Another inexpensive tool worth every penny

I've removed the rear wheel and tire from most of my bikes at least once. For the shaft drive Kawasaki Concours, it's an easy if somewhat cumbersome process getting the wheel back in place and everything lined up.

For my Harley-Davidsons it's a completely different problem. I can imagine it's the same for chain drive bikes, but I haven't owned one in a long time. Getting the wheel into place and the axle through is fairly easy, as a rear wheel without a gear drive attached is much lighter. But then the fun starts, getting the proper chain or belt tension and the rear wheel and axle aligned so the bike tracks properly.

What a PITA! Being cheap, I originally didn't buy an alignment tool-how hard could this be? Really hard, so I broke down and bought a simple tool.

Best $16 I've spent on a bike ever! Get the tension you need, use the tool to mark the distance on that side of the bike (yes, Harley Sportsters but the belt on the "other side"!), go to the opposite side, slide axle into alignment, tighten everything, check again, torque everything and go for a "test ride"!

Full Disclosure, I am an Amazon Associate and will receive a small percentage of sales made through the link.

Cheap motorcycle tools that are very valuable for maintenance

Do you work on your own bike? Especially the routine maintenance that gives you time checking your bike and a feeling of accomplishment when you are finished with the task?

I do, and normally enjoy it and find it a good opportunity to check things out, spend some time doing mechanical things which is quite different than my normal day, and have that confidence that while I can't repair complex parts of the bike, I can take care of routine items myself.

The frustration comes when a project should be simple, but turns out to be overly complex or messy. One great example is changing the oil on a Harley-Davidson. Everything is pretty much right there out in the open. One hallmark of the Harley twin-v design is the oil filter placement forward of the front cylinder-looks good, works like a bit of an oil cooler, and makes accessing the filter for oil changes straightforward. Put an end cap filter wrench on, rachet drive with an extension and off it spins.

That's where things go wrong. About half a turn in and oil starts leaking out from the engine case all over the lower portion of the engine. I had tried all kinds of "solutions" on multiple twins-newspaper, cut up 2-liter "coke" bottles, tin foil. All worked to some degree, but all were also messy or a lot of effort for a simple job.

Then a friend let me borrow his oil change funnel kit. Available from a variety of manufacturers, these are purpose molded funnels that solve this problem, and the primary case fill problem too. A hard plastic funnel slides under the filter, has a drain and small rubber tubing to take oil right to your drain pan. A really good set is available on Amazon here, and for full disclosure (thank you nanny state) I am an Amazon Associate and get a few pennies if you buy from that link.

This is a simple tool, many companies offer a variety of them for less than $20, and the simplicity of doing oil changes with it is very welcome. I'll feature another simple but elegantly time-saving tool soon. Thank you for reading!

Joe Namath Biker Exploitation Movie "C.C. and Company" Opening Scene Still My #1 YouTube Clip

The classis scene from C.C. and Company where Joe Namath parks his chopper outside a grocery store, makes himself a sandwich, puts everything back and buys a pack of gum, is still my number one YouTube clip.  If you have never seen it, here's the link

Enjoy if you can't be out riding!

Great Weekend Riding and Upcoming Projects

Quick report on my busy weekend, about 350 miles of riding, and some projects I have coming up on the  bikes.

Saturday I was at the Long Beach International Motorcycle Show (IMS) almost all day.  After meeting my CMA chapter for breakfast, four of us rode up there on our bikes while a few others "caged" there.  Only one wrong turn as the "trying to get fired Road Captain" and we made it in plenty of time to get the Helmet and Gear check going.  Only problem was we had less space than last year and no where near enough.  We had to shut the check down for about half an hour in the mid-afternoon, re-organize the helmets and consolidate a rack or three of jackets and then re-open.  Bummer, but the other option would have been to have gear tags out of order-a true recipe for disaster!

Sunday I participated in the El Cajon Harley Owners Group (HOG) Toys for Tots run.  Great event, great guys running it with lots of volunteers and a great cause.  Fun part for me was it was a "controlled ride" meaning we stayed as a group and had police escort.  However there were more intersections than Road Captains from HOG, so I started helping out.  Fun to do that every now and then as we "quickly" rode from intersection to intersection alongside the nearly 200 bike group.  Ride ended at Del Mar Racetrack where we rode in (quietly to not spook the non-iron horses) and had our own area.  Best part?  Nearly 2300 toys for Toys for Tots, and over $8000 that will also go for toys and gifts! 

