Changes, changes, changes...

So, the last thing you heard from me was I got two more scooters; another '02 Bajaj Chetak and an '02 Kymco People 150. Now to get you up to date.

I fought with both scooters for a couple of weeks before I got the fuel systems cleaned out enough that they would run properly. The Kymco was first. Then the Bajaj. The carburetor had to be removed twice before I got it thoroughly cleaned out on that one. They were running well and happily. I began teaching my friend Colleen how to ride on the Kymco. She fell down. Got right back up again and continued on. She was trying to ride in tight circles in a cul-de-sac. Um...maybe we'll get back to that lesson.

Of course, I can't leave well enough alone. I wheeled the Bajaj into the garage, removed the cowl protector/crash bars, the rear rack and spare tire, the tailight and the license plate. Put the spare up under the left-hand cowl where I think it belongs, located the tailight up under the end of the enormously long stock Bajaj seat. Still looked stupid. Better, but stupid. Relocated the license plate up beneath the light. Tossed the rest of the stuff in a corner.

The next weekend, I decided to play Scootergod and change the configuration of the seat. I removed it, removed the seat cover and the foam and took a hacksaw to the base. Chopped it right where I wanted it, I did! I bolted an old piece of a license plate in the back to over the now open end, bought a new electric knife to slice the foam, cut the foam to a shape I liked and put the cover back on. Years ago I learned from my father, who was making a couch at the time, that the best implement with which to cut foam is an electric knife. Believe it! I tried several methods before breaking down and forking out the $10 for one at WallyWorld.

Now, back to my creation. It stunk. Badly. So, the next day or so, I removed the currently-ruined-beyond-all-possibility-of-repair cover and in a moment of divine inspiration pulled out an old black shower curtain from who-knows-where and cut it to approximately the right size. I then pulled out my handy-dandy staple gun and proceeded to discover it didn't have the poop required to drive staples into the plastic base. So, I bought some upholstery tacks and with a pair of channel-locks forced them through the classy fabric and into the base to secure said classy fabric to said plastic base. And it even worked!!! And now it looked...well, tacky. And still stunk. So I rode it like that for a couple weeks.

I had posted an emergency plea for a replacement seat from any large-frame Vespa or Stella on the Scarab's forum and lo and behold, Hot Tomato answered! Her hubby Tryg had given her a sweet sport seat for her Stella for Christmas last year and she still had the original laying around. I could have it for the price of lunch! I was all OVER that!

Then for Christmas I got a horncasting for a VNX Vespa, a "Rally" badge, some edging for the legshield (I have plans....), a VNX Fendercrest and some spare cables...you just never know....

So, again in a fit of creativity (or something), last night I reentered the garage (I could feel the scooters cringe), grabbed some paint and began work. I painted the horncasting black and the fendercrest red. Then I went down to Phoenix today and picked up the seat from HT. It was on the Bajaj (that I'd brought down in the back of my pickup) before I left her driveway. We then took a short ride so I could pay up on my lunch debt and she introduced me to Indian food. Good stuff.

Went back home. Tonight I pulled the Bajaj horncasting off so I could use it some time in the future as a snowplow, drilled a couple of holes and mounted the Vespa piece. VERY nice! I still have to find a set of turn indicators I like and hook them up. Then came the fendercrest. Again, just what I wanted. I still haven't added the "Rally" badge...I want to clean up the legshield before I do.

I've included some pictures of the "shower-curtain seat", one of HT with our two scooters and a few of the Bajaj as it sits in my garage tonight.

And yes, the Kymco and Pirate Ship are feeling a little left out. But if you listen closely, you can hear me rubbing my hands together and cackling evilly....

C-ya...ride on,

--Keys

New Stuff - and FINALLY an update!

Alright, friends, I have to apologize for forgetting about you. Sorry.

There have been a number of updates since the last posting WAAAAYYYY back in June. First, yes, I trashed the engine in the Pirate Ship. The good news was that Damn Dirty Dave had an extra laying around his garage that somebody had given him. And he turned around and gave it to me! A couple weekends later it was in and running. It leaks a little oil and a little coolant, but not enough to worry me and it runs nice and strong. Since then, it's made a couple trips to Phoenix and Lord knows HOW many over Mingus Mountain to Prescott. I had a number of classes for work I had to attend in Prescott, so the trips were made on the scooter.

