whatcha doing?

[Bigshankhank]

(Anybody in the NoVA area want to swing by and laugh at me while I wrench is welcome.)

--Jaeger

I'm in Florida but I want to laugh at you while you wrench, can you livestream it?

[guitargeek]

@Bo_9 https://www.z1enterprises.com/store/model/honda" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

@Jaeger your clutch should be simple and straightforward. See if there's a tutorial on YouTube.

[Bo_9]

Thanks GG! I always forget about that place and for some reason it doesn't pop up in my part searches.

[Zim]

hondarestoration.com , perhaps? Don't know anything about them other than they're 20 minutes from me.

[wyckedsin]

cleaning firearms...

Prepping one for home Cerakoating...

playing way too much world of warcraft...

[guitargeek]

I had to look up CeraKote, and these are some of the pictures I found...

...and then there's this:





http://www.motorcycle-usa.com/2009/12/a ... ark-daley/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[DerGolgo]

...and then there's this:

That pipe arrangement.
It'll likely kill ya with carbon monoxide. But that would look -bitching- on a UJM four-pot ...
Deadly, a little silly. But bitchin.

[Jaeger]

I'm in Florida but I want to laugh at you while you wrench, can you livestream it?

@Jaeger your clutch should be simple and straightforward. See if there's a tutorial on YouTube.

As always, nothing is ever easy.

Long story short, the clutch installation was pretty straightforward, but while putting the clutch-cover back on (for the 2nd or 3rd time) we discovered two problems:

1) One of the approximately dozen bolt-holes holding the clutch covers is half-stripped (even while using torque wrench); and
2) The goddamn fragile-ass aluminum crank-case breather tube broke. It's press-fit into the clutch-cover. The JB weld will be cured by tomorrow evening.

Anyway, if all goes according to plan we should have it all back together this week. I'm not too worried about the clutch-cover bolt. it's on the top, the threads still have grip, and there about a dozen of them.

I think I took a pic of the old clutch plates -- if not, I think Mook might've. The disks felt pretty thin, and least one of the steel plates was totally heat-scorched purple. New ones are Barnett heavy-duty kit. Should hopefully last the life of the bike.

Stay tuned...

--Jaeger

[guitargeek]

A drop of green Loctite on the weak threads should help keep that bolt from rattling loose.

[guitargeek]

...and then there's this:

That pipe arrangement.
It'll likely kill ya with carbon monoxide. But that would look -bitching- on a UJM four-pot ...
Deadly, a little silly. But bitchin.

Take note of the carburetor arrangement...

[Bigshankhank]

Take note of the carburetor arrangement...

I'd noticed that, I really wonder how well that would work. Needless to say, primarily a styling exercise but if that's your thing, then we'll done.

[DerGolgo]

Take note of the carburetor arrangement...

I did. On a UJM four, that is neeeds-must, isn't it. On that V-twin ... it kinda struck me as ... unless it's two pairs of different sizes, one optimized for low rpm, the other for high rpm, and there's a bunch of flaps to switch between pairs, or maybe one low-rpm pair and the others sized and flapped to be brought in alongside as rpm increases, unless there's such a sophisticated arrangement ... that just looks overdone on that bike.
Almost like ... "I wish my bike was a Japanese four, but I gotta make do with this ..."

[Jaeger]

A drop of green Loctite on the weak threads should help keep that bolt from rattling loose.

Green? I know blue and red, I'll have to go look for green.

--Jaeger

[xtian]

This is not your standard V-Twin carb arrangement. Instead, Mark utilizes the carbs from a Honda CBR600.

geez.

[Bo_9]

A drop of green Loctite on the weak threads should help keep that bolt from rattling loose.

Green? I know blue and red, I'll have to go look for green.

--Jaeger

http://catalogs.na.henkel-adhesives.com ... 1&lang=enu" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Jaeger]

JB Weld FTW!

https://goo.gl/photos/yQdLT2VqV4JPvnoa9" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;


--Jaeger

[Rench]

fiXXXed!!!!

