Another Day Of Bike Work

So,after returning from my test ride yesterday I decided to take off the air cleaners and carbs so I could clean them.Soaked the K&N's in the special detergent they sell and while that was doing it's magic on my air filters I took one carb all apart,cleaned all the jets and passages ,then reassembled and adjusted it.Called it a day at around 9PM.Today I do the other carb,oil the air filters,put the thing all back together and hit the bike with the power washer to get all the built up crap off the underside of the motor and fenders.Then,after a good long ride to get it all dried off I'll do an oil change and set the timing with the strobe light.I really want all this out of the way so I can put some miles on locally before hitting the road later on in June,that is if I can afford to go to this event.I might have to blow this trip off if I buy the 850-T.Money is tight and I think I'd rather get the bike if it comes down to making a choice between the two things.So,we'll see how today shakes out.It's a beautiful morning here in New York.With any luck I'll be finished wrenching and out riding by early afternoon blasting down some nice backroads somewhere where there is no traffic.

The Waiting Game Revisited

The Waiting Game November 2015 So,I just came home from looking at this 850T.I never actually got to look at it.Got jerked around with this guys phone now working so after 4 try's I went riding .While out cruising around I thought about what I should do and decided I'd email him with an offer.I explained that it's a T and T's aren't what the collectors go after,which is the truth, so the fact that it's a non running bike with a seized motor makes it worth not as much as he's asking.I offered him 500 bucks .He got back saying he'd consider my offer which is a good sign.At least he didn't just blow off my offer and honestly I doubt there are people beating a path to his door for this bike at this time of the year .So,now the waiting game starts . If I get it I will have scored but paid him a decent price.If I don't get it,so what.It's not like I don't have any bikes to work on. Today: May 2016 It's Memorial Day Weekend now.Got up this morning and decided to adjust the Valves on the "T" and do some other odds & ends. Everything went smoothly and after walking my neighbors 17 year old dog for them so they could go out for the day I took a ride to road test the bike.I have a route I ride where there is no traffic,lots of curves and good scenery out thru Cold Spring Harbor,near where I live,and Lloyd Harbor.Sometimes I go to the west to Oyster Bay and out that way but today I chose the short version as my test track.I'm going thru Cold Spring Harbor on this little road that runs behind the shops when some guy waves me down. I stopped and he tells me he's the guy with the 850T that I made the offer on back in November.He says he recognized my bike from the photo I sent him when I made the offer.We talked for a while and he told me he's probably going to take my offer of 500 for the bike.He's crying about how he wishes he could get more and I politely explained that for me to be able to restore the bike and not spend more than it's worth doing it I can only go 500.You know,everything costs so much god damn money.Just 2 weeks ago it cost me 400 bucks just to make my front brakes work I'm telling him.He finally understands what I'm telling him.He really likes my "T" and asks me if when it's finished he can have first dibbs on it if I am selling it.So, it looks like I'll be bringing home another 1975 Moto Guzzi 850 - T in the near future.He's also got another Moto Guzzi,a Convert.It isn't running but the motor is not frozen solid like the T.I think I'll take pity on him and give him a day of my time and make it run for him so he can sell it for a little more and easier if this deal goes down.So,the waiting game is still being played. I love vintage motorcycles and the people who own and ride them !

Spring Service

Been a while since I posted anything.Winter is down time for me.This is the main reason I want to move to Arizona.But, now it's spring and I'm getting my 850 -T into shape to travel with.Last week I did the front brakes,Not just the usual pad replacement but a rebuild of the Master Cylinder,and two new Calipers & Pads. It should have been an easy straight forward job but the factory didn't lube the caliper seals and jammed the pistons all the way in so I couldn't get the system to bleed.I fucked with it thinking the master was the problem that was causing no lever pressure but after re doing that realized it wasn't the problem.I put the old calipers back on in desperation and I had pressure ! So,this told me there was a problem with the new calipers.I could have sent them back but really wanted to move forward with this and ride the fucking thing so I took them apart.It took over 100 psi of air to pop the pistons out!. I had plenty of special lube left from the master rebuild kit that was genuine Brembo so I used it on the seals and pistons.Put everything back together and now I have new brakes.It's never easy,always a battle but somehow I always manage to win that battle.Now it's on to the charging system.Two years ago on my way home from Canada the charging system took a shit.I was able to ride home on the battery because I was close when this happened fortunately. I was only coming home for a one night lay over then heading south to the Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Show at White Rose MC in PA so I pulled the alt and diode board off the little BMW R60/5 I have waiting for me to restore in my shed.An hour later I was back in business and the next day I headed out .It worked so good I just left it there.Last summer I bought all new stuff to replace it but never got to it. So,here we are now getting the bike ready to head down to Virginia to a Moto Guzzi rally in southern Virginia and do some riding on the Blue Ridge Parkway.This weekend I attack the charging system,it's time.The bike is running real good,I put on modern handle bar switches and tightened up the wiring some.Gonna drop the oil pan and check to make sure the screen is clean,clean the K&N's and oil them,set the valves & timing,and give the bike a new set of tires .It's going to be a good summer of riding !

I'm also into this 1988 BMW K100 up to my eyeballs.I've got the tank off all the stuff inside like the fuel pump ,filter, gas gauge sender,and what not removed.I cleaned out the tank really well,I bought all new parts from the fuel pump right down to the injectors and a new battery so it should be a runner at some point this summer.This bike is pretty cool,my friend gave it to me and it only has 12,000 miles on it. This is going to be my desert cruiser for those long hot rides across the desert. Water cooled,fuel injected 4 cylinder . Good bike for this kind of use.

So that's the deal ,I'm back to wrenching and riding .Gonna also head up to my camp in the Adirondacks to continue working on the place so I can get it sold.That is my ticket out of here to a new situation out west in Arizona.It's that time in my life now.I need to be able to ride year round and be warm.I turned 67 years old last month and time is getting short and more valuable to me now.Don't want to waste it here in this cesspool called New York dealing with traffic jams , tolls,crappy roads full of pot holes, and shit weather.