Back in the Saddle

Finally after much waiting and puzzling, my bike is back in action. I drove it to work last Friday for the first time this year. Stephen and I determined the fuel leak was probably in the petcock valve assembly, so I ordered one new online. I was going to try to save some money and get one off of ebay or something, but there are so many different kinds that I decided I didn't want to risk it and just ordered it new ($100, ouch). The parts took about two weeks to arrive, which seemed long but whatever. With a little headache I was able to install it and it seems to have fixed the problem. There is still a very small leak (like a half-drop is hanging off the valve in the morning), but I think it's due to the hose. It was pretty hardened and not very supple when I re-attached it, and I will probably try to replace it soon.

Then the battery... it was dead. Even after trying to charge it, it just wouldn't work. So basically I killed a new battery by leaving it hooked in for six months. Makes sense. But I bought a trickle-charger, so hopefully I will be fine for the next storage period. I bought a new battery, charged it, and installed. The bike kicked up to life for the first time in forever! It was a glorious moment.

I had a hard time reinstalling the seat for some reason. I wonder if it's a custom seat, because the seat fastener holes don't quite align with the frame bolt holes. I could get one side in, but for the life of me can't seem to torque the other side into alignment. I now know why the allen-wrench bolt heads were almost stripped (from the last owner trying to get them in). So for now my seat is only half-screwed in. Seems fine though...

Next up is new tires. I'd like to get these taken care of before I go on any major ride. I think I'll take it down to Stephen Wade Powersports and have them install a new rear tire along with my spare front tire that I got from the previous owner. Maybe I'll have them give the bike a once-over: brakes, hoses, etc. Then I'll be ready to rumble.