What have you done to your XS today?

Did I mention I'm a total amateur?
I'm not going to an upholsterer this time. I'm gonna try to do it. The homemade test seat took 2 hours total and my old lady couldn't believe I made it.
Recycled steel shelf and a Goodwill leather trenchcoat for ladies. The leather cost me 12 bucks. The shelf was free. The camping pad was 10 bucks at ChinaMart.
I've since been donated an old full grain leather bomber jacket. That'll be nice.

I'm thinking an inch of camping pad with some soft stuff on top. Then put buttons in it and run them thru the pan.

Man sewing.

Thanks for everything guys. I'm inspired every day.
 
I got the triple tree`s painted with 3 color`s of hammer finish and installed. Waiting on fork seals and rubber bumpers for fork stops. Moving along faster than I thought.:thumbsup:
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Since fitting the boyer ignition kit 00303 the bike has ran well and it's great to not have to reset the points and timing every couple of days. The installation was easy and following the instructions I set the magnetic rotors white paint dot to be visible in the hole in the pcb plate while the alternator rotor lined up with the full advance mark. It started first kick and doesn't miss a beat but today I thought I would connect the strobe light and see where it is set after reading Paul Sutton's extensive boyer timing adjustment thread. Just like Paul said at idle it was firing late, almost at tdc but when I rev it up to check the full advance the strobe light does nothing, no light at all and let it idle it comes back on, what have I missed?. Also if I connect the strobe light to the left plug lead it does not work at all, ???.
 
Old Fart two things to try:
If you have a dual tower coil the current travels in a different direction in each HT lead. Reverse the strobe light pick up clip when you change cylinders and it should light.
With regard to the light not strobing above idle, check the pick up clip is fully closed and that you have the strobe light connected to a fully charged battery.
 
I realized I didn't have a parking plate to carry along on my '83 so I made some more up. I use aluminum diamond plate for these. The diamonds give the stand something to grab onto so it doesn't slide off the plate as easily as it would on a smooth plate .....

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Some attach a really long line to their plates that runs all the way up to the handlebars but I don't think that's needed. Just a short one to the footpeg is enough. It's high enough to reach when seated on the bike and the loop on the end allows you to yank the plate out of the mud if the bike's weight has implanted it.
 
I realized I didn't have a parking plate to carry along on my '83 so I made some more up. I use aluminum diamond plate for these. The diamonds give the stand something to grab onto so it doesn't slide off the plate as easily as it would on a smooth plate .....

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3AZtGQU.jpg


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Some attach a really long line to their plates that runs all the way up to the handlebars but I don't think that's needed. Just a short one to the footpeg is enough. It's high enough to reach when seated on the bike and the loop on the end allows you to yank the plate out of the mud if the bike's weight has implanted it.
Nice. I like your rope splicing skills too.
 
Yes, I worked with rope (or more correctly "line", as we were taught to call it) throughout my construction career. They taught us a few basic knots during our apprenticeship training but I took it upon myself to learn and teach myself many more, along with how to do the splicing. Knots and splicing are kinda becoming a lost art today.
 
I think I may have arrived at the final air filter setup for my TM/RS34 carbs.
Velocity stacks+ large K&N RB-0900 filters.
But fall has already arrived at 70 degrees North, so I will have to wait until May before I can verify how they work.

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Yes, I worked with rope (or more correctly "line", as we were taught to call it) throughout my construction career. They taught us a few basic knots during our apprenticeship training but I took it upon myself to learn and teach myself many more, along with how to do the splicing. Knots and splicing are kinda becoming a lost art today.
Not totally lost, at least in the maritime sector. On the seismic survey vessels I have worked on since 2002, splicing 3 strand PP rope, and 12 strand braided Dyneema (HMPE, Spectra, etc) rope is part of our daily job as mechanics. Basic knots like bowline, clove hitch, reef knot, figure of 8, etc are also used daily. And since I also have a couple of boats, one for sailing, and one for fishing, ropes, knots and splices take up a bit of my "play time" as well
 
Yes, I worked with rope (or more correctly "line", as we were taught to call it) throughout my construction career. They taught us a few basic knots during our apprenticeship training but I took it upon myself to learn and teach myself many more, along with how to do the splicing. Knots and splicing are kinda becoming a lost art today.
When I had a larger boat many years ago I would make nice splices in the nylon lines. I think I still have a splicing fit in my toolbox somewhere.
 
More related to the rope and knot topic - at work we also used block and tackle set-ups extensively. I recently made up a nice, small one to use for lifting the 650 engines. I have a ratcheting cable come-along but I thought a block and tackle might be simpler and easier to use, and it has proved to be. I bought a couple nice, used all metal 2 sheave blocks off eBay and some nice 1/2" white nylon line from Amazon. A block and tackle with 2 sheaves in each block give a 5 to 1 mechanical advantage, and that makes lifting the 150 pound 650 engine pretty easy .....

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I hang it from a heavy pipe laid on top of the rafters of my shed, using a short rope sling or "choker" I made up .....

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It hooks to another short sling attached to the motor .....

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Today I was doing some testing on my ignition and when I first turned the gas on, my left carburetor started drooling gas on the floor. Thinking I had a sticking float, I grabbed a wooden handle screw driver to start tapping on the bowl. That’s when I realized the leak was coming from the fuel filter.
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The filter had some cracks in it.
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I had bought a bag of these things from EBay and I’ve gotta say I haven’t been too happy with them. They turn opaque almost immediately and their shape becomes distorted. I installed a new fuel line , minus the filter, I intend to remove the other side filter also.
Which brings me to my discovery of the day! I bought a cheap pair of extended reach , angle tip needle nose pliers a while back on EBay. They are pure junk, but I finally found a use for them. I have never been able to remove and replace those carburetor fuel lines in place without removing my carburetors. They are absolutely perfect for reaching in that tiny space and grabbing on to that fuel line. They worked like a charm!
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Today I was doing some testing on my ignition and when I first turned the gas on, my left carburetor started drooling gas on the floor. Thinking I had a sticking float, I grabbed a wooden handle screw driver to start tapping on the bowl. That’s when I realized the leak was coming from the fuel filter.
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The filter had some cracks in it.
View attachment 198767
I had bought a bag of these things from EBay and I’ve gotta say I haven’t been too happy with them. They turn opaque almost immediately and their shape becomes distorted. I installed a new fuel line , minus the filter, I intend to remove the other side filter also.
Which brings me to my discovery of the day! I bought a cheap pair of extended reach , angle tip needle nose pliers a while back on EBay. They are pure junk, but I finally found a use for them. I have never been able to remove and replace those carburetor fuel lines in place without removing my carburetors. They are absolutely perfect for reaching in that tiny space and grabbing in to that fuel line. They worked like a charm!
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And going back on?
 
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