Emerikol
02-25-2023, 08:54 AM
So the weather out here in West Georgia was finally nice for a day. A whole day!! Can you believe it?!?! No rain, no 75mph straight line winds, just a blue sky with a few clouds, and a nice 70'ish degree temperature. I decided that it was finally time to dig the motorcycles out of the dark, neglected corner of the workshop/garage.
First, the V-Star...
Go to move the V-star and I hear the distinct metal clanging of the tools I'd left on the seat hitting the concrete. What were they doing there? Oh yeah, I tried to crank it a few weeks ago and the battery was dead, so I took the battery out and put it on the charger. I left the tools there so I wouldn't lose them when it was time to put everything back together after the battery finished charging (also a few weeks ago. :ohno: Good thing the charger automatically switches over to maintainer mode). So, I shuffle off to the charger, grab the battery, and a few tightened fasteners later, everything is back together. Hit the starter and after several shots of the magic button, some finagling of the choke, and a few choice words, the bike finally comes to life... And promptly stalls out... Again with the button, a crack of throttle, and it stays running! Ok. One down, three to go...
Next, the DR...
With the V-star out of the way and singing merrily in the driveway, it's time to focus on the DR. Climb on (and I do mean 'climb') and turn the key. All the lights come on! This is promising! Make sure the fuel is turned on; check! Pull the choke lever out and hit the button: There's just enough juice in the battery to get it to kick over. Same thing though, it takes a bit to wake it up. After a few nudges, it's also bumping happily over and warming up. Move that one up next to the V-Star...
Onwards, Mighty Ural...
So now it's time to get out the big guns. The Ural got a new battery a few months ago, so no issues there. I turn the key on and I'm rewarded with the warm glow of the dash lights. Hit the button and after what seems like an eternity the engine actually starts firing instead of just turning over. It takes it a bit to get going consistently, but that's always been a thing with the Ural. Have I mentioned that I really don't like the fuel injection system on that bike? I have a throttle lock for it, so I set it to feed in a bit more fuel and get it warming up. Off to the playground next to the DR and V-Star. One left...
So now I turn my attention to the Hawk...
This one checks all the boxes! Flat tires? CHECK! Stone dead battery? CHECK! At least the fuel in the tank is treated... Before I even get started on anything else, I want to get the battery charging. Pull the plastics, disconnect the laughably tiny battery, and get it over to the charger. Once it's going on the low and slow mode (15 amp tends to boil these small batteries. The 3 amp doesn't seem to be too destructive, and doesn't take very long to bring them back to life) I can start in with everything else. So with the battery going it's time to move the bike so I can better go over everything. I push and shove, and manhandle the Hawk to the open space in the shop. Get some air in the tires, and they seem to be holding. Check the oil, and there's a distinct milky smudge on the sight glass. The temperature cycles over the winter must have made a decent amount of condensation in the engine. No worries, once I get it running, that will vaporize off. I wipe everything down with a rag and get the dust and fluff off, and hook up a spare battery to at least get everything moving. Hit the starter button and the engine quickly comes to life... And just as quickly dies... Button/fire/dies goes on for a few minutes until the bike finally stays running. The fuel light on the dash is flashing, and the gauge reads empty. The tach also indicates 4,000 rpm. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that's probably not right. (I have one of the aftermarket digital units I bought off here. Might be time for a replacement) No matter, the engine is running and idling just fine, and isn't making any expensive sounding noises. The valves sound a little tappy though, they're probably going to need some adjustment soon, but nothing to worry about now. So I pick up the extra battery I've got (it's a lawn and garden battery, so mounting it in the bike isn't really an option. Some short jumper wires make it easy to do this kind of thing on motorcycles, though) and move the Hawk out into the sunshine.
By this time, my buddy TJ has tuned up on his Harley. After a few obligatory jokes about his Harley being in my driveway bringing down my property value and causing the neighbors to talk about me (I really don't like Harley-Davidson. Not even a little bit), we decide to go for a shakedown ride. At least, it's a shakedown ride for me, he's had his bikes out a couple times already. So I shut down the other bikes, and hop on the V-Star. We go out and clock about 20 miles on the bikes, then head back to my place. It's getting to be lunch time, and the Missus and I always go out to lunch together on Fridays. So out pops Mrs. E and we pile into/onto the Ural, and go get some lunch (Brown Dog Eatery in downtown Carrollton. It's a bit pricey, but the Duck Fat Fries and AMAZING! Shameless plug: https://www.browndogeatery.com/ ). After a nice leisurely lunch, we head out to Lowe's to pick up a flower pot and stand for a very nice set of flowers that one of our friends got us. After a couple hours and a few dozen miles, we head on home. The Missus heads back in get back to work, and I decide it's time to take the Hawk out for a few miles. Grab the now-charged battery off the shelf and with a few twists of my faithful phillips head, we're back in business. Off I go for a ride around town on all the backroads, and I get to check the Hawk off the list. That only leaves the DR that hasn't been ridden. Regrettably, I'm out of time. It's a little later in the afternoon and I need to go collect the Mutant from school. The DR will just have to wait for the next nice day. I did, however, remember to put the charger on it so the battery will be fully topped up for the next time!
