Finally after all this time, the puzzle is complete!

Back on April 29th, 2008, I did a post called Motorcycle Puzzle has whole family puzzled.

Motorcycle Scramble Squares not in order


My 13 year old daughter had a friend over this last weekend for a sleep over, and one of the things they accomplished was completing this puzzle that no one has done until now. We've had it for over two years.
I just had to post it for the record.

Motorcycle Scramble Squares in order!

Exile Cycles (NOT!!!!)

I was driving down the road on Monday, and spottted this bike in front of me. We came up to a stop light. I saw a sticker on the back and had to see what it said. "Exile cycles".



I was humored.




SOOO NOT EXILE.

Grabitpack

This is something I saw on http://news.motorbiker.org/blogs.nsf A.K.A. Bikes in the Fast Lane.

I'm not huge on doing reposts, but this one was something that I felt I had to share.

I'm doing this on the assumption that not everyone reads that blog. And I would hate for any of the people who read my blog to miss out on this if they were interested.

It is a really great option for those of us without saddle bags on our motorcycles, or a great option for anyone just looking for quick access to the wallet, cell phone, going through tolls if touring, etc.

I always wonder how I'm going to haul my stuff. My pockets in my leather jacket get stuffed, and I don't always want to wear a jacket, especially when it's hot. Sometimes I get lucky and ride with others who are willing to share their saddle bag or luggage bag storage with me.

I can't do the back pack thing. It doesn't work for my look, and fanny pack? Not fitting of the look either in my opinion.

I'm seriously thinking about getting one. It is really affordable.

I believe this might even come in handy for bikers, "like the kind that pedal".

Be sure to check out their website for more details. http://www.grabitpack.com/

A new biker word to add to the dictionary

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At a Motorcycle repair shop I frequent, there is a funny word that they use to describe making a bike look cooler than it already is, or is not.

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The first time I heard it was when I had a stock Harley, and was in there looking at options to make it Bad Ass.

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We talked about all of the things that could be done, and the list started, and the financial drain started as well.

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So my New Webster's Dictionary word addition suggestion is:

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coolify
Pronunciation: kool . if . eye
Function: adjective
Etymology: English slang biker giberish
Date: sometime after the start of the19th century
1: cool, or kool : To be lacking the stock motorcycle look:

2:To coolify, usually marks the start of ones financial drain , and loss of self-control.

A cool and calculating bike builder should be the administrator of "coolifying" ones motorcycle.

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Special thanks to Wizard and Stormy for using this wicked word, and making it part of my vocabulary.

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Special thanks to Stormy Custom Bike Works for helping me "coolify" my Harley.

The top 100 motorcycle blogs lists first interview

I recently made it on a Top 100 motorcycle blogs list, which I am humbly honored to be on, and want to thank Cristian Dorobantescu, a part time entrepreneur living in Bucharest, Romania, for doing this.

I was also honored to be the first interviewed blogger, and posted on his site.

Below is a sample of the post, including links to the author Cristian Dorobantescu's site, my interview, and Cristian's top 100 list:

Honda Motorcyles blog
Honda History, models, parts and…stories
Interview with Mr. Motorcycle
Posted on May 5th, 2008 by admin
While doing the Top 100 Motorcycle blogs a couple of weeks ago, I discovered some interesting blogs about riding a motorcycle, the biker’s lifestyle and their passions. I’ve bookmarked some of them and subscribed to their RSS feeds so I can get updates automatically (by the way, you can get updates automatically by email from the Honda Motorcycles blog as well, by clicking on orange subscribe button on the right panel), then I realized I would love to know more on the riders. That’s how I came with the idea to do a series of interviews with the motorcycle bloggers in the top 100.
First on the list is Mr. Motorcycle, a Harley rider from Minnesota. Amongst others, he is a motorcycle custom painter, father of 2 (he says 5, 2 children, 2 cats and a custom Harley) and blogger. Here is what I found out: (Click link to read more) Interview with Mr. Motorcycle

Tech tip #3. A way to save your custom paint job or stock paint job, and save your motorcycle parts.

