Christmas in April

The 2006 Khaki Kawasaki has flown the coop, now resides in Austin.  Just in time for a huge crate to arrived from up north. Not from the North Pole, but from Enumclaw, Washington.

The long awaited sidecar chassis I ordered back in early February has arrived. Hot Dog!

Immediately I tore into the box, the first to come out was the most beautiful 19" chrome wheel...

Stripped the top off to review the rest of the contents. 

Pulled out the various connecting pieces plus the box with nuts, bolts, linkage and instructions

Knocked the crate sides off to better check out the chassis. May not look like much to most, but I can see the finished sidecar in my mind's eye. And I like what I see...

First we have to mount the subframe onto the KLR so the sidecar has a place to connect. This process involved removing several factory pieces and replacing them with new braces. The lower subframe is very strong and well designed. It comes in two halves, a left and a right. There are six bolts mounting it to the bike and well as four additional bolts connecting two halves together.

Here is the subframe mounted with the optional skid plate.

The subframe provides two lower mounting points for the sidecar.  As you can see, the front lower mounting bolt is quite hefty.

As is the rear lower mounting bolt. You can see at the top of this photo, where the rear brake master cylinder now has a double banjo bolt mount so both the rear and the sidecar disk brakes can be activated with one foot pedal. 

Now to mount the two upper brackets. This is when the decision to buy from an experienced and well respected sidecar builder was confirmed. The engineering that went into the design and fabrication the upper front bracket is impressive. Because this is the bracket that must handle the bulk of the stresses put on a sidecar rig, it must be sturdy and well engineered. The area to mount this bracket is limited and requires several contortions in order to thread the piece in and around the various engine and frame components in order to fit. In all  it is mounted using three connecting points, two braces and six bolts.

The upper rear bracket was more straight forward, an easy install to the reinforced rear subframe. 

While waiting for the chassis to arrive, more wiring was completed for the sidecar and the driving lights.

The bike is ready to be mated to the sidecar, but we are missing a couple of pieces. So before  we can start that process, we wait and do our tax return.....  Oh the joy!

Before you ask where the sidecar body is.... there is not passenger body for this rig. It will outfitted with an aluminum truck tool box where all my gear, tools, parts and camping stuff can be safely stored. 

When the last of the parts arrived, the mating process will commence.

CCjon

A little Wrenching

Seems this past month has been a time for wrenching and waiting. Put the finishing touches on the Gen 1 KLR650, thought I had it sold, but not yet............

Focus has been on the Gen 2 KLR, the big eyed beauty.  Making numerous changes, upgrades, and mods to suit the trip I have planned for her.

Added side racks for panniers and a top rack for a large box where I can recharge a laptop and camera batteries. Reinforced the rear subframe to carry a heavier load, upgraded the doohickey, install LED headlights, fork brace and handlebar risers.

Since I'll be adding quite a few new electrical outlets and lights, needed an auxiliary fuse block. Looked and looked to find one that would fit in the spaces I had to work with.  Also wanted to located it somewhere where I could easily access it to check and replace fuses without having to disassemble half the bike to reach it.

The long six circuit block fit perfect and will handle the load. The circuits to be wired are: 

1). Charging port near the handlebars for iPhone/GPS while riding

2). Charging port in the rear top box for recharging a laptop

3). Driving/fog lights to be installed on front of sidecar box

4). Heated jacket and gloves 

5). Air horn for safety

6). Open spare circuit

Decided the final drive needed strengthening: The standard 520 chain was replaced with a stronger 525 o-ring chain, a 525 15 tooth counter sprocket and a 49 tooth rear sprocket. 

The larger rear sprocket will give better low end torque when starting off or when in soft sand and mud. It also reduces the top end speed, but that is not an issue where we plan to go. 

Yet to be installed is a larger front brake rotor for better stopping. The sidecar was ordered with a disk brake so the rig will have three disk brakes in all, one on each wheel. Can't have too much braking power.

DMC Sidecar called to say a large crate is headed my way. Oh, boy, Christmas in April... can't wait to open the box and start the connection process.  But first have to move some things around...  or sell something...  or.... the workspace is getting crowded with three bikes/rigs in here.

My neighbor Gary has gotten involved in the building process with me. He loves a challenge and is not afraid to turn a wrench or two. Really helps when two brains are sorting out a problem or an install issue.  There have been numerous times when four hands wrenching are better than two.