First, the V-Star...
Go to move the V-star and I hear the distinct metal clanging of the tools I'd left on the seat hitting the concrete. What were they doing there? Oh yeah, I tried to crank it a few weeks ago and the battery was dead, so I took the battery out and put it on the charger. I left the tools there so I wouldn't lose them when it was time to put everything back together after the battery finished charging (also a few weeks ago. :ohno: Good thing the charger automatically switches over to maintainer mode). So, I shuffle off to the charger, grab the battery, and a few tightened fasteners later, everything is back together. Hit the starter and after several shots of the magic button, some finagling of the choke, and a few choice words, the bike finally comes to life... And promptly stalls out... Again with the button, a crack of throttle, and it stays running! Ok. One down, three to go...
Next, the DR...
With the V-star out of the way and singing merrily in the driveway, it's time to focus on the DR. Climb on (and I do mean 'climb') and turn the key. All the lights come on! This is promising! Make sure the fuel is turned on; check! Pull the choke lever out and hit the button: There's just enough juice in the battery to get it to kick over. Same thing though, it takes a bit to wake it up. After a few nudges, it's also bumping happily over and warming up. Move that one up next to the V-Star...
Onwards, Mighty Ural...
So now it's time to get out the big guns. The Ural got a new battery a few months ago, so no issues there. I turn the key on and I'm rewarded with the warm glow of the dash lights. Hit the button and after what seems like an eternity the engine actually starts firing instead of just turning over. It takes it a bit to get going consistently, but that's always been a thing with the Ural. Have I mentioned that I really don't like the fuel injection system on that bike? I have a throttle lock for it, so I set it to feed in a bit more fuel and get it warming up. Off to the playground next to the DR and V-Star. One left...
So now I turn my attention to the Hawk...
This one checks all the boxes! Flat tires? CHECK! Stone dead battery? CHECK! At least the fuel in the tank is treated... Before I even get started on anything else, I want to get the battery charging. Pull the plastics, disconnect the laughably tiny battery, and get it over to the charger. Once it's going on the low and slow mode (15 amp tends to boil these small batteries. The 3 amp doesn't seem to be too destructive, and doesn't take very long to bring them back to life) I can start in with everything else. So with the battery going it's time to move the bike so I can better go over everything. I push and shove, and manhandle the Hawk to the open space in the shop. Get some air in the tires, and they seem to be holding. Check the oil, and there's a distinct milky smudge on the sight glass. The temperature cycles over the winter must have made a decent amount of condensation in the engine. No worries, once I get it running, that will vaporize off. I wipe everything down with a rag and get the dust and fluff off, and hook up a spare battery to at least get everything moving. Hit the starter button and the engine quickly comes to life... And just as quickly dies... Button/fire/dies goes on for a few minutes until the bike finally stays running. The fuel light on the dash is flashing, and the gauge reads empty. The tach also indicates 4,000 rpm. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that's probably not right. (I have one of the aftermarket digital units I bought off here. Might be time for a replacement) No matter, the engine is running and idling just fine, and isn't making any expensive sounding noises. The valves sound a little tappy though, they're probably going to need some adjustment soon, but nothing to worry about now. So I pick up the extra battery I've got (it's a lawn and garden battery, so mounting it in the bike isn't really an option. Some short jumper wires make it easy to do this kind of thing on motorcycles, though) and move the Hawk out into the sunshine.
By this time, my buddy TJ has tuned up on his Harley. After a few obligatory jokes about his Harley being in my driveway bringing down my property value and causing the neighbors to talk about me (I really don't like Harley-Davidson. Not even a little bit), we decide to go for a shakedown ride. At least, it's a shakedown ride for me, he's had his bikes out a couple times already. So I shut down the other bikes, and hop on the V-Star. We go out and clock about 20 miles on the bikes, then head back to my place. It's getting to be lunch time, and the Missus and I always go out to lunch together on Fridays. So out pops Mrs. E and we pile into/onto the Ural, and go get some lunch (Brown Dog Eatery in downtown Carrollton. It's a bit pricey, but the Duck Fat Fries and AMAZING! Shameless plug: https://www.browndogeatery.com/ ). After a nice leisurely lunch, we head out to Lowe's to pick up a flower pot and stand for a very nice set of flowers that one of our friends got us. After a couple hours and a few dozen miles, we head on home. The Missus heads back in get back to work, and I decide it's time to take the Hawk out for a few miles. Grab the now-charged battery off the shelf and with a few twists of my faithful phillips head, we're back in business. Off I go for a ride around town on all the backroads, and I get to check the Hawk off the list. That only leaves the DR that hasn't been ridden. Regrettably, I'm out of time. It's a little later in the afternoon and I need to go collect the Mutant from school. The DR will just have to wait for the next nice day. I did, however, remember to put the charger on it so the battery will be fully topped up for the next time!