Today's Motorcyclist gave me a chuckle...  

I just want to rant. I am sad to say my 2006 450 EXC was stolen from my Atlanta apartment complex Thursday at 6:09 PM. RIP. The bike was behind a locked gate without the key in the ignition and sitting in front of a highly trafficked doorway to my apartment hallway. The guy found my ignition switch, hot-wired it, and took off in only 7 minutes. I was pissed beyond words yesterday but now just sad and bitter. I am 33 years old and have never had anything stolen from me in my life until I came to this shit hole city Atlanta Ga. In just the last 4 months I have had my Lincoln 255 MIG welder stolen from my locked enclosed trailer, my Trek bike stolen from the bike rack ( locked with 10mm cable) 50 feet away from my classroom door, and now my motorcycle parked behind a locked gate only accessible by residence in my unit in BROAD DAYLIGHT! Holy $%^&. I would give anything to catch one of these bottom feeding leeches of society in the act because I can promise,  one of us is going to die. 1 more semester in this hell hole and after I graduate, I am NEVER driving, flying, stepping, saying the word Atlanta, or even looking in the general direction of this city again. I wouldn't take a job here if they paid me $300,000 a year to do whatever I want. It's not worth it. When I came here 2 years ago I was just a regular happy Joe-blow from a farm. I was astounded at the number of homeless, mentally ill, and just overall poverty I see here on a daily basis. I would eat somewhere and just buy an extra burger to give to someone on my way to school when they ask me for money. I even volunteered and helped my roommate with his fraternity feeding the homeless every other Saturday. I get asked for money at least once a day from these people and I felt terrible that they were living in this condition. I don't care if their situations are self-inflicted or whatever, I just don't like to see desperate people in bad shape and down to only meeting primal needs. I don't believe in giving money to churches or charities. Both frequently abuse the non-profit and tax-exempt system leaving me with doubt if my money ever reaches the cause. And to top it off, they make you feel guilty for not giving. No thx, I will just do it myself one burger, one water at a time.  After my stuff started getting stolen, I noticed a new found love in just keeping to myself. I quit buying extra food to give away, I quit the Saturday homeless food drives, and pretty much just avoided anyone not related to my school work. Even my driving changed. I quit letting people turn out in front of me, blowing my horn when I think the person in front of me should have gone 14.5 times, give one blinker and cut in a lane if I needed to get over. Horrible!....   Atlanta made me a cold-hearted emo. This is not me, get me out of here! The best thing that can happen to this city is dropping a nuke over it and starting over.  O and don't forget the Riots. As if traffic was not moving like peanut butter before, people will just stand in the middle of the road and block traffic screaming and chanting what sounds like 5,000 alarm clocks going off while a choir of donkey sing. Try that tactic in Ellaville Ga. and let me know how many 33-12.50  patterns you can collect on your forehead.    Is it like this in other big cities? I ask because job opportunities are becoming available in other cities and all I can think about is Heeeell naaw. All my life I wondered what it's like beyond the fields and woods. I have now collected sufficient data to say "I came, I saw, who convinced me this was a good idea?" Ok, I'm done. I feel better carry on 

I was looking for a tire changing stand.  I have been using a 14" old trailer tire and while it has been working ok, having a stand would be nice for the $100 or so it costs.  I came across this Baja No Pinch 1001 and in the video of the tool, it looks like the best thing EVER, for getting the tire on the rim with no chance of pinching the tube.  Link to tool here:  https://www.amazon.com/BAJA-NO-PINCH-1001-Motorcycle/dp/B00J41H2DO/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1539779116&sr=8-2&keywords=baja+no+pinch+tool While I have been pretty good at NOT pinching the tubes when putting new tires on as I inflate the tube and then deflate it just enough to get the tire on the rim, the guy in this video:    . . . just made it so easy to put the tube into the tire, put the tire over the rim and using the tool but both beads on the rim with very little effort.   Anyone else use one of these things?  For $100 it is not much money  and compared to the price of HD/UHD tubes, it could be money very well spent.  