After my annual pre-Thanksgiving Dinner ride before joining family at the in-laws, I have a number of projects on the two Connies.  The restoration bike (94, aka Belle) needs an oil change and general check-up, plus I may test fit the sanded and repaired bodywork. Belle's tank was going to go on the old 86 (Miss Swail) but the petcock leaks and trying to get it off one of the mounting nuts came loose from inside the tank.  UGH.  So I'm going to see what can be done with the old parts bike tank I've had sitting around.  It's nasty but if it holds gas it may have to do to get the bike sold and I'll let the new owner decide to use some gas tank sealant on it or buy a replacement on eBay.

Could you help me out and click this link for some metric T-handle wrenches?  Testing out the Amazon Affiliate program and would like to see how a sale or two works.  Thank you!

A Couple of Quick Updates

Working on the bikes, prepping the 1986 Connie for sale plus checking what might be my options with the 1974 Honda CB750.  Odds are I'm going to sell it too-while I'd love to build a bobber or trike with it, the time and funds to do that right aren't going to be available for atleast 6 months and maybe more like two years.

Riding the 1994 Connie prior to a massive service on it (all fluids, test mount bodywork and prep for paint) and the Harley, so I'm still in the wind.

Does the bike make the rider? Musings while riding

Like many motorcyclists, I've owned a number of bikes, and bikes from a variety of styles for road riding.  From the Honda XL250 Enduro I got most my first miles on, to probably 6 or 7 cruisers, one or two standards, a vintage sportbike (Ninja 900, aka "the Top Gun bike"), 2 Kawasaki Concours sport tourers, and among the cruisers a Harley Sportster and a Street Glide.

Currently I have a ride one of the Concours and the Street Glide.  Before that it was one of the Connies and a Sportster.  So I had a fairly big sport-tourer and a Harley as my bikes for most the past decade.

What I noticed, especially if riding them back-to-back, or the next day, is I actually rode differently depending on which bike I was on.  Not only did they handle differently (side note-the Sportster handled more like a sport-tourer than any other cruiser I've owned, and with good power-to-weight, it was one of the quicker bikes I've owned), I rode differently-often more aggressively on the Harleys.  More attitude, more "this is my lane/space".  That's not to say at times I have fully used the Connie's impressive roll-on speed, even as a 30 year old bike!  But there is just something about being on the Harleys, at least to me.

Do you find yourself riding differently on different bikes if you own more than one?  How about if you've switched styles?  I'd love to read your comments about this!

Two Bike Projects Done, a somber ride, and the car saga ends (hopefully)

This morning right when it got over 50 degrees I started painting the mufflers off my 1986 Kawasaki Concours.  I applied five coats over nearly two hours with only one run-which for me is pretty good with rattle cans. I used Rust-O-Leum Engine Enamel, which covered well and is good up to 500 degrees, hopefully enough for exhaust "cans".  If not, I'll clean up any blisters when I have them off in two or three months to move the rear wheel and new tire over to the restoration project 1994.  My goal is to get "Miss Swail" 100,000 miles over "Belle" while finishing the restoration and then retire Miss Swail at 116,000 plus miles.  Maybe a new owner will keep her on the road instead of parting her out, but there are lots of seals and rubber parts that are showing their age.

I also rode Gospel Flyer, the Harley Street Glide I inherited from my "big brother" Glen to Miramar National Cemetary for a funeral.  A Marine Sergeant was laid to rest today, and there had been a slightly "hoaxy" post about him not having much family.  Well, this got refuted, but it also energized the veteran community and there was a huge turnout.  Lots of bikes besides a large group of family and friends.  I also paid respect to Glen, another Navy buddy and a fellow EOD tech who was KIA on Oct 20, 2016.  All are in the same general area of the cemetary-Glen and my co-worker are five columns apart in their columbarium.  It was a tough time but a good use of part of my day.

The car is finally out of the shop.  Radiator replaced, lots of hoses for multiple fluids replaced, and the motor mount installed.  Definitely can feel it respond better with a solid front engine mount and fresh, full transmission fluid.  All work that needed to be done, some of which should have been done a while ago.  Even for a "rainy or too cold day" car!

