Saturday 17th July was a rainy day. I had got soaked at the allotment in the morning so not having much to do on on rainy Saturday I had a look at the the bike. The electric clock had run down the battery. I had some acid left over from the initial fill so used it to top up the battery acid level. The voltmeter started to register an increase almost immediately. I plugged in the battery charger and watched the volts increase.
Whilst I was pondering what needed to be done I started rummaging in the boxes. I got the handle bars off the garage rafters and fitted them to the headstock. I found the clutch side handle bar cluster. A bit of digging and I found the lever and pivot pin. I assembled the cluster and fitted it to the handlebar. More rummaging turned up the brake side cluster, pivot pin, throttle twist grip, the throttle cable pull and the cover. I had hung up the throttle cables months ago and had soaked them in oil. Now that I need them I just got them off the rack all ready to go. I assembled the brake/throttle cluster. It was a bit fiddly but it went together without much trouble. I routed the throttle cables down to the carbs then positioned the switch cluster. That turned out neat enough.
The handlebars look fairly complete but there are some bits that need work. The clutch cut off switch looks a bit tired. The hand grips are heated but I have not tested them for operation. The wires for the heating elements run inside the handle bars but the wires on the end of the grip are not long enough so the handle bars are going have to come off again for the grips to be wired properly. That is a job for another day. There is another problem...where are the switches to control all these gadgets to be located?
I fitted the ends of the throttle cables to the carbs. It made a nice job. I turned the ignition on and cranked the engine. The engine made no effort start which was a shame. I resolved at that moment to get a new, second hand pair of carbs. The bike looks a lot more finished but there is still a bit to do.
