Zero Sum Game: motorcycle restoration as a hobby

The Fireblade project motorcycle has moved on to its next owner.  It had been sitting in a garage for the better part of a decade before I got my hands on it; the result of a bitter divorce.  The fuel system was shot and had dumped gas into the engine.  It had just over twenty-five thousand kilometres on it, but hadn't been used in a long time.

Over the winter of 2019/20 I rebuilt the carburetors, resealed and sorted the fuel tank and got a new petcock, all of which conspired to put the otherwise eager Honda back on the road again.  When I checked the valves they were exactly in the middle of spec and some of the cleanest internal parts I've ever seen (thanks to the gasoline in the engine?).

Once the fuel system was sorted and the bike had a few sympathetic oil changes and other maintenance addressed (like new tires and a K&N air filter), it was licensed and put on the road where it performed flawlessly for a year.  When I sold it the odometer read just over twenty-seven thousand kilometres, so two thousand of them were mine.

The 'Blade was a lovely device.  If I didn't live in such a tedious place and ride-on track days were a possibility (they aren't anywhere in Ontario - the rare track-days that do exist are for rich people who trailer in race prepped bikes), I'd have hung on to this remarkable thing and let it do what it does best: explore the more extreme limits of motorcycling dynamics.

Trying to do that on the road makes no sense.  Ontario's roads are in atrocious shape thanks to our brutal seasons and lack of sane governance.  If you can find a piece that isn't falling to pieces, it's arrow straight because Southwestern Ontario is also geologically tedious.  We had a Californian trip a few years ago and drove up to Palomar Observatory outside of San Diego in the mountains.  Those are twelve miles of the most technically demanding roads I've ever seen.  That I had to drive them in a rented Toyota RAV4 is a crying shame.  If I lived anywhere near roads like that, owning the Fireblade would make some kind of sense, but I don't.

In our tedious, conservative province, this Honda Fireblade makes as much sense as owning a lion.  In three seconds it can take you from a standstill to jail time.  I only just discovered what happens to it at 8000RPM the week before I sold it.  Up until then I was astonished at how quickly it accelerated, but if you keep it cracked the madness becomes otherworldly.  The Honda Fireblade's athletic abilities make it a perilously expensive proposition in our police state and there is nowhere you can let it off leash to do what it was designed for (without buying a truck and trailer and stripping it back to being a race bike).

I was hoping to put racing stripes on it and really do it up, but then you have trouble selling it around
here where individualism is frowned upon.  Am I sad to see it go?  I honestly wrestled with the idea of waving off the buyer and keeping it, but instead decided to aim my limited space  toward another bike that would not only be more generally useful in the bland vastness of southwestern Ontario, but would also make me a better dad; the Fireblade is an inherently selfish thing.

If Practical Sportsbikes thinks it's the number one 90s
sportsbike, then it is! They helped me sort out the fuel system!

I bought the sidelined 'Blade for $1000 and then paid an extra hundred to get it delivered to me.  The new tires ($400) and a set of replacement carbs ($250) that I mainly needed to replace hard parts, along with the carb kit and other rubber replacement parts as well as multiple oil changes and filters, and some replacement LED lights for the broken stock ones, pushed my cost for the bike up to about $2000.

It cost me $500 for insurance for the year - mainly because I don't think my company (who doesn't usually do bikes but do mine because I've been with them for over 30 years) didn't realize what it was.  I sold the bike for $2500 as is, though it's currently fully operational and road legal, which means I got to ride the best bike of its generation and something I wished I'd owned in university when I was younger, fitter and more flexible for no cost.

That (of course) doesn't consider my time, but this is a hobby and if I can make it a zero sum hobby then I'm much less likely to feel guilty about it.  I'm going to miss the Fireblade, it was a lovely thing that spoke to me.  Having a 23 year old Japanese super-model whispering in your ear as you ride along was thrilling and I'm going to miss it.  Should I eventually find myself living somewhere where a sportsbike makes some kind of sense and where I can exercise it as intended on a track, I'll be quick to rejoin the tribe.

