Fixing a broken Wing

Ever enter into a project thinking it will be an easy fix? Then all kinds of problems/issues arise, complicating the project from what was to be a simple afternoon...  into several frustrating months? Well, that is what happened in the Man Cave.

Our son Sergio was selling his KTM and GoldWing motorcycles in order to buy a work truck, but was short on time. I have never worked on nor owned a Honda GoldWing, but I knew he was regularly riding it so should be in good shape for an easy resell.

Trailered the 1982 naked GoldWing home from Austin in January. Is called a "naked" GoldWing because all of the fiberglass fairing and saddlebags have been removed.

Fast forward to the first of April. Finally finished patching, painting, drilling, taping,  repairing, reworking and rewiring the bike to sell it.  But not before ordering ten or more boxes of parts from eBay, then spending countless hours researching online how to actually work on a 1982 Wing. After the research came the hours and hours of actually wrenching in the Man Cave.

While there were lots of little pieces of the puzzle to fix, patch and repair, the biggest obstacle was the electrical system. Somewhere there was a major short, blowing fuse after fuse. Even melted a portion of the fuse block. Was not always predictable which fuse or bulb to burn out and when it would go.

Anybody who has dealt with electrical problems in vehicles knows they can be the most unpredictable, hair-pulling repairs to tackle. It doesn't take long to perform the actual repair, but finding the problem is exhausting. 

Miles of wiring and no wire works......Rip it out and start anew.

After spend several fruitless days trying to track down the problem(s), a decision was made to order a replacement main wiring set and rip out the entire main electrical wiring. The main wiring set is the central nervous system for a vehicle.  It controls, communicates and coordinates all of the functions on the bike. 

One person can end up chasing their tail trying to find a hidden electrical problem. Two heads are better than one, so I recruited my retired neighbor Gary to be the second head and additional eyes for this project. Gary is holding the old and the new central nervous system of the bike.

With the bike rewired and working, little by little the bike came back together. Finally the bike was reassembled and running great. Time to post For Sale By Owner on Craigslist.

The first guy to test ride it, bought it.

Didn't make any money on the sale, only broke even ( and all the labor was free). But it was a great first lesson on wrenching GoldWings. There might even be another one in the future, who knows.

Da'mit was glad to have her space back in the Man Cave.

Happy Easter, Ya'll

Nite Da'mit.

Fire in the Sky

Amparo and I drove up to Angel Fire, New Mexico last month (which is not New, nor is it Mexico), carrying a replacement stove for the condo.  Were hit with a dust storm in West Texas for hours and hours. Finally arrived at La Quinta Inn in Clovis, NM, only to discover there was a big dog show in town that weekend.  Seems every guest had at least two long haired dogs with them. Our allergies went into overdrive. Had to make a late hour run to the local pharmacy for relief.

We like to stay in La Quinta when traveling as they are pet friendly. Mona Lisa, our little chihuahua, travels with us on road trips. Chihuahuas don't know they are small as they have the heart of a lion. Great guard dogs and very protective of their turf.

The next day we made it to AF, but the allergy symptoms stayed with us. At the 8200 foot elevation, breathing was labored. Called around to find several high schools boys to carry the new stove up and bring the old stove down the stairs. Had them haul out two old heavy TV's too. Gave the TV's to the boys and took the old stove down to Taos on the back of my truck. While eating lunch at Michael's Kitchen, I mentioned to the waitress we had a half-working electric stove for anyone who wants it. Price: FREE. Within a few minutes, the stove was gone.

Unfortunately, our problems breathing got worse. Lots of coughing, hacking, plus it moved from a head/sinus issue to a chest/breathing problem. Finally Amparo took me to an Urgent Care facility that is more accustomed to treating breaks and strains due to skiing accidents, than respiratory problems. We were thinking it could develop into pneumonia. Caught it in time. Had not reached the lungs yet, though they did put me on a special breathing machine that misted a medication into the lungs for an hour.

While we were there, a grandmother was brought in also with breathing problems. Her's had developed into pneumonia. She was transported via ambulance down to Taos, which is at 6000 ft.

Doctor told us "Do not try to travel while taking the medication" he prescribed.  Stay still and rest. So what was to be a quick five day trip up and back, turned into a ten day "vacation" of sorts.

But the real reason for writing all of this is to showcase several photos I took while up there.
First, a heavy wet snow...

Then, tried a different setting on the camera to get this shot...

And by the next day all the snow was gone. 

If you wonder how Angel Fire got it's name, look at the next two photos.  This is sunset. The first time you experience this sight, you swear the mountains are on fire....

Then, using a color enhancement setting on the camera, I got this shot.

The mountains in Northern New Mexico are constantly surprising us with intensity of its colors. Then when you see the native crafts and works of art, you recognize for where they got their inspiration.

