The starter came off the bike; the book didn't mention that oil was going to come pouring out of the hole.
I had touched base with firm up on Chinquapin Round Road. that was recommended by both Billy (kuethe) and Lewis (Hartge) on Friday September 18 2009. I took the starter up to them on Monday, Tom told me that the minimum bench charge would be $40, if brushes are needed, about $60. As It turned out when Tom called me back a few ours later he said that he had to re-solder the armature and he'd have to send to Cleveland for the brushes, about $100. I told him to go ahead.
This is the first large repair. While $100 isn't the end of the world, what really counts is the whole tab. I've made it clear to Kari, who is an eternal optimist when it comes to things that she loves, that no matter how much I like the bike, it isn't practical to put more into the bike than it's worth.
Monday, September 21, 2009
Apparently the books aren't always right
When I bought the bike the guy gave me the Clymer Service and Repair manual, thankfully. There are some problems though, I think they assume you have some experience with motorcycle repair. For instance, when I thought I was having trouble with the starter they tell you how to test it but not where to find it!
Which is where their mistake came in. After finding the starter, I found the part in the back of the book where it says that for bikes after 1980 you must remove the engine to remove the starter. I thought that was the end; I would rather perform brain surgery than remove an engine. The instructions for removing the starter for a pre 1980 bike are to drop the exaust and the two bolts that hold the starter and yank the starter out. That is what I proceeded to do.
The problem is that when they work on the bike in the book, it doesn't have crash bars or a fairing. It wasn't too much of a problem removing the crashbars, the problem came when I tried to remove the exhaust pipe. The first of the two bolts that hold the pipe to the rear frame ( I didn't get to try the second bolt) was rusted and I stripped it trying to get it off. This could only happen after removing the left panier. To remove the panier I had to disconnect the light which ran through it. Since I stripped the nut I had to try to remove the bolt that held the bracket that held the pipe, which was a little easier. I then had to loosen the clamp that holds the right and left pipe tie in. This might be common for every mechanic but I'm no mechanic and this all seemed like a long way around the barn.
Which is where their mistake came in. After finding the starter, I found the part in the back of the book where it says that for bikes after 1980 you must remove the engine to remove the starter. I thought that was the end; I would rather perform brain surgery than remove an engine. The instructions for removing the starter for a pre 1980 bike are to drop the exaust and the two bolts that hold the starter and yank the starter out. That is what I proceeded to do.
The problem is that when they work on the bike in the book, it doesn't have crash bars or a fairing. It wasn't too much of a problem removing the crashbars, the problem came when I tried to remove the exhaust pipe. The first of the two bolts that hold the pipe to the rear frame ( I didn't get to try the second bolt) was rusted and I stripped it trying to get it off. This could only happen after removing the left panier. To remove the panier I had to disconnect the light which ran through it. Since I stripped the nut I had to try to remove the bolt that held the bracket that held the pipe, which was a little easier. I then had to loosen the clamp that holds the right and left pipe tie in. This might be common for every mechanic but I'm no mechanic and this all seemed like a long way around the barn.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Round two, the work begins, if you can call it work
When I finally got to work on the bike I did what little I knew. When I had the bike running I found that the number 3 cylinder down draft tube was cold, almost icey, when the bike ran. The other tubes were warm if not hot. Ah Ha! That's why it was sputtering and backfiring. Number 3 was dumping raw gas into the exhaust and was igniting at odd times. I pulled the spark plug to test it and see if it was firing.
This is accomplished by removing the plug cap, pulling the plug, inserting it back into the cap and turning the bike over, the plug should spark. The plug didn't spark but I did get a shock off the wire. I called Dad. We had talked about the bike when he had less painful moments, which were few. He felt that the bike was choked up with "varnish" from sitting so long. When I told him the plug wasn't sparking he of course said to look at the plug wires and caps along with the rest of the ignition system. When fiddling with the plug part of the cap had broken off. While fiddling with that and trying to repair it a "screw cup" and "fuse like thing" fell out of the cap, and then a spring fell out. I'd never heard of this. I called Dad, he hadn't heard of it either. I tested the fuse with a multimeter, I didn't get any continuity. I went to Pep Boys, they said that there was usually something inside but that they didnt' have replacements. I went to the Honda Dealer in Crofton and ordered a set of wires and caps. The next day I checked the other fuses and tested the number 1 cylinder plug, it didn't spark either. I called Dad (see the pattern?). I asked, when I pull the plug and test it does it have to be grounded to the bike? He hesitated and said yes he was pretty sure it did. Once grounded all the plugs sparked (these were new plugs I'd bought in the begining of the week). I called and cancelled the order for the wires. While it would be nice to have new wires; I first wanted to make sure I had a running motorcycle before "spiffing" it up with non essential. Now I was back to where I started, a rough running bike with no obvious problems. Dad had suggested, as always, Marvell Magic Mystery Oil. During the sessions I'd been adding MMMO to the oil and gas as well as carb cleaner to the gas. These I thought might be adding to the smoke problem so I tried running it "clean" for awhile, the same result was whitish blue smoke. Where to go next?