***********************************

In the meantime I contacted a fellow in Toronto who has a latest-generation Kawasaki Concours 14 that he couldn't sell in the fall (I was in-line but the 'Blade failed to sell so I didn't go for it).  He still has the Concours and we're lining up a cash sale for next weekend.  My first three bikes were Kawasakis and this would be my second Concours.  I've owned a first gen C-10 and my son and I rode a first gen C-14 through the Superstition Mountains in Arizona, but this one's a gen-2 C-14 Concours, which makes it one of the only bikes out there that can comfortably carry my now-adult-sized son and I two up.

I've always been drawn to Kawasaki engineering and I like their style.  This one is very low mileage (only about 30k) and needs some TLC (the owner is older and dropped it while stationary which is why he's moving it on).  Once sorted this Connie will have a lot of life left in it.

What makes it particularly useful to me is that it's a capable sport-touring machine that's built like a brick shit house, can cover the endless miles we face in Canada and can still entertain in the corners.  It also happens to be powered by the same motor that drives the ZX-14R hyperbike.  It may sound juvenile but I grew up in the 1980s and they had me at Testarossa strakes!

One of the side benefits of Concours ownership is that they have one of the most active and engaging clubs around: the mighty COG (Concours Owners Group).  I got stickered and t-shirted up with them as a full member when I got my first Connie, but have since been exploring other bikes.  I'm looking forward to re-engaging with them when I'm a Concours owner again.

Kawasaki Heavy Industries has weight in Japan!

Like finally being able to take a breath after four months of holding it...

Last ride:  Nov 30th, 2020.  First ride:  March 9th, 2021.  That's 99 days off two-wheels!  This is the face you make when you're sidelined for that long over an interminable COVID-winter:

Took the Fireblade down the still partially frozen Grand River a ways.  It's as fiery and bladey as it was before it hibernated for the winter.

When I got back I was frozen solid but wanted to see if the Tiger was operational:

It started well and ran more smoothly than usual suggesting that my fuel injector deep cleaning has made things work better.  The brakes still need some TLC though  The fronts are coming on but the rears are completely flat, so some more bleeding is in my future.

Pre-Flight Tests: winter motorcycle maintenance

Ignore the giant pile of snow outside!  It's actually supposed to go above zero this week.  One way or another I'll be on two wheels in the next five days!  Next week there's 30cms of snow coming, but there is an opening in the never-ending Canadian winter of COVID and I intend to take it!

With everything back in place, the Tiger came off the bike stand for the first time since December and the wheels didn't fall off, so that's a win.  I'd hoped to start it and test how everything went back together but the new battery is taking a while to charge.

Last summer I purchased a new battery for the Tiger but it didn't come for the better part of 3 months and I didn't want to activate it when the bike was about to be parked for four months, so it's been sitting in the front hall in the box.  I put the acid in it today and got it charging.

The acid installation is pretty straightforward.  They give you the liquid in a series of attached sealed plastic tubes and you simply 'inject' them into the top of the battery and let them drain over 20 minutes.  You then use the provided caps to seal the battery.

Tomorrow will be motor tests on both bikes and then a short ride with each (I hope) to shake down any issues.  The Tiger was down to its nuts and bolts this winter so I want to make sure everything is tight and together before I put any serious mileage on it.

The Honda has been cleaned and covered since its last ride in November, so it should be ready to go.  The battery's been on the trickle charger inside all winter.  One way or another I'll be out on a bike this week.  It feels like finally being able to take a breath after four months of holding it.

TIGER WINTER MAINTENANCE:

• New indicators that suit the bike better (tougher metal construction too)
• Chassis taken down to nuts and bolts for a complete service
• New HEL brake lines
• Flushed brakes
• New Michelins installed (myself!)
• Fuel Injectors cleaned
• Fork oil changed
• Cosmetic repairs

FIREBLADE WINTER MAINTENANCE:

• oil change
• everything cleaned
• deep carb cleaning (with disassembly)
• battery tending inside over the winter
• throw a blanket on it

2021 Motorcycle Wish List

2021 Jeep WRANGLER 4XE UNLIMITED RUBICON 4XE  $Sixty-Grand

The new hybrid Wrangler Jeep manages to get 50mpg while also being able to run entirely off battery for my entire commute to work.  It's also tow capable and even stronger than the 21mpg of the base 4 cylinder model it's based on.  It'll tow, it'll use barely any gas under normal circumstances and it's a genuinely useful utility vehicle that also lets you take the roof off and make driving an event.

