[Narada]

When I was a kid, we put milk in our inner tubes to prevent flats. it worked great.  Luckily, I never had to patch a tube that I had put milk in. 

[Carlsberg Wordsworth]

New EFI exhaust rear fitted. No time for a blat.

Sounds "barkier" lol.

Funds didn't stretch for a front end, not that that's needed anyway.

For me, I know I've got used to the fact of not smelling exhaust fumes anymore though. It was almost hard enough to get used to the GPz fumes again (almost nostalgic) but by god, performance or not, catalytic convertors do a bloody good job!


Looking forward to the test ride tomorrow, albeit to work.

[longstrokeclassic]

probably the best all round option, the original front pipe coupled to an  aftermarket rear ?
Unless you ride in the higher rev range all the time...

[Carlsberg Wordsworth]

Good to know portishedric, cheers.

Well it has been a while since I've ridden it, but first impressions are that it seems better on the throttle at low speeds and more tractable throughout the range.

For whatever reason, it doesn't feel like or sound like it wants to go up a gear around town at 30mph. Possibly because of the deeper sound? Who knows. Placebo?

Because of traffic, I only managed a steady 60 so not sure what it's like at full chat but I think it'll struggle to get near 70-75 but it felt comfortable enough.

Pity the original expired but there it is.

[Bert Remington]

Coyote's Motorcycle Tires replaced front and rear tubes, both of which had creases as noted below.  Rear crease required 43 psi to slow leaking stopped leaking at 38.5 allowing me to ride to shop to have tubes replaced.  Coyote (aka Carl) also checked wheel true (good just like ScooterBob said) and balanced both wheels.  $40 CMW tubes $100 labor.  I'm pleased.

Inflated both tires 4 psi over stock for San Diego pothole reasons.  No hint of instability at 70 mph (indicated) on grooved pavement.

I also changed the rear shocks per JVS's Poor man's suspension upgrade (https://forum.classicmotorworks.com/index.php/topic,17231.0.html).  After seeing how good the shocks looked, I went to eBay and found TEC shocks for Triumph that were 330mm long, about 10mm longer than stock.  I bought the last pair for an outstanding $64 including shipping and Jerry's share.  Clearances are tight but adequate including H&B C-Bow mounted saddlebags.  Rear wheel rotates on centerstand.  Both feet are flat on ground at stops.  Even with 34 psi in rear tire, San Diego potholes are less painful.  A bit more bouncy in twisties but then unlike stock the rear suspension actual moves in response to road conditions.  My confidence in road-holding has increased because its the suspension moving rather than the frame flexing during turns.  Thanks so much JVS!!!

Next week is changing fork oil to Bel Ray 10W.

[longstrokeclassic]

Made this for my B5 out of the old broken reg/rec bracket.   Paints a bit tacky so I'll post a picture of it insitu tomorrow.

[longstrokeclassic]

I made a support bracket out of the old (broken) reg/rec one for my new Mikuni carb to take some weight off the rubber manifold hose.  It has a 10mm clearance hole for where it's secured by the head steady bolt and the 6mm captive nut is used along with an Allen bolt  to bolt it onto the carb.
Should be heavy duty enough but anything thicker and I wouldn't have been able to put a 15 degree twist in it which is needed to line everything up correctly without putting any undue force on the carb body.  The large notch is to give the clearance to unscrew the top of the carb to access the slide and the smaller one to clear the inlet flange.

 

[longstrokeclassic]

Fitted a 32mm Mikuni and made a support bracket for it to stop it wobbling in the wind 
 


Also modified the fake airbox cover so it fits! 

[9fingers]

Installed my new right side footrest......thank Heaven for rigid footpegs....saved my bike and probably my leg. And installed my 7" headlight kit, which was good timing since the original inner and outer rings and glass were broken in the crash. Next some paint touch up and the new front mudguard, which requires the front wheel to be removed.....pain in the butt for fender change, IMO. Then the new master cylinder and brake lever and almost there.
9fingers

[Ergyd]

Yesterday, had the most varied day of riding yet.

Started off taking Harriet the B5 to work. Was running late, so I hit some of the main roads - 60-65mph no problem, and 70 when necessary.

Thick fog and rain came down half way into the hour long ride - I was soaked to the skin, and my boots were filled with water!

Weather cleared up by the end of the day, and had some time to kill, so decided to choose the smallest, windiest route I could find on the map to head home. Ended up having my first ever off-road adventure - rocky gravel tracks/streams/mud/sheep/cows/steep gradients up and down...

Arrived back in Cardiff, so some stop/start city riding, including a jetwash to get her nice and shiny again.

Treated her to a chain clean/lube, and an oil top up back in the garage.

All day long, she didn't miss a beat - was comfortable, trustworthy, exciting, and took everything in her stride.

Man, I love this bike.

[longstrokeclassic]

Made a front support strap out of stainless steel for my exhaust which I fitted today - sure put an end to all that tail pipe wagging on idle.
Sits between the exhaust pipe clamp and the brake pedal pivot bolt.

[upintheair]

My bride of 50 years and I wandered the back roads of Northern California this morning.  We went through miles of pasture land and orchards.  It was all two lane roads at a comfortable pace, 3000 rpm and 44 mph as registered on the TNT speedo/tach combination.  The bike (2015 B5 Forest Green, Spitfire windscreen, K70s) ran flawlessly.  It even started on the 2nd kick after sitting for a week.  The smoke from the fires had dissipated, so it was a clear, cool morning for our outing.  It just doesn't get much better. 

[Ergyd]

Tried to start her up after a few days of long distance riding (testing my new phone mount - experience here: https://forum.classicmotorworks.com/index.php/topic,26665.0.html
)
But couldn't for the life of me get her to start - on kick, or e-start.

Thought it mightve been because it was very early in the morning, and bloody cold... seemed like she just didn't want to wake up!

Finally bumped her into action, and managed to make the final leg home without any issues, but after getting home, and turning her off, she again wouldn't start. So definitely not a temperature issue.

Managed to trace it to a dodgy negative battery terminal - not the usual small cable issue, been there done that - but the terminal itself seemed caked in a really soft, dull grey, metallic crud. Scraped it off, popped the cables back on, slathered in grease, and hoping it'll stay clean.

Nothing else I need to consider, or worry about, right?

[Richard230]

Tried to start her up after a few days of long distance riding (testing my new phone mount - experience here: https://forum.classicmotorworks.com/index.php/topic,26665.0.html
)
But couldn't for the life of me get her to start - on kick, or e-start.

Thought it mightve been because it was very early in the morning, and bloody cold... seemed like she just didn't want to wake up!

Finally bumped her into action, and managed to make the final leg home without any issues, but after getting home, and turning her off, she again wouldn't start. So definitely not a temperature issue.

Managed to trace it to a dodgy negative battery terminal - not the usual small cable issue, been there done that - but the terminal itself seemed caked in a really soft, dull grey, metallic crud. Scraped it off, popped the cables back on, slathered in grease, and hoping it'll stay clean.

Nothing else I need to consider, or worry about, right?

I recommend cleaning your caked terminals with baking soda, then hitting them with a little steel wool, sandpaper, or something similar to make sure they are completely clean or any corrosion and will provide a good electrical connection, then after attaching the electrical cables, cover them with Vaseline to keep the grunge away.

[Ergyd]

Great, thanks Richard230 - I did exactly all of that, apart from the baking soda...

To neutralise any acidic cause of crud, right? Next time I get the battery out, will do that.