F650gs service time

Morgan stopped by for an oil change, coolant change and the start of a rolling 10k service check.  A couple things coming up are swing arm bearing lube, steering head bearings, and valve check. She's owned the 07 since 400 miles and now has 8,000. Some good riding! Love the black color best.  

2009 F650gs owner familiarization

Mark stopped by to get a 2 hour overview of his new bike. It's a beaut with all the cases, a huge adjustable wind screen, and TT tank bag. He's half way through the 12k check, with an oil change, valve check due. Checked and adjusted chain tension, brakes, bearings, etc. We even went through the tool kit assuring a positive outcome should the shnoozle pin break.

ADV Garage just shipped a Dakar radiator (used) to a fellow round-the-worlder in Honduras.  We had one in stock since they can be expensive new and they tend to be knackered in a good wipeout.  Glad to be of help.  Here is his story:

"Just picked up your emails. Thank you for dealing with the shipment so promptly. If only everything was a reliable as a "Dakar" brother :-)

I am heading into my 6th year of my self-funded round the world tour which began in London. Riding through Europe I crossed the Bosporus into Asia headed East. I rode a tour of Turkey before moving onto Iran, picking up the Historic Silk Road. In the footsteps of Marco Polo I wandered through Iran and onto Pakistan where I found myself crossing barren desert landscapes, the lush Indus basin, and the world’s highest ranges to the legendary Karakorum Highway.  Into India, turn left for  mores now dusted mountains, riding the high passes, jaw dropping vistas an sure death drop offs.  Riding South through deserts with their camel driving nomads, towards sun washed beaches. 

Those were some of the highlights, but my travels have also taken me through Nepal, Burma, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia to Singapore.  A blog is the best place to expand detail, and maybe I will start writing one day.  

One thing I can share is that experiencing the cultures, food, and local flare are things I won’t easily forget.  My journey through those lands has taught me more about people and how they deal with hardship than I ever could have imagined.  

From Singapore I shipped the bike to Canada.  The ride continued through massive paved highways, passing towering buildings I started to appreciate more those simple things in life we most often forget.  And, we don’t always take a moment to smell the roses…to see the mountains and appreciate them for what they are.

Heading North big distances meant long days in the saddle and lots of time to reflect on what I had seen so far. Far away from the teaming masses of Asia I embraced the relative solitude of the lonely Canadian backroads. The wild fires making the already quiet roads deserted.

Into Alsaka , and its wettest summer for 12 years. Tick-list ride to Prudhoe Bay, over-landing cliche maybe, but how often do you get to dip your boots in the Arctic Ocean.

I am currently in Central America and have about 2-3 years of travel in front of me.

My goal is to travel overland to the tip of South America and then transfer the bike to southern Africa. I am not planning to simply pass through the many countries and cultures I will meet along the way, but actively experience them. I hope to gain a better understanding of their people and cultures and have a more rewarding experience by participating in organic farming, Eco-tourism projects and assisting with the start up of adventure tourism programs.

Once again, many thanks for your time and effort to keep me and Wobbly the Dakar on the road,

Andrew"

ADV NY Cessna 172RG Annual Inspection

Eric is working on a "special" 172RG annual in NY.  It happens to be a flight-line aircraft meaning lots of hours, lots of abuse.  Requirements for maintenance for these planes (as trainers) is a check every 100 hours as I remember from my days working at AirMaster then Montair here in KBTV.  Its clear that the latest mechanics and owners just let it go.  In our view this is one scary proposition.  The poor current owner had a pre-purchase inspection and "nothing turned up"....  Until the first inspection by another shop, where the estimates were near $20,000 to get it flightworthy.  ADV Garage NY is handling it for a reduced amount and some customer satisfaction.  I went down for 3 days of help (out of about a month of work I think).  Its on the path to completion (although when I left the tail was removed to fix a broken stop bolt).

The level of repair was right down to re-fabricating parts at the shop such as this air intake vent.  It needed gluing, then fiberglass re-enforcement, then filling, sanding, installing.

Air intake (vent) was in pieces

My job included redoing most of the engine baffling on engine, cowling.  At least 50% was missing and 80% was not doing its job of cooling the engine! Goes to show you, these air-cooled engines are tough.

Beautiful baffling restored

Inside the wing tank a leak was found using the windex tm technique:

Bubbles show leak in fuel tank

Interior is tired.

