Partial Order

 

Part of my steel order and the seat cover arrived on Monday. The 36" length of pipe showed up on Tuesday. My battery for the Himalayan was supposed to be here on Monday but no show yet. 

This might have something to do with it - state highway a few miles from my house. If the battery's in there might be a few more days still. No real hurry, the weather's going to turn bad the next few days.

The weatherman's talking of a chance of snow showers and temps below freezing. That's going to turn all the lovely magnolia blossoms a nasty brown. Might kill some of the others that haven't opened up. I'm not sure what it's going to do to the fruit trees. Time will tell, I guess.

I finished up the stand for the SR500 engine. I was waiting to finish it on the 3/8" round for the brace. Surly said he might need something like this for a couple of little Hondas he needs to work on. No problem - I love doing this kind of work.

I figured out what I'm going to do with the fender on the Rickati project. I  made a couple of moves on that yesterday. I plan on getting that squared away today and maybe start on the exhaust pipe modification. Slow but steady wins the race. 

Rickati

 

Worked on the Rickati project a bit yesterday. I'm not totally satisfied with the mounting of the rear fender yet but I'm not real sure what I can do to get it right. I want to keep the fender at the height in the frame where it is now to keep the seat height low. It looks good at the back but the radius doesn't follow the radius of the tire that way, crowding the tire in the front. I'll give it some thought today and see what I come up with.

I need to modify the exhaust pipe a bit - that'll be pretty straight forward. If I get the fender situation figured out today, I'll take the seat pan over to the upholstery guy Monday or Tuesday. I found some shocks that'll work, so I'll get them ordered this week also. 

The seat cover for the jitney that was back ordered from Jegs should be here soon. Should be a good week for the projects, with the battery for the Himalayan and the steel order scheduled for delivery this week too.

Back's At It Again

 Went to the chiropractor yesterday morning. I was starting to feel the warning signs of an impending lock-up. Hard to get much done when that happens.

Probably why the back is screwed up - dancing like this back in my high school days.

Or maybe it was the Twist. I never did any off-roadin', so that can't be it. But if I was going to, this would get me there:

Parnelli Jones' Bronco I saw in an e-mail from Vintage Motorsport magazine. It'll be on the auction block in May at Indy. I went by the local Ford dealer the other day and didn't see any Broncos on the lot. If I don't find the lost key for my pickup pretty soon, I'll be visiting the dealership for a replacement and I'll be able to get the skinny on when the new Broncos should be arriving. I'd like to test drive one of them.

I did get back in the shop later in the day. I got a bit more work done on the engine stand for the SR500. I ordered some steel I needed to finish it up. I could have gotten that locally but I needed some stainless rod for the jitney project that he doesn't carry, so I padded the order with a few other things. Moved forward a few steps on the Rickati as well. I shortened up the fender a bit and fit the rear loop. I bailed out after that since I didn't want to overdo the back. I'm planning on working on the bike some more today. 

I got the battery ordered for the Himalayan - it's supposed to be here on Monday. It's coming by way of Fed Ex, so who knows how that will work. I don't have much faith in that outfit.

And one of the sure signs Spring is here, the magnolia trees are starting to bud out. As long as we don't get a freeze, they should be really lovely this year. I haven't taken a close look at the fruit trees. Hopefully they'll have a good year as well. 

Chopper Neck & Things

 

Surly and one of the grandsons came down again yesterday. That meant the grandson didn't have to share the motorbike with his brother, which made him extremely happy. Surly needed to use the mill to complete the front end components for a chopper he's helping to construct. The neck will end up on the frame building jig he took with him the other day. A couple more of his buddies will be constructing the frame and doing the welding. I told Surly to let me know when they get to the bending and welding. I'd like to check that out.

The frame on the outside of the neck assembly is the start of an engine stand for another of the SR500 motors, This one is not designed as a work stand but for storage. I've got a similar stand for a Sprint motor and it holds the motor safely and makes it easy to move around if need be. When I get this one done I'll make a stand out of 2x4s that will allow me to stack the motors one on top of the other at my storage space.

