short blast out to That 50's Place

My buddy Jim and I took off early afternoon for a short ride and lunch at That 50's Place for lunch.
We took Rt66 south of Joilet all the way to Dwight Il. Here's the restaurant link--- http://www.that50splacediner.com/
The place is pretty cool for the Rt66 tourist to stop and hang out at. Food was pretty good but I only had chicken fingers.
I haven't been down Rt66 for at least ten years and I was stunned how much they are pushing the whole cruise 66 thing. Lots of 50's stuff and really odd things along the road. The one thing that I saw that I found really odd was a Coffee place also in Dwight. It was two Semi shipping containers stacked on top of each other and was only drive up. I should of taken a pic of it but didn't feel like taking too many pictures. Next time..

The other spot we stopped was at the old Gardner jail house.. This is all they needed back in 1890. It was very cool and they let you go in and check it out.
The only road picture I took with my really crappy Kodak camera. It looks like the weather is about to open up and soak us. I need to pick up another small digital camera. It really was a nice day for a ride.

headphones, crankcase vent and some riding!!

I've sprung the cash to have these ear plugs made at the bike show this year by-- www.plugup.com and I'm very happy. The ear buds are shure headphones I picked up from E-bay and they were new. They come with different size cones that you choose to fit your ear. They work good but not great under a helmet for two reasons. The ear bud works it's way out after a while of riding and they don't block much wind noise. Not blocking wind noise also means you must crank up the volume more.
With the custom molded deal I can ride at and speed and I don't have to go much louder than sitting in the house. They also work as perfect ear plugs when I have the Ipod off. The whole deal cost me about $225 bucks. Very pricey but no hassles with them falling out and being a distraction. I think it was worth the money and they should last me I hope around five years.

Ipod mounted and very secure in the ram mount. It dosen't seem to vibrate at all. I think the new lighter pistion I installed over winter cut down a ton of vibration.


See that black tube with the wire on it!! The wire is securing the PCV mod I did to the crankcase of the KLR. It seems to be working but I think all the folks on the forums are odd to say it makes a HUGE difference. Honestly I can't truly tell it's there! Well maybe slightly with high speed roll-on. I know the guy Cary who developed the pistion kit said to add this mod. Kind of odd and maybe one day I'll put a vacuum gauge on the case to see it really works....

I think this duck is really cool. My two year old has six of these in multiple colors. Had to grab the green one for myself. Used some loctite glue and he has stayed put after a few rides..
These pic's are one of the locks on the Hennepin Canal and the water was very high since the large amount of rain we had this spring. Heres some more info on the canal--http://dnr.state.il.us/lands/landmgt/parks/r1/HENNPIN.HTM

This a very cool covered bridge just north of Princeton IL. I guess the bridge gets a lot of attention in the winter when it's covered in snow. If you google it you'll see what I mean.
It was cool to see compared to the one I rode out to in Michigan years ago. The one in Michigan was a little plain in it's build. Just kind of like a old garage they tossed over the creek and neglected.
The bridge is very modern and has water sprinklers and a fire alarm. It was also swarming with cameras. That didn't help me out much since I needed to go pee and felt uncomfortable going off in the woods there to take care of it.
If you click the picture you can read it!! That is a bullet hole in the sign and looks like it happened a long time ago.
a little humor I think!!! The bridge seems very sturdy..

Things coming up soon with small reviews

The weather is about to show it's good side and it's been about two months since I've ridden my KLR. I have had custom headphones made out of Shure ear buds and added a RAM mount to hold my I touch.
The KLR now have the PCV mod that everyone claims it helps with keeping the crankcase at a slight vacuum. Which in turns adds to a engine that will rev up quicker. We will see!
The RD400 project is going still and slow. I'm hoping for birthday money to finance the powder coating of the expansion chambers.
The one thing I found crazy about the RD was I shortened some of the harness to fit cleanly into the new headlight. When all was said and done, four feet was removed!!!!! Here is a pic of just a little of the mess..

A little history and a RD 400 in slow motion

So the whole reason I'm doing this project is the little past I had with my old RD 350. When I was a 13-14 years old my neighbor had one sitting around in his shed. For a year or two I bugged my Mom to let me buy it and get it running. The answer was always a BIG NO!!!!
Later another kid I knew who had a license bought it. He got it running and it seemed like every
Saturday he was pushing it home, and always with a different excuse why it was dead.
I've had two other two stokes in the past and it didn't take much to tell it was too rich with the oil mixture. I never told the kid what was wrong with it for the hopes it would end up with me for a low cost. If it was dead it was cheaper for me to buy.
He finally gave up on it and my neighbor gave him his money back. I bugged my Mom so bad she finally gave in and we made a deal to sell it in the spring after I had it running right! ;)

That's the good half of the story, now here's the low.
Spring has come and the bike is set up properly. I did find the oil injection pump set twice a fast as it should of been. I would ride it up and down the driveway all day on the weekends. I was 15 and only had a permit for a car, so it was killing me not to go farther.

Saturdays my dad would go to work second shift. My mom would clean the house all day and I would go unnoticed. I took off riding around on the main streets for a few hours and then I took it down a side street towards home. Just my luck there was a cop sitting doing radar. Doing the speed limit I was home free, so I thought. He pulled me over and I had no clue why.
Then he asked where my glasses were. I honestly didn't know it was a law.
So after being very polite to him he let me push it home but he arrested me.
My mom was so pissed not only for being arrested but because she had to ride in the back of the squad car with me. Mom didn't drive so it was the only way my Dad wouldn't have to leave work.
He gave me three tickets for no license, glasses and improper plates.
The other suggestion was to sell the bike before the court date and it would go better.

The bike was sold in a week or two for two hundred bucks. Some stoner kid showed up and his girlfriend paid for it. I was wreaked watching it go down and away from the driveway.
The court day went good and the cop told the judge I was a good kid that just did something wrong. WOW I was stunned. Got away with court fees and a warning from the judge to never come back.

So later a guy I worked with gave me a offer to buy his ill running Rd 400 and couldn't pass.
This bike was really in rough shape but I brought it home for 150 bucks. I bought some stuff to make it a little better but gave up on it. This was before internet got rolling and E-bay.

Two years ago my Mom died and it sparked all the old memories and of the RD 350 incident. So this is why I'm getting this old thing going. I just tinker and think of her while I work on it.






Bike is looking pretty good up front with it's new headlight. all new hardware including rubber bits. parts painted and wiring hidden.



Steering damper bolted up and it's need on this bike.



Electrical center taken apart and needing a sandblasting for some fresh paint. Also I need to find a new fuse box cover. Hopefully E-bay for that.


messy but that will change.

Polished Allen head bolts look way better than the old rusty phillips head bolts.
So clean and fresh.


Grabbed some KYB shocks off of E-bay that are from the 70's and the guy actually raced with these for a season on a RD 350. They seem pretty stiff but they should work better than the JC Whitney junk that was on there.

The next big thing will be getting the expansion pipes powder coated. Hope there not gonna drive me broke......