Jump to content

Tightwad

Volunteer
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    1,689

  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    1

 Content Type 

Blog Entries posted by Tightwad

  1. Tightwad
    In preparation for the Dallas to Dillon run, I needed to do some maintenance work big time. 28,900 miles on the clock, I bought the bike with 14,000 miles...so more than half are mine now. Only averaging 7K miles per year, but this trip should blow that away....3500 miles estimated total.
    In April I put a new back tire on (Bridgestone BT021). Less than 2K miles, I hated to remove it, but I did anyway. I installed new tires front and rear, replacing the Pirelli Diablo front. The front wasn't totally dead, but it wouldn't have made another 1K miles, let alone 3500. I put both tires on the shelf...never know when you will need a spare to get you by. I will be looking for a deal on more new tires pretty soon...6 months or so I would guess. I found it pretty tough to remove that back tire when the tread was so new, but the Mojo-Lever, Mojo-Blocks and Harbor Freight Tire Changer setup made quick work of it. I used my Marc Parnes balancer to get the balance down...it's within 1/4 oz now. I realized my 3 tire gauges give 3 different readings, but i set as close to 36 front and 42 rear as I could. Tire Gauge I am taking reads a couple pounds light I think.
    As part of my maintenance work, I changed the oil...Mobil 1 10w30 with a Fram Tuff Gaurd filter. I had the filter on the shelf already, and a couple quarts of the oil. I like running synthetic because I get more miles between changes. I forgot to buy a new sealing ring for the drain plug...so i am going to hope this one lasts one more install! I noticed I was a bit low on coolant...bottle was empty, and the Radiator was a cup or 2 low. I added some distilled water I had...never use tap water...especially not Dallas tap water.
    In addition to the oil changes, I also bled the brakes and cleared out as much of the old fluid as I could. With the Speedbleeders installed brake bleeds are VERY easy, just a bit time consuming. I found my mightVac wasn't strong enough to pull the fluid easily, but a couple pumps of the lever would do the trick, and the Speedbleeders kept the fluid from sucking back in. I didn't notice any air bubbles to speak of. I hate bleeder nipples...why don't they make them tapered so hoses will seal easier on them?
    I also installed my Pro Oiler chain oiler. This has been sitting on my shelf for 3 months or so...finally got around to it. Seems to be working well, i am keeping my eye on it.
    I also replaced the side Pod Panels...thanks Ki-Speed! I wanted to install the Datel meter in the right panel instead of the homebrew meter I had there, and the left panel had the corner broken off somehow. I had fixed it (easy to do, works well) but it was ugly. Mark had a spare set he sent me, so I took this opportunity to install them.
    I also replaced the final Bike Bolts on my bike in the front plastic part (if front of headers) to the black head version I was supposed to receive with the kit initially. If you order Bike Bolts, color matching means when the panel is black, the bolt is black. When the panel is painted, the bolt is painted. Great service from them, and i love that they sell the Well Nuts and Plastic Rivets...those have been popular items on my website.
    Recap:
    28,900 miles:
    Bled Brakes
    Changed Oil
    Added 1.5 quarts of Distilled water to the system
    Changed Tires
    Installed Chain Oiler
  2. Tightwad
    After building my mini^3 amp, which I LOVE, I found I now needed a way to mount it. As I looked at my homebuild GPS/Camera mount, I discovered it would fit nicely in the space left between the mount and the support bar. I used some parts from my mad inventor kit (read pile of spare and odd parts) to make a dial I can twist to apply or release tension...a quick turn and the amp slides out to tuck away safely in my pocket or luggage. This also leaves the amp close to my Powerlet port or Tank Bag for charging, if needed.
    I have found the amp last plenty long...about a week on a single charge with my ~1 hour commute time daily. I am going to build and sell the high-power version, this one is more than enough amp for me and I have an interested buyer for the other already, just got to get off my butt.
    After finishing the amp, I realized I needed cables...especially one to go from the MP3 player to the amp. I had a couple pre-made interconnect mini to mini cables, but they were about 2 feet long:

    and I needed more like 8 inches. I managed to swipe a cable that was a close fit from one of those Ipod/MP3 player speaker dock thingies...about a foot long, but it had 90 degree ends which is hard to find:

    As usual, I wasn't content to leave it at that, so I decided I needed to make my own. Radio Shack didn't carry any of the parts I needed so I had to order some...like these connectors:

    And this cable:

    And some Techflex....very cool stuff. I like how when expanded the color of the cable shows through, gives it a nice tight look.


