These people who own the site said I have to introduce myself. Okay.
Hi All, this is Wild Bill. I don't know how or when that name was planted on me; it was unjust and slanderous. But it cruelly stuck somehow against my complaint. I've been riding since I was 15, my first bike being a $35.00 ring-ding Yamaha YL100 twin, the smoky 2-cycle kind where I needed a handful of plugs in my pocket to make it home - clean plugs in my left pocket, fouled plugs in my right, oily pocket, permanent grease under my fingernails, and a bug-spattered, sadistic grin on my face. That was 48 years ago, and most of that hasn't changed, at least inside. I'm still that kid having the time of his life - only bigger and more expensive, which I found out does not necessarily mean a greater happiness quotient.
I rarely ever sell anything; I buy what I like and hang on to it. I'm a maintenance freak - this has endowed me with a small collection of bikes from 1967 to present - all in perfect condition - that I ride almost every day, thanks to the excellent motorcycling weather here in Nevada 364 1/2 days per year. I'm originally from northern New England and never going back - rotten weather except between July 4th and the 18th, and September 6th. Yeah, you poor snowbound guys and gals, I feel your pain. Har!
Yesterday, I was performing minor maintenance on my 2013 Rocket Touring, flushing and refilling the antifreeze. When I was finished, I started my bike up and let her idle to operating temperature to make sure everything was functioning well and I had no air pockets to bleed off. Everything went well, and I was about ready to shut her down when I noticed the headlight seemed to have steam on the lens. Nothing unusual after a flush and fill, so I took a towel and wiped it off; only, it did not wipe off. The lens was MELTING!! In all my life I have never seen anything like this! I shut the bike down, but too late. The lens was toast. A new one goes for $220.00 from Bike Bandit - pretty stiff for a piece of clear plastic, not even fluted. Even more compelling, why would it do that, and will it happen again? BTW, the light was on low beam, and cannot be turned off when the bike is running (another bureaucratic attempt to save the unsaveable). It was all of 60 degrees F ambient temperature, and there was no heat source near the light except the light itself. I bought this bike almost unused in 2014 and have had no troubles with it whatsoever.