redkow97

One thing that I don't think has been mentioned yet is civil liability. Even if you're not breaking any laws and are certain you can avoid criminal charges, that doesn't make you immune to being sued by the thieves. Your obvious intent is to scare them off by surprising them. Let's assume for a moment that whatever you do is all good and legal - they get scared, and in the process of fleeing, the guy smacks his head on the door-frame of your car, or jumps back into traffic. You're potentially civilly liable for their injuries, because you've chosen to surprise them rather than deter them with a clear warning. It would be a weak suit at best, but still a hassle you need to consider before you do anything. I still like the counterfeit bills idea, if local law enforcement is willing to cooperate with that idea. Any federal reserve building has a TON of counterfeit bills "in stock" so to speak, and it would be a sure-fire way to know you've got the right guy(s), while also getting them charged with more than a slap on the wrist for the petty thefts and vandalism.

I see expenses and work piling up already... The seller hasn't returned my follow-up email since I confirmed the bike was even available, so this may all be premature. Even so, the plan remains F2/F3/F4 streetfighter project, so I'm likely to encounter the same or similar issues with any bike from that era. I'll even consider an old Zx6 or ZZR600 for the right price. Would have to be later 90's or early 200's though.

No self-respecting man buys an FZ6R It's a girl's bike.

I had an F2 service manual and shopped parts for that bike a few times. The biggest shortage seemed to be with forks themselves. When bikes are wrecked, that's one of the commonly broken parts. On top of that, F3 forks are very desireable for F2 race bikes, so there's twice the demand. Otherwise eBay should have pretty much anything else I'll need, and because people still race F3's in WERA, there's a steady supply of performance and stock parts for sale there.

My F2 would absolutely destroy an SV650 once we hit 4th gear on the back straight at Mid-Ohio, so I would be inclined to believe it could do 140+ with stock gearing. Granted, I will likely be removing fairings, and going -1/+2 with gearing, so the additional drag and loss of top-end may drop me below 130 as a top speed, but I think it will be well worth it to gain the acceleration advantage. I'll do the math before replacing the gearing though. Still, I can't foresee needing to do much more than a buck twenty unless I'm at the track.

CntryG1rl appears to be "country girl" in shorthand. Or some guy wanted to be "country G-1 rl" and seriously effed up.

The problems with counterfeit bills are 1) the cops have to believe that you're using them as bait and not just spending them, 2) I'm not sure they can give you illegal bills any more than they could give you illegal drugs to bait them, and 3) having them in the car may make you or your wife kit as guilty as the thieves (possessing counterfeit currency)

Just thinking out loud, and talk to the local LEO before doing this, but maybe they would help you bate the thieves with counterfeit bills, then catch them spending them and they'd get REAL time. Felony time. That's not quite entrapment, but it sounds procedurally problematic anyway...

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katko_v._Briney This is the only case law I'm aware of on the subject, but that's not to say there isn't a more factually similar case out there.

Hmmm... My gut says not legal. I am certain that you can't booby trap using lethal force to protect property. Your assertion that it's not lethal force may be correct, but if a judge feels differently, you're fucked. In short, unless you can PROVE that whatever 'explosion' you're rigging was absolutely not capable of inflicting harm, I wouldn't do it.

the last new male member who introduced himself spent more on his his first (oversized, overpriced) bike than I have on every bike I've ever owned. Combined. This sensible female member bought a ~60 horsepower fuel injected inline 4 that is small enough for her to learn on, smooth enough to take across the country, and has enough power that she can keep it forever if she wants. Frankly I think she's got her head on straighter than a lot of the male members (and leg humpers). Hopefully she sticks around long enough to realize that you're all (mostly) joking

just save your next set of shagged tires and make your own. the hardware probably isn't cheap though... I wonder if you could just screw INTO the rubber, and then squirt some fix-a-flat on the inside to seal it, and mount the tire that way. One more thing I now want to try on an XR100...

my first track bike was a '93 F2, so I'm familiar with the chassis; the F3 engine was just a tad stronger, and the forks were valved better. Good info on the regulator/rectifier though. That, and the cam-chain tensioner are the two major things I'm planning on replacing before they fail, or having a spare on hand... I also plan to gear this bike so that it's a little more hooligan and not so much on top-speed. I figure 135 or so is enough for the street.

Pics suggest the battery died, someone tried to remove or replace it, gave up, and it sat in a garage since. Hoping to get info on last time it ran from the current owner.

well, full disclosure, I'm looking to pick up the bike for $500-$650, depending on the mileage and how much really needs to be done. There will always been things I can't anticipate, but I figure I'm getting out for under $1300 even with a worst-case scenario.