    My first attempt was made prior to my cable arriving (I am not very patient). I used some Cat5 after reading about some other builders who had good luck with it. I would NOT suggest it. Cat5, at least the solid wire type, is much to inflexible for tight bends, and is a pain to work with as it breaks if you bend it a couple times. I ruined one connector on my first attempt, but managed to build a cable that looked ok...the Blue of the Cat5 wire shows nicely under the carbon Techflex:

    After realizing that would never work, I waited for my cable to arrive. It did, and I preceeded to make another test cable, using some black with silver ends, covered with TechFlex:

    I learned a good bit, and the cable looks pretty good, so I decided to try a 90 degree version. This was a bit harder dealing with the connector, but it turned out well. I used 2 layers of heat shrink for plenty of protection against kinking at the ends....not that it even bends with the way I have it mounted. I think it turned out well, and the red under the black looks good with the VFR!

  3. Tightwad
    A bit over a year ago, I decided that with ear plugs my in helmet speaks just weren't up to snuff...especially when i needed them most....that being in long boring rides at Freeway speeds (note that I didn't say ON FREEWAYS)....Anywho, I digress.
    I started investigating my options. Naturally I could upgrade from my Elcheapo MP3 Player/FM Tuner....but then that would defeat the purpose of having an MPS player I don't particularily mind being dropped, dragged, stolen, stepped on, run over or otherwise abused.:

    This has actually been a great MP3 player, it has multiple pre-sets for my intown commuting....Lex and Terry in the AM, Soft Rock or Country headed home (calm down music). I can load 1GB worth of anything else I like, and it would play that as well. I have 3 of these MP3 players, I keep one in each jacket.
    Option #2 would be to upgrade my headphones. I originally used a pair that I got in a random box of stuff....brand new, but not expensive. They look something like this...prior to my modifying them of course:

    The nice thing about these is they have a REALLY long cord...long enough to reach to wherever my Audio Source ends up located....which is sometimes dangling by the cord and nearly getting sucked into the back tire...
    Upgrading would mean finding a better headphone, then making it nearly worthless by cutting it up and putting it in my helmet...I want to avoid that.
    Option #3 was an Amp...something to boost the little noise my MP3 player makes to a level I can hear it at. Now I could buy one online or at Radioshack for $30 or so....but what would be the fun in that??? Being a bit of a Mad Inventor, I knew I had to build my own. I check out www.instructables.com, and found some promising plans.
    Attempt #1, which occured in April of 08 was not very good. Actually I take that back...it sucked. I tried to stay cheap on components, and I don't know enough about Audio Electronics to know what the problem was, but it was clearly too much modification to a proven idea. I shelved the Amp, and put all the extra bits away for future use in who knows what project.
    Attempt #2 was MUCH better. After going to RadioShack to buy the "Boostaroo" only to discover they had stopped carrying it (wow, what a surprise....) I started checking out some of the Audiophile sites. I am NOT an Audiophile. I have tin ears, can't carry a tune in a bucket, and don't particularily care for "normal" music....it's all noise to me. I can't watch American Idle, or Britain's Got Talentor anything because they all sound just fine to me.
    My research confirmed that many people spend WAY too much on music stuff. WAY too much. A "good" headphone amp starts at about $125 and goes up from there. No granted these are designed for good headphones, and good music sources, and ideal listening environments....but still way more than I could justify (as an upfront cost of course).
    I found in my search for a DIY kit (to avoid my compulsion to buy extra parts or cheaper parts) I came across www.amb.org, specifically their "Mini3" amp. They don't sell a kit, they sell just the circuit board and a couple key components. This kit got rave reviews, and those who build them sell them for $125 to $175. Here are a couple pics from their site:


    and the guts(mine has a bettery battery, but otherwise looks the same):

