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I name all my vehicles. I don't really know why. I figure it has something to do with an old Buick Regal my mother owned that she called "Bessy". I'll tell you what though--a vehicle with a name really has a spirit....whether that's good or bad I still don't know....both at times I guess.

So my motorcycle's name is Amy, here's a little back history as to how she came to be:

I have loved vehicles (let's say anything with wheels) since before I could walk--or so my father tells me. I started my driving life with a Jeep Wrangler (Rachel) which I totaled (I don't want to talk about it, so don't ask). Then to a '77 Landcruiser (Lisa), then back to a Wrangler (Jen). I became very interested in "on-road" driving after a short (but very impressionable) drive in a '91 MR2 turbo, and ended up with an '02 WRX wagon (Cyan)



which I loved dearly, and drifted around so many corners I could never make a full count. Modifications were plentiful. Meanwhile, I was working on a modern interpretation of a '79 Kawasaki Z650



only to have the wheels and suspension stolen from my backyard after I had already painted and finished the engine and frame. I laughed and moved on to a '93 Kawasaki EX500 which I had a great deal of fun with for the 2 months I owned her. I sold it to a good friend when I needed to move. After 100k and 4 years of constant grins and chuckles, I sold Cyan to take on my next turbo project



an '89 turbo Caravan named Renee. I know she doesn't look like much, but the turbo I have in my bedroom will make around 310whp--don't worry, she's a 5-speed swap. I say there's a turbo "waiting" because I cracked one of her pistons in March, and have yet to be able to acquire pistons (backordered until the end of time), and I'm low on money anyway. I'm trying desperately to "retire" from my current job and get my Industrial Design career off the ground, so I bought Amy ('71 Honda CL350) for the summer.



"Finally, a picture!" you say. Well, I thought it best to show my vehicular lust and stupidity for any incidents that may happen in the future. Amy is my full-time daily driver from now until it starts to snow. She ran great for a week, and now she's almost dead. I know it's the timing, but I'm having a hell of a time deciphering the ridiculously old Clymer manual I have. So, if anyone has pointers for replacing the breaker points and setting the timing, please PM me!

Anyway, I will be updating this blog with my experiences of riding a motorcycle full-time, be it repairs, weekend trips, or just life in general. This will be the life of a fully used motorcycle starting now:

Mileage 11,562 miles.

Ian

I love those old bikes.

Turbo-van? Nice!

Well, I think I have the timing figured out. I'm going to try to have her running well tomorrow when the Michigan sun will finally be shining again.

For simple twins, I got good results using a piece of thin plastic wrap to set the timing. Put a single layer plastic wrap between the contacts when they're closed. While pulling lightly on the plastic, turn the crankshaft. The plastic should slide out from between the points when the timing marks line up.

Mileage: 11,782.1

She runs!

I have a passion for driving anything. I could be having the worst day I have ever experienced, but allow me to go for a drive in the country, and I will be sane again. My friend Eric said it best while driving his BMW 1602; "When I'm in this thing, I'm always smiling. I don't need pills when I can drive"

I had never dealt with breaker points and ignition before, so it took a little time for me to figure it out (read: turn crank over with wrench 400 times trying to figure out how the points should interact with the cam lobe). However I finally worked it out in my head, and set the timing as close as I thought I could using the gapping instructions in the Clymer manual and flynrider's SaranWrap tip (thanks!). Then, I had to deal with syncing the carbs. It still puzzles me that if you have one carb open too much, the idle can seem right, but then when you rev the bike, it will settle at, say, 3k until you force it by way of the clutch to go back to a respectable idle. Needless to say, about 30 minutes on a long stretch of industrial park road had her running smooth as silk. I then rode her down to Mason just to make sure she could do it (lots of tools in the backpack). Amy did fine.

