Well.....Bye.

[Cooter]

Wow Lunatic What a great tribute to what had to be an awesome man:angel:

The V-strom looks great with the crash bars on it too:up:

 

[user_deleted]

Wow Lunatic What a great tribute to what had to be an awesome man:angel:

The V-strom looks great with the crash bars on it too:up:

thanks a ton shaughn for the very kind words. holds even greater weight coming from you. i eventually got past losing him but never got over it. greatest man i've ever known. WW2 pilot....car lover and collector...cycle rider though the biggest bike he ever owned was a Bridgestone 100....just an all-around incredible man. you would have loved him.

 

[Cooter]

I bet you've heard some stories! Do you think you'll ever take the car out to say "Hello" to Pop one of these days? For some reason "Red Barchetta" is playing in my head right now

I never want to feel that loss man. I'm a blubbering mess when a dog goes:upset: Even though my parents are doing very well, they are the only family I have left and both mid 70's. Mom's pragmatic so we've had the Pull the plug/Trust/Will/Neptune society talk, and paperwork, and lawyers so were set there, but dang. It's gotta hurt.

I'll raise a glass to your father John, I'm sure he's a great addition to Heavan.:angel:

 

[Silverrider]

^^^^^ amen !

 

[wickedchop]

I've heard some killer story's privately from John about his pop, it was definitely some good stuff. Wish I would have had the opportunity to meet the guy. I think my favorite story was when they went to pick up the last Buell together in the freezing cold and all his dad was worried about was getting some french fries if I'm not mistaken! Hate to even think about the day when my pops is gone, he drives me nuts sometimes but nowhere near as bad as half the **** i put him through! Every morning he texts me, good morning and what the weather is outside at 7:20am! I know what the weather is, I've already been up for four hours. The other day I stopped and said to my partner, ya know one day he isn't gonna be here and I'm gonna be balling my eyes out at 7:20 wishing he was saying good morning and telling me the weather!!!!

 

[user_deleted]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
hey wally: cherish those texts and emails from him. for years i'd get a daily email from the "old man" updating me on barrett-jackson scam auctions....how horrible his magnum RT V-8 2WD dakota was in the rain.....days' weather forecast.....computer won't boot up....how the hell do you get rid of these G damn pop-ups.....the list was long. still to this day i occasionally look for a mail from him and well-up when i realize no more forthcoming.
and those french fries? LOL LOL the guy was addicted to Arby's curly fries. found an almost new 2007 cityX cherry bomb sitting in a guys' garage in Hellertown, PA with 100 miles on it that the local mice had turned into their new-found comfy home. still have the bike. like a 5 hour round trip so took him along. didn't go 10 miles and he asked if there was an Arby's on the way. stopped above Reading for a small to-go bag...... stopped at the same Arby's on the way home for a late lunch....large curly fries for him as we ate inside the joint....then another small to-go bag for the ride home.
you have a hell of a great memory wally!

 

[Silverrider]

I quess I am very lucky my dad is 94 and lives right next to me, I am going next door to see him. Yes I made him a pie his favorite apple that i picked off my tree.,

 

[njloco]

Hey man, I'm going to make it out your way, I'll tell you its to show you the SS I bought thanks to you listing it but, in reality, it'll be to get some of that Apple pie, that is if I can get passed your dad !

Looks really good.

 

[Silverrider]

any time my friend!!^^^^^^

 

[airbozo]

If you guys are serious about the Mendocino trip in March let me know. Would love to meet some of you. Can't promise anything just yet, but I need a jaunt away. I am located in the Santa Cruz mountains outside of Santa Cruz and the ride up to that area would certainly be fun on the Firebolt.

Oh, and I have some Ollalaberries for a nice pie.

 

[Cooter]

MMM pie.
I think Opto is coming down mid-march? I'll be up in the PNW the first week of March (flying:down, and I have a camping trip to the Grand Canyon on the STT planned for the end of March.

I will be going up and down the west coast a couple times this year, hopefully on the SX if I can manage some clean bag mounts or even tie down points. It's turning into a bit more of a race bike than a tourer. From LA, through Yosemite, Big Sur, Crater Lake, Klamath Falls, etc. Lets hook up!

 

[Cooter]

Did an oil change on the SeX. The manual does a very good job for the oil change procedure, I recommend you follow it. I added a few steps because I beat this awesome thing pretty hard some days and I'd like to be aware of any potential inside-parts-becoming-outside-parts situation.

Get it warm. It only takes about a minute of idling to get the fans to turn on. Thats plenty.
Wear gloves (duh) Lately Ive been liking the rubber covered cloth ones, they are tactile enough, oil resistant, cheap, and slightly heat resistant.
Check the oil level (on the side stand) before. This will keep an eye on oil consumption.
ZTNeh3%qR5O%kz2VGTK+5Q by Cooter!, on Flickr

On the side stand, take off the left plug (17mm plug), and the oil filter cap (2- 5/16" bolts), and filter. Theres just enough room to get around the quick shifter you better have!
4sdawMs8SFCcjf1WglMa%g by Cooter!, on Flickr
2ucsrnV9SRW+P56FGHcs6A by Cooter!, on Flickr
*Wipe out the inside and the cap with a white t-shirt and look for shiny bits. Terry cloth tends to hide them.
*Do not hose out this area with Brakleen. It is engineered to break down oil. Do you want that in your engine??
w5khp7uWRkCp+bGJRuF4Pw by Cooter!, on Flickr
Dv+rhDbmS%y9q82Rc96NEg by Cooter!, on Flickr