First Ride of 2017 and a non-motorcycle post

So far, so good-one day into 2017 and I've ridden.  My best friend and his wife have always hosted a "Greens and Peas New Year's Celebration."  He passed away six months ago, so his widow and some friends put it on again this year.

Since they gave me his Harley, I rode it up there today, had a nice visit with lots of friends, and also ate my fill of greens and black-eyed peas.  Here's to 2017 and my dollars and cents!

And on to the non-motorcycle part of this post.  Yesterday I attended the San Diego International Auto Show for the first time.  I've lived in San Diego off and on for nearly 30 years and have never been.  Used to the International Motorcycle Show (IMS) in Long Beach, and seeing the crowds around the convention center for Comic-Con, I've always stayed away worried it will be super crowded.

Boy, was I wrong!  Yes, we've had what could be considered bad weather for San Diego lately, but I was surprised at how modest the crowd was.  I got to see and sit in most the vehicles I planned on and even got to take more test drives than expected.  I test drove a Ford Fusion (I am considering a hybrid or Energi for my next car), and the new Fiat 124 Spider and Mazda Miata.  Both share some components, as the very knowledgeable Mazda test drive hostess and a product specialist pointed out.  I also didn't know that Mazda is now sourcing their parts internally-their partnership with Ford ends when a few more engines are used up-and they now rent/sell technology to other makes.  That is why the Fiat Spider had similar parts.

I hope to post more frequently in 2017-thanks for sticking with this very infrequent blogger!

Gotta be more consistent with some posts cause I am riding and wrenching!

Wow, been far too long although I have been riding and wrenching. Summer was up and down, with great family events but also the death from brain cancer of my best friend and main riding buddy.  I'll post more on that later, and on "working on his bike in my garage" instead of working on my bikes with him in my garage, something we used to do a lot.

So to get a new post up, here's a link to BikeBandit's side by side review of the new Milwaukee Eight and the current model Twin Cam.  It was run out of Sweetwater Harley-Davidson, one of our local H-D shops and the successor of South Coast Harley, a cool shop I visited as I first considered motorcycling.  Enjoy the review!

Way too long between posts

Just a quick post to acknowledge I haven't been posting or online much other than for work lately.  Been riding a lot, but hate to admit it's mainly been commuting/erranding and no great or epic rides to report on.


The goods:


Went over 100,000 miles ridden on a variety of bikes
Back over 12,000 miles a year
Averaging over 20 miles a day and riding most every day


The bads:


Most those miles are my 55 or so mile a day commute
Wearing the center out of tires yet again
Some miles on my best friend's bike as he can't ride and likely won't ever again.


Cancer sucks.  I'll just leave that there to keep this update short and reasonably positive.


More later!

3-Ride Review: Harley-Davidson Heated Jacket Liner

Good afternoon, loyal reader(s)!


It's time for another one of my very sporadic 3-Ride Reviews.  Today I am reviewing a Harley-Davidson heated jacket.  I'm not exactly sure of the model as it is an older one given to me by a friend probably a year and a half ago.  I didn't immediately put the pigtail on the battery as last winter I wasn't riding as much as I plan on this winter due to a different job.


First, a description of the jacket.  It's a black lightly insulated jacket with a windbreaker like exterior and wiring throughout-the front, back and sleeves are all wired.  It zips all the way up to a closed neck (good) and has light elastic cuffs and bottom.  There are plenty of extra plugs for gloves and probably heated pants liners too.  On the inside left is a pocket that holds the lead to the wiring harness on the bike, and it had an on/off rocker switch when my friend gave it to me.  The front outside right has a plasticized H-D patch that is tasteful and I could likely get off if I really wanted to (I no longer own a Harley) and the back center has a 1x2 inch or so Harley eagle and "AN AMERICAN LEGEND" patch sewn on.  I'm not sure I'll ever run this jacket without some top layer, so these patches are no big deal.


My first ride in this jacket was Sunday morning, and it was 36 in my garage, 39 per the official weather app on the phone.  Jacket warmed up quickly and I could feel the welcome heat at in town speeds.  About 10 minutes later I was on the freeway and cruising along for about 25 minutes at California early morning freeway speeds-so plenty of cooling wind.  I was wearing an Aerostitch suit, but the top zipper is malfunctioning and opened partway through the ride.  No big deal, as the liner kept up and I never was chilled.  Riding home at 10 AM I plugged in the liner, so test ride 2 was at more moderate temperatures-roughly high 40s/50ish.  This time I had to cycle the liner a few times, as I kept the suit sealed and the liner generated more than enough heat.