I've run into a custom painting opportunity a time or two, due to a crash, scratch, or likewise on a motorcycle part, or even a wave runner that was crashed into a dock.
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When a painted part cannot be masked off easily, or needs complete dissassembly, it can get costly to do a paint repair no matter how small the repair area needed is. Likewise when you have a painted part from let say, Harley Davidson that is damaged, Most shops (Harley Dealers) consider the damaged part to be disposable because they won't sell their paint to you, so you can't have your local body shop fix it. This guarantees them big bucks in sales of more parts. However, you can take your painted part into a paint store such as a Sherwin Williams Automotive Paint store and have them read the paint with a special paint scope. They can then spit out a paint formula that will be right on the money, or at least close enough to blend in most cases. But most of the time this still involves full dissasembly of a part off of the motorcycle, or what ever it is you are painting, which can be expensive.
Furthermore, in the automotive paint industry as a painter, the rule of thumb is mix paint close enough to blend because you will never get an "exact match". This could mean painting all of your motorcycle parts to match, unless it is a "very" close color match. This would be spendy for a scratch right?
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There is a way around this in many cases.
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I'll get to that in a bit.
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When you have custom paint, there is also a way you can many times save your custom paint job by adding to it.
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A classic example is:
I have a friend whose chopper's rear fender was a bit too close to the rear tire. After the tire swelled when it heated up It rubbed and burned the paint edge on the rear fender tip. It has since been adjusted to no longer rub. Unfortunately this ruined a very expensive custom paint job that he has on the bike, if not for a solution I've used in the past.
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If you can keep the repair area as small as possible and do something custom in the repaired area only, you have a chance at saving it. It can be clear coated if needed, but if small enough can be done with sign painter's paint called "One Shot"and or outlined with a "One Shot" pinstripe.
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Example below:




(I am not claiming this paint job, as this is not one of mine, but this was a classic example of how this can be done.) I know he has even got compliments on the rear fender accent that was never meant to be. Who knew( untill now)?!
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Remember that wave runner I mentioned at the beginning of the post that was crashed?



The hood got a crack. I did a fiberglass repair, primer, etc., the works, and then had to paint it. I could not match the white gelcoat that the hood had from the factory, but always have paint left over's from previous jobs, and took the colors that were already on the wave runner and gave the hood a custom paint job. Now not only did I save money, and time, I actually made the waver runner custom. This was wave runner #3 that I've done similar things to. You can even do this technique where there are no good break lines by having the clear coat edge broken off by pintriping over it like in the motorcycle example above.
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Just some ideas for you to think about, and realize that there are options for you when you get that dreaded scratch, or dent.
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This is a great excuse to go for it and get that custom paint job you've been wanting, and now have a reason to do it.
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Mr. Motorcycle

Motorcycle Puzzle has whole family puzzled.

When My family and I went to Glacier National Park for a family vacation, I was really bummed out that I did not have my motorcycle with me, as it would have been a beautifull ride. That is another post all together.


We did get a souvineer called scramble squares. It consists of 9 square cardboard puzzle pieces that make a perfect square when assembled together. All 9 pieces are the exact same square shape, just the picture is different. The object is to line up all nine pieces so the pictures all match up. It comes with no photo of it completed, so it is truly mind boggling.

I know it can be done, because we saw it put together at the gift shop. That was the only time it has been together. We've all tried but to no avail.


Of course the puzzle I bought was of motorcycles.


I took a picture below.




It is not together properly in my photo of course.


Everytime we think we got it together, we realize we are off a piece or two.


Gaaah!


P.S.

Anyone interested, should click on the picture to expand it to full size, copy and paste it, and print it out, and cut out the pieces to make your own puzzle. Then try to solve the puzzle. Be prepared to waste some serious time trying, as the hardest most frustrating part is you have no idea where the correct starting pieces are, etc.