I heard on the radio yesterday that Osceola Dragway is closing down - made a few passes down that strip years ago on a bike I made for a guy. 

I read the previous post and found several errors. I usually write the post and then re-read it in the preview mode. The post wouldn't load up in the preview mode so I skipped the proof reading step - not good. I corrected the obvious mistakes.

Workin' Fenders

 

I went to deliver the tax stuff to the lady on Monday morning and couldn't find my truck key. I drove the truck on Sunday, but only because the Himalayan had a dead battery again. I had it on the trickle charger and I rode it recently so it should have spun right up, but no go. Still haven't found my key and the bike still doesn't run but I think I found an AGM battery that will fit it. I'll get that ordered up in the next day or two and continue the search for the key - has to be around here somewhere.

Surly and the boys came down Monday with a little dirt bike in the back of their truck. While they were waiting their turn to ride the bike, they helped pick up some of the sticks and branches in the yard for me. Surly also gave me a hand hanging up my heavy bag. I put in a couple of rounds on it yesterday - my punches still have got some snap to them but I couldn't go three hard rounds if my life depended on it. Definitely need to work on my cardio. 

I did a little work on the Rickati yesterday and I started on a rear fender for the SR500. I had the fender blank cut out and annealed so I started hammering. In order to get the curvature required to form the radius to match the tire, you have to flute the edges. I've always had trouble in the past doing this because I was just too tentative hammering in wrinkles on the flanges. After getting it roughed into shape I did a second annealing and then flattened out the flutes and shrunk them to the proper radius. It only took me about an hour to get to what you see in the photo. I've still have a lot of planishing to do but I'm pretty happy that I could get it to this shape in a reasonable amount of time. I might just make it as a metalshaper one of these days. The boat tail on the jitney will be the true test.

Tax Time is Zither & Guitar Time!

 

I was watching TCM yesterday morning for the Film Noire show and The Third Man was the featured movie. I've seen the movie at least a half dozen times and I always thought the musical score was pretty cool. The host, Eddie Muller, always does a lead in and a summary of the featured movie giving some insight about the writer, director and others associated with the production. This time he explained about the musical score and how it was played only on one instrument, the zither. Pretty interesting story about the composer as well.

TCM followed up The Third Man with the movie Go Johnny Go!. A couple of decent soundtracks to listen to whilst finishing up my tax prep. Playing a guitar just like a ringing a bell? Yeah, Chuck was all over that.

Here's another Chuck Berry cut from the movie - one of my favorites, by the way.

Besides being one of the founding fathers of Rock & Roll, the dude was one helluva showman! 

I did finish up most of the tax prep in spite of spending some time dancing around the kitchen table. I just need a couple of numbers on real estate taxes and insurance the Missus needs to find for me and then I can drop everything off with the tax lady.

Didn't get much else done yesterday after putting the tax stuff together other than doing walkies. My running buddy is usually in charge of the group but since she wasn't available I was the man of the hour. Good day to be out walking or running or most any type of outdoor activity. Great way for spring to come rolling in - blue skies and temps in the sixties.. 

Jigs & Fixtures

 

I went over to the high school yesterday morning and got some of my junk I had left behind. In addition to what's in the truck, I put a couple other things in the storage space. The items on the left in the photo are my frame building jig. The wooden box in the right rear is full of various bits and pieces to align and fixture parts for the different bikes, both powered and push bikes, I've built or worked on over the years. Surly and a couple of his buddies have got some things cooking that this will facilitate.  

In the foreground on the right is the "Mitey -Mill" attachment I got with a Kearney & Trecker mill I had for a short time years ago.

It looked like this one. The milling attachment in the truck is designed to clamp to one of the round bars on the top of the mill, increasing the versatility.  It's good for light duty work like cutting keyways. It's probably worth a few bucks to the right guy - be nice if I could find him.

After picking up the load I spent the rest of the day piddling around on odds and ends - graded the lane, made some southwest style veggie soup in the crock pot, picked up some downed branches, replaced the photo eye in the post light out front, and messed around in the shop some more. All things considered, pretty good day.

