After having the place open most of yesterday I had to close up early this afternoon. I tried to keep it open, but it was just getting too warm in here, and I had to go to the bank anyway--so, F it.
Took the bike to the bank, and then went for a ride afterwards. Looks like the rear tire has a slow leak, which means three things before I can really ride it a lot:
1) New rear tire
2) New inner tube for same.
3) Having someone put them on for me.
*sigh*
I believe it'll be fine for low-speed jaunts around town, but not for extended high-speed riding, and it also means I'm going to be checking the tire pressure every time I want to ride it.
On the plus side, the gasket restorer seems to have done a yeoman's job. There's hardly any oil leakage now. It still drips a bit here and there, but not nearly as much as it did when I first rode it home from Og's place.
I think when I do get the tires dealt with (sometime after I get a job) I'll ask the mechanic if he thinks the engine's making any unusual noises. I can't help the feeling that the engine needs its valve clearance adjusted, which is a tedious job--and it's expensive if you have someone else do it for you, so I'll be doing that one myself. It's not rocket science; I just need the right dang tool.
...and then I need to find the right size shims to adjust them correctly.
I'm going to complain about motorcycle technology again--is there any reason they couldn't use hydraulic lifters? That way you set the lash once, when the engine is put together, and the lifters automatically expand to the right dimension as things wear.
Oh, but I suppose hydraulic lifters keep you from running at the stupid-high engine speeds motorcycles can run at. It's always something, isn't it?
Anyway, the "circa $20 per part" curse continues: even from the place with all the vintage parts for both of my motorcycles the valve shims are around $15 each. And if I end up having to replace all 8 of them--phew.
With that and the valve tool--which itself costs $20--this could end up costing more than a rear tire. Sheesh.
* * *
Weer'd inspires another new rule for American politics:
X) Money given to the GOP by the Koch brothers is evil.Are we all up to speed now?
Y) Money given to pro-Democrat groups by George Soros, who isn't even an American citizen, is "protected political speech".
* * *
Anyway, the great saga continues apace.