George showed me how to do the fork seals, which is shockingly easy once everything is apart. NOT EASY is getting the front brake caliper properly adjusted. Not only was the eccentric adjuster really difficult to reinstall (from the bottom, so incredibly awkward, too), but making it so the brake pads are parallel to the brake disc was a total pain in the ass. It starts with Sharpie marks ALL OVER both sides of the disc and requires minute adjustments until they’re gone. No wonder so many people say their Airhead brakes suck! It’s so easy to not adjust them right, and improperly adjusted brake pads mean poor brake performance. Once everything is as perfect as it can be—and by the way, it matters if you have a helper or not—then the adjuster is secured with a spring-loaded threaded cap. Of course, this is all AFTER the forks, wheels and fender have been installed and properly straightened and made parallel.
I forgot to tighten the lower fender stay on my side—that bolt fell off when George went for a four-mile test ride. He says it’s running better than ever and it started RIGHT UP just like he said it would after we installed the electronic ignition. He said the ride itself is a bit stiff for his taste, but I weigh more than he does, so that’s to be expected.
Did a full service on it while George worked on a customer’s K 1200 LT. Discovered I had multiple errors—mostly torque values for fill and drain plugs, but also the quantity of oil for my swing arm—on my cheat sheet Threw it out! Correct values are:
| System | Quantity | Weight | Drain/Crush | Fill/Crush | Tool |
| Engine | 2.4 qts* | 20W50** | 30 Nm, 300 | n/a | 8mm allen |
| Transmission | 800 cc | 80W90 | 25 Nm, 200 | 28 Nm, 300 | 8mm allen & 19 mm |
| Final Drive | 250 cc | 80W90 | 25 Nm, 200 | 30 Nm, 300 | 8mm allen |
| Swing arm | 150 cc | 80W90 | 14 Nm, 130 | 14 Nm, 130 | 17mm |
* With filter change; otherwise 2 qts.
** 10W40 if riding regularly in freezing temps
Didn’t realize until the end that I forgot to put in a new oil filter. Had it right there and everything. I guess it doesn’t matter much – only about 500 miles on it anyway. I’ll do another service at 67,500 and make sure to change the filter then. (2026 Note: That’s exactly what I did!)
Magnetic drain plugs on transmission and final drive showed a little fine paste—completely normal. Had to put an additional 50cc in the swing arm because I’d written down 100, which is wrong for the long swing arm.
The trailer broke on me again—same wheel bearing failure on the same side as last time. Didn’t notice until I got back to their house and found it was REAL hard to push the trailer. Saw the tire rubbing on the frame, then saw the destruction. Kind of surprised I made it home, to be honest. (2026 Note: It cost $100 to get the trailer towed and $400 to fix it and replace the damaged wheel and tire; we had them do the bearings on both sides just to be safe.)
Not sure I’ll have a chance to ride again before I leave for Austin on Wednesday.
