| Author | Message | ||
     1313 |
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| Kmbuell |
Nice! | ||
| Adrenaline_junkie |
John, What is the little black box on top of your handlebar clamp? | ||
| Pwnzor |
^^^ what he said...  | ||
| Crusty |
It's a little Hygrometer/ Thermometer. I think it was intended for wine cellars. The Humidity is the larger number on the right (%) and the temperature is the smaller number on the left. I got it from Aerostich for cheap ($15.00 IIRC). It isn't very accurate, but it's better than no thermometer... I think. I keep trying to find a thermometer that's small, accurate and waterproof. I've tried 3 or 4 so far, but the search continues. | ||
| Zac4mac |
 P&A thermometer from H-D stuck on the mirror with silicone RTV. Changed the oil inside to Marvel Mystery oil that was red for a week, then bleached out. Fairly accurate but very slow response time. Biggest plus - no batteries. Z | ||
| 1313 |
NICE SKELETONS!!! | ||
| Crusty |
Angels and Devils My mind has been racing since yesterday, when the Roadster went over the 100,000 mark. It happened on the way to the Harley shop. I was heading there to buy some oil and a filter, and hopefully, pick up the air cleaner plate I ordered a couple of weeks ago. H-D of Cincinnati doesn’t have any new Roadsters in stock, but I still look every time I go in. That set off the itch for a new Roadster; however, I won’t have the money for one for another year or so. Still, the itch is there. Then, I started thinking about all the adventures I had while riding around the country. The tornado weather in Missouri, the hailstorms in Arizona and Utah, the heat of the Mojave Desert; seeing Puffins in Nebraska and more. Camping in the Dakotas, waking up to 29 degrees just outside Yellowstone Park in Wyoming, seeing the Canadian Rockies and the Athabasca Glacier, and remembering the hellacious Thunderstorms I experienced in Saint Louis, Indianapolis and that little campground in North Dakota; all the memories awakened a really strong desire to hit the road again. Then the Tramp in me really got going. If I were to sell this house, I’d make a very sizeable profit. I could pay off all my debts, buy a new Roadster and modify it to my liking and Travel again. I’d have no trouble with financing a ride to the Arctic Ocean and traveling to Tuktoyaktuk and Alaska. I’d even have enough to fly to Australia, buy a bike there and ride over the Nullabor Plain to Perth. I could be a true Tramp again. Part of me really likes that idea a lot. The other side of my mind, however, brings up the fact that when I was living on the road, I was checking out places that I’d like to live. And how lucky I was to find this little house at a price I could afford. I bought this house at the right time. If I sell it, I won’t find a deal like this again. And while I love being a Tramp, I also love having my own home. I wrestle constantly with trying to allocate money towards either something for the bike or something for the house. When I buy black handlebar clamps, I’m not buying a new faucet for the bathroom sink. And if I do spend money at the Welder’s to improve the saddlebag mounts, then I won’t be buying a weed whacker for the lawn. I’ve tried to mollify the Tramp by taking short trips since I bought the house, but he doesn’t give up easily. I guess it kind of like the old cliché of having a devil on one shoulder and an angel on the other. Both are talking to me, but I’m really not sure which is the angel and which is the devil. I don’t think I’ll ever really figure that out. | ||
| Ourdee |
That is the way the devil works. He'll show up as the Doublemint twins. One dressed in black and red, the other in white. Their goal to sow enough doubt to confuse you. Anything to hide the truth from your mind. Fear is not of God. God doesn't care if you ride a house, live in a bike, or both. When I think too much, I find out, I'm wrong. How we treat others is what matters. I love you brother. | ||
| 86129squids |
Devil as the Doublemint twins??  You're a pretty fart smeller, RD. | ||
| Zac4mac |
