Well the police in Papillion Nebraska DO care and DO frequently drive around my neighborhood since the county courthouse is just up the road. So now I need to get myself a helmet, but before I do I figured I would ask for recommendations on which brands/models NOT to get. So if you have any non-recommendations, drop a comment. Oh yeah, I am looking for a full face model.

After having some discussions online about tires and talking with a few local dealers, I have decided to go with the Avon Roadrunner AM20 and AM21. No particular reason for choosing the Avon’s over the other brands recommended. They’re just a matched set, decently priced and I have not heard anyone talk bad about them… yet.

The dealer did not have the shoe’s or the tires in stock. They said it would take about a business week to get everything in. I decided to wait to place the order for two reasons:

1. I did not get approval from Amy to make the purchase today.
2. I promised Amy I would finish up several “house” tasks on my honey-do list before I would shift focus to the bike.

So once I get the tasks done and gain approval, I will be placing an order.

After reading Hugh’s blog, it looks like he is much more knowledgable than I about this sort of thing… so I just hope that I can be of some assistance to Hugh, instead of being a leech.

Thanks again Hugh!

UPDATE: Pictures are being moved to the gallery.

Thanks again to John, TerryW and Mike for the advice and help!

• Honda Motorcycle Technical Help Board

I hope that someone has tips on how to get the front brake apart.

• Dan’s Motorcycle Repair Course
• Motorcycle Repair and Restoration

These look like they will come in handy, so I have added them to the url’s on the right. If you have any other URL recommendations, please, pass them on.

I consider myself fairly mechanically inclined, but I only have a high level understanding of how motorcycles work, and have no hands-on experience with the inner workings of motorcycles. Therefore, this will be a FIRST for me, and I hope to search/beg/borrow/plead for help whenever I need it ;). And if I am lucky, hopefully I will get the help and learn a lot in the process.

The project bike does run, but it needs work before I would feel comfortable using it as my daily commuter vehicle, hence this project. I will post pictures of the bike, this weekend, before I start any work. I’ve purchased the Clymer manual for this bike and I think I am ready to begin.

Unless someone can convince me otherwise, I plan on starting the project by tackling all safety issues first, then moving onto getting things running well, and finally the aesthetics.

The bike was purchased from my brother-in-law, Donnie, and given to me as a gift from my father-in-law. Taking Donnie’s recommendations into consideration, I think these are my primary safety issues and what I will tackle first:

• Brakes – New on the rear, but the front have never been replaced. After taking the bike for a short ride, the front brakes are useless. Donnie says he could never get the front brakes apart to replace them.
• Clutch – Donnie purchased new clutch gears but never got around to replacing. I do not know what a “bad” clutch would feel like as I have only ridden new bikes, but if he says it needs to be replaced and I trust him.
• Tires – Well they are worn, different makes/models, and the rear has a plug. I don’t know if it makes any difference, but I would think you would want them to be of the same make/model, and I personally do not want to rely on a plugged tire.

If anyone out there has other things that should be added to my safety list, or knows how to get the front brakes apart, please let me know.