OldTLSDoug
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Try progressive Dave, you will get a better deal.
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What did you do in the garage today?
- Thread starter mitchntx
- Start date
4 bikes with dairyland for 120 a year .
No patience at the moment. With SF and policies already there, it was quick and easy. I'm in a hurry to enjoy before some other bullbraise happens.
Got stickers today. (OUCH!!!) They're both legal now.
Ride, Captain, Ride!
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- Zuniga
Yep, I'm with progressive, and I "looked around". Good prices.No patience at the moment. With SF and policies already there, it was quick and easy. I'm in a hurry to enjoy before some other bullbraise happens.
Got stickers today. (OUCH!!!) They're both legal now.
Sounds good but is meaningless without coverages and limits. Ins is all about the details.
What the law requires , anything more is a waste of money
Boy, I forgot you need to take both calipers off the front to take the wheel off, and trying to do that with the front propped up on the bike jack that's great for the bagger, not so much for the narrow bottom frame rails of Sporty, especially when you already dropped the wheel off the axle. 
Then remembered this is a slightly wider tire than stock, and had to let the air out of it to get past the caliper mounts. All done and back together, and yes, the cuss jar is a bit fuller this evening. Quite the RE-learning experience!
Then remembered this is a slightly wider tire than stock, and had to let the air out of it to get past the caliper mounts. All done and back together, and yes, the cuss jar is a bit fuller this evening. Quite the RE-learning experience!I twist the forks on my bikes to clear the calipers , have to pull the back caliper on the bigger bikes
Here is a hot tip for those of us that have USAA for car insurance; buy motorcycle insurance from them as well. Progressive does the USAA’s underwriting for motorcycles, and it’s actually cheaper than Progressive, for the same exact coverage.
When I called Progressive to cancel my policy with them, the gal asked me where I was going, and I told her nowhere, but that I would instead be writing a smaller check to USAA for Progressive insurance. She put me on hold for a couple of minutes and came back laughing, saying that I was right, and that she had never seen that before!
Braided brake lines won't allow that. They be stiff!
I dont ride bikes with anything but braided lines and all are flexible . They have to flex when you go over curbs and through ditches .
Been working on a sidecar for my dog, almost ready for some adventures with him!
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If you don't have "Uninsured motorist" protection, good luck with that...
Back in the old days the mobsters offered real protection , if the opposition gave you trouble they usually didnt last long . Then the govet cronies got involved and put a stop to it , too much competition . Now they just steal everything and leave you hanging .
TDtrans
0
Lucky dog he isBeen working on a sidecar for my dog, almost ready for some adventures with him!
Worked this morning, and this afternoon was shakedown rides of the bikes. Well, out on the parkway, trying to open up Sporty had the same effect as shutting off the gas. Pulled hard until I opened the throttle over half way, and it was like turning it off. Got a little leak surface prep started to get the S&S back on it tomorrow. Also the front master wasn't engaging like I wanted it to, so I shoved a little piece of metal into the thingie that pushes on the piston to take up the slack, and much better now. Need to adjust the slack out of the rear master tomorrow.
The bagger was great until I got a block away, and started losing throttle range. The open the throttle cable sheath was sliding through the stay, so I moved it to one next to it. Apparently the one I chose must be for the cruise control that I don't have. Was a pain to get to, but seems fine now.
It's always something, but good shakedown day.
The bagger was great until I got a block away, and started losing throttle range. The open the throttle cable sheath was sliding through the stay, so I moved it to one next to it. Apparently the one I chose must be for the cruise control that I don't have.
Was a pain to get to, but seems fine now.It's always something, but good shakedown day.
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Good to know!
jgrm1
0
Saved over a grand today by completing the 12k-mile service on my 2024 BMW R1250RS:
Changed oil & filter
Changed final drive oil
Changed spark plugs
Changed Air filter
Changed Brake fluid
Checked valve clearances
Checked codes and reset maintenance indicator
-Jeff
Changed oil & filter
Changed final drive oil
Changed spark plugs
Changed Air filter
Changed Brake fluid
Checked valve clearances
Checked codes and reset maintenance indicator
-Jeff
Last edited:
It's a way older 4 wheeled BMW, but the timing belt job I did last year saved me over TWO grand from the last time I had it done.