Let's see...what else happened...??? I am now thoroughly divorced. Since the last posting I have attended and competed in two Scottish Highland Games. I have a new lady in my life, Colleen, who agrees that riding a scooter may just be the next best thing to....well, you know where I'm going with this...

Oh yeah...I also rode in the latest Something For Nothing rally from the top of Mingus Mountain to Flagstaff and back. Colleen rode behind me from Cottonwood to the top of the mountain where we met a bunch of the others (I think there were 12 scooters up there that morning) and rode back down. Apparently, my propensity for speed scared the crap out of her and she had me take her home when we reached Cottonwood, so I did the rest of the trip solo. Great ride both up and back. No mechanical failures or crashes on the way up. We met the Pharoahs in Flagstaff, had some coffee and pastries and (after what seemed a 'forever' wait) headed back down through Oak Creek Canyon. A FAST and fun ride!!! I watched Wade on his amazing small-frame Vespa outrun just about everything there...including my 250 cc Pirate Ship!!! I could keep up, but it wasn't easy! Wade had his ipod going the whole time and was dancing all over the seat of his scoot and STILL kickin' butt! Good times! Kent and I blasted past tourist traffic through the canyon at breakneck speeds, grinning all the way! We hooked a left in Sedona onto Hwy. 179 south to the Village of Oak Creek, then over Beaverhead Flat Road to Cornville Road. Right then to Page Springs Road (where I ditched the group and headed back to Cottonwood for my pickup full of camping gear and Colleen) where they enjoyed 8 miles of beautiful curves. Then a left on Hwy. 89A back into Cottonwood. They fueled up and headed for the mountain.

I caught up with the group at the campsite where we all set up out tents and partook of adult beverages as we laughed and visited. Big bonfire and great eats that night. Some kind of fajita stuff that one of the Pharoahs made. FABULOUS!!! More stories, more beers, more laughter and finally bed. Next morning everyone got up, and those of us in cars moved on while those from Flagstaff prepared to ride home. As always, the Pharoahs put on a great rally!

Mostly my summer, though, has been spent in various classrooms for my eventual transition to sergeant in about a year and a half and getting on with my personal life. On that note, Colleen has expressed an interest in getting a scooter and riding with me, since riding cupcake scares her, so I asked around and my dear, sweet friend Vanessa had two to sell me! So last weekend I picked up an '02 Kymco People 150 and another (bless that girl) '02 Bajaj Chetak with only 2067 miles on it! I won't tell you what I paid for them, but I will say this; God has blessed me with some VERY generous and gracious friends! Thanks, V. They will be ridden and cherished. I included a few pics of my current stable of scooters. Both the Kymco and the Bajaj have been sitting for about 2 years with full tanks of gas, so they both need to be drained, the carburetors cleaned and new batteries. The Bajaj (being a 2002) needs a new voltage regulator which I have ordered.

Last weekend I drained the gas in the Kymco and replaced it with new and sprayed carb cleaner into the available orifices in hopes that would fix the varnish problem. I got and put in a new battery and, well...it KINDA works. I AM going to have to pull and clean the carburetor today. Oh well.

That's about it for now,
C-ya...ride on!

--Keys

P.S. And for those of you who may not believe I was actually competing in the games, I included a picture of me during the Prescott games...

Explosion time...

Please forgive me, friends, but I haven't done a lot of blogging lately because...well, my life is in explosion mode.

I finally got the Sgian Dubh (now dubbed the Black Pearl, for reasons you will soon see) fixed up the way I wanted.

I got the airbox situation squared away. I tried removing the airbox and affixing the Uni pod filter directly to the mouth of the carburetor. Could never get it jetted right. So, I put the tube that had previously connected the airbox to the carb back on the carb (still no airbox) and bolted the Uni filter to the end of it...where the airbox WOULD have been. Better. But I still couldn't get it jetted just right and besides...the weight of the tube kept pulling the carb out of the manifold. Finally I put the airbox back on, removed the stock air filter and put the Uni filter on the stock air intake into the airbox. One jet size up and VOILA! Success! Works splendidly!! Apparently, with the open airbox, I have all the volume I want and with the Uni filter on the air intake I am drawing cool, outside air in through a low restriction filter. SWEEEeeeet! By the way, I also drilled 5 holes into the end of the muffler for less restriction and, of course, more noise. Doesn't sound half bad!