 

[Cooter]

Use a new o-ring. You don't need to spend $30 at the EBR dealer... Make sure the diameter and thickness are good and it is a oil resistant material like Viton.
OWYFL0aKSNKcDnXOHipYrw by Cooter!, on Flickr
I got this whole kit for $20
pfE9X5vOSq2mdc6xa3v19g by Cooter!, on Flickr

Don't re-assemble yet but put the bike on a stand, and pull the muffler. Which is this bolt (for the chain idler)
QwPt9TW0Tj+xFVdQ4bnGSw by Cooter!, on Flickr

This bolt just behind it for the rear of the muffler is much easier to remove with a ball-end long hex driver.
Ypt06ctwQ5G4ifQqCzsRyQ by Cooter!, on Flickr

Go to the band clamps (11mm flute)
xI3BsZAxQz6hpzt6JQlJpA by Cooter!, on Flickr
Rd6ARJ0CRDC2WzEDACqxsA by Cooter!, on Flickr

Support the rear of the muffler with your hand and remove the last bolt

5b481LRzTTS5s81CpvXk9w by Cooter!, on Flickr

 

[Cooter]

And the muffler should hang down and pull off the header pipes. Careful of the front exhaust gaskets.

And remove the second oil plug (6mm allen) Action shot!!!
b4VPTDLJSOiR68QXIB5sMA by Cooter!, on Flickr

See that plate with 5 bolts in it? Its the oil sump. Theres a screen in there you want to see and clean, so take it off. (5- 5/16" bolts)
CsrdiPl7SHyHFSsR5p%lEw by Cooter!, on Flickr

Yummy! Theres another o-ring that holds it in place, it just pulls out.
04E+lItYRiC3gOzvVx%e5w by Cooter!, on Flickr

Just some RTV, an some small bits. I took a magnet to see what was ferrous and non-ferrous. A bit of both. Nothing major.
eH5LIp4BQCOn2mv80Rd%Og by Cooter!, on Flickr

And check the other plugs too:
B%AgG%m6SlKpQ5WReeGP+g by Cooter!, on Flickr

Cut open the old filter and see what you can find in there.
zW+3m%KLThqiOrHJJF4PYA by Cooter!, on Flickr
bNuVB0AcR0yoQZ0OxGOavg by Cooter!, on Flickr
Not much, yay me!
fvLUYwYDTkqq%siFkWMeCA by Cooter!, on Flickr

 

[Cooter]

Put it all together with new O-rings. The drain plugs have metal gaskets that can be re-used.
Use good oil. V-twin specific and use the viscosity for the lowest ambient temps your bike will see. Anything below 40* is 10w-40. My temps require 20w-50.
7ZOlUm3sSgWIu2T0o6EQVA by Cooter!, on Flickr

Lube the ring a bit with your finger and shove it in the hole.

tBeq0obSRd6JmGP4lU3AQg by Cooter!, on Flickr

With everything back together, put in three quarts (should take 3.3L total with a filter change), put it back on the side stand and start it.
Watch your dash to make sure the oil pressure warning goes out. I let it run for a minute to get it warm again.
Check your level (on the side stand) and add in 1/4 qt increments until its near the middle of the range. IMO trying to tip top as much oil as you possibly can in an engine can cause bad issues.
+4k9rNnySNqqHbNLDhC6ZQ by Cooter!, on Flickr

This is slightly more than I wanted, but well within the range. It took 4 full quarts to get there.

 

[Cooter]

Just a side note: When the bike is back together and full of fluids, and you are about to put the muffler back on. If you are a child (like me) and just have to start it for a second with open headers.....

Wear ear plugs! Holy Shnikies! It's LOUD! My iPhone app said 125dB at idle and maxed out with any twist of the throttle. Stuff fell off the shelves, the neighbors came over, the cops showed up, and the ghost of Lemmy came down to give me a thumbs up.
IMG_1571 by Cooter!, on Flickr

 

[Cooter]

Just before you crack the celebratory Barley Pop, take a minute to put the old oil in the now empty quarts. Clean and easy to recycle that way instead of hauling a drain pan around to the auto parts store. Just toss them in the car and next time you're passing a pep boys, voila! A baby seal and Al Gore say thank you
OfwWY6HLTFu2y9+EXuVOAA by Cooter!, on Flickr

Even better to recycle it yourself! Since it's so clean (2000 miles) and very high quality oil, I use it for shop lube, the lawn mower, oil rubbing wood (Royal purple is great for that) or find someone with a oil heater, they will gladly take it for free. Since V-twin oil has a high zinc content it's very similar to diesel oil too so I'll top off the oil in the Duramax, or put some in my 60 gallon diesel tank every once in awhile.

Now you can have that beer, you just saved the environment:angel:

And wash your filthy bike too We gotta represent the brand YO!

 

[vicenzajay]

Nice sequence.

And strongly second the re-use oil pitch. I use mine to re-condition the wooden slat floor of the trailer 2-3x a year. Keeps it nice regardless of the beating it takes under the elements.

 

[Cooter]

I did the Teak on a REALLY nice wakeboard boat with Royal Purple. The guy was stunned at how good it looked but I never gave up my secret! :angel:

 

[Outlaw]

Also on a side note... if one were to squeeze Al Gore and that baby seal perhaps the oil that came from them could be used as an alternative lubricant source. Or at least an additive. Al Gore is a pretty slimy guy.