Until next time, when the crate arrives....

CCjon

First Motorcycle, First Adventure

Recently I gave a PowerPoint presentation to members of the Houston BMW Club, the topic,

First Motorcycle, First Adventure.

The year was 1969,  Panama City was not the modern metropolis of skyscrapers one sees today.

In fact, for me it was not even as modern as in this old postcard photo below. As I was living and working with the Embera' indians in the Darien jungle.

El Real de Santa Maria was a small village in the middle of the Darien. There I lived while working with the Embera' natives who populated the inner recesses of the jungle. 

Google "Darien Gap" if you want to learn more about this one remaining incomplete section of the Pan American Highway.  The Pan Am Highway is the longest motor-able road in the world, stretching from Prudhoe Bay Alaska to the southern most tip of South America, except for the "Gap".

Embera' children, like children everywhere, laugh, play and smile a lot.

A couple of the Embera' men who had a few too many "Chicha Fuerte" drinks.

The final year in Panama was spent assisting the Nobe Bugle natives in constructing a health center on their land high in the mountains of western Panama.

The site, Llano Ñopo,  was one of the few level pieces of land in the mountains. And only eight hours by horseback to the nearest town. 

In the mountains, the houses are built low to the ground with dirt floors. The high peaked roofs shed rain quickly and allowed smoke from the cooking fire to rise above the living area. 

The Nobe Bugle ladies sew colorful cha'cara bags using fibers from the wild pineapple plant as thread. Is a very strong durable fiber.  

As our two year tour with Peace Corps was coming to an end, two other volunteers and I agreed  instead of flying home, we would take the cash. Buy motorcycles and ride back to the States together.

 But life has its own design. In July 1969 was the 100 Hour War between El Salvador and Honduras over a soccer game. Airports were bombed, tanks rolled, shots were exchanged along the border.  6000 persons were killed. Then it was over. But the peace and tranquility in the area was still tenuous. 

The other guys decided to fly home in October. I had already purchased my new motorcycle and was learning how to ride it on my monthly visit to Panama City where it was stored. 

The health center was finally completed, a dedication ceremony was held in early December. 

Time to head home.

My first motorcycle, a Yamaha R3-C, 350cc, two stroke. No windshield. Everything I needed was in the two small knapsacks, plus a sleeping bag, a jungle hammock, a camera, rain slicker, gloves and a helmet.

I left Panama the day after Christmas 1969. 

 Once you west of David, the largest city in western Panama, the Pan American Highway turned to loose gravel until El Salvador.   Here is a section of the roadway in Costa Rica in 1969. 

Numerous rock slides closed the road. for an hour, or days. With large and small loose rock and slippery mud covering the roadway, it was not safe to try to cross. Can only wait until it is cleared. 

Once past one slide, another would appear a few miles on down the road. Maybe that's why I only averaged 140 miles a day.

The road was empty most of the ride north. When a large truck approached, I would pull over and stop, so as not to be pummeled by flying rocks and pebbles. 

The secret to safe inexpensive food when traveling, is to look for where all the trucks are parked.  Then go eat there. 

Crossing the border between Honduras and El Salvador was quiet, very quiet. No one raised their voice, no yelling, no pushing, too many young soldiers with their fingers on machine gun triggers, barricaded behind sandbags, waiting...... No photos were taken!

Of course, high on the list of places to visit, were some of the Mayan ruins in Guatemala.

In Huehuetenango, Guatemala stumbled across a farmer's market in full swing, colorful native dress, wide variety of produce for sale and hundreds of people buying and selling.

Some people are just tired.

The peanut vendor caught me snapping a photo of her wares.

After riding for twenty-five days, sleeping twenty nights under the stars, traveling 3500 miles and patching three flats tires, I rolled into Phoenix, Arizona under grey skies sporting snow flakes like dust.

Here is the final photo from the Darien jungle.

Lessons learned from that first adventure:

1. Overcoming fear is your biggest obstacle

2. Try something different, it's only new to you

3. More than what you see, it's who you meet

4. Keep the wheels turning, you'll get there

5. When going for a ride, take your passport

Ride safe, ya'll. See you on down the road.

CCjon

The Power of Three

In baseball, you get three strikes and you're out. 

In soccer, three goals by the same player, it's a hat trick.