Interior showed signs of being apart a hundred times (its mostly back together now)

Gear test

Lulu was hanging out with us most of the time even though the hanger was dark, cold and crowded.

I could go on forever, but suffice it to say, no job too tough for the ADV

Hot tub maintenance MS102

The learning curve continues with the hot tub.  This is documented in hopes of helping some other poor sap who might not have the technical know-how or chutzpah to give it a go.  The "hot tub technician" is not what you imagine (black magic scientist with a bag of water potients (sp), but more a replacer of parts which anyone can do.  The mantra of the ADV Garage.
WARNING: This is not documented for its edge of the seat excitement factor.

After replacing the ozone hose that was solid/brittle and fixing the output of the ozonator in an older post, I finally found some test device to check the level of ozone output (aside from the most recommended- sniff test - I kid you not).  It's an in-line test strip that changes color when ozone is present.  Maybe $25 for two.  Its what the "technicians do. You just break the ends off the glass tubing, then connect one end to the output of the ozone, the other to the hose going to the tub.  In 30 seconds it should turn white (or stay blue in my case DOH!).

I went back inside the unit (voids warrantee, but its dead and past the 1 year warrantee on "accessories" anyway) and found a fuse blown.  Simple!?  Radioshack had the 250V 1A fuse.  Put it back together and tested it again (used the same tube since it wasn't that long ago).  Still nothing and another blown fuse. Oh well.

Fuse goes in green board

 Looking in the chamber where the air comes out, I saw filled with yellow junk.  Just like the tubing.  Must be some sort of by-product of the ozone and other?  Either way, this is be the problem.

Broken outlet and inlet and filled with yellow hard gunk

I went back to the dealer at this point and made them give me a new "accessory" even though the unit is 3 years old, since it was a used hot tub and it clearly wasn't working when they sold it to us.  Yeay, a new $300 ozonator is on the way!  All it took was showing them the clogged unit, something that could not have happened in the three months we owned it.

So, the ADV rules once again.  Total saved: $300 plus service call.  I'm going to get in the guts of the unit to see if they can be refurb'ed easy and sell it to one of my friends!

The unit that makes the ozone

Note to the manufacturer, Watkins Manufacturing:  If you're gonna make something this disposable, at least sell the refurb part so we don't fill up our landfills with the perfectly good box, electronics, and everything else that works!  Profits over environment.

While in there, might as well bring the tub completely back up to like new condition.  Clean the ozone injector.  I did it at re-fil time so the hoses were empty.  You can do it full with some clamps on the hose to cut off water.

Right side of injector disconnected

Injector out.  I cleaned it with a stiff brush and some CLR

Back in with SS screw clamp (old green clamp on right).

One final installment of boring hot tub tech coming up as I weed through the chemical nightmare.  I swear, they keep it complicated so you call the technician.  Glimpse of whats to come: saved $200 on one chemical alone!

Ice sailing

Talk about picking the right days.  Need the right wind, ice and a boat and it doesn't come around that much.  I guess thats why they are light and portable.  We got to have a little fun in the DN this weekend with everything coming together at the right time.

Boat

Good Ice

Light Wind (to learn)

Setting up

Couple things I picked up right away.  First, a large bay gets used up quickly with the speeds you get in these things.  This also means you cover lots of types of ice- including imperfections that at a minimum feel harsh with little suspension or at worse, flip you or drown you.  Big pressure ridges are easy to see but the smaller cracks and holes are not easy being so low to the surface.

Me getting some speed

Second, is the quietness on flat ice.  Wow thats fun.

Last is the difference in sailing technique.  Not huge, but different.

Mototcycle gear is mandatory in my book with anything over 5k wind!  And, wear some warm stuff.

Here goes Robin:

Coming in for landing (a lot easier than a beach, right?):

Mariner Inflatable raft patch

Here is a PVC inflatable that has many seams unglued as well as a couple holes.  The owner got it free since he's like me and couldn't let someone throw it out.  So it cost him $175 to have the ADV get it back to life.  Seams are tough to re-glue but we managed to get 99% of the leaks patched with 2-part Shore adhesive.   Its a stickler for temp and humidity accuracy.  The seams will continue to deteriorate, but its fairly easy to keep up with it yearly.

Paint cans are for weight

A bad seam

This is one of those "Out the Door Guarantee" projects.