    I liked the very compact nature...perfect for a jacket pocket or mounted forward near the controls...TBD on that part.
    They make the kit 2 ways...Extended Runtime, or High Performance. Which to decide.....both. Yeah, my compulsion kicked in and i bought the boards and bits for two of them. I rationalize that i will sell the one I don't want to keep, but that may or may not ever happen.
    I ordered the remainder of the parts from www.mouser.com, using the exact part numbers provided. I was determined to not shortcut anything.....that is until i got the 7812 and LM317 regulators...I had at least 10 of each of those...no need to order them. Batteries came from another source....never knew a 9V rechargeable could be so expensive....like $13 each! I ordered exactly what they specified however...I wasn't going to let that be the fail point.
    The packages started trickling in, but i was determined to wait for every piece before starting...I have a habit of getting 80% completed then getting sidetracked....Mad Inventor with ADD...great. Eventually all the pieces I ordered arrived, and I got a reprieve from the VFRness orders long enough to begin my build.
    I had never solder Surface mount chips before, so that was a good learning. Luckily I had invested earlier in a Digital Soldering Station, so I had the fine tipped soldering iron needed. I printed out the instructions, which are not very well organized, and began. All was going well until i got to the Voltage Regulators....I hadn't noticed the LM317 was actually an LM317LZ...the difference?
    I had this:

    I needed this:

    I also realized I hadn't purchased the T-1 LED specified, although I had a couple that would "work"...specifically I had regular power red, yellow or green, where I needed high power Blue and Red. The unfortunante thing about where I live is that hardly anyone is willing to build or fix anything for themselves. Even the Lowes here has changed their slogan from "Let's build something together" to "Let's hire someone to build something for you". The part I needed wasn't available at Radio Shack, which is the only parts option I knew of.
    I got online....$8 to ship a $0.31 part. Noooooo. Even with the LEDs I was looking at way more in shipping than the cost of the parts, plus it would be like 5 days. I checked on some forums and another Dallas resident pointed me to Tanner Electronics http://www.tannerelectronics.com/. I called and they not only had what I needed, the guy who answered the phone new what it was by part number. Of course this was still a drive, being 16 miles from my work, but it was lunch-hour(and a bit) doable.
    Tanner Electronics is AWESOME. I was like a kid in a Candy store...they have everything (within reason). I was able to get the part I needed, the LEDs(great price on them) and a volume knob...not the one i wanted but it will work for now.
    When I got home I finished the amp, performed the tests they specified, and I was rocking. This little amp is pretty hefty in weight, although it is the size of a credit card and < 1" thick. I can see why they are so expensive....by the time I was done I spent 4 hours assembling it, and parts were about $70. I didn't spring for the custome engraved end panels, as they were an additional $40 per kit. I will get a picture of my build up later, but it turned out just like the ones pictured above, but with a different knob(not as purdy of a knob).
    Best part is, i can hear my tunes! Now I need to figure out where to mount my Amp and MP3 player...and i need a shorter cable to connect them to avoid too many wires everywhere.
  4. Tightwad
    I had great aspirations for this weekend. Lots of time in the garage, time to catch up on all the mods and fixes and such that have been stacking up. The list I had compiled mid week was this:

    Mow the jungle...errr...lawn
    Finish catching up on VFRness and Speed Bleeder orders, since the Speed Bleeder bags had finally arrived
    Remove forks and replace oil and seals and bushings....27K miles on the oil, and the left side is leaking pretty bad.
    Install my Bike Bolts colored hardware, and write an evaluation for VFRD
    Install my Pro-Oiler
    Replace left headlight
    Upgrade headlights to run off the battery, not through the single 12 gauge wire that powers everything....I have nearly 2 volts lost by the time the the tail-lights get power
    remove the resistors in my JC Whitney Trunk lights (custom LED lights, 18 lights for left, right and brake....the voltage drop doesn't allow enough power for them to light correctly)
    weld/fix trunk rack where the platfrom broke....it wasn't originally built for the JCWhitney trunk
    assemble my Mini^3 headphone amp (one of the top rated amps there is)

