Pedro

Yeah, seems I might as well order some rubber things for the carb and then take it sort of apart to clean. Ultrasonic bath? I know what that is but I think I'll have to travel to the future to find someone with that in my neighborhood.

I wonder if they asked @Sir Fallsalot for a little help with some filters to make it pop up.

So, had a while to spare in the afternoon, and between calls went and took the drain plug from my XR400R's carb, to see the state of things inside. Nothing looks as dirt bike cool as a 80 or 90's Honda, I think. Looked like moss inside, the bottom was sort of crusty but the walls of it looked like the greenish yellow was a part of it. This is was was encrusted in the bottom. Looking more normal, but I ended up getting rid of the smaller bits of it still in this picture. Washed it using the petrol that I used to flush the carb and a toothbrush. The fuel coming out had a few particles but looked ok to me. Nothing that my phone might be able to pic up on pictures. I gave up kicking and kicking since it wasn't making any of the "about to start" sounds it usually makes. Then resorted to pushing it up my driveway, which is the same height as a full flight of stairs, and bump starting it down. The first time it started, in third gear with the tick over quite high and helped by the slippery ground and new front tire I almost ended up on the wall It manages to run for a while on choke, but can't get it off choke without stalling. I feel it's not running well either, sounds harsh and spluttery. A few more tries and I did get her to start on the kick a few times, but not for long. Pushed it up that drive more times than I feel comfortable counting I did think of getting it out on the street, there's a loooong way down from my door, ideal for bump starting it a few times and put some heat into the engine, but if it ends up not running I can never push it back up that far and steep. So, after a while I though that the little black adjuster that helps adjust tickover might have been too high, ended up on no adjust, so just put in 1 or 2 turns on that. Then foolishly tried to start her a few times with fuel on reserve, and fuel closed. Eventually it ran for maybe 30 seconds to a minute, on choke, but just dies like it runs out of fuel, accelerator does nothing to help it keep going. The phone started ringing and I came inside. Will try again tomorrow.

You still made the same comment as a joke to your daughter though, so surely you get how wadding about in mud up to your ankles under the rain looks like a weird kind of enjoyment.

Sorry, I will correct my statement: that looks like a horrible time to me

Poor horse, that seems like a miserable time!

Safer that way

Sitting outside with a coffee and calling clients enjoying a chill morning with little wind. Will take the opportunity of little wind to treat my tree against aphids. This is a lovely work / countryside balance when it works. Then later will get on the bike and go out for lunch, this time in what looks like a success judging by the blue skies. It's going to get hot in the weekend, 31º isn't that normal for this time of year yet, 20º and perfect today so quite a big difference.

They used to say Chinese bike manufacturers copied Europeans and Japanese in styling, but look at this shit and tell me it doesn't look Chinese, in a bad way, like it's really trying to be something it doesn't know what it is.

That V shaped thing on the back where the light is looks kind of odd. It's a very cool bike though.

If it does live inside my walls, maybe I do. I'm ok with them keeping at a distance though.

It's not leaking after I tapped it lightly a few times. Tomorrow I'll get to it in the afternoon when I feel like smelling like gasoline.

The ride was shit, turned into rain 5 minutes in and ended up having lunch at home. At home I did exactly that as I remembered this one time many years ago when I took the bowl off for changing the jets. A few taps fixed the leaking problem, however with all the fussing I fucked up the magic procedure to start the bike so it didn't and I left it for tomorrow. Also took apart a compost box in my garden as there are suspicions it might have been converted to a snake nest. There are a lot of small lizards and stuff like that living in the wild bush that is my garden, and they slither around when I'm around, but after a few more or less big snakes were seen I have become a little skittish of grabbing into grasses. Snakes here are mostly non venomous and eat rodents, but they are very aggressive and will make for painful encounters.

Frustrated with myself and my mechanical incompetence. I've got a XR400 pissing fluid down the carb's little escape tube instead of starting, fuel all over, even resorted to pushing it up the ramp to bump start it going down. I'm clueless. Considering selling the thing as I haven't ridden it more than 2 or 3 times in the last 3 years. Will take the GS and go for lunch up in the hills.

That's very interesting, let us know when it's done.

Correction, lost count

Did they name a Harley after a burger?

We have an issue with them, similarly maybe how the Scots or Irish might have an issue with the English. Towards Portuguese, they think they’re superior, but they think they’re superior to anyone else, same as the French. Who likes the French? Not fair really, the company I work for isn’t even Spanish owned or managed, it’s that company in itself that’s too complicated and dramatic.

I don’t dig it one bit.

Not my kind of bike really, and it’s a properly tiny bike, but heard a few go by on full throttle and it must be one of the coolest sounding motorcycles made today.

Correction, two glasses.

In the morning took the E30 to go shop for a shirt, it started first thing yesterday after way more than a month standing. This car is like a donkey, always happy to go for a walk. Ran into my dad's salesman who lives 400km away and was going back home with his family after the Easter weekend in Lisbon, what are the chances? Did a little work, not much to do today since my clients are almost all closed on Easter monday, but the Spaniards alway find new things to annoy me, then had a pretty healthy lunch of raw cherry tomatoes with a toast and olive oil. Spend most of the afternoon picking up grass and wild stuff growing in between the stones in my portuguese pavement, which is similar to cobblestones but white and smaller stones. Hard work in the warm sun. Missed a lot of them, managed to fill two 50 liter buckets and it still looks like shit! Then washed the GS, which is the easiest bike in the world to get really dirty from normal riding, and the hardest to wash. Managed to bang my knuckles into the aluminium bashplate while scrubbing under the cylinders, and my neighbors got to hear some northern words they're not used to. A short ride to warm it up after drying and found someone ran out of talent and crashed a Citroen AX into a wall, the car was left on the outside of a corner on a very dark not lit road, smart! Then vacuumed the house in a 50% ok way, had a shower, and am now enjoying a glass of wine outside, while the sun sets over the front neighbors houses. My almond tree (the one with the sun through it) is really growing and shows some pretty nice big almonds in the making, I should spray it against aphids this week. I'm tired, such is the life of a quiet day in the Ribatejo. Tomorrow I have work and a ride to go somewhere eat a sandwich for lunch. I'll take the stylish leather jacket!

12€ for a Portuguese style Russian salad. The world's going insane.

Try and do that to see if it messes them up, or maybe they’ll put a detective on you after!