Highly recommend Frogg Toggs. Cheap, light, airy, absolutely waterproof with no rubber or plastic. Transparent to water vapor but block liquid water. No clammy feeling rain or shine. Bright colors available.

'16 FZ07. Starter runs. No pwr @ coils & pump. Switches, relays & wires test good. Find brief power up @ key turn but spontaneously off! Remove tank. Test Pump. DOA. Remove Pump. Test Pump via internal wires. RUNS! Corroded internal pump connection. (ECU knew & killed the system, hence no spark)

Purple Martins roosting briefly (4-6 weeks) near Austin on their way to Brazil. Thousands of them attempting to spend the night in the same tree.

In 2018 hauled a cannon from San Antonio to Austin. Nobody was anxious to tailgate. I bet riding that howirzer scooter around would be even more fun!

Meet Fuzzy Bear. He has been with me 70 years; now hanging out in my first rocking chair (a couple of years younger), with my wife's first cuddle buddy (whose music box still plays). Fuzzy has endured a lot, including a bad haircut at my hand, had a few repairs, and survived it all. Well done.

Unexpected benefit of running a motorcycle repair shop: You get invited to a customer's Bossa Nova music performance at a house concert (where you are three decades older than the next oldest audience member). Too sweet.

Flush, fill, & bleed job...none too soon.

Goldwing GL1800 2012-2017. Least accessible clutch bleed screw ever.

Damn Wrench Gorillas %$@&!!! How can you install an o-ring cover port so tight than an impact gun is needed to break it free!

The invention of this device will go down in history as the peak event in the course of human evolution.

Hell's Bells! Got Big Red up on the lift and can't find anything to fix! Pads & rotors are fine. Tread on both ends > 50%. DOT4 and coolant @ 12 months. All I could do is change the oil. So disappointing!

New outriggers for the lift. Now loading big bikes with no anxiety. Still need my pre-ramp or the Wing bottoms out at the edge of the platform. Way better than standing alongside and walking it up at idle! Front wheel still invisible from the saddle so a mirror is needed to hit the wheel vice.

Guess what happens when somebody rebuilds the fuel pump on a 2013 fuel injected scooter, but fails to replace the internal hose...or maybe uses an incompatible hose? A few years later, the next owner gets no fuel pressure.

This VTX1800C has been eating starter relays like candy. Probably caused by a failing auto compression relief mechanism on one cylinder stalling starter motor on some start attempts generating big kickback arc across contactor. A new 110A snubber diode has stopped that. See scope trace.

Why the cardboard artwork? Because crankcase covers almost always have bolts with dissimilar lengths...and I have a weak memory.

Go SPURS!

Moonrise on the right, Oklahoma City on the left (250 miles away).

Thinking I need to commit a crime. They will never get good prints off these grubby mitts. (At least my phone can't!)

Every suspension bolt loose. Brakes DOA. Parents are putting kids (younger than 10) onto 40+ mph electric bicycles and motorcycles, imagining they are toys. No maintenance. Mostly ridden in traffic, untrained and unlicensed. Death and injury are piling up. WTF?!! photos.app.goo.gl/yeGBbsaZyrzq...

Before & after. (I will spare you the after after...

The halo of oil splatter on the patio is there to testify to your culinary brilliance at choosing outdoor frying over an indoor conflaguration.

In this case, somehow, the edge of the lower chain guard got bent inward (ingested debris? a rock?) Result: popped the master link keeper. The Passport was about to throw the chain. Would not have noticed but for the missing link sitting lonely in the bottom of the guard.

New experience. 1982 Honda Passport 70 w/450 miles in the shop. Such an interesting drive design. Chain & sprocket stay on the swing arm when back wheel is removed! Kinda like my shaft drive Goldwing.

Installed 2 new 20A circuits in the shop today. One GFI for the evap cooler (for survival on 110F+ summer days) And the other to power the pile of low-load electronics on the bench (e.g. the shop computer & chargers). Looks more pro than an extension cord stapled to the ceiling!

"Discretion is the better part of valor" - Falstaff (the coward) in Shakespeare's Henry IV The first job I ever taken but then sent home untouched (with a refund) '09 Hayabusa fork rebuild job. Cannot lift it safely with my equipment. This monster is HEAVY. Needs a stronger head lift than mine.

How to Disapoint a Customer 101: Inspect neglected '09 Piaggio MP3. Bad fuel pump. Ancient tires. DOA battery. Non-functional brakes. All fluids out of date. Roll up $2500 in repairs and basic maintenance. Check current used market value: $1700. Oops.

Today in Scooter Weirdness: Opening the dipstick/oil fill port produces a geyser of oil, soaking me, the lift, and the adjacent car with engine oil. WTF!

Ordered OEM scooter carbs on eBay. Good price. Came with Honda name blanked with scratch-off paint. Looked authentic & worked...but very odd. Excess or out-of-spec inventory made by Honda supplier but refused by Honda?

Didn't notice, but it tested strong with an internal resistance of only 0.00618 ohms.

Holy Throwback, Batman! I had a bike in the shop today with a non-sealed battery...and it was low on water. Wow! I had almost forgotten these dinosaurs are still in service! Jeez things are changing fast.