    Now I know this was a big list, but it just keeps getting bigger and the long weekend was going to be the perfect chance to do at least 50% of it. Instead Friday morning my wife informs me "The AC is making a weird noise".....great. I had just changed the filter the day before (Getting that Honey-Do list out of the way for the weekend). I check and confirm....yup, blower making weird noise, not getting cooler in our house.
    All day friday was spent wishing I was home figuring out what was wrong with the AC, and hoping it was simple(and CHEAP) to fix. Got out of work a bit early and headed home. First thing to do was check if the outside unit was working....AC had just kicked on (such as it would) when I got home, so I was able to check right away. It was running, which was a good sign, but it was also iced up from the house to the thingie in the middle. I immediately went in and shut the AC off, then jumped on Google to see what could be wrong.
    Google was full of what it could be, and my wife reminded me of a friend of her's who blogged about AC problems she fixed herself. I read her blog, where the problem was the Run Capacitor not working. Cheap fix...wonder if I could have the same problem.....I could hope, right? I went into the attic (gotta be 140 degrees up there I SWEAR). I took the side cover off the Blower unit, and looked inside like I would be able to just see the problem....wouldn't that have been nice. I did locate the blower motor (behind a plate containing sixty-eleven wires and a circuit board). I turned the power back on to the unit (light switch installed in attic for just this purpose...nice). I saw the fan start moving, but it didn't seem to be moving very fast....definantly a fan problem. Good to know the rest of the AC system SHOULD be in good shape. I also located the Run Capacitor, and called my wife via cell phone to have her write down all the different numbers on it, as well as the model number from the AC unit.
    My wife and I had somewhere to be at 7:00, so we dropped the 4 kids at a friends house and headed out. On the way home I heard a noise from our rear tire...congrats, we were the proud owners of a nail! Luckily I have replacement and flat protection, so that would just mean a trip to Discount Tire in the morning. We didn't get back until after 10:00, and by the time we got the kids in bed etc it was well after 11:00....no work was going to get done that night.
    Saturday I woke up thinking "Maybe I can get a new Run Capacitor, it will fix the problem, and I will be back on track". I started calling around, trying to find one. Every HVAC place I called told me they were not allowed by law to sell parts to the public..... :blink: I didn't feel like arguing about how even if that WAS a law, it certainly wouldn't cover an electrical motor part. I did find that Grainger carried the part I needed.....Awesome!!! Too bad Grainger is closed on Saturdays, and the Monday is a Holiday. 4 days of having my wife and kids living in a sauna wasn't going to be pleasant. How was now 84 degrees. I placed an order to be shipped for 2 of them ($6.56 each).
    As I wasn't going to get the AC fixed, I started on my list....Mowed the Lawn. After mowing the lawn I took the car to Discount Tire....wait time would be 1 hour. Darn....oh well..."get er done". Discount Tire is awesome, but their estimates are not always spot on...took closer to 1.5 hours I think. It was now 12:00. I also took the car to Service King to get pictures taken of the rear bumper...at a recent Volley Ball match another driver thought she should park in our space with us. Service King was speedier than usual...I was done in 15 minutes. Got home at about 12:45.
    Soon after I got a phone call. One of the HVAC places I left a message with actually called me back. Real nice guy who operates out of his house maybe 1 mile from me. I told him my problem, what I was looking for, and he said he thought he might have one on his truck. He promised to call back. I didn't hear from him for 20 minutes, figured he had decided it wasn't worth his time. Finally he called back, he had a used one that he said was good...he was willing to sell it for $10. A bit steep, but beats 4 days of hoping the parts I ordered from Grainger would fix the problem. He was very helpful on the phone explaining the possible testing that could be done....I wasn't too interested, it was worth $10 to try and fix it. I popped over to his place, met his dog and grandson, saw his 15 stitches in his leg, paid my $10 (had to borrow cash from the kids...sad).
    Got home with the part, and headed to the attic to try it out. I recalled some web sites I read that said the problem could be insufficient air returns, so on the way to the AC unit I decided to open a 2 foot hole in the ceiling to allow more air flow. Luckily I caught myself with my shin, thighs, hip and elbows, so I managed not to fall ALL the way through the ceiling. I did demonstrate a few of my better words, which of course got my wifes attention. After asking if I was ok, and if I could get out, both of which I said "yes" to, I heard her giggling. This of course brought the kids over to see what was going on. I managed to extract myself from the ceiling, but not before I heard the camera going....she got proof of it:

    I made my way to the AC unit, and plugged in my "new to me" Capacitor. Kicked on switches, and the Blower came on.....Success!! I buttoned up the AC unit as I over heard (through the new hole next to me) my wife explaining to the kids what happened. I managed to get everything back the way it went, and got the heck out of the attic. Unfortunantly, when I got down I discovered that although the blower was working, no air was coming out of the vents. Turns out the coils were totally iced over and nicely blocking all air. I left the AC off and the fan running to hopefully thaw them out.
    The next 6 hours was spent repairing the ceiling in the hall. Of my long list of To-Do's, I managed to get the Lawn mowed. Every time I walked past my VFR it was pouting at me. I know the poor thing feels ignored and used...I really need to devote some time to it!