Then, I bought a bar-end mirror since the original was just too big and ugly, but since there were some bar weights in the handlebar I had welded on, I couldn't get it in. I messed around and messed around and finally found a place I liked down low on the cowling. It looks good and I still have good vision...around my air filter...

And of course, I couldn't forget the weaponry. A few chunks of PVC pipe and the judicious application of glue and paint and I had machine guns! Of course, the chrome skull on the front proclaims this one-man assault module to be a Pirate Ship. Hence the "Black Pearl" moniker.

Okay. Now comes the heavy stuff. Yesterday my wife filled out the divorce papers. No anger. No hatred. Not even any mild dislike. No infidelities or abuses. Let's just say we are fabulous friends, but not very good at the spouse thing. So, my mind was not really where it should have been yesterday afternoon. The day before, I had ridden the 50 or so miles through Oak Creek Canyon to Flagstaff to renew my CDL license, then I had ridden the hundred or so miles to Phoenix to meet the Scarabs at the Rose and Crown (our new unofficial clubhouse). Fabulous shepherd's pies! Okay, so here I was the next day, about to head to the courthouse to do things that make me very sad when I decided to check the oil. I removed the dipstick and found the level to be a wee bit low, so I hunted around the garage for a bottle of 10W-40. Nope. I could only find 20W-50, which I use in my pickup. Crap. So I fired up the pirate ship and headed off to the courthouse (some 10 miles away), figuring to get a jug of oil on the way home. About 3 or 4 miles down the road, the engine quit. I looked down and discovered in my distraction, I'd never replaced the dipstick. All the oil blew out and I no longer had a functioning engine.

I called my friend Heather who came and picked me up and dropped me off at home so I could get the pickup and go get my scooter. I got it loaded okay and took it home. Dropped it off at D&K Service this morning so they could do a blow-down test. No compression at all. Dave stuck his little camera down in there and found a minute hole in the top of the piston. I hope that's all that's wrong...now I gotta scrape up the cash for a top-end job as well as deal with the rest of the crap in my life.

Although, the job is going better than it has any right to do...I've been chosen over several more senior officers for a couple of key postitions including Officer In Charge when there are no sergeants or lieutenants in the building, thereby putting me in charge of a 400+ inmate jail. Kinda sobering...

So, anyway, I've included some pictures of the latest incarnation of my one-man assault module...

C-ya...ride on!

--Keys

Mummy Mayhem 2008

Well, friends, last weekend was the first annual Mummy Mayhem Rally...replacing the previous Skull Valley Rally because, well...I guess people were tired of the same route every year.

This year was a little different. We included the Pharoah's Scooter Club in the planning and operation of Mummy Mayhem so we could get a bigger turnout. It worked, too! Certain reports claim around 40 scooters attended!!

The rally began with a meet-and-greet at the Bikini Lounge in Phoenix on Thursday night. I didn't make it. More on that later. Friday morning we met at the 4 Peaks Brewery in Mesa and pretty much took up the whole block then rode down Main Street/Apache Trail (depending on which city you are in...same road, though) east to where it joined with Hwy 60 east. Then we just stayed on that through Apache Junction, Superior, Miami and finally, Globe, AZ. Splendid ride. Then we were led down numerous side roads until we came to dirt. Did we stop there? HELL NO!!! A couple more miles down the dirt roads...one resembled an moderately unused creek-bed to the campsite. The next day was a ride north on Hwys 188 and 288 to the Salt River for tomfoolery then back to Miami where we drowned a cafe in a sea of black Mummy Mayhem t-shirts a frivolity. Back to the campsite for more tomfoolery and jackassery. Sunday morning saw everybody packing up and heading home. This is just the start...details to follow...

