A winter of nothing…

Before, or let it be after Christmas. Okay, they are dark. But in the shed or garage it is perfectly bearable this winter. As long as you stay on a platform, a pallet or some Persian rugs from the thrift shop and out of the draft. In short: it is a winter of nothing.

So you come back from the fair in Houten with some purchases, and you can go straight into the garage with your newly purchased things.

One of those purchases is not even for a real classic, but for the – classic looking – Mash 125 (from 2017). The brake pistons of that one had developed chrome scurf after sleeping outside for a few weeks. Fortunately, Bonne from Mashpoint had something used lying around. Modern manufacturers still supply parts, but hardly any parts of parts anymore. In order to provide the ZGAN brake caliper with brake fluid again, I had decided to fill it from below. Theoretically, that should make bleeding unnecessary. That is why a large syringe with a piece of hose was purchased in Houten. So far, that went very well. Only it had to be done outside. Because the KMZ was on the bridge and the V65 was in the way. Outside = on the ground. With a seat mat on the tiles... But still. It got awfully cold and getting up again became a kind of challenge. Funny: just 50 years ago, tinkering outside was no problem at all. But getting up was possible. The Mash now stands with the brake lever taped tightly to the grip, still breathing out its last breath of air. Fixed!

The next phase: The spark plug cable screw-in sockets – bought from a friendly eastern neighbor, but then of course seen cheaper at BRAM motors – mounted to the electrical coronary arteries of the side valve. When screwing it in, you first have to make some space in the wire. You do this with an awl and the necessary caution. Because otherwise you will see the point of the awl poke right through your hand. That has been tried before. And it doesn't look good. Oh yes: it hurts and gives your partner a real fright when you come inside asking for a plaster. Now that the high voltage can run unhindered through the spark plug cables, the good Ukrainian three-wheeler suddenly has sparks again. Fixed! Let the snow come!

The classic V65 that I – hopelessly – put up for sale during the summer holidays, is still living in my house. I pretend to my Sweetheart that I mind. But now that he is still here, I am going to make the somewhat convex police mudguard compatible with the folding subframe of the V50 (?) buddy seat. The temporarily mounted V50 Nato rear mudguard is too narrow for the 'fat' V65 rear tire. That is still being worked on. Maybe I will respray it again in the spring. At the Action they have almost exactly the right Italian color police blue.

My 700 cc V7 is, as I have heard, a very rare, very early model. That could cause problems. But via Jan Robers I was still able to get some fresh rubber and some small items. At the end of the summer there were still some carburettor problems. But now the carburetors have been dismantled down to the smallest parts and they have been simmering nicely in the ultrasonic tank. That will work soon. Oh yes: The front fork still needs some fresh ATF to drink. And thanks to Google and the MGCN I also know how many cc in each leg. That is still being worked on. Something also needs to be done to the jiffy. That will be fun to do with my new welding machine.

In the meantime, we caught up with John Searle from Catawiki. I met John a century ago or so when he was constantly following Chimène van Oosterhout during a mega motorcycle event. That wasn't stalking. Chimène van Oosterhout was the presenter for the media and the public. But despite all her curls, she didn't know anything about motorcycles. So John was wirelessly following her to whisper her texts to her. But the current contact is about auctioning two collections. John raised an eyebrow at the photos of one collection. The second collection really appealed to him. Exciting! We also talked about mediating inheritances on two wheels. That is clearly a growth market at the moment. And Catawiki is a major player in that field. So those web pages are here under the preference button. To dream away. And to bid very carefully…

With the Mash braking again, cigars can be bought. To warm up the block for an oil change (only 1 liter) a round of Velperbroek is driven. And then what was noted earlier is noticed again: Perseverers ride on old Guzzis and Transalps. And sometimes on a Mash…

The only sore point: I had hoped to find a few rolls of that flexible piping tape in Houten. But that will have to wait until Rosmalen.