This is accomplished by removing the plug cap, pulling the plug, inserting it back into the cap and turning the bike over, the plug should spark. The plug didn't spark but I did get a shock off the wire. I called Dad. We had talked about the bike when he had less painful moments, which were few. He felt that the bike was choked up with "varnish" from sitting so long. When I told him the plug wasn't sparking he of course said to look at the plug wires and caps along with the rest of the ignition system. When fiddling with the plug part of the cap had broken off. While fiddling with that and trying to repair it a "screw cup" and "fuse like thing" fell out of the cap, and then a spring fell out. I'd never heard of this. I called Dad, he hadn't heard of it either. I tested the fuse with a multimeter, I didn't get any continuity. I went to Pep Boys, they said that there was usually something inside but that they didnt' have replacements. I went to the Honda Dealer in Crofton and ordered a set of wires and caps. The next day I checked the other fuses and tested the number 1 cylinder plug, it didn't spark either. I called Dad (see the pattern?). I asked, when I pull the plug and test it does it have to be grounded to the bike? He hesitated and said yes he was pretty sure it did. Once grounded all the plugs sparked (these were new plugs I'd bought in the begining of the week). I called and cancelled the order for the wires. While it would be nice to have new wires; I first wanted to make sure I had a running motorcycle before "spiffing" it up with non essential. Now I was back to where I started, a rough running bike with no obvious problems. Dad had suggested, as always, Marvell Magic Mystery Oil. During the sessions I'd been adding MMMO to the oil and gas as well as carb cleaner to the gas. These I thought might be adding to the smoke problem so I tried running it "clean" for awhile, the same result was whitish blue smoke. Where to go next?
Round One... not much of a round
After getting the bike home I started it a couple of times. The first time, I thought I saw white smoke. Doing what I always do, I went to the internet. Yup, blown head gasket. We had a trip planned to go to Wildwood NJ so I really didn't get to play with the bike for about a week. Near the end of our stay I got a call from my father, he said he needed to have a test done; he'd had a couple of these and it shouldn't be a problem, he didn't elaborate. I later found out it was a test for a dysfunctional heart valve. I got a call from my cousin Dianne after the test was done, saying dad was OK but they needed to keep him overnight and he shouldn't do anything strenuous for 24 hours. The problem was that my mother has Alzheimer's and can't stay by herself or really help out around the house. We packed up and went right to my parents condo and staying with dad and mom for the next day and a half.
What's this got to do with the bike? Nothing, that's the point. I had no time to work on the bike. I did manage to start it a couple of more times in the next week. But then I got another call from Dad saying they wanted him in for a heart valve repair or replacement. He was going to go into the hospital on Tuesday August 18, 2009 and get the operation on Wednesday. No problem, we had plenty of time to get ready.
Kari and I wanted to fix some meals so they could be popped into the oven or microwave easily. Randy wanted to drive up I said I could come down and pick him up, which he agreed to. This was probably Thursday August 13, 2009. Then, I think on Friday, Dad called and said that they wanted him in on Sunday for the operation on Monday. I wouldn't be able to pick Randy up on Sunday because I was going to be getting Dad admitted. As imagined, the schedule got very full very quickly. No work on the bike.
