Montse the MGTDr

Other than commuting to work, not much riding the Bullet this last week.  However, the MG is running like a top.  Before we go too far, I know it's not an MG, it really is a Fiberfab MiGi II too but, for the sake of brevity, I will refer to it as the MG.  In the TD Replica Forum, other owners call these things TDr, for TD replicas, so I might go with that to avoid the confusion.  Still not registered, the Commonwealth in its infinite wisdom still hasn't processed my title, so it can't go out on the road but we have a very long private drive so we've been running her up and down that like two little fools.

Mechanically it is pretty sound.  Everything is working as it should.  It still has an oil leak that appears to be coming from the main engine seal.  The plan is to keep an eye on the leak and see how much oil it's losing.  I don't want to have the engine out and take the time for repairs while the weather is still good if we can run her safely.  We have decided to call her Montse, short for Montserrat.  That's the Holy Mountain for us Catalans, not the island in the Caribbean, which was named after the Mountain in any case.

I'll have to make some minor cosmetic alterations in the near future.  I'm referring to all the Union Jacks all over this thing.  No problems with having one somewhere to mark the provenance of the original car but one on the driver's side, one on the radiator shell, and one on the badge bar is just a little too much.

For more photos of Montse, please, check out this Flickr set.

On the exotic car tally, while commuting last week there was one white Bentley, one white Ferrari, and a DeLorean.  The tally now stands at 3 Ferraris, 1 Lambo, 1 Maserati, 1 unknown, 1 Cobra, 1 Bentley, and 1 DeLorean.  Still not counting the exotics I see while driving but once I get the MG on the road I will begin to add those I see while on the MG.

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The Best (Almost) Ton Machine

Photo Credit: Cycle World

Found this article from Cycle World in Jorge Pullin's blog, My Royal Enfields.  The article is a yearly feature in Cycle World listing the Rest of the Best, a compilation of "best" 10 motorcycles in some wacky categories.  This year the Continental GT wins for Best Way to (Almost) Do the Ton.

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Another Pillion Ride to the DK Diner

Today was my wife's birthday so we took a ride out to the DK Diner in West Chester for breakfast.  We had not done a pillion ride in a while, since last month's ride to the Goose Creek Grill, so it was nice to get ride together for a change.  Yet another great day for a ride with temps in the low 80s and no noticeable humidity.  Because we left fairly early, around 09:00, there was virtually no traffic on Goshen and we were able to make a nice run without putting feet down between 252 and the Pike.

On the Ridley Creek Bridge

After breakfast we headed back on the same track but stopped at a couple of places to take some pictures.  First at the bridge over Ridley Creek and then over at Bartram's Covered Bridge.  We saw several groups of riders on Goshen, all going in the opposite direction.  This was a short run, just to get breakfast, but I always enjoy riding that route because of the scenery and the nice layout of the road.  The Bullet performed great but, as can be expected, does not move very fast with two people on board.  At full throttle, with good road conditions, it was only able to hit 65 mph on the speedo.  Allowing for the ambitiousness of the speedo, it was probably not moving faster than 60 mph.

Ridley Creek

Interior of Bartram's Covered Bridge

Clowning around

High Speed Low Drag - XD

Crum's Creek by Bartram's Covered Bridge

Last time we rode together we had trouble with the UClear HBC 100 plus communicators I bought in Idaho.  I tried contacting UClear but they never replied so I fooled around with the dammed things and they are working fine now.  Don't ask me what I did, I just pushed buttons until the things worked.  We used them today on this ride and they were just fine and felt better with the new buckets than they did in the old set.

On departure the odo read 1708.5 miles at 09:10 and on return 1731.1 at 10:55.

Route: Out Goshen/Strasburg to West Chester Pike into West Chester to the diner and back on the same route.

Departure

Return

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Third Run at the Dragon

Great ride on the Dragon Yesterday.  Early afternoon with another beautiful day of great weather and very light traffic.  Now that the break-in restrictions are lifted, the Bullet is being pushed to higher speeds and maintaining that pace with no problems.  It is still not a fast mover but it is more fun to keep up speeds above 60 mph when conditions allow it. It's nice to hit full throttle!

The Dragon continues to bring challenges and fun.  This time I tried the original direction again which I find to be more fun because the twisties come earlier.  The portion on 82 after crossing 52 and before getting to Kennett Square is challenging in any direction and I still need more skill before feeling I have mastered it.  However, it's getting better, smoother, and faster.

"Roman" Bridge over the Brandywine

Still trying for a shot of the "Roman" bridge over the Brandywine in Delaware but without a place to stop or park the Bullet the best I could do is find a spot an pull over on the grass for this shot.  Not the best perspective but it's better than nothing.