Growing up, seeing motovans at the track was possibly one of the coolest things.. while I was sleeping in my singlecab pickup. But hey, at the time, in highschool, my truck was cooler than some van. Now at this "age" 24... a van is quite a dang good idea, so I started looking. After a few facebook pots, a buddy of mine knew someone who had a 2001 E350 Passenger van sitting, and would get me a price. he told me it needed a radiator, and the spark plug blew out of cylinder 4 (common 5.4 triton issue). A few days go by, and he calls saying I can have it for FREE! they just needed it gone! So, I go out there with a friend of mine who has a 30ft gooseneck, and some starting fluid to make sure I don't get in too deep... we cant get it to fire without starting fluid, and ruled it out to a fuel pump. We pull the van on the trailer, stop by the parts store, and are headed home. The van was sitting stationary for 4 years... and smelled like it. but we'll get back there.. We dropped the tank, having to cut one of the tank straps and emptied the 4 year old fuel, put a new fuel pump in it, about 5 gallons of premium race fuel (fast and furious), and she fired up.  Next was the spark plug issue, I tapped the threads, and installed a helicoil along with new plug and coil pack, and we were good. Later I replaced the radiator after flushing the coolant system. The next day, we pulled out everything behind the first row bench seats, to include the headliner, rear AC duct, and side panels. Had to cut out the old seat belt mounts, and reinstalled the last bench where the first bench originally resided, since it was longer, but a few inches back to have optimal leg room. Then came the wall install... after lots of measuring once and cutting twice... I got it all figured out, and had the wall installed, then yellow stuffed "expanding foam" around all sides to ensure I wouldn't have fuel fumes in the cab. Finally I installed some flooring, just to give the bare metal some protection.   After that, I was king of burned out on the van, before I even used it. She sat in my driveway for months before I was ticketed for having an unregistered vehicle parked outside.. gotta love florida.. I posted it forsale for a few days, then decided I would getRdone. So, off to the DMV, registered, and custom plates reading "MOTOVAN". Picked up a heavy duty cargo lock, fuel treatment, tons of black ice "little trees", and some R-134 to recharge the AC. She was making her first trip to the track that weekend! We changed the oil, 1,000 miles and 3 years overdue... only 2qts came out.. and sea foamed the green monster. After driving all over town, I parked in the driveway for a second, only to try to move it, and nothing on start up... not even after a jump.. so back to the parts store for a starter. After one of the worst starter jobs ever, she was cranking again. I figured we were problem free... but not before a brake line failed, and had to replace that guy, in order to take her to the track in 2 days! Finally! we were all clear, and we loaded three bikes into the van, and we were off! Two bikes is preferred.. but three worked, juts had to put most of the gear in the cab. Was a great day of riding, before a buddy crashed and ended the day with a concussion and a few compressed vertebrae.. The van made another trip out this past weekend, and developed a new misfire, that ill be taking care of this week, and rechargeing the whole AC system since ill be sleeping in it this weekend for my first race in years! I will add some photos off my phone in a bit, until then, here is my youtube channel I created for the motovan!    

Looking for ideas to install a stowaway (folding) bed frame for a queen size air mattress. E-track? Hinges? Two piece bed (half on either side of the trailer that meet in the middle)? Materials to consider - 2x4, 2x3, slats for the top or plywood? So many ideas...

Trucks/Trailers/Toyhaulers I'll start Here's my truck 2001 Chevy 1500HD 6.0 V8 lets see yours

The dirtbike is on it's forth year right now on the same motor job. I have to jump start it. Is it worth me trading for a 2009 650 brute force with7000 miles? Need some expert advice. Thanks 

