Mississippi Bullfrog

Bike jeans - why? Cooler and more comfortable in warmer weather. A decent level of protection. I wear mine to meetings no problem. My wife - and a few nurses at our local hospital - seem to think the view of me from the rear whilst wearing them is not entirely unpleasant. Worn with a Givi leg bag and riding boots my boss said I look like a cowboy.

Anti rust product. Dinitrol make a range of rust converters and underbody and cavity waxes. Good stuff. Not much use on some MX-5 variants though as they have sections made from layers of steel that rot from the inside out. How Mazda have got away with the lack of rust protection never ceases to amaze me. Lovely cars to drive.

Both John Pertwee and Matt Smith had a Triumph in the TARDIS. Matt Smith fell off his. Was that a custard cream? I didn't get to see what kind of biccy it was .... But thinking about it if you needed a biscuit that was available just about anywhere any time then they're probably the most likely. One wonders how the TARDIS handles sell by dates. I mean, if you were in say 5098 and there was a packet of custard creams with a December 2018 sell by date would you scoff them?

If there's fuel in the float chamber but none getting into the cylinder then there must be a blockage in the carb jets. Old fuel will solidify into a hard varnish when a bike is laid up. It's not easy to see but if you take the carb to bits and thoroughly clean everything it ought to sort it out. It's a common issue with outboard motors that haven't been run for a while. On those I use a spray which shifts the varnish without dismantling, Quicksilver Powertune. It's like carb cleaner on steroids!

Oh no they won't! They keep coming back or getting you round to their place. This year my summer break was spent painting the outside of one daughter's house and fitting a kitchen in the other's. This afternoon I am servicing one of their cars. On the plus side they both earn more than me so they've stopped asking for money.

I am always on the lookout for words that convey wisdom. I'll start the ball rolling with the latest from our church magazine.... Life is like a jar of jalapeno peppers. What you do today may be a burning issue tomorrow.

Check if the plug is wet after cranking. If it's dry then you've got a fueling problem.

If the cooling system is airlocked, or the circulation has failed due to a mechanical issue, then the engt WL get hot very quickly.

In my case that usually ends up with lots of blood and a trip to casualty.

The usual check is to see if the coolant pipes pressurise from cold. Usually when cold they are not are pressure - which only builds up as the coolant gets hot. If the pipes go hard as soon as the engine starts then the coolant system is being pressurised by the cylinder pressure. You can also check the coolant for combustion products. Or you can do a leak test - you need to rotate each cylinder in turn to the point where the valves are closed - remove the plug, place an airline into the hole and apply moderate pressure. See where it leaks out.

You sure you used the same lacquer on the mudguard? It sounds like that bit has got a gloss lacquer on it. Is it spray gunned or rattle can? If it’s rattle cans maybe someone mislabelled a can?

Be interesting to see how that thing works. I used to have a band that went around my helmet which another rider told me was brilliant as it was above car roof height and moved about a lot. He'd spotted me ahead from miles back. Eventually it snapped and now that I wear a flip front I never replaced it. I had a belt something similar to that but I was never convinced it made any difference. Living in a city centre and doing a lot of filtering one thing I notice is a difference between when I'm wearing a hi-viz Frank Thomas vest or just my usual black leathers. My habit is to watch for drivers' eye contact in the rear view mirror and then watch their front wheel. Some drivers have an instinct which is aggressive and they will automatically go to block a bike passing them. I see this happen when after making eye contact their immediate reaction is to turn the steering wheel outwards - you spot the front wheel twitch outwards even if the car isn't moving. When I am wearing hi-viz the wheel twitches out and then they re-think and it goes back again. It's not a case they they don't see me wearing leathers, it is more a case of when they go to block they then think - I'm going to look a knob knocking off a biker in hi-vis saying I didn't see him. So I reckon a hi-viz vest is worth it. I am not convinced it makes you that much easier to see, more that it curbs the aggressive streak in some motorists by making it less easy for them to ignore you.

if you get a large nut on a bike its usually 27 or 36 Or in my case 57 going on 58 in January.

All of the above - and this time of year watch out for leaves and any overhanging trees dropping seeds, conkers, etc on the road. The traffic turns them into a lovely slimy mess that strangely enough acts as a wonderful lubricant between your tyres and the road surface.

What is it with bikes and 27mm? I only ever use that size on bikes - why do they do it?

3 months isn't an issue really with the fuel - I've left bikes longer than that with no problems. Inflate the tyres to the right pressure, jack it up so they're off the ground. Give it a good spray with ACF50. If it's indoors fit a maintenance charger on a time switch set to come on for an hour a day. It it's outdoors either use a solar trickle charger or remove the battery and use a mains charger as above.

I'd agree with that suggestion.

Depends on the bike and what you're trying to achieve.

Which just proves that most issues can be easily resolved if you're willing to chuck a shedload of money at it. A whole pound!

This is why I use wax on all chains. It doesn't hold grit. When I ditched the Scottoiler off my last bike and went onto wax chain wear slowed down noticeably.

I just plug into the lamppost outside our house. I make all my own gas.

Try a secondary earth from the ECM to the frame. I'm not 100% sure for your bike but cooling fans and the fuel prime are often earth switched via the ECM so if the ECM earth is weak those kind of issues can arise.

Tiggie's idea of chainsaw oil seems like a good 'un - I mean, a chainsaw blade runs a pretty hard life and they don't seem to throw too much oil off, either.....Nice one. My chainsaw spreads oil like the Exxon Valdez.

Wurth dry wax. Lasts for ages and doesn't get flung round everything. I had a Scottoiler once.... couldn't get on with it.

Machine mart do some good shelters. I know a few classic car folks who keep cars in them and they do very well. https://www.machinemart.co.uk/p/clarke-cis612-peak-style-instant-shed/