Hello from Ultima Thule

Wookie58 wrote:

Is it possible somebody has got the left and right handlebar mounts the wrong way round ?

Everything seems to be possible when it comes to this bike. I forgot to double check if there was one or two holes drilled 180 degrees apart on the handlebars, to allow the switch clamps to be fitted with the 'bars in either the 'up' or 'down' position. But then again, to me it looks like they would fit best if they were straight. 

OK, with the GPz all together again it was time for the first test run of the year At first a squeaky rattle coming under slight engine load had me worried, but it turned out to be individual glass shards of a broken back mirror that were rattling against each other (broken in what I assume was a low speed crash by previous owner, due to the brake lever hitting fairing on full steering lock and causing an unplanned sudden stop). 

With that out of the way, it was a pleasant ride, primarily due to the full fork overhaul since this winter. A bit unfamiliar with the 'bars now in a "high" position; which gives you more a feeling of riding a BMW GS-ADV than a sports tourer. It looks like I've managed to cure the oil dripping from the leaky gear shift shaft (separate thread). 

What remains for now is a brief misfire-like stumbling between 2 and 4 kRPMs when in the warming up phase. It feels like it cuts out on two cylinders, then firing on all four again, with the occasional backfiring in the silencers, in an on/off cycling mode until after 3-4 km, when the engine is getting warm. Then it runs nicely. Today even the LCD display on the tank (fuel gauge and warning lights)  worked, previously it has continued to cycle through the startup phase without getting past it. Intermittent electrical faults can be a real hassle . . . .

Here the GPz is parked next to a vintage steam engined "locomobile" built in Sweden in 1903, on public display as part of the industrial heritage sites in my surroundings.