A famous person dies, then another and the pundits start speculating on who will be the third?  Of course we all know that the first two are terms of the game and the third example is pure coincidence. Still, there seems to be a pattern of threes when it comes to my motorcycles.

For example, there were three BMW long distance motorcycles that came into and out of my life.

First, Captain America..

This little BMW F650 carried me to Alaska the first time. After the incident on the Haul Road push starting another bike, I made it to Prudhoe Bay and then down to Anchorage. There Captain America was sold in the land of the midnight sun. 

Looking for more power for long distance cruising, along came Blue Jeans. A beautiful BMW 1150GS was #2. Had everything except the additional ground clearance and a larger gas tank one needs for serious adventure riding.

So we said goodbye to Blue Jeans and picked up #3, Wind Rider. 

This workhorse of a big machine carried me to Alaska, Florida and finally Chile and Argentine. In Chile she was sold to someone who said they could repair her.

After the incident in Chile, three wheels replaced two wheels for riding. Since Urals are the only sidecar motorcycle manufacturer in the world, they must be looked at. Especially for someone like me who didn't know anything about sidecars. 

The first Ural was Big Red. A big, slow, lumbering Russian rig that about broke my big toe kick starting her.  Besides kick start, she had old fashion drum brakes.  Though we discovered that I really did enjoy piloting sidecars, but this was not the right rig. 

 Big Red is sitting atop my attempt at building a sidecar lift. Sidecar weight is not evenly balanced among the three wheels.  Lift was a total failure and waste of good lumber. 

Then came Ural #2, a Dam'it wannabe. Was an okay rig with an electric start and disc brakes, but did not inspire confidence. Just didn't think that she could make it to Alaska and back. 

From Atlanta, GA comes Ural #3, Dam'it. The best Ural I have owned.  This was a sidecar rig that I thought could go anywhere...  

So we did - Key West, Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, Rocky Mountains, Pacific Northwest, Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, visiting some 36 states in all.  When her extended warranty ran out, she went to a new home. 

With Dam'it gone and with the knowledge I gained concerning the care and feeding of sidecars, It's time to build a dual sport sidecar. Partly because I could not find one set up the way I wanted and needed for my next adventure. The bike of choice was narrowed down to either a Kawasaki KLR650 or a Suzuki DR650. Either bike would do what I wanted.  Now what could I find?

Back in 2010, I owned a 'Barbie Doll' colored KLR650 for a short period. Had a purple seat and disco light graphics. She didn't stay long.

Recently came KLR #2, which is on the lift in the garage right now. This burgundy bike came to me from the Valley of Texas, Harlingen.

As parts arrive, this nameless bike is coming back together. Painted the plastics a khaki color, the gas tank flat black and here,  installing new turn signals. 

While we wait on the rear luggage rack to arrive, the seat is being worked on. This bike is almost ready to be put on the market for sale........ What?    Yes!  

This is not the rig to hang a sidecar on. It's a good dual sport bike now that I have gone thru it top to bottom. But she is not the bike for the next adventure. So we will finish this one up, make sure it is running good and strong. Then post her for sale.

 Waiting in the wings...   is a big eyed beauty.

A Kawasaki KLR 650...  number THREE.

Was not looking for a different  KLR, but.... happened upon this low mileage 2011 beauty listed on eBay...  is in the Houston area....  only four days remaining on the auction... with no bids on it. So I started the ball rolling with an opening offer. Did not think it possible, but my opening bid was also the closing bid. No one else bid on the bike. 

The coincidence of threes shows itself again.

A quick shift of gears in the thinking.  The bike on my garage is a generation 1 KLR, this new bike is a generation 2 KLR. Some parts and pieces are interchangeable, others are not.  A fast call to the manufacturer of the sidecar chassis confirms the chassis they are making for me will fit either KLR.  Alright now, we can do this.

As soon as the new bike hits the garage, what do I do? Start stripping off parts and pieces off in order to service and prep it for our next adventure. But first we have to finish KLR #2 still on the lift before we tear into KLR #3.

This week KLR #2 will be finished and available. Hopefully by then the weather might be a little nicer and riders will be thinking about getting outdoors to ride. Cold winter months is when you buy a motorcycle. Warm sunny Spring time is when you sell.

