Old Bikes and Old Guys

OC Vintage Bike Meet

Yesterday was the OC Vintage Bike Meet in Huntington Beach, a really great day with lots of participants and their bikes.

Three Honda CBX machines in attendance, a pretty unusual event in itself.

It just got me thinking and you know how dangerous that can be!

The bikes we like are called survivors, not tarted up and over restored but showing their age and maybe just a bit rough round the edges.

They may be a trifle incontinent and drip a little oil here and there, but so what? That's what happens.

This is where the thinking part came in. In fifty years time with a bit of luck and some TLC these bikes will still be survivors.

Most of us who were there yesterday...

Anyway that's enough thinking for one day.

Here's a couple of pictures.

This is a 1937 Big Base Indian speedway bike owned by the same man since 1940, he is now 94 and still running his own company.

A turbo charged 1000 cc six cylinder Honda CBX, the word rocket springs to mind.

A wonderful old BMW in very nice condition, it still leaks oil I'm pleased to say.

When I got home, I wanted to work in the shed Mk 1 for a while.

As you know the days are shortening and the nights cut in and darkness falls earlier and earlier.

So I have installed lights in the shed, next comes a heater so that I can work out there once winter really starts with a vengeance.

I'm thinking of ordering a snow blower from Amazon so that I can get out to the shed in January.

Sarcasm is just another of the services I offer!

Ciao Bella

Norm

Bank Notes

Bank Note Answer.

The portraits used on U. S. currency have changed over time. Portraits of former presidents of the United States typically adorn U. S. currency, although there are a few exceptions. The current notes are: 

$1 George Washington 1st president (1789-1797) no party 
$2 Thomas Jefferson 3rd president (1801-1809) Democratic-Republican 
$5 Abraham Lincoln 16th president (1861-1865) Republican 
$10 Alexander Hamilton * 
$20 Andrew Jackson 7th president (1829-1837) Democratic 
$50 U. S. Grant 18th president (1869-1877) Republican 
$100 Benjamin Franklin ** 

U.S. currency denominations in excess of $100 were last printed in 1945 and were officially discontinued in 1969, though they remain legal tender. 

$500 William McKinley 25th president (1897-1901) Republican 
$1,000 Grover Cleveland 24th president (1893-1897) Democratic 
$5,000 James Madison 4th president (1809-1817) Democratic-Republican 
$10,000 Salmon P. Chase *** 
$100,000 Woodrow Wilson 28th president (1913-1921) Democratic 

People depicted on U.S. currency who were not U. S. Presidents: 

* Alexander Hamilton (1755-1804) was one of the founding fathers of the United States. First Secretary of the Treasury (1789-1795) Hamilton was a noted economist, and political philosopher and served as Aide-de-camp to General George Washington during the American Revolutionary War. He was a leader of nationalist forces calling for a new Constitution and was one of America's first lawyers, Hamilton was the primary author of the Federalist Papers. 

** Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) was one of the founding fathers of the United States. He was a noted author, printer, satirist, political theorist, politician, scientist, inventor, civic activist, statesman, soldier, and diplomat. Franklin was U. S. ambassador to both France and Sweden and President of Pennsylvania (1785-1788). 

*** Salmon P. Chase was a U.S. Senator (1849-1855), Governor of Ohio (1856-1860), Secretary of the Treasury (1861-1864) and Chief Justice (1864-1873) and is regarded as being responsible for the current U.S. bank note system. Chase National Bank, later Chase Manhattan and currently J.P. Morgan Chase bank was named after him, though he had no interest in it. 

So now you know.

It is always a great feeling when you have a pocket full of Bens.

Velocette at the DMV

Today was the day for the visit to the DMV

For those of you on the other side of the pond, a visit to the DMV is like root canal surgery.

Something to be avoided if at all possible.

However with the requirements to register a motor vehicle and of course pay tax, registration fees, standing in line fees, fees for paying fees...

It is a necessary evil.

You know how it goes.

The Velocette was transported to the DMV on the back of my truck, but you must take it down from the truck and put it on the ground for the inspector.

Thanks to Girvan for providing the assistance with the loading and unloading and reloading of the bike.

Once verified, it was back inside the DMV for the paperwork. Fortunately I had made an appointment and did not have to wait in the "Stoopid" line.

I have to say that despite their reputation, the people I encountered who worked for the DMV were both efficient and polite. Which is more than can be said for most of the customers!

I left with the temporary registration document which allows the Velocette to be ridden legally until January. 

Of course the great State of California wants a few pictures of dead presidents for the privilege of having this temporary document.
I must admit that I was a bit surprised at just how many they wanted!!!!!!!!!!

OK, now we just have to wait for the deadbeats in Sacramento to send the permanent documents and the tags.

Here is a quick question for you American trivia fans:

"Name someone whose face appears on the front of a US Treasury bill who was never President"

Enjoy your weekend.


On Sunday we are headed for the OC Vintage bike meet.
I'll send a report about that later.


Ciao Bella,

Norm

Five Bikes In One Day

Wrench Guys Rule

Check the link at the bottom of the page to see a short video on You Tube.
I set myself the goal of starting all of the bikes in one day, the video is the proof of success.




On Saturday we took the Yamaha to have its' first run on the dyno and considering this was right out of the box we were quite happy with the nominal 45HP produced.
Now we have to go back to the design stage so that we can add fuel injection and  a blower.

Despite a clutch problem and a coolant leak we judged the day a success.

Here is the junior member of the team, Kai.

 I sure hope that we get the Yamaha completed before he wants to ride it.

However, he shows a lot of promise, he does not mind getting his hands dirty.

I'm not sure what Mom thinks of that!

