lesson learned for me. just didnt want to go cheap and then accidentally tear them. the hand sanitizer works great. and...it disinfects those hard to reach places at the end of your handlbars. hehhe

as she sits today
 

Protapers? and Grip Puppies and windshield installed.

https://blogger.googleusercontent.co...wk%20gRIPS.jpg

https://blogger.googleusercontent.co...AWKSHIELD1.jpg

raised windshield and put bike on lift. surprisingly the front wheel is just a tad out of true (maybe where some of the vibes annoying me is coming from) but rear is fine. checked remaining spokes. greased chain. felt it all around and feels okay for now. oh had to adjust rear break switch. i feel it will be okay for putting around until I get the new rim and then I will take it locally to have tire and tube replaced and wheels trued... for spring and additional savings. i know I share too much, but my family and friends are sick of hearing about the Hawk. hehehe.

All good! That's why we're here.

I hated that crappy plastic brake light switch on my Hawk. I had to fuss with it before every ride and was never real sure my brake lights were working while I was on it. For under $10, you can replace it with a banjo bolt unit that mounts to the top of the rear master cylinder. The one I got was plug n play. The banjo bolt unit is metal, non adjustable(just works), and is tucked in behind the frame. The plastic one is in a vulnerable spot.
Keep it in mind if you ever have to replace the switch.

Might want to check on a new front tire very soon to prevent said guts from spilling on the road.

I will be okay until I get the new rim. I did some research, I am not riding it offroad, I am missing only one spoke and I made sure the rest are not loose. I cannot find a single incident of a rim with one missing spoke just collapsing. In fact, if the design was so fragile that one lost spoke would be catastrophic, well, I doubt they'd be using spokes in the first place.

that being said, pray for me. i am a procrastinator and i have misplaced priorities. That rim is over 200 bucks plus I might as well get a new tube another 30 plus i might as well get a new tire too..another 70. Right now I can't afford to dump 300 at one time into the bike and since it is my only form of transportation (other than begging family) I will take the risk.

do you have a link? thx

Why not get a new front tire and tube and save up for the wheel? I'm with you one spoke won't stop the show, just pull the bad spoke when you put the tire on so it doesn't flop around. And be a nut about spoke tension. I'm seeing wheel assemblies for $150, free shipping; front tire for $54 and tube for $13 on ebay. Good luck.

It's the rear wheel that has a missing spoke. I put JB weld over the hole months ago and just kept riding. Does that front tire look that bad? jeez. Now I need two tires! ugh.

I couldn't really tell from the pictures, but the front tire usually outlast the rear. On my TBR7, my front was still good, when the stock rear was needing replaced, so I just replaced the rear, with a new 50/50, because that bike came on 50/50 tires. The stock rear knobby on my Hawk had worn down to the point that the side of each of the center knobs, that contacts the road last, were worn down to the non treaded part of the tire, and the part of each center knobs that contacts the road first was still sticking up some. The front was showing the same pattern of wear on the center knobs, BUT the tire was probably only about what I would estimate to be half, or a little better worn out. I replaced both, because I went with a 50/50, but I probably could have ran the front knobby for a good while longer. I would say that if your rear is plumb wore out, then your front is probably still around 40 percentage, or better, but I don't know for sure. On dry paved roads, you probably don't need deep tread, but sometimes you can get caught in an unexpected rain, so while I would say your front tire should still have some usable life left in it, I would not let it get too bald in the center.

Same for the rear. Maintenance costs are part of riding, if you can't afford tires maybe park it.

Wow if i knew that i would have given my old ones,only 3000 miles on the mine that wanted them could not find anyone! so into the burn pit. I bought my rear tire on ebay for $41.00 free shipping,not really what i wanted but the price i got it.Check on ebay for tires on auction,have bought a lot of good deals from them. Hope this helps.Buzz a TBR7 rider,with 8600 miles and still running strong,

yeah not gonna happen bro. but thanks for the advice.

Best deal I could find on Ebay
 

Look this:

Hydraulic Brake Light Switch,... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07DRF3ZRD...p_mob_ap_share

https://www.chinariders.net/picture....pictureid=2300