Dog Days of Spring

 

I took the dog to the groomer yesterday. In addition to getting trimmed up, he smells a lot better now. He was starting to smell rather "doggy". Since the groomer is roughly half way to Menards, I headed up there and got myself another LED light for the shop. They had a 7000 lumen on clearance for $19.99 so that's what I got. While waiting for the groomer to finish up with the dog, I made a stop at the high school on the way home to see about retrieving or borrowing a couple things I had left behind. He's going to dig them out and have the students load them up for me in a day or two. 

I needed to get a blood test, so I got that taken care of at the place conveniently located across the street from the high school and then picked up my corned beef and cabbage dinner. Really tasty and a bargain at $10.00. Easily enough for two meals.

After picking the dog back up I hung the new lamp in the front of the shop. The 7000 lumen is much better than the 10,000 lumen one. It's still plenty bright but it's possible now to look up without blinding yourself. The 10,000 lumen one I installed in the back of the shop. I had to replace a ceramic fixture for an incandescent bulb with a duplex receptacle and put in a couple of screw eyes for hanging the new LED but it didn't take too long. The new light really lights up the back of the shop. Everything worked out rather well.

It's going to be a lousy day today - cold, windy and rainy. I'm planning on working on the taxes a bit, so I may or may not get out to the shop. Need to get back on the projects but cleaning, organizing and improving the working conditions is going to help with my output considerably.

They Put The Royal in Royal Enfield

 

Saw a post on a Facebook group I belong to about a land speed record that was set by a Royal Enfield 650. A very impressive 132 mph for a bike that is relatively close to stock. The link will get you the whole story.

Meanwhile back at the ranch, more interesting late winter weather. Sunday was cloudy and a bit breezy but temps in the fifties. Monday we had blowing winds, freezing rain, sleet and ended up with a coating of what looked like they dumped a sno-cone all over the ground so I just stayed in the house except to get the mail and take care of the chickens. 

Yesterday was warmer with temps in the mid to high thirties under mostly cloudy skies. Not a great day but good enough for me to get out in the shop and hang up the new shelf brackets, install the shelf and put all the goodies I had previously boxed up on the new shelf. I also installed an old Cordomatic work light back there as well. 

eBay photo

I don't usually do much work in the back half of the shop since it's not heated but my sheet metal stuff is back there and I've also got a bike on the stand back there so having a work light might be handy. I also cut out a piece of aluminum and annealed it for making a rear fender for the SR500. No need for that currently but if I feel spunky one of these days I might start on it. I'd like to get half way proficient as a metal shaper before I die and there's only one way to get better at it and that's practice.

It's supposed to be warmer today but turn crappy later this evening with more rain coming in. Looks like it'll be nice on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday with temps in the sixties. That's what I've been waiting on since about October. I've still got a little more organization to take care of, so after I get the dog to the groomer I'll work on finishing up that and then get back to the bike and/or car project. Maybe break training and get some corned beef and cabbage.

Tax Time Paranoia

 

From here

Once again, just like the swallows returning to Capistrano, time to pay my tribute to Uncle Sam. While this never makes me happy, this year after seeing all the tax money that was given away for things totally unrelated to Covid relief during the middle of a government decreed pandemic, I now just shake my head in disbelief. The one thing that has come about now is they have finally pulled back the curtain. They no longer are trying to hide what's going on. 

National Guard troops and razor wire around the Capitol building, movement towards banning guns, the FBI asking for help identifying people who were involved in the "armed insurrection" (where there were no arms), which I take to mean ratting out your neighbors, raising the minimum wage to a "living wage" - you know, like the old commie thing where "we pretend to work and they pretend to pay us." Since they've been running the printing presses overtime, inflation will take care of the minimum wage. It'll take a handful of the devalued currency to just to buy a hamburger when you place your order at the kiosk rather than dealing with some high school kid trying to save up a few bucks. Actually, there won't be any folding money before too many more years. It won't be long and the government will be converting to some form of digital money. They'll just call in the green backs and issue you a digital account. They'll then be able to track everything you bring in and what you spend it on. Couple that up with the GPS in your phone and vehicle, and Big Brother will have completed the takeover. Don't think it could happen? Remember what FDR did with gold. And how are you going to stop them? By voting for a "new" president every four years? Brother Johnny said it best: "We're boned."

