Variations on a Theme

Trying some variations on the blog logo.  It'd be a nice idea to include the bike of the moment in the logo as way of showing when it was written.  The first logo has the 650r Ninja in it:

Now that I've got the Concours sorted, I'm trying out some headers with Connies in them:

Some more updates since mechanicalsympathy.ca and a new bike came along...

Connie's Ready For Some Miles

It hasn't been easy, but then that was kind of the point.  The leaking engine on the field-found '94 Kawasaki Concours seemed like it would never stop dripping, but it finally has.  I've learned a lot in the process and become familiar with the layout of the bike.

The previous owner rode around with the fairing off.  The abuse to the bottom end of the engine from road debris cost me an oil cooler.  I tried to get it repaired through the metal shop at our school, but it turned out not to be an easy fix.  I eventually gave ebay a try purchasing a replacement oil cooler through Pinwall Cycle Parts.  I'd highly recommend them.  The cooler I got off a '97 was in fantastic shape, got to me very quickly and cost 1/8th what a new one does.

With the bottom end sorted out it's time to look to the fairings.  The bike has been dropped on one side, and the fairings need some TLC.  With the fairings sorted the bike should be ready to go come the end of the snows.

That's a new-to-me oil cooler that works like a charm

The rest of the bottom end has been cleaned up... no drips now.

Motorbike Wants

I've been re-watching Jo Sinnott's Wild Camping.  That Roof Helmet she wears looks fantastic.  It's a French designed, multiple function helmet with a fighter pilot vibe.  The Desmo Flash in Orange and black gets itself on my want list.


ROOF Desmo Flash from Canada's Motorcycle:  $550


I've heard a lot about Aerostich.  It started when I read Melissa Holbrook Pierson's The Man Who Would Stop At Nothing.  For serious long distance riders, the Aerostich is pretty much the only choice.  Armoured, weatherproof and virtually bullet proof, it'd be nice to have the last word in motorbiking overalls, but they don't come cheap.

Aerostich Roadcrafter Classic:  $1014 

(Black Friday deal! usually $1127!)

I'm hanging in for a fix on the oil cooler on my new-to-me, found-in-a-field Kawasaki Concours, but what I'd really like is a new one.  They aren't cheap, I'm looking at about $500 with shipping and customs costs - which is only a couple of hundred less than I bought the bike for.  I could pick one up from ebay used for about sixty bucks delivered, but it might not be much better than the one I have.


$500 new - not going to happen. Han would never by a new part for the 'Falcon.  I'm going to aim for the $70 delivered used bit and see how it goes.

The Shiny New Kawasaki Versys

I've always had a soft spot for the ugly-duckling Kawasaki Versys.  I've even suggested that it be the first bike to ride coast to coast to coast in Canada when the Dempster Highway is finished.  The Versys points to a time when bikes weren't styled and marketed to a genre.

The new Versys is no ugly duckling, and I'm looking forward to throwing a leg over it at shows this winter.  I'm also hoping that Kawasaki Canada will put this bike out there as a viable alternative to other light-weight / multi-purpose bikes.  An adventure bike doesn't need to be some off-road inspired, knobby tired monster, and the Versys could be that swiss-army knife of a bike.

My first experience with the 650 Versys was less than stellar.  I suspect a lot of that had to do with how much the Versys felt like my Ninja.  I'm not looking for hard suspension and a purely road focused bike with the Versys, I'm looking for something more flexible.  I'm hoping that the new bike offers the kind of clearance, suspension travel and all-round usefulness that the old one lacked.  That it offers much more leg room and a less road bike inspired stance is a great start.

The adventure bike-set seems to have a lock on the all-purpose motorcycle at the moment, but there was a time when multi-purpose motorbikes weren't duck-billed monsters.  The Kawasaki Versys could reinvent that pre-adventure bike ideal of a multi-purpose machine without the big nose.

Finally Putting The Ninja To Bed

That's one clean Ninja! And the water isn't solid outside today.

We got swamped with snow and very cold weather early this year, but we're enjoying a thaw now.  It's finally given me the chance to clean up the Ninja and put it to bed for the winter.  I fear I've been neglecting the Ninja while the Concours demands attention, but leaving it goopy over the cold months wouldn't do it any good, and it really cleans up pretty.

Once I get a bead on the oil cooler situation, I'm hoping to get the Concours back in shape and then begin working on the fairings and paint.

I picked up a metal, vintage Triumph sign for the garage.

After a wash and some lubrication, the Ninja's ready for bed.

Meanwhile the Concours is still oil cooler-less.  I'm waiting to
see if our machine shop teacher can seal the crack in the banjo bolt housing.