Okay, some details as promised. I left Cottonwood at about noonish on Thursday and pointed the scooter uphill towards Mingus Mountain again. Over the hill, down into Prescott, THROUGH Prescott and down through Wilhoit, Peeples Valley, Yarnell, Congress and finally Wickenburg where I finally fueled up. 73 miles per gallon. Cool! Blasted out of Wickenburg and onto Hwy 60, then the Carefree Hwy. then south on Lake Pleasant Road to Bell road. East to 87th and south to Jes' Jim's house. I met the lovely Carole there and she allowed me to offload my gear (I would be spending the night) and I hit the road again. East to the Loop 101 East and all the way across the north end of Phoenix and through Scottsdale then south to Hwy 60 again. I took that to...well, the PLAN was to find Higley and go south to Guadalupe where I would meet the beautiful and enchanting Joni for my first foray into sushi eating.

Well, about a quarter mile from the exit my rear tires lost its air. I ended up walking/pushing it about 3 miles to the sushi place. I went in and washed my hands and joined Joni for dinner. And a FABulous dinner it was!! I particularly enjoyed the mussels!

The sushi place was right next to a Checker Auto Parts store and it was about 8 o'clock when we finished dinner. Walked over to Checkers, fully expecting them to be open since the one in Cottonwood is open until 9. Nope. Closed. So we climbed in Joni's car and went to a local Walgreens and got a can of Fix-a-flat. Squirted it in the tire and discovered the problem was (once again) the stinkin' valve-stem. Crap. Time for a drink. So we went to Molly Branigan's and Joni enjoyed a couple Irish Coffees while I sipped a single-malt scotch. I called Jes' Jim who recommended I call Damn Dirty Dave at the meet and greet, so I did. Just so happened DDDave had a rear wheel from a crashed (multiple times...including one requiring a helicopter ride) Honda Elite 250 that would fit. I told him I had the required tools and he sent the wheel and tire down to me with Jes' Jim in his Volvo station wagon. Yes, this IS an important fact.

Jim showed up and I pulled out my tools and discovered the bolts I needed to remove had been put on with an air wrench and my little open-end wrenches just slipped on them. I, in fact, did NOT have the required tools. Now what???

We decided to put the Helix in the back of Jim's station wagon. Don't let ANYone tell you it can't be done...it CAN!! Well, the Volvo was Miss Carole's and Jim didn't want to soil the carpet and out of the depths of her trunk Joni produced a big piece of plywood. PERFECT!!! Then, the problem was the centerstand digging into the carpet. Joni produced two pillows! Okay...we were set. Closed the rear hatch. Oops...no rope to tie it down. Nope, no bungies either. Joni produced a dog leash that worked perfectly!!

I hugged Joni and we were on our way. Jim suggested Joni needed a scooter to ride with us since she's such a resourceful lass and I told him her daughter has one. AND her son-in-law. He looked at me curiously. I said, "You know them, too...Sammy (Hot Tomato) and her new husband Tryg!!!" I was seriously chastized for not introducing her as such.

We showed up at the meet-and -greet where DDDave had the needed tools and I replaced the rear tire on my scooter in the parking lot at about midnight and we all headed to our respective places for needed rest.

Up early the next morning...Jim and I loaded the scooters with our gear and took off for DDDave and Sandy's place. Showed up in plenty of time to watch DDDave finish putting the engine from his Vespa Sprint into Sandy's scooter. He'd just started the night before!! We got the van loaded with everyone's camping gear and got ready to leave. There were a total of 6 scooters that rode from there to the 4 Peaks Brewery where we were to meet the Pharoahs and the rest of the Scarabs. We had a great time at the Brewery meeting new friends, shaking hands with old friends who we only get to see once or twice a year. Finally, everybody loaded up and headed out. We followed Main Street/Apache Trail (depending on where you are...) through Mesa and all the way out to where it meets up with Hwy 60. Nice little urban ride. Lots of stares at 30-some motorscooters in one group! Once onto 60, we could open them up and well, for motorscooters, fly! Between 55 and 65 mph was the average. GREAT ride. The highway begins as a regular 4-lane, quickly narrowing to a rural 2-lane highway. It courses through the mesquite and sagebrush in the east end of the Valley of the Sunstroke and gradually begins rolling over hills and on into the town of Superior. From Superior to Miami the highway becomes more of a two-lane mountain road with a pretty good climb. All the scooters did very well...no breakdowns and not even much 'holding-up-of-traffic'. Fabulous ride! We cruised through Miami and on into Globe where we hooked a left into downtown Globe, AZ. Some of you might not have recognized it as a downtown area, but those of us from small towns did. All the way through town we rode until we reached a road (I could never find again) that branched off to the right. We followed that, making a few other turns as we went, some 4 or 5 miles back...on both paved and unpaved roads to our campground where we met up with some of our Pharoah buddies who had driven out from Albuquerque that morning. More hand shaking and beer tipping and camp-site set-up commenced. Good times, good times...