If any one does solve the puzzle, PLEASE take a picture, and e-mail it to me. I want proof, and I'll post it on my site. Also I want it for myself so I can cheat and put my own puzzle together.


Good luck!



Mr. Motorcycle

Exactly when did I fall in love with motorcycles?

I must first say that I have been planning this post for quite some time, but fellow motorcycle blogger, FLHX Dave from http://roadgritscafe.blogspot.com/ beat me to it. I’m sure he is not the first to post this story in his own version, and I certainly hope he and I will not be the last. It makes such good reading.
The link to his post is something you should make sure to read as well. It is heartfelt, and funny. http://roadgritscafe.blogspot.com/2008/04/no-one-forgets-their-first-time.html

I’m not sure, but I know before the day I was certain, there were a lot of influences. Some were subliminal, some were not.

My very first brand new bicycle had baby ape hangers. This was just the style back in the early 70’s. In the photo, you can see, I’m the littlest one up front. My sister hiding directly behind me had ape hangers on her new bike as well, and my big brother, well, he wanted a five speed, so he got the beach cruisers. Notice my big brother's Vikings belt buckle! Too funny.





My second bicycle was a Huffy Thunder Road. This was like a motorcycle as far as I was concerned. Couldn’t imagine how many times I put playing cards in the spokes to get the potato potato potato V-twin motorcycle sound out of it. I used to pretend it was a motocross motorcycle too. (No that is not me on the Huffy.)



I remember getting a ride on my older cousin Gary’s Harley like it was yesterday. I’m not sure if he went super fast, or if it was my imagination taking hold because it was my first real motorcycle ride ever. It sure felt fast. I was in love with it and the adrenaline rush it gave me.

I remember getting a ride on the back of one of my older brother’s friend’s crotch rockets. This is when they seemed to be pretty new on the market for street legal bikes, and I know he went way too fast for having his friend's kid brother on the back with no helmet. I also know I egged him on to "go Faster - Faster!". He said we were doing about 100 MPH. THAT was cool. I was again in love with motorcycles and the adrenaline rush.

I never had a motorcycle as a kid. My folks wouldn’t have it. Too dangerous, and too much money. I had a few friends with three wheelers, mini bikes, dirt bikes, and such. I got to ride their stuff plenty. This scratched my itch, until I was a little older.

When I was 15 years old, my folks let me buy a moped with money I’d saved from lawn mowing jobs around the neighborhood. I believe, but can’t say for certain that this was when the true obsession started.

I got my driver’s license at 16 years old, and drove a car. Moped too slow, too dorky, not 18, & my folks wouldn’t let me have a motorcycle. (YET).

My mom and dad said you can’t have a motorcycle unless you are 18. I believe there was implication that I did not live with them as well, but shortly after I turned 18, ( I was 19). I bought a brand new shiny Honda Rebel 250. Burnsville Motor Sports was going out of business. The owner’s wife was selling it. It was hers. She had about 200 miles on it. Mostly from learning how to ride. She was afraid of riding so she wanted to give it up. They said I could take it home for $850.00. I paid cash that day. I had never ridden a real motorcycle on the road or anything yet, and did not really know how to ride, let alone shift. I had my buddy Johnny drive it home for me. I followed in my car. When we pulled up the driveway to my house together, my mother had just come home from work. Se said ”Hey Johnny , nice motorcycle, did you just get it? It looks brand new!” Johnny said, ”nope, it’s Mark’s. He can’t ride it yet, until I show him how.” I think my mother almost fainted when she realized he wasn’t kidding. This was similar to the reaction she had with my first tattoo. She wanted me to wash it off. (The tattoo was exactly three days after my 18th birthday.)

Anyway, back to the motorcycles. More bikes later, more stories to tell, here I am today.
I am a true obsessed motorcycle enthusiast nut. I LOVE EM!

You other motorcycle bloggers out there should share your story. Do your own post on this topic, or please feel free to write it in my comments section.
I’d love to hear your story.

Mr. Motorcycle