A Good Day to Wrench

I started the day in my new Simpson pajama bottoms, checking the torque specs on the right side of the crankcase that I installed on December 31. I had also installed new stainless allen head bolts into the case. When it was completed, I still had the remainder of the bolts for the other shifter side of the case, so I decided to put them in to the case one at time.

The new allen bolts on the case

Of course, it is never that easy. Three of the phillips head screws needed the dremel tool assist to back them out.

The "old" bolts

Once I had completed the left side, I still had two bolts remaining. I calculated that they were to hold the electric starter on the front of the case. The lower phillips head came out rather easily, but the top totally sheared off during the dremel tool/flat head technique. Luckily, once the head was sheared and I loosend the lower bolt, I used an eyeglass screw driver to back out the broken bolt.

The starter with new allen bolts

I then installed the the new allen bolts and torqued them to spec.

The other issue that was bothering me was the lack of Neutral Light when the battery was attached. I had expressed my concern to Spencer and Clint. Spencer said "how the wiring on CB's is a mess." Such a statement is not good for my sleep.

So this afternoon, after I had completed the allen bolts, I ran over all of the wiring to check for loose connections. I also looked toward the case where the shifter is located. A small mass of wires was coming from the case and going toward the location of the carburetors. It was disconnected.

The wires in question reconnected

I could barely contain myself as I hooked up the battery and turned on the key. Success. The Neutral Light shown brightly.

I also removed the reflectors from the forks today. A little weight here and there.

One of the small successes of yesterday was getting the rear brake lever reinstalled. I lubricated with bicycle grease and checked the photos in the manual for proper spring location. It is now working smoothly.

The rear brake lever assembly and spring

The next step is to work on the carburetors. Hopefully it goes well.