Lately I find myself riding less and driving more. 30 degrees and snowing doesn't help, but mainly it's that my insurance with Progressive lapsed and my tags are expired. Having a heater and binoculars, spotting scope etc. for watching bald eagles is another reason. A pair of eagles has a nest with eggs a bit behind my shop and I look in on them several times a day. Oh btw, the skeletons represent Tad and Stoney, two of my closest friends. I have ashes from Tad on the Uly and 1125R, they never say "no" when I say "let's go for a ride". Z | ||
| Tootal |
John, you reminded me of when people ask me why I take long trips by myself, isn't that boring? I always tell them it's not too bad since there are fewer arguments. They think I'm joking but we do have inner arguments as to where to go or what to eat, etc. Some decisions are easy, some you regret. In your case, having a base of security should make any trip easier to do since you always have a place to return to. | ||
| Crusty |
The Road To Hell Is Paved… I’m stiff and sore, this morning. Yesterday, I put the new rear tire on the Roadster. I’m either getting old, or I’m way out of shape, or (probably) both. Now, I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve changed tires on the bike. I think this is the eighth rear that I’ve put on; you’d think I had it down to a routine by now. Or, if you wouldn’t think that, I certainly did. It was a Royal Pain In The Ass. Maybe if I had a nice Handy lift with the drop out section, I could have done it a lot quicker and easier, but I don’t. I don’t even have one of those crappy Chinesium Harbor Freight lifts. I have a little “Lift” that slides under the bike and holds it up enough to remove a wheel. It’s also made of Chinesium, but it’s all I could afford ($56.99 w/ coupon at Harbor Freight). I’m not complaining, it’s a real help. At any rate, I spent most of the afternoon swearing at the designers of the rear of the Roadster. It is my sincere wish that those designers be sentenced to changing tires on Sportsters on the side of the road on the Highway to Hell for eternity. Well; maybe not eternity, but for enough time to make them repentant. Or Somethin’. I guess I got spoiled by my Moto Guzzi Norge. It had the easiest rear wheel to remove and reinstall of any bike I’ve owned. I could do a tire change on it in half an hour and that included everything. Wheel removal and installation, mounting, balancing, and cleanup. The Norge wasn’t flawless, but those Italian engineers came up with an elegant rear wheel and swingarm design. Single sided swingarms can be so maintenance friendly. However,Italian designers are also enamored with mechanically over complex valve actuation systems, or they just can’t understand maintenance free hydraulic lifters. And don’t ask my opinion of their electrical design capabilities, but those items have nothing to do with tire changes. The good news is that I did get the tire changed. It took most of the afternoon, but the job is done. The bad news is that I’m going to have to change the front tire before I head to Glitch Badness. It’s funny; the rear tire looks like it’s worn out, but it’s barely into the “Wear Zone”. The front tire looks new, but the tread is just as thin as the rear. I measured both yesterday. So I ordered a new tire last night, and it should be here before the weekend. I found the cheapest place to get Conti Tours (2wheel.com) when I bought the rear, so I bought the front from them as well. I just had a thought; the XR 1200 had an aluminum swingarm. I wonder if it would be any easier to pull and replace the wheel? Guess I’ll go over to Ronnie’s parts microfiche and look over the parts. It might be a change to consider. It snowed while I was doing the tire change. The other night, I watched the Weather forecast and the Meteorologist was full of dire warnings about a Major Storm. A massive 5 to 8 inches. This morning, I think I might have a little over an inch on the lawn. The pavement in my driveway and on the street is clear. It’ll probably last a couple of days as the temperature isn’t supposed to get above freezing until Thursday, or so. Boy oh boy, WINTER SUCKS! | ||
| Court |
It does . . . . We had about 8" . . not that much but it's wet and heavy so all the schools are closed and they have just closed the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge due to falling ice. I'm going to work out . . . lesson learned . . . if your wife ever wants to build a gym in the house . . ask a lot of questions. (Message edited by court on March 04, 2019) | ||