Did the valve adjust and probably saved 800 there.
Someone asked me the other day, "Don't you want a newer vehicle?"
I said "Not if I can't work on it with the tools I own!"
Finally got a couple hours to tinker in the garage today. The Sporty carb issue probably involves me flushing very old data beliefs and moving towards some reality. The S&S had an .040 main jet when I took it apart, and I "assume" that's what was put in it for the big rebuild back in '07.
Problem is, that sounds pretty small, and opening the throttle to nothing sure sounds like it's starved for fuel.
The "Cheaper than Earl Scheib" carb came with an .068 in it. That sounds more like it, and the Artificial Ignorance of Duck Duck Goose..... I mean..... Go says it's like .064 and up. Plus it has Andrews Y-grind cams, so she be needing more gas gas to go go. Rolled in the driveway and fired it up, and it's sure responsive to opening the throttle. Now for a chance to road test that theory.
Which might come tomorrow. If the weather cooperates in the morning, I might play hookey and actually go on a ride, then test the Sportster when I get back.
Or not. We'll see what morning brings.
Problem is, that sounds pretty small, and opening the throttle to nothing sure sounds like it's starved for fuel.
The "Cheaper than Earl Scheib" carb came with an .068 in it. That sounds more like it, and the Artificial Ignorance of Duck Duck Goose..... I mean..... Go says it's like .064 and up. Plus it has Andrews Y-grind cams, so she be needing more gas gas to go go. Rolled in the driveway and fired it up, and it's sure responsive to opening the throttle. Now for a chance to road test that theory.
Which might come tomorrow. If the weather cooperates in the morning, I might play hookey and actually go on a ride, then test the Sportster when I get back.
Or not. We'll see what morning brings.
Last edited:
TDtrans
0
TDtrans
0
Taking the Norden for street 500 for dualsport runs
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Continued working on my K1600 that I started on yesterday.
The bars on my K1600GT are a little too low, even with risers on it. GTL bars sit a little higher, so I bought some GTL bars and went to put them on yesterday. Got them on no problem, but now the brake line is too short, but I knew that, so bought the longer hose from the GTL. Well, took the whole garage apart looking for the hose. I thought it was by the bars, but was not. No idea what I did with it. Ordered a new (used) hose off e-bay, but is 3-4 days out. I was planning on finishing my Tour of Texas starting today, but now, well, not till next week.
2 days of riding caused my neck and shoulders to be very tight, 4 days would be unbearable, so no point in switching back to the GT bars.
So while waiting, I changed the oil, bleed the rear brakes, got the old brake line off the front, and swapped out the HID headlight bulb (still works, but is 13 years old with 80,000 miles on it, so getting near end of life). Still need to change diff fluid, replace a coil that is going out, and change spark plugs, but that is a 5-6 hour job, so will do that later.
I also fixed the mount holes for the tank cover plastic. When taking the plastics off yesterday, two of the brass inserts that the bolt screws into just spun, so had to force them out (put a drill onto the bolt and spun it till the plastic melted and let me pull them out). Of course not an easy fix, I was trying to decide if I should try to heat the inserts and re-melt them into the plastic gas tank, or if I should just epoxy them in.
I figured not enough plastic to securely re-melt them into place, so decided to epoxy them. I had to drill them out a touch so they would fit back in. I measured the depth, marked the drill bit with tape, and drilled it out. It fit, but was not quite deep enough. So I drilled a little deeper, and yup, right into the gas tank. On both of them. Was not happy. But figured the epoxy I was using is safe for gasoline, so well, gooped the insert up and put it in the hole. Fingers crossed no issues, but already looking at tanks on e-bay.
Since I was mad at myself for drilling into my tank. I decided to take a break from the bike and work on my truck ('02 F150), has a misfire in coil # 4 (a common issue on these trucks). I have replaced all the coils over the years, and just use cheap coils from amazon, but they have a high failure rate. They are all relatively easy to change, and I can get 2 packs of 8 cheap coils for $60 and have a bunch of spares vs 1 Motorcraft for $80.
