Tell me about your bad day

Britman

Britman

XS650 Addict
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Let's start with mounting a new rear tire. First attempt a couple of days ago resulted in a pinched tube. Ordered some new fancey tire spoons and a "Bead Buddy" from Amazon and they were here almost immediately, damn that company is fast. Took my time this morning with the new spoons and the Buddy and the tire almost fell on the wheel. You could feel there were no pinches, then I noticed the directional arrows, put the damn thing on backwards. Pulled it back off, took my time and it went back on this time in the right direction, with no pinches again. I should have ordered tire spoons a long time ago and I am a dumbass.

Now let's go to the clutch rod seal replacement. Watched every video out there and read every thread on the procedure and being so sure of myself I only ordered one seal from Mikes, so I went at it. Again a breeze, smoothed the sharp edges with a Dremel tool and took my time, a piece of cake. I had also decided to go with a one piece rod and replace the sectional system, again good or bad decision who the hell knows. Anyway, I went to bolt the cover back on this afternoon and the rod was too long for fitment. Apparently you don't insert the ball bearing back into the tube, just use the one piece rod. That one is completely on me, again dumbass nomination number two. I tried every magnet in my tool box, also blew air in the engine case, and that little bastard ball just stayed in place. I finally gave up, pulled the seal, went to Mikes and ordered two this time and decided today was not my day. Now I am going to have some beers, I deserve it. It is so true, some days are better than others.......
 
I hear ya son. All the aggravation will disapear the next time you go out for a little blast on your machine.
tim
 
Don't feel bad, Brit. Here's an example of real stupidity. One time I got cocky and neglected to cover the crankcase with a rag before installing a wristpin clip. I knew better. But I'd done that little job a lot of times, always covered the crankcase but never dropped a clip, so why bother with the rag, right? You guessed it--for the first time ever in many years of wrenching, I lost control of the clip. It went down the crankcase like a gopher ducking down its hole. I installed a spare clip, buttoned down the top end, jostled the engine a bit, and pulled the sump plate, hoping that the clip had found its way to the bottom. It had, and it fished out easily with a magnet. But until the very end I was counting the ways that clip could hang up and force me to pull the crank and start the assembly job all over.
 
Britman,
I did the same thing as you , on a modern Suzuki , I mounted up a tubeless tire that had very stiff sidewalls. After struggling for what seemed like forever to wrestle that super stiff tire on and really busting a knuckle in the process, when a tire iron slipped, I finally aired it up and stood back to admire my hard work.
Only to then see the directional arrow was backward. Sigh.......o_O

Regarding fishing that ball bearing out. Get yourself and extendable magnet pick up tool.
Available at most hardware stores for less than $10. The one I have goes right in that pushrod hole. That’s how I retrieved my pieces out.
A7A55F12-AC3C-4B73-8D2B-70675FCD511F.jpeg
 
Not motorcycle related, but in the same spirit:

I get a little business tilling gardens this time of year. Went to till a spot that I knew full well was going to be a hell hole. Got down in there, tilled the first pass and right about the end of the pass, the tractor quit like I'd shut the key off.

Fiddle-farted around, noticed that the dash wasn't lighting up, checked the fuses and one was blown. Replaced it, tractor started, backed up to do another pass, got about 10 feet, blew another fuse.

Da Fuq? Replaced it again, hoisted the tiller up in the air and drove home. Eyeballed all the wiring I could see, nothing pinched or scorched. Ran to town as I was out of 5 amp ATM Mini fuses, came home put the right fuse in, went down behind the barn and tilled a good sized patch no problems.

Ran back over to the job, dropped the tiller, made it about 5 feet, blew the fuse. Only now, no matter WHAT I do, as soon as I touch the hydro treadle...POP!

No way I'm going to get the tractor out of there and up over the hill with my little winch so I call a rollback.

He shows up, backs in (further than I would have) runs the cable down, and we pull the tractor about 1/2 way up the hill. He jumps in the rollback to move it forward and get another hitch and promptly spins it down and gets stuck.

We farted around with various ways trying to get it out, finally manage it by jacking the rear wheels up with the rollback, packing gravel under them, and then I hooked the Mighty Tundra to the front to get him started and we roll it out an hour-plus later.

On the way out, he snags the battery box on something, rips it right off the truck (not much of a feat, rust and scale were all that was holding it on to begin with) and both batteries fall out on the ground.

We spend another 45 minutes jury-rigging the batteries so he can get the truck started, we finish dragging the tractor up on to level ground where I can get it with my trailer and winch. Got over there with the trailer and winch, realized I'd left the control cable at home. Finally got it on the trailer and drug it home.

Fee received for tilling garden: $50
Owed to wrecker driver: $50
Cost of switch to fix the tractor: $43.19
Not having to drag the tractor 60 miles one way and pay the dealer's $100/hr shop rates: Priceless.

Some days it just ain't worth chewing through the straps...
 
Downeaster said:
Some days it just ain't worth chewing through the straps...
Click to expand...
I stole your words..... Hope you don't mind

Kinda sounds like a Mel Gibson quote, or should be LOL.

