I needed to have the temporary plate extended for another month, because the CHP verification officer can't see me until May 15th. I went to DMV yesterday, and lo and behold, they were helpful and gave me an extension on my plate. I almost fainted!
Today, I took her down to get gas. After that, I decided to take her for a little ride. I didn't get very far before I had a little adventure on her. The right side (drive side) chain tensioner adjusting bolt went "bap!" when I hit second gear pulling away from a light, and the rear wheel cocked sideways. The threads in the tensioner had stripped out! The chain started slapping the swingarm, and I thought for all the world the transmission had grenaded. I had just put the toolkit in the toolbox, thank heavens, and I was able to get the rear wheel sort of straight. I had to jam the head of the tensioner bolt into the space between the rear axle and swingarm to keep the wheel semi-straight, but it got me home. I'm ordering two NEW chain tensioners right away!!!
I also discovered the left carb drips fuel out of the overflow when the engine isn't running, no matter if the petcock is open or not. I have to look at that.
On a good note, she continues to turn heads! I had two pictures taken of me and her today, and one offer (more a demand!) to sell her! That fella gave me his card and asked me to bring her to some custom chopper place here in Monterey so "the boys there can see it." I'd bet he'll try and get me to sell her, so I won't be doing that!
Quite a day!
What a concept - A Girl Bringing Back Her 1966 Super Hawk
Graham, you're right! I had way too little torque on the axle nut. That's been taken care of. And, she now rides and shifts even smoother than she had been. I put over an hour in on her today. I allowed her to rev up to redline in second gear a couple of times, and she was quite willing to do that. She is such a cool Old Girl! 1965 CB77 305 Super Hawk
1989 NT650 Hawk GT 1981 Yamaha XJ550 Seca
I'm still putting into perspective why my 305 turns so many heads! The last time I spent any time on it, I was a young 23 year old, and she was just "another Japanese Motorcycle". She didn't turn heads at all (I only did because not many women rode in those days). After thinking on it today, I came to realization that most of the folks who have been admiring the Old Girl have probably never seen a 1960's Japanese Motorcycle, and probably not a vintage British or Italian bike, either. Harley's, sure. Most have not known what make the Old Girl is, and most haven't even asked, just wanting to know "what year is it?" They're surprised when they hear the answer. You would think it would be young people wondering about her, but it's 50/50, roughly. One thing that comes to me over and over is the sheer number of people who DO appreciate her. That is really heart warming!
1965 CB77 305 Super Hawk
1989 NT650 Hawk GT 1981 Yamaha XJ550 Seca
New helmet, new over the glasses goggles, new gloves, I just need new boots!
http://youtu.be/do39eK18gNM 1965 CB77 305 Super Hawk
1989 NT650 Hawk GT 1981 Yamaha XJ550 Seca
I'm not so sure about those tires! She's a bit wobbly at low speed, steers slowly, and has an odd "falling" feeling when starting into a turn. I wouldn't go out and really try to go fast on her, but she's a little unsettling in the corners. I think a lot of that is the skinny Heidenau tires (OEM spec), and some may be the shocks. I'm going to up the preload on the shocks at some point to see what happens.
She didn't want to start yesterday! The battery was really low. I looked into it, and the battery was really down on fluid! That was my fault, I left it on a charger for too long, and it boiled the fluid out. I refilled it, recharged it, and hopefully I still have a good battery. I checked the plugs yesterday, and she appears to be a bit on the rich side. That's okay! I have fiddled with the air screws on the carbs, and OMG are they touchy. As LM told me "1/16 turn either way". He's not kidding! Idle is still all over the place. She idles really well, but she will idle up when she's hot (about 1500 - 1800 RPM) and I have reset the idle stops. Then, when she cools off, I have to set them back in. New engine, I guess! My shift linkage has a lot of slop in it, most of it is the clamp that attaches to the shift rod on the engine. I have to be P O S I T I V E with the shifts, or she will hang up between gears, especially on the downshift. Other than that, I love her! 1965 CB77 305 Super Hawk
1989 NT650 Hawk GT 1981 Yamaha XJ550 Seca
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