Mystery Revealed

I am sorely tempted to save this title for a post concerning theology, but it fits very well here also. The mystery that I am going to address is a damage that most will not have ever encountered, but if you have run in to it before, this will be helpful. I have been working on Harleys professionally for over 25 years, and only come across it a few times. The cause of the damage remained a mystery until quite a few years after first encountering it.

The mystery of which I speak is the unexplained "melted" piston pin boss. The initial symptom will suggest a wrist pin keeper that has come out. The cylinder will be destroyed from the wrist pin coming out and gouging the cylinder wall. Once disassembled though, things look a little less straight forward.

Instead of the wrist pin bore in the piston being intact for the most part, with perhaps some damage to the keeper groove, the spot where the keeper groove would have been looks for all the world like it was melted. This may be on only one end of the wrist pin bore, but more likely will be on both.

There will be no sign of heat discoloration, but it will appear as if the ends of the wrist pin bore in the pistons has melted away. This "melting" does not extend to the top of the piston, which rules out the melting originating in the combustion chamber. The first time I saw it, the word "erosion" immediately came to mind. At the time (mid 1980's), I was employed in a Harley Davidson dealership and had the luxury of calling the factory for technical help. Since the piston was from a recently "out of warranty" evolution, it was important to find an answer to what the cause was.

The tech rep at the factory who I talked with did not sound surprised by my description of the problem, but he dodged my question as to what had caused it. His solution was to replace both the piston and cylinder. Since the rep authorized extending the customer's warranty coverage to pay for this repair, both the customer and the dealership were satisfied. I, on the other hand, felt quite unsatisfied with this "solution" since I really didn't know if the origin of the problem had been addressed.

As a side note, the "non answer" from the Harley tech rep, reminds me much of the way the factory writes their service manuals. They will often state that "such and such" procedure MUST be done in "such and such" fashion. I for one find it much easier to remember the correct way to do something if I understand why it needs to be in a certain fashion. Most often the factory service manuals will give dire warnings about performing a task in a certain manner with no reasoning offered to support their "command". Sometimes the reasoning behind their procedure is sound, other times it is of no consequence and only added because they assume all Harley technicians are idiots!

Sorry for that rant, now back to the mystery. It was not until quite a few years later that I ran into this mystery again. The second time, the victim was a Shovelhead, and it was on a generic aftermarket piston. By this time I was working for one of the larger "unauthorized" Harley shops in this area, and so did not have access to the factory tech reps. This time I called a couple of the industry sources for pistons to see if anyone could tell me what this weird looking destruction was caused by. No one seemed to know, although Ron Dicky from Axtell came the closest when he said that it wasn't anything inherent in the piston that had caused the problem.

Since the original engine that had this problem at the Harley dealership had not failed again, I felt a little better this time about merely replacing the cylinder and piston, but the cause still remained unknown.

Again a few years passed, but then, mostly by chance, I found my answer! I was getting ready to final assemble a top end on a Shovelhead motor, when I happened to look through the end of a brand new, and just washed wrist pin. There to my surprise was a "gob" of metal filings. Have you ever seen how the metal filing that come off of a bench grinder can sometimes stick together because they were so hot when they landed that they kind of "fused" together? That is what was on the inside of this wrist pin! Just washing the pin in the parts washer and then rinsing with water had not budged the filings. I had to give the mass a tap with a screwdriver to knock them loose. There may have been about a 1/2 teaspoon in all, and once loose from the inside of the wrist pin the "gob" easily broke apart! Now it all made sense! The filings had obviously found their way into the wrist pin bore during the manufacturing process, only to come loose once the engine was running. Just add oil to the filings to help them slosh around and it is no wonder that the results looked so much like soil erosion!

Since that time I have heard of one more case of this same type of damage. I had a local "shade tree Harley mechanic" call me a few years back describing an identical problem on a bike he was working on for someone, and asking if I might know what caused it. I offered the story of what I had seen, and my conclusion, which he promptly rejected. (But then, of the half dozen times he has called me over the years with questions, he has always rejected my input, which really makes me wonder why he ever bothers to ask. When I have a problem I don't have a solution for, I don't call someone whose opinions I don't respect. There, done with that one last rant!)

I will let you be the judge as to whether or not you think I have solved the mystery of the melting piston pin boss or not, but as for me, I try to visually inspect the bore on every wrist pin that I install!

