| Author | Message | ||
     Crusty |
Maybe I'll carry a two gallon can. | ||
| Wolfridgerider |
Crusty, I think you need to do it on a Grom! | ||
| Crusty |
I'll tell you what; I'll consult my Lawyer. If he advises me to do it, I'll get a new Lawyer. | ||
| Pwnzor |
 "I want you to understand that the man behind the wheel is my attorney." | ||
| Ourdee |
Uly: 4.4 gallon fuel tank. | ||
| Crusty |
Details, Decisions and a Deadline I’m in love with the Black Lightning. Anyone who knows me in the least knows this about me. However, I’m also pretty “Weak” financially. Lately, I’ve been thinking that if I were to buy a leftover ’14 or ’15 SX, I could save a bundle (like about four grand). My Credit Union is willing to loan me 80% of the price of a bike. It would be easier to come up with 20% of nine grand than thirteen grand. Besides having the better suspension for rough roads, the smaller monthly payments would be beneficial. It wouldn’t take four grand to put the taller bars, lower footpads and 44 tooth sprocket on the bike. I would have a little more financial room to maneuver in. I also want to get those radiator and oil cooler guards before they all vanish. I need to price out things like the Corbin seat and the ECM and exhaust tips. I also need to get the bike soon enough so that I can get saddlebag mounts made up. Tax time is almost here, and I will have a refund coming that I can apply to the down payment. After that is when I’ll be looking to buy. Now, Jim (Damnut) bought his SX from a dealer in North Carolina for a song and they still had one or two others they were willing to part with for short money. I wonder if they still have them and how much they’d let one go for? And Frank (Froggy) said that a dealer in New Jersey had deals on leftovers, as well. That might be a better way to go, even if the price is a little higher. 200 miles is a lot closer than 800 miles. I think Frank also said that they were offering their own warranty. That’s something to also consider. Something that’s running through my head is when Froggy’s starter died in Suches. It would suck if that happened to me two hundred miles up the Dempster Highway. I’ll have to find out which bikes had that problem and make sure mine either isn’t one, or if it is, get the right parts to prevent it from happening. (I think all that’s necessary is an O-ring, but I’m not positive). What will suck will be when I see a Black Lightning after I get my SX. I’m going to modify my SX with some Black Lightning parts, but the cosmetics make all the difference. Oh well. I can live with it. I traded in my ’98 S3-T on a 2000 M2. They were close, but the M2 wasn’t a Thunderbolt, and trying to make it one was an exercise in frustration. If I find that I’m still hot for a Black Lightning after I’ve owned the SX for a while, I can always just trade my bike in and buy the bike I really wanted. However, if the SX is as good as I think it is, I’ll probably be happy to just keep it and ride the piss outta it. Oh; just to add to the stress levels of all the above; I still don’t know if I’ll be moving to Cincinnati before the summer rolls along. If I do, that will increase my stress by an order of magnitude. However; before I can ride a lightly modified EBR to the Arctic Ocean, I have to get an EBR. First Things First. (Message edited by Crusty on January 14, 2017) | ||
| Ourdee |
And the clutch springs. | ||
| Froggy |
John, if you like I'll call Tony to get the details on that leftover SX. He mentioned something like 8 or 9 grand (probably $8999), but the big perk was they are offering a 1 year warranty from the dealership. If I also remember right it was a 2015, so it would have the updated clutch springs, better starter O-Rings and who knows what else. I'd be willing to truck it up to you if you pulled the trigger. | ||
| Crusty |
Frank; Once it gets a little closer to Tax time. I'll give you a shout. it will do no good until I have enough for a down payment. On second thought, go ahead and get the info. Let him know I won't be ready to buy until I get my tax refund, but once I know how much they want for it, then I can start doing things to make it happen. Maybe I'll take a ride down if the weather is warm enough one of these Saturdays. I'm going to want to price out the bars, foot pegs, sprocket and ECM. I also want to know if the dash upgrade has been done. Maybe I'll stop at the Dinosaur while I'm close to the City as well... I think I need a BBQ fix. (Message edited by Crusty on January 14, 2017) | ||
| Damnut |
Well let's meet up for a bbq meal. I'll meet up with you before hand and let you take my SX on the highway so you can see what it feels like. How's that sound? Stamford Dino or Hoo Doo Browns again? | ||
| Crusty |
Jim, PM me with your phone number and let me know when a good time to call is. | ||
| Damnut |
PM Sent. | ||
| Crusty |