And this just in from the you've got to be kidding me department:

"Michigan State Economics Professor Mark Skidmore revealed three years ago there was $21 trillion in what he called “Missing Money” from the Department of Defense (DOD) and Housing and Urban Development (HUD). To hide what was going on with the federal books, Congress made all government accounting a national security issue, making it impossible to get real accounting of money “We the People” pay in taxes. Now, even more unofficial and unaccounted for cash has been revealed from the DOD. It’s an eye popping $94 trillion from the years 2017 to 2019. So, add in the $30 trillion in official debt, and that means there is at least $145 trillion in overt and covert money floating around in the federal government, not counting Social Security and Medicare commitments. This story sounds like a fantasy or a cartoon, but it’s totally backed up with facts you will never hear on the legacy media. Dr. Skidmore, who is an expert in public budgets, explains, “In my mind, it does not follow the principles laid out in our Constitution in accounting for revenues coming in and expenditures going out. It’s fraudulent in my mind.”

So Professor Skidmore is saying there's $145 trillion dollars that's been lost, stolen, mis-spent off the books or is somehow unaccounted for. When you realize that a trillion dollar stack of $100 dollar bills is 631 miles high, $145 trillion would be a stack of Benjamins 91,495 miles high. If you can afford to "lose" or spend off the books $145 trillion, rather than passing the $2 trillion "relief bill" and giving us $1,400, they could easily have given every 331,000,000 of us a cool million and saved money by the billions and only contributed slightly more to the escalating inflation heading our way. No way we're voting our way out of this mess.

 

The tax lady is not having anyone in for sit-down meetings this year so I can't just dump the shoe box of receipts on her desk. I need to dig out last year's return and see exactly what all I'll need and then drop it off. She told me to call her when I get close to the bottom of the box.

Let There Be Light

 

I had a two bulb fluorescent fixture quit that was hanging from the shop ceiling. I bought a LED replacement but couldn't find one like the other one I replaced a couple of years ago. The one in the photo is rated at 10,000 lumens. I had no idea how that compared to the fluorescent fixture but after hanging it up the new light is almost too bright. I'm thinking about getting one a little less bright and hanging this one in the back part of the shop where I have a taller ceiling and the need for a bit more light. I've got a Sprint on a stand in the back I'd like to get closer to the finish line. I have noticed the cataract operation has made things brighter but more light would be better.

I made the shelf brackets for the back of the shop. The shop has a three foot straight wall and then has laminated beams forming the upper walls and roof in the shape of a Gothic arch. Because of that you can't just go to the home supply and buy off the shelf brackets, especially since I want a shelf about 2 feet wide. The beams are on 3' centers, so I bought 8' shelf boards that I'll trim about a foot off giving me roughly 6" of overhang on each end. I'll hang the two end brackets then pull a string line to find the height for the center one. I've got most of the items I want to put on the shelf already organized and boxed up. Now that I've got better lighting and organization, back on the projects.

Golden Anniversary

 

The Missus and I are celebrating our 50th wedding anniversary today. It won't be much of a celebration due to the cooties and our age - we definitely don't party like we used to - but we're both still kicking and have been able to live in quarantine with one another for the past year without getting at each others throats. Actually, as we've gotten older our love for each other has gotten stronger, probably as a result of realizing what's most important in our lives and relationship. If the truth be known, she always knew. I was the guy who took a while to figure it out. 

We didn't have much of a honeymoon when we got married. I had gotten laid off from my job as a welder shortly before our wedding, so I got a job as a laborer at the mill. We got married on a Friday evening and I was back to work on Monday. We've had several nice vacations celebrating our anniversaries over the years but this year we were planning on a trip to Hawaii. In fact, we've been planning on it for fifty years (Hawaii is the only state left on my quest to see all 50 also).

So no big party, no trip to Hawaii. Just the two of us spending the day together. I'm just very thankful we still have each other and our love has gotten stronger with the passage of time.

