Back to Work – Walnut, CA – 13 June 2018

13 June 2018 – Everybody was up and moving around early this morning. Early morning is a favorite of my brother mainly because it’s cooler and he sets outside and reads. So far, the temps have been in the 90’s+ F / 32’s+ C. I can tell you Mary’s perfect day is 60 F / 16 C so you know how she feels about hot days. Mary and Tonya are going for pedicures and shopping. I and Larry are going to work on my motorcycle some and then go order some parts.   I need to order a new top motor mount and get a couple of oil filters. I’m also going to check brake caliper pads availability. I’m out of them and I need a spare set for the ride home.  

Today I’m going to remove the rear wheel and then clean up the swing arm, the axle and all the rest of the components. I’m also going to check the wheel bearings, rear shock and the shock dampener in the rear wheel hub to see if it needs to be replaced. I always check everything when I have it apart. If anything is slightly worn, I replace it. I see that the saddle bag mounting frame is bent. Probably as a result of being blown over three times down in Patagonia, Argentina. The Pantagonia winds beat me up pretty bad when I was down there. I almost crashed because of them. On the way down to Ushuaia it wasn’t too bad but on the return trip…..oh what a pain.

I filled my pan with fresh gasoline and washed up all the parts and wrapped them in a white towel. Then I start wiping down the swing arm. I cleaned everything that is easily accessible and also inside the swing arm tubes where the chain adjusters go. I check the shock sock that it’s not torn or has any holes in it. It primarily keeps the dirt off the working components of the shock. I’m pretty much done here.

The next thing I will tackle is changing my tire. I broke down the rear tire and removed it. I installed my new Michelin Anakee III tire. Boy, that tire did not want to go on that rim. And you guessed it, I pinched the tube during the struggle to get 2nd bead on. I had to break down one bead again, pull out the inner tube and put in my spare tube. It’s the one I keep in the black storage tube just in front of the engine. You already know I was seeing red and was glowing in the dark. We got the 2nd bead seated again and inflated the tire. As fate would have it, one of the beads would not seat on the rim. I lubed up the rim and tire and inflated the tire to 40 psi. The bead still didn’t seat. I bumped up the pressure 50 psi. and the bead didn’t seat. So, I rolled the tire out in the sun and parked it. Hopefully, mother nature can help me out. I also want to monitor the tire pressure in case I pinched the inner tube again.

So, were off to Bert’s Mega Mall to order parts. I have my list together and am psyching myself up for this. If I walk out of Bert’s for less than $100 I’ll faint. I need 1 ea. top motor mount bracket with bolts & nuts, 2 ea. oil filters and 1 ea. rear tire inner tube. I’ll check and see if they sell Galfer brake caliper pads. I need 1 ea. set of rear brake pads. Well, roughly $80 for everything. They didn’t stock or order Galfer brake pads so I’ll have to order them online. The parts on order will take 5 to 7 days to arrive. I’m leaving with my oil filters, inner tube and rubber band that covers the spoke nipples in the rim. Ole Bert’s here has a selection of everything. Water craft, 4 wheelers, almost every brand of Japanese motorcycles and clothes. This place is huge. I hope they don’t let me down on my parts. When we get home from Bert’s Mega Mall I will know if the tire has a leak in the inner tube.

Tonya and Mary were back when we got back home. Tonya sets about making hamburgers for supper.
  They tasted really great and afterward we had ice cream. My favorite. Mary also made reservations at Paramount Pictures Studios today so we can take a tour there tomorrow.