Never had much to say, usually just smarting off, teasing people with riddles, showing my age as well as my immaturity.
I just wanted to say thank you, one and all. Not only has the SOHC4 been a great resource of technical information, instruction, and awsome tips, but I have found myself to be immersed in a wonderful community of people. While we are all very different, we all have something in common which binds us together. Its not just about the bikes. They are just the platform.
Today was the day of reckoning. Late last October, I bought a '77 CB 550F from a local guy that had owned it since new. Great find, great price, but it sat idle with gas. Puked gas all the way home. Managed to ride it 7 suburban miles without putting my feet down, sputtering the whole way. Had to park it outside and disassemble it before I could put it in the garage for fear of burning the house down.
Tore it down, cleaned it up and put it back together. The carbs were quite a challenge, old varnish, dry varnish, peroxide formation varnish. I am now intimately familiar with Keihin Type 1's, now. I am a function over form person. It is clean. Needs to run right before I put time into making it look good.
Put fresh gas in it, staged a 5 lb. fire extinguisher nearby, opened the gas, keyed it to run, pushed start, prayed to the motorcycle gods. Turned over four cycles and....yahtzee! Came right up to a high idle, let it warm a bit, backed off the choke and it settled into a familiar 1100 rpm idle.
Nice to be here. Thanks again.
Steve Mahoney (aka, Stevearino. This was a name assigned to be by my best friends Dad... in 1977)