Video  Link.


Five Bikes

Ciao Bella

Norm

The Tourists Go Home

All too soon it was time to take them back to LAX

The saloon at closing time.

Aw! ain't that cute!

At the airport ready to go.

Well, ready or not the pilot was.

So off you go...

"We'll meet again..."

Imagine violins in the background and the voice of Vera Lynn.

We must bid you

Auf Wiedesehen, Pet

The End Of The Season

The Hotel Ameri-Cain 2014 Season Comes To An End.

As fall begins, the vacation season ends, we are not like Blackpool with their illuminations to extend the season almost until December.

Apart from which we don't have any trams which can be made to look like boats.

The temperatures have started to plummet.

It was not even 75 degrees this afternoon around Six PM.

After the last guests have left, we visit the local places they enjoyed.

This is where Tess had a Starbucks on the starboard!

The gulls were looking for the Lambert & Butler filter tips.

"Lonely party of one" waiting for a table at Rainbow Harbor.

Where's my shipmate?

Then it is back to work at the Hotel.

We need to get all of the facilities in order for the severe winter weather ahead.

Close up the gazebo, stack the chairs, roll up the sun umbrellas.

Defrost the refrigerator in the guest bedroom, see if they left an odd beer or so in there.

Clean up all the dead, tanned skin from the bathtub.

Here a spot of essential maintenance work is carried out.

Hotel AmeriCain is now closed for the season.

No further bookings will be accepted for 2014 (unless of course you are a friend of  Anne's)

Reservations are now being accepted for 2015.

See the sign below.

Certain T&Cs will of course apply and a statement written by the hotel attorneys will be available with the booking forms.

Essentially the statement will say that whatever we say goes and that if you want to complain, you "must go to" our employee who deals with such matters.

Ms. Helen Back

Special Edition

Following a very impertinent comment from my nephew Steven about his Dad, we decided that a response was in order.

A list of activities each with a different hat!

Frying

Sleeping

Irrigating

Filing

Pouring

Oggling

Sweeping

The first letters of these activities are an acronym and can be rearranged in to a well known phrase or saying.

Which, my dear nephew, I'm sure that even you can decipher.

Remember!

Ciao Bella

Norm

California Science Center

The Best $2 You Can Spend

Today we took a trip out to the California Science Center in Los Angeles.

To book the tickets for the Endeavor costs $2 per person for the online "print your ticket at home" service and is worth it so that you do not have to wait in line.

The exhibits are fantastic.

This SR 71 Blackbird is out front.

The Lockheed SR-71 "Blackbird" was an advanced, long-range, Mach 3+ strategic reconnaissance aircraft.^[1] It was developed as a black project from the Lockheed A-12 reconnaissance aircraft in the 1960s byLockheed and its Skunk Works division. Clarence "Kelly" Johnson was responsible for many of the design's innovative concepts. During reconnaissance missions, the SR-71 operated at high speeds and altitudes to allow it to outrace threats. If a surface-to-air missile launch was detected, the standard evasive action was simply to accelerate and outfly the missile.^[2]

The SR-71 served with the U.S. Air Force from 1964 to 1998. A total of 32 aircraft were built; 12 were lost in accidents, but none lost to enemy action.^[3][4] The SR-71 has been given several nicknames, includingBlackbird and Habu.^[5] Since 1976, it has held the world record for the fastest air-breathing manned aircraft, a record previously held by the YF-12.^[6][7][8

Once inside the building more planes are on display in various flight exhibits. 

However, the main purpose of our visit was to see the 

So we kind of got inside and headed right for it.

Here's Ron checking out the launch control center.

This was all original equipment donated by Rocketdyne when the program ended.

This control area was designated:

ROSC

Rocketdyne Operational Support Center

From here they could monitor the main engine performance and advise NASA about any malfunctions and the appropriate steps needed for correction.

These are some of the heat resistant tiles on the underside of the shuttle used to protect the vehicle from the extreme temperatures experienced during re-entry. As you can see, each one is numbered to indicate its' position on the vehicle.

Ron checking out the main engine display.

These are some of the most powerful rocket engines ever developed.

The Rocketdyne RS-25, otherwise known as the Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME), is a liquid-fuel cryogenic rocket engine that was used on NASA's Space Shuttle and is planned to be used on its successor, the Space Launch System. Built in the United States by Rocketdyne, the RS-25 burns cryogenic liquid hydrogen & liquid oxygen propellants, with each engine producing 1,859 kN (418,000 lb_f) of thrust at liftoff. Although the RS-25 can trace its heritage back to the 1960s, concerted development of the engine began in the 1970s, with the first flight, STS-1, occurring on April 12, 1981. The RS-25 has undergone several upgrades over its operational history to improve the engine's reliability, safety and maintenance load.

The engine produces a specific impulse (I_sp) of 452 seconds (4.43 km/s) in a vacuum, or 366 seconds (3.59 km/s) at sea level, has a mass of approximately 3.5 tonnes (7,700 pounds), and is capable of throttling between 67% and 109% of its rated power level in one-percent increments. The RS-25 operates under temperatures ranging from −253 °C (−423 °F) to 3,315 °C (6,000 °F).^[1]

On the Space Shuttle, the RS-25 was used in clusters of three engines mounted in the aft structure of the Orbiter, with fuel being drawn from the external tank. The engines were used for propulsion during the entirety of the spacecraft's ascent, with additional thrust being provided by two solid rocket boosters and the orbiter's two AJ-10-190 Orbital Maneuvering System engines. Following each flight, the engines were removed from the orbiter, inspected and refurbished before being reused on another mission.

So Now You Know!

All in all a wonderful experience.