bottomless pockets

I'm beginning to think that I will need some soon.

I've just sold some bits and pieces like the stock seat and pegs from my bike on e-bay and almost immediately spent it all again! As I'm going to strip the forks and powder-coat them, I thought I may as well buy seals and a tool to fit them. Then there was the brake pads which I may as well replace and that's not even considering the front mudguard I'm hoping to win next week.
Add to that a Optimate battery charger, just to keep the battery in condition over the winter rebuild and another couple of hundred quid's gone yet again. This is not even taking into consideration the "wish list" I started in my last post.

The one positive thing will be that I'll have bought most of the parts I need before I start to strip the bike down. Then I know I can get on with the work without having to order and wait for parts.

still riding

I took some bits for the bike, round to my garage to get them out of the house this morning.

While I was there the sun came out so I quickly nipped back for a helmet and took off for a ride.
It was cold and my fingers are stiff now I'm back in the warm but it was really well worth it. Riding through the country-side with all the autumn colours was so relaxing. It makes me just want to put off starting the strip-down on the bike for another few weeks. That will take me in to November so by then, the weather will no doubt be so bad that I'll not feel so bad about not riding.
Meanwhile I'm making a list of things I need (or just want) to buy over the next few months.
It's getting longer and longer.
Some of the bits on the list are necessary, like the bolts for the front callipers which arrived this morning. Others are ideas which come into my head and are more just good ideas and maybe wishful thinking. A new tank and therefore an Acewell speedometer, mounted on the yokes, is not absolutely necessary but I think it will look good. I could also get away with keeping the standard exhausts but Vance and Hines black short shocks will sound and look much better.
I'll just have to prioritise and be patient.

compact

I received the Altmann P3 in the post today.
For something that cost nearly £400 there looks to be nothing to it. It's great!
Combine that with the first snow in Scotland last night, the wind is from the north east, and the nights are dark even as I'm arriving home from work.
Is it time to get the bike off the road now?

parts on flea bay

I have just spent a Saturday night peering at my computer screen, waiting for an auction to close.
This was for yet another 11/16th master cylinder and twin callipers. The bidding quickly went to a crazy level for the master cylinder so I gave up on that early on. I don't see the point of paying nearly £100 for an item which can be bought new for thirty quid more. The last one I lost out on went for £61 and that was with the clutch lever and bracket included. It also looked to be in much better condition.
I did win the callipers for £102 as opposed to over £400 for new. So, that is a much better price and worth getting second hand. This morning I went on to Jersey HD's web site and ordered a master cylinder.
Nearly there with all the bits and pieces for the front end.
Better start saving to pay for the fabrication!

autumn

That time of year when I feel that it's almost time to get the bike off the road to start the winter's customising.
But then again, the promise of sunny days is still hanging in the air, so should I put it off for another few weeks? Of course I will and hopefully enjoy a good few more rides before my riding year ends.

My purchases are gathering apace and with them the "parts shelf" is getting to the overflowing stage. I've taken delivery of the forks and am now almost desperate for brake callipers. I'm considering splashing out and going for some sooper dooper Harrison Billet (expensive) ones. They will be even more costly than buying new HD ones would be but will be of a much higher quality and performance.
The only thing about diverting funds to them is that it will leave me having to wait to get the tank and electronic speedo.

Did I not say?... I'm going to swap the tank for a stretched one with no tank mounted dash. That will necessitate moving the speedometer and idiot lights to the handlebars or top yoke and finding somewhere to fit an ignition switch. As that will best be done at the same time as I convert to carb and I can do the work myself, then I'm thinking that my priority should be in that direction. I've already ordered and paid for an Altman P3 ignition so, in financial terms at least, I'm more than half-way there.

Probably, what I will eventually do first, will end up getting decided on a whim in the end but the plan should be to keep an eye on e-bay for the brake bits. If I do get my hands on affordable callipers and master cylinder I'll do the front end but otherwise the tank will be my next purchase.
Perhaps an early xmas pressie to myself.

(sincere apologies for mentioning THAT word in October)

new pegs

I eventually got round to getting the last of my diamond black foot-pegs.

I wanted to have the rear pegs matching the front but wasn't too sure whether I wanted to have the back and rear ones the same diameter. As the large diameter ones cost just over £70, I have been putting off buying them for months now. They are one of the few HD bolt-on extras that I prefer over almost every other after-market pegs and grips. Harley seem to think that all we want to stick on to our bikes are blingy chrome things.

So, having finally made my mind up, I went down to West-coast to pick them up, having ordered them last weekend.
Twenty minutes later (getting the "ping-f*cks" off was a real pain and I had to file down the points on my circlip pliers) and I'm now absolutely sure I made the right decision. The wider diameter pegs look much more substantial and I'm certain that they'll go really well with my front end when, one day I get round to swapping that for a wider, beefier and all-round badder one!

WCHD are having their open day today. This is the annual HD "let's show off our next year's bikes and see if we can sucker anyone into buying", fest of bikes and goodies. Clyde Valley hog are doing their usual BBQ so I may just go back and pig out on bikes and burgers.

P.S. I did go back down but wasn't too impressed with the new look 2011 range. As far as I can see, all the MoCo has done is tart up the existing models by adding lots of expensive and IMO unnecessary extras, like ABS and more electronic things to go wrong. (All the things I'm in the process of trying to remove.) Then they can bump up the price! There were a couple of second hand bikes which have been added to. I hesitate to use the word customised as only one of them, a night train, was what I would think of as a custom. The other just had a load of, "out the Harley catalogue", bolt on extras bolted on. Still, I did enjoy just looking and dreaming and trying to get ideas for things to do to my bike.
One thing I did buy, as I hadn't paid as much as I thought for the pegs, was a set of black covers for the rear spindle nuts. Looks much better and really shows me up as a hypocrite for buy bolt-on Harley extras.