-Rench

[guitargeek]

So Jaeger's back on two?
Athena rides again?
HUZZAH!!
Take pictures at DOOOOOOOOM...

[Jaeger]

So Jaeger's back on two?
Athena rides again?

Nooooo... observe ye olde timestamps. Breather tube still fucked, JB weld broke... might even be able to fix that but the clutch-cover gasket got munched in the endless attempts to re-attach it. I was informed on Monday that another one wouldn't be available until next week.

Fuggit. Ain't like I've ridden all year anyway. I'm going to GTFO, see some of you surly fucks, and drive support vehicle. I have a (short-bed) pickup truck and a ramp.

Oh, and Athena will ride again, fear not. Now it's just the balance between time/desire/money. (And new clutch may solve some of my power-delivery problems.)

--Jaeger

[Bigshankhank]

Good luck to ya brotha, enjoy the weekend of DOOM. Hope Matthew doesn't cause to much trouble, though having a hurricane party at DOOM has to be a first.

[guitargeek]

This is the Netcaster, the first partscaster that I put together entirely from pieces I traded for on the Internet, back in the mid-90s.

Electra body and pickguard, Warmoth neck, epoxy-potted blade humbuckers (allegedly early Duncans). One volume, pull for coil taps.

It's been hanging on the wall in my shop for about ten years, I think I might clean it up, cut a nut for it and put it back in service... Though I should really be diving into the wiring on Ponch.

[DerGolgo]

Wanted to get started on the complete re-install of Windows I gotta get through.
Only to find that the Kerbal Space Program version 1.2 has finally been released, which kinda managed to grab my attention ...

Had visitors today.
My buddy Gerd, who uses ALL asian combast-styles (he's literally working his way through all of them ...) as psychotherapy, and Andy. Who just turned 40. Wife, kid. Career at a Dutch-owned railroad company going well.
Now I'm a bit jealous, because one of the conditions his employers had to agree to as part of bidding for some lines in Scotland was that ALL company functions would be held in Scotland. Lucky bugger is complaining he has to fly to Glasgow for a single business dinner. Literally.

Also recently had a stroke, and nobody can figure out why (no, he don't do coke, despite what all his doctors expect from a 40 year old corporate high-flyer). He just fell down flat one night, and everybody assumed it was because the approximately very many alcohols he had had that night (some of you may have seen me drink, and assume that I can "drink". Compared to him - nope, I can't. That night, he and a friend had tried out a delivery service that'll bring 700cc of long drink to your front door for a tenner ...). He only went to the doc again because he was a bit forgetful the next day and his wife had figured concussion or something. So CT scan and all that.
When the ER team came storming in to the small hospital's radiology unit to bring the stroke-victim to the big hospital stroke-unit. As directed by regulations, transport would involve the use of flashing blue lights and sirens to blast through any red lights.
They had to collect this stroke victim from the balcony outside the hospital cafeteria, where he was having a smoke and coffee.
In the stroke unit, he was told he could unplug himself to use the toilet. When he unplugged himself to sneak off and have a fag, the staff gave him the big lecture. Mustn't unplug himself, all alarms go off, bad patient, no ciggie!
So he downloaded the user's manual for his Philips clinical monitors and, finding that nobody had thought to make use of the access-restriction features, just turned off the alarm feature, so he could go have a smoke in peace. DOUBLE-lecture. Dunno how, but they caught him.
The forgetfulness has improved again, and apart form "something occupying space" in his brain stem, they have no indication anything is out of the ordinary. He's on an "entry level" blood-thinner for which there's actually an antidote.
He's the kind of computer nerd who grew up fat and anti-social, got thin, got womanizing, studied computer science while working his way up from the customer-service-hotline with the local transit authority. Now has a genuine executive position in a big, multi-national rail company. I think he may have a secretary, but I didn't ask. He's in charge of translating what the IT department wails about into language of the people who never want to spend a penny on IT on the board of directors. Would wear a "Railroad Tycoon" t-shirt if any of the young whippersnappers had any clue what that is. Never wears a tie, but always a kind of neckerchief, complains when they make him put on a bow-tie for functions involving the corporate über-boss. Who happens to be the Willem-Alexander, King of the Netherlands. The outfit, basically a subsidiary of the Dutch crown's own railway enterprises, is presently busy driving the privatized German railway company out of business, taking over almost every line that's up for bidding. Because, when filling out the legally-mandated forms for a bid, which must be filled out by hand, they are too thick to notice they are 2% over the maximum set for some price-difference right in the conditions. They were so thick they even tried to go to court about loosing a bid they just didn't fulfill the minimum requirements for.
I kinda like the idea of the Dutch invading Germany. Even more, I like the idea of the Dutch managing to conquer Germany because the privatized German railways either can't manage 7th grade or so arithmetic, or are so obsessed by getting the numbers precise and accurate (you know, "German"), they can't even notice they aren't matching requirements ... then can't figure out why their bid should loose because of that ... and are too damn thick to just fake it. I really like that idea. Lang leve het rijk van de Nederland! Lang leve de koning Willem-Alexander!