Ride three was this morning.  Again, the temperature was below 40 when I left the house.  I kept the suit sealed better this time, and once I got off the freeway for the last ten minutes riding to work I kept the switch off.  I was only wearing a light dress shirt under the liner and could really feel the heat after about a minute, and then for the rest of the ride.


This liner is an XL, which might be one size too big for me (I'm 5'10" and 180) but also allows easy layering under and above, which might not be possible if it was a large.  Considering it was a gift, I'm quite happy with the size!


Pro's-plenty of heat, easy hook up to battery then one plug, quality construction
Con's-A bit extra wiring  in leads (at least the way my bike is laid out), ripstop outer construction requires outer layer

Demo ride on a Harley-Davidson Street 750

Yesterday I was able to test ride a Harley-Davidson Street 750.  San Diego Harley-Davidson was hosting Demo Days ’16.  They had a great variety of bikes-everything from Sportsters and Streets to V-Rods and Dynas up to full dressers.  As expected, the demand for test rides tended toward the larger bikes.  Since I have written on the Streets before, I actually went to the demo rides to try out a Street.  I have owned a Sportster and a Fat Boy clone, so re-riding one of those bikes wouldn’t have been a demo ride anyway.

So after a short wait, we got a short ride brief from the instructor coaches and HOG road captains, we went to our bikes.  First impression was that these are definitely smaller bikes and marketed well as in-town and commuter bikes.  Everything seemed kind of compact and close.  I’m 5’10”, about average for a guy.  The reach to the handlebars and pegs was easy but probably would have felt cramped on longer rides.  The grips and pegs are very basic, bottom of the line rubber. The bike fired right up and idles easily.  Of special note, the clutch lever is much lighter than I remember my Sportster being.  This is a big improvement for a commuter bike, as I recall lots of “clutch cramp” when stuck in rush hour traffic and not able to lane split.  There is also a lot of engagement “sweep” as you let out the clutch lever and the friction zone engages.  With the torque this bike makes, this is an improvement from trying to learn or commute on a Sporty.

One reason Harley makes both a 500 and 750 Street model is the 500 is the bike used for their new riders class.  The coach I spoke with said it was a great bike for the course.  I can see this-the bike just felt well laid out and basic without extras to confuse or scare a new rider.  I’m not sure I would want a 500 somewhere like San Diego, where you almost have to get on the freeway to get anywhere.  While the 750 was able to cruise with the big bikes the short time we were on the freeway, a 500 would probably struggle to quickly accelerate on shorter ramps or to get out of tight spots with a larger rider onboard.  I remember some commutes and rides on my Yamaha V-Star 650 Classic when I was looking for another gear as I was topping out the power band in 5^th.

Of interest, there are few accessories for the Street as a first year model, but both NY Mike and the employees at SD Harley said more were coming, including bags.  This will be interesting to see, and an improvement in my mind.  As a motorcycle computer who doesn’t like riding with a backpack, saddlebags or hard bags are a must.  Hopefully they will be functional as the rear fender area behind the shocks isn’t very large-maybe even shorter than Sportsters.

At $8,000 the Street 750 isn’t cheap, but it is a solidly built, well-laid out basic cruiser by an iconic motorcycle company.  I think it’s a better first bike than a Sportster, and depending on your long-range riding plans probably a better commuter.  For longer rides a 1200 Sportster with highway pegs and a larger screen would be a better bike, but for reasonable days and commuting I’d recommend checking the Harley-Davidson Street out!

Kawasaki Concours Main Fairing Bracket Re-welding Time

While putting the left inner fairing piece back on my 1986 Kawasaki Concours last week, I noticed what looked like a crack in the main fairing bracket.  Sure enough, right beyond an area already re-welded/repaired once before (at least) a new crack had developed and the bar was completely "cut".  On the other side of the re-welded joint another crack was about 50% through the bar there too.  So Saturday I took the inner fairings off the bike, removed the mirrors, disconnected all the wiring to the headlight and turn signals and then removed the main fairing.  While the shop manual says to remove the main fairing and main fairing bracket as one piece, I've found it's easier to remove the main fairing separately.  This is especially true if you are doing motorcycle maintenance projects that require them to be separated anyway.  I also removed the speedometer from the bracket while it was still attached to the bike to get it out of the way of the welding work.  Once this was done it was pretty easy to get the bracket off the bike and delivered to my friend.