Zoom forward about a month. That's really the first time I could really work on the bike. Dad was in the hospital a week. During that time both Randy and I, and on the weekends, Kari were staying at the house with Mom. Randy and I fought about the best way to get mom to bathe and change her clothes. Rather than fighting I let Randy take over. I didn't do this out of meanness. My ways or personality wasn't working with Mom. Dad's recuperation was going to take a long time, Randy could only stay for a week. I decided, I may as well let Randy use his time and efforts to best use. I'd go home at night and let Randy take care of Mom in the evenings. This worked pretty well. Instead of Randy having all the decisions about meals, groceries and bathing made for him, he got to make the decisions. I think this instilled an idea of how difficult the situation was. Randy left and I spent about a week to ten days at Mom and Dad's doing pretty much everything, cooking, cleaning up, laundry, shopping, and driving to the doctors and pharmacy.
What's this got to do with the bike? Nothing, that's the point. I had no time to work on the bike. I did manage to start it a couple of more times in the next week. But then I got another call from Dad saying they wanted him in for a heart valve repair or replacement. He was going to go into the hospital on Tuesday August 18, 2009 and get the operation on Wednesday. No problem, we had plenty of time to get ready.
Kari and I wanted to fix some meals so they could be popped into the oven or microwave easily. Randy wanted to drive up I said I could come down and pick him up, which he agreed to. This was probably Thursday August 13, 2009. Then, I think on Friday, Dad called and said that they wanted him in on Sunday for the operation on Monday. I wouldn't be able to pick Randy up on Sunday because I was going to be getting Dad admitted. As imagined, the schedule got very full very quickly. No work on the bike.
Zoom forward about a month. That's really the first time I could really work on the bike. Dad was in the hospital a week. During that time both Randy and I, and on the weekends, Kari were staying at the house with Mom. Randy and I fought about the best way to get mom to bathe and change her clothes. Rather than fighting I let Randy take over. I didn't do this out of meanness. My ways or personality wasn't working with Mom. Dad's recuperation was going to take a long time, Randy could only stay for a week. I decided, I may as well let Randy use his time and efforts to best use. I'd go home at night and let Randy take care of Mom in the evenings. This worked pretty well. Instead of Randy having all the decisions about meals, groceries and bathing made for him, he got to make the decisions. I think this instilled an idea of how difficult the situation was. Randy left and I spent about a week to ten days at Mom and Dad's doing pretty much everything, cooking, cleaning up, laundry, shopping, and driving to the doctors and pharmacy.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
A divirgence From Bike
In an effort to maximize our assets, we took advantage of the "Cash for Clunkers" program. We of course wanted a Prius. I checked on line, neither my wife's 1999 Honda Accord (which we really would have liked to trade) or my 2003 Hyundai Accent would qualify. What would qualify was the 1989 Toyota Truck; this was so old it predated names like "Tacoma" or "Prerunner". It was a four wheel drive little wonder. The wonder was that it ever made it back from a trip out. It always seemed to work OK for my wife; but, I think it was possessed and the spirit didn't like me. If I took it out the battery would die, I'd have a flat, or other minor catastrophe. Don't get me wrong the truck had some life in it and the young guys loved it. If it had a new paint job, some new nobby tires and sexy wheels it would be great. But for us it meant a $4500 trade in on a new Prius.
This left us without a truck for chores like picking up mulch, firewood, moving Kari's grandmother and so on. As with most things, once my dear wife makes up her mind it rarely diverges. On the Friday September 4, 2009 Kari took the Honda to work so she could take it down to carmax and see what it was worth. It was worth what she expected, unfortunetly, she had taken a second loan on the car and there was a substantial amount left to be paid. The good part of this was that she didn't come home with the Chevy Pickup they had on the lot, I'm not a Chevy fan. Since it seemed she was dead set on getting a truck, I started searching my favorite outlet, Craigslist. What I didn't understand was that to make the deal work we had to go through a dealer for financing to roll the Honda loan into the truck loan. I started searching dealer sites for Fords that were in the price range about 10K.
I found a Ford F-150 at Bob Bell in Glen Burnie a 2002 in blue with 80K miles. We decided we would take a look at it on the way to my parents house on Monday (labor day). Dad cancelled dinner because he wasn't feeling well but we went out to GB an took a test drive just as they were closing. The truck was nice, it looked new in spite of the mileage. We both agreed that we would like to add it to our stable. The only problem was that with the high miles banks weren't likely to finance it much less take Kari's car in trade. This left my car which wasn't worth as much as the Honda but it was paid off.
