Basically, the bike sat for a winter and didn't quite run right after that. It needed a thorough cleaning and tune-up. I didn't (and still don't) possess the knowledge to do it, so I hauled the bike down to phoenix to have my buddy go over it piece by piece.
Turns out, it needed some new pieces.
- Fork seals and re-fill
- Clutch, brake, tach and speedo cables
- All new hoses
- New fuel filter
- Carbs removed, cleaned, rebuilt
- Rear sprocket (the OEM one, not the POS I installed)
- New tires
I got a ride down and picked the bike up after almost exactly a year of not having been near it. I drove it almost 400 miles in three days, putting it through its paces and getting comfortable with riding again.
Just as I pulled into the Mogollon Rim Campground, about 45 minutes outside of Payson, AZ - the tachometer quit. Even with a brand new cable, it couldn't be convinced to function. I'll probably have to pull it apart and lubricate it like I did with the speedometer.
Then, it wouldn't idle at altitude. My camp that night was at 7,500' and as soon as I let the bike idle, it would die. I increased the low idle, but it's still coughing at me during low RPMs. Not sure if I need to look at the air/fuel mix or the timing, but I'll figure it out soon enough.
Overall, my repairs cost just over $1,200 - which is about what I spent on the darn thing to begin with. Not everything is fixed, but it is running much better than it was (no more gunked up carbs!) and that's enough to be going on with for the start of the season.
The new plan is to fit a crash bar (engine guard) to it so that my wife Kristen can learn to ride it!
