No time for a KZ305, Dr. Jones

 Well, the adventures of the KZ305 did not last long. After about a 3 week search, I was unable to find an AGM style battery for this old school two wheeler and it turned out there was a good reason for this. That particular battery was discontinued in 2022. I did not find this out until visiting not one, not two, but three different stores across the Hudson Valley who all claimed they had the distinct battery in stock, just to arrive and be faced with disappointment. I eventually settled on a lead acid version of the battery, which was fine, though not preferred.

Once I got the new battery installed, however, my troubles were not over. Getting the engine to start at that point became a finicky thing, most of which can probably be blamed on the time of year as warm days have been hard to come by and those carbs did not seem to care for cold weather. One day it would start, the next it was a no go. I realized it might not be a bad idea to clean out the carbs, as a lot of forum reading led me to understand that this bike was prone to issues caused by bad gas. After my struggles with finding a battery, I decided to make sure I could replace the gaskets first before removing the carburetor and lo and behold, I couldn't find the replacements. Even the Kawasaki website only went back to 1983 in the drop down menu for the gaskets! I knew that if I kept at it long enough, I could either find what I was looking or just make my own, but then I realized I was about to spend my entire summer, not just fixing this bike, but hunting down parts for it. Having no desire to do so, I said to hell with it and I traded it in.

I wanted something small and nimble and while I wasn't going to make Harley a must, it was definitely a preference. I called over to Woodstock Harley Davidson to see if they had gotten any used Sportster 883's in over the past few days and they had not. However, I was given some information about the Nightster 975 which I had previously not known. There is a mode on this bike called Rain Mode, which effectively cuts power by nearly 1/3, making it a great training bike with an ability to step up the power when comfort levels made it that high. This meant I could teach new riders and still enjoy the bike myself. So, I traded in the Kawasaki (I was surprised they took it at all, much less giving me some trade in value for it) and off I rode with a 2023 Harley Davidson Nightster. I've got to say, I have no regrets. I love this bike. It is fun, it is quick, and it actually has a third mode called Sport Mode and let me just say: woah baby!

On a different note, I realized something about myself throughout this process. I used to love turning wrenches on motorcycles, trucks, anything mechanical. I stress the phrase "used to". Not that I hate it these days, but I don't love it like I once did. This same thing had happened to me with Jiu Jitsu. Once upon a time, I loved grappling more than almost anything. Then I had a motorcycle accident which took me off the mats for about 10 years. I tried to get back into it, because, hey, that's who I am and it's something that I love. Well, I found out that I "used to" love Jiu Jitsu. I found myself continually making excuses not to go and watching the clock when I was there. Things change. And that's okay. I don't love wrenching on old bikes anymore and I'm okay with that. I still love riding them. In fact, that's all I want to do. Well, that and write about them. And look at pictures of them. And watch videos about them. And movies about them. Okay, so the obsession is still pretty intense, but I need them to be moving, not sitting around waiting for surgery.