1. A single bolt on my trailer ramp is needed for a reason.
2. Even at only 330#, my motorcycle is still heavy.
3. Hindsight is 20/20

This is the side case from my motorcycle getting fixed with J.B. Weld. After I made a hole in it, I discovered that there really is oil in there and it will come out.

While de-trailering the bike, the ramp slipped off because I didn’t put the nut on the single bolt. As the bike was dropping half way off, I had to man handle it the rest of the way down. This resulted in a gentle lay over on its side which was enough to do the damage.

These side cases are made of extremely light weight magnesium, it’s a great material but very weak and brittle. If the Suzuki DR-Z400 gets dumped on its left side, there is a risk of punching a hole in the side cover with the gear shift lever.

This is a common occurrence on this particular motorcycle and the fix is well documented. J.B. Weld is perfect for doing the job. I knew about this ahead of time and also already had the aluminum side case shields that would have prevented it. But I hadn’t gotten around to putting them on yet. Doh…

Here’s the shifter after a little re-engineering as it should have come from the factory.

The knife edge is gone.

Here is the DR-Z400 all fixed, back on the road, and better than new. Now there is a soft aluminum shield sandwiching a layer of silicone protecting the side cases on either side of the enigine. The best part is you can’t even tell there was ever a hole there.

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The ship building has been completed and the Tinyanic is ready to sail. The 1st good break in the weather and I will be getting my plates. Detailed pictures of the construction process have been posted in the Shures photo gallery.

It is a ship of dreams, but the long distance haul to South Padre island has been pushed back to September; when it’s not so bloody hot down there and school has started back up.

Next I’m going to add some upgrades. The frame rails around the sides are slotted for installing side rails. I’m going to build some to haul additional cargo.

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I let my Chilean friend C-Los try out my DR-Z. He wrecked it 10FT from his driveway at about 2MPH. I think maybe the whole balance, clutch, break, and turn was just too much for him.

I should have known when I let him get on and his feet were dangling 2 inches from the ground that I would end up with broken plastic.

At least he and the bike didn’t get hurt too bad. Just some road rash and bruised pride.

The Acerbis Rally Pro bark busters worked great. Otherwise I think his hand and my brake lever would have both been broken. Now it looks like a real dirt bike.

Replacement parts ran me about $80.00. But the entertainment value of watching it happen was priceless. If you knew C-Los, you would understand. He’s a South American know it all still learning life’s lessons. It was a hard one this day.

Yes, I told him not to wear those shoes.

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Today I fed me newest motorcycle an income tax refund. It’s resting comfortably in the BBK Motorsport show room. You can find it tucked away in the back corner. I’m glad it’s staying warm and cozy until the Chicago thaw.

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My new toy.

I guess either Santa was good to me this year or I hocked the kitchen sink. I just bought a 2003 Suzuki DR-Z 400 dual sport motorcycle with 1340 miles on the odometer.

Motorcycles I’ve Owened:
2003 Suzuki DR-Z 400
1993 Suzuki VS 800 Intruder
1997 Kawasaki Vulcan 750
1982 Kawasaki KZ 750
1979 Kawasaki KZ 400
1970s Honda CB xxx

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