Wretched XS

[Wrider]

Lets start with the little things and work up... Right grip = throttle, Right lever = front brake... lol Just kidding bud, I'm glad you're getting it on the road this year! No more sticking your head out of the driver's side window going vrrrrooommmm!

[jstark47]

Lets start with the little things and work up... Right grip = throttle, Right lever = front brake... lol

I dunno, Wrider....... a bike that old might have right side shift or even a jockey shifter!!

(I keed, I keed!)

[noodlenoggin]

Oh, you two are killin' me!

But... you don't happen to know where I could find some acetylene for the head-lamp, do you?

[noodlenoggin]

Getting Itchy

Man. Here it is, mid-May, and the bike sits where I left it. It's not the money, it's the time. I haven't had time around work, family and studying to do any rehab on the bike.

Then again, while we've had some really nice days to ride, we also had snow last Saturday, and the mornings are still pretty frosty. So even if the bike was ready, I might not be getting to ride it anyway. Yeah...that's the ticket...

[noodlenoggin]

Gettin' Close!

Whoo! My tuition reimbursement from work just hit our checking account, so I officially have the $$ to get the old XS on the road! My wife just checked with me this morning to be sure that I'm still planning on doing that this year -- like that was ever a question.

I just need to steal a weekend day from schoolwork to make the thing actually run.

And...the Yamaha dealership changed since the last time I was there. Downside: they're not on my drive home anymore. Upside: Big new dealership (in the old Mercedes-Benz dealership building across town) to check out, maybe they have specials on helmets or something.

Question...should I go nutz and buy clubman bars, bikini fairing and maybe different mufflers so I can pseudo-cafe the bike while I'm making it run? Or should I just stick to the basics and be done with it?

And on a tangent...I have a week-long residency in Lansing on the last week of June, which should suck the last remaining morsels of life out of me... then we just booked a VAY-CAY-SHUN for two weeks later! We're going to spend a week in Atlantic Beach, NC. Found a 2-bedroom condo for the six of us on Ebay for less than $300 for the whole week. We'll have to sit through a 2-hour sales presentation, but that's easily weathered: "This is the 3rd year running we've stayed at a timeshare for less than $300...why would we pay a mortgage and a yearly maintenance fee?"

[Wrider]

JUST GET THE THING RUNNING! haha I vote just get it running and go ride the thing! You can always pseudo-cafe or cafe it later on like this winter.

[jstark47]

JUST GET THE THING RUNNING! haha I vote just get it running......

He doesn't remember how to start it ...........

[noodlenoggin]

Wow, I just looked at the beginning of this blog, and I see I started it almost four years ago. Essentially, for the entire four years I've been a member of this forum...I haven't had a functional, legal motorcycle for a single day of it.

And, with today's news that my daughter needs $2,000 of orthodontics and my son will need triple that...it doesn't now look like this will be the year, either.

I don't know what I'm doing here anymore. I'm not a rider. I'm a poser. And posers $uck. I'm tired of posting this stupid, "I might ride the bike...I can't ride the bike" bull$hit. I'm tired of it, I'm sure you all are tired of it, and I'm going to give you all a break from it. I've got nothing more to say here unless it's either "I'm riding again" or "bye."

[Wrider]

Coming from the certified motorcycle mechanic that hasn't owned a motorcycle since 2007, give yourself a break buddy. Seriously, you're good people, and we like having you around here! Doesn't even have to be about motorcycles, we just like having your company.
And besides, in a few years you can sell that 650 as a collector's item and make some serious bank off of it!
Come on back, you know you can't stay away from us!

[jstark47]

Noodle-

Yesterday, a co-worker to whom we'd sold a bike we used to own came and told me she had sold it in turn. She owned it 4 years, probably really rode it for only 1 year out of those 4. I asked her, "why sell?" Her daughters are about 10 and 12, between being mom, having a professional job, and a marriage and all, she has no opportunity to ride. She sold the bike because it was just sitting in her garage. She says she'll get back to riding some year, but this just isn't the right time.

Sometimes riding isn't where someone can be. You've got young kids - they come first. I'm 54, my stepkids are 27 and 29, so I have freedom from that phase of life. When I was in my 30's, there was no way I could have had a bike. Didn't have the money for it back then.

As far as your XS goes, you've got it pretty stabilized, right? Stored indoors, de-fueled, fresh oil, removed the battery, etc. No reason it can't sit for awhile. It will need fluids and fresh rubber when you get back to it. Probably some folks here can give you tips for long-term storage.

Your non-motorcycle writings in your blog are very enjoyable to read - don't be a stranger. Good luck and best wishes!