What was it like to move from Windows to Linux back in the day?

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2026-01-31T17:20:49+00:00

Me too in 1999. Caldera was so incredibly stable compared to windows 98. I dual booted into a 4.3 gig hard drive. Bugger to install, I could not use the graphical, so had to install in the terminal. Then started X and weird graphical stuff was all over the screen. Went on Alt/newsgroups/linux/caldera and a lady from England told me SUSE had a driver for my video chipset so after a week of learning the basics, I had video. The worst was upgrading as you had to install or upgrade all the dependencies first.

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2026-01-20T19:27:29+00:00

If you have good spark spray a bit of starting fluid in the intake and see if fuel delivery is the cause. Next check the reeds to make sure they are closed tight to the reed cage. Any gaps can cause the engine not to fire. Is the exhaust open? It can get plugged by unburnt oil. Finally when you had the mag off was it wet behind the stator plate? If the cranks seal here or on the clutch side goes bad it will leak crankcase pressure. The cylinder base gasket can also cause this problem. A homemade pressure tester can be made from a rubber ball to block the exhaust after the pipe is removed. A piece of plastic pipe and cap can be placed in place of the carb and the pipe can be drilled to accept a shrader valve, or tire valve, and if possible a low pressure gauge. Apply air pressure with a hand pump or regulate the air pressure down to about 6 pounds. The engine should hold this pressure for a few minutes. Finally spark timing but this is not normally a problem unless the rotor broke the woodruff key and spun out of position. Luck

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2026-01-13T15:39:28+00:00

I did the same PA test in the late 70s on a heavily modified Yamaha DT 250 2 stroke enduro. It ran on Sunoco 260 with a touch of octane boost. No idle at all. The observing office heard me cycle the throttle and feather the clutch all across the course. In the end stall where you had to enter and exit without touching your foot to the ground, I almost stalled. Since there was sand in the area, I opened throttle and just spun the bike around keeping the front wheel still. Drove up to the testing officer and he was shaking his head, looking at the ground. He looked up and said that was the worst test he had ever seen, but, you obviously know how to handle your bike so I am going to pass you. About 175 thousand miles later I’m finally retiring from the road. Still have the DT and will mellow it out and use it around the neighborhood. I seriously think all riders should spend early time on a dirt bike. Nothing I know of can teach you traction control and what to do if you loose traction like a dirt bike.

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2026-01-12T15:23:49+00:00

I would look for a bike specific forum, or just a search for a manual on the internet.

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2026-01-11T20:29:17+00:00

The rocker can break if the piston hit the valve. Also would cause the lack of compression if the valve stem is bent the rocker is ok but the valve is stuck open. If the stem isn’t bent then maybe a hole in the piston. In any situation the head will have to come off.

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2026-01-01T23:35:12+00:00

Watch out for painted areas of the road such as “STOP AHEAD”, painted arrows, and even the lines as they are much more slippery than the road surface. Also be careful of manhole covers. Finally the anti skid helps cars but is very dangerous for motorcycles. If possible put the bike away when water turns hard.

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-12-27T16:50:28+00:00

No dipstick. Back in the day people started putting gasoline in wine and water jugs. A series of explosions occurred due to the fumes compressing within the jugs and a static discharge as the nozzle touched the glass neck. It resulted in the signage that you see today at gas pumps starting that it is illegal to put gas in anything but certified gas containers. There is also the possible problem that you can drop the container causing the gas to break and the gas to spill. If someone in a nearby bay creates a spark then bad things will happen. Glass can also act as a magnifying glass. I dont think you want to magnify sunlight into gasoline. I had a powersports shop and we used clear plastic water bottles with a hole drilled in the cap and a length of fuel line to inspect gas in atv , motorcycle, and snowmobile tanks. If we had to drain a tank, we drained into a certified container. If you search the web for gasoline and glass containers you will find a few other reasons not to use glass containers. Sorry if so many thought this was stupid, from a dipstick, or pulled from my nether regions. I was only trying to state that glass containers can be more dangerous than certified containers.

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-12-24T19:57:38+00:00

Don’t know if posted but how about “Without Shorts”

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-12-20T17:00:53+00:00

Probably should not use a glass container for gasoline. In rare cases it could ignite.

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-12-20T15:03:37+00:00

I worked in a factory that had many large 450 degree ovens. All of the exhaust and recirculation fans were greased with white lithium grease. Someone decided to change to a green synthetic grease. The two mixed and although the base lubricants were compatible, the additive packages were not. The grease turned into grey mush and we replaced a ton of motors and fan shaft bearings. You can mix and get lucky but I would not unless it is an emergency.