Getting Going...MM2008

The Salt River Ride/MM2008

The Campsite/ MM2008

Around the Campfire, MM2008

Messin' Around At MM2008

Mingus Mountain

You know, I've spent a lot of time on this blog revisiting my trips over Mingus Mountain to Prescott and have really failed to post many pictures of the fabulous road that it is! I intend to remedy that situation with the pics you have before you.

But first, a few updates on the Sgian Dubh. I (of course) hated the muffled lawnmower sound of the Helix muffler, so, with drill in hand I attacked it. Two extra holes in the rear gave it just the right sound...at least until I can have a new head-pipe made so I can use a slip-on muffler. That was a good start. THEN I decided I hated the ugly, heavy, restrictive airbox. So I bought a Uni-filter. I removed the airbox and put the Uni on. Ran exactly like crap. So, I replaced the 110 main-jet with a 112.5. Still ran poorly, so I put the airbox back on. Now it ran better than ever. Okay...now what? I made a mad dash to Flagstaff to Northland Motorsports and got a 120 main-jet. Put it in and it bogged badly. Oops...too far. So another trip over to Prescott to Encore Performance and the aquisition of a 115 jet. Put it in, removed the airbox and re-installed the Uni-filter. Wow! NICE!! Except...I could feel that it had more available somewhere. So I took my needle-nose pliers and opened up the air mixture screw 1/2 a turn...had to use the pliers since I broke the head of the screw off... Now THAT'S what I'm talkin' about!! The bottom end and mid range on this thing is more than I had even hoped for! Top end is still where it was...about 72 mph, give or take, but it launches from a stop and keeps hauling butt up to about 65. VERY nice.

Now, back to the trip over Mingus. I just wanted to ride. That's it. And test out the newly jetted and freer flowing Sgian Dubh. I blasted outa town and through Jerome...hoping and praying that the tourists slowing me down up to there would make Jerome their final destination. And it worked. The road was MINE!!!! BWAAaa haaa haaa!!! I cranked up the torque monster (for a Helix) and fairly flew up the mountain. Since this thing has the approximate wheelbase of a Greyhound bus, it won't take the corners like either the Mad Hornet or the Red Baron could, but fast sweepers are LOADS of fun! I topped the mountain...you can see the summit elevation sign in one of the accompanying photos...and cruised down the other side into Prescott Valley. I pulled into Encore Performance and visited with Matt for a few minutes, then on into Prescott. I then hooked a left and chased Hwy 69 south to where it intersects Hwy 169 east. I followed 169 the 15 miles to I-17 where I again took a left, heading north to the Camp Verde exit, which dumps out onto Hwy 260. I met some guys I work with in Camp Verde and we went out shooting for a couple of hours...had a good time. I agreed to buy Mark Tenniswood's Glock 23 .40 cal. for my primary weapon for the Sheriff's dept. and hopped on the scooter and blew outa there.

My wife had called while we were shooting and asked me to bring her an energy drink, so, thinking I needed to ride an additional 50 miles or so, I agreed. North on I-17 to the Sedona exit and onto 179 north through some of the world's worst road construction and tourist traffic. I made it, though...and still had most of my patience!! Ski bought me dinner and after I was done, I went home. That simple. I put on, I'm guessing, about 150 - 175 miles and the Sgian Dubh didn't miss a beat. Averaged about 65 mpg with most of it highway travel with the throttle wide open. Not bad...not bad at all. And it was just as much fun to ride at the end as it was in the beginning.