He's a good welder, having done the tab on my old Sportster.  He also has made his own bicycle frame before, so working with tubing won't be an issue.  Hopefully he'll be able to get it done this weekend and I can re-mount everything.  If not, I'll move some parts back over to the 1994 restoration project but this will slow my climb toward 100,000 miles on Miss Swail, the 1986 Concours.

2nd Annual EXTORTION ONE SEVEN Memorial Poker Run Ride Route

This Saturday we will hold the 2nd Annual EXTORTION ONE SEVEN Memorial Poker Run here in San Diego.  Last year we had 202 participants and raised $7,000 for the Navy SEAL Foundation and the EOD Warrior Foundation.  This year we are hoping for a much larger turn-out and raising even more money for these great charities in honor of the heroes who perished on August 6th, 2011 during the EXTORTION ONE SEVEN mission.

The ride begins at Sweetwater Harley-Davidson in National City CA, with registration at 8:30AM (0830 for the military guys!).  Kick stands up (KSU) is 10:00 (again, 1000 hours, there Devil Dog!).  The ride ends at the "new" San Diego Harley-Davidson on Morena BLVD, with a short memorial service at 3PM/1500 then the raffle prizes and a band.  There will be a high-hand and low-hand prize, raffles including one complete AR-15 and one build kit, knives, gear, range time and a 50/50 drawing.

Looking forward to it but also have a lot to do as a ride committee member!

Here's a link to the route-pretty scenic with a minimum amount of freeway miles! EXTORTION ONE SEVEN Memorial Poker Run Ride Route

EXTORTION ONE SEVEN Memorial Poker Run route check and other musings

Saturday I went out on my first long ride in a few weeks.  I super-slabbed down to Sweetwater Harley-Davidson where they were getting ready to host a wounded warrior type event.  I got to speak with Jim Greenwood, a long-time friend and their event manager.  While he was very busy with the upcoming event later that morning we visited briefly and he put out more flyers for the EXTORTION ONE SEVEN Memorial Poker Run on August 2nd, 2014.  I walked around a bit talking to a fellow CMA member and other riders.  When their ride took off it was also the same time as our "kick stands up" KSU time, so I rolled out to pre-run our route.  We aren't changing things up too much through the card stops, but I also wanted to do some riding!  Since I have "Columbus Disease" I also wanted to ensure the route wasn't too technical, had too much traffic or hard to find turns.  Actually it's the opposite-many of the turns are at "T" intersections, so even without stars, a sextant and charts I was able to run the route.  We also avoid freeways for 2/3s the mileage, so it will be a good nearly 90 mile ride between the two dealerships.  The ride ends at the new San Diego Harley-Davidson dealership.  So if you are anywhere near San Diego the first weekend in August, come out August 2nd to the 2nd Annual EXTORTION ONE SEVEN Memorial Poker Run!

The third card stop is the Poway VFW Post 7907, aka "my post" as I am a lifetime member.  For a number of years I knew we had a motorcycling living legend as a member but had never met him.  Well, Saturday as I enjoyed a short break from the ride and a cup of coffee, one of my friends said, "You know Everett is here, don't you?"  I said no as I hadn't met him so I didn't recognize which WW II vet across the bar he was.  So I was introduced to Everett Brashear, AMA Motorcycle Museum Hall of Fame member and fellow Naval mine-countermeasures warrior!  88 year's old but still sharp and has a grip that nearly broke my hand.  I wish I hadn't been on a timed run or I would have stayed half the afternoon listening to his stories of working for just about every motorcycle maker of note and helping clear south Pacific islands of mines during and right after World War II.  I hope to see him at the post again, and want to invite him to be an honored guest "dealer" at the card stop.