Going through this process of threes, one learns more about the ins and outs of servicing, maintenance and abilities of each machine. Each will have its own issues, presenting its own unique challenges. All of which make for a more thorough and detailed education experience.


Ride safe and far,
CCjon

Stutter Steps

 Remember those weeks when progress comes in stutter steps?  You know, two steps forward and one back. These past few weeks have been non-stop stutter steps.

While waiting for a few more parts to arrive and before reinstalling the fuel tank, decided to check and adjust the valves.  Having worked on BMW and Ural motorcycles, I knew adjusting valves was a quick simple process. But since the Kawasaki is a different animal, did my research on KLR650 valve adjustment.

For a simple one cylinder engine, adjusting the KLR valves is a major process. At least the fuel tank was already off.  In this photo of the cylinder head, beneath the silver cross bar is the top cover plate over the valves.  This has to be removed.

But, to remove that top plate, one must first remove the radiator fan, the top engine mount, various electrical connections, wires and cables, then carefully slide the cover out through the left side, all the while trying very careful to not damage the fragile gasket. This is not something you want to do in a motel parking lot.  While sliding the top out, FEDEX delivered a box with the awaited carburetor parts. Great! Oh NO,  NO... they sent parts for a different KLR.  Oh well, send it back and wait another week for the correct parts to arrive.

Back to the valves. There are four valves, two intake and two exhaust. All four were out of acceptable range. Quick call to a local Kawasaki dealer to find the right size shims, a race across town to be there before they closed and returned to finish the job.  Now on a BMW or Ural, they don't use shims, so you can just adjust their valves with a wrench and screwdriver in a motel parking lot. Not the Kawasaki.  Finally got everything set right and closed up. Won't know if it will run until I finish with the rest of the bike.

The new exhaust muffler arrived. Looks cool. Repainted the old rusty header with high temp paint. They are ready to be installed, except for a small issue.

Look again at the top photo, center left, you can see the carb with cables going into it. Remember the wrong parts FEDEX delivered?  The easiest way to work on the carb is to loosen the clamp screws and rotate the carb to gain access to the bottom without having to totally remove it. If I install the exhaust, it will block access to the carb bottom. So installing the exhaust will have to wait until the correct carb parts arrive. Rework the carb first then install the new exhaust.

Okay, let's do something else while we wait. Upgrading the wiring and fuses is something I want to do and is best done with the fuel tank and seat removed. However it seems the US Postal Service has lost a two day Priority Mail package that was sent ten days ago..... Called the supplier, Twisted Throttle. They graciously agreed to ship another wiring set up at their expense and they will fight with USPS. Great service from Twisted Throttle.  

Now what? Several mornings I noticed a small puddle of oil under the rear.  Hmmm, the only oil back there is in the rear shock, Since I have to upgrade to a a heavier spring on that shock for sidecar use, let's remove it now. 

Found the source of the oil. The rear shock is shot.  Looks like someone might have tried to rebuild it previously as the bump stop is missing.  A friend suggested I rebuild this shock, But after investigating the cost and issues involved in rebuilding, decided to try to locate a slightly used shock. Rebuilding can run as high as $300. 

Spent three days on eBay, Craigslist, web sites and phone trying to locate and negotiate a replacement shock. There are some very good new aftermarket shocks available from $600 to over a thousand, but since the plan is to sell this rig after I finish the ride in South America, am trying to keep the total investment down.  Spent hours chasing several dead end leads in Florida and California. As of this writing, have a lead on a used factory shock in Kansas for $100. Keep your fingers crossed. 

Hopefully this week more parts and missing boxes will arrive. Then some progress can be made.

Ride safe my friends,

CCjon

Disassembling a Kawasaki

This last week was spent pulling apart the KLR650. Rusty bolts and stubborn nuts were the highlights  and the lowlights. Used a can of B'LASTER PB, a penetrating catalyst, and lots of muscle power to loosen fasteners that didn't want to be loosened.

This rusty bolt took a half day to remove. Spray, wait, wrench, respray, wait, wrench, spray, wait, etc etc.  The lower parts of this bike were not lubricated properly after riding in water.

Ordered a stronger bolt kit to upgrade the rear subframe for carrying heavier weights without breaking. Required drilling through the solid steel backbone of the bike. With patience and lots of cutting oil, we made it through...

 with a battery driven drill too.

