Not quite a sieve, more a like a coffee pot.

MSR Fuel bottle cap tether

I have been running a MSR bottle for spare fuel for awhile. I haven't needed it myself yet, but I have helped at least two folks on the side of the road with it. The child proof caps are tricky to get on good and get off. I helped a kid near St Louis on sporty that didn't know how to operate his petcock. He was riding with a guy on a bagger of some sort and I assume it was his dad. The older gentlemen really wanted give me $10 for the 30 ounces of gas. I didn't take it of course. When I refilled the bottle at my next fuel stop I forgot to muscle the cap on good and immediately lost it on the road somewhere. Sadly this is the second time I have done this luckily the first time was in my neighborhood and found the cap. At any rate a replacement costs about $10 delivered, while a whole new bottle is only $20. I'm sure this is why a motorcycle specific caddy has a strap across the cap. Anyhow I'm cheap and this is my solution to my next potential lazy spell. I should have taken that guy's money, too. HA!

 New cap.


Zip tie with a mounting hole.


Put that on the bottle neck.


Put a hole in the new cap.




A little paracord and two stopper knots. I don't think even I can lose this again.

Shovelhead Alternator Rotors Differences and Spacers

Okay this is not a rocket surgery post, but it took us a few emails and calls back and forth to get it ironed out. We already had the pictures from the exchange and I'm sure someone else might get helped from this post.

Hyram calls me and says, "hey, what do I do with these spacers and the rotor on this shovelhead that I'm building."

I said, "I don't remember any spacers or washers on my rotor."

This is the picture of his parts he sent me. A thick fender washer and standard washer that fit the engine mainshaft.


My primary was apart because I was looking for leaks earlier in the day.


Here's the outside of my rotor. His rotor is flat and mine has this raised section. So the thick fender washer goes on the outside of a flat rotor.


Here's the inside of my rotor. Again mine is built with a raised section in the middle and his is flat. So the standard washer goes on the inside of his.


This is the mainseal spacer that the inside of the rotor or rotor standard washer tightens against for reference.

Little stuff on the shovelhead

I had a decel pop when it was hot. So that's most likely an exhaust leak. I checked the rear exhaust pushrod and it fine(not too tight). So I pulled the pipe and I think the black on the gasket is my leak. I don't know how many times I have re-used these gaskets.



A shovelhead gasket and ...


evo gasket(17048-98) together of course. The evo gasket needs a careful stretch to fit.


I was having a little shift problems so I adjusted my shift linkage and clearanced the bearing support a bit for this bolt.


See where it was hitting?
 

I thought the engine mainseal was the cause of the left side leaks. It was leaking just a bit, but not that much for how much was everywhere.




Okay I think I found the problem on my oil filter connections. I know they were tight with teflon tape when I put them on. Retape those and hope for the best. I still need to get a new main seal and actually grease it when I put it in.

Charcoal Satin/Vivid Black Satin

Of the current MoCo offerings I only really like the Softail Slim.

So I went to the stealer get some exhaust gaskets, and this stock photo doesn't do the Charcoal Satin/Vivid Black Satin two-tone justice. I'm really thinking about re-painting the J*panhead.

Big news for Air Force and DOD Riders

The NEW AFI 91-207, dated 12 Sep 13, is now out.  The paragraph everyone has been waiting for, 3.5.4, discussing PPE HAS CHANGED...brightly colored during the day and retro-reflective at night is now SUGGESTED (should) rather than mandatory. 

Here is the paragraph from the new AFI...

3.5.4. Personal Protective Equipment. Motorcycle, ATV and Three-Wheeled vehicle riders will wear: (T-0)

3.5.4.1. Head Protection. A helmet, certified to meet current Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 218 (DOT), United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Standard 22.05, British Standard 6658, or Snell Standard M2005 or higher, shall be worn and properly fastened under the chin. For personnel riding motorcycles and ATVs outside the United States, helmets must also meet the host nation standards. Commanders may authorize use of combat helmets for operating tactical vehicles (e.g., motorcycles and ATVs) during operations and training based on a formal risk assessment IAW AFI 90-802. If time critical, a real time risk assessment will be used.

3.5.4.2. Eye Protection. Goggles, wrap around glasses, or a full-face shield designed to meet or exceed American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Standard Z87.1, or UNECE 22.05 or BS6658 in effect when manufactured, will be properly worn. A windshield does not constitute proper eye protection. Host nation equivalent is acceptable if it meets or exceeds ANSI Standard Z87.1.

3.5.4.3. Protective Clothing. Wearing of long sleeved shirt or jacket, long trousers and full-fingered gloves or mittens is required. Gloves or mittens will be made from leather or other abrasion-resistant material. Wearing of a motorcycle jacket and pants constructed of abrasion resistant materials such as leather, Kevlar® and/or Cordura® containing impact absorbing padding is strongly encouraged. Riders should select PPE that incorporates fluorescent colors and retro-reflective material.