First, the Bad News

It has occurred to me that this blog is more than a month old now, and I have yet to post a message of "the gospel". This post will not be a gospel message either, because I am a firm believer that before you hear the good news (and "gospel" means "good news"), you need to hear the bad news. One will not have much appreciation for having a life preserver tossed their way until he realizes that he is drowning. A person will not have much use for a pardon until he realizes he is under a death sentence.

And so it is with the gospel of Jesus Christ. How can a person possibly understand the glorious good news, if he is not even aware that there is any bad news? That is why this post will not speak of the gospel, but instead will attempt to address the reasons for the need of the gospel.

Sin! Just a simple little three letter word, and yet it is the destruction of so much of mankind! Yet so little of mankind has a realization of sin, at least to the depth the bible teaches. A man's conscience may point out sin to him, but the conscience is so easily silenced, that it cannot be depended on to be a consistent witness. Indeed, all it takes to quiet the conscience is consistent repetition of sin! No, the only real guide to help us realize our sin is the law of God as layed out in the bible. 1 John 3:4 says: "Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law. "

If we know that sin is the transgression of the law, then would it not be prudent to know what the law says? In one of its most basic forms, God's law can be found in the ten commandments. By that I mean that there are many more commandments to be found in the bible, but certainly there are enough contained in the ten commandments to condemn every man to hell! In America today about the only attention the 10 commandments receive are in regards to whether or not monuments containing them are allowed on government property. It is likely that relatively few people can name more than a couple of the commandments, and probably even fewer can tell you where to find them in the bible! And yet they are undoubtedly among the most important of God's revelation to us.

Paul said in Romans 7:7 "What shall we say then? Is the law sin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet." You see, if sin is what sends a man to hell, and the law is what shows our sin to us, then it is imperative to know what the law says!

The first place we find the 10 commandments listed in the bible is in Exodus 20: 1-17
"And God spake all these words, saying, I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
(1) Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
(2) Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
(3) Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
(4) Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
(5) Honor thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.
(6) Thou shalt not kill.
(7) Thou shalt not commit adultery.
(8) Thou shalt not steal.
(9) Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.
(10) Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbor's."

Even a quick reading of these should open one's eyes to at least one area of sin in their life. A closer reading will likely expose others. I can remember thinking when I was young Christian (not young in physical years, but young in time as a Christian), that I had broken every commandment except one, in that I had at least never killed anyone. Of course I soon found that according to 1 John 3:15 "Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer: and ye know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him."

I freely admit that I have been guilty of breaking all of the commandments, but how are you doing? Do you think that you are "a pretty good person"?

How about commandment number 5? Have you always honored your father and mother? Always been obedient to them, even when you thought they were wrong? Have you never done anything that would bring dishonor to their name?

I have already related what I learned about hating your brother being like murder in God's eyes, and how it brings the same condemnation. Have you never had even a moment of hatred for your brother? (and if you are trying to justify yourself by questioning whether they are your brother or not, well that would make a whole post in itself)

What about number 7....adultery? Few in this country could claim to be innocent of this in any respect, but Jesus said in Matthew 5:28 "But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart." If you are a man can you really make the claim that you have not broken this commandment, the way Jesus defined it?

Have you ever stolen anything? Even something small? Have you ever had a job working for someone else? If so did you ever give less than a good effort for your pay. Did you ever "goof off" during business hours? If so, it is just as if you took money out of your employers pocket.

I have only highlighted a few of the commandments that deal with man's actions toward his fellow man. The first four commandments, which deal with man's actions towards God, are even more difficult to keep, and likely deserve a greater condemnation. Do you claim to be innocent of all of these commandments? If so, I would remind you of Revelation 21:8 which says: "But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death."

Are you starting to see yourself as a sinner yet? "But I only broke that commandment once" you say. Or, "that was a long time ago." Do you think God has a statute of limitations? "But I told God that I was sorry!" How well would that work in a human court? Man's justice is flawed, like everything we attempt. God's justice is perfect! Perfect justice calls for a penalty for breaking of the law.

At some point sin needs to become personal, just between you an a Holy God. For several years I was involved in going door to door handing out the books of John and Romans, and attempting to witness to people. Invariably, if the conversation got that far, the person would acknowledge that they were sinners. But it always struck me that it was is a rather flippant admission. I feel that many, if not most would have become offended if we had discussed specific sins. There seems to be a tendency to feel that there is safety in numbers where sin is concerned. It is not so scary to see ourselves standing in a crowd of millions of other sinners before God.