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I bent another rear hoop while I had the tools out. This one will be for the SR500. 

I've been doing some cleaning/organizing in the shop. I made this seat cowl for a vintage road racer project that didn't happen. While moving things around I thought I'd see how close it came to fitting on the hoop. Just pert near perfect. Need to remember that for future reference. 

I'm going to put up a shelf in the back of the shop to store some boxes of parts. I've got boxes for four projects that I'm working on or planning to as time and money allow. The Rickati and the jitney are the two highest priorities. I want to get the Rickati finished up so I've got more room to work on the jitney.  I'll have the shelf up in a day or two, do a bit more clean up work in the back of the shop and then turn up the wick.

Kickstand Kure

 Another lovely day yesterday - temps in the high sixties and some heavy breezes. But I no longer need to fear the wind blowing the Himalayan over. I shortened the kick stand by 3/4". I first took a look at my bicycle since it has a kickstand and is about the same height as the motorcycle. After leaning it over a few times and looking at the clearance of the stand with the floor, I figured 1/2" should do it. 

I clamped a couple of pieces to the bench top to make sure I could get the foot on the bottom of the stand at the correct angle when welding it back on. There's a rod bent into a vee shape on the side of the stand that you use to push the stand down that had to be cut off and moved up also. I cut what needed to be cut, welded everything back together, primed, painted and reinstalled it on the bike. It was a lot better but not quite enough. I went ahead and cut another 1/4" out of it while I had all the tools out, repainted and reinstalled it. Looks to be perfect now.

I did notice while deciding what to do that it takes very little to compress the forks initially. Because the bike was nearly vertical when on the side stand if it straightened up at all, the weight would shift and the forks would compress just enough to allow the bike to become straight up. Then the slightest thing would allow it to go over center and hit the ground. Should be cured now. 

Laid It Down Twice - Without Even Being On It

 It was a beautiful day yesterday - sunny, temps close to seventy, blue skies. It was windy, though. Gusts maybe 25 - 30 mph. I fiddled around in the shack in the morning but since I had a couple of books to return to the library I thought I'd get the Himalayan out and take it. I rolled it outside, got suited up and a dead battery even though I had it on a trickle charger all winter. I hooked it up to the big charger for a while and it lit right off. I got suited up again and took off for the library. 

When I parked at the library the blacktop was on a bit of a slant, so I made sure the kickstand was on the downhill side since the stand is too long. I went inside and sure enough when I came back out the wind had blown the bike over on its side. I got it stood back up with no real damage. The crash bars were a good investment and my helmet was hanging on the handlebars where it hit. It got a scuff but didn't hurt the throttle grip. I went home, took my helmet off opened up the saddle bag on the kickstand side to take the mail out and the damn thing fell over again. I was holding the lid to the bag when it started to go but I could feel the hinge bending so I sold it out. So my first ride of the year ended up with the bike being blown over twice within a span of about fifteen minutes. Lifting it up the first time wasn't too bad but I felt it in my back on the second one. The old biker rule of not riding it if you can't pick it up hit home. It's rare that you need to do it twice within fifteen minutes, however. 

I read an advertisement for the new Himalayans and it said they were fitted with an improved kickstand, so there is definitely an issue. I'm not going to ride my bike again until I shorten the kickstand. I'll take about a 1/4" out of it and that should keep it from falling over again in the future. Hard on my bike, my helmet and my back. Enough is enough.

Vaya Con Dios, Mary

 

My Aunt Mary passed away yesterday just a few days shy of her 93rd birthday. That's her seated in the photo with her sister standing next to her. She too died at the age of 92. There was a third sister that made it to 95. However, their brother, my dad, only made it to 74, and it took two open heart surgeries to get that far. One of my mom's sisters is still living but she's the last of that generation in my family. Mary was in an assisted living facility and I hadn't seen her since I helped move her in. I worked for her husband right out of high school before I started college and then off and on after that. He's the one who taught me how to weld, for which I owe an eternal debt of gratitude. 