Although I didn't feel like it I took the car to Carmax to see what it was worth, 2K. I wanted to get this done because the salesman had had two other customers, one returning on Tuesday to take a second look at the truck, I believed him, it was a nice truck. I went out in the morning with my title and keys and traded my car for the truck.
From the book the truck is supposed to get between 17 and 20 MPG. On my first partial tank spent mostly on the highway I got a dissappointing 17.5 mpg. Some of that was with the AC on, hopefully it can improve.
I think one improvement would be to get one of the flat caps for it, the open cargo box is supposed to catch alot of air and slow the truck down. I've been looking on craigslist for a suitable cap. There are plenty of full caps but Kari doesn't care for those as they inhibit the loading of cargo.
This left us without a truck for chores like picking up mulch, firewood, moving Kari's grandmother and so on. As with most things, once my dear wife makes up her mind it rarely diverges. On the Friday September 4, 2009 Kari took the Honda to work so she could take it down to carmax and see what it was worth. It was worth what she expected, unfortunetly, she had taken a second loan on the car and there was a substantial amount left to be paid. The good part of this was that she didn't come home with the Chevy Pickup they had on the lot, I'm not a Chevy fan. Since it seemed she was dead set on getting a truck, I started searching my favorite outlet, Craigslist. What I didn't understand was that to make the deal work we had to go through a dealer for financing to roll the Honda loan into the truck loan. I started searching dealer sites for Fords that were in the price range about 10K.
I found a Ford F-150 at Bob Bell in Glen Burnie a 2002 in blue with 80K miles. We decided we would take a look at it on the way to my parents house on Monday (labor day). Dad cancelled dinner because he wasn't feeling well but we went out to GB an took a test drive just as they were closing. The truck was nice, it looked new in spite of the mileage. We both agreed that we would like to add it to our stable. The only problem was that with the high miles banks weren't likely to finance it much less take Kari's car in trade. This left my car which wasn't worth as much as the Honda but it was paid off.
Although I didn't feel like it I took the car to Carmax to see what it was worth, 2K. I wanted to get this done because the salesman had had two other customers, one returning on Tuesday to take a second look at the truck, I believed him, it was a nice truck. I went out in the morning with my title and keys and traded my car for the truck.
From the book the truck is supposed to get between 17 and 20 MPG. On my first partial tank spent mostly on the highway I got a dissappointing 17.5 mpg. Some of that was with the AC on, hopefully it can improve.
I think one improvement would be to get one of the flat caps for it, the open cargo box is supposed to catch alot of air and slow the truck down. I've been looking on craigslist for a suitable cap. There are plenty of full caps but Kari doesn't care for those as they inhibit the loading of cargo.
Thursday, September 3, 2009
The Saga Begins
I went to see this bike over in DC, well University Park, which is in Maryland outside of DC. To me, any place inside the 495 beltway and much outside, is in DC. I can't stand to drive there, go there, or even think about DC. There is too much traffic, too little parking and God knows the streets are confusing. DC is probably the primary reason so many people buy GPS units for their cars.
I downloaded and printed the directions from Google (I didn't have my Iphone yet). It wasn't really too bad of a trip since it was Sunday. The owner wasn't going to be home, he and his wife were riding their Harley into Annapolis (imagine that for irony I live in Annapolis), he gave me permission to take a look at the bike. I have to give him credit, he didn't lie in his Craigslist posting. The bike had some damage, supposedly from a contractor who backed into it. The speedo read 9,970 miles, the bike actually looked like it had been ridden hard and put away wet; along with the attendant rust and decay that went along with being put away wet! There were alot of dings in the paint. The passenger backrest was sun burned and decaying. I called him to set up an appointment to see the bike run, hopefully.
When I arrived on Monday he was out trying to get the bike running using a gas can and a battery charger. There were sputterings of life from the old gal which was a good sign. He couldn't understand why it wouldn't continue to turn over when it was hooked up to the charger. I explained that although I didn't know diddley about motorcycles (which will become clearer as this blog progresses), it was my understanding that the charger couldn't provide enough cranking amps to do the job. We proceded to find jumper cables and hook the bike battery to his truck battery. This did the trick although it didn't run well the engine wasn't frozen.