  5. Tightwad

    Maintenance Updates

    By Tightwad,

    I have decided to not Maintenance updates to my "blog" since I haven't done any 2-up riding since the latest child was a fairly big bump.
    26,500 miles (Approx)
    Replace Chain and Sprockets with DID ZVM2 chain and steel sprockets (stock ratio)
    Apparantly the original chain on the bike, owned since just under 14K miles. Chain showed significant streching, but no link issues. The link I cut to get the chain off showed surface rust on the inner roller, but the z-rings were intact. Maintenance on the chain was limited to 2 cleanings by me, and 4 lubrications in 12K miles.
    26.500 miles (approx)
    Changed headlights to use all 4 high beam filaments when the high beam selection is made. Developed a "Plug and Play" modifcation harness at the request of other VFR owners.
    27,000 miles
    Installed Speed Bleeder valve for bleeding the clutch. Worked well...precursor to installing Speed Bleeders for the brakes. Brake Pads have arrived, just need installed.
    27,300 miles
    Replaced Rear Tire with Bridgestone BT021. Previous Pirelli Diablo got poor mileage...approx 2500 miles maybe, Dallas sucks as it contains no curves. Old tire was showing cords all the way around, and wasn't far from blowing out.
    27,500 miles
    Installed LEDs in my JCWhitney trunk, under the "Reflector"...discovered my tail-lights have a LOT of voltage drop...I only get 9.5 volts at the brakelight...more tests needed to see if this is voltage drop across the bulb, or if there is a problem. LEDs come on for Brake Light, and each side for Turn Signals.....cheap LEDs were used as a test, and they are not very bright...doesn't help that they have to be installed sideways...LEDs are designed to be view straight on.
  6. Tightwad





    Nashville or Bust!

    TMac seemed like such a good idea! Memorial ride on a nice weekend, situated close enough to my Birthday to allow some guilt-tripping on the wife to gain a kitchen pass. It almost worked as well. When I let her know the dates, she informed me that I was missing one key event….my youngest daughters 3rd birthday. Piss. As I prepared to let the opportunity pass me by, I looked with envy on the plans being made by other riders from all over the continent to attend. T-shirts were designed, old memories re-hashed, and routes with CURVES were designed. Curves….what would it be like to take a flat-land DFW bike on a road that curved for something other than an exit ramp? I would not be able to find out.
    As I jealously monitored the plans of various riders, I noticed DutchInterceptor was planning to go up a bit early, and hit the Ozarks on the way….now the Ozarks aren't that far…maybe I could make it a 2 day run, and get some fun in? The inventive mind took over, and I began planning….in the end I decided I would go as far as Nashville….for a couple reasons.
    #1. It would still allow me to get back by sometime on Friday…the key date I must not miss or I would need a dog-house addition to fit my sorry behind.
    #2. I would be able to meet more VFR people….especially Bailyrock. I had to see his hardbags for myself to believe them, and view his Laundry room/Race Takeoff room.
    #3. I would be able to travel through some states not previously seen, and certainly not on a bike.
    As Dutch solidified his plans and routes, along with HS and others, I was stoked. All my slush fund money went into my ride budget. I checked and rechecked my bike….as a daily commuter it stays pretty current, so that wasn't an issue. It didn't seem like the day would ever arrive, but slowly it came closer and closer. With 1 week to go I even found a suitable deal on my TomTom One GPS, which would prove to be a nearly invaluable purchase. 2 days before I was set to leave I was still building GPS mount. 1 day before I was modding my GPS mount to include my Camera….thank goodness this last ditch effort worked out ok.
    Monday Arrives!!!!!
    Yup, the time was here! MGTX73 sent me a text message at 6:00 saying he was off…and that was the end of my sleep. As I puttered around, pretending I had stuff to do (I had been packed for a full 24 hours already), I realized my Registration would expire at the end of the month….say around….Nashville? Oh crap. I got online and renewed it, knowing I wouldn't get the sticker in time, but at least it would be current. Inspection would also be expired, whups. Another txt message arrived….after Mike should have arrived…traffic holdups….more puttering. I got the bike out, and had my wife snap a picture of my grinning mug (Camera/GPS mount can be seen here):