Foldable Utility Trailer: $2500 

An easy to load, multi-functional trailer that'll carry up to 2000lbs (3-4 bikes).  The transformable nature of it means I could also hang it on the wall in the garage out of the way until it was needed.

They have bike-specific trailers too, but this one would handle bikes while also being a multi-purpose thing that lets me utilize my new utility vehicle in many ways.

Kawasaki ZG1400 Concours 14:  $8500 low mileage and current spec.  This would be the 2-up friendly tourer with sporting pretensions that would be a dependable regularly rider as well as the family friendly choice that could carry my wife or my son as pillion.

This one has a cosmetic scratch but is low mileage (35k  kms) and would be dependable for years to come.  As a big, functional, dependable 'modern' bike, this one checks all the boxes.  I'd like to keep the older Tiger, but this bike would take the all-ways on demand for riding off it.

It comes with all the luggage, just had new tires put on it and has had major services done recently, so it'd be a no-headaches addition to the paddock that would take all the pressure off the old things.

My son and I did SMART Adventures again last summer and I did the whole nine yards:  I started on a trials bike, gave the new BMW 1250GS a try and then finished the day trail riding on a Yamaha 250cc dirt bike.  It was a brilliant day and I've been keen to find a way to keep practicing these skills but buying an off road bike in Ontario isn't easy.

This P.O.S. on Kijiji is a fine example.  It's a 20 year old bike that the seller couldn't even be bothered to pick up off the floor for the photo.  It's broken, not running and they still want over two grand for it!  Dirt bikes get abused and then still seem to retain their value.  I'm asking about the same amount for a safetied, perfectly running Fireblade super-bike from the same era and can't get a bite.

The other recent P.O.S. I looked at was this trials bike, which was ancient, technically uninteresting (being the year before they got good) and was being sold in better condition anywhere else except in Ontario for half the $1800 the owner wanted.  It's not longer available.  I can't beleive that he sold it, but maybe he did.  People in Ontario are willing to pay a lot of money for money-pit projects.

The used market for off-road machines in Ontario is so psychotic that it almost makes sense to just buy a new one.  A Suzuki DR200 brand new is less than five grand, so why on earth would you buy someone else's heaping pile of shit for the same amount of money?  I can handle the weight so even the 50 kilo heavier DR650 is only a touch over six grand.  I'm still kicking myself for not picking up that brand-new/old stock DR650 a couple of years ago.

I always thought I'd be rebuilding an old dirt bike from re-machining the cylinders all the way up, a complete rebuild, but the obscene pricing of dirt bikes in Ontario makes that unlikely.

There are alternatives to Ontario's psychotic used bike market.  It's possible to drop old, used, broken Yamaha money on a brand new electric Chinese trials bike.  This is edgy new tech but that's where I work all day so I'm not scared of it.  

There are other Chinese off-roading alternatives like the Tanaci-Wong, which is intriguing.  Their Facebook page has a Canadian distributor offering their 150cc trials bike for under $3500!  That'd only buy you a non-working 15 year old POS on Kijiji.

Chinese engineering has come a long way in the last decade and harbouring old prejudices against it doesn't make a lot of sense.

In a perfect world I'd have that Tiger purring like a kitten, the Fireblade for dynamics focused rides, a C14 for two up riding and a trials bike for exercise and balance practice.  Alas, these things would necessitate a bigger garage.

You're Doing It Wrong: the pain of dealing with dealers who don't like what they do

My local dealer is one of the biggest 'power sports' dealers in the province and they're only ten minutes down the road from me, but they aren't who I think of when I think about motorcycles.  When I was all Kawasaki I found dealing with them challenging at best.  Now that I'm Triumph and Honda (two brands they don't represent) I'm glad I've had an excuse to experience more positive customer service elsewhere (Inglis Cycle and KW Honda have both been positive, engaging and enjoyable to work with).

Pack 'em in tight and no one can sit on 'em...

This local dealer is the only one I've ever used for servicing, but again and again I've found them dismissive and quite arrogant, as though my paying for service was a favour they were doing me.  I've been in the showroom of all three dealers.  The best I can hope for at my local is benign neglect.  The bikes are parked close together on purpose so you can't sit on them and the sales people in there are so focused on the sale that they don't even particularly seem to like bikes, let alone want to talk about them.  Even when I see other people sitting down to sign deals everyone looks like they're sitting in a bank getting a second mortgage rather than purchasing joy.