Of course #4 is a back plug that is harder to get to, but not impossible. Get it out, and the bottom of the boot is all wet, with antifreeze. Crap. So either an intake manifold leak or heater hose leak, and being in the back, I can't tell which it is. Go look at my coolant level, and it is almost out, so has been going on for a while. Got the new coil in after blowing out the spark plug hole with compressed air, cleaned the area up, and will take a closer look after my next drive to see if it is an easy fix (the heater hose) or complex (the intake manifold, I changed in once about 10 years ago).
I also found that the passenger side mirror cover was missing. My daughter said she hit the mirror on "something" a while back when she borrowed it and the cover fell off, but she popped it back on. Didn't think twice about it (the exterior of the truck is very rough, and I don't really care what it looks like), but apparantly it was broken and has fallen off somewhere. Oh well. It started raining when I was finishing up, and decided I had had enough fun for the day and just went inside and took a shower.
The bars on my K1600GT are a little too low, even with risers on it. GTL bars sit a little higher, so I bought some GTL bars and went to put them on yesterday. Got them on no problem, but now the brake line is too short, but I knew that, so bought the longer hose from the GTL. Well, took the whole garage apart looking for the hose. I thought it was by the bars, but was not. No idea what I did with it. Ordered a new (used) hose off e-bay, but is 3-4 days out. I was planning on finishing my Tour of Texas starting today, but now, well, not till next week.
2 days of riding caused my neck and shoulders to be very tight, 4 days would be unbearable, so no point in switching back to the GT bars.
So while waiting, I changed the oil, bleed the rear brakes, got the old brake line off the front, and swapped out the HID headlight bulb (still works, but is 13 years old with 80,000 miles on it, so getting near end of life). Still need to change diff fluid, replace a coil that is going out, and change spark plugs, but that is a 5-6 hour job, so will do that later.
I also fixed the mount holes for the tank cover plastic. When taking the plastics off yesterday, two of the brass inserts that the bolt screws into just spun, so had to force them out (put a drill onto the bolt and spun it till the plastic melted and let me pull them out). Of course not an easy fix, I was trying to decide if I should try to heat the inserts and re-melt them into the plastic gas tank, or if I should just epoxy them in.
I figured not enough plastic to securely re-melt them into place, so decided to epoxy them. I had to drill them out a touch so they would fit back in. I measured the depth, marked the drill bit with tape, and drilled it out. It fit, but was not quite deep enough. So I drilled a little deeper, and yup, right into the gas tank. On both of them. Was not happy. But figured the epoxy I was using is safe for gasoline, so well, gooped the insert up and put it in the hole. Fingers crossed no issues, but already looking at tanks on e-bay.
Since I was mad at myself for drilling into my tank. I decided to take a break from the bike and work on my truck ('02 F150), has a misfire in coil # 4 (a common issue on these trucks). I have replaced all the coils over the years, and just use cheap coils from amazon, but they have a high failure rate. They are all relatively easy to change, and I can get 2 packs of 8 cheap coils for $60 and have a bunch of spares vs 1 Motorcraft for $80.
Of course #4 is a back plug that is harder to get to, but not impossible. Get it out, and the bottom of the boot is all wet, with antifreeze. Crap. So either an intake manifold leak or heater hose leak, and being in the back, I can't tell which it is. Go look at my coolant level, and it is almost out, so has been going on for a while. Got the new coil in after blowing out the spark plug hole with compressed air, cleaned the area up, and will take a closer look after my next drive to see if it is an easy fix (the heater hose) or complex (the intake manifold, I changed in once about 10 years ago).
I also found that the passenger side mirror cover was missing. My daughter said she hit the mirror on "something" a while back when she borrowed it and the cover fell off, but she popped it back on. Didn't think twice about it (the exterior of the truck is very rough, and I don't really care what it looks like), but apparantly it was broken and has fallen off somewhere. Oh well. It started raining when I was finishing up, and decided I had had enough fun for the day and just went inside and took a shower.
OldTLSDoug
Forum Supporter
I love the days that can only get better from there. Minor setbacks, you will kick it's butt another day.
It was new tire (and mousse) day for the 300 after I trashed the old tire in Oklahoma riding some road connecting trails. The mousse in the picture has 106 hours. And the rabaconda rocks for this: very limited F bombs and under 40 minutes start to finish.