Having worked on my family history and having attended the family reunions when I was young and all the elders were still around, I learned quite a bit about my people. No royalty or upper crust, just good honest hard-working people. People I'm very proud to call my family. Rest in peace, Mary. You'll be missed.

Jumping Through Hoops

The local PBS station was fundraising last evening and showed The Last of the Breed featuring Ray Price, Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson. Ray's voice wasn't as good as it once was but you'll have that. He was smooth as silk back in the day, though.

I hooked everything up to get my computer operational in the shop yesterday. It started off well but then the signal slowed down and then I lost the signal completely. Fun while it lasted, though. I've got one more thing to try. If that doesn't do it I'll probably go with plan B. Not sure what plan B is yet. Might have to go with something like Plan Nine From Outer Space in order to get the signal beamed in.

The day wasn't a total loss, though. I did some much needed organizing and cleaning and then bent the rear hoop for the Rickati project. I get that taken care of I can mount the fender and seat pan. I talked to the upholstery guy last week and he can make me a seat at a reasonable price. I'll get the Rickati seat done and then have him do the one for the SR500. I'll need another rear hoop for that one as well. I'll take the one in the photo over to the storage space and see how close it comes to fitting. I think the width should be just about right. 

The hoop is the first piece I've bent since repairing the bender after bending it when I bent the square tube for the jitney cab. The 3/4 round bent easily enough. The design of the bender makes it hard to get a full 180 bend, however. The piece that holds the tube in the bender doesn't keep it tight to the die on the initial bend so you loose maybe 5 degrees or so. It's what I've got to work with and the radius is good for bike work, so I'll  keep plugging away. I want to finish the rest of the bike and then send the engine out to my buddy. I can finish the welding and paint it while he's fiddling the engine. It's time to get this one done. 

I'll be back on the jitney this coming week as well as doing some yard work. I've got lots of branches and small limbs that came down due to the recent ice storm that need to be gathered up. Always things to do if you're a homeowner.

HD & TVI

 

When I was out on Tuesday, I stopped to see TVI, who's blogging again by the way. He recently retired and wants to get his old Harley together. He wanted my opinion on a frame modification but he also tossed out the idea of modifying the gas tanks. He wants to turn his 3-1/2 gallon tanks into six gallon ones. He's not really concerned about the capacity but he saw a pair like that many years ago and liked how they looked. I'm relatively certain I could do the job justice but I don't know if I really want to tackle it. He won't be ready for the tanks for a while, so I could do them next winter but I'll have to have a couple more of my own projects done first. I keep hearing the clock ticking louder and louder all the time. 

I got the shelf built and hung up yesterday so I can hook up the computer. I've only got a duplex receptacle to plug it into, so I'm going to install a larger box so I'll have at least four outlets. I need one for the Powerline box, one for the amplifier unit, one for the computer charger if need be, and one for my electric pencil sharpener. I should probably go six so I can plug in a small light under the shelf and leave one open for any tool I might need to use on the bench.

Now that I've got music, no excuse for slackerism.

We Have Music

 

I heard this on the Irish station I've been listening to of late. I can get really great music from Galway on Saturday mornings with no commercials but have to listen to the same old playlist on the local stations. I like classic rock but I've been listening to it since it was brand new. Someone should tell the movers and groovers at the radio stations that albums had more than one song on them. It wouldn't hurt to dig a little deeper into the archives and expand the playlist. And maybe get some decent jazz and blues as well. 

Which brings me back to getting the computer in the shop. I took a little trip to HQ of my local electric provider on Tuesday to see if they could shed a little light on what goes on inside the meter box. The incoming power from the pole enters the meter box and then splits into two 100 amp sub-feeds, one for the house and one for the shop. I don't know if they are isolated from one another when they leave the meter, which would prevent the Powerline 1200 units from talking to each other. I talked to two guys from operations and surprisingly enough, they couldn't answer the question. The one guy said he was going to look into it for me, though. However,

I decided to try some things yesterday and I got it up and running. Pretty pleased with that. I'll now be able to pick up radio stations from all over the world. I've jumped around on Radio Garden a bit to see what comes up and I'm never going to run out of musical options now. And it couldn't have come at a better time. Yesterday was the warmest day of the year so far - up into the fifties. Sun was shining. Projects coming together. One of those days when everything was right with the world.

