last time this bike was on the road was in 2000, and just finished full mech/elec refresh over the winter. first ride today in west haven, vt.
i had decided on sort of a cruiser build, so i spent some time over the winter sourcing some period aftermarket mods. i also yanked the engine for o-rings, valve cover gasket and pucks. a cam with nearly zero wear on the journals/lobes and perfect cam holders was a pleasant surprise. finally a PO that did some good work! i did note that the engine cases had been replaced at some point (the serial numbers are stamped adjacent to the usual location). engine starts immediately, shifts easily, strong as hell to 85mph (then i chickened out).
have no idea why, but with a minor jetting change, the fueling with pods is excellant. plugs look great, no issues.
for the "look" i was going for i found a DID aluminum rim that i had powder-coated gloss black, and mounted a 90/90-19 bridgstone spitfire. out back i found a nice HD chromed 16inch drop-center rim w/stainless spokes, and a 130/90-16 bridgestone spitfire is mounted.
i added fully adjustable lowering blocks, and dropped the triples too. i disassembled the shocks to check damping and polishing, and decided to remove the shrouds.
i added a Corbin-Gentry step seat, chrome sissy bar, mini-apes and fabbed a single instrument mount for the speedo. the ignition key is on a separate mount on the bar clamps, the starter button is hidden under the tank.
the front fender is chopped about 6inches, a Lockhart oil cooler is mounted as are Jardine turnout exhausts. for a little more snap, i went -1 on the front sprocket then added a chrome rear sprocket in stock size and an o-ring chain anodized in nickle. to display the driveline a bit, i removed the sprocket cover and chain guard.
kickstart lever, centerstand, pass pegs are off.