3.5.4.4. Foot Protection. Foot protection includes sturdy over-the-ankle footwear that affords protection for the feet and ankles.


And for those inquiring minds, here is the same paragraph from DoDI 6055.04, incorporating change 2, 23 Jan 13.

(d) Protective Clothing. Protective clothing includes long-sleeved shirt or jacket, long trousers, and full-fingered gloves or mittens made from leather or other abrasion-resistant material. Motorcycle jackets and pants constructed of abrasion-resistant materials and containing impact-absorbing padding or CE armor are strongly encouraged. Riders are encouraged to select PPE that incorporates fluorescent colors and retro-reflective material.

Full Size GI JOE Desert Action Cycle

So my cousin bought a chinese dirt bike from Craigslist and needed to customize it. Fresh paint was in order. So we sanded all the shiney stuff off the plastics.


Camo desert tan from a rattlecan.


Some hand guards from Cycle Gear.




Some tore up blue tape for stripes.


Ready to shoot again. We were running low on blue so we used some brown masking tape, too


OD Green for the stripes.


Surprisingly decent looking for just guessing at it.




More stripes, mocked up on the bike to match our other stripes.




We like it.


Headlight fairing gets the same treatment.


Lights from Northern Tools.


Put it all back together and we are ready to battle COBRA.

Tee into a Wire - DO NOT USE A SCOTCH LOCK

Okay, everyone wants to use a Scotch Lock to tee into a wire. DON'T. Especially on a motorcycle that sees more vibrations and exposure than a car or something. They cut wires, get corroded, come apart and otherwise fail at the worst possible times.


I have been meaning to do this post for a while, but the opportunity came up and I had to do the job and take pictures on the fly as best as possible. I needed to tee into the blue high beam and green ground on the GI Joe Desert Action Cycle for running lights.

First off, strip a bare spot in the middle of the wire to be tapped.


Spread the bare wire open.


Rosin the stripped end of the wire that you want to use for your new accessory or whatever.


Poke the new wire end into the hole of the stripped wire. Twist the new wire(s) around the stripped part of the old wire. Use an alligator clip to hold everything together.


Solder the connection. Let it cool and give a tug to double check it.


It's hard to see the picture, but use a zip tie to hold everything together permanently. That will keep the wire from pulling out too easily.


Ideally you can slide a piece of shrink wrap over the joint, but otherwise electrical tape or liquid electrical tape can re-insulate the bare wires.

Souvenirs from Shovelfest

What a trip as always. I thought it would cool to let my best innerweb friends sign my bashed-in tank and then hang them on the wall or something, but I actually think I will run these like this for awhile. It's cool to carry all my friends with me. I need a new paint pen, and I will have my wife and boys sign it too.






The bad thing is I have to worry about the paint on the tanks again. If I lose anybody, then I will have to find them again on the road to re-sign it.


Other mementos, a small glass from San Angelo, TX from DonKillam. A wall hanger from the Joplin Truckstop from Corkpuller, and bottle of George's high test parts cleaner.


With all the troubles of my troublehead Arley gave me this to hang on the wall, too.

Shovelfest getting home

Time to head home. I put my new sticker with an old sticker and seemed to match.


Heading into St. Louis our fearless leader had to have a hamburger and pressed on into the biggest black rain cloud ever. Soaked to the bone before we could get off the road. We had company under the canopy of an out of business gas station. The rain still blew in underneath the canopy,


I lost an earplug again. I found it though.


Mark explains the benefits of riding in a rain storm.


The businessmen gentlemen sharing the canopy had actually ridden their SVO Harley to the 110th deal at Milwaukee. They had a Cadillac Escalade for a chase vehicle, too. Nice guys. They handed us some dry towels, probably nicer than the ones at our houses. We promptly wiped down our faces, glasses, wet crotches, etc. They looked at us funny as they used their towels to wipe down their bikes.


We dried out surpringly quickly going down the road. We almost got killed a few times on the super slab. We stopped for gas tried to help these idiots with a dead battery. Watching them try to push start it was a complete cluster. Then we forgot to get our change from pre-paying for our gas.


I'm pretty sure this is the first time on this trip Mark actually looked at a map.


Joplin KOA by OH-Dark:30.


Somewhere on Route 66 in Oklahoma, Mark cut out for Texas and  Ed and Trish stopped in Grand Lake to see some folks. I motored on.

Ed loves black tape.


We stopped at the shop in Sapulpa. Awesome motorcycle shop. Great people.


Yes, that is a fully functional 750 SOHC chop that he put on a pole for a sign.


He fixed this tire one time, too.


Not much more to say on the return trip. Route 66 coming into OKC seemed a lot smoother going out than coming home for sure. My bike needs some attention, but didn't blow up, so that's a start. About 1300 miles or so in week, not bad for a hardtail bike that I hadn't really rode for about two years. When is the next ShovelFest going to be?