Perhaps it wasn’t an air leak after all
This is what i found after disassembling the fuel pump filter.
In search of a vacuum leak
My ongoing saga of hesitation continues. The latest chapter includes visually inspecting everything.
Finally! A warm day.
“The Loop” is one of those quick “around the block” type of rides I use often to test gear or to clear the head. Having a 50/50 paved/dirt road mix it also offers a nice 1 mile section of trail that seems to always have some mud filled ruts.
Today I was testing the new GoPro Wide video camera. It worked better than expected performing quick adjustments between shade and direct sunlight. The wide angle view seems to distort the speed a bit creating the illusion of going faster than I really was. Believe me, I’m not THAT fast on a 500+ pound bike through the woods.
Throttle Body Sync on the Strom
The following videos show two different sync tools borrowed from Craig. I had originally synced the throttle bodies on the VStrom with a home-made “U-Tube” filled with transmission fluid. I wanted to try actual carb balancers to see if the homemade tool was indeed accurate.
Syncronizer with steel sliders in a tube
Old school mercury filled tubes
The old mercury filled tool has a longer scale so the extra distance the liquid travels provides better sensitivity than the tool with the steel sliders with a shorter range of travel. Both tools verified my home grown settings. With less than a half inch of difference between cylinders I’m good to go.
This one is a keeper
My search for a street legal, trail capable bike ended this Saturday.
I’d been looking for a bike I could ride up to Patchaug or enter into some organized dual sport rides. Physically, this one was a bit of an eyesore. Mechanically, it runs fantastic and sounds solid.Â
I brought it home and immediately began my dissassembly and inspection routine. First order of business – a thorough cleaning. This first bath is an excellent way to systematically inspect the bike tire to tire.
It quickly became obvious that most of the lighting had been stripped off at some point and later re-attached. My first clue was the non-DOT flush mount signals mounted on the rear fender. I removed the three feet of electrical tape wrapped around one of the signal supply wires to reveal the bare, thumb-twisted connection. This connection type seemed to be the method of choice from the previous owner.
I took all the plastic and headed upstairs to the tub with the full strength cleaner (my wife loves this part). After an hour of scrubbing, the fenders and side covers were a “clean” dirty instead of a filthy dirty. I would love to meet the decision maker that thought “White” is a good color for a dirt bike.Â
Initial punch list :
Needs all new tank mount rubbers – most are missing and those that are there need replacing.
All turn indicators must be replaced.
Rear wheel bearings are shot.
I placed the order with BikeBandit on Monday, parts shipped today.
“It ran when I took it apart, and yes, I have all the pieces”
That’s the response I received when inquiring about my latest acquisition.Â
Me – “Do you remember WHY you took it apart 10 years ago?”
Answer – “No, A buddy of mine took it apart. We were going to rebuild it and
I never got around to it. I have ALL the parts and its been sitting in my shed
for the past 10 years.”
These stories are rarely 100 percent accurate. They may contain a few tidbits
of truth, like the part about “sitting in my shed for 10 years” but beyond that, very
little passes the BS test.
Soon after graduating high school in ’84 I had purchased a PE 175 for a couple hundred
bucks from a buddy I worked with. The bike was missing the rear wheel because
he had given it to a local bike shop to re-string and couldn’t come up with the money
to get it back. So, for the price of the rear wheel repair and a case of beer
I had myself a dirt bike. I rode it for a few years and later sold it to a friend.Â
In my quest to find bikes from my motorcycling past this gem caught my attention on
Craigslist.
No, not all the parts were there. Surprise, surprise. In fact, there were
more parts missing than present. I offered half what he was asking and he accepted.Â
This will make a good parts bike. It has a good cylinder, wheels and lower end.Â
Now I’ll be scouring the usual places for this bike’s sister.
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