Wildlife

Out riding (and very much enjoying) the ST1100 today. When I came home, Big Bird was standing in the driveway. I didn't see snuffleupagus, but then again, who ever does? :)

ST1100 Rolls Again

"There is no passion to be found playing small - in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.", Nelson Mandela


My ST1100, loyal traveling companion of many many trips, is finally ready to roll. This round of repairs saw the bike with so many parts stripped away that it was almost unrecognizable as a motorcycle.


I had to raise the rear wheel as high as I could so that I could use the large torque wrench on the two lower bolts holding the new differential on



The most difficult nut to reach and torque is the upper left one. Would have been impossible with the fuel tank in place.



Torqueing the bottom bolts.



Removing the old copper exhaust seals in preparation for the "new" exhaust system.



I had to remove the protective tipover framework on the right side. One bolt was rusted in and it broke. I drilled it out and retapped the hole.



I really needed speedclips to put all the bodywork back on. I was missing quite a few.



Running the bike outside to check for exhaust leaks. Everything was OK.



I have a working fuel guage again. Old one would show full right after the bike was filled, then fall to empty after a short distance. Was a bit of a panic the first time I noticed it.



So that is it, ready for the road. Let's hope the weather improves!

Work progresses on the ST1100

Spent some time recently working on putting the ST1100 together. I would like to use it this weekend so I need to hustle. I put the new-to-me differential on the swingarm, I replaced the fuel sender, and I put the new spline on the rear wheel.

Here is the new fuel sender installed on the side of the fuel tank.



Here is the inside guts of the old fuel sender. A winding was broken near one end. I moved the wire slightly to make it easier to see. The fuel reading would drop to zero about 50 km into a tank.



Here is my "new" differential on the bike. Shop manual calls for mounting and torqueing everything with the wheel first, then torqueing the four differential mounting bolts last. The old differential is on the floor.



Here is a photo of the old wheel splines and the new ones. The spline should be flat-topped and wide. The old ones are worn to sharp points.

ST1100 Work

Work on the ST1100 is slow due to other projects going on. Here is a photo of the bike.



The rear differential, exhaust system, and fuel tank are all off the bike. Looks bad, but I have seen it like this on numerous occasions before.

I needed tools and additional parts to tackle this job, but I have everything in place now.

Going to vote on the KLR650 on election day.