I'd probably throw stainless brake lines on as one of my first upgrades, so I hadn't really considered that, but good thought. I have not torn into carbs before, but I know it's a tedious process. What kind of expenses are involved though? why would the clutch and stator seals deteriorate if the engine has oil in it? I would probably just use silicone gasket builder to replace that stuff, if it was even an issue. Because I have never done any kind of "restore" project before, I'll take any advice I can get there as well, but my inclination is: 1) check tank for rust. If rust is found, don't even crank the bike. If not, continue to step 2. 2) drain gas and only use as weed killer or to start bon fire. 3) warm engine case with space heater, and drain as much oil as possible over-night 4) refill engine with decent oil (for temporary use) 5) flush coolant 6) run bike for a few minutes on new gas 7) do a 'real' oil and filter change Hopefully enjoy the fact that the bike is running well, and start tackling stuff like: 8) mount new tires 9) take bike apart and clean the hell out of carbs and everything else I happen along on the way (air filter, etc.) 10) start making cosmetic mods to get the bike looking as I intend (dirt bars, vapor gauges, circular headlight, etc.) 11) replace fork springs and rebuild forks. install racetech cartridge emulators if I can find them for cheap 12) rebuild rear shock w/ stiffer spring. And that's probably about it, but I'm sure there will be bumps along the way. Oh, and paint, but that will just happen somewhere between running and all the cosmetic stuff.

Looking at a '96 F3 that has clearly sat for a number of years, and before I make an offer, I'm trying to figure out exactly how much it's going to cost to get road-worthy. I KNOW it will need: - battery ($60) - Oil (negligible) - coolant flush (negligible) - tires ($115 for a Q2 front, and I have a take-off rear that will be fine for a while) - carb clean ($15 in supplies and quite a bit of time?) I assume it will need, or could really use: - new plugs ($12?) - new plug wires ($???) - air filter - brake pads(?) What else would go to shit on a bike that has sat? I'd like to keep my "get it running well, and safe to be ridden" budget under $300. Doable, assuming my tire price is accurate? Also, I probably need to check for rust in the tank. How much should I run away screaming if I find it, or how much should I knock off my offer if that's the case?

Parma also has a 24(?) hour limit on street parking. I know, because when I rented, I would leave my truck on the street to avoid moving it when I took my bike to work. I was pulling out of my driveway on my bike when I noticed a warning on my truck. While I appreciated the warning (basically I had 12 hours to move my truck), it does beg the question, "is it really a 24-hour limit if they give me an additional 12 hours before ticketing me?" My inclination is that I wouldn't have gotten a second warning... Wasn't stubborn enough to find out. I don't disagree that the city should be on the hook for the conduct of its agents, working within the scope of their job duties; I was just saying that IF the owner was breaking laws by leaving the bike wherever it was for an extended period of time, he should be liable for those offenses, and whatever a tow would have cost, because those expenses would have been legitimate even if the destruction of the bike wasn't.

I thought that's what would happen too, but it would just lend legitimacy to claims made when he appeals his sentence, which will inevitably follow... I'm sure he'll be appealing the convictions, and once that's over and he realizes he's effed, they'll move on to appealing the sentence itself. 400+ years kind of creates a prima-facie case for "cruel and unusual." He wouldn't WIN that appeal, but the State also would not be able to resist it with a simple motion to dismiss. Like it or not, the 30 year minimum was the safe and effective bet on the part of the judge. Saves the taxpayers money in the long-run.

Me too. In fact that's still more than twice the displacement of any bike I've ever owned. Stay safe and be careful with that big of a toy.

for the sake of argument (i.e. "if they hired me to represent them"): a) it's a WRECKED motorcycle sitting at the curb next to the trash - how long should it be allowed to sit there, apparently or actually un-moved, before it is trash? Hell, I can't leave my lawn mower on the tree-lawn for 5 minutes to go get the gas can without some scrap scavenger trying to load it in his truck... b) If there is legitimately no off-street parking, then, in my experience, that means motorcycles are almost always left on the sidewalk to preserve space. This is based on 9 months of parking in Manayunk, PA. If his was next to the trash, that makes the 'mistake' that much more reasonable. c) how would the cover NOT have covered the license plate? "the wheel was sticking out." Okay, unless this was some seriously custom sport bike, the license plate is above the rear wheel by quite a bit, and I presume the front wheel is more likely to be sticking out. d) I doubt it's a joke, but won't write-off the possibility of insurance fraud or bad blood. As noted in response to RHill, if you're a trash collector and something is in your way for 8 weeks straight, how long are you going to leave it there when it's obviously broken and can be lifted into the compactor? Add to that the probable assumption that it was stolen, and I can see the garbage collectors just doing it because they were pissed off.

If you were a trash collector and encountered the same vehicle parked in a manner that made it so you had to walk an extra 10 feet to get the garbage cans every week for 8 weeks in a row, can you foresee yourself getting frustrated enough to throw the bike away? Consider the caliber of individual you're typically dealing with in the position of trash collector. (although i do know a guy who got his bachelor's degree, and then spent several years collecting trash for Independence. As far as I know, he enjoyed his job, and had no intention of quitting. Pat was not a dumb guy.)

hmm... I would be shocked if the city didn't have some kind of ordinance that prohibits leaving a vehicle parked on the street for 8 weeks straight. Granted, they shouldn't have immediately crushed the bike, but my inclination is that they were within their rights to impound it. While he ought to recover for the crushing, he should still be liable for whatever the parking fine would be, plus the cost of his "tow."

Dying in jail is a foregone conclusion. My only surprise is that the judge didn't make a statement by giving him 25 years PER VICTIM, or something, for a media-friendly "250 years," even if he only serves 25 or 30.

Neil Armstrong would famously tell HORRIBLE jokes about the moon landing, and then just when the awkward silence was unbearable, blurt out, "ah, I guess you had to be there."