Sunday I didn't ride nearly as far but after supper went out to the bike to ride him and noticed it had cooled off just enough to be great for riding.  So I turned left instead of right and took a short loop I enjoy riding.  On the way out I noticed a Dad with at least one daughter riding a pee wee sized dirt bike.  I smiled inside my helmet and made a note to slow down on the way back.  Well sure enough on the way back I saw it wasn't just one little girl on a small dirb bike, but her sister was also turning laps around their field, but she was on a dirt bike with training wheels!  What an awesome Dad-so I slowed enough to shout, "You win awesome Dad of the weekend!" which made him smile.  So the cycle begins again-Everett Brashear telling me of his racing exploits before any of us were born while a Dad teaches his little girls how to ride and potentially race.

In the wind, or in the air-

2nd Annual EXTORTION ONE SEVEN Memorial Poker Ride is a go!

After a slow start due to some fairly major medical issues for our Committe Chair, we are proud to announce "it's on like Donkey Kong"!  This year there are a few big changes-both Sweetwater Harley-Davidson (for the second year) and San Diego Harley-Davidson are hosting start and stop points.  We also have a full AR-15 and a mostly complete AR-15 and many other raffle prizes.  Route is still being developed but it's going to head east out of Sweetwater HD, hit some crooked roads, ensure everyone gets some smiles per gallon before heading over to SD HD.



2nd Annual EXTORTION ONE SEVEN Memorial Poker Run Flyer

All proceeds go to benefit the Navy SEAL Foundation and the EOD Warrior Foundation, two great charities that help out fallen SEAL and EOD techs' families and injured warriors.  We will be honoring and memorializing the SEALs, EOD techs, support specialists, aircrew and military working dog that were lost on August 6, 2011 on a mission to aid Army Rangers fighting a much larger number of insurgents in Wardak, Afghanistan.  There will be a short observance at the end of the ride to honor these men and K9 who gave their utmost for our freedom and for the people of Afghanistan.

It should be a good ride and event for a great cause.  Hope to see you there!



Just sold the 1999 H-D Sportster

So tonight a young man and his brother-in-law come by to look at the Sportster.  I notice a USMC tattoo on his arm and ask when he was in.  He says a bit and it comes up that I came from a USMC Retirement Ceremony today.  I start to say who it is, and he finishes the sentence for me.  Turns out they know one another from car clubs and other get togethers, so we chat about that while they check out the bike.

Needless to say, any former Marine from the past decade is likely a combat vet, and he is.  He was definitely interested in the bike and his first offer is reasonably, so I give him the "fellow vet discount" and the bike is now his.  I hope he enjoys it as much as I have!

Selling my 1999 Harley-Davidson Sportster 883

Due to having three bikes and only riding the Sportster a few times a month, I have decided to sell it.  I love the bike and always smile riding it, but 3 sets of registration and insurance just aren't making sense.

I have it listed on Craigslist out here in San Diego:  http://sandiego.craigslist.org/nsd/mcy/4508191974.html
and here's a picture of the bike:

1999 Harley-Davidson Sportster for sale

As you can see, some customizing done.  I like the clean understated but non-stock look.  Asking $2999 with current tags and clean title in hand.  Thanks!

2 ride reports-Clint August's May Ride and a 300 mile trip

Tonight's post isn't going to have anything to do with customizing motorcycles or motorcycle maintenance, as I post frequently enough on those topics.  So today I'll mention the two rides I did this weekend and later I'll try to update or post a photo album from Saturday's ride.

Saturday was a busy day in San Diego County for motorcyclists, as it always seems to be.  First, John "SoLow Cali" So's viewing and memorial were happening.  Lots of the sportbike riding scene was going to be doing that, but due to other commitments and illness I decided to let my brothers in the Godspeed CMA chapter cover the services.  Another event I couldn't make was "BACA by the Bay", an event by Bikers Against Child Abuse (BACA).  This is a family event supported by many clubs, groups and riders, and I know a few of the BACA guys and gals and think highly of them too.  While it would have been fun to check it out, as a multi-day camp-out, just "dropping in" sometimes isn't good form.  The third big event was the 17th Annual May Ride, AKA Clint Black's May Ride 17, and a bunch of other names.