He said that the bike was originally his fathers, a DC motorcycle cop. After a time his dad just wouldn't ride the bike any more. My guess is that his father took a spill on the wing, didn't want to tell his son and just got the frights about riding any more, which is understandable. I've never taken a spill and don't want to. He mentioned that another person was coming to look at the bike. I'm a pretty good haggler but I know when not to haggle. I felt the bike was worth $1000 for part alone; if it didn't work out, I would sell it for parts. I only had a few hundred dollars on me. I say only because when I stopped at the ATM on the way to his house I found out that the Insurance claim check had yet to clear. I told him I could pay him the rest tomorrow if he could deliver the bike on his trailer. He agreed.
On Tuesday I beat him to his house. He arrived a few minutes later from work in a suit. I'd bought a new battery for the bike in the hopes that we could ride it up onto the trailer. That didn't work out. The bike hadn't been run for eight years, it didn't want to run, and more like a mule than a pig, it wasn't going to run. During our labor as the bike sputtered and smoked, he noticed that it looked like water coming out of the head, UH OH. We shut it down and tried checking the oil. He said he saw oil, I wasn't sure I did. I decided I would go ahead and buy the bike. After all, I knew how to repair a blown head gasket, not on a motorcycle, but what the heck!
You see, a few years ago, while living on my boat, I tried to start the engine and water started pumping up out of the carburetor! I'm no mechanic but I knew this wasn't what was supposed to happen. I did what I always do when I come head to head with a problem involving things that burn gasoline, I called my father. This was the old days not A.D. or B.C. this was P.G. , Pre Google! My father is Google when it comes to gas engines, at least ones that have points, plugs, and carburetors. We made a date for him to come down and check out the situation. Sure enough water had worked it's way into the exhaust and had been sucked into the engine. Water doesn't burn, condense, or compress so it does the only thing it can do; it blows out the head gasket. That's what I figured happened here; water got into the exhaust pipe, got sucked into the engine and blew out the head gasket. Fortunately, I was wrong, but that's for a later post.
Getting a 700 plus pound machine up a ramp onto a trailer isn't as easy as it might seem. I had thought about but didn't bring all my extra blocks (that's pulleys to you non nautical folk) and line (rope) laying around the house; luckly he had a come along. This wasn't the hottest day of the year but it wasn't chilly either. That man did work. I got to ride the bike and keep it upright. The bike made it home uneventfully
I downloaded and printed the directions from Google (I didn't have my Iphone yet). It wasn't really too bad of a trip since it was Sunday. The owner wasn't going to be home, he and his wife were riding their Harley into Annapolis (imagine that for irony I live in Annapolis), he gave me permission to take a look at the bike. I have to give him credit, he didn't lie in his Craigslist posting. The bike had some damage, supposedly from a contractor who backed into it. The speedo read 9,970 miles, the bike actually looked like it had been ridden hard and put away wet; along with the attendant rust and decay that went along with being put away wet! There were alot of dings in the paint. The passenger backrest was sun burned and decaying. I called him to set up an appointment to see the bike run, hopefully.
When I arrived on Monday he was out trying to get the bike running using a gas can and a battery charger. There were sputterings of life from the old gal which was a good sign. He couldn't understand why it wouldn't continue to turn over when it was hooked up to the charger. I explained that although I didn't know diddley about motorcycles (which will become clearer as this blog progresses), it was my understanding that the charger couldn't provide enough cranking amps to do the job. We proceded to find jumper cables and hook the bike battery to his truck battery. This did the trick although it didn't run well the engine wasn't frozen.
He said that the bike was originally his fathers, a DC motorcycle cop. After a time his dad just wouldn't ride the bike any more. My guess is that his father took a spill on the wing, didn't want to tell his son and just got the frights about riding any more, which is understandable. I've never taken a spill and don't want to. He mentioned that another person was coming to look at the bike. I'm a pretty good haggler but I know when not to haggle. I felt the bike was worth $1000 for part alone; if it didn't work out, I would sell it for parts. I only had a few hundred dollars on me. I say only because when I stopped at the ATM on the way to his house I found out that the Insurance claim check had yet to clear. I told him I could pay him the rest tomorrow if he could deliver the bike on his trailer. He agreed.