When I first went to Inglis Cycle the year I got the Tiger the owner of the place stopped and had a chat and then encouraged me to sit on the latest model of my bike.  Even though I wasn't there to purchase one that day (the only thing that seems to matter at the local dealer), he had time to provide a positive impression on his customers.  Inglis isn't some big, fancy, new bike-mall, but the people there seem to genuinely enjoy motorbikes and take the time to treat you like a fellow enthusiast rather than a wallet with legs.  I hadn't intended on buying anything but that positivity prompted me to buy a t-shirt with the Inglis logo on it; something I couldn't imagine doing from my local.  Since then I've bought thousands of dollars of parts and gear from them.

It ain't fancy but they love their Hondas
and encourage you to sit on 'em.

When I went over to KW Honda the first time I didn't own a Honda and just popped in to see what they were about.  The senior salesman on the floor was amiable and chatty and encouraged me to throw a leg over a beautiful new VFR800.  We then had a good chat about the CBX 1970s six-cylinder they had on display.  I made a point of going back there for parts when I finally became a Honda owner and there too the parts guy was chatty, curious about what I was doing and came out to see the old Fireblade.

Last time I was at my local looking for Kawasaki parts, I put my Roof Helmet on the counter and the woman who was new there displayed curiosity about it, so I showed her how it works.  She was enthusiastic about both the style and functionality of my strange, French lid and it left her wondering out loud why they didn't carry such a thing.  The old guy next to her said they were no good and wouldn't sell - in front of the guy who owned it.  That kind of caustic culture must be what takes the shine off everyone there so quickly.

Being a bygones kinda guy I contacted them by email the other day as they have a nice looking C14 Concours and I'm casting about for just such a thing.  We're in the middle of the winter of COVID and it's -20s with six foot of snow outside, so I don't imagine they're very busy, but getting the salesman to have a conversation over email was like pulling teeth... again to the point of rudeness.  I understand that dealers have to mark things up to pay for the premises and I wasn't expecting to pay what private sellers are, so I (foolishly) assumed that starting with offers at over 90% of the value of the bike would prompt a haggle, but emailing this guy was like playing a joyless game of 'no' tennis against a brick wall.

When I asked if there was a possibility of a trade he said he'd consider it, so I made an offer and got a no.  Then a I made a better offer and got a no.  Perhaps I've been watching too much Henry Cole doing Shed And Buried, or perhaps this is a cultural thing (Canadians don't barter), but I'd think a customer offering close to the value of the bike as advertised would be worthy of a conversation and a counter bid rather than series of terse 'noes'.

I was going to reply to the last email and ask why this business would want to turn such an enjoyable thing as the possibility of getting a new motorcycle into such a dreary experience, but I think I'll just cut my losses and finally learn my lesson, bygones be damned.  This latest experience, in line with all my previous ones, will have me looking elsewhere for parts, service and bikes... which is a shame.  I'd love to support a local business and talk them up positively (I do this whenever I can), but these guys can sit in their mega-edifice in misery.  I'll take my enthusiasm for my hobby/sport and my purchasing power elsewhere.

Some awesome local motorcycling businesses in Southern Ontario (from first hand experience):

Mostly Ironheads (my real local motorcycle service provider): in Elora, Ontario - if you want passion and customer service (along with quick turnaround times on work done), this is where you go

Inglis Cycle in London, Ontario

Kitchener Waterloo Honda in Waterloo, Ontario

NCK Cycle Salvage in Woodstock, Ontario

Perth County Moto in Stratford, Ontario

Revco - located in Ontario but found online

How Many Motorbikes is Enough?

One of Peter Egan's articles in Leanings is an answer to the age old motorcyclist's question: how many
motorcycles is right?  Egan's list follows his own interests in the sport.  His suggestions are:

1. a sportsbike for short, focused rides that are all about dynamics
2. a sport touring bike for spirited long distance riding
3. an off road bike (though this could be a bigger dual sport or adventure bike, not just a dirt bike)
4. a Harley for long distance 'Merican Dream type rides
5. an old nostalgia machine that takes you back to a bike you couldn't afford when you wanted it

He suggests that more than five bikes is too many and you end up with them going stale and getting covered in dust or getting so few miles they get musty.  Collectoritus is another thing,but if you're a rider with a working stable, five's the limit.

