Modern Vespa

Congrats!

Headed to New Orleans next month for our 20th--renewal at Jackson Square and a second line to follow. PROPER second line as well--we have the permits and the cops will be blocking off the roads for us.

On going out to prep the bike for a 70 degree spin around the area, I found that the slow leak in my Triumph's rear tire has only lost thirty pounds of pressure after sitting for almost a week.

That's not a tire, it's a TIIRREEE!

I'm surprised that Triumph doesn't supply a seat...

The seal of the barking variety that I collected on a 4x4 track yesterday is not stopping me bouncing off the limiter today

Winter makes a real mess of my garage floor. Cars come inside, wheel wells packed with slush and salt. Leaves a mess on the floor. Yesterday I moved the cars out along with everything that sits on the floor (not the shelves) and cleaned the floor. It cheers me up that these Polyaspartic floors clean up so easily.

Speaking of garages and stored energy ...

Last week just before heading off to bed I looked out and noticed our garage door had not come down all the way. Figuring something had gotten in the way I hit the button to raise it back up, but it was stuck.

So, I put on my shoes (our garage is detached) and went to investigate. What I found was the cable to one of the springs had broken. I was afraid that would happen eventually. We've been in the house 20 years and I've battled the door regularly. The house was built in 1952 and the two stall wooden door is original equipment. When we first moved in I had to replace the drive gear and then several years later the whole motor. Every year I have to close the door, loosen all eleventy six nuts and bolts and square everything back up. You can see all over the inside of the door where I have added screws and support straps.

I had thought this was just the next step in maintaining things, so I assisted the door back open and left it at that, thinking my wife and I would replace the cable as time allowed.

The more I thought about it and the lack of time I have for these sorts of things, the more I thought it would be best to call in the pros, and they could also give it the once over and maybe tune things up. After all, I'm not a garage door guy.

So, the company we called, A-1 Garage Door, has been super. Probably the best business exchange I've had in a long time. Everyone has been helpful and friendly. I've talked to actual people who are not reading from a script. When the tech was on his way they sent us a message with his picture and a mini bio.

As I was showing him the door I noticed even before he did the damage done by the broken cable. Those springs are the size of my upper leg and it was at full extension when it snapped. It split the supporting beam and literally moved the truss in the garage so far that it pulled the support bracket off the nails holding it in place. It even moved the truss on the opposite side of the door. Check out the pics below.

Why is this cheering me up? It gave me the opportunity to replace the whole kit and caboodle. They will be coming out Monday to replace the door, rails cables and springs with a much lighter steel door and torsion spring system that is just better. I won't have to paint the door again or adjust all the nuts and bolts. And even though it carries a $4K price tag, since we've paid off the house we're in a position that it doesn't matter. Nothing was damaged and nobody got hurt.

So, yay.

Oh, and another thing that's cheering me up today, although it's a little bittersweet, is 3 IN 1 Oil.

To this day, every time I use it, the smell reminds me of my older brother's slot cars when we were kids. Every time. It's been a rough week. I think I needed that.

Who would think that plain lubricant would provoke such emotions ?

In other news the Kymco did another 185 miles to the tank.

That makes me happy.

I thought I was the only one.

Be happy you can even think about spring cleaning! We got snow yesterday and last night. Ice in a few corners of the driveway.

My dog turned around and gave me the "Ugh, this again?" look. We had to divide up her morning duties in two rounds with a few minutes of warm up time inside the house in between. Poor thing is almost 15 and not as hardy as she used to be.

You're not the only other one, Jess.

I recently bought a can just for nostalgia, but it turns out it's as good as I remember.

It's one of the few things my father (who fancied himself a handyman, but wasn't really) used regularly.

You can get by pretty well with WD-40 to unstick things and 3-IN-ONE to lubricate them.

I think the tag says 69 cents. Wonder how old that is?

Hey! Get outta my Dad's garage!

Fiskers Share Price.

Ouchies.

Nope, me too! And, I have an ancient can of Sturmey Archer oil used in the 3 speed bicycle hubs.

Talk about old memories, this oil has to be from the early 60s when I rode an "English Racer", as we called them.

Hey, stay out of my garage!

Found it in the basement, not any garage!

caschnd1,

Very nice garage floor. Mine is the old cement stained kind. Even when I power wash it - it still doesn't look very good.

If I can ask, how much does it cost to put the garage foor covering on.

Bob Copeland

Spring. I know we don't have the dramatic stuff you lucky folks get in other places but the chirping and buzzing and flowering and nest building really are off the hook here. And in a few months, the rest stop on I-10 out east of here on the way to the desert will be somewhere you really don't want to be, but look at it now.

Your garage floor "before" looks clean to me compared to my garage floor now after a winter with so much rain we have had this year, and all the mud on the tyres they pick up on these narrow roads here in the area.

F1 this weekend. Can already hear cars (not sure which type)

Racing Cars.

I had the privilege of walking some of the track under construction last weekend...

My happy story is from yesterday, because I'm jet-lagged.

Having returned from a visit to Melbourne, I got to ride my Vespa again for the first time in a month.
Was that a sweet ride...!

PS - I still have a can of WM Penn axle grease and a spanner set...
I bought them around 1974 to work on my 1972 VW 1500.
Sadly the bug was sold as a Bank of Dad requirement to finance the purchase of a 1970 VW Westphalia camper van. Memories !

Boss asked me how my knee is doing today. I replied "still a bit stiff."

And that's how you locate fans of Hot Fuzz in your vicinity.

I don't know about you but I think that Timothy Dalton was the best thing in the Movie.

He was a slasher.


OF PRICES!!!!

I go to the bottle shop to buy beer and come home to find jets flying in formation overhead

GP weekend huh?

C'est la grand prix.

(Archer reference)

Damn you and your cultural references.

The weather here is schizophrenic. Two weeks ago a blizzard dumped 10' of snow in the mountains 20 miles west of me. This week it's been full on spring weather. 😂

Bob, this Polyaspartic floor cost $8.00 sqft in 2022. It's three layers in total. Two base layers of epoxy. Then they throw on the chips and add a top clear layer of Polyaspartic.

I spend a LOT of time in the garage. I start to twitch when it gets too dirty. I mop the floor about every 2 months or so. 😂

Wow. The Visor Shop does not horse around with shipping times.

We must be on opposite ends of the teeter-totter. Getting 4" today!

Ah well... I still have gas in the snowblower from Winter 22/23, so at least I can burn it and get some fresh fuel in before the spring. Silver linings.

Guessing that's an AGV K6?

K6S in fact.

I know swanky AF.