Eunos Chump

Roger has been sold!  I took it for an MOT today and it failed on front disks; those are more than £100 each and combined with the fact it runs really poorly at the moment (despite me spending several hours on it this week), I just wanted to wash my hands of it.  So it's gone to the garage that did the MOT for £350.  I feel relief. I had a mobile aircon specialist come and look at the Jaaaag the other day.  Unfortunately the pipe between the compressor and condenser is leaking in several places.  And the condenser is buggered. And the receiver/drier.  Oh, and the compressor is also toast.  Works fine apart from that.  I am now resigned to a summer of driving with the windows open.

This is the motor museum at Jurby, I spent around 4 hours here having a proper look at all the rammel.  I had some tea and Victoria sponge too.  #BikeLife I wish my bike had a picture of a cock on it - if only as a warning to other motorists. Various skips outside the grandstand. I stop off at the Tiffin Tea Shop, and being a tough Southern biker-type I demand 17 cans of lager.  Unfortunately they don't have any, so I settle for a cream tea with the very strongest tea available; light brown tea.  I neck that bastard straight down, impressing some pensioners on the next table. I spent Friday morning as the only visitor to Murray's Motorcyle Museum.  He's a really friendly, chatty bloke and told me many, many slanderous tales about various people, both on the island and in the motorcycle industry.  He gave me tea and biscuits and let me have a sit on some bikes too. I'm home now after a miserable Iron Butt-style r...

I'm on the Isle of Man, cleverly avoiding all the TT crowds and price gouging by visiting when EVERYTHING IS CLOSED. This is that pub on the corner of the TT course.  At least this was open, for manly drinks Mountain section is a fantastic bit of road, but a little too busy for 3 figure speeds. Scenes from Jurby Junk, a big junkstore recommended to me by someone on Autoshite.  Good shout!    I'm travelling extremely light with just my top box, but managed to fit in a horrific Manx doll which is going to be a present for some lucky person.

It was the Gentleman's Easter Tour of Wales last weekend, now featuring 6 gentlemen and 1 lady.  Trying to keep that many bikes together was like herding cats, though it was still great fun despite generous portions of rain.  We visited this tiny motor museum near the Horseshoe Pass, full of unexceptional rammel.  OK, there was a Jag E-type but it was the least popular model possible (Series 3 2+2), and a Alfa Montreal with worse paint than my CBR. Plenty of ace scenery in Wales, particularly in the Elan Valley cafe:

The CBR is fixed - it was the bottom yoke at fault.  I bought a used one from eBay, and comparing the two I could see the old one was twisted.  It's had a new rear tyre too and I've been riding it about. Dunno if it's staying... it's the ginger stepchild of my bike collection. Visited a Suzuki dealer yesterday.  I think I have a subconscious desire to be talked into buying a GSX-S1000F on PCP, but the sales folk failed to pick up on that.  I wonder if a tatty CBR600 could be used as deposit?  Anyway, I wandered about and was tempted by the Van Van again.  The 200cc version is £4093 on the road, but it can barely reach 70mph - that's useless for my requirements.  Still want it though!  What is wrong with me? In other news, the poxy Saab cost me £600 to have the suspension arms and wheel bearings replaced. Mrs Chump loves it though.

Got up early on Saturday to get a tyre on the CBR600, but it broke down after a couple of miles.  Felt like a fuel problem, but the battery was pretty low and it was soon flat, so after some faff we brought it home on the trailer.  It started immediately once I stuck my booster on it!  Seems fine now. Have also considered putting the MX5 back on the road.  In another act of supreme muppetry I've bashed it with the Jaaag at some point over the winter and stoved in the wing, I had to pull it out (by removing the side repeater then using a ratchet with extension bar as a rudimentary slide-hammer), before the door would open.  It needs (at the least) a rain rail, diff seals, then there's insurance and tax... so another year of hibernation, I think.

He's back, though he looks a bit less angry this time: Previously: Just needs a rear tyre and it'll be ready for sale.  I used the washer from a bath tap to attach the fairing where it was broken - that's INNOVATION.