I've chosen the appellation "The ATGATT Rat" to describe myself -- originally owing to the fact that I spent more on my gear than on my bike.
After this week I think I should change my name to "The ADD Mechanic".
Jezebel has been dripping a few drops of oil. Noticeable in the morning when pulling out of the garage to head to work. Inspected my dipstick, noticed it was loose. Ah, that must be the problem. Oil level was fine so I hadn't lost enough to really affect the levels.
But no, drips continue the next morning. By the second night my wife has poured a little spot of oil dry under Jezebel's parking space. How ironic, a Honda parked next to a Harley, and it's the *Honda* that has the oil dry underneath it. I'm sure she got a chuckle out of that...
I crawl around under the Honda, checking for the source of the leak. Gaskets look fine. Oil pan bolt is fine. What's this? The filter is loose. I can turn it a full quarter turn by hand.
Apparently Mr. ADD Mechanic didn't tighten it when he changed his oil last. I'm lucky it didn't fly off at speed, that'd have been a catastrophe.
I'm sure I just saw something shiny and wandered off before I finished the job properly. Maybe I got called to dinner or something. My expanding waistline confirms I haven't missed many meals lately...
Dang, I could blame it on old age, or maybe just go with attention deficit disorder.
May you never be distracted while working on your bike. May you remember where you put your torque wrench.
Ride safe!
if you never do anything, you will never do anything wrong. I'm glad your dumbass wasn't costly. Just serious enough to give you a heads-up about your procedures.
ReplyDeleteNow you have a bit more 'sperience. :)
Yeah, I've been there, done that.
ReplyDeleteSometimes it is the simple things that we pay the least attention to. Have you ever started pouring oil in and not realized that you never put the plug back in?
ReplyDeleteNo, D, I haven't forgotten to replace the drain plug. But I have refilled the oil and started up the bike, not realizing I had left the fill plug out until I felt something warm and wet sprayed all over my leg.
ReplyDelete