Put on by local on-air personality Clint August and hosted by Biggs Harley-Davidson, this is a huge event honoring military personnel in San Diego and deployed, and this year due to our recent firestorm first responders.  It is a poker run/bike show/car show/vendor fair/live music extravaganza and the Christian Motorcyclists Association (CMA) was going to have a booth again this year.  Since it's tough to keep a booth manned all day, especially as hot as it gets on asphalt when we've had a Santa Anna, I volunteered to be afternoon relief and help tear down.  So I didn't do the poker run, which was ok as I never do well (pair of 8s, again?!!?)  I got there a little before noon and it was already packed.  The first group from the poker run had come back in and there were already 50-100 bikes in the parking lot.  Ha ha ha foolish me-before long it would be packed with 6 rows of bikes, probably about 500-600 in all.  Vendors of all sorts were there-clubs, clothing, motorcycle accessories, fundraisers, games for the kids, food.  Oh yeah, food!  Mike's BBQ, cookies, cupcakes and sno cones were all available, plus raffle prizes.  Biggs had all their bikes on display and the service bay was very busy as well.  Great event and I look forward to participating every year from now on.  I rode my 1999 Sportster to Bigg's from the house, about a 45 or so mile round trip with some earlier riding and the bike ran great.

Today I took a three-hundred mile ride up to San Luis Obispo on the Kawasaki Concours, the "Connie" or Miss Swail.  This is the bike with the oil leak (she's been parked next to a Sportster too long I guess!) but seems to run just fine if I check the oil and top it off every now and then.  Since this was a longer trip than I like to make on the Sporty, I gave it a shot, and wasn't disappointed.  The bike never over-heated and ran like a champ.  I was able to get off the interstate about 1/3 the way up and rode State 154 for the first time.  Once past some slow traffic it was a great ride, and despite a fuel gauge approaching "E" I made it fine.  I got about 250 miles of mainly freeway speed riding out of the tank before going on reserve and was able to get to a gas station 10 miles later, so no worries there.  The new highway pegs worked great, and along with the throttle lock make the bike pretty much set-up for a potential Iron Butt ride.  300 miles didn't seem to be too bad, but I'm a little sore tonight so I'll keep that in mind as I consider the Iron Butt.  I'd recommend using 101 and 154 to get up the western side of California, but be aware 154 does have some 1 lane areas that are slow if in traffic.

That's all for tonight, hope you had good safe rides this weekend as well!

Mechanical fellowship, another front tire change-out and musings

Last weekend, my best friend and his wife (fellow CMA'ers) ordered a new front tire and inner tube from my affiliate BikeBandit store.  Her 2004 Harley-Davidson 1200C Sportster tire was getting pretty worn down.  She's a good rider, pushing the bike through the twisties safely and with skill.  So we needed to get the tire and tube and get them mounted before this weekend.  As usual, BikeBandit rapidly shipped the tire and the tube, both of them getting to my house within a few days even with the "Free shipping with $99 or more purchase" offer.  Gotta love quick delivery for free!


Due to some weather (yep, in SOCAL) and their church having Thursday night services, we put off the project until this afternoon.  Having just changed out my Concours front tire as posted here, I was confident we could knock this out pretty easily.  Two other confidence building factors were also part of my thinking.  First, my buddy is the better mechanic of the two of us-often he works on my bikes in my garage while I mainly hand him tools.  Plus, the pros at Poway Motorcycle knew we were coming and said they could mount the new tire and balance the wheel while we waited.


So he rides in, we get to work and before long we have an old, smooth tire and 21 inch spoked Harley wheel off the bike.  Here's the short list of what to do and sort of the order we did it in:


Remove axle and axle bolt trim covers
Loosen fork clamp bolt (need an allen key and I think a 5/8ths box end wrench)
Remove one set of fender bolts (again allen key and 1/2 inch box wrench)  I left one bolt in the fender just slightly pulled out to ensure it didn't move around much)
Remove brake caliper bolts and swing caliper off rotor, pad and secure in place.  10mm 12 spline bolts-yeah, suck it up and buy a special socket set.
Loosen axle nut-3/4 inch nut, put something stout in hole in axle on opposite side


Jack up Sportster and remove axle.  Done.  Of note, this Sportster's pipes run above the frame rails, which is a big improvement from my Sportster.  Makes jacking the bike up much easier!  We took the wheel to the shop, they mounted the new tire with the new tube and we re-installed everything.  With two sets of hands vice trying to do this solo, and only one brake caliper to re-install, it was almost quicker to put it back on as it was to take the wheel off.


Oh, did I mention a customer has a SWEET Kawasaki Concours he wants to get running to sell?  Oh brother.


Have a great weekend riding and wrenching!