Beowulf gets some love at EMS

7 days to departure.

whooo... Beowulf getting stripped.

Yesterday Beowulf got the equivalent of a spa treatment. I went back to EMS (Essential Motorcycle Services) 942 SW Marine Drive in Vancouver as I still had issues with my steering head bearing. But I had more things I wanted to address. So the guys went to work right away. It’s one thing about this shop, you show up and usually they can help you right away. No “we have an opening on the third Thursday in July…” sort of thing.

you can see California dust on there... sigh...

This is what was done :
Flush and replenish brake fluid front and back. The stuff was brown and it’s supposed to be either clear or light yellow. I watched them work closely because I really need to learn more about my bike.

Flush and replace cooling system fluid. I had no idea when that was last done so we went ahead. They had to take the gas tank off to get access to the cap. So I now know how to do that.

Vinny and Dakota (I believe that is how they called him...)

Re-adjusted the steering head bearing. I sure hope that is going to be all right.

I asked Ted a million questions… I thought he’s going to get tired of me in a hurry… How about this? Can I do that? Where’s the …?

Then I remembered the back-firing. I read and was told that the K bikes backfire a lot and it’s just a fact of life but lately I had been experiencing some major explosions anytime I let go of the throttle… at times I`d get this massively loud “POW” that would just embarrass me to no end. I like to be a bit more stealth than that… What used to be a kind of a rumble before was now like shell fire as I rolled down the street. Ted looked at the bike and got this mercury gizmo that had tubes that hooked onto the cylinders and he adjusted the carbs. He also fabricated replacement plugs that go on two air intake little tubes..(sorry for the non-scientific nomenclature here) the original ones were all cracked which meant too much air would go in and make the engine to run too rich and cause all this racket.

Ted gets involved with `help`from Vinny

The guys also checked the spark plugs, the cables, clutch play as I kept asking more questions.

A couple of hours after getting there I was hitting the road.

Wow.

Beowulf is grinning, mirror to mirror. Now it feels so right.

There is still a small wobbly thing that I feel in the front that wasn`t there, I`ll see how it behaves after a hundred miles or so.

It`s a wonderful feeling to have the bike perform so much better. There will be a whole lot of miles ahead of us in the next few months and this is a good way to start.

Thank you EMS for caring and for taking such good care of Beowulf and for answering my endless questions. What I really like about this shop is the fact that they are changing the world of motorcycle shops. They are creating a new concept, making it a down to earth, accessible, all inclusive place where your bike gets love and where you feel community and fairness. and… no bull!!! THANKS!!

the tool for engine Zen

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