1 of 200 made...

I had no luck finding that washer I needed anywhere in town. I'll have to order one online, looks like the bike will be down for another week.

I did however find something interesting out. When searching around for the parts I needed I came across another '71 triumph bonneville for sale. It was a rare t120rv model, one of only 200 made. Then like a sack of bricks it hit me! Dug out my title and sure enough my is also a rare RV model. Here's an article with more info on this. T120rv article

This bike has just became the rarest vehicle I have ever owned.

Triumph repairs

I ordered some parts for the bike, nothing fancy just stuff that needed replacing. I was having issues with the kick starter slipping and not letting me start the bike so into the tranny case I went.

Found the problem pretty quickly. That nut you see there in the middle had backed out so the gears were loose and not grabbing as they should.

 This washer here actually is suppose to have tabs on the inside and outside to keep that nut from backing out. Where the tabs went? who knows! 

Tomorrow I'm going to run to two bike shops, and see if either one has one laying around. It's gonna be a stretch but worth the shot.

Bay plans

I would like to keep the Datsun as era correct as possible, but there are a few things that I feel I "need" to do. 

I use the word "need" with caution, because this whole project just like my others are not really based on needs. However I've always seen cars as a metaphor for life's journey. 
 People always say "I just need a car to get from point A to B". Our entire life is just a matter of getting from point A (our birth) to point B (our death), however people seem to be indiferent about the journey in between the two points. It's this journey between these points that are the most important to me, the adventure, the fun, the memories. So while others are concern with reaching point B so quickly I'll just focus on the journey there, maybe even take the scenic route.

Back to the original intentions of this post. Here are some examples of engine bays I've been studying. I really want to do a clean job in the engine bay, shave holes, relocate brake lines, and run a custom harness, etc.

 

 

GT5 update

I never made an update on my Fanatec 911 wheel for the ps3. I wasn't going to be happy just strapping it to a table so this is what I started building.

 I found some plans online on how to build it then modified it to my liking. Wanted to put a little more legit seat on there but for $40 this craigslist find was hard to beat. Here it is finished and getting some use by my roommate Dustin.

 The set up worked great for 3 days then the steering wheel decided to kick the bucket. After days of dealing with fanatec's horrible customer service they gave me a option to upgrade to their higher end steering wheel for $50. A week later we were back in business and i haven't had any problems since.

New pipes

Threw a new exhaust on the Triumph so i figured i would show it off, found it on Ebay. yet to see another identical one so have no idea who makes it or how old it is. The seller wasn't even sure what bike it would fit.

Slow progress is still progress!

So things are happening with the Z. The engine has been at the machine shop for weeks now :( but should be worth the wait (more on that later)
I figured it was time to start prepping the car so I bribed some friends with the promise of cold beer to help me out and strip down the car. 
I got a quote to get the car all sand blasted and primered for around $800. So that's the next step.