Snippets

[Tomcatt]

Haven't figured out the speedo is "married" to the ECM similarly to how the TSM is?

[ChinCactus]

Those of us following your build FEEL your frustration. You have taken on a monumental task building the GE. It isn't as easy as it used to be swapping out things like this with the technology built into these bikes.

You WILL prevail and it will be a one of a kind motorcycle. You seem very close. First and goal. Carry on.

Jim

[Crusty]

After Midnight




It’s just after Midnight on Tuesday. Or maybe I should say it’s early morning on Wednesday? Either way, I took the Express out for a ride about 12 hours ago and put enough miles on that it got its first oil change when I got home. I kept the engine speed down and varied the acceleration/deceleration over twisty backroads with very light traffic.


The bike feels really good. The engine feels smoother than either of my other rubbermounts and it feels better that it did before Dark Horse reworked the crankshaft. The paperwork says that they installed a .0005 over crankpin as well as the Carrillo rods. They trued, balanced and welded the crank and I can feel the difference. I like it.


The Express looks odd to me, at present; wearing the black and cream tank from the Roadster. However, at one point on today’s ride, I had to stop for a flagman at a work site, and he said that the bike looked really good.


The side covers were delivered in the morning and I put the correct cover on the bike. I boxed up and addressed the wrong cover and I stopped a few miles into the ride at a Post Office and shipped it back to Ming Gau in Rancho Cucamonga. (I think he might be Irish - and isn't Rancho Cucamonga near Tipperary?)


I’ve got a lot of parts to sell that won’t fit on the Express any more. I’ll sell the ECM, BCM and coil together as a matched set, the stock Can’t bus handlebar switches from the bike and the accessory Speedo/Tach. The beautiful Soul Red gas tank and fuel pump will also be sold as a set. And I’ve got the stock 3.3 injected tank that came on the bike. It won’t work on the bike any more. Oh; I can sell the fuel injection manifold with injectors as a set, as well. Then there’s the oil tank and battery box and side cover that will also be sold as a set. Since I’m an Old School kind of rider, I’ll sell everything for a reasonable price, not the stupidly inflated prices some greedy fleaBay sellers prefer. I’ll probably sell everything on Farcebook Marketplace, or maybe I’ll use the XL Forum’s buy/sell area.


Anyhow; the Gentleman’s Express feels really good. I think I may be riding my idea of a great Sport Tourer above the Arctic Circle to the Beaufort Sea (Arctic Ocean) this coming June. That’s Exciting!

[Crusty]

On Thanksgiving Morning 2022


I have a bad case of Writer’s Block.

Usually on Thanksgiving, I like to look over the past year and write about the things I’m grateful for. This year, everything I’ve tried to write sounds sappy. It’s not that I don’t have a lot to be thankful for; I do. In fact, There’s so much, it’s amazing. But getting it down in print isn’t coming across so well.

The Gentleman’s Express is up and running. That’s been a major part of my life, this past year. I’ve had numerous friends who contributed to that and between the friends who have helped me and the success of the project, I consider myself Blessed. I took the bike out for a hundred mile ride, yesterday and it feels wonderful.

I’m living in my own home. When the mortgage company foreclosed on my house in Leominster, I thought I’d never be able to own another house. Yet, I have my own little home in Cheviot. It’s not perfect; but it’s mine and I can work on it to make it more like what I want. Once again, I got the house because of help from others. My brother did all the research here in Cincinnati, while I was in Massachusetts. When he found the house and gave it a thumbs up, our offer was accepted. Financing was arranged by my brother-in -law and when I closed on the house, a friend came down from Buffalo and showed me how to fix the plumbing. I had lots of help from friends, both loading all my belongings into a U-Haul in Massachusetts and unloading it here in Cheviot, then moving in and bringing me gifts of furniture and appliances.

I’m fairly healthy. That alone is worthy of a grateful Snippet. I can’t do nearly as much as I did, even 10 years ago, but I’m in good shape for my age.

I had a BLT for breakfast, and I’m going to have a wonderful meal to celebrate the Holiday. I’m very fortunate to be able to enjoy the foods that I like. It may sound sappy, but there have been times in the past when I had to eat in a soup kitchen and eat what was given to me, or else go hungry. I don’t want to forget that.

And; I’m going to be a Grandpa. That’s both exciting and scary. I joke that I’m going to fill the kids up with lots of sugar, then send him (it’s a boy) home for Megan and Rocky to deal with him; but I really want to show him love and be a positive influence in his life. And maybe I’ll be able to play the mysterious multiplying bears game with him; or I’ll leave plastic eggs lying around so that he can follow the directions to an Easter Basket.

You know; it does all sound a bit syrupy, and maybe I’m a bit of a Pollyanna; but I really do feel there’s a lot to be Thankful for.

Thankful for my friends and thankful for the Wonderful Life I’ve been given.

I hope your Thanksgiving is every bit as good to you and even better.

[sportsterpaul]

Happy Thanksgiving to you John and may you and yours be truly blessed. Myself, just back from deer camp in the northern woods. No deer for me......yet, but I have to add that camp really kicked my sorry ass! Sub 20F temps and trudging through snow over knee high had me on the ropes several times,(75 is still young, right)? Broke camp yesterday and got home safely, cleaned up, had a home made pasty for dinner,(damn they’re good eating), was in bed shortly after 9:00 and slept 13 hours! Will give you a call in a bit, keep it safe!