Here's the maintenance log:

Keyster carburetor rebuild kits (2): $57.50
Honda 10w40 oil (3 quarts): $9.00
Breaker points and condenser: $30.00
NKG B8ES plugs (4): $10.00
Total: $106.50

If it looks like all of this only took me a day--it didn't. This has been a 3 week process. That said, if you own a CB/CL 350 and are in need of carb kits (I had a broken main jet holder in the left carb, and sliced bowl gaskets), DO NOT buy any other available kits except Keyster kits or the OEM gasket set. I purchased a K&L kit through my local shop and it had the wrong jets in it! Turns out most kits for this era motorcycle are generalized to fit most bikes, and therefore make your bike run like crap. The Keyster kit is an exact match. Most of my 3 weeks were spent receiving and sending back parts, and waiting for the Michigan rain to stop.

I have a set of UNIfilter replacement air filters (work with stock jetting), and a pair of cheap-o Cheng-Shin tires on the way. I figured for $60 total, I couldn't go wrong with the tires. I'll learn to drag a knee on them, and move up from there. Time to go riding!

Nice pics! I presently drive an '02 WRX wagon as our family's four-wheeled vehicle. My kids are always egging me on to do "rally turns" when their friends are in the car.

Welcome aboard!

Cheers,
Loonette

Mileage: 11,892.7

The words "Eighty-eight degrees in Michigan" make me happy. I have been wanting to take Amy on a weekend trip to Detroit to visit friends ever since I bought her. Now that she's running well, I decided to spend a bit of my day riding her to see if the 90 mile trip to Detroit was actually feasible. Today's destinations included Grand Ledge and Williamston. 120 miles and no problems thus far!

I snapped a couple during a quick rest on the way to Williamston.





I'm definitely a little red even with the use of sunblock, but I don't mind. This is truly the most fun I've ever experienced on a motorcycle. I never imagined it would come from only 325cc's! I think I might ride down to the Michigan Brewing Company tomorrow for a free tour if it's open.

Mileage: 12,009.6

It's hard to believe I have ridden about 230 miles this weekend, and I didn't go any farther than 30 miles from home. I really am obsessed with Amy (saying it that way really sounds weird). She has passed the test this weekend--running smoothly the entire time. Her idle does seem to diminish after about 25 miles of steady 55-60mph, but I can't blame her at 35-years-old. Nonetheless, she still idles (the lowest of times has been around 900rpms as opposed to my setting of 1100rpms), and pulls back to 60 from a stop with no problem. I do have a slight hesitation between 4-5k, but I'm not sure what to do about it. I suppose a timing light might be a necessity. From the looks of her pipes, she is running juts a tad bit rich. Fearing no holes in the pistons (that's a lean mixture problem), I will persist until I have the money and mind to perfect her timing--let's say after I get the UNIfilters installed.

The Michigan Brewery was closed today. I thought they might be--it being Memorial Day and all. I would say I will have pictures of the brewery next week, but I plan to take Amy back to Detroit now that she is in full operation. Hopefully the rain will come this week instead of what The Weather Channel is possibly predicting for the weekend.

Oh, and average mile-per-gallon: 48 (exactly double my old Subaru!)

Never before have I been this happy with any modification I have ever done to any vehicle I have ever owned. As I noted on Monday, I have been having a little trouble with the smoothness of the throttle around 4-5k. I had a feeling it might be from the old air filters, but doubted myself. I happened to be right. I didn't even need to touch the adjustment screws. Amy is running exactly perfect. Plus, I no longer have to take the exhaust off to access the left-side filter since the foam one is much smaller!

Oh, and the cylinders and washers you see in the picture were included with the kit to allow you to still use the painted side covers. They actually designed this product with specifics in mind!

Mileage: 12,202.7

Well, I'm leaving for Detroit in the morning. Amy will travel at least 220 miles this weekend. I'm positive that she can make it now after riding her to Howell last night to meet a friend for a drink. I was running early, and spotted a car show in Fowlerville, so I stopped to take a few pictures. Here are a couple selected moments in time:







And just to show how neatly the UNIfilters fit under the side-covers:


Wish me luck and good weather on the trip!