I've had a crack at the bike stable before, though Ontario's craptastic insurance system makes that more frustrating than exciting.  There are a couple of Peter's choices that are very specific to his interests that I think I can cut or clump into efficiencies.

The easy drop for me is the Harley.  I'd combine the touring with sport-touring in a Kawasaki Concours 14 that is big but athletic and can carry more weight two-up than a Harley anyway and with suspension and serious performance.

Shaft drive means it'd be a low maintenance device and, being a Kawasaki, it would run more or less forever.  We rode a previous generation one in the Arizona desert and it was brilliant; powerful, comfortable two up with luggage and surprisingly agile in the twisties, just what I'm looking for.

I figured that the sportsbike thing would get sorted with the Concours, but the Fireblade has changed 

my mind.  I don't need a brand new digital weapon.  Something light weight and minimalist would do the trick.

The 'sportbike' is more a 'cornering dynamics bike' - the point of it is to go on engaging rides where you're riding to ride rather than get somewhere, so a naked bike could do the job too.  To that end, if I had my choice I'd look for a naked alternative as it'd be easier on my old bones, though for anything up to 90 minutes I'm fine on the 'Blade, so I'm not in any rush to swap it out.  The naked bike I've always had a thing for is the Kawasaki Z1000 with it's anime like sugomi styling.  If it was a cost-no-object thing, I'd have a Z1000 in the most lurid orange I can find in the garage.

The dirtbike thing is another one of those opportunities to splice together a bike that'd do many jobs.  If you really wanted to condense things you could take the sports touring, touring and off-road categories and combine them together in something like the spectacular new BMW 1250GS that I rode last summer at SMART Adventures Off Road Training.

But as I get better at off road riding I realize what a compromise a big adventure bike is in really doing it.  Like the SUV that proceeded them, ADV bikes are so expensive and heavy nowadays that, while they might handle a bit of gravel, they aren't useful for trail riding or anything like off roading in more than an unpaved road kind of way.  I like the idea of getting deep in the woods and I like things that aren't so special that you're always worried about scratching them.  I wouldn't want to think about one falling on you in the woods.

This Honda 600XL came up last week on Kijii for under two grand.  I'm a sucker for that colour scheme and the gold rims - very 1980s.  Having something that old and simple would be nice to work on and straightforward to maintain, even if I wanted to get down to complete engine rebuilds.

It might be a bit too old for what I'm looking for as its function would be to get beaten up in the woods so something newer would be better, but that colour scheme...

Back in 2019 I went and looked at a Suzuki DR650 that had been purchased by a local farmer as a field bike.  He had a heart attack and died shortly after bringing it home and it sat in his barn for four years with no kilometres on it.  His wife was selling it for $4000 and I still regret not picking it up, basically a brand new machine (albeit one that's sat for a while) for 60% the price of a new one.

Something like that would be light and capable of trail riding while also being dependable and not so precious that a scratch would wind me up.

At the end of the day, if space wasn't an issue in my wee garage and Ontario's insurance system wasn't so nasty, I think these would be my five:

1. Athletic Distance Machine: (Kawi Concours14)
2. Dynamic Rider: (Fireblade, Z1000, or another light weight sport or naked machine)
3. Adventure Bike for Canadian Exploration (roads suck here, even if they're paved, and they often are suddenly not. An ADV bike will cover the rough over long distances)
4. Dirt/Trials Bike (a pedigree machine for intentional deep woods trail riding)
5. Revolving Door Bike (project, by and sell, experience something new bike - sometimes even a Harley!)

Triumph Tiger 955i Steering Column/Triple Tree Maintenance

I finally got the top clamp of the 2003 Triumph Tiger's steering column off yesterday.  After undoing everything it did not let go of its own volition and I had to apply some heat to the central spindle and top clamp housing to let loose.  Nothing crazy, just grazing it with a propane torch until it warmed up nicely (nothing glowing) and then I was able to spin the top clamp in relation to the centre steering pin (the forks are out).

With the top clamp rotating (if it has been sitting in your Tiger for a while don't expect it to be loose), I was eventually able to persuade it upwards off the centre spindle with a rubber mallet.  The top clamp came off and the two nuts that hold the centre rod in place were accessible (they're visible but inaccessible under the handlebars usually).  For a 17 year old bike with over 80k kms on it nothing about these difficulties came as a surprise.