| Ourdee |
Gym for me? I used to go prior to work at the foundry. My main purpose was cardio. It got to where the weights were an after thought if I used them. I'd spend 20 minutes on a recumbent and 20 minutes on an upright bike. I really liked Cybex machines. The gym was part of the factory I worked at and made it too convenient to use. I raced bicycles at the time. Thus I had a crazy understanding of how to use them for cardio. If I had 2 Cybex machines in the garage, I would use them daily. | ||
| Court |
I've kind of gotten in the habit . . . so much of my work is climbing in and out of aircraft and walking REALLY rugged terrain. I'd grown complacent and was headed toward retirement and was feeling a lot like Crusty described. I made . . . largely as a result of the crap I took on Badweb being called "The Obese Professor" . . some simple steps. Down 72# so far and headed down another 23# . . . slow and steady. Timing was good . . . they just hit me with a 5 year contract extension to do . . ."just one more" project. | ||
| Etennuly |
Congrats Court. I'm coming back around to that myself. I have fought the pains of starting a regimen several times over my life time. Now going on 62 this seems to be the most important round yet. My record mass of 278 a few years ago cost me. About 245 now. The lifetime of using up and damaging body parts makes it tough. But hey. Getting old is tough. It's not for everybody! | ||
| Crusty |
Oh; as an addendum to my last Snippet; the aluminum swingarm takes the same spacers, etc as the steel swingarm. Oh well... | ||
| Tootal |
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ULGr2Pe9hok | ||
| Pwnzor |
I keep trying to find a thermometer that's small, accurate and waterproof. I've tried 3 or 4 so far, but the search continues. I use a small meat thermometer, it works really well. | ||
| Crusty |
Cruisin’ Craigslist and Other Delights I don’t watch a lot of TV. There aren’t many shows that catch and hold my attention. So when the weather is bad and I’m holed up in the house, I tend to surf the internet. I have a couple of forums that I especially like, a few that I visit only occasionally and other websites that I cruise for various reasons. I check out various items on fleaBay, or I’ll go to Harley Davidson.com and look at new bikes or their Officially Licensed Accessories. I like to go to Ronnie’s H-D Parts finder and look at parts and see what might fit the Roadster or price out things like the four piston calipers on an XR 1200. Sometimes I go to Craigslist and check out what’s for sale. Right now there’s a 2005 Sportster for sale for $1800. It’s in good condition. The funny part is the same bike is for sale in Ohio, Tennessee, Indiana and Michigan. It must just be a coincidence that so many people with blue 2005 Sportsters in good condition all want to sell their bikes at the same time; or somethin’. To be fair, I don’t just look at motorcycles or parts for bikes, I often look at tools and things for the house. There are a lot of items that I’d like to get, eventually. Mostly tools, though. A weed whacker or a chain saw, a 24 foot extension ladder, shovels, rakes and implements of destruction, a hammer drill; you know, useful stuff. I like to go to Cycle Trader and look at Roadsters that are for sale. When I go on, I choose to have the bikes displayed by price, lowest first. So the first few bikes are older models, like a 1983 XLS Roadster; then bikes of the same vintage as my Roadster. As the price climbs, I start to see the newer Roadsters. I’ll check out the mileages on the used bikes and see what changes have been made and decide if I think their worth the asking price. Eventually, I find left overs with full warranties. Then I look at how far away the dealership is from me and think about doing a Fly-N-Ride. Then I move on until I see another Roadster that catches my eye and do it again until I figure out which one I’d most likely want to buy. It doesn’t matter that I’m not going to buy for a while, it’s a pleasant way of dreaming. Window shopping, so to speak. It’s a lot more enjoyable than watching a bunch of air headed women sitting around a table gossiping, or watching some morons who had to take a DNA test to see if they’re the Baby Daddy or any of the other utterly base and