mike wilson

I'd love to know who started teaching this "Stomp on the pedal, listen to the engine wheeze and groan, wait till iit starts to pick up, change up and repeat" system of driving. It's universal.

Hot dog and bottle of Bud? Not haute cuisine, then. Want to bet on Lucky Strike versus Marlborough (Lite, of course)?

Mmmm. Black Prince. With a lovely flocked lining. Like my dispatch rider's coat (gaberdine lined with rubber - best of both worlds) it went all crackly when the temperature got well below zero and leaked like a sieve afterwards.

I _knew_ my CSE in Syntax Mangling would come in useful one day.

But the allegation is that they _don't_ work. So it's either the tartan linings or the Royal association. I favour the Royal association, as they don't work either.

Where? What?

Are those the goats your new PM promised you?

Only once each but I have ridden locally in the high minus teens and high plus 30s. The first one just to say that I had. It was, actually, less unpleasant than riding at 37 degrees. Normally, the range is more like 30 degrees. Which is bad enough. Thanks, everyone, for the useful suggestions. 8-)

Manifestly mineral. Waxed cotton overtrousers, on the other, er, hand, are definitely an alien life form.

Given the recent propensity for oil filters backing off and for oil not to pick up I would have to say pineapple, the old name for hand grenade. Which is, of course, a fruit.

And now a serious question: Given that I can ride in ambients with about a 60degree centigrade range over the year, I find it not too difficult to select clothing that is suitably protective for the given time. As long as all I am doing is riding the bike. Once I get off and start moving around, I very soon start to resemble a spouting whale with the steam isssuing from my collar. Anyone come near to solving this dilemma?

Nylons I can understand but why the brassiere and eyeliner? P.S. That latex stuff looks _really_ waterproof.

I'm not sure that's entirely correct - because in this application, as has been pointed out above, we are not dealing with prefectly flat and parallel surfaces. Therefore the absolute accuracy of what we are measuring by inserting flat pieces of metal will always be in question. What I think is true is that you can acheive _consistent_ results from measurement to measurement.

Didn't know I was an inbred and Royal German. 8-) The big problem with Belstaff waxed cotton is that it's a ripoff. The original and by far the best is made by Barbour. This is the stuff that we Royals wear. Because it works. It stinks, though..... http://www.barbour.com/ (poxy Flash site - skip the inrto) Here's the last piece of motorcycle gear that they do - don't even do matching trousers any more. http://www.barbour.com/index.cfm?fuseactio...3&RangeID=1 Used to make a wicked pair of overmittens. I tell a lie. There's another jacket. http://www.barbour.com/index.cfm?fuseactio...3&RangeID=1 Yuck.

Getting back to basics; a tip I learned at school. When annealing aluminium or many of the simpler alloys, wipe hard soap on the side away from the heat source. When the soap turns black, the alloy is hot enough.

Nobody could call me narrow.

It's quite logical when you think about it. The firing interval gives the distictive "potato potato" sound we know and love. If they fired together it would go "spud spud". Happy New Year.

He was still around until a few years ago. I tried to get hold of some of his "The Duct Tapes" books but the usual paranoia about releasing bank details scuppered it. Do a Gurgle on his name with "comedy". Should bring something up.

your business and with me 'til dawn

You don't _all_ want necklaces for Christmas?!

He should have. "Smirnoff - fossilising people since the 19th century"

That would be two of them.

Not direct; a few generations inbetween those. One big advantage the X6 has is that the brakes will work consistently wet or dry. Wet stainless discs of the 1970s induced all sorts of shuddering and squealing - some of which was from the machinery.....

John Bonham's looking good. It's amazing what they can do with embalming these days. Movement and everything.

I did read, very carefully, what you posted. For me, it doesn't matter who restored it. Once it has been restored it is not original any more. Authentic, desireable, extremely pleasurable to own, for sure. And I'm jealous as Hell of you. But it is no longer a 1938 motorcycle. I do not, however, wish to tarnish in any way your ownership of this lovely machine so I will desist from further discussion of this point in case that occurs. The grips do grate, somewhat. There are firms in the Uk (and surely in the US) who make period style grips.