Okay...I should have another post in the next week or so...the Scarabs are having their annual rally this upcoming weekend. It used to be the Skull Valley Rally, but they tired of the same route, so this year it's Mummy Mayhem, going from Phoenix to Globe (east of Phoenix) then, I think north to Apache Lake...or something like that...I'll let you know. Anyway, it'll be 3 days of riding and camping with my club-mates on some new roads for me. I'll be sure to bring you pics and stories.

C-ya...ride on!

--Keys

A short list...

Just have a few minutes here, so I'm adding a short list of Sgian Dubh updates...

The rear tire was so worn I could see the air through it in a couple of spots, so I bought a new one at D&K. They mounted it and the next morning it was flat. I took it in and it took 4 new valve-stems and most of a perfect riding day to fix it. Even had to push it a mile and a half back to the shop the last time.

I've ridden over to Prescott and back twice and Ski and I rode through Sedona and up Oak Creek Canyon on our scooters last week. Had a nice visit with my friend Donna who works in a time-share booth at the infamous Oak Creek Dairy Queen.

Tried to use a Uni air filter on my scooter...even went so far as to remove the old system. I jetting the carb up and everything, but it seemed to be LOSING power, not gaining it, so I put it back to original...exCEPT!!!

Most motorcycles and scooters manufactured in the 80's were jetted WAY lean to meet governmental criteria, so I left the slightly bigger jet in. Fabulous choice...it runs MUCH smoother now. Original size (factory) was 110...I used a 112.5. Try it, you'll like it!

Also, the day that I had such an issue with the valve-stems, I bought a pair of handlebars from Seth that originally were on a mid-80's Honda FT500 Ascot. I cut my mini-apehangers at the bottom curves and just welded the new ones on. Love 'em!! No more backache!

Anyway, I have a trip to make this weekend to Las Vegas for the nuptuals of Hot Tomato and Tryg. I'm considering riding the Sgian Dubh. Guess it depends on weather. If I do, I'll be sure to post photos...

C-ya...ride on!

--Keys

...a little update.

Not lots to say here, but the epoxy job on the intake manifold of the Sgian Dubh lasted, oh, 13 or 14 minutes. Made it home okay. Made it to the doctor's the next day okay. I actually rode it to Prescott and back last Saturday for a Big Brothers - Big Sisters fund raiser the Sheriff's Office is doing. It did NOT, however, run well. Not particularly slow or jerky or anything...just not right! Letting off the throttle then on again created a hesitation I knew wasn't supposed to be there, along with a few other telltale signs.

So, that night I removed the intake manifold again and sho' nuff, it was ALL busted up. So I used a pliable silicone based contact glue covered with black electrical tape. It worked alright, but I still (in the back of my mind) knew it wasn't right, so I ordered one from HelixParts www.helixparts.com/usa/ for the princely sum of about twenty bucks on Tuesday. They shipped it on Wednesday and it showed up in my mailbox today, Friday!!! Wow!!!

Well, I scurried to the garage and began untaping wires and removing seats and all of that stuff. The swap only took about 10 minutes. Big difference! Starts much easier without all that extra air getting in!!

Of course, with the seat removed I saw a major issue. I had originally bolted the tailight assembly to the seat base using self-tapping screws. They were holding okay, but I knew it was just a matter of time until one or more just dropped out, sending my tailight onto the back tire in a splash of plastic and rubber. Not my idea of a good time. Also, with the tailight bolted to the seat, I could only remove it as far as the wiring would allow, which, inevitably would NOT be far enough.

So, a quick trip to my local ACE Hardware store for a length of steel with holes already drilled in it and some zip-ties was in order. I got home and did a little measuring and cutting and doggone if it didn't just bolt right up! Of course, there was the always time consuming job of locating the correct nuts and bolts in the bottomless pit that is my garage. I know, I know...I should clean it out, but my deal is this; I go in there to fix stuff, NOT to hang out! And if stuff is fixed, I'm riding it, NOT hanging out in my garage. So you see, I just don't have time...

I got the bracket built just fine and with a minimum of fuss, but like always, I see what I could have done either better or differently, so I'll probably have to do it again sometime. Not right now, though...it's time to ride!!!