Some Days… Some days, life can look overwhelming. I’m having one of those mornings. Everything I want to do seems to be up against a concrete wall. It started yesterday afternoon. I called Melia in Australia. The Troy Bayliss Classic in Taree is next week. Melia, along with Kristyn (her daughter) Kristyn’s S.O. (whose name I can’t remember; Mike? Greg? Alphonse?) and Tylana and maybe Kayla (the grand daughters) and going too. We went last year, but the last few races in a very busy day got rained out. Three Expert American Flat Trackers are going to be there, and it should be a day of Great racing. It didn’t help when Melia was telling me about the weather. I miss everybody there and really wish I could be there, but it just isn’t in the cards this year. Then I got an e-mail from my brother David. Every house that has looked interesting to me lately has some serious flaw. David has a customer whose mother is a Realtor; so David is going to tell her what we’re looking for and let her do the work. David has other, more pressing issues on his plate, right now. It’s Tax Time and he’s a small business owner. He also has some things going on in his personal life that I won’t go into, but they’re a whole lot more important that finding a house for his Tramp brother. Then this morning, I started pricing out a left over EBR 1190 SX by the time I come up with 20%, then go to register it and pay Sales Tax, I won’t have enough money left to buy gas to fill it up, let alone set it up to ride to the Arctic. I’m not even sure I’ll have enough to pay the Sales Tax. Now, for every problem, there is a solution; I just can’t see it right now. All I can do is just put one foot forward at a time. If I just keep doing the Next Right Thing, every problem will eventually be overcome. It’s just that some days look bleaker than others. Hey; if push comes to shove, I can always just ride the Roadster. It’s a Good Bike and I believe that it’s capable of doing the job. (Message edited by Crusty on January 16, 2017) | ||
| Pwnzor |
Suggestion: See if you can get the dealer to write you a receipt or invoice for 20% over the price of the bike so you can get 100% financing. It worked for me with the Z1000. | ||
| Crusty |
Act As If… One of the best tools I’ve found to accomplishing a goal is to keep a positive attitude and act as if I’m certain it’s going to happen. With that in mind, I just did something that I probably shouldn’t have done. I bought an R&G Radiator Guard and an Oil Cooler Guard from Twisted Throttle for an 1190. What prompted this was my desire to Act As If coupled with the fact that they only had one oil cooler guard in stock and only 5 radiator guards. I probably should have waited until I have the bike, but I was afraid that they’d sell out and I wouldn’t find one before the trip. Maybe it’s money thrown away, but I don’t think so. Even if I don’t get an 1190 before the trip, the guards are something I’d want to put on anyway, so whenever I get my EBR, I’ll have them waiting. I won’t have to wait. I really don’t know if buying the guards is exactly doing the next right thing, but I refuse to despair. I WILL ride to the Beaufort Sea. I’m hoping to do it this June, but if things don’t fall into place, it will happen eventually. However, where there’s a will, there’s a way. I have the will, I just need to find the way. getting everything together that I’m going to need is just one way of acting as if. The next thing I’m going to need to purchase (other than the bike and everything it’s going to need to be ready) is a hat with mosquito netting. I’ve heard enough horror stories about the mosquitoes in that part of the world, and I believe them. The good news is that the hat is cheap. I think (without having really priced them) that they’re only something like $25 or $35 bucks or so. I just looked over what I’ve written so far, and Boy, am I throwing platitudes around! But they help keep me focused and feeling a bit more positive. That’s what I need to do right now. I had somebody offer a suggestion that may help make purchasing the EBR a little easier. I’ll try it. Another suggestion I got was to do my Income Tax return myself instead of having my accountant do it. That’ll save a little bit more that I can use toward the bike. I know that I can do this. I just have to keep my eyes open and stay focused. Did you know that it’s 3,111 miles from 2799 Buell Dr. in East Troy, WI to Dawson City, YT? | ||
| Etennuly |
I know what the Sporty is to you, but if you can toss it into a trade after finding the price of the EBR it could go long into cutting your payments, and the amount you got for the trade will cut the taxable amount by the trade value. | ||
| Crusty |
Statistics I don’t know if anybody other than me is interested, but the current temperature in Tuktoyaktuk is -18º F (-28º C). Sunrise today will be at 12:55 PM (MST). Sunset will be at 3:11 PM (MST). On May 18, 2017, the sun will rise at 3:12 AM and set at 2:24 AM. After that, the sun will be up until July 25, when it sets at 2:30 AM. Last November 27, the sun set at 2:00 PM after having risen at 1:19 PM. The sun didn’t rise again until 1:43 PM on January 13 and then set at 2:20 PM When I go there in June, I’ll arrive sometime during the day. I can’t find an average daily temperature chart, but the monthly charts I’ve seen have the temperatures reaching mid to upper 50s on average for the month. I just thought I’d share that with you all. | ||
| Njloco |
Knowing this information makes me feel so much better about the winter. | ||
| Ourdee |
When I go someplace the first thing I do is start watching the weather there before I go. | ||
| Crusty |
My brother Tony sent me this chart from Intellicast:  I'd better have my warm gear with me. | ||
| Ourdee |
