The Long Road to Long Pine

So we spent several weekends, tuning and retuning our bikes. It was a lot of work and when it came time to hit the road we decided it would be better to camp for the weekend in Long Pine. It would give us a chance to really take our bikes out on the road and see if there are any real serious issues. Up until this point, we have only really been taking our Hondas out to places that were under an hour away.
Long Pine was four hours away and if there was a serious issue, we were certain that we would see it on the way up or the way back. Jared followed us up there with his Jeep and trailer, providing moral support.

We spent the first evening bar hopping the one and only bar in Long Pine. We had the whole place to ourselves, including the beer garden. Later that night we went racing around in the country with the Jeep. I told Jared that I felt like we were on safari.

The next day we had a few things to do to the bikes. I had to install a spring for my oil filter. Wes, on the other hand, had to track down a place to replace a bald spot that seems to be forming on this tire. We stopped into the Long Pine museum for a quick look at how the town was long ago.

After the chores were completed, we floated down the little stream that runs near Long Pine and through Hidden Paradise. That place is great! The people were fun and the whole atmosphere was very relaxed.

We were going to find this other bridge in a neighboring town but Storms roared through the area that evening and brought lots and lots of rain. I would guess it was over an inch. Wes and I desperately tried to cover our bikes as best as we could and I think we did a good job of covering them up.
The next morning, we put our bikes out in the sun to dry off and after a large breakfast we packed the bikes to head back to Fremont. When we returned, we found that the small bald spot on his rear wheel had become a very large bald spot. Upon closer inspection, we realized Wes’s rim was bent slightly. This was awful news because now Wes’s bike was grounded until a new part could arrive. With the holiday it would be days before the new part would ship out. It was looking like our road trip was busted before it even got started.

Total miles: 465

Total ride time: 9 hours

alternate destinations: long pine, lake of the ozarks, lawrence ks

Here's an update, might be the last one before we head out on our trip. It's crazy that we leave for Austin at the end of the week and we're currently trying to workout some bike issues at the moment.

1. my CB500 needs the front and rear sprockets replaced along with the drive chain. The current "old" chain stretched and caused a few teeth to break from the rear sprocket. Its not currently safe to ride over a long distance. I was able to order the new parts in time and they will be installed on the motorcycle the day before we leave.

2. erics CB750 is dead due to a random electrical issue. we plan on checking the wiring and other electrical connections this week. hopefully its nothing major and can be fixed without ordering special parts.

Dealing with these problems just before the trip is stress full, but its something we need to me prepared to encounter on the road.

For anyone interested, you will be able to follow our trip updates through my facebook page. add me as a friend and you will be able to see picture and status updates from us on the road.... thats if the great motorcycle gods get us through this predicament and grant us the opportunity to begin our journey.

UPDATE:
well, Eric's bike is running after a quick electrical fix and my sprockets and chain have arrived thanks to Z1 Enterprises. the CB500 repair day is Friday; Saturday morning is the start of the trip (fingers still crossed).

UPDATE:
Sadly we will not be going to Austin this time around. We endedup going to Long Pine Nebraska as a "shake down" ride before Austin. Long Pine was a great time as usual but we ran into another bike problem. my rear tire was loosing tread in one spot. as i rode more the spot got bigger and covered more of the tire. luckily my brother noticed that he rear rim was bent causing the tire to rub more in one spot against the road. there is not a quick fix for this problem so the only option we could come up with was to get the 76' CB750 ready for the trip.

UPDATE:
it took an extra day to get the 76' CB750 ready and were short on time. eric came up with a new trip itinerary that takes us to Lake of the Ozarks. looks like the Austin trip is on hold for now.

Tune up and then Ton up

Back at the shop once again this weekend for another tinker party. Got all kinds of things adjusted/built/installed on my ride. Here is the list:

Fri.
New Luggage rack
New Bag mounting system
Rear Turn Signals light up now.
Installed a set of gauges and cables.

that ran until 3:30am

Sat/Sat night
New oil
New oil filter
Spent over an hour driving around looking for a specific wrench. (no luck)
Adjusted the timing
replaced two tappet covers
adjusted the valves
synchronized the carbs

after cleaning up, i was up till 4:30 that night.