Those locking nuts are big'uns, 38mm!  The long centre post they're on means you're going to have a tricky time getting a ratchet on them (38mm long socket?).  They aren't tight though and I was able to loosen them with an adjustable wrench.

I supported the triple tree (the bottom half of the steering structure) with one hand while undoing the nuts but the bottom end didn't fall out - it's a snug enough fit and what grease was left in there was holding everything together.  A gentle tap on the centre spindle and it all came out the bottom smoothly though.  I don't know the last time anyone was in there, but I've had the Tiger for almost 4 years and thirty thousand kilometres so it was high time I got in there myself.  Judging by the stingy amount of grease in there I'd guess no one has done the steering on the Tiger before (factories are famous for being stingy on grease when manufacturing bikes).

The bearings still had some grease on them (the brown/grey stuff is grease), but not much.  No one's been in there recently:

... once I cleaned it up the bearings were in good shape and turned freely:

... even the tube that holds the steering column is nice and rust free.  After a good cleanup I reassembled everything with a liberal greasing using the Mobil HP222 stuff Triumph suggests.

That Mobil XHP 222 grease is what Triumph recommends.  I found it on Amazon.

Here are some torque settings for a 955i Triumph Tiger's steering system:

Triumph Tiger 955i Steering Torque Settings:

• Steering Stem Nut:  65Nm (50 ft/lbs)
• Fork clamp bolts (top yoke):  20Nm (14.75 ft/lbs)
• Handlebar clamp bolts:  26Nm (19.2 ft/lbs)

note: there is no torque setting on the two nuts that lock together under the handlebar.  The directions I'm following say to hand tighten the top nut, then tighten it down a bit more to seat the bearings, then back it off a touch.  You then lock the second nut to the first.  The idea is to seat the bearings and keep everything a set distance apart so the bearings spin freely. Making them too tight will make for stiff steering and will wear your bearings out sooner.

Some other points of interest are these bolts that hold the horn and front brake lines onto the triple tree.  They're a bugger to take off and were another part that needed some heat to get moving.

The other complication that I should probably look at as a benefit is discovering worn wiring and cabling.  The back of the clutch cable and the ignition wiring are both wearing through and would have ended up causing annoying problems down the line, but I can resolve them as part of this maintenance pretty easily.  I'm going to slip some heat shrink electrical cover over both breaks and heal them up before they become a problem.

Next steps will be to reinstall a shock to line up the triple tree with the top clamp and then do the fork oil.  Once the shocks are serviced, I'll put the whole shebang back together again and turn to the back end where I've got to work my way through a swingarm removal and rear suspension service before putting that all back together.  I hope that goes as well as this with all the parts still being serviceable.  Trying to get parts in during COVID19 isn't always a sure thing.

It's coming up on Xmas here, so if I can have all that done by the end of February I'll be in good shape for the coming riding season.

Other big-spa checklist items on the Tiger are:  a coolant change, new brake lines and brake fluid changes and another look at the fuel injection system to see if I can clean the injectors and balance them better.  My work in the summer solved the stalling issue, but the bike feels a bit sluggish, though that might be because it's being compared to a Fireblade.

An old bike that I run high mileage on it means lots of work to do while the snow falls outside.  In this winter of our Covid-discontent it's good to have a lot of things to do in the garage so I don't go cabin crazy.

Possible needed-things list:

Triumph's 'thin wrench' is a basic
thing that seems astonishingly
expensive for what it is.  DIY is
a possible alternative.

• A narrow angle adjustable wrench:  CT has one that goes up to 3 inches (76mm, so it'll handle the 38mm locking nut).  I'm hoping my narrow angle vice grip will hold the bottom nut while I tighten the top one.You'd need the Triumph special thin spanner tool T3880140 for adjusting it with the handlebars installed, but I'm hoping I can sort it out while I'm in there and not need it.  Paying $60 odd dollars for a bit of machined steel is a bit rich.  I suspect I could get our metal-shop teacher at work to fabricate me a couple of them for nothing (I fix his computers for him so it's a barter exchange).
• big enough electrical heat-shrink to cover the clutch cable rub through.  I think I have it and I don't want to use tape as it looks half assed.