[ChinCactus]

Happy Thanksgiving John! Writers block or no, you always pull it off and never disappoint.

Paul, had a buddy years ago who was an avid hunter, yet never bagged a deer. He used to say when he was in the woods, the deer were safe as if home in their mothers arms.

He did eventually get his deer. Hit it with his car.

[sportsterpaul]

I have taken more than a few, then a couple years back I learned they,(the deer), had a contract out on me. Returning north to deer camp on back roads one stealthy young spike got me. Came through the windshield pinning the glass to my face, his back broken by the “A” pillar, ass end took out the side mirror, drivers window and cold cocked me. Lost 30% vision in left eye and 16-18 teeth. Glass pieces washed up out of the eye socket for over two years. Worse yet the meat was totally ruined.

[Crusty]

Lies, Greed and a Good BLT





I guess I should start with the BLT. I love a good BLT for breakfast. In fact; I’m eating one right now as I write this. I have a formula that works for me. I know where to get the right tomato, the Wright bacon and the buns that taste the best. The best Mayonnaise (Cain’s) is no longer available; but Hellmann’s is good. I tried Duke’s, and it was OK, but it’s more expensive than Hellmann’s and I couldn’t see any improvement.

I figured out how much it was costing me to eat a BLT and it’s pretty pricey; especially since the price of lettuce has quadrupled and bacon has increased between 50 and 100%. I decided to try other things for breakfast. I bought some sandwich sized sausage patties and figured I’d make my own version of a Sausage McMuffin. Then I discovered that it costs more than one from the Golden Starches and it doesn’t taste as good. And it doesn’t come close to competing with a BLT for me. I tried to have AMY’s Cheese Enchiladas instead. I really like them; but they make a good lunch or dinner item, not a brunch item and they cost considerably more. The BLT still reigns supreme for me.

I check the weather forecast pretty often. I have to because the weather sites are wrong so much. I tend to go to Weather Underground. I used to go to Intellicast, but the Weather Channel bought them out along with WU and combined them into one site that gives less information than either of the sites gave before.

The part that bothers me is not how often they’re wrong; but they lie on their own site. I was just over there to see what it’s supposed to do today. The high temp is supposed to be 44º F, but the hourly temp never gets higher than 42º. This is a regular occurrence with them. The other thing that annoys me is that they listed the number of Covid 10 cases and deaths in my area in the weather stats. At least until President Alzheimer declared it was over; then they stopped. Covid had nothing to do with the weather.

So why haven’t I just changed weather sites? I tried. I went to Accuweather, but I didn’t really care for the site and I wound up going back to WU. I know they’re lying and that they have an agenda, but I still go there. One of these days, I’ll hopefully get fed up enough to find a better site. I really liked Intellicast, but they got eaten by a bigger fish. The same thing happened to Cain’s foods. And to Buell motorcycles. I guess that’s one of the negative aspects of Capitalism.

I went up to Westerville to Iron Pony Motorsports the other day with my brother. That place is worth a Snippet all by itself; it’s Amazing!

However, one thing both David and I do is check out Gas prices when we travel. We saw $2.98 in the west central part of the state. We can’t figure why gas is cheaper in the middle of the state than along the Ohio River, where it costs less to transport it. Gas tends to be cheaper in Kentucky than on this side of the River. That may be due to taxes, but it’s worthwhile to drive to Florence, Kentucky and get gas at Sam’s Club for 60 - 70 cents per gallon less than it costs here.

Another thing that annoys me is the difference between the price of Regular (87 Octane) and the price of Premium (93). When I first hit the road in 2015, I saw that some greedy bastards were charging as much as .50/gal. more for 93 and that really ticked me off. I eventually accepted it and I didn’t even get too bothered when the difference rose to .60/gal. Now, however, they’re jacking up the price to .80 to $1.00 more. When I went up to Massachusetts, last summer, I stopped at one station and they wanted $1.18 more for 93 over 87. I left without buying any and hit the next station that was “only” charging .80 more. When I was in Mass; I went to the cheap station near the shop (GP Motorcycles) and they only wanted .20 more. Is it just greed on the station owners’ part? Is it the distributor? The Oil Companies? All of the above? I was talking with a friend in western Colorado, yesterday and it’s only a .20 difference there.

And why do they only display the price of Regular? To see the price of Premium, you have to drive up to the pump. I guess that people might just accept that they’re getting screwed rather than look for a more reasonable price.

Of course, if I’m bugged by gas prices here, what will the prices do to me when I’m gassing up in the Northwest Territory next June? Hopefully, I’ll just accept them and make it to Tuktoyaktuk.

Well; the lying weather site says it’s up to 37º F (3º C) I’m going to take out the Express and try to put on another 50 miles or so.

[rokytnji]

If I aint having leftover biscuits and gravy and I have to cook.

Chorizo ,egg, and cheese burritos I can handle making.
Leave out the cheese if saving money. It will still be creamy.

Gonna try and Hit 80F today later on.

$ curl wttr.in/pecos,tx
Weather report: pecos,tx

      \   /     Sunny
       .-.      59 °F          
    ― (   ) ―   ↙ 5 mph        
       `-’      6 mi           
      /   \     0.0 in

[Steve9]

Leftover pizza. It's a couple days in the fridge so just getting "right"

Usually just 6 eggs. Simple old fkr