On Tuesday I beat him to his house. He arrived a few minutes later from work in a suit. I'd bought a new battery for the bike in the hopes that we could ride it up onto the trailer. That didn't work out. The bike hadn't been run for eight years, it didn't want to run, and more like a mule than a pig, it wasn't going to run. During our labor as the bike sputtered and smoked, he noticed that it looked like water coming out of the head, UH OH. We shut it down and tried checking the oil. He said he saw oil, I wasn't sure I did. I decided I would go ahead and buy the bike. After all, I knew how to repair a blown head gasket, not on a motorcycle, but what the heck!
You see, a few years ago, while living on my boat, I tried to start the engine and water started pumping up out of the carburetor! I'm no mechanic but I knew this wasn't what was supposed to happen. I did what I always do when I come head to head with a problem involving things that burn gasoline, I called my father. This was the old days not A.D. or B.C. this was P.G. , Pre Google! My father is Google when it comes to gas engines, at least ones that have points, plugs, and carburetors. We made a date for him to come down and check out the situation. Sure enough water had worked it's way into the exhaust and had been sucked into the engine. Water doesn't burn, condense, or compress so it does the only thing it can do; it blows out the head gasket. That's what I figured happened here; water got into the exhaust pipe, got sucked into the engine and blew out the head gasket. Fortunately, I was wrong, but that's for a later post.
Getting a 700 plus pound machine up a ramp onto a trailer isn't as easy as it might seem. I had thought about but didn't bring all my extra blocks (that's pulleys to you non nautical folk) and line (rope) laying around the house; luckly he had a come along. This wasn't the hottest day of the year but it wasn't chilly either. That man did work. I got to ride the bike and keep it upright. The bike made it home uneventfully
Explanations
For some odd reason, possibly not so odd, I have equated the riding of a motorcycle with freedom. Perhaps it hearkens back to Cowboy days when it was just a man an his horse; with a bike, an Iron Horse, so to speak. Thus the screen name Goldwing Freedom Rider (Freedom Rider was already taken).
Many years ago as a prelude to a cross country motorcycle tour I bought a (1976?) Honda 550 Four ( I couldn't afford my coveted BMW), much to my parents chagrin, I suppose I was 20 or 21. I had to outfit it with a Vetter fairing and lowers, because the small windshield I had originally purchased did little to protect me and it rattled and hummed at high speed. This was not a tourer. A three hour ride to Ocean City Maryland from Towson would have my hands humming from the vibration. It had a chain as it's primary drive; they loosen, throw up gunk and road grit and need to be greased. I don't actually remember selling it but I did.
Then came my beloved BMW, a 1980 R100T in dark blue. This bike was bought with the proceeds of some wise silver investing during the Hunt Brothers quest to corner the silver market (and possibly the sale of the Honda). I had it outfitted with the then standard Luftmeister fairing and lowers, the BMW bags, I was ready to go. This was the bike that was going to take me across the country. It did take me as far as Key West Florida. But, as with many persuits, life caught up with me. A wife that didn't like motorcycles. A baby that needed to be raised; the bike sat. When it came to buy the big house, I sold her.
During that time my best friend and roommate also bought a bike, a Honda Goldwing 1000. He came to visit me when I was living in Ocean City and happened to catch a bug. The only way to get him and his bike home was for me to drive them. Although I thought the Beamer was about the best you could buy (and for my money it was and still is), I was impressed with the GL. It was smoother than my bike, it had four cylinders. It was quieter, it was water cooled. It was a Pigwing as I called it. It was heavy, it didn't corner like my bike but I was impressed.
Zoom forward about twenty five years to 2009. I've been divorced and re-married. My daughter is now 20 years old. I lived on my sailboats (2) for ten years. I have sailed, delivered, and raced many sailboats up and down the coast, and to Bermuda. Sailing is also freedom, but living on a boat is freedom with digs the size of a large prison cell.
I married a wonderful woman, Kari, that I met while racing her sailboat "Long Strange Tripp" ( a Tripp 26). Some of her crew and mine were off on other boats in a race to Bermuda. We started dating and the rest is history.
Now, I'm not saying she likes motorcycles, she doesn't. But she is understanding. So, when I got the insurance settlement proceeds from an accident where I was rear-ended in December of 2008; I went looking for a bike. I didn't broach the subject with my wife right away, I bided my time.
I know this is a desire from another mid-life crisis. I had thought of getting a convertible. They are expensive, none get really good gas mileage and insurance is more expensive. I'm hoping to see (and photograph) parts of the US I haven't seen yet and I don't want to break the bank getting there. I thought I might just settle for one of those little scooters that are running around, no insurance, no tags. But they can't keep up with traffic and are only good around town. Besides the better models like Honda and Yamaha get very pricey. This left a real motorcycle as the only option.
