06/29/2005
Well, Elvira got some tender loving care today. In case you don't know, Elvira is the name of the Honda Rebel Chopper I'm building BTW. I left work today, to find when I uncovered the Buell that one of the bolts that holds the windshield mount to the windshield was missing. I had no choice but to ride home.. and hope it would be okay (it was attached at three other points). I got home, and taped the windshield to the handlebars, and removed the other bolt and washer with rubber gasket and went to the Harley Dealership to get new ones. Well, they don't keep them in stock.. and the guy had no idea what kind to order. They also informed me that they will continue to service my Buell but will no longer be selling Buells as of next year. Joy!

Well, I ended up going to Home Depot. The bolt was a number 10 with coarse threads, and a hex head. I got galvanized washers with rubber gaskets attached, and some extra rubber gaskets for good measure. When I got home I then proceeded to use blue Loctite in the assembly unlike the Buell factory did to make sure this doesn't repeat itself. The washer and bolts were unpainted (galvanized, and silver respectively) so I used an old CD which had the proper size hole as a quick mask and shot them with black automotive enamel after they had been tightened down.. once it dried I gave it a second coat.

Then I pulled the Honda out from under it's cover, fitted the new clutch cable (works like a charm, the old one must have been really stretched out, probably was the original OEM one from 1987 I guess. I sealed a gas leak with some silicone in one spot (just to be sure) and tightened down the clamp from the carb to the engine in case that might be where the leak was coming from.

I bolted the seat down, using Loctite on the 5 bolts and nuts which hold the seat in place. I also used Loctite on the front seat bracket. The springs were already attached with Loctite previously. I tried the seat out, and it's great for someone my height (6'3") versus the stock Rebel seat. The handlebars and footpegs are really comfy too.. By moving the driver back, and the seat up a few inches it has helped alot.. The seat is nice and firm, two layers of high density foam. The upholstry job won't win any awards for sewing.. but I did an excellent job on stapling it to the pan. The seat is made from 1/2" laminated plywood which was curved and laminated (by a friend) on a steam press years ago. I glued high density foam (two layers) to the pan after I cut the shape of a generous tractor seat (generous so it's comfortable, no bicycle seats for me thank you!). I then cut the pleather to shape, and sewed it together, then used a doublestick mesh to hold it to the shape and stapled it down. After sitting on it you can see the mesh a bit. Oh well, it's not perfect.. but then again this isn't a show bike (or is it? ;-)

I did some touch up on the paint, and took some photos. My custom choke knob is almost done.. I decided to do a choke knob rather than plugging the choke port and hoping for the best. I am hoping (though it's supposed to rain, and we need the rain) to finish the wiring this weekend (wire the lights in).. clean it up. Attach the drive chain and final parts... and then change the fork oil in the left fork, and replace the dust and fork seal in the right fork. We'll see if that comes to fruition. Then all that would be left is to check and adjust the wheel alignment, and build the custom shield (oh and print the decals for it. Turns out I've got a roll of decal vinyl from when I used to work in Graphic Design (companies used to send me samples all the time), and since the decals are B&W I can print them on the laser printer.. clearcoat them, and stick them on the bike! Whoohoo!.

Anyway, check out the photos. This project be finished just in time for the winter snow! ;-) Still debating if Elvira is gonna be sold, or be a personal ride for a while. We'll see. I feel pretty good about it today, but it seems like the days I like it.. then I really like it.. and the days I am tired of it.. well.. I want to sell it.. So who knows yet. Would anyone even want to buy it? ;-)

06/26/2005
Got back on the horse this weekend. I dragged out the tools and started doing some work on the Rebel. The left header pipe didn't seal well against the engine, I couldn't wrench it down enough for the copper seal to compress enough to close the gaps I think as the bike was pretty noisy the last time I started it up. So I got some high heat silicone sealant and have sealed around the edges with that as I read it can be used to seal small gaps or act in place of a gasket. It's good to 650 degrees. Some of the bolts on the bike chose to rust, after being cleaned.. and since they're on the bike I can't do much except treat them with some Loctite Extend which takes the rust and turns it black (carbonizes it) and stops it rusting.. Which is what I did. I drilled the front seat bracket out for the seat to mount to, and then painted it with an enamel paint (which is curing) and also drilled and shaped the license plate bracket. The bracket got three coats of flat black, and then got mounted on the bike and then I mounted the license plate. It looks pretty good. I've got touchup to do on the paint (always eh?) and will have to paint the high heat silicone with high heat black once it's cured (gonna do this next weekend, and finish up the wiring.

There was some substance on the front wheel when I pulled the bike out.. Marie determined it wasn't sweat (from me working on the bike) by wiping it with a paper towel (it was yellowish). So I moved the bike forward, hit the front brakes and the nose dive-bombed.. and sure enough there was fork oil on the left front fork.. Generous amounts.. So after I get the wiring done.. I've got to yank the forks, and rebuild them (good thing I bought the parts for it and the fork oil a couple of months back). I just need to find the Honda manual. I guess next Sunday I'm rebuilding the forks. I need to double-check the sparkplug gap next weekend, and run the bike some. I'm going to add some Marvel Mystery oil to the gas.. And then put the choke plug on... I'm going to have to work without a choke, the bike runs fine without it for some reason.. And just adjust the idle using the idle adjustment knob as needed. What a beast I'm building.