mindless bubble gum for the eyes that dominates the Idiot Box while the sun is up. It’s not much better at night, but even a small improvement is better than none. Bill (my friend who died unexpectedly) and I used to call pre-Evo Sportsters Iron Motors. The common description in use today is Iron Heads, but I still think that Iron Motor is a better term, because both the heads and cylinders were made of cast iron. It really isn’t that important; if someone calls the ’78 an Iron Head, I know what they mean and if I call it an Iron Motor, they understand me. I just like the term better and I’ll continue to use it. Well, my brother just called. This is his weekend off and he asked if I’d be interested in going to see Captain Marbles. I’ve heard both good reviews and bad about it, so going to see it will be a chance to form my own opinion. I hope it doesn’t disappoint me. | ||
| Froggy |
I saw Capt Marbles last night, it is fantastic. I ain't gonna say more, it is one hell of a ride. | ||
| 86129squids |
Frogger endorsement = yay! Now, I'm curious about the Shazam movie. Alway's liked the guy in Chuck. | ||
| Zac4mac |
The Iron Motor required an Iron Knee. Right knee still pops a lot when it's cold. | ||
| Crusty |
Planning As I’ve been saying, this year, I’m doing my best to get my plastic paid off. To do this, I’m keeping a very low profile, as far as traveling this summer. While I am going to Springfield for the Memorial Day weekend Mile, that will be my most expensive trip. The other trips I have planned are all on the cheap side. The West Virginia Buell Rally is always a lot of fun and it doesn’t cost a lot. The same can be said about Glitch Badness. However, I ‘m seriously thinking about making a run up to Massachusetts; probably in July. I have friends there that I’d like to see. It wouldn’t cost that much for gas, but I’d probably spend a bunch on foods that I miss. I’d have to figure out how to ship several cans of B&M Bacon and Onion Baked Beans and a few jars of Cain’s sweet relish back to Cheviot. I’d also love to ship a few pounds of Kayem Natural Casing Franks, but I think those would require refrigeration. And if I can figure that out, then I would also want to ship a few quarts of Brigham’s Strawberry Ice Cream. When I look at all these items in print, it suddenly doesn’t look like such a cheap trip. And that doesn’t include the restaurants I’d want to hit. Nana’s Pizza in Malden or Casserta’s in Providence. I’d want to get a good Italian sub with Pickles, tomatoes, onions and lots of hots, oil and seasoning. Breakfast at Parker’s Maple Barn; they make their own syrup and the portions are enormous. The Chateau in Waltham, the list goes on. I can see $$$ all flying away like a gaggle of geese in the fall. Still, the main reason for going back is to see friends. Ernie & Candy and Billy in Hudson, Guido, Guy, Sandra, Jimmy and the rest at the shop, Kathryn in Northbridge, Jackie, Happy Pat, Johnny Donut, Carol and Murph in Fitchburg, Tammy, Kevin and Katherine in Waltham; there are so many and I miss them all. So; all I have to do is pare down the items I’d like to purchase. If I don’t ship anything back home, I won’t be spending a bundle, and the meals are all on the cheap side, except Parker’s; and even they aren’t that bad. And I’ve had a couple of people offer me a place to stay for a few days, so I think I could do it without blowing my budget. The more I think about it, the more I like the idea. The Tramp in me is really liking it a lot. It requires a bit more thought, but I’m definitely leaning that way. | ||
| Buellish |
John,shipping or transporting ice cream requires dry ice,I researched it last year when I wanted to take my mother some from a local creamery. | ||
| Pwnzor |
Ice cream should travel at -10F so Mike is right, dry ice is the only way if you're going to saddle bag it. A cheap foam cooler, with at least 1.5 inch thick walls should keep it from evaporating too quickly. | ||
| Zac4mac |
I got a New York cheesecake as a tip. Dry ice in styrofoam... delicious. Had enough dry ice to play with too.  Z | ||
| 86129squids |
"Dry ice in styrofoam... delicious." Ummm, don't eat that. | ||
| 86129squids |
Well, heyull, gotta be better than Tide pods. When we lose the drive, care, and technique to produce true moonshine. So sad. |
