What are you doing today? Thread

[knappyfeet]

Waiting on a correct axle. Seller sent wrong size.

I'm tempted to install the old bent one just to get the bike off the lift.

We all make mistakes.

[El Camexican]

When all else fails I’d just run a piece of undersized threaded rod through there rather than trying to in a bent axle and mess up what I assume are good bearings

[knappyfeet]

When all else fails I’d just run a piece of undersized threaded rod through there rather than trying to in a bent axle and mess up what I assume are good bearings

I agree.

She's off the lift and back on 2

[ATC King]

We've got the moon blocking the sun thing coming up in a month.

All the normal type of stuff is being prepared for during end of times events like that, schools closed, businesses closed, industry idling because trucks won't be delivering raw materials.

I heard that animals don't actually freak out. There will mostly be humans watching it though.


That's a big FYI to anyone that has plans of traveling in or across Arkansas on April, 8 but didn't know about the whole sky anus thing happening or how much the state has been promoting it. It basically cuts through the center of the entire state, no one will be spared.

[ATC King]

I've been catching up on personal vehicle repairs, much needed ones.

My XR650L had developed a misfire, right after I got it back on the road after months of sitting. Started cold and ran alight until the engine got warm. One of the times the CDI went out I bought a new OEM pulse coil to have on hand, just in case. I was far from home and didn't have the luxury of waiting on multiple part orders until I figured it out. That was about five years ago and now I finally installed it and the problem is solved. The XR650L and their ignition problems, it's not even funny anymore. There's a handful of bad CDIs to prove it, and now one pulse coil.

A couple years ago I replaced the radiator in my pickup. It was a parking lot install and aftermarket upgrade, which had the top hose in a different location. Far from home and only about one part store in a fifty mile radius. I couldn't find a preformed upper hose so I got a couple 90's, some clamps, and a plastic hose splice. That hose build has always been problematic, not because building a custom hose is bad practice but because of poorly fitting parts.

It took a while to get tight enough to stop leaking and I had started to order parts to build a good hose but those were shipped to the wrong address by my own mistake. That sidelined the project and I just let it ride for a couple years.

Lately it has started leaking again and I couldn't get the clamps any tighter, so I finally got all the parts I needed. T-clamps, aluminum hose splice, and silicone hose (two 90* elbows). It's done proper now but was much closer to failure than I realized. The hose was now soft and misshapen at the clamps, but when I pulled them from the splice, it was partially collapsed. I didn't notice that until a few days after replacing it. Which explained why it wasn't in my head that the truck ran a little cooler with the new hose.

The intake on my car is leaking oil at the front and rear. I got the gaskets to do that and some Right Stuff for the ends. It's and Olds V8 and I don't remember if it got a stock style gasket last time, the large sheet metal one the covers the lifter valley. I got aftermarket fiber gaskets and a bolt-in lifter valley tray, to do away with the stock monstrosity. I'm going to get started on that today.

I've got too many projects and this year I'm going to try and focus on getting caught up and thinning out. Too much time is going into maintenance and repairs to enjoy actually driving/riding anything.

[knappyfeet]

I've got too many projects and this year I'm going to try and focus on getting caught up and thinning out. Too much time is going into maintenance and repairs to enjoy actually driving/riding anything.

Amen.

I get tired working on old crap...that's why from now on i'm just gonna buy a new crap. Fuel injection computer controlled stuff. No more fiddling with jets & carbs & valve adjustments. This is 2024....it all should be a thing of the past. I put 100,000 miles on Harleys with minimal issues....no valve adjustments, chain lubing...just riding. The belts on HDs usually last the life of the bike.

[Scootertrash]

Amen.

I get tired working on old crap...that's why from now on i'm just gonna buy a new crap. Fuel injection computer controlled stuff. No more fiddling with jets & carbs & valve adjustments. This is 2024....it all should be a thing of the past. I put 100,000 miles on Harleys with minimal issues....no valve adjustments, chain lubing...just riding. The belts on HDs usually last the life of the bike.

Went wheeling last fall with a guy who had a 2023 Outlander 800. Halfway thru the first day it went into limp mode, radiator fan wasn't coming on. Being the only "mechanic" in the group, I offered up a recommendation, but was drowned out by 4 non-mechanically inclined guys trading "what ifs".