All and all I had a blast and I love doing this kind of work. Wish I could do it more! Here are some photos.

and the trip planning begins...

START: LINCOLN NEBRASKA ----------------------------------> ARRIVE: AUSTIN TEXAS
800+ miles one way, over 1,600 miles round trip

Sights and routes along the way:

KANSAS

So what could there possible be in Kansas for two motorcycle nerds to checkout?
How about some vintage motorcycle museums... thanks to SOHC4 member sallen for the advice

KANSAS MOTORCYCLE MUSEUM & BRITISH MOTORCYCLE MUSEUM

http://www.ksmotorcyclemuseum.org/

The Kansas Motorcycle Museum is home to over 100 vintage and rare motorcycles of all various makes and models. It also has numerous motorcycle racing memorabilia, photos, posters, and much, much more!

Steve's British Motorcycle Museum is just one block south of the Kansas Motorcycle Museum on Washington Street in Marquette, KS. This museum exhibits over 40 British, BSA and Triumph motorcycles and other memorabilia. The Museum is run by Steve McGee of Salina. He does motorcycle repair work and he carries hundreds of NOS parts for BSA and Triumph motorcycles. If you're in need of a unique motorcycle part, Steve can usually help you find it.

Flint Hills National Scenic Byway K-177 Highway

The Flint Hills National Scenic Byway stretches 47.2 miles across the Flint Hills of Kansas on K-177 between Council Grove and Cassoday in east central Kansas. It is a beautiful drive year-round showing off the panoramic vistas of the tallgrass prairie. The Flint Hills National Scenic Byway is a two-lane, paved road easily reached from the Kansas Turnpike (I-35) , I-70, U.S. 50 and U.S. 56. Tourist amenities are available in the towns along the route including historic restaurants, hotels, antiques, artisans, and other facilities. A scenic overlook site is located just south of Cottonwood Falls with a raised bed of native wildflowers, interpretive signs and a panoramic view of the surrounding area.

Thanks to SOHC4 member hiwayman_750 for this route:

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=100468595351988172205.000485ce9d8ae5f1f4fc0&ll=37.709899,-96.734619&spn=3.050386,7.042236&t=h&z=7

Here is a map through Kansas. Its the most direct route without using interstate or 4-lane. Some of the roads are straight and flat, some are hilly with nice twisties. Not sure what your schedule will be, but there is the Cassoday Bike Run on the first Sunday of the month, and this route will take you through there. I tried to find a few lakes in the area, and most of this route follows the Flint Hills, which is a very scenic area.

OKLAHOMA:

This is a stop intended more for mr. Eastern http://www.okc.gov/Parks/skatepark/index.html

Admission to the Mat Hoffman Action Sports Park of Oklahoma City at 1700 S. Robinson is free. Hours are from dawn to 11 p.m., year-round. The park is a skate- or ride-at-your-own-risk, non-supervised facility designed for skateboards (34” maximum length), in-line skating (four wheels maximum per skate) and BMX freestyle biking only.

Historic Route 66

The historic Mother Road, Route 66 treks through more than 400 miles of Oklahoma's diverse communities and countryside. The route has two end points in the state, one in Quapaw in the northeast, and the other near Texola in the southwest. Travelers ride through a diversity pastureland, hilly wooded areas and semi-arid prairie. All the while the visitor is discovering recreational opportunities and cultural attractions along the way including: tribal sites, museums, vintage bridges, motels, festival sites and historic architecture.

