Remember the mint green Clio? I still got it currently sits on tripod stands in front of my garage as I'm in the middle of a cambelt service so I can get it sold. One option would be to swap it to some banger project bike but the asking prices of even the most rattiest junkers are ludicrous at the moment so I kinda figured this would be the perfect opportunity to pay off what I've had to loan from the savings account and get the missus contented for long enough to go spend the rest on the service lift table I've coveted for years. I'm not that young anymore and jacking the bike up so that I could work on it with a straight back does seem more and more tempting an idea. Besides would be better to first iron out the kinks from the Daytona anyway, currently on my fourth gauge cluster with the thing (yep the koso went poof) and the front harness is a one big clusterf**k wireball tucked under the gank cause I've had to open it so many times I don't even bother bundling it up again anymore cause it's gonna be torn apart in a few weeks anyway for X reason... has also developed a bit of a cough, hoping it's just plugs going bad but you know British bikes and electrickery don't mix and I got plenty of both in one package...

 

Technically yesterday but...

Took my Beast to the MOT inspection and failed. Still a victory though. The inspector, complained about the greenish hue of the British H4 bulb, that the brake light wasn't visible enough, I had to scrape off the powder coat with a rusty knife to reveal the frame number and it was probably too loud judging by ear (although it has passed inspection with the same exhaust ten times before).

The funny thing is that what I failed, and which demands another inspection, was the flash rate of the turn signals. I had plugged in some resistors to the LED turn signals but they don't work properly (bad Chinese batch off eBay I suspect) so they were a bit fast according to Swedish regulations but still, that's an easy fix. With all I've done, I'm surprised he didn't find like a million different things to complain about.

 

What a petty *****...

Remove the resistors and slap on a digital relay, you get brighter signals as well as lower flash rate. Plug n pray.

PROPABLY too loud? Man get yer db gauge from the closet and stop speculating... sheesh I'm glad we don't have to go through that...

Anyways congrats on the progress!

 

Thanks man! I just got a relay so tomorrow it's wrenching time. The damn Chinese resistors, now I'm no expert when it comes to this but I measured the resistance in those and as it turns out, it was 10,5 ohm. Not kOhm or nothing but ohm. I suspect that someone used the wrong components at the factory that day...

I know, when he said that it was a close call judging by ear, I almost forced him to get the meter but then again, as I passed on that I did not want to provoke him. As soon as I'm done with the turn signals and pass, I have two years before the next one which gives me plenty of time of experimenting and riding without having to worry about the bureaucracy. It's really weird you don't have that in Finland. Maybe I should write and explain the benefits of such a system to your parliament...

 

They keep saying it's coming but the date when is being pushed forward year by year... I think the current deadline is 2018 but I'm not holding my breath...

 

Now it's talks about Sweden adopting new regulations for cars, first inspection after four years (new car) and then every other year, just like it is for motorcycles...

Anyways, this weekend I installed the new flasher relay and BAAAM! This morning the Beast finally passed MOT inspection. I would like to thank you all for support and advice, I couldn't (and this is a fact!) have done it without you!

 

Awesome Migge. I just think it is so cool to see how much you took apart and then put it all back together and got it working. Big time Congrats.

We had yearly emissions testing here for a while. It was a complete joke, wasted a lot of money and pissed everyone off. They eventually did away with it.

 

Thanks, Phil! I really appreciate your support and help along the way. It's been quite a journey but it feels pretty great having a machine you know well by now.

Emissions on a bike? Sounds like a joke too! They don't test it here in Sweden. Everything else but not emissions, at least I haven't been subjected to those tests and I have done nine MOT inspections with different bikes.

 

Been working on a new seat and shortening the bike. First I was going to cut the subframe but then I realized that by moving the rear turn signals and using them as bolts at the rear hole of the passenger foot peg brackets, I could remove the plastic for the stock tail light and turn signals. I am now in the process of making a new plate holder, and a new seat. The latter by cutting up a skateboard bought entirely for this reason (but cheap). It will be around 55 centimeters, the seat pan will be made of the skateboard on top of 18 gauge stainless steel and for stuffing I'm using a layer of the same kind of mat you have in a dojo, two layers of 5 mm closed cell polysomething, a thin layer of regular fluff (to build up channels) and some vinyl leather imitation. My plan is to sew channels using red thread to match the rims... Oh, the brushed metal tank is about to get new seals to the petcock so that will be fitted shortly to. When that's done I hope I have a decently looking fighter.

 

Six weeks without working on the bike... It was time to change that. Today I fixed a bad pickup signal for the tacho, secured the exhaust wraps with hose clamps and put the metal tank on the bike.