Next morning the owner called a somewhat local dealership that offered to hot wire the fan to run all the time, which was my first suggestion the night before, but was met with considerable negativity. BUT, I had also presented the potential drawbacks from such a repair without proper diagnostics: hot wiring the fan COULD cause more damage. If the water pump had failed (the impeller is plastic, and they have broken before) the engine could still over heat, if the thermostat was stuck closed the engine could still over heat.

The owner didn't ride the rest of the weekend.

Now, If i was a little more versed in the diagnostics on these fancy new machines, or if I wanted to invest the time at the hotel to figure it out, I may have been able to fix the machine so he could ride.

However, I'm on vacation and don't want to wrench on other peoples machines whilst I relax.

Point being, just because it's new doesn't mean you aren't gonna have problems.

[ATC King]

Amen.

I get tired working on old crap...that's why from now on i'm just gonna buy a new crap. Fuel injection computer controlled stuff. No more fiddling with jets & carbs & valve adjustments. This is 2024....it all should be a thing of the past. I put 100,000 miles on Harleys with minimal issues....no valve adjustments, chain lubing...just riding. The belts on HDs usually last the life of the bike.

I hear you. The problem with keeping a new vehicle though is keeping payments. Dealerships don't even want people to outright pay for vehicles anymore, they want that interest and fees. If staying on the top of depreciation, vehicles need traded in every 3-4 years. That also means any customization needs to be forgotten about because it's just money down the drain.

When I look at a used Harley and see Kuryakyn junk chrome parts, my offer just went lower. Hypercharger? Better have the original air cleaner or knock that price off too. Cheap, loud, straight pipes? Hahahaha, better knock some real money off to fix that mess. Many if not most of the new HDs have a good sounding exhaust from the factory. Subwoobers taking up space in the touring bags? Just, why?

My point is, if wanting to keep a new bike in the garage, find one that rings all the bells and leave the parts catalog alone. Invest in quality riding gear instead and maybe some track time or skills courses.

HD has been making some of the most dependable and lowest maintenance bikes for decades now, if the owners will leave them alone. Most will never put more than 20,000 miles on one in five years, so I guess go ahead and put that oiled cotton gauze, open air cleaner on there, the dirt that passes it won't have the engine smoking by then anyway. Don't worry about a non compressible fluid (water) getting in either because it won't be rode in the rain. We've stepped back in the time to oil bath filters, but made them worse.

Motorcycle manufacturers are following the automotive ones now, they can't make anything better so their adding more junk that doesn't improve the ride experience. I don't want a television in front of my face while I ride or drive, and it would be nice if a $30,000 bike didn't go into a death wobble at 100mph (HD recent recal).

Vehicle reliability passed it's pinnacle some years back, now they build in planned obsolescence and add baby mobiles to keep the babbies from crying about actually having to drive or ride. Many car drivers are now worried about when it hits 100,000 miles, which is straight back to the 1960's, the difference being is the repair will now cost five percent of your annual income instead of less than one percent. For people making the average or below income anyway.

How about buying a $80,000+ truck and already being ready for the DEF repair bill at 100,000 miles. I've bought cars, trucks, and motorcycles for less than that repair and they were reliable for years.

If had bought a new vehicle in the 90's or early 00's, it'd probably still be with me and on the road, with very few repairs outside of regular maintenance. No way would I buy something new now, because I don't buy to trade in and keep a payment, I buy to own and expect very long service life with minimal repairs for my expensive purchase. I sure as hell wouldn't pay over MSRP, that's insane.

If someone doesn't mind having a vehicle payment their entire life, that's their choice, but I doubt people paid for a horse and wagon for five years before cars, even though a horse and wagon were still very expensive and many couldn't afford them. Many couldn't afford a horse now, unless they leased it, but it would die because they have no idea to care for anything. Can't just put a key in a horse and take off, then get home, take the key out and walk away without so much as even walking around it once to have a look. It's so easy now and people just get lazier, dumber, and more self-centered, which is who US market vehicles are built for now.


I'm getting negative about it, but I like vehicles, and most of the new stuff out there I don't want, not even close, so I'm kind of forced to stick with the older stuff, which I enjoy driving and not being distracted by noises and blinking lights. Driving skills and education need a major improvement, nanny vehicles are just making the roads more dangerous. People are driving faster and with less attention, relying on driving aids to save them because they are reckless and shouldn't even have a license.