With the exception of hooking the lights up, packing the wiring away nicely, touchup, engine checks, and rebuilding the forks the bike is a couple of weeks away from completion.. If the weather wasn't so damned hot I might actually feel like working on it!

Marie rode most of last week, I only got to ride once. I developed a cold, and ended up driving most of the time... and was home a couple of days ill. She got home one day to find the tigers tail had come off her helmet... So I guess it's time to order another one.

We went to The Art of the Motorcycle in Memphis today. We saw 100+ historic bikes. It was ALOT to take in. All of the history, some of the bikes simply left me grinning from ear to ear. We paid for a photography pass, but didn't get alot of photos. It's just as well as we bought one regular ticket, and one deluxe ticket which included a catalog of the exhibition which is about an inch thick and has all of the bikes from the exhibition and alot more.

They gave us little things you carry around which when you program in a number the bike is described and exhibition is narrated by Jay Leno. Jay Leno is a pretty cool guy. I used to have a subscription to Popular Mechanics, and periodically there would be an article on Hot Rods by him, or about cars, trucks, motorcycles, you name it.. The guy is a gearhead. Well I tended to read it, even though I am not a car guy because a close family member (deceased) was and old school car guy and gearhead and did some beautiful restorations which were donated and sold to automotive museums. I wish Leno had met him. I think he would have appreciated the kind of work my relative did, and the care and attention he put into it. Well, Leno also likes motorcycles, and I've seen him on Discovery Channel, and at various events on TV regarding cars and motorcycles.. And he knows his stuff, it's his passion, and I thought it was great he was the narrator for the exhibition.

Anyway, they say most of the people who got to the exhibition go just to see Captain America's bike from Easy Rider. We saw it, it was given a grand place in the exhibition.. pretty grand indeed for a bike which is a replica! Heck, there's a guy in town I'm told owns 3 replicas of Captain America's bike. Oh well, that's how it is. Easy Rider is an iconic movie for motorcyclists... so I can see how the bike would be a draw.. but so should be the Ariel in the exhibition, the Vincent Black Prince, and all of the other historic and classic bikes.

We had a good time, got some shirts from the exhibition and came home. I'd highly recommend if you're in the area of Memphis that you check out the exhibition. It's in town until October... and it's really worth it.

06/18/2005
Haven't made much progress on the bike project as I have been out of town for 3 weeks in the last month traveling for training related to my work. During the time I was out, the new clutch cable arrived.. I've got about 2 weeks of work to do on the bike.. just have to get motivated to do it.

I ordered some Helmet Ears for Maru for her bithday gift... Got her the Tony the Tiger style ears, which include a tail for the back of your helmet (though I think it should go on the motorcycle tank). I ended up getting some black dog ears for myself.. They look quite stylish don't they? Hahaha. We took them for a test drive, they've been tested at speeds of 175 mph supposedly, and come from Europe.

The highest speed we got up to was 60-65 with them, and they didn't come flying off. Maru said drivers were doing doubletakes... I guess bikers are nothing special, but bikers with ears.. That's probably a bit odd. BTW. They came from John's Bike Bits. John imports these into the US after seeing them in Europe.

I've never seen a biker in Italy, Czech, Austria, or the other countries I've been to wearing them.. but I have seen them on the ski slopes in Italy worn by children and adults alike on their ski helmets.

We also got reflective visors for our helmets. Mine was more expensive, since my helmet is an HJC Symax.. and hers is a Vega.. Just due to the difference in cost between the brands of helmets.. At first I was skeptical, I'd bought some green strips for glare when we rode that stuck to our visors.. but it wasn't as optically clear as the visor.. and didn't look too great. It worked.. but you could buy the same stuff cheaply in a huge roll at O'Reilly autoparts, rather than paying $10.00 for a small strip.

Well, the tinted visors are great.. and the reflective material keeps the sun out so the helmet is much cooler than with a clear visor. For winter I'll switch back, but since we don't do any night riding these will work fine.

I'm about to go on a diet. While traveling I spent most evenings in the hotel pool after class for an hour doing laps and exercises.. that helped to curb the typical weight gain from eating out each day a bit, but I still gained 7 pounds on the last trip. I've set a target weight in the 170 range for myself, with the goal of doing something I've never done when I've gone on a diet.. planning to replace my entire wardrobe. Hopefully if I can remain committed.. I can get there. It will be expensive to buy all new clothes, including: A suit, new dress shirts, work slacks, jeans, new t-shirt collection, underoos, sweaters, etc.. but would be really satisfying.. and I need to clean out my closet as I'm still wearing some shirts that are over 12 years old. It would also give me an excuse to buy some Homestar Runner shirts, Retro T-Shirts, and some motorcycle shirts.. Plus, smaller clothes should take up less space eh?

Probably do some work on the Rebel tomorrow and try to get geared up again on the project after the hiatus.. however, it's been nice to be out of it for a bit since I came back with a fresh perspective on some things related to the bike project.