July was when I went to Alaska (not on a bike). Still got snowed on. I loved every minute of it. Best tasting ice cream I ever ate was in the middle of a street in Skagway with a light snow up there. Ice cream tastes better up there. Out of the 50 States, Alaska consumes more ice cream per capita than any other state. My choice was mint chocolate chip on top of butter pecan in a cone. | ||
| Crusty |
I'm A-Gonna Do It! Yesterday, I called Twisted Throttle around mid afternoon and I ordered two items: an R&G Radiator Guard and an R&G Oil Cooler Guard for an 1190 SX. This morning at 11:30 they were at my door. That's astonishing service! Good service should always be acknowledged and shared with others. These folks have more than earned my respect. Now, I have two important items that I’ll need to prep an 1190 for a ride to the Arctic. That’s the first step towards getting the bike. I remember, back in 1979, I had traveled to the Smokey Mountains National Park with a few friends, We stopped at a Harley shop in Knoxville, TN and I bought a T shirt. I was riding a customized Moto Guzzi at the time. When we got back to Louisville, Dixie (a friend) said that getting the T shirt was the first step to buying a Harley. I denied it at the time, but in March of 1981, I bought a Superglide. I’m using that same logic here. I bought something specific for an 1190 (either for an SX or a Black Lightning). I’m pretty sure it’ll fit both bikes. I’ve gotten a bit of feedback from the Snippet about how I didn’t know if I could come up with the money to get an EBR. I’ve had a couple of suggestions on ways to make it financially feasible and I got one PM telling me that I should go for a Black Lightning even though it would cost more, since that’s the bike I really want. That PM got me thinking. If I can get a left over SX for four grand less, I could make the performance mods I want and still have spent a lot less than the cost of the Black Lightning without performance mods. The Black Lightning is absolutely beautiful, but it has shorter travel suspension. It would be considerably cheaper to buy bars, foot pegs and the 44 tooth sprocket than to buy forks and a shock. Whichever bike I get, I’d have to get the ECM reprogrammed because I intend to remove the secondary muffler so I can put saddlebags on the bike. The Corbin Comfort seat will have to be bought no matter which model I get. And the Radiator and Oil Cooler Guards are necessary for either bike, as well. Back in December, 2005, I bought a XB 12X Ulysses. I really liked the bike, except that it was so freakin’ tall. Then, in 2008, Buell announced the XB12XT; a Sport Touring variant of the Uly. It came with the bags and trunk and it had shorter travel suspension which lowered the seat height. I bought one as soon as I could. However, even though it was lower, the Uly with it’s longer travel suspension was a better traveling bike. I realized that I had traded seat height for better suspension. Not that the XT handled in the least poorly, but the X felt better. It was the difference between great and phenominal. So, the Black Lightning is definitely more beautiful, but the left over SX for a sizably lower price might make a better choice functionally as well as financially. I think I could be reasonably happy with either. And whichever way I go, I’ll be on an EBR and I’ll be wearing that silly grin. (Message edited by Crusty on January 17, 2017) | ||
| Falloutnl |
I really hope you get your hands on a Black Lightning. Beautiful bit of kit. 4 grand for a 'left over' SX though. Does that mean an SX with 0 miles on it? /edit: oh wait, 4 grand cheaper. Well, that's still a pretty great deal. What's the Black Lightning have over the SX that would make you consider it? /edit2: I hear you when it comes to the Uly being insanely good (absolutely adore mine). Sounds like the SX might be the better option here. Unless the engine has significant improvements that make the BL more reliable or something like that. But I'm not as up to speed on the differences with the Helicon engine as I am with the Thunderstorm. /edit3: yeah 4 grand is nothing to sneeze at in terms of savings. /edit4: looks crazy good in black though... (Message edited by falloutnl on January 17, 2017) | ||
| Court |
>>>I’m using that same logic here. That's sound logic. I bought the Sportster Service Manual in 1987 . . found 7 errors . . . wrote Harley-Davidson about them and then bought 3 Sportsters that year. If you need an EBR shirt I can hook you up. Once you have the shirt . . . the bike is easy. | ||
| Ourdee |
SHIRT! SHIRT! SHIRT! Come on everybody! | ||
| Court |
Crusty . . . I should make you come get it . . . the good news is I have GREAT BBQ here . . . in fact, two places. | ||
| 1313 |
SHIRT! SHIRT! SHIRT! Come on everybody! In all honestly, with the temp profile that John posted, he'll likely need more than one shirt, and in differing styles, to keep himself warm and healthy. Just thinking out loud... 1313 | ||
| Crusty |
You know; the forecast for Saturday is cloudy with temps in the low 50s. Maybe a ride for some good BBQ would be a good thing... | ||
| Court |
I . . . unfortunately . . . will be pontificating at a dreaded place called The Turning Stone Casino and Resort. Crowds and casinos, to me, are about as much fun as a New Jersey mall. But . . . let's find a weekend soon . . . I' seem to have hit the BBQ lottery. | ||
| Damnut |
John, here is the flyer for the chili contest I was telling ypu about. It's a great time for an awesome charity. This is my 8th year being involved with Benjamin's fund and competing.  |
