That wasn't really the repair job, just the "WTF is going on here" diagnosis. Once we got to CT, Shari's dealer had the float needles and front tire that I needed IN STOCK(talk about serendipity). Then I took the carbs out again once we got to Rob's house so I could replace the needles. There was another "carb fiddling" moment a little further down the road from where that picture was taken to unfiddle the "fix" that I used to keep the fuel from coming out when I didn't want it to. The problem with that fix was that it also kept the fuel from coming out when I DID want it to. That trip was frought with maintenance issues. Mind you, I'd still do it again, I just need to keep on top of stuff more before I plan to do rides.

Here's my story of interesting wrenching/maintenance mishaps for that trip:
On the way to Chy's to get Moe
-Ran completely out of gas about 10 miles from home but had enough inertia to roll into a gas station. I knew I was on reserve but thought I had enough to get to another station I wanted to stop at just a little further down the road. Whoops.
-Left indicator/signal bracket broke leaving the blinker just dangling there. Used electrical tape to keep it in place temporarily. This bracket fatigued and broke while I was riding with Yota after the GA 07 rally and JR welded it back together for me back then. Chy had a replacement so I used that and I was good to go (Thanks, Bro).

At Chy's
-Changed my oil back to synthetic after doing my BB break-in
-Got a ribbing about the tread (or lack thereof) on the front tire. At least there was a some pattern left (not a whole lot) and there wasn't any chord showing.

Next morning at the lodge where Moe and I stayed in NC
-Moe noticed a little puddle and smell of fuel under my bike. I remembered smelling some before I left but just thought it was my garage since I had been doing a lot of work previously. Figured out where it was coming from, fiddled with carbs, Moe took pictures, etc.
-Left lodge parking lot and bike was only firing on one cylinder. Got to bottom of the hill, found parking lot, broke out the tools, unfiddled carbs.

Norfolk, VA
-Triumph dealer, Honda dealer, CycleWorld-Parts-whatever. No one had Metzler Lazertec 110-80-17 (I think that's it, can't remember front tire size off top of my head).

Outside of Allentown, PA
-Moe's chainguard had broken and was dangerously close to getting eaten by his chain. I noticed it as we sat and took a break. Not my bike but it's still maintenance related so

New Haven, CT
-Meet up with Shari (YAY!) Relay road stories, need for dealer visit in morning, sleep (went from South Boston, VA to New Haven CT in one day, mostly slab, very tired).
-Dealer has it all: float needles, tire, simichrome, Union Jack valve stem caps, free T-shirts, outrageous shop rates, so I had the lot. Only had them change the tire, no time for anything else.
-Got back to bike and noticed that my speedo cable tube had come off of front wheel hub (speedo cable insides were hanging out). I accidentally broke it a long time ago while fixing stuff after GA 04 but superglue did the trick, until now but at least I knew what was wrong.
-Got back to Shari's to pack and leave for Rob's, taped up speedo cable, made makeshift speedo cable loop from zip tie and existing rubber on old loop (it's broken of course, had been for a while). Took an old nail Shari had picked up from the railroad (she didn't have a drill) and used it to ream a hole in the rubber so I could mount the zip tie in it (poke, zip, snip). Job done, let's go!

Mid-NH, right across from VT (day before we got to Rob's)
-Rode through some rain but no maintenance that evening or the next morning, WOOT!

At Rob's
-Replaced float needles, tested good, no fuel leaks. Rode, drank, ate, BS'ed, slept, wash, rinse, repeat for a couple days.

Day before leaving Rob's
-Heard an odd, short grinding noise while releasing the clutch, going uphill, from a stop at a stoplight. Hmm, better check that out when I get back. Heard it again that day (starting from stop) so made a note to check oil level before leaving.

Getting ready to leave Rob's
-Checked oil, about a quart+ low. Get oil, keep checking at each night stop. Turns out I was burning oil because I had accidentally bent one of the piston rings when re-assembling the cylinders (did it by myself). At the time I thought I could get away with bending it back (*smack*). I was able to bend the ring back, get it in the groove and re-assembled so that the pistons moved smoothly through the cylinders but it never seated right and oil was getting into the cylinder chambers (LOTS of carbon buildup in the firing chamber when I took it apart again).


So that was my NH rally 08 and hopefully I'll have the time to do it again this year (without the maintenance and fiddling stuff). I hope I'm on the "official" GA 09 list (to me it's a given but I haven't said a whole lot recently) and I'm going to try to get the time off for the MidWest rally (need new patches with different places on them

Wow, just looked at the preview and this turned out to be a LONG post.