FINALLY!! The Machine Is Good To Go!

Oh, God! If it wasn't one thing, it was another!  Today I was down to the little stuff- just finishing up with the Dynabeads and mounting the wheel on the bike. I still had the beads in the old tube that the installer handed back to me, so I just cut the tube open and poured the beads into a bowl. For some reason, the Dynabeads were giving me shit today and it took a little longer than it normally does to get them in the tire. But once done, the tire inflated to a nice 30 PSI without incident.

I cleaned up the axle and gave it a new coat of grease. I got the wheel on, bolted the fender in place and mounted the brake caliper, then torqued everything down to spec.

Off the lift she went and we were off for a test ride! The bike felt wonderful!! The new rubber gave the bike a much more lively feel! It rolled so effortlessly and was smooth as silk! And maybe the last pair was a little worn (5500 miles), but this pair of tires turned in like it had power steering! It was marvelous!

Once back in the garage, I realized that there were still a few minor things that needed tweaking, like the new front brake line was swimming around loosely in the old brake line mount/holders because the old lines had these fatty rubber mounting areas, which was causing the line to slack up around the head tube, tightening near the lower fork. I took that old blown up tube and my tin snips and cut out a couple rubber strips. I got them rolled up and black-taped them around the brake line. Presto! They fit like magic and now they are held firmly in place!

The sun will be out this week and my car will be on jack stands most of the week, so it'll be the perfect opportunity for me to commune with my bike once again!