While sitting in Ike's last Friday for dinner with the wife, I noticed what looked like a piece of chewing gum stuck to the rear tire of my scoot. After we finished, I walked out to see what it was. Yeah, not gum... cords. The tire was worn out. You know, the one I just put on in February; just eight short months and barely 11,000 miles ago. Man, that was quick.

I've ordered another one from Cycle Barn in Smokey Point and will keep track of the miles on this tire. If it wears out...

A few weeks ago I had to tow the bike home when it refused to start.. then the starter circuit failed, that took the ignition too so I couldn't kick it..

Finally this weekend I got the carbs cleaned, starter and ignition fixed.. It was running great!
Took it to work this morning.. I'm half way across the 240 from Kennewick to Richland when suddenly the the back of the bike drops.. The she starts to wiggle.. aww crap!! rear tire is flat!!!!
Pull in clutch, ease it down...

Do you suffer from missing and stumbling? When you roll on the throttle, does it feel like one of your cylinders has gone out to lunch? Well, my friends, read on. I may have a solution for you.

Yesterday, in preparation for the big XJ Bikes meet up in Tumwater, Washington, I decided to show my wife's bike some love by giving the engine a good cleaning with some foaming engine degreaser. After reading the instructions on the can, I proceeded to make the engine ready for the grime-cutting...

A few weekends ago, my wife and I were readying for our trip down to Portland. Wanting to make sure both bikes were prepped for the several-hundred mile round-trip ride, I decided to download and print off—from the Motorcycle Safety Foundation's web site—their T-CLOCS inspection checklist (.pdf) for each bike. I then grabbed a pen and clipboard and headed outside to give each bike a thorough safety inspection.

Now, for those of you that are not aware, T-CLOCS is an acronym that stands...

This is going to be a real quick how-to on rebuilding a master cylinder. The cylinder we'll be working on comes off an 1982 XJ650. Cylinders found on other earlier to mid '80s Yamaha XJ Maxims, XV Viragos, and XS Specials should be the about same. Yours may be different so adjust the directions as necessary.

About two weeks ago, I was getting ready to go for a rather long ride. While doing my pre-ride inspection (you do those, right?) I noticed my brake fluid level was a bit low in...

...Well, not really. But sometimes I do deserve a swift kick in the arse!

No, this is a post dedicated to showing my beloved riding boots some long-overdue love. Way back when, I purchased my first pair of riding boots. I had no idea what to buy as I was a n00b to the whole riding scene. All I knew was that I wanted a leather boot that was comfortable and had good ankle support and a low heel.

While shopping at Cycle Barn, I came across a pair of Sidi boots that fit...

My bike's starter has not been wanting spin up when I hit the starter button on the handlebar. I suspected it was due to a faulty solenoid, but I wanted to make sure before I ordered a replacement. So, yesterday, I wheeled the bike out into the driveway, put the key in and turned it on, hit the starter button and... nothing! Good. Failure meant I could do some diagnosing.

I checked for voltage at the solenoid, then through...