30-year old Kawasaki emblem "goo" finally met it's match

My everyday ride is a 1986 Kawasaki Concours, one of three I have owned.  One was a parts bike, and one is the 1994 Concours I'm slowly restoring.  Well, both the other Connies have bad gas tanks-the parts bike tank was an internally, faded paint mess, and the 94s has rusted through from sitting too long.  It's been repaired, but also isn't in as good a shape as the 86 tank.

So I'm going to re-use the 86s tank for the restoration but need to repaint it.  I popped the Kawasaki emblems off a few weeks ago, but big black blobs of adhesive were left behind.  Nothing that should have worked got this stuff off.  Even after thirty years no solvent I dared use dented the blobs.

I asked my Father-in-Law if he had a heat gun, but he didn't.  So what did they get me for Christmas among other things?  Yep, a heat gun!  (side note:  You know you're getting old when a heat gun excites you more than possibly getting a Red Rider BB Gun.)  So tonight after dinner I went out to the garage, grabbed a plastic putty knife and fired up the heat gun.  Once softened a little the adhesive "goo" came off.  I slightly melted the putty knife, but no big loss-it was one I found laying around and not sure when we got it.

I've already got another project or two in mind for the heat gun, so it will likely be put to good use.  Time to prep a few more pieces of old bodywork and pick a color for the Connie-bouncing between a dark blue, a deeper red than stock, or white and black. 

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!

For My Fellow Motorcycle Commuters

A little over a year ago, I began commuting by motorcycle again after a few year break.  My job changed, so instead of working from home/coffee shop/library when not on the road, I went into an office 5 days a week.  Soon I was commuting 3-4 days a week and generally taking the same route each day.  While I don't enjoy commuting riding much, I fell into a routine, could gauge the traffic and trouble spots, and generally rode without incident almost every day.  Sure there would be interesting sites-my all time favorite was a guy eating oatmeal out of a bowl with a spoon using both hands to pull this off one morning!

About two weeks ago, the contract I was on ended, but I was blessed to pick another one up right away.  The major change (besides a pay reduction, but that's another post on another blog) is I am now working on another base.  The last eight miles or so of my commute are different, and my report time is earlier.

Why is this important?  Well, mainly because the traffic "flow" is very different, as are the surface streets and density.  About two miles of this new commute is along a busy four-lane street with curbside parallel parking, which pushes that lane's traffic toward the center-line.  Because I live in California, lane-sharing, aka lane-splitting, aka "surfing" is pretty much a way of life for motorcycle commuters.  Even guys on full size baggers sometimes lane split!  The other change is being earlier in the morning people seem to be less aware.  In the few days I've commuted, each morning I've been pulled over on at least once, some trips multiple times.  I am always cautious when overtaking cars in some situations and often predict who's going to do this, but have been surprised twice already.  Only one was very close but it has been a bit rattling.

Do you have the same "jitters" when switching routes or jobs?  Hopefully this will settle down and I'll get a feel for the cagers heading in with me.  I'd hate to lose the option of commuting on my bike!