
After three pretty solid days of tinkering (is "solid tinkering" an oxymoron?), I've installed clipon handlebars on my motorcycle. While it sounds simple enough, it involved swapping triple clamps from another motorcycle (1982 Kawasaki GPz750), customizing a gauge mounting bracket, making a custom adapter plate out of aluminum stock, and the master cylinder from about a '93 Suzuki GSX-R.



Everything is hooked up and feels solid, I plan to take it out and put it through it's paces tomorrow. I'm pretty tired and my hands hurt from all the wrenching. I'm wondering how these clipons will treat my wrists...
While I had the front end apart I had to take the opportunity to knock the rust off of my axle, bolts, spacers, brake bolts, headlight bracket, etc. I deglazed my brake rotors with some 120 grit sandpaper on an orbital sander, then chucked a cone brush into the drill press and went after the rotors...


When I went into the garage to find something, I met the most enormous spider...

I was pretty freaked out right at first, but it's a common grass spider (agelenopsis) and is actually beneficial (just of uncommon size, like 3 inches across). It was perched atop a big egg sack and didn't move after 8 hours, and I didn't mess with it.
That's a big-ass spider. Glad you left it alone.