 On the outbound leg on 926 before crossing 202 caught sight of a red Cobra in the incoming lane.  The exotic car tally stands at 2 Ferraris, 1 Lambo, 1 Maserati, 1 unknown, and 1 Cobra

On leaving the house at 12:50 the odo read 1643 miles.  On return at 14:45 the odo clocked 1705.8 miles.

Route: Goshen to Garret Mills across West Chester Pike to 926 out to 100.  The loop of 100 to 82 to 926. Return on 926 to Garret Mills and Goshen

On departure at 12:50 - 1643 miles

On return at 14:45 - 1705.8 miles

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1600 Mile Maintenance

At Kiss Honda with a C5 in the background

A little bit over the recommended mileage but the break-in period is finally over.  This morning, with 1577 miles on the odo, the Bullet made the trek to Pottstown for the second scheduled maintenance.  The weather was beautiful, clear and blue with temperatures in the low 80s and no humidity to speak of.  The trip out through Valley Forge Park and up 23 to Phoenixville was amazing.  Just a little after 09:00 and there was almost no traffic on the roads at all.  The portion of the ride on 23, from the turn in the park to Phoenixville was amazing in that I had the road all to myself.

On arrival at Kiss Honda, the Bullet had 1603.9 miles and we had made the trip in 55 minutes.  The guys at Kiss did the required maintenance and found a couple more missing bolts from the heat shield that they replaced.  They also replaced the longer bolt that I had replaced earlier.  These replacements definitely did away from the rattling that I had noticed coming from the muffler area.  The guys at Kiss had a Continental GT sitting in front of the shop.  That will have to be my next bike.

Continental GT

Continental GT

Kiss Motorcycles

On the return trip the Bullet purred like Lucifer and ran really smoothly.  While the guys were working on the Bullet I walked around downtown and snapped some shots.  The Bullet handled increased speed on the straights really well but it does not seem to able to go any higher than 70 mph, even downhill with a tail wind!

Although there was no need to refuel, I made a pit-stop at the Wawa on 724 and Bridge St. and filled up.  The odo at that time was reading 1612 so the next refuel should be around 1812.  Easy enough to remember that number.  The tank took 1.882 gallons and we had covered 119.2 miles since the last refuel for a mileage of 63.3 mpg.

Traffic on the way back was a little heavier but despite the fact the it was lunch time it was not bad at all.  The weather continued to be fantastic and could not have asked for a better riding day.  At return the odo clocked 1634 miles for a 58.6 mile round trip.

Route:

Outbound:  Church to Waterloo, across Valley Forge to 23 and up 724 to Hanover St into Pottstown.
Inbound:  Reverse of outbound route with a detour down Berkley to Sugartown to my wife's work and from there back to Sugartown and Church for home.

Downtown Pottstown

Downtown Pottstown

Downtown Pottstown

Downtown Pottstown

On departure at home

Arrival in Pottstown

At Kiss Honda

At Wawa gassing up

At my wife's work

On return at home

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Stormtrooper Bucket

New Icon Airmada Helmet from Revzilla in gloss solid white.  It's comfortable, it wasn't noisy, and it doesn't have all kinds of stupid graphics all over it.  It also has the look and feel of an Imperial Stormtrooper helmet which, being an Empire kind of guy, appeals to my sense of humor. What is there not to love?  However, it does run small so get a size larger than usual.

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1952 MGTD Replica Car

New project and not motorcycle related, well maybe, it has always been my contention that a motorcycle is the poor man's convertible so who knows.  One of my friends, who is a hell of a nice guy, had this Fiberfab MiGi II sitting in his garage.  He had the car for several years but in the last four years the car just sat in the garage without moving.  His wife has been on him about doing something about it and about a month ago we were talking about the car and he offered it to me for just hauling it away.  A deal like that I could not pass up!

After clearing it with the Major General (the wife) and making arrangements with storage, insurance, and my local garage all that was left was to pick it up this morning.  USAA roadside assistance provided the lift and transported the car to Boyle's Service Station, my local guy, for whatever repairs may be needed.

The car appears to be in really good condition it's based on a 1971 Volkswagen Bug and was built in the early 80s, maybe in 1983.  It was running in 2010 and that was its last inspection year.  The engine is a 1600 cc and also looks in good condition but the battery is deader than a door nail so no way of knowing what else may need work.

I have always wanted a convertible and never had one before so I am really thankful to my friend, Dick, for just letting me have this toy.  Looking forward to getting this little beauty on the road!

On the Penna Turnpike

Almost at Boyle's

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