax BT32 this time. I have only had good experiences with Bridgestone tyres on my two previous bikes. They may not be at the top in tests, but they have harmonious characteristics and I have enjoyed Bridgestone tyres in the past. So why not again? So far, this has been a happy choice. They suit the NC well and on asphalt they have more grip than I can use. On loose gravel they are a little more unstable than the Dunlop Mutant tyres, but for my use this is good enough. I got to try them out in Elvdal last autumn and they performed well.
When changing the tyres I also fitted a new front brake disc. The original disc had a slight runout and the brake lever pulsed uncomfortably during braking. It was great to get the new brake disc fitted, and now I am excited to see if I can avoid warping this one too. The disadvantage of a fixed disc is that if you get warping in the disc, you notice it immediately when braking, either as vibrations or pulsing, or both, in the brake lever. The new NC 750X (from 2025) has floating brake discs at the front, which solves the problem.
With the rear wheel removed I also took the opportunity to remove the small amount of rust that had formed on the front of the swing arm due to the inner fender. A little sanding, priming and painting didn’t take long and was successful.
In the spring, it will be time to change the brake fluid at the front and rear. I also have a set of new brake hoses to fit. That will be a bit more work; I will have to remove some plastics to get access. I hate doing that, as it is all too easy to break something. I have removed some of the parts a couple of times now, so with a little care it will be fine I think.
Chain service
To finish off the tyre change, I also had to adjust the chain. It looked fine and didn’t seem to need any adjustment. But when I turned the wheel, I saw that the chain had a stiff link, which meant that when this link was on the rear drive, the chain was much too tight. I tried to loosen the link, but it was stuck. The solution was a new chain and a new front sprocket. I found both parts at affordable prices and with fast delivery and got away with spending less than a thousand kroner. The rear sprocket showed no visible wear, so I kept it. The new chain also eliminated the weak and strange vibrations I had noticed earlier.
That’s all. The rest of the equipment, the tank bag from Givi and other luggage equipment work well. I prefer to ride with a bag on the rear seat. I have to tilt the seat up to refuel, but with the ROK Straps elastic bands, it’s just as quick to remove the bag as it is to take off a tank bag.