The return to southeast Texas was uneventful, though the bronchial problems caused us to miss our grandson's birthday party in northeast Texas. Took another two - three weeks before we were both free of the allergy attack.

Nite Mona Lisa

Da'mit Gets Modded

After Da'mit and I arrived home from Alaska, we started thinking about what changes or modifications we would make before our next big ride. That ride is fast approaching so this spring was mod time.

First, several times my left boot slid off the foot peg if my boot was wet or muddy. A safer, more secure foot peg was needed.  Mr Cob showed me the foot pegs he had installed on his rig, the Predator. He took dirt bike serrated pegs and welded them onto his Ural. Those pegs have a great edge to stop muddy boots from sliding around.  Besides non-skid pegs, I wanted something that would not allow my boot to slip off the end of the peg. The solution was to weld two pegs together with a steel ring at the end to stop side slipping.

This is the Ural factory peg that allowed my foot to slip off.

Here is the "NEW" modified dirt bike peg with a steel end loop and a reinforcing rod. My boot is not going to slide off this peg. The only drawback is I can no longer get my toe under the shifter to up shift, so back to heel and toe shifting. 

Next, replace the ammo can under the hack. The first can I used was waterproof and solid, but too small to hold the tool roll or the tire tools. A larger can was picked up at Army Command, the local military surplus store.

The larger can holds the heavy tool roll, a jack and several pieces of wood. Carrying the heavy weight down and low is good. No ground clearance was lost. Large fender washers were installed inside the tub to spread the weight of the packed large ammo can around.

Next was to replace the stock Ural handlebars with a KLR or dirt bike type wide bars with less of a bend. The factory handlebar forces the wrist into an uncomfortable position for all day riding. 

Then installed a CHT (Cylinder Head Temperature) gauge to go along with the RPM gauge.  The CHT is to monitor the head temperatures when riding. Air cooled engine are vulnerable to failure if engine temperatures get too high. Long uphill climbs or extended hot desert cruising without cooling off can cause serious engine problems. 

From left to right: new wider handlebars, extensions on the mirrors so I can see more than just my arms, red ON/Off switch is for the auxiliary yellow lights on the sidecar,  round CHT gauge, Zumo GPS 550, orange SPOT on the dash, the RPM gauge and finally a remote to open the garage door at home. Out of sight behind the GPS is a hazard flasher switch so when making those long slow Colorado mountain pass climbs, I can alert drivers behind me.

The last mod was to remove the shovel from the sidecar ( which I never used anyways) and mount a two gallon water can.  Besides carrying a Camelbak hydration system for drinking water while riding, the additional water is for cooking and cleaning while camping.

Finally as everything was coming together, we had a nice day for riding. Went out to experiment with the camera, trying some artsy photo shots. 

Here is.....

Dry Pumps at Exxon

Da'mit is slowly coming along, getting ready for the next big ride which will start June 15th. The earlier May 18th departure date was put off due to a family wedding the later part of May.  There are two other Ural riders who have committed to making this trip: Muzzleflash and LokiBoy. More about that later.

For now,

Nite Da'mit

A New Beginning All Over Again

Howdy ya'll

Well, this is another attempt at getting things organized and up online. My previous blog, Uraling Coast to Coast Challenge 2013, was well received,  (THANK YOU!!!)  but is now done and over. UCCC 2013 was limited to just that one adventure.  If you have not had the opportunity to read it, it is still available. Just click on link in the lower right hand column.

If you linked your way over from the old Blog, WELCOME! Come on in, make yourself at home.

Riding The Horizon picks up where that blog ended but will be open, or at least with no end in sight on the horizon.

Hope you enjoy my roaming, ramblings and rambling writing. Will try to make it easier for you to add your comments. Please send me your suggestions on how I can make it easier for you to follow along.

Looking backwards before we can look forward, my small book and presentations on the ride last summer were well received.  The blog photos definitely carry more impact when projected onto a large screen. Both the BMW Club of Houston and the Texas Ural Riders Division (TURD) enjoyed the slide show and talks. In a couple of weeks I present a two hour session on Overland Travel to Alaska at Lone Star College - Tomball.

Last Fall I put together a small book of photos from the trip using Shutterfly to print it. Was the first time to try Shutterfly,  mainly because they sent me a steep discount coupon if I tried them. So I did. All of my other books were printed with Blurb. Will stick with Blurb in the future.

Am satisfied with the cover art and quality of the printing. But the cost per page, even with the discount, was more than I expected.

Da'mit has taken me on a few short trips since Alaska, none out of state though.  She is still running strong, trouble-free. Will post more information on the upgrades and mods I have made on her since Alaska.

Da'mit and I are planning our next big adventure to start in May 2014. This time we will ride with another Uralist from Virginia. Will be another adventure full of historic sights, memorable places on a two lane highway that stretches to the horizon. More on that to come.

Later all, Nite Da'mit.

CCjon