OEM case guards: Anyone scrape down?

[Ulvetanna_imp]

My SW Motech saved virtually everything on the bike when I had a low speed fall. Light scrapes to clutch lever and mirror and the tab on my turn signal lens broke. I was able to file and polish the bars and repaint like new. I'm sure they played a role in my big crash in protecting my leg but the bike was totaled.

Wow, that's good to hear. I had the same experience in 1983, as I mentioned I had a new Interceptor, but had the dealer install the engine guards before I picked it up. I am not really sure why I did that, I had zero experience with anything but single-cylinder dirtbikes up to that point but I am very glad I did. I threw it down the road after a week and those guards saved the bike's engine and probably my left leg to some extent. I still have some scars but we were young (my girl and I) and she just picked the gravel out, bandaged me up with some stuff from a local drugstore, we tied a bandanna around it, and took off again next morning.

When I really think about all the stupid stuff I did, how capable and nearly invincible I felt, I have NO idea how I got where I am now.

I, like many of us, always imagined what it would be like to be an old, experienced hand at this. Now I am here, I'm just trying to hold on by what is feeling more and more like a thread!
I checked the clearance again, propped a broomstick up touching the stock peg feeler, looked like Todd_K was right, there's still a couple of centimeters of clearance after the pegs would touch, it seems. Those guards WILL touch down, I'll wager, but probably about the same time the sidestand or centerstand would drag. So observing the stock peg feelers' warning, should be OK.

All the same, I bumped the preload to maximum (where it was for a long time anyway) and set damping on #2.