C-ya...ride on!
--Keys

Big Doin's

Had some big changes here at "Casa Del Keys" this month. I finally traced all my performance issues in the Buddy down to crappy wires. Yep...they just cracked and broke inside the insulation where you just couldn't find the break. Finally got that straightened out with the careful application of quality wire and wiring loom relocation. Apparently, over time, combined with heat, weight and bumpy roads, the seat bucket "settles" and bounces up and down on the wiring loom, thereby breaking individual wires.

Fixed it. Sold it last weekend to a nice young man from Tucson...I hope he's happy with it! Then, THIS weekend, I sold the '53 Allstate to Damn Dirty Dave. I guess forty scooters in his garage wasn't enough.

Bottom line is I took some of the money and bought my dear long-suffering wife some jewelry for Valentines Day (which just conveniently coincides with our anniversary) and spent the rest on my newest project...the "Sgian Dubh" (skee-an doo), which is gaelic for "Black Knife". The Sgian Dubh began life in my garage as a $600.00, 1986 Honda Helix with almost 32,000 miles on the clock and a rear hub in which the drive splines were stripped.

I loaded the Allstate into my pickup for a quick trip to Phoenix Thursday (Feb. 14th). I called DDDave, who met me at Bob's Used Motorcycle Parts (no particular web page, although you can find address and phone by googling the name). He slipped me some cash and I slipped him an Allstate. Then I went in a visited with a nice guy out in the yard who found me a couple of good Helix rear wheel assemblies. I grabbed the best one, paid $40.00 to get out the door and headed home. I stopped at D&K Service in Cottonwood where the Helix was and handed Seth the wheel assembly. He said it'd be done by 5 p.m. and I could ride it home.

Ski and I were going out to dinner, so we got all dolled up and swung by D&K. Seth told me he had discovered a wee bit of problems. No, not the wheel...it turned out fine...the rubber intake manifold between the carb and the head was cracked. Seth epoxied it and so far, so good. Have another on order, though...

I rode it home and noticed it didn't like to turn, but it was too late too mess with it...Alaskan King Crab was calling Ski's name and we had to go!

Well, we got home from dinner about 10:30 and Ski plopped in front of the tube and I headed straight for the garage. I started taking screws and bolts and nuts off like a madman! I removed the entire rear subframe and "trunk" (made my ass look too big, anyway). I removed the windshield. I relocated the tailight. Man, the dust was FLYIN'!!! Good start.

So, this morning, I rode it to a doctor's appointment I had. Did fine, didn't like to turn, still. I checked the air pressure in the tires and sure enough, they had less then 10 pounds in each. Topped 'em off and it handled fine. Started raining while I was at the doctor's office so I got soaked on the way home. Changed clothes and was back in the garage again.

I cut the tailight assembly to a more usable size, then I cut the windshield to a more sporty size...small. Relocated the mirrors for what I think is a sportier look...then came the paint. Yep, my favorite...flat black!! Eventually, I want to highlight it with red wheels and trim, but for now, it's all black!

Ladies and Gentlemen...I present for your viewing pleasure (or fear), the frankenscoot known as the Sgian Dubh!!

Just A Nice Little Ride

Just got home from a nice little ride. I got a call from my friend Jenn who lives over in Prescott and she told me one of her dear dogs had died a month or so ago and she had brought his body to the Humane Society in Cottonwood to be cremated. Well, his ashes were ready to be picked up today and Jenn's truck was broken down and she has been battling illness, so she didn't feel up to a scooter ride to Cottonwood. And of course, she knows my motto; "Any Excuse For A Ride!!!"

I heaped on the clothing since it was still in the low 40's, boots, t-shirt, sweatshirt, my Cortech jacket, gauntlets, balaclava, full-face Scorpion helmet, fired up the Red Baron and pulled out of the driveway. The Humane Society was full of people checking out the pets, but the nice lady at the counter found the time to deliver Bowser's remains to me. He went under the seat and I went on top of the seat and over Mingus Mountain we headed.

It was pretty darned cold out, but the sun was shining beautifully in a cloudless sky and I was just so happy to be riding. The trip was mostly uneventful...nice roads...just a wee bit of ice in the shadows, not enough to keep me home. Bowser and I just kind of did a delicate ballet on the Red Baron and never even slipped. I did, of course, go a little slower than I do when the roads are dry...