    Mike sends another txt…."Almost there"….turns out there had been two bad accidents on the freeway between his cousins place and mine…and he got lost (GPS got him to my place tho). He rolled up and we took off….he needed fuel but we decided to get out of town first. Finally gassed up and we were on our way…running behind about 40 minutes for our meeting with Dutch. Luckily the time estimated did not account for possible triple digit speeds (did I do that??). It was a bit chilly, and the speeds didn't help….poor Mike had been on the road 2 hours already, and was now getting beat up by my attempt at leading. I had a short learning curve for using the GPS navigation, part of which included quick mind changes for exiting or not exiting freeways….overall the ride was uneventful. Texas drivers were very considerate, 4-5 times they pulled off to the shoulder so we could pass. At one point it is rumored that speeds may have approached 2x the limit, but that is hearsay and not admissible in court.
    We managed to make up all but about 10 minutes of the lost time, putting us in Clarksville well within the time span we had agreed on with Dutch. Mike spotted him at a gas station….I had been paying attention to the GPS and not looking at the surroundings…this was a theme I carried much of the way. We had to turn around, but we made it! After gassing up and chatting a bit, we headed out for Oklahoma and the Talimena Parkway.
    The ride to the Talimena was pretty boring. Actually really boring mixed with mildy boring. Here is a fuzzy picture taken from my Camera, as it was shooting through the windscreen.:

    We finally started getting into some actual trees (very rare in DFW) and some rolling hills. We stopped for fuel/rest somewhere in OK…I didn't note the name of the place:

    Dutch on the left, Mike (mgtx73) on the right
    Here is a shot of the whole place:

    After this, we hit the beginning of the Talimena parkway. Dutch warned me in advance of the first curve…and even what he said didn't give me enough warning…the first curve is one SHARP left hander….>180 degrees decreasing…and the last thing you see before the curves start is a nice view of the valley laid out below…where you know you will go if you miss the turn. Unsettling, but no mishaps.

    Just a couple miles into the parkway we came to a nice overlook, so we took a photo-op, and learned about how the rocks came from Texas at some point

    Mike took a bathroom break, then seems to have misplaced something….

    Just as we were about to leave, a motorcycle gang accosted us. At first we thought they wanted our bikes, but then we realized they had their own VFR's, so we joined forces
    The rest of the ride to Mena was through some nice gentle curves, until you get to the area right above Mena where the mountain dumps into the valley and the curves get more intense. I remember sections of the road from time spent there while in College on summer break…back then I had a 79 Z28 that was faster than I had the money to pay for the tickets for. Overall I was comfortable on the bike.
    In Mena we stopped at a pizza buffet place (Really great Pizza). It was ~2 PM, so the place was empty…as was the buffet. They offered to make any pizza we wanted, but we weren't too picky. Pizza was not spectacular, or even marginal, but it was warm and editable and cheap. If I had it to do over again I probably wouldn't, except I needed to get shots of the place as I had worked in an ajoining business that was no longer in existence.



    From here Ernie headed back to OK, and the 5 of us continued up towards Russellville. HS did a good job of describing the ride up, so I will just add a couple pics I took.

    All the bikes lined up nice

    HS has trouble restraining tears as his fear of heights takes over. Gary berates him to "buck up and act like a Web Forum owner already"

    Outside the Russellville hotel….Mike is missing as he slept in a bit

    More to come as we hit day 2, and Tightwad learns how to turn corners.
  7. Tightwad
    See Hispanic Slammers blog as he described it as well or better than I ever could, and he has some cool video….here are a few pictures that he wouldn’t have had:
    HS notices something is wedged into his exhaust….what the heck is that??

    Using precise tools, as VFR owners always do:

    Ahhh, it was a Denver requirement….that looks (and sounds) better!