TEXAS

Thanks to SOHC4 member meriggi for these routes and sights:

The Highland Lakes area of Texas, it is just northwest on Austin. It is the Colorado River that has been dammed, creating several nice lakes amoung the beautiful Hill Country, great for camping, swimming & fishing! It eventually winds through Downtown Austin so following it down from N. Texas may be a great route [and better than I-35 from Dallas].Here is one suggested route:

http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=100468595351988172205.000485ce9d8ae5f1f4fc0&ll=37.709899,-96.734619&spn=3.050386,7.042236&t=h&z=

Here is a guide with all parks within 200 miles of Austin:http://www.wildtexas.com/parks/results.php?nearby_cities=Austin

Here's a list of 50 bars to get started [most have live music EVERY night]:http://events.austin360.com/search?srss=50&st=venue&swhat=&swhen=&swhere=&venue_type=1&srad=5

Weekend update

I spent a few evenings working on the 76' cafe project over the weekend. Things went smoothly for the most part... that's until i took at look the the wiring issues! The previous owner had an interesting way of dealing with the wiring malfunctions on this beast. I removed a couple useless dangling wires, switches and a wiring harness. The electrical schematic i printed off for this bike was rendered pretty much useless since the original colored wires werent there anymore. I installed and wired new signals and a tail light, which are working perfectly. This cleaned up the tail section of the bike very nicely. The seat cover arrived in the mail and i was anxious to get it on the bike. the aftermarket cover was glued to the seat pan since the original seat cover had a plastic band around the bottom which held it in place. i didn't want to glue this new cover on so i went with an alternative i discovered on the SOHC4 forums. i bought a long strip of bendable spikes that i riveted into the seat pan along the bottom inside edge. i removed the 2 inch deep cotton padding that the P.O. installed and pulled the new cover over the seat. i used a heat gun to warm the vinyl so i would stretch for a good fit. I secured it to the seat pan with the spike strips and used car door trim from Auto Zone in place of the old chrome strip. it turned out rather nice in the end. Also installed a cafe mirror, mounted the rest of the handlebar hardware, adjusted the cables, and gave the bike a nice wash.

The Cafe makeover

It's been decided that the 76' CB750 will become a cafe racer. I believe we are going to go with a mild cafe build, keeping it in a condition that will allow it to be converted back to stock in the future. We might be missing the main point of really cafe'n a classic bike. First off, I should explain what a "cafe racer" is to those who may be following our blog and aren't familiar with the motorcycle jargon.

A café racer,is a type of motorcycle as well as a type of motorcyclist. Both meanings have their roots in the 1960s European counterculture group the Rockers, or the Ton-up boys. Rockers were a young and rebellious Rock and Roll counterculture that wanted a fast, personalized and distinctive bike to travel between transport cafés along the newly built arterial motorways. The goal of many was to be able to reach 100 miles per hour (called simply "the ton") along such a route where the rider would leave from a cafe, race to a predetermined point and back to the cafe before a single song could play on the jukebox, called record-racing.
The cafe racer is a motorcycle that has been modified for speed and good handling rather than comfort. Cafe racers' bodywork and control layout typically mimicked the style of contemporary Grand Prix roadracers, featuring an elongated fuel tank and small, rearward mounted, humped seat. A signature trait were low, narrow handlebars that provided more precise control at high speeds and allowed the rider to "tuck in" to lessen wind resistance. These are referred to as either "clip-ons" (two-piece bars that bolt directly to each fork tube) or "clubmans" (one piece bars that attach to the stock mounting location but drop down and forward). The ergonomics resulting from low bars and the rearward seat often required "rearsets," or rear-set footrests and foot controls, again typical of racing motorcycles of the era. Distinctive half or full race-style fairings were sometimes mounted to the forks or frame. The bikes had a raw, utilitarian and stripped-down appearance while the engines were tuned for maximum speed.

New seat cover
cafe style tail light
bullet style signals
Clubman bars
new ignition switch
new shortened cables
single gauge bracket
4 to 1 RC racing exhaust

The Black Sheep

I took this picture of the 750 next to some cruisers at work today.... i think the bike is the black sheep of the bunch.