More Goodies

Back from Arizona for the summer and I brought a few more goodies with me for Dusty.  First to be installed was the wiring harness for the Optimate battery charger/tender.  You can't use a regular charger on a lithium ion battery so I sprang for one specifically designed for those type of batteries.  Plugged it in and everything worked fine.  Next installation was slightly longer rider foot pegs.  These provide a more comfortable foot / leg position when riding as they allow your leg greater clearance around the aircleaner.  Took the beast out for a spin and all seemed well.

Let there be Light

While back in Victoria for Christmas, I installed an LED headlight replacement bulb for the quatrz halogen light that originally came with the new headlight.  As mentioned before, the charging system on older Harley Shovelheads just can't keep up with the current requirement of a quartz halogen light.  The older systems only put out 15 amperes at best so running with the headlight on for extended periods of time tended to discharge the battery.  A halogen bulb draws about 4 amperes whereas the new LED bulb draws less than an amp.  Now, with the bike turning over at about 2000 revs, the battery maintains 13.5 volts.  An added benefit was the brightness of the new light ... wow...that thing is BRIGHT!!

More Changes

Dusty has proven to be so reliable and so much fun to ride that taking the bike on a road trip has become a possibility.  However, options as to where to carry any gear, etc. were limited. Thus the idea of adding a sissy bar to provide a place to strap a duffel bag, etc. sprang to mind.  3/8 inch stainless steel rod was purchased and Curt dusted off his fabrication skills and whipped up a sissy bar.  Another issue that Dusty had was the positioning of the rear fender which allowed the rear tire to contact the front underside of the fender when encountering a bump at speed.  Fixing this issue involved cutting out part of the front of the fender and welding in new tabs to allow the fender to be rotated more to the rear.  Again, Curt completed the cutting and welding.  All the welding and cutting required the rear fender to be repainted which I was able to complete over a couple of days.  (Good thing I still had my makeshift paint booth set up).  After positioning the fender exactly where I wanted, new holes had to be drilled to secure the fender to the shock mounts. Everything went back together fairly quickly and Dusty is now ready for the open road.....albeit next riding season.

Some Changes

Over the past several weeks, decided to make a few changes to Dusty.  First thing was to change the straight pipes...they were a tad LOUD.  Tried putting baffles in them and that helped but, after a few weeks, one of the baffles fell out.  However, we managed to get a set of stock pipes, complete with mufflers, that fit with just a minor bit of bracket fabrication accomplished by Curtis.  Big improvement!  Next, decided to change out the handle bars to apes.  Again, Curtis was able to come through with the perfect set.  Installed them today with his help and am very pleased with the results.  Dusty looks better and the ride is more comfortable.

Another Spin with "The Kid"

Over the past several weeks I've been getting out on Dusty on a fairly regular basis. There have been no real problems other than discovering that the charging system in a 44 year old bike doesn't quite have the capacity to keep up with a new modern headlight.  The battery tends to discharge if I ride with the headlight on but doesn't if only the taillight/brake light are used.  So, I can either replace the charging system with one as used in an Evo engine or switch the headlight for an older type sealed beam.  Probably going to try the latter as it is the cheapest and easiest.  Had a great ride today with Junior.  Probably rode for at least 40 miles with no issues.  Dusty is proving to be very reliable.

Parking lot at the A&W in Sooke, BC

Riding With Junior

Decided to take the Shovelheads out for a run today.  Had a great ride including lunch at the 17 Mile Pub.  Both bikes ran great except Dusty didn't want to start when we stopped for gas.  Determined the problem was a loose battery connection which must have been loose for a while as the voltage was too low to turn over the electric start.  Good thing Dusty has a kick start because otherwise I might still be at that gas station.  Checked to make sure the voltage regulator was working and (thankfully) it seems to be because the volts increase as they should when reving the bike.  Now that the connections are all tight again it'll probably take a few runs to get the battery back up to where it should be.

Stopped for Lunch

Cruising along the Ocean

The Transformation

Since getting back from Born Free #8, I've been riding "Dusty" around town a bit.  There have been a few issues but nothing serious.  All have been attended to.  The bike runs really well and even I can kick start it when I want.  It usually fires up after one or two kicks and settles into a typical Harley idle.  The transmission might need some work in the future as it is a bit "notchy" when down shifting.  Of course the fact that the shift pattern is reversed from the norm could be a factor.  All in all, "Dusty" is fun to ride and surprisingly comfortable.  It's really hard to believe that the bike was indeed just a pile of dirty parts just one year ago as the following picture will attest.  The transformation has been dramatic.

Dusty Then

Dusty Now