Of course I was drawn to Beamers but I had that Goldwing in my mind. I rode a Silverwing that was for sale locally. The guy even let me take it out for a ride. I got into fifth gear and it was kind off screaming, this wasn't a touring bike for me. The search began in earnest.
I found a 1993 BMW K75 with 65K and a 1983 Honda Goldwing Aspencade 1100 with 10K for sale on Craigslist at about the same time. The Beamer was $3500 the Pigwing $1000. I went for the wing, the seller delivered it to the house on a trailer. I just couldn't justify buying the Beamer, bills still had to be paid. But, the BMW may have been the more prudent choice.
The World (at least the US) According to Goldwing
Many years ago as a prelude to a cross country motorcycle tour I bought a (1976?) Honda 550 Four ( I couldn't afford my coveted BMW), much to my parents chagrin, I suppose I was 20 or 21. I had to outfit it with a Vetter fairing and lowers, because the small windshield I had originally purchased did little to protect me and it rattled and hummed at high speed. This was not a tourer. A three hour ride to Ocean City Maryland from Towson would have my hands humming from the vibration. It had a chain as it's primary drive; they loosen, throw up gunk and road grit and need to be greased. I don't actually remember selling it but I did.
Then came my beloved BMW, a 1980 R100T in dark blue. This bike was bought with the proceeds of some wise silver investing during the Hunt Brothers quest to corner the silver market (and possibly the sale of the Honda). I had it outfitted with the then standard Luftmeister fairing and lowers, the BMW bags, I was ready to go. This was the bike that was going to take me across the country. It did take me as far as Key West Florida. But, as with many persuits, life caught up with me. A wife that didn't like motorcycles. A baby that needed to be raised; the bike sat. When it came to buy the big house, I sold her.
During that time my best friend and roommate also bought a bike, a Honda Goldwing 1000. He came to visit me when I was living in Ocean City and happened to catch a bug. The only way to get him and his bike home was for me to drive them. Although I thought the Beamer was about the best you could buy (and for my money it was and still is), I was impressed with the GL. It was smoother than my bike, it had four cylinders. It was quieter, it was water cooled. It was a Pigwing as I called it. It was heavy, it didn't corner like my bike but I was impressed.
Zoom forward about twenty five years to 2009. I've been divorced and re-married. My daughter is now 20 years old. I lived on my sailboats (2) for ten years. I have sailed, delivered, and raced many sailboats up and down the coast, and to Bermuda. Sailing is also freedom, but living on a boat is freedom with digs the size of a large prison cell.
I married a wonderful woman, Kari, that I met while racing her sailboat "Long Strange Tripp" ( a Tripp 26). Some of her crew and mine were off on other boats in a race to Bermuda. We started dating and the rest is history.
Now, I'm not saying she likes motorcycles, she doesn't. But she is understanding. So, when I got the insurance settlement proceeds from an accident where I was rear-ended in December of 2008; I went looking for a bike. I didn't broach the subject with my wife right away, I bided my time.
I know this is a desire from another mid-life crisis. I had thought of getting a convertible. They are expensive, none get really good gas mileage and insurance is more expensive. I'm hoping to see (and photograph) parts of the US I haven't seen yet and I don't want to break the bank getting there. I thought I might just settle for one of those little scooters that are running around, no insurance, no tags. But they can't keep up with traffic and are only good around town. Besides the better models like Honda and Yamaha get very pricey. This left a real motorcycle as the only option.
Of course I was drawn to Beamers but I had that Goldwing in my mind. I rode a Silverwing that was for sale locally. The guy even let me take it out for a ride. I got into fifth gear and it was kind off screaming, this wasn't a touring bike for me. The search began in earnest.
I found a 1993 BMW K75 with 65K and a 1983 Honda Goldwing Aspencade 1100 with 10K for sale on Craigslist at about the same time. The Beamer was $3500 the Pigwing $1000. I went for the wing, the seller delivered it to the house on a trailer. I just couldn't justify buying the Beamer, bills still had to be paid. But, the BMW may have been the more prudent choice.
The World (at least the US) According to Goldwing
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