    Breakfast anyone? Mmmmm, waffles:

    Lunch Time….one thing I learned from Dutch and HS is to stop often and eat a lot….Food was pretty good here, but cash only as seems common in AR.
    Dutch looks guilty:

    From here on it was boring for the most part, barring that one point where my voltmeter indicated 16.8 volts and my multi-meter had dead batteries….not to self *check batteries in tools before you depend on them*
    We saw a nasty car accident at the end of the AR run, most likely a death involved. Didn’t look good that’s for sure. The last 40 miles into Dyersburg were the longest of the trip so far, even crossing the Mississippi wasn’t that exciting.
    This view of the back of the Hotel where we parked the bikes was the best one of the evening, I was beat:

    I need to thank Hispanic Slammer for NOT include the part of my video where I most obviously blow that tight right-hander going up the mountain, and take in the view from the opposite lane. Following too close is a bad idea folks.
  8. Tightwad

    Episode 1, A New Hope

    By Tightwad,

    Ok, a little history.
    11 years ago I met my wife-to-be. It was a nonchalant meeting, she happened to be at my apartment with my roommate's GF and another girl. I was just dropping in to change clothes to go to a party. The party didn't have much appeal, and they were watching "Tommy-Boy", which I hadn't seen, so I hung out.
    After the movie, my roommate was taking his GF out on his Honda Shadow for a ride. My other roommate mentioned that I also had a motorcycle (1981 Yamaha Virago 750), and suggested I take the GF's friends. Sure, why not...never turn down the chance to go for a ride with a girl. I ended up taking both of them...and then ended up dating and later marrying one of them.
    As we progressed as newlyweds, my young wife thought she would like to learn to ride. My old Yamaha was pretty heavy, and I let her try a bit with me on there as well....it didn't go too well, she was nervous. That idea was tabled, and we didn't ride together much at all....the bike was just my sometimes commuter.
    A couple years later, I had sold the Yammy, and had traded my Camaro (the car I had when we met....oh the times we had in THAT!) for a Yamaha Radian. This much smaller bike was more appealing to her for riding...and she kept saying she wanted to learn. Since we had a child by then, we didn't ride together, but I thought it was cool she wanted to learn.
    One day she mentioned wanting to learn, and I suggested we go to a local church parking lot...we did, and she rode around a little getting used to the handling. She then took it around the corner on the street, and back into the parking lot on the other side of the church. This is where things went bad.
    I couldn't see her, but apparantly as she was coming up the small rise into the parking lot, while turning, it accelerated more than she expected and she froze. The bike took its own path on a wide curve, and hit the only car parked in the lot. She hit it just behind the front wheel, and hard enough that the bike didn't even fall over, but wedged into the car. As the laws of physics took over, the bike stopped and she didn't. She somersaulted over the handle bars(through the mirror), and landed sitting on the hood of the car. A trip to the ER proved she had terribly bruised her pelvic bone on the mirror, and it was a couple weeks before she walked well again.
    Since that time, 8 years ago, she has ridden my motorcycles maybe 2-3 times....only out of sheer need, never for fun or enjoyment....until last Saturday.
    Her birthday is this week, and we had a sitter on Saturday so we could go out just the two of us. I had purchased her a Joe-Rocket leather jacket from www.newenough.com in case she ever was willing to ride....apparently this was the ticket to getting her to try again. She donned my new helmet, I donned my old one(boy does it suck, gotta get her one) and we took off....VERY SLOWLY. She was very nervous, didn't want to go above 45 (is that even possible on a VFR?) and didn't want to turn. She just wanted to go somewhere close by and eat.
    I ended up going the other direction...away from the normal haunts of Main Street, Texas. The last thing I wanted was city traffic with a nervous pillion. Texas is hardly known for it's winding roads, but we took one with a couple ok sweepers...normally ok, and normally sweepers that is. I am sure anyone watching us thought something was wrong....she did great for her first time, but she fought me in the corners and object when i accelerated coming out. It was about 10 miles to the restaurant I picked, and by the time we got there she had relaxed considerably.
    We ate our meals (rather poor dinner actually, not sure I go there again although she has been a couple other times and liked it). After dinner we still had an hour and a half, so she suggested we go get some socks for our son (school starting Monday). I suggest the next town past where we were, which meant highway riding. She agreed, I fell over in shock nearly, and we took off....somewhere between the sweepers and the chicken fried steak she lost much of her nervousness. The rest of the ride was mostly boring slabbing, but it was nice to have her tucked up behind me. As we traversed the same sweepers we had on the way out, she simply followed my lean. It helped her that a LEO had a victim in the midst of them, and I had to stay below the posted speed.
