Bitty arrived ca. 6:25. The seller had left Eden Prairie at 5:30. I am glad he offered to deliver the bike; I suspect he won't be so generous next time. Seemed like a genuine enough guy.
The weather paused just long enough for the bike to get unloaded and for us to complete our paperwork.
We gave the thing a couple of kicks, but no dice. However, the battery was a little flat from overwintering, and the tank was bone dry. Good signs: the battery and the plugs were new-looking.
We chatted about bikes and Bitty's provenance. She was a real stray, purchased on a whim at the County Fairgrounds last year. He told me that he never got the headlight to work. I suspect that it is the original reason for the bike's orphan status.
I took the battery out and put it on the charger.
Before it got dark, we took some photos.
I took the headlight off and saw that the snowmobile sealed beam had been wired without slide connectors. I ran off to get some large size slide connectors and a gallon of gas. I took the battery off the charger when it would light a bulb.
Bitty was at first uncooperative, but after drying off the plugs (cute little things!) and tightening the plug caps (they were covered in electrical tape and slipped right off the leads), she started up after a couple dozen kicks. She would run for a while then cut out, but got progressively more enthusiastic. Those caps really ought to be replaced.
Her maiden voyage (as far as I am concerned) was down the alley and back. I think she has the friendliest clutch of any bike I've ever ridden.
Here's what Heck's Barflies had to say:
Shermiepants: Woo hoo! Bitty's arriving tomorrow morning, jm!!!
Shermiepants: I mean, this evening!!
jm: YAYAYAYAYAY!!!!
jm: you guys should call me.
jm: xxx.xxx.xxxx. if you can.
jm: even if there's bad news, i can take it. like, this motorcycle's missing two wheels and an engine.
RT: Oh, that will never happen. Even if it did, UB would fix it up on the spot and stick a "Lick Bush in '04" sticker on it.
Shermiepants: Ewww! don't want to lick Bush
Bitty Update: Tom will be here between 6 and 7 this evening.
jm: like, right now
SuSuBelle: Some of your best friends lick bush.
best friends: we do!
Shermiepants: Just got a look at Bitty. Cute! UB will give you the rundown.
Bitty: Hi Jenny!
jm: hi Bitty! i'm your new mommy. even though you're older than me. do you run?
Bitty: I'll let my daddy-in-law tell you about me.
Bitty: I sure am cute.
Sherman: <---P-O-S-T-E-D
Bitty: I run strong. However, I sport my original Yokohama tires, which are far too old and brittle. Also, my headlight doesn't work. It may not be original: it says "snowmobile" on it.
underblog: Those little tank badges actually say "160" on them. Supercute!
Bitty: Thanks uncleblog! It feels like my muffler is falling off.
Bitty:
Bitty: But I will make an excellent first bike for jennifer_miller, if she is patient with me. I will reward her with many miles of fun.
Dr. Uncleblog: Instructions to new Bitty-Mom: Get that parts catalog, STAT!
Underblog: jm, the muffler may be OK. You may just need the muffler joint, which OH Cycle has in their repro stash. But someone needs to look at the parts catalog and the bike and make the call.
DC Motorbike Inspector: That's just the thing I'll catch!