Done.

A license and MSF endorsement are MINE.

A title, however, is not.

Good ol’ PENNDOT

So it’s been 60 days since I sent for a new title. Of course in that 60 days, nothing has happened. I call PENNDOT and oh-so-friendly-and-ever-so-helpful Reuben says, glibly, “Oh, that title has been purged from the system, since it was inactive for so long. We need to find out more information.” That’s what they’ve managed to do in 60 days. So now I have to wait until Thursday to call back and see if anyone else has a clue over there. Now I’m wondering if I’ll even get to ride this bike this year.

Tasty Lunch

A bunch of guys fom work and I stopped by Fast by Ferracci after lunch today... what a treat. Lots of Yamaha goodies (including branded mesh jackets... damn!) and a bunch of drool-inducing sportbikes. Of particular note was this monster from Benelli which utilizes dual fans at the rear to suck hot air out from the radiator under the seat... wild in both theory and looks.

Update

Still waiting on the state to send me the title for the bike so I can get it registered and inspected...

Stopped by yesterday to see how things were going, and Mike had discovered upon properly inflating the tires that the front had a huge crack running along the sidewall. Rather than replace the front with original-style ribbed, I opted to go modern. Most likely Dunlop F-11.

Also looking for a battery tie-down, as the original disintegrated when pulling the old battery.

More stuff...

Picked up some Clubman bars a few weeks ago, to see how I like them on the bike. Just won an auction for a pair of bar-end mirrors too.

Started my MSF Rider Course, had one classroom session and one riding session so far. Not as hard as I thought it would be... only problems I've been having are with wide slaloms... practice, I guess...

Cool café mods

I had come across James Franzen’s unbelievably cool café Bimmer in my search for cool bikes. The Bimmer has a great one-off solo seat - I emailed him to inquire about it, as to how to go about making or finding a similar one. Here is his response:

The seat was a one-off unit made by a guy that designs stuff like this for a
living - so the unfortunate thing is he's the one with the fiberglass tricks
and not me.

From your site I can tell you've seen "Glass from the Past."
You might want to look at airtech's offerings:
http://www.airtech-streamlining.com
But their server appears to be down this morning.

I am considering some of this guy's offerings on an old Ducati single I'm
building up:
http://www.dropbears.com/c/cmf/stock.htm
It's in Australia but the US dollar goes farther there.

Because I want to run the old Ducati single with a bumstop seat and no rear
fender on the street, I'm designing a tail light/ brake light/ turn signal
unit that is ultra small - only 1/2" extension beyond the license plate and
super bright - with license plate illumination included. I only have
photographs of the prototype as the refined product is in fabrication now:
http://www.culayer.com/ASAP.htm

One last thing - a guy that saw my seat tried to make his own copy and
documented it on a website:
http://www.postaldave.com/seat/seat.html

That R5 will make a sweet café racer! Good luck to you!

Wise investment?

It will be interesting to see how this auction for an R5 identical to mine turns out... bidding already over $3500, though it is in a smidge better condition than mine... at any rate, seems my $550 was well invested...

UPDATE - Winner took it home for $3900.

Big Yama logo

Googled for a Yama logo the other day, came across this really large JPEG image, could prove useful...

UPDATE - Found some EPS artwork that could prove even more useful, via brandsoftheworld.com... here's the whole list, and there's a few gems in there, including the full tuning-fork logo and even Yamalube... I've added a "Graphics" section to the links on the left. Check it out!

Parts are here

Received my shifter yesterday, and dropped it off at the shop. The shift rubber arrived today. Mike assured me he’ll be taking the bike out for test runs this weekend.

Also, wound up buying a jacket as well. Knowing the way I sweat even on cold days, I opted for mesh one. I have read a lot of good things about them as well, being just as good as leathers. Originally thought I wanted a Joe Rocket Reactor or Rio, but after trying them on at the Philadelphia Cycle Center, I was disappointed at how high they rode up in the back, even when not in a riding position. I did however try on a Fieldsheer Titanium.Air jacket, and loved the way it fit and looked. After reading this review, I felt confident enough to snag my own.

Took a peek...

Stopped over the shop after work yesterday to take a peek at her. Mike got her started up, and yup, she smokes... nice bluish crap billowing out the pipes. Should be good after a few more starts and a good hard run (the old “Italian tune-up”). She actually has a deeper, throatier sound to her, granted not a H-D, but a lot better than the "ring-ding" I was expecting after reading so much about it...

Anyways, waiting for the shifter and rubber, was shipped on Tuesday.

Russ brought out his cool Yamaha XS1100(?) Franken-racer, complete with self-fabricated hand-laid fiberglass tank and seat and rearsets. Sweet.