If you need advice that particular kind of DIY, feel free to post here and tag me or DM me directly. Hopefully I can be very helpful to some of you folks who either can’t afford to pay expensive mechanics or want to learn on your own.

I work as an independent mobile mechanic in middle Tennessee (for now). My primary work is motorcycles and small engines, but I’ve done plenty of work on cars too. I used to post quite often on r/fixxit back before I left Reddit.

Pic is an example of my work. That’s one of my motorcycles, which I resurrected from the dead. I took that picture while was riding to the small town of Cave-In-Rock, Illinois, to rebuild 4 carburetors for a customer, and in line waiting on a ferry to cross the Ohio river.

  • nickwitha_k (he/him)
    6•5 months ago

    I really miss the sheer simplicity of the bikes that I used to ride. Specifically, the KLR650 and the carbureted KLX250. Every but of maintenance was easy to DIY. Even a clutch rebuild was just simple. The 250 had the extra bonus of not wanting to cry, when it decided to take a nap.

    • @senseamidmadness@beehaw.orgOP
      4•5 months ago

      Those older simple machines are wonderful. The green BMW was my first fuel-injected bike and after the parts bills to fix its dead fuel system, I still prefer carburetors. EFI is convenient but when it breaks it takes specialty tools and knowledge and lots of money to fix. First part I ever bought for that bike, used, was close to $300 on eBay. It was the plate that the fuel pump, fuel filter, and fuel light float mount to, and it has a fuel-tight wiring connection going through it. The ground wire powering both the pump and float switch had broken contact somewhere in there. No way to fix it and make it fuel-safe again. Then there was buying and installing a new fuel filter and pump, replacing in-tank and external fuel lines, installing pressure-safe disconnect fittings, cleaning the fuel injectors… It eventually became worth it. That bike and its big brother are the most comfortable and practical motorcycles I’ve ever owned. Just took a lot to get there.

      I’m about to resurrect a 1986 Yamaha XT350 for my partner and that’ll be a much easier and less expensive process than my fancy BMW’s.