saddlebum

Very sorry you had to have this happen to you but so glad it was not worse.

Growing up my father used to always say to me " Son there are few people in this world as perfect as you and me ....and I still have my doubt's about you"

How about this "You have reached the smartest point in your life when you realize how much you don't know rather than how much you think you know."

I know how you feel Don and I feel your pain. I had to do the same for our Bichon Charlie three days ago and it is not looking so well for my Airedale Jake who has been my sidekick and friend for the past 12 years.

I remember looking forward to watching almost everyone of those while growing up. Still do see the occasional ones on TV and still enjoy them like I was still a kid ...... wait a minute I am still a kid

Glad to hear you were able to ride again. Keep up the exercises as well. Very important to keep that knee moving.

You think maybe if he opens the choke and holds the throttle wide open while cranking it over he will un-flood it

Yup that's them ....They are the ones who grabbed me and held me captive over night, when I was trying to make it home from the international. Fortunately I was able to escape the following morning.

I had an issue with #2 not firing. Remove the battery and battery box. Pull the connectors from the TCI and clean all the terminals with emery cloth and penetrating oil. Once that is done flush it with contact cleaner. While your at it clean the connectors going to the coils and the one going to the stator as well. My bike has run like a dream since I did all that and I was about to replace the TCI. Also if you have the OEM plug boots unscrew the brass contact inside and carefull drop out the little spring and tiny round cylinder that is behind the screw. Make sure they are clean and OK.

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We would have to put a drag chute on the 1st gen just so we could get all three in one picture.

I just googled the camp site and google maps puts it right smack in the water. Please tell me it isn't so. My tent is good but not so good as it will float on water. Water bed anyone. And NOOOO TRAINS ;;;;; PLEASE NOOO TRAINS

Easy there cowboy --- We haven't even got our colour (color for you Americans) ride in yet, so relax you still got time to get them tractors ready.

I think you should go ahead and buy it. Then start taking orders for 1st gen parts. You can always build me a few free parts while you learning

Wow Jonas!!! Hard to believe a second gen could look so out of this world fantastic. You did an Amazing job

Fantastic job Bob. Having gone through much the same, from write off to restoration I can totally acknowledge the feeling of accomplishment and pride you must have.

Actually would that not fall under the brand name of Can Am. Now that would open up a few doors Can Am T'N'T , Can Am MX, Can Am ASE, Can Am Qualifier, Oh yeh and Can Am Spyder

Left hand drill bits are good if things get to moving easily but you cannot wiggle back and forth on a stubborn screw or bolt with them. very important when trying to loosen something up. Also very hard to remove if they break in the hole because you cannot drill them out. At work I have seen many techs get in trouble that way. Easy outs I no longer own. I discovered many years ago when I was stuck with no easy out but happen to have a set of torx bits on hand that torx bits out perform easy outs in many ways. You can drive one into a drilled hole (slightly smaller than the Torx bit) remove it heat and quickly cool a seized bolt to help break it loose. then drive it back into the pre-made splines and wiggle the offending bolt back and forth until it breaks loose. The key is to grind the end of the bit perfectly flat so it cuts not wedges into the drilled hole and if you slightly counter bore the drilled hole just enough to keep the bit centered while tapping it into smaller hole it works like a charm. Plus the tapping helps to break the threads loose. I have even reused allen head bolts that have rounded out by tapping oversized Torx bits into the allen hole turning the screw into a torx screw.

The wide cellophane packaging tape was of tremendous help in temporarily holding pieces together during the bonding process. The plastex does not stick to it so it is also great for backing while filling holes and cracks from the opposite side. if you want to smooth out the plastex with your finger wrap some of the tape over your finger first. It smooths out the plastex real nice and no plastex sticks to your finger. The plastex also sands out beautifully so no spot putty is needed. You can add plastex at any time and sand until you have a flawless surface ready for paint.

Check out post #15 in the following thread http://venturerider.org/forum/showthread.php?t=28291 I am a strong believer in Plastex or also carried by aircraftspruce under the name plastifix. I rebuilt my bike in 2008 with the stuff after the insurance company wrote it off. I found it beneficial to inlay fiberglass tape used by drywaller's or just plain fiberglass to reinforce my repairs or formed tabs. all is still holding well to this day and I have put on 41,000 Km (25,000 mi) since then

Now look who brings up the nasty words ......and you had the audacity to point a finger at me

Another option which I have used many times start as Carl says with a drill bit the same size as the hole and partially drill to get a perfect center then drill a small about 1/2 the diameter of the idle screw approx 1/4" into the screw. Next get a long reach turned down torx Bit slightly bigger than the small hole. Grind the end of the torx bit flat so as to have square sharp edges on the end than tap it into the small hole. Once it has cut its way into the hole at least 1/8" gently turn the bit back and forth until it starts to break loose continue the back and fort motion and squirting penetrating oil in the hole until you have completely backed the screw out. The key here is gently and back and forth do not try to force it even when you think it is going to come out with extra force. ADDED TIP: if you have trouble keeping the torx bit centered while tapping it in. get a drill bit the same diameter as the torx bit and just drill into the smaller hole no more than a 1/32". All you want is enough to keep the torx bit centered while you drive it into the smaller hole.

Might be a dumb question, But have you checked your squelch setting and made sure it is turned right down? The more it is turned up the stronger the signal coming in needs to be for the radio to respond. If you have not already tried it disconnect your antenna lead from the antenna splitter box and test from the center pin on the connector to the tip of the antenna. You will have some resistance but it should be relatively low. An open circuit here would make your radio seem pretty dead except for very strong signals that mange to get through. If you substituted the antenna for a fiberglass type at some time check continuity from the base of the antenna to the tip and flex the antenna while doing this. Fiberglass antennas have a thin wire wound up the shaft which is soldered to the threaded base. It is not uncommon for this wire to break away from the base. Last try connecting the antenna directly to the CB bypassing the splitter by either using an adapter to fit the cable directly to the CB or by running another cable from the antenna to the radio. For simple testing purposes cable length is not important (as a matter of fact some exports claim it is not important at all while others claim it is). A point of interest Some radio exports claim, that on vehicles with little or no ground plane, performance can be improved upon by installing a full 18 foot length of CB coax cable and bundling (not coiling ) the surplus into skein type bundle and tucking it away somewhere. The added outer coax is supposed to help create a better ground plane.

Best wishes to both Jonas and Kristjan. It is always a pleasure meeting Jonas every year and this year Meeting Kristjan have a safe trip guys and see you soon.

Oh I am soooo Jealous