Is motorcycling allowed?

[Hairy]

Got to love Google Maps.

Have to take the eldest back to Malmesbury to collect his ID from home affairs on Monday. 

GM give you the straightest route, but then  you can play with the way points and then modify it as you wish.

End result, nearly an hour extra added on to our route, and a bit of back road exploration on the cards for us with the bike.

What I realised on the last Stellies trip is that you see so many amazing sights, but then never stop to snap a pic or just take a look around, so I am making a change and will try my best to snap those pics when they avail themselves.

[WaynejG]

Out and about

 

Edited December 18, 2022 by WaynejG
Wrong pic

[Hairy]

2 hours ago, WaynejG said:

Out and about

 

😍

[Hairy]

lol

[WaynejG]

[Hairy]

8 hours ago, WaynejG said:

Very freaking clever on the 3

[Hairy]

My bike is at the doctors office.

This is a long read .... 

Went to pick up some fresh motor oil to do a 3 hole oil change this weekend, and on the way back the bike did something very strange. When accelerating, the bike randomly felt like the rear wheel locked up for a split second, and then release again. A strange and scary feeling.

Stopped at the next petrol station and called the bike shop that has done some work for me. 

There recommendation was to check the rotors and feel if they were unusually hot (the rear was a little toasty) and then to let the rotors cool down and ride again, following which I should do a stop and see if there is heat in the rear rotor .... oh, and I was not meant to touch the rear brakes. At the next stop the rotor was cool, so all good then.

Unfortunately this bike shop would not be open until the 3rd of Jan. I had gone to them a little earlier in the holidays before they closed to have them replace my rear wheels bearings .... unfortunately they were under load shedding and "had to weld a rod to the bearings in order to pull them out".

So the current suspect was a grabby rear brake, or the rear bearing starting to fail.

Got the bike home, and called the HD dealership ... they would only be able to assist me on the 9th of Jan ... when I would also be back at work. So a no go.

Then I called Loud and Fast bikes, a contact via Big Bike Centre who told me "if you need anyone to work on your Harley, call Moestie and LFB"

Moestie took my call and we went through the various options. ...he was on holiday, but would be arriving back home the following day. Next day he calls me and we set a time. What I did not know was that he had just traveled over 5hrs with his family, a family of 4 kids and a wife, and he was receiving me at his house about 30min after arriving home. What a dude.

He walks through the bike with me, pics up things none of the other workshops ever did (One major item being a leaking gasket on the rear cyclinder head), took out the spark plugs to do a quick engine health check (This checked out to be in a really good condition) and he also noted the spark plugs were rather old. We check a few more things, then he checks the health of the brake fluid, that was bled about 3 months ago. The water content is rather high for this time frame, and he asked if they used a proper bleed kit ... no, they used a gravity feed to bleed the brakes. He has a "a vacuum" type kit, so will bleed the brakes again with this to properly flush them out. 

Game Plan:

LFB would do the following, as I do know have firm knowledge of the bikes health prior to my ownership.

1. his full break down and check of everything (Not breaking down the motor) with basic service such as lubing cables, check and set clutch etc.

2. would use the HD oils and gaskets I had to do the 3 hole oil service and replace the oil filter

3. I replaced the air filter about 3 weeks ago, he would still get in and clean out the throttle body

4. replace the old spark plugs

5. replace the fuel filter

6. replace the rear wheel bearings, and inspect the front wheel, and replace if required.

7. check alignment of the wheel and drive train

8. bleed front and rear brakes.

What came out the mix:

1. I took the bike recently to my previous bike shop to get her on their new fancy computer so we could get a bike health check and see if there are any issues as I had a poor start issue recently where the engine was swinging nicely, but she was not taking. My interweb knowledge brought me to the conclusion that this was not a battery issue, the air component would not be an issue as I now had a new air filter and it had to be a fueling issue. Bike shop started the bike and said it could not be fueling as the fuel pump sounded fine. So we should pop it on the computer. They do their thing and tell me that they only found old errors, and said it was an alarm, and some other minor items, they cleared the history and noted it was not an issue anymore. Ok then.

At LFB he hooked up his comp, and could not get a reading. He showed me the comp worked on his bike. So then did the other workshop really connect up their comp and get readings!

2. When he started the bike, he noted the fuel pump was priming, but noted it sounded like it was labouring. I had not ever replaced the filter, and I do not have any service history from prior to my ownership, so I asked him to replace the filter ..... this morning he sends me this pic of the filter and he recons it is the origional 2008 filter that was on the bike.

3. apparently the leak looks like it comes from them recycling the previous gasket when they removed the heads to spray the one section when they resprayed the bike. 

4. previous chops also reused a O-ring on on of the sump plugs ..... this was completely messed up.

5. he was able to clean up the connector and get the bike to read on the comp. basic stuff popped up, this he cleared and will test again after his test ride. I checked the codes against the HD elec. guide, and it had more to do with a loose earth ground ... so all is good.