First side-by-sides to come with Intelligent Brake Traction Control TORRANCE, CA - November 19, 2016 - (Motor Sports Newswire) - Honda today unveiled two new limited-edition versions of its popular flagship side-by-side, the Pioneer 1000-5 LE and Pioneer 1000 LE, both of which come with a new I-4WD system. Never before used in the powersports industry, this intelligent system is a direct result of Honda's automotive-engineering prowess, and offers three great benefits: brake traction control, hill-start assist and electronic brake force distribution. Combined with the Pioneer 1000's Torque Biasing Limited Slip differential, I-4WD can provide as much tractive force as a locking differential but with reduced steer effort and kickback. The result is excellent grip on a wide range of challenging surfaces, a more relaxed driving experience, and no need to stop and engage diff-lock.     Both Limited Edition versions of the Pioneer 1000 also come with a host of additional upgrades to improve suspension performance, protection, convenience and style, while non-LE models also get several important improvements.     "It's exciting to share the news that Honda is bringing I-4WD differential technology to the side-by-side market for the first time," said Lee Edmunds, Manager of Powersports Marketing Communications at American Honda. "To develop this intelligent system, Honda engineers collaborated with our automotive division and then tailored a system specifically for the rigors of the off-road environment. With I-4WD, the Pioneer 1000-5 LE and Pioneer 1000 LE set new industry standards, putting our flagship multipurpose side-by-side even further ahead of the competition in terms of performance and value."   Pioneer 1000-5 Limited Edition / Pioneer 1000 Limited Edition The Pioneer 1000 is already the industry's benchmark multipurpose side-by-side, with the best engine, drivetrain and chassis, plus the market's only automatic six-speed Dual Clutch Transmission (DCT) gearbox. Now Honda introduces two new iterations—the five-person Pioneer 1000-5 LE and three-person Pioneer 1000 LE—that are the first powersports vehicles to come with I-4WD, an intelligent differential system that conveniently combines the four-wheel-drive and diff-lock functions into a single selection mode. I-4WD incorporates the industry's first off-road brake traction control system to manage the amount of slip between left and right front wheels, applying torque to the wheel with greater grip. The result is excellent traction performance in tough off-road conditions, with reduced steer effort and kickback compared to standard diff-lock. In addition, LE models feature hill-start assist to brake while transitioning to the accelerator from a dead stop on an incline, and optimize brake force distribution between the front and rear brakes while coming to a stop—loaded or empty. While I-4WD is the standout feature on the two new LE models, the rest of the list is impressive as well. Adjustable FOX QS3 shocks provide an even smoother ride and improved handling; with a simple turn of a dial, customers can tune the machine for different terrains or driving styles. A beefy new bumper highlights and protects the grill, and aluminum A-arm guards and skid plate protect the vehicle against rocks and debris. Convenience-minded additions include illuminated dash switches for nighttime use; transmission-mode memory function to retain Automatic, Sport or Manual mode after engaging reverse; a pre-wired winch harness, new cabin-storage compartments and cup holders in all four doors. There are even comfort- and style-focused improvements like thicker seat foam, painted bodywork, red springs and A-arms and substantial aluminum wheels. Colors: Matte Gray Metallic Price: TBA Availability: February 2017 More info Pioneer 1000-5 Deluxe / Pioneer 1000-5 / Pioneer 1000 EPS / Pioneer 1000 Since its 2015 introduction, the Pioneer 1000 has established itself as the flagship in the Pioneer lineup, with a class-leading 999cc twin-cylinder engine and the industry's first fully automatic six-speed Dual Clutch Transmission. For the 2017 model year, all versions of the Pioneer 1000—including the five-person Pioneer 1000-5 Deluxe and Pioneer 1000-5, as well as the three-person Pioneer 1000 EPS and Pioneer 1000—have thicker seat foam for increased comfort, plus a winch-ready wiring harness. In addition, all Pioneer 1000 models get a new memory function that retains the last transmission mode after engaging reverse. All Pioneer 1000 models still boast fully independent rear suspension and long suspension travel, as well as 2,000-pound towing capacities. In addition, the five-person models once again feature the exclusive QuickFlip® system that lets owners switch between seating arrangements for three, four or five people. Topping it all off are Honda's legendary reputation for durability, quality and reliability. Colors Pioneer 1000-5 Deluxe: Red, Metallic Blue, Honda Phantom Camo Pioneer 1000-5: Red, Olive Pioneer 1000 EPS: Red, Shale Blue, Honda Phantom Camo Pioneer 1000: Red, Olive Price: TBA Availability: February 2017  

So after doing a new 440 top end on my 400 ex I have a pretty big problem. Somehow its smoking like it’s got clapped rings. Me and my brother are both stumped and can’t think of what could have happened it was a running 400ex that just was getting a little weak.

Hi - I have searched but can't see a definitive answer. I have old threads where I used Photobucket links to embed images, which as users know were blocked by PB a while back unless you paid!   But I see that TT have done some clever coding to overcome this, great job.  What interests me though is whether you have actually dragged the images out of PB into TT or if it is still linking to PB?  I want to future-proof my threads and wondering if I should upload the pics or if you have essentially done that for me :) eg https://thumpertalk.com/forums/topic/942713-my-dr350-project-chapter-2-chassis/?tab=comments#comment-9939007   Thanks

Just posted general discussion about a stolen bike. Moved to Northeast Discussion. Why.

How do I delete them?