    Over all we had fun, put on 50 miles or so (which is a lot for her) and plan to do it again!
  9. Tightwad
    This week it was my turn to disappoint. The Lady in Red had new shoes, and Meg and I should have been enjoying the time spent in close proximity listening to the rumble of the V4, the occasional engaging of the Vtec, and some peaceful eating. No such luck I am afraid...this week was about more time spent in the garage. It wasn't my bike under the knife this time, it was amcnally336's bike. His 1999 was in as a developement subject for the early 5th gen harness. We started at about 1:00, but due to various issues such as missing keys, battery bolts, and conflicting Wiring Diagrams, his bike didn't leave my garage until 7:00. By the time I was cleaned up we only had 1.5 hours of date time left....not enough to don riding gear and do anything. Instead we enjoyed a Sonic burger and shake, and called it an early night.
  10. Tightwad
    After 2 weeks in a row of surprised riding, we had to take a weekend off. Unfortunantly, I am to blame. My poor VFR wore out her shoes, to the point I wasn't comfortable having my wife ride.
    This isn't even all....this weekend we will be driving the Family to Tulsa for the Tulsa-BYU game (go Cougars!)...so we will miss 2 weekends.
    Meg is not impressed that it costs $350 for 2 new tires out the door...I guess selling her on the motorcycle as a money saver isn't working so well. At this point she is just agreeing to it because she knows it makes me happy...at least she thinks of me!
  11. Tightwad
    For those who read my last entry, this is a continuation of my revival of Motorcycle riding with a Pillion. After a long absence, initiated by a gymnastic get off and a lot of pain, my Wife has again begun to ride with me.
    Episode 2 was a bit of a set-back, but not too bad. The day started out by meeting at the sitters, and heading out from there. The plan....Dinner and a Movie (but in the reverse order). We planned to hit the discount Cinema about 20 miles away, and grab something in the vicinity to eat after.
    First surprise...picking the movie. Choices were plentiful, we don't get out much. After some discussion, i was surprised when she chose the Simpsons Movie. She doesn't like the Simpsons. Oh well, shows I am loved I guess.
    As we headed out, I immediately got in trouble for exceeding the posted speed limit. I tried to tell her about how the speedo was off by 10%, but as with any LEO you try that on, she wasn't buying it (even tho it IS true). We made it about 1 mile before discussion was raised about nixxing the night...no way was I going to ride 20 miles without ever exceeding 45 mph...She relaxed a bit, I calmed down a bit, and we continued on.
    I (re)learned stuff I had forgotten in 1 week. She doesn't like to lean, or accelerate. Stopping can be painful if she isn't ready, as the tank doesn't have much give for sensitive areas. She continued to work on using the passenger bars (not a great plan, they don't seem to be in the right place) or supporting herself by resting on my legs. Resting on the tank for a short person made it feel like I was wearing a wife backpack....I try to keep her off my back as it is!
    We made it to the Theater in one piece, and enjoyed popcorn and holding hands like teenagers (teenagers of my era, not todays teens). The movie was good, the Theater sucked more than usual. Bad sound, not good smell. Popcorn was good, and quite filling.
    After the movie was surprise #2. As we played our usual 'I don't care, where do you want to eat" game, but with a vast communication problem caused by full face helmets at 35 mph, I indicated a Chinese Buffet. She agreed! It's not that she doesn't like Chinese food. It's that she likes basically anything else, and twice as much. The problem for her with Chinese food is the severe lack of cheese. She loves cheesy foods.
    They had a good Salad bar, sushi rolls crab legs and shrimp, as well as Craw fish (how the heck do you eat those???) as well as the regular fair of Moo Goo Gui Pan etc. Price for dinner was outrageous for Chinese Buffet, but overall we enjoyed it.
    After Dinner we slabbed it back home, no fun roads like last week, just the feeling of the wind and her arms wrapped around me at times (through 2 armored jackets and clothing...even my mom wouldn't have been embarrassed to see). I of course got in trouble again for squidly behavior...I actually exceeded 7K rpm while going from 1-50 mph....shame on me. She yelled at me, i slowed down and we putted back to the sitters house.
    Overall....I think a scooter would be more in line with our current ride style, but at least this way I get to wave to the other bikes, where on a scooter I may not. Maybe next week will see more relaxing on the speed front...but then again maybe not...only time will tell.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy.

  I accept