What I like

1. He keeps me updated with the process

2. He has been working on the bike over the new years eve and new years day

3. He picked the bike up from me at no cost, and has also offered to drop it off with me again if I am not able to get my lift arrange to collect the bike.

4. I get my bike back tomorrow, with collection from 13:00 if I go to him. He will wrap up on the work tonight and then test tomorrow and give hear a cleaning.

5. Prices as discussed seemed very reasonable. He sent a message this afternoon that he did not have stock of the more affordable brake pads, so would have to use the more expensive ones ... these he also knocked the price down on. I just checked a old invoice from the bike shop I have been using, and the more affordable pads fitted cost more than the better pads LFB are offering me.

6. I offered to pay him for his 1 1/2hrs time spent diagnosing my bike on the first meet, and he refused this. After doing all the checks and offering advice.

Tomorrow

Let's see what the final bill is going to look like, but I am expecting it to be a reasonable sum of money, but I will be riding on a bike that has been properly checked, fixed and prepped....I am really really excited to be getting her back, and seeing how she is rolling.

Thanks to the awesome service from LFB I will have my bike back before the end of my holidays, and will hopefully get a few good spins in on her before getting back to work again.

[Hairy]

Leather Jacket Care:

Last time ....

I used Dubin, this worked well enough, but left a bit of residue that had to work out and certainly made a difference to the suppleness of the leather.

This time ....

Went to https://westernshoppe.com/ to look for some leather care products.

Bought Moore's saddle soap https://westernshoppe.com/product/moores-leather-soap-250ml/ and Moore's Hide Care https://westernshoppe.com/product/moores-hide-care-250ml/ for under R100.00.

Saddle soap with a firm paint brush and a dab of water cleaned all the grime off the leather rather well, I also cleaned inside the jacket by the armpit area "just because". Let this air dry.

Followed up with the hide care, rubbed in by hand and once done, a wipe down with a micro fiber cloth should there be any residual cream. 

End result is an excellent finish, and nice and supple leather jacket that looks great, and the hide care cream smells really nice too.

Given the amount of saddle soap and hide care remaining I could get at least another 8-10 cleaning and treating cycles out of these containers.

I also took this to my gloves and boots, with great results.

[Hairy]

36 minutes ago, Hairy said:

My bike is at the doctors office.

This is a long read .... 

Went to pick up some fresh motor oil to do a 3 hole oil change this weekend, and on the way back the bike did something very strange. When accelerating, the bike randomly felt like the rear wheel locked up for a split second, and then release again. A strange and scary feeling.

Stopped at the next petrol station and called the bike shop that has done some work for me. 

There recommendation was to check the rotors and feel if they were unusually hot (the rear was a little toasty) and then to let the rotors cool down and ride again, following which I should do a stop and see if there is heat in the rear rotor .... oh, and I was not meant to touch the rear brakes. At the next stop the rotor was cool, so all good then.

Unfortunately this bike shop would not be open until the 3rd of Jan. I had gone to them a little earlier in the holidays before they closed to have them replace my rear wheels bearings .... unfortunately they were under load shedding and "had to weld a rod to the bearings in order to pull them out".

So the current suspect was a grabby rear brake, or the rear bearing starting to fail.

Got the bike home, and called the HD dealership ... they would only be able to assist me on the 9th of Jan ... when I would also be back at work. So a no go.

Then I called Loud and Fast bikes, a contact via Big Bike Centre who told me "if you need anyone to work on your Harley, call Moestie and LFB"

Moestie took my call and we went through the various options. ...he was on holiday, but would be arriving back home the following day. Next day he calls me and we set a time. What I did not know was that he had just traveled over 5hrs with his family, a family of 4 kids and a wife, and he was receiving me at his house about 30min after arriving home. What a dude.

He walks through the bike with me, pics up things none of the other workshops ever did (One major item being a leaking gasket on the rear cyclinder head), took out the spark plugs to do a quick engine health check (This checked out to be in a really good condition) and he also noted the spark plugs were rather old. We check a few more things, then he checks the health of the brake fluid, that was bled about 3 months ago. The water content is rather high for this time frame, and he asked if they used a proper bleed kit ... no, they used a gravity feed to bleed the brakes. He has a "a vacuum" type kit, so will bleed the brakes again with this to properly flush them out. 

Game Plan:

LFB would do the following, as I do know have firm knowledge of the bikes health prior to my ownership.

1. his full break down and check of everything (Not breaking down the motor) with basic service such as lubing cables, check and set clutch etc.

2. would use the HD oils and gaskets I had to do the 3 hole oil service and replace the oil filter

3. I replaced the air filter about 3 weeks ago, he would still get in and clean out the throttle body

4. replace the old spark plugs

5. replace the fuel filter

6. replace the rear wheel bearings, and inspect the front wheel, and replace if required.

7. check alignment of the wheel and drive train

8. bleed front and rear brakes.