This guy is an inspiration to all. At one point, after the fat-nerd stage, at uni, he had two simultaneous girlfriends ... who knew and approved of each other ... he can't help but sit back and chuckle while the corporate stallions a few levels below him brag about their cars and romantic conquests. While they can't do other but wear proper ties. He doesn't even have, and never had, a driver's license, nor has any intention to acquire one. But he does have a wife and kid, these days.

What he also has is a special pass for travel on the German railroads. Regardless of which operator runs the train. Big corporate CEOs in the business, and some (not all) politicians get one. And he, to his own befuddlement. When the conductors see it, they stand to attention. He can't quite order the train to stop between stations, but pretty much anything else. The thing had a reflective finish on the embossed letters, AND a strip with some anti-forgery patterns that just shined brighter than fucking chrome. Otherwise, entirely unpretentious little gray card, like you'd imagine something would look that's carried by people who are too busy to even show off. No, I've known him for over a decade, he never has bragged about any damn thing, so I'm convinced. Railroad-Tycoon-Club membership card. I used to march under a red banner with that guy. I'm happy for him.
Also, I learned that Bombardier trains suck, will shake the passengers all over the cabin even just on a straight stretch of track. Hitachi trains are pretty neat, so if you gotta buy a train, as with many things, go Japanese.

My buddy Gerd, meanwhile, told us about his unsuccessful quest to find the gang of thugs who jumped him near the train-station of his hometown a month or two ago. He saw one of the trio the other day, but there was a window between them, so no proper encounter could ensue. He only recognized the guy because that was the one he had immobilized and used as a human shield when they had jumped him. Likely dealers who saw him around their turf, the parking lot next to the train station after midnight, and had figured a bald, pot-bellied guy in his late forties must be a plain-clothes cop. Gerd described a few things about the martial arts moves he had used to make them run away like little kids, and the basic principles of these. Andy and I realized that we were experiencing what people like Gerd (who needs advance notice if you send him an Email ...) experience when the likes of Andy and I talk about "classes" and a program being "object oriented".

Headaches have been particularly bad these last few days, had hypno-therapy for pain on Friday ... and the pain got worse right during that therapy, so I had to skip Tai-Chi later that afternoon. With the pain being like that, I welcomed an opportunity to explore the analgesic qualities of beer and single-malt. Also found out there's a ... "connoisseur" beer store withing walking distance of me, where a single, unpretentious bottle, right off of the shelf, can set ya back €20. Didn't go there tonight, but Andy recommended it. A beer place recommended by a railroad-tycoon is probably worth a visit, I should think.
I do not think I'd find anything that can surpass our local brew, but I've been brought up a gentleman. I'll give the other guy a fighting chance, I will.

[Jaeger]

...but I've been brought up a gentleman. I'll give the other guy a fighting chance, I will.

Cheers.