"Some mornings, it's just not worth chewing through the leather straps." Emo Philips

Some mornings it just doesn't seem worth it to gnaw through the leather straps.
  • As quoted in The Fourth — And By Far The Most Recent — 637 Best Things Anybody Ever Said : Many Given Heightened Piquancy by Nineteenth-Century Line Cuts (1990) edited by Robert Byrne, 32
 
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I got a case of the shingles, directly related to ignoring the available vaccine. Then my car died, no ignition. Bought a code reader and it says everything's fine. Right. Hit the brights on my bike headlight last night & blew a fuse, in the dark & starting to rain. Why is there no spare in my cases? Out of state & called for help. And this morning my debit card went belly-up. I was out of state & had to call for help, again. Can't even check my balance at the ATM. Looked on my computer and no money is missing, so I guess the card just shot craps. I fully expected by this time to get home & find a Dear John note from my wife of 36 years.
 
Well yesterday came by and took two XS Yamahas away from me! :(

Well he did leave me $200.00 and they were only 400's and only one had a title with it and one was missing a fuel tank because I had already sold that and both were given to me for free, but I did put new tires on one and only rode it a bit over 100 miles.

So other than loosing a third of my motorcycles in one day guess it was not really that bad of a day! Already spent close to half that money ordering a new tire for a Sportster and still need two tires for an XS650 along with a battery for it. guess the balance sheet is still taking a hit!
 
Well I am about 50/50. I did get the new seal (S) from Mike's yesterday. Took my time, put the seal in the freezer for about 30 minutes, warmed the opening with a heat gun and wala, seal installed. Works like the pocket on a computer geek's shirt. I will have to say I can see a difference with the one piece rod, clutch seems smoother.

Then the tree cutters came to take down a dead maple next to the shed and garage. First cut on a limp took off the garage
gutter. luckily no roof damage. It is still going to be awhile before I buy a lottery ticket......
 
Congrats, Brit. According to the accumulated wisdom of ages, trouble comes in threes, so you're 2/3 of the way through the run. Now DE, the tow driver got your tractor unstuck, then you got the the tow driver unstuck, so from here it looks like a break-even proposition. Sounds like your horse trading skills could use some tuning up--maybe Brother Gary would write us a tutorial.
 
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Britman said:
Then the tree cutters came to take down a dead maple next to the shed and garage. First cut on a limp took off the garage
gutter. luckily no roof damage. It is still going to be awhile before I buy a lottery ticket......
Click to expand...

Dang Britman! Do the cutters pay the damage?

Maybe I should have come down there and cut it down for you. Just last fall I dropped a tree that was only a few feet from the power lines down by the road without taking the wires down. Simply hooked a cable up in the tree as far as I could from extension ladder and ran it over to another tree maybe 50 feet away and used cable jack to "encourage" the tree to fall away from the power lines. Tree did get hung up in some other trees but after a bit of trimming it was down and cut up for firewood. Got even luckier a couple weeks ago a big tree went down in hedge row and ended up in the alfalfa field next door. Asked farmer about it and he said I could have it but don't drive on crop till after first cutting in a few weeks. Got it all cut up and off his crops just waiting to get in there to load it out. Only bad thing is it's just poplar, not the best fire wood, but for the cost of a bit of fuel in the chain saw and splitter it will heat the house most of one winter.
 
Bike related:-
Getting a '69 Triumph Bonneville at a total bargain because the engine wouldn't turn over.
Finding the problem was that the PO's practice of topping up the oil instead of changing it
had completely sludged up the oilways and that all that it took to free it up was a dismantle & cleanup.
Then the sick feeling as the crankshaft rolls off the workbench onto a concrete floor and cracks a chunk
off the cast iron flywheel.
 
fredintoon said:
Bike related:-
Getting a '69 Triumph Bonneville at a total bargain because the engine wouldn't turn over.
Finding the problem was that the PO's practice of topping up the oil instead of changing it
had completely sludged up the oilways and that all that it took to free it up was a dismantle & cleanup.
Then the sick feeling as the crankshaft rolls off the workbench onto a concrete floor and cracks a chunk
off the cast iron flywheel.
Click to expand...

:oops::( Damn Fred!!! '69 Bonneville!!!!! That's got to be one of the saddest things I've ever heard.

Scott
 
mrtwowheel said:
:oops::( Damn Fred!!! '69 Bonneville!!!!! That's got to be one of the saddest things I've ever heard.
Scott
Click to expand...

Hi Scott,
while that particular OOPS! was traumatic at the time, I was able to dress out the damage, drill a few holes in the flywheel's other side to restore
it's balance and rebuild the motor so it ran OK. And there's been a 3/4" square trip rail screwed to the front edge of my workbench ever since.
Now the followup, which was also traumatic although not entirely bike related.
Used the bike as a part payment on a cruising sailboat.
Sold the sailboat to finance a trip back home to the UK for wife & self.
Got home with good memories but with no bike & no money and shortly afterwards, no wife.
Who told me "I don't want to be married any more, not to you, not to anyone." and went to live with Lesbians in Winnipeg.
I shoulda kept the Bonneville, eh?
 

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