motorcycle maintenance

Some find rest on a couch reading a good book, some recharge their batteries on a beach tanning under the sun, others find solace doing yoga poses on stand up paddle boards and as much as I find bliss in a snowy mountaintop view, I love a busy garage: the smell of gasoline, the sound of bad music, the cold metal and the hot blowtorch, the clink of a dropped wrench and tinkle of ice in a mason jar of scotch. Todd’s shop is special in this way, crowded with bikes and tools here is the place where bikes and riders properly worship the God of Speed and ply The Carb Whisperer’s expertise. This is the Garage Mahal, a Mecca with every tool you could think of, all the expertise you need and all of the reasons to never leave.

Slow Bike Fast

by Ted Edwards | Aug 11, 2021 | Legendary Bikes, Nuts & Bolts, Ride Life | 18 |

Deposited like an ambulance delivering two terminally ill patients, a pair of ancient Honda Trial 90s were dropped off in front of my house silently; no fanfare, no excitement, no hurry or joy, unloaded quietly, then slowly rolled into my garage, their future operating room. Last licensed and running when President Clinton was entangled with Monica Lewinsky they languished outside for dozens of years worth of northwest sub-zero temps and triple digit heat. Decrepit and decaying, my job was to get them running. I promised their owner I could. I opened my mouth again.

Rockin To The Oldies

by Rob Brooks | Jul 2, 2021 | Nuts & Bolts, Ride Life | 2 |

A couple of years ago I had the opportunity to wrench on an older bike, a 1969 Triumph T100. An acquaintance had asked if I could help him get it running again. He had told me the bike would kick over after some tickling and kicking (it’s still a full kick-start), but not stay running more than about 30-40 seconds. Conceding that I am no master mechanic, yet interested in seeing if I could bring it back to good health, I agreed to take a shot at it…

GPI Pro Series Motorcycle Stands

by Ted Edwards | May 28, 2021 | Nuts & Bolts | 0 |

I ordered the GP Pro Series stands from GPI Industries which set me back $249.99. GP Pro Series stands are mandrel bent from one piece of 1 3/8″ tubular carbon steel meaning no joints, no wobbly bolts holding them together and no major assembly, just attach the wheels and they are ready to use. A lifetime guarantee accompanies every stand but after looking over their one piece construction I can’t imagine where they would fail.

Rinehart Slip On – DBX Comparison

by Phil Gauthier | Nov 2, 2020 | Nuts & Bolts | 0 |

A few weeks after I bought my Harley-Davidson Street Glide Special someone asked “What are you going to do to make it yours?” I wasn’t sure what he meant. Later while on a ride a buddy on an older Street Glide riding behind me, at our next fuel stop stated “Man, we’ve gotta get you some sound on that thing. Those stock pipes are way too quiet.” He then promptly lent me a set of Cobra slip-ons which he had replaced with Rineharts. I finally understood what they meant. I had to make my bike look, ride and sound like I wanted it to.