Was warned about the achilles heel of the KLR - the infamous Doohickey. Also known as the cam chain tensioner. The spring that supplies the tension can break allowing loose pieces of steel to wander around the inside of the engine causing havoc.  The way to check this is to open up the left side case of the engine and look to see that the spring is in place and connected.

With the case opened, the cam tensioner bolt is at the bottom center of the flywheel in the left half. 

Could not see the spring. Using several lights, nothing. 

Had to removed the flywheel which is not a simple process.  Still no spring in sight.  Should be in the dark recesses, where the white spot is. 

Now to remove the next case behind the flywheel and starter gear.  What I find.... hiding behind it all...  a snapped spring. Luckily both ends are still connected to the case. 

Those little pieces of steel can destroy an engine if they get loose and into the wrong places. 

Count my lucky stars it was found in time. Installed a much better and stronger torsion spring, then buttoned everything back up. Won't know if it is reassembled correctly until I start the bike, which won't be for another month or so.

Slowly parts and pieces are arriving. Have been overworking my PayPal account this week.

As boxes arrive, the work continues. The sidecar itself will not be here for six weeks, so there is time to wrench, replace and upgrade the bike itself. 

Nite all

CCjon

Looking for a Dual Sport rig

Da'mu the White Wing is almost ready for a long distance USA ride, however attention recently has been paid to seeking a dual sport sidecar rig for South America.

As some of you know, I was riding Chile and Argentina in January 2012 after reached Ushuaia, the southern most city in the world in time to celebrate New Years Eve 2011. Riding back north across Tierra del Fuego in anticipation of seeing the Andes mountains up close,  the bike went into a serious tank slapper and we flipped - head over heels. After a week in the hospital in Punta Arenas, Chile, I sold the BMW and most of my gear down there so I could fly home to see a specialist.

Am now fully recovered and riding once again, after learning how to drive sidecar rigs. My goal has been to return to Chile and finish my ride. The most scenic spots in South America have yet to be visited.

Da'mu the White Wing to too big and heavy for the hundreds of miles of soft gravel road one has to navigate in southern Chile/Argentina. Da'mit the Ural was given serious consideration for the trip but Ural parts are not available down there. There are no Ural dealers anywhere in Central or South America. Nor is the brand well known to motorcycle mechanics there.

For that type of ride one needs a dual sport motorcycle, economical to operate and maintain, parts readily  available, high ground clearance and a network of mechanics who could repair it if need be. That narrows the field down to single cylinder 650cc Japanese motorcycle. Both BMW and Honda have 650 dual sports, but they can cost 40% more and parts are not as readily available as are Kawasaki or Suzuki. So a KLR650 or a DR650, both of which have excellent reputations for durability and reliability, are the best choices to fulfill my requirements for this ride. I started looking back in December for a low mileage slightly used Kawasaki or Suzuki sidecar rig. Found two on the internet - one in Virginia and the other in California. The California rig looked to be stronger, better built. Photos and a short video of it running were encouraging enough to  haul an empty trailer to north Los Angeles to pick it up.  Once there I spotted several fatal flaws in the design and construction that were not apparent in the photos. Returned to Texas empty handed.

Finally concluded that my best bet was to find a low mileage Kawasaki or Suzuki that I could hang a sidecar on. The plan is to later sell that rig in South America at the end of the ride.

In South Texas I found a 2006 Kawasaki KLR650 with under 9,000 miles. I hauled it home.

In Texas, one sees lots of cattle, even bulls. But this as the first time I've seen a bull in a boat...

 in a truck - going 70 mph.

Once home, the KLR went up on the lift for detailed inspection. Every used motorcycle requires service and inspection. One does not know how it was treated or service previously. So everything must be check over. You do that by stripping the major pieces off, cleaning, servicing and replacing parts where necessary.

The partially stripped KLR. 

Have already found several items that need replacing. Rusty bolts, stripped threads, leaking exhaust, bearings, loose wiring, etc.  

While the bike runs, I test rode it before buying, but knowing where I plan to going with this bike, everything must be in sound reliable condition. I don't need mechanical surprises in the middle of no-where. By personally stripping and rebuilding this bike, if I do have problems with it later, being very familiar with it will aid in diagnosing and solving any issue.  

This bike might be Da'mit II if it checks out and is adopted. After the bike is finally approved for use, will order a sidecar cargo chassis to hang on it. 

Ciao for now,

CCjon