What came out the mix:

1. I took the bike recently to my previous bike shop to get her on their new fancy computer so we could get a bike health check and see if there are any issues as I had a poor start issue recently where the engine was swinging nicely, but she was not taking. My interweb knowledge brought me to the conclusion that this was not a battery issue, the air component would not be an issue as I now had a new air filter and it had to be a fueling issue. Bike shop started the bike and said it could not be fueling as the fuel pump sounded fine. So we should pop it on the computer. They do their thing and tell me that they only found old errors, and said it was an alarm, and some other minor items, they cleared the history and noted it was not an issue anymore. Ok then.

At LFB he hooked up his comp, and could not get a reading. He showed me the comp worked on his bike. So then did the other workshop really connect up their comp and get readings!

2. When he started the bike, he noted the fuel pump was priming, but noted it sounded like it was labouring. I had not ever replaced the filter, and I do not have any service history from prior to my ownership, so I asked him to replace the filter ..... this morning he sends me this pic of the filter and he recons it is the origional 2008 filter that was on the bike.

3. apparently the leak looks like it comes from them recycling the previous gasket when they removed the heads to spray the one section when they resprayed the bike. 

4. previous chops also reused a O-ring on on of the sump plugs ..... this was completely messed up.

5. he was able to clean up the connector and get the bike to read on the comp. basic stuff popped up, this he cleared and will test again after his test ride. I checked the codes against the HD elec. guide, and it had more to do with a loose earth ground ... so all is good.

What I like

1. He keeps me updated with the process

2. He has been working on the bike over the new years eve and new years day

3. He picked the bike up from me at no cost, and has also offered to drop it off with me again if I am not able to get my lift arrange to collect the bike.

4. I get my bike back tomorrow, with collection from 13:00 if I go to him. He will wrap up on the work tonight and then test tomorrow and give hear a cleaning.

5. Prices as discussed seemed very reasonable. He sent a message this afternoon that he did not have stock of the more affordable brake pads, so would have to use the more expensive ones ... these he also knocked the price down on. I just checked a old invoice from the bike shop I have been using, and the more affordable pads fitted cost more than the better pads LFB are offering me.

6. I offered to pay him for his 1 1/2hrs time spent diagnosing my bike on the first meet, and he refused this. After doing all the checks and offering advice.

Tomorrow

Let's see what the final bill is going to look like, but I am expecting it to be a reasonable sum of money, but I will be riding on a bike that has been properly checked, fixed and prepped....I am really really excited to be getting her back, and seeing how she is rolling.

Thanks to the awesome service from LFB I will have my bike back before the end of my holidays, and will hopefully get a few good spins in on her before getting back to work again.

Just got a message from LFB that the bike is done, and he will do a proper test ride tomorrow .... how flipping awesome

 

[mazambaan]

9 hours ago, Hairy said:

Just got a message from LFB that the bike is done, and he will do a proper test ride tomorrow .... how flipping awesome

 

I am glad you found a good and honest mechanic; not that easy to get both.

[Hairy]

4 hours ago, mazambaan said:

I am glad you found a good and honest mechanic; not that easy to get both.

Damned right ... will have a better picture when I pick her up after 13:00 today.

[Hairy]

For those interested, the attached is the break down from the service book provided with costs. There were other specific points he noted he took care of that may be covered under a generic description of the attached.

Good luck reading my scribbles.

All in I think his pricing was good, and the simple fact that he did this over New Years was phenomenal.

 

[Spokey]

11 hours ago, Hairy said:

For those interested, the attached is the break down from the service book provided with costs. There were other specific points he noted he took care of that may be covered under a generic description of the attached.

Good luck reading my scribbles.

All in I think his pricing was good, and the simple fact that he did this over New Years was phenomenal.

 

I think you have found a Gem of an individual there…..and not a Gem Squash. Tis always nice to find reliable peeps to help with ones bikes. 

[Hairy]

So good to have her back

[WaynejG]

So I take it you happy with the bike?

[Hairy]

2 hours ago, WaynejG said:

So I take it you happy with the bike?

All in I would say yes.

The LED bulb upgrade exceeds my expectations

Brakes are far crisper than they have ever been.

Could be my imagination, though I am rather certain of it, but the bike is running cooler ... especially noticeable in slow city traffic and traffic lights.

Shifting is light and quick, combined with the newly set clutch, it makes for a fun experience if you were to hypothetically accelerate through the gears if you were hypothetically wanting to go rather quickly in as short a span of time as possible.

When pulling long in a gear, the "pull" is linear and consistent. In hindsight there were little flutters or dead spots before. This I will attribute to the blocked fueling and then hopefully backed up by the throttle body service.

Bike jumps to life quicker at startup.

That is a quick summary of what I am "feeling", but will settle in a bit more with her and see how she goes.

At the end of the day I am really happy.

Edited January 3, 2023 by Hairy
small spelling error