I reached the top of the mountain and began the descent into Prescott Valley when my old nemesis, the wind, reared his ugly head. It was coming HARD from the northwest, right into my face and dropped me a good 5-10 miles per hour! We just chugged along, annoying 4-wheelers who wanted to go way over the speed limit, but I didn't mind. I pulled into Jenn's driveway and as I took the package holding Bowser's remains out from under the seat I realized this was both Bowser's first and last scooter ride. I also realized I'd never had a more compliant and genial passenger. I thanked him for his indulgence and handed him to Jenn.

Jenn and I had a nice visit, talking work, scooters, health...you know, the stuff friends talk about and I decided I'd better leave before the roads iced over for the night. The wind had shifted during our visit and was now almost directly from the north...the direction I needed to go! Crap! I got on Fain Road headed north to where it joins Hwy 89A some 8 miles away. The posted speed limit on Fain Road is 65. I was lucky to be able to maintain 55! The wind was HORRIBLE!! After spending half the trip running on the shoulder to allow traffic by, I finally reached 89A. A right turn put me on the path for Cottonwood. I then rode with a severe port list due to the wind. I was going straight forward and leaning at least 20 degrees to the left! Once I made it to the mountain where it blocked most of the wind, I was able to maintain reasonable speeds. I just motored up and up and up some more to the summit, sometimes in the shadow, others in the sunlight...always with a grin on my mug. There was very little traffic this time of year, so I wasn't having to deal with that. I reached the top and eased on down the hill towards Jerome. I caught up to a pickup pulling a trailer, but he was moving right along, so I didn't mind. Just a nice little ride.

I cruised through Jerome and passed Paul and Jerry's Saloon where the new band I'm in will be playing tomorrow. We do sort of a rock/blues thing...shades of Stevie Ray Vaughn. Good stuff, lotta fun!

I looked in the windows of the shops as I passed through town, marvelling at what a dynamic pair the Red Baron and I make. The trip down from Jerome to Cottonwood was again, uneventful and pleasant. The scooter was running well and strong, the sun was shining, it was chilly but I was dressed for it and it was just a nice little ride. Gotta have 'em now and then. Nothing spectacular, nothing dramatic...just a nice little ride. Doesn't get much better...

C-ya...ride on!
--Keys

Nothing much

I know, I know...it's been a LOOoooong time since I joined you here. Sorry. I just had nothing really to say!

It's been too cold here to ride much and the Buddy was still experiencing some issues. I, however, solved them! I brought it home from the dealer since they didn't seem to be capable of finding what the problem was and the owner was too insistant in continuing in a direction I knew wasn't right.

I first checked the carburetion and fuel lines again. They were okay. I did a little fiddling with it and rode a ways and it started acting up again. I stopped and messed around a bit with whatever I could reach. Discovered that when I moved one of the coil wires, the scooter would begin running badly again. I nursed it home and replaced all the coil wires with new wire and new connections. Better.

A couple more miles and the symptoms returned. Coughing, sputtering and generally just sick. I fooled with the airbox a bit...put it back in it's original configuration. Better. Briefly again.

Now what? I called my buddy at Scoot Over, Ron, and he told me he had one in the shop right now with the same symptoms and he'd done essentially the same checks I had; carburetion, air intake, fuel delivery, spark. He was going to try bypassing the evaporative canister for the emissions system and recommended I try it. I did. AND IT WORKED!!! The Red Baron is back!!!

So, anyway, I am still in the market to sell it and get something bigger.

I found a Kymco Bet & Win 250 in Prescott. Somebody has to quit letting these Taiwanese people name scooters for the American market... Back to the story. The scooter is an '06 and has about 1200 miles on it. It sold for about $4500 new and he wants only 2 grand! Hell of a deal...but I won't have that kind of cash unless I sell the Buddy....any takers????

Also found an '86 or '87 Honda Elite 250 in Phoenix for about eleven hundred. I see a lot of potential there...

Got nothin' new for Christmas that was scooter related. Just the luck of the draw, I guess...got stuff related to my job and to my music, though, so that was cool.

Wish I had more to tell you, my friends, but there just isn't much to say. Talk to you later...

C-ya...ride on!
--Keys