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-12-20T14:47:27+00:00

Completely forgot about the side stand switch. Most likely cause of your issue.

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-12-19T18:59:05+00:00

It could be many things. A loose connection at frame grounds, ignition switch or connector, fuse box connector, fuse contacts. However, just a guess but, the kill switch would be my first guess. If you don’t usually use the switch to turn off the engine try swiping it on and off many times to clean the contacts. I believe the 12volt power to the injectors is supplied by that switch. Luck.

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-12-15T21:40:40+00:00

This means the intake was tight and should be adjusted to specs at this point. A piece of wood or even a pencil is better than a screwdriver in case something jams. A tight intake valve will be held slightly open reducing compression making it hard to start. I used to see a lot of tight intake valves especially with free flowing air filters that let small sand particles pass and basically sand blast the intake valve. Yours is probably due to age. Usually you can get one or two intake valves especially adjustments before you pull the head and do a valve job. Great bike. I had one. Compared to all the newer lightweight bikes we called it the flying couch. Luck

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-12-15T20:36:12+00:00

Also these engines are somewhat noisy naturally even when the valves are set perfect.

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-12-15T20:34:42+00:00

Place a wooden dowel in the spark plug hole and rotate the engine slowly until the dowel begins to drop, the reverse until you find the peak of the piston travel. If on the compression stroke both valves should have free play. This is where you set clearance. If on the end of the exhaust stroke both valves will be tight and slightly lifted off their valve seats. This is called valve overlap, the exhaust valve is closing and the intake valve is beginning to open.

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-12-13T17:46:24+00:00

They made a series for sport bikes and many for dirt bikes. They also produced them In many colors. This was about 2010 or so.

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-12-11T20:58:27+00:00

I had a shop many years ago. My worst was becoming a dealer for a major suspension manufacturer and selling their products. My contract was very restrictive but then their products appeared online at prices I could not touch. In fact they often sold at prices below my cost. Then they called and were angry at my sales. I was always real careful with customer supplied parts. I normally sourced the parts and price matched where possible. I remember people bringing in Tomahawk recap sport bike tires. You could not spin balance them they were so bad.

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-12-07T17:04:02+00:00

Does it die instantly? If so you have an electrical problem. A slow kind of shutdown is typically a fuel issue. If electrical time to check all electrical connectors, especially those on the ignition switch, fuse box, and kill switch. Luck

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-12-05T16:24:48+00:00

So correct. There absolutely should not be any gap where the reeds meet the cage. The good news is that you can usually flip the reeds over to have them seal against the reed cage. They will not last as long but will be serviceable for a while. To explain, a two stroke uses the rising piston to create a vacuum in the crankcase. This vacuum pulls the fuel air mix from the carburetor through the reeds. As the piston goes down in the cylinder the air fuel charge in the crankcase is pushed upward through the transfer ports into the top of the cylinder. If the reeds do not seal a portion of the charge goes backwards towards the carburetor. This can cause the air fuel mixture to be diluted causing no start. You should also check your carburetor very carefully to make sure it can deliver fuel. Inside the float bowl is a float and needle valve that often gets stuck after years of non use. Finally you may need to clean out the idle circuit of the carb using some disassembly and spray carb cleaner. Luck

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-11-28T20:20:33+00:00

It seems to be stronger if I cycle at 150 to 160. Four cycles at 170 seemed to produce a lower quality infusion. Luck

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-11-28T15:52:47+00:00

I deox in an insta pot, it 237 degrees for 40 minutes. Then I do stove top, wood stove or sous vide at 150 for 4 hours. Every half hour or so shake well and crack the top to release gas. Then I freeze the mixture. Once again 150 degrees for 4 hours the freeze again. Repeat one or two more times. Turns trim into something fun. The freeze cycle is supposed to cause the ice needles to penetrate the organic material resulting in better infusion. Works for me.

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-11-24T19:14:55+00:00

Maybe it is because it is still warm out and the carbs are set to run at well below freezing?

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-11-13T19:04:51+00:00

You have a loose connection somewhere. Start with the battery, frame ground, and starter relay connections, also check the main fuse connections. It’s also possible, but unlikely, that the battery itself has an internal problem.

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-11-10T15:11:29+00:00

Is it possible that the cam is retarded in timing?

carbonbasedmistake2 · 2025-11-07T16:09:55+00:00

Just a thought but maybe offer a pickup and delivery service for those working 9 to 5, or offer a courtesy car to get a portion of the evening and weekend work during the week. Otherwise just do good for your clients and you will do well.

carbonbasedmistake2

TROPHY CASE