Categories: all aviation Building a Biplane bicycle gadgets misc motorcycle theater
I've been feeling like my Ninja 250 has been a bit weak in the knees lately -- maybe the last 500 miles or so. Nothing bad, just a little bit clattery, a little bit of wheezing where I wasn't sure it used to. Finally the time came this weekend for a major service.
In this case, that means adjusting the valves, replacing all the various fluids, repacking the steering head bearings, and a bunch of ancillary maintenance that I might as well do while I've got it all apart. I started on Sunday, and even though I started in the morning and kept going until 11 pm (with a chunk of time off in the evening to deal with theater business), I didn't get it all done. When I left off on Sunday night, the bike was still in pieces, and I knew I was waiting on at least one major component: the front brake line had been rubbing against the horn for years, and finally wore through the plastic outer sheath. It's probably still safe, but I'm going to replace it anyway, and I'll change the front brake fluid then.
The order of the services was plotted out, and I realized that I needed to change the oil and filter, and check the carburetor synchronization, as the last thing. Those are both services which require the engine to be up to operating temperature.
So, it was my task this evening (finally having time free to work on it) to go for a little ride. It wasn't long, just a mile up, then on to the freeway, down to the next exit, and back home.
But... oh my! What a difference a valve adjust and new sparkplugs make! Where before the bike had felt a bit wheezy and out of breath, suddenly it felt surgingly alive. The 6000-9000 RPM range, which is where I was intellectually aware "the bike comes alive," now suddenly lives up to that description. It actively leapt forward upon getting some throttle at 7500 RPM. Thrilling! For the first time in a while, I actually wanted to ride just for the sake of riding.
It's always amazing to me when this kind of thing happens. You don't notice the slow, gradual decline, until the thing is renewed, and then it's this amazing shock! of recognition: Oh yeah, that used to be awesome! Well, it is again.
It's Bike to Work Month, so I'm not spending any time aboard the motorcycle at the moment, but I'm suddenly quite looking forward to the next outing.
Posted at 22:28 permanent link category: /motorcycle
Categories: all aviation Building a Biplane bicycle gadgets misc motorcycle theater