Finished up the engine stand yesterday. I was trouble shooting the computer set-up while the paint was drying. When I got it figured out I took myself a little break then loaded up the stand, dropped it off at the storage space and then headed uptown to the lumberyard. I picked up a 1x12x8' for the princely sum of $20.00 - been awhile since I've been to the lumberyard. And after going to the grocery store earlier in the day, I'm thinking those official government inflation numbers are more than a little under reported. Anyway, I knocked out a quickie shelving unit for the laptop and the amplifier and speakers. I need to make a couple of angle irons to use to fasten the unit to the wall. I'll get those made up today and throw some paint on them. If the paint's dry in time I'll get every thing hung up and wired. 

I love it when a plan comes together!

Surf's Up

 A few things seen recently during my travels around the web:

Mr. Norm of Grand Spaulding Dodge passed away recently - big, big player during the muscle car era. My brother from a different mother drove us up there one time while I was recovering from an injury received while working at a foundry - March or April 1970 (many of the events in my life are dated by the injury I was recovering from at the time). Grand Spaulding used to run some cool radio ads - " dyno timed and analyzed, carburetor calibrated, soda pop carbonated" or something along those lines. Not sure  exactly, it's been 50 years and several concussions later, after all.

Toyota - the official truck of terrorists. I thought this one was pretty funny. I don't suppose any of the automakers are trying to gain market share.

I had a set of Firestone Town & Country tires back in the day. They would indeed get you through the snow. I don't recall Firestone having all the other Firestone branded products. In fact, I don't think I ever saw a Firestone spark plug. There was a Firestone service center in town back then but I was only in the place a couple of times. Other than tires, I did all my own service work on my vehicles.

I'm leaning towards a scrambler rather than pure flat tracker with the SR500 now. I do have two rollers, however. One scrambler, one flat tracker. That's Jeff Smith in the photo - he was the Executive Director  of AHRMA when I was involved back then. Nice guy. World motocross champion and British trials champion.

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I finished the head for the engine stand but when I drug the rest of the stand out it was looking pretty shabby. I took the cup brush on the $9.99 Harbor Freight grinder and cleaned things up. I put a coat of paint on the bottom of it yesterday. I'll assemble it today, finish painting it and get a photo posted. 

Bit of This - Not Much of That

 

'No one starts out on top, you have to work your way up. Some mountains are higher than others, some roads steeper than the next. There are hardships and setbacks but you must not let them stop you. Even on the steepest road, you must not turn back. You must keep going up. In order to reach the top of the mountain, you must climb every rock.'
- Muhammad Ali

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Stopped by the storage unit to grab the cases for the SR500 on the way to meet up with the group from the boxing club yesterday. We had a few runners and a few walkers. I would expect to see a few more as the weather warms up. However, with no fights on the horizon and the Covid concern still out there, don't know if the nice weather will be enough to get them out to do their roadwork. Normally the Golden Gloves would be starting in just a couple of weeks and everyone would be training hard getting in shape and getting their weight down. 

I'm planning on getting the head for the engine stand welded up today. I'll bolt the cases together, tack the pieces together, finish weld it and then paint it. Maybe take it and the stand over to the storage space after the paint dries and get it set up. I need to go out anyway to drop the parts off for the side hustle.

I hooked everything up to run the computer in the shop but no go. Each of the plug-in units has three lights on the front of them. All were lit up but when I logged in to the computer, no go. Windows does a diagnostic check and it came back as no valid IP address. It's supposed to be just plug and play. I knew that was too good to be true. I sent off an e-mail to tech support. I'll see if that does any good.

Today's supposed to be the coldest day of the week but still above freezing. Since it's going to be warmer, time to start working more hours in the shop and getting out on the bike. I did walk four miles yesterday, though. If I add in some strength training I'll be good as gold. Or good enough for a seventy year old dude who doesn't have an event to train for either.