New cars are good in many ways, but they're going backwards now. A huge government burden has been placed on vehicle manufactures to comply with, to improve safety, efficiency, and cleanliness, but nothing similar has been placed on the public to obtain and retain a drivers license. Give 'em a license and hope they don't kill someone. They're making cars smarter for dumber people, because it's mean to enforce rational laws on irrational drivers. They have child like minds and don't understand the world around them. Lord forbid a habitual speeder gets a large ticket, that's unfair, they can't read numbers and do math to figure out how fast they're going.


That turned into a rant. :O

I'm glad you like your HD. I like mine, but don't approve of the current CEO and won't buy one under his middle class appropriation leadership. The guy needs to wear a suit like he is instead of denim. I ain't buying it. Sure as hell ain't buying a motorcycle from a shoe salesman, but then, he isn't selling motorcycles, he's selling stock. Maybe selling more stock helps the company build better bikes, treat their employees better, and better serve their middle class customers...

Nah, he'll get a golden parachute if he tanks HD. No accountability at the top, that's just for the workers who are laid off unexpectedly. It's all their fault for showing up to work every day and expecting a living wage.

[El Camexican]

I hear both of you on the new versus old. It’s really nice to just turn the key when you wanna go somewhere and drop it off at the dealer is every six months for an oil change and tire rotation, but calling the new stuff cr*p is totally unfair to genuine cr*p.

I’d love to have my 82 Chevy back with its four bolt small block and a three speed transmission, but as much as thinking about that thing puts a smile on my face, if I think just a little bit harder back, I can remember broken shock mounts, driving around with a spare module in the glove box, window seals, whistling over 50 miles an hour, having to look 50 feet further than the headlights shone at night and holding my coffee between my legs. Some things just look better in the rearview mirror.

[ATC King]

Went wheeling last fall with a guy who had a 2023 Outlander 800...

That's all I needed to read to know where you were going. I've been there and seen that too with new vehicles and considering the prices, I'm way to gun-shy to consider purchasing anything new unless it's a very basic machine with a moderate to lower power level.

Imagine buying a Hellcat then selling it because it was too unreliable, even for driving it like a Civic, but with parts prices not like a Civic. Words from the horses mouth.

If someone wants to ball like that, they better have a fat wallet, and not just for the purchase price. It's not going 200,000+ plus miles like a Civic, but I guess it'll get you there faster. If someone keeps one long term then has serious problems, manufacturer support is likely to be very poor. I'll be able to get points for a 1950's vehicle before they can get a new whatever module, if at all. Better know some sure enough IT type car people who can custom build a module or repair an original in 20 years.

I don't like using the ignition points analogy, but it's easy to understand that vehicles back then used a lot of common parts between models and years to cut down on manufacturing and repair cost, which had the benefit of one part covering multiple models and years and at a low cost to the owner. Parts stores also had an easier time carrying inventory to cover just about any domestic vehicle on the road. Now parts stores have the bare minimum and it's all about ordering parts, like it was in the early days of mass produced vehicles, except they may have been delivered by a horse, or local rail.

I want to avoid becoming a curmudgeon and not balk at new tech, but new tech isn't what I'm balking at, it's the application. I really like the comfort and ride of new vehicles, but the tech is overbearing, expensive, failure prone without prior symptoms, requires more specialty and expensive tools, and support is dropped faster than a Bud Light at a gay bar.



I don't know what the Bud Light gay bar thing means either, it's just to confuse people, like the multiple menus in a new car to just get the radio working. If someone got hung up trying to figure out the gay bar thing before reading the next block of words, you're probably not alone. I would've stopped there too, not the gay bar, the end of that paragraph.


There's no shortage of cheaply made parts on expensive vehicles now, which is why a lot of newer vehicles break down. There's absolutely no excuse for it nowadays. Things are breaking that didn't used to. With all the modern tech and knowledge handed down for a 100+ years, many problems modern vehicles have shouldn't be happening. The public is getting screwed and keeps lapping it up, like a eating her afterbirth.

[ATC King]

Attachment 271286

Fun times with dinosaurs.

I found the exhaust leak on my Olds 455. It's been eating it's own doo.


That's an Edelbrock Performer intake. They're about $500 now but no longer produced for the Olds big block, just the small block.

I already had new gaskets and one of those fancy aluminum valley trays, but now I need to get a gasket set that has the exhaust crossover blocked, and repair or zinc fill the intake exhaust crossover.

I thought about emailing Edelbrock, out of curiosity if they'd replace it. After looking at their website I'm not going to bother.

