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Lessons learned

4K views 36 replies 14 participants last post by  Offcenter 
#1 ·
Anxious to get every minute of ride time before the weather breaks, I admit I didn't do any "pre-flight" checks, just jumped on Bike and left. Had my feet up on the crash bar pegs and imagine my surprise when I moved back to the foot boards, only to realize the one on the right wasn't there. Finally hit something with my foot that felt very strange, looked down and realized the footboard was hanging by a thread and my foot had caught the front edge which was pointed up at the time. Found a spot to pull off the road and discovered that the bolt going through the footboard and securing it to the adapter had backed almost all the way out. And of course I didn't have any tools with me. So I took it the rest of the way off, stowed it in the saddle bag, and headed back home. I was only seven miles out so it didn't take long to get back, find the allen wrenches and a tube of locktite and put it back in.
Lesson learned - always do the pre-flights and for crying out loud carry a few basic tools.
Also managed to stall out trying to pull out into traffic, caught me by surprise enough that I lost my balance and Bike and I almost caught a curb and tumbled out into the street in front of the oncoming car. Somehow I managed to save it with a big head bob and some crazy leg moves like a cartoon character running in place. Full face helmets are great, the people in the car can't see you blush. That was the third and the worst time I'd stalled Bike; all in the two days since he got back from the mechanic.
Lesson learned - be a little more patient and study on how differently Bike runs after all the carburetor work. Never stalled once all summer even though it had been 30 years since I rode, now it seems to be a problem. Have to relearn my throttle/clutch maneuver.
And that was all in one day....
How about you guys? Any good "lesson learned" stories?
 
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#2 ·
The footboard....
Shortly after I got my Goldwing, I was pulling out of my driveway and lifted my butt off the seat to readjust my position. As I put my weight on the footpegs, the right one snapped off and dropped in the road!
That was a very short ride. Luckily it happened in front of my house instead of miles from home. A quick check showed that it was likely a poor weld from the factory only 21 years before. Imagine that! A footpeg weld on a HONDA that only lasted 21 years!!!
A new footpeg was quickly located on Ebay and a few days later I was back on the road.
 
#3 ·
Don’t have a bike story. Probably just plain old dumb luck and a fairly new bike.
Flying many years ago. I had gone through the pre flight check list ect including pre take off which include harness and doors. I did a quick cursory doors and harness check
Took off got to about 500 as I banked to turn I leaned on door. it opened. Found myself staring down at the ground out an open door.
Fortunately I didn’t fall out.
Lesson learned do your checks properly. Not just going through the motions
 
#4 ·
Thirty years ago I was dating a red head 9yes to all the thoughts), I got off work, showered, dressed and hopped on my then daily rider short wheel base 1972 BMW R74/5 "Toaster" and blasted off through the busy Friday after work traffic, threading the needle etc. all the way to her place .

I pulled up, stopped and put my right foot down, the right side handlebar snapped off in my hand at the riser .

Had it broken 10 minutes earlier I may well not have been here to write this .

Yes, I chcked the break and it had been cracked for a while judging by the rusty edges .
 
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#5 ·
I rode my bike 25 miles to an advanced riding skills course, did all that riding for five hours in a big parking lot & a little bit on the street, no problems. I thought my license plate was securely attached and nobody told me otherwise. But I admit that I never looked at it, never checked the bolts holding it on, or the bracket.

On the way home from that training class, I started hearing a banging and scraping sound.
I rode another 3 miles until I found a perfect spot to pull over and inspect the bike.
Guess what? I found my license plate bracket had cracked the plate had fallen off and was getting banged against my rear wheel, hanging only from the electrical wires. It could have gotten in the spokes!
And it wasn't just the license plate that was hanging down it was still attached half of the heavy steel bracket so that would've ripped my spokes up had it gotten into my rear wheel.
Tire Wheel Fuel tank Automotive tire Automotive lighting

So now I do a much more thorough pre-trip inspection, both on the beginning of a trip and on the turnaround point where I begin to ride back home from that day's destination.
 
#6 ·
Sounds like me when I bought my very first Harley ~ (1965 FL PanHead) I was nearly home crossing the boulevard when I heard a clattering sound, the license tag had fallen off in the middle of the intersection and before I could run back and reach it a '65 Chevy ran it over denting it :cautious: .
 
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#8 ·
I have a couple, both related to maintenance.

1. I had put on a new front tire and put the bike back together, but forgot to pump up the front brakes. Took off for work and was coming up to the first stop sign, and NO FRONT BRAKES! I was only going about 25 mph, so the back brake did just fine to bring me to a stop. And then I remembered what I had done. I sat there and pumped up the front brakes, and then went on my way. Since that morning, I never put the bike in gear to take off until I have first checked both front and rear brakes.

2. I had taken both side panels off to do something or other, got finished with that, put everything back together. The next morning I took off for work, checked in my mirrors to make sure the garage door was closed... and no mirrors. Well, they were there, but not fastened on (just dangling by the wires).
 
#20 ·
Thanks for the tip, SF. I'll certainly check all the bolts I can find. I've just been looking around the internet for ideas about portable garage heaters so I can putz around out in the shop without freezing my fingers off. And Bike does vibrate a lot, to the point that I feel like it's wound up too high when I'm cruising at highway speeds and I'm constantly hunting for that phantom 6th gear.
The very idea of shifting without using the clutch immediately brings back all the lectures from my dad 50 years ago when he plopped me in the driver's seat of the F250 and told me to go get the gravity boxes out of the field. I still wouldn't have the nerve to try it now!
 
#21 ·
Portable Buddy Heaters are pretty nice. I found they froze up the small propane canisters, but work very well from the 5-gallon tanks, take the chill off the shop and are a great backup in case the grid fails you.
 
#23 ·
A carbon monoxide sensor is a good insurance policy.
 
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#24 ·
Very much so ! .

Every year I see in the news where someone, often an entire family, dies from carbon monoxide poisoning .

I always thought "it can't happen to me" yet my 1965 SEARS furnace' fire box rusted a small hole in it and filled my house with this insidious gas, I couldn't smell a thing but I kept thinking 'the air isn't right in here' and asked my son and visitors of they smelled anything, all said no so I nearly died ~ luckily for me the hole in the firebox blew out the pilot light when the furnace cycled late one night in January, after re lighting it three times I realized something serious was amiss and found it the next day after work .

SAFTEY KNOWS NO SEASON, we don't want to loose anyone here .
 
#35 ·
In the mid 1970's I was living with a girl 'Jeanie' and had fixed up a cherry red 1956 VW 'Oval Window' Beetle for her, she loved it and drove it everywhere .

One afternoon my buddy Chuck and I was sitting shooting the breeze when Jeanie called, she and Cuck's wife were across town with a broken clutch cable, what did I want her to do / .

Sit tight, Chuck and I drove there in my 1968 Chrysler station wagon, let the girls drive off in it then I hopped in the Beetle, fired it up and drove it home sans clutch, we beat the girls to my house =:cool: .

Old Big Rigs had a Fuller 13 speed "Road Ranger" gearbox that the clutch was only used to start or stop, I never quite learned how to operate one .
 
#37 ·
Old Big Rigs had a Fuller 13 speed "Road Ranger" gearbox that the clutch was only used to start or stop, I never quite learned how to operate one .
Drove a Kenworth with a Road Ranger for several years. Like you said, clutch only for starting and stopping. Piece 'o' cake. Smooth as silk. Could go through all 13 gears like lightning, up shifting or downshifting.
 
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