--Jaeger

[Jaeger]

Well, got whacked from my job on Tuesday so I'm looking for work! Already picked up one small contracting gig, hoping to loft myself as a consultant and avoid the full-time corporate wage slave routine. Fuck that noise.

--Jaeger

[xtian]

Well, got whacked from my job on Tuesday so I'm looking for work! Already picked up one small contracting gig, hoping to loft myself as a consultant and avoid the full-time corporate wage slave routine. Fuck that noise.

--Jaeger

Hope that doesn't suck as much as it sound and will eventually turn out as a form of promotion to a higher better position

[Bigshankhank]

Keep the faith Brotha Jeager, I'll buy you a beer next time I see you.

[12ci]

Well, got whacked from my job on Tuesday so I'm looking for work! Already picked up one small contracting gig, hoping to loft myself as a consultant and avoid the full-time corporate wage slave routine. Fuck that noise.

--Jaeger

ouch. sorry to read this...but you're right, fuck that. not luck, skill (well, maybe a bit o'luck, too...)

[Jaeger]

Hahah thanks, guys! Nah, I'm fine. Shit, I'm happier and less stressed now than I was a week ago.

It should be telling that unemployment is preferable and more pleasant than working, even when I have a mortgage and kids to worry about. This revelation has forced me to reconsider how I've been living my life and what I want to do when I grow up.

The point of getting a full-time job—in America, anyway—is to get stability (steady paycheck) and healthcare. In exchange, in 21st Century America, one typically sacrifices a lot more than just 40 hours/week.

For example, in my last job, I was told early on to stop accurately tracking my hours in the timesheet system. They didn't want an auditor to see they were working their salaried folks into the ground, routinely working 60-80+ hour weeks. It's been like that for my past few gigs.

Oh, and it's STILL not enough to support my family without Mishka picking up extra work on the side.

It's everywhere, and it's evil. Companies are trying to stay "streamlined" so they can keep their overhead costs down, which really means they're deliberately understaffed and just squeezing everybody that much harder. Again, last gig, the COO stated as much outright.

Even my Old Man, who was himself a workaholic corporate wage-slave for Uncle Dupy back in the day, has told me "The corporate environment you're dealing with is more stressful and insane than I had, and I'm sorry. It's not fair." This from a classically stoic Midwestern guy who is typically of the "You just gotta work harder, kid" school.

The alternative, of course, is to get 1099 contract work. (Translation for non-Yanks: you're not an "employee" but rather a "vendor" or "contractor.") Ya sacrifice the stability and the healthcare, but you can make a FUCKLOAD more money per hour as a consultant, which can compensate for the slow periods and cover healthcare costs. (Which, incidentally, is now available without an employer courtesy of Obamacare. Thanks, Barry!!)

I'm choosing Option #2. Fuggit. I'd rather cobble together gigs and fill the gaps with something like being an Uber driver than go back to the more-than-full-time grind that is America's corporate world. At least then I only have to deal with the same fuckwits and shitty offices for a few days/weeks at a time, not years.

So we shall see. Hopefully I can pull this off. I should be able to, especially with Mrs. Jaeger's backing. She's very much in favor of this plan after watching me writhe and mutate over the past decade. She knew me when I was a lot more fun. I need to find that guy again. I liked him a lot more.

So.. YIPPIE!

--Jaeger

[Bigshankhank]

TL:DR.

So we shall see. Hopefully I can pull this off. I should be able to, especially with Mrs. Jaeger's backing. She's very much in favor of this plan after watching me writhe and mutate over the past decade. She knew me when I was a lot more fun. I need to find that guy again. I liked him a lot more.

So.. YIPPIE!

--Jaeger

That last statement is what I have been working on these last six months. I have spent every year since the economy tanked making myself miserable trying to protect my family from every going through that kind of eco-hardship, but in the process it has led to depression and massive anxiety for my wife and I. I am about at a point where I might just put on a toolbelt again if it means I no longer have the stress of making "big money". My wife, much like yours, is in favor of this plan. We should introduce them.

[xtian]

You're able to !