The intake only has a 12 month warranty and it's been on the car about 15 years. Besides that, they say for marine or off road use the crossover needs to be blocked, to prevent cracking during extended WOT use. Um, it's a street car and I need cold weather drivability. So I'll block everything off and it'll be fine this summer, but I may have some cold running issues in winter, which the car never had. The carb is electric choked, there's no heat riser choke but having the intake warmed by the exhaust is how it was able to start and run good during engine warm-up. Maybe I need to install fuel injection, right after I deal with the missing bumper fillers and bubbled, purple window tint.

The bumper fillers were replaced, maybe 20 years ago, but they met the same fate as the originals. Grandpa had the tint put on when he got it and I'm pretty sure the headliner was also replaced, which is in great shape.

It had a 307 when grandpa owned it though. I actually helped pull the engine in it now, from the donor car, then helped dad put it in. Now it's mine and I can't see getting rid of it.

[knappyfeet]

Point being, just because it's new doesn't mean you aren't gonna have problems.

I can diagnose your friend's problem all the way from here.....

Problem:..... The purchase of a Can-Am Outlander. (horrible reliability rating...one of the worst)

Fix:......Purchase a Honda Foreman DCT.

I hate "limp mode". Fuel injection has found itself in automobiles since the 1980s. Motorcycle companies flirted with it in the 80s as well. In the old days when a fuel injection system component was bad the vehicle just ran like crap...... but it ran.

I thought the BMW GS 1250 didn't need valve adjustments but I was watching videos and there was a video of someone disassembling everything for the inspection. $35,000 rig and you need to remove the valve cover + just to inspect. Imagine purchasing a brand new Lexus and completely taking apart the top end, so you can do valve adjustments every 20000 miles....pulling stuff off so you can turn the crank & find TDC?

The new Goldwing needs to have the bike apart to change the air filter....I can do it on my HD in 3 minutes. Goldwing advertises TBW...a leap in engine management. HD has been doing it since 2008 on touring rigs.

We get ahead of ourselves sometimes...not in a good way

[ATC King]

The new Goldwing needs to have the bike apart to change the air filter...

Not just the new, new ones either.

Attachment 271300Attachment 271301


A friend bought this one used and within a month or two he scheduled a slot at the Honda shop to have it serviced for all the normal maintenance, along with fork seals, new tires, and tire pressure sensors.

Neither one of us had any prior Gold Wing experience and really weren't comfortable tearing into it, and neither of us have a lift table, let alone one strong enough to hold that bike.

The bike sat there for a month, and apparently just outside in the gated lot. The tire pressure sensors are on backorder, and never came in. They had an air filter for it, and that was a high point on the list he wanted them to do; they didn't.

Something about it didn't have enough miles for an air filter change yet. Cough, BS, cough. I figure the job took too long and didn't pay enough and the one tech in there that was capable of it just didn't want to do it.


Now were both getting some Gold Wing learning and I can say, it's a car, with two wheels. Super smooth, powerful, good brakes, and handles good for the size, but working on anything involves some pretty deep disassembly.

[ATC King]

I’d love to have my 82 Chevy back...

Your right about the selective memory of the good ol' vehicles.

To be fair, that era of domestic vehicles was all pretty bad. Coming out of the oil embargo 70's and into the cocaine 80's, it wasn't looking good for US vehicle cusomers. That's about when the Japanese imports really started to take off though, which were much, much better cars, albeit the first imports, like the Honda 600, weren't all that great.

Even now, US pickups don't really have anything to offer other than bloated proportions, strictly for the US market. Other people around the world get along fine with bare bones, hard working, compact pickups. I think Toyota imported a 1 Ton pickup in the 80's, but it still looked like their small trucks. Those were mostly used for camper conversions.


I'm still living the dream though, '79 F150. it was good enough for ol' Sam. They tried to 'reimagine' it with a modern one, but it just doesn't seem right.

https://www.autoevolution.com/news/s...rt-151159.html

[knappyfeet]

Oh I know...I also had an 86.

Hey manufacturers.....instead of giving me traction control & stability control and modes for rain, sport, dirt, touring, economy, etc... interactive TFTs & navs & TPS and carplay and all that stuff...why don't you give me a bike i don't have to tear apart the top end periodically to check the clearance of a f**king valve? Are you serious? Are we still doing this? This is 2024. We are going back to the moon and have rovers on Mars and cars that drive themselves. I can check what my doggy is doing on my phone from Cambodia...but when I get home, I have to help my friend tear apart the top of his Busa to check valve clearances....and do math.

Obviously this is a sore spot for me. At least some 70s bikes had tappet covers