It is something quite different to see yourself standing alone in front of a Holy God, with all of your sins exposed. Just you and the God that you have sinned against! Yet I believe that this is how we need to see our sinfulness. We need to see sin for what a serious matter it is. We cannot just write sin off as human nature. We need to see it for what it really is. A personal crime against the God of all creation. I think Paul said it best in his letter to the Romans. In chapter 7 verses 12-13 he says: "Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good. Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful."

If you have come to understand the exceeding sinfulness of sin, then you know that you deserve whatever punishment God sees fit. If so, then you know the bad news. Perhaps you are ready to hear the good news.

When Shovelheads Ruled the World, Part 4

When we returned from the drag race in Colorado, as before, we pulled Bobby's Shovel motor from my chassis and re-installed it in his Lowrider. Being younger then, it just would not do to miss more than a couple days of riding! After a few more weeks of riding though, it was back into the race bike for the stroker motor.

Bobby could not get away from work on the Saturday of the race in St Louis, a small snag that wound up changing the course of drag racing history! OK, maybe that is a little too melodramatic, maybe a bit overstated, but still, it is technically true. Though I had no desire to race the dragbike, Bobby convinced me that it was imperative that I run the bike on Saturday to sort out the change in gearing we had made via the installation of the belt drive primary from his Low Rider. He would fly down after work on Saturday to take over the piloting duties for Sunday eliminations.

So my wife Jane and I loaded the bike up on that little open trailer, hitched it up to our beat up Chevette (which I had recently put a trailer hitch on), and headed south early on Friday morning. The trip to St. Louis was uneventful, meaning that after 20 years, I do not recall a thing about it.

Saturday morning dawned bright and clear, which forced me to face the real reason that "I had no desire to race". It had nothing to do with being afraid of the bike, after all, I had no qualms about testing it on the backroads at home. Obviously it was not due to a lack of interest in speed. If that had been the case I never would have built myself that first stroker motor. No, this was a little more deep seated than that, but no easier to admit. I was afraid of making a fool of myself in front of a crowd! Yep. That same fear that makes people afraid to get up in front of an audience and make a speech. The same fear that would keep a kid from raising his hand to answer a question that the teacher asked, even if that kid was quite sure he knew the answer. I have heard that this "phobia" is the most common in the world. I can well believe it, because I certainly suffered from it!

There we were at the track bright and early, and the track was opened up for time trials. I carefully and ever so s l o w l y went over every nut and bolt on the bike. I double checked everything I could think of the double check. The butterflies in my stomach were as big as crows. I considered making up a story about there being a problem with the bike that I couldn't fix until that night. Bobby would probably buy that, but what about Jane? Could I pull the wool over her eyes with her right there at the track with me? The last thing I could do was admit to her that "the big tough biker" had any fear of anything! In the end, that was what probably drove me into my leather jacket and with trembling hands (and I do mean trembling!) to strap my helmet on.

As if it wasn't bad enough that I was afraid of making a fool of myself in front of all those people, now I had to also worry that they could see me trembling! There was no waiting line to speak of in the staging lanes, so I started the bike in our pit area, and somehow managed to make my way to the starting line. Luckily I had paid enough attention watching others that I knew how to stage the bike, but of course that was not enough to completely ease my mind that I would actually do it correctly.

I staged the bike without any problem, but now a quick decision was needed. Drag strips were supposed to have really good traction compared to the street. We didn't have wheelie bars (after all it was a street class bike!), but I had extended my frame 3 inches in the rear via welding parts of my old swingarm to the rigid frame, so I was not too concerned about that. A bigger worry was that I would stall the motor due to not enough RPM. Now that would be embarrassing! How much RPM did Bobby use? No clue! No tachometer! Now what?!?

Erring on the side of more RPM (a tendency I have to this day), I cranked it up and when the green light came on I dropped the clutch. The results were predictable, but still fairly spectacular. The bike's rear tire spun big time, sending the bike almost completely sideways with the rear of the bike going to the left. Without letting off the throttle, I corrected, which brought the back end of the bike back the other direction, way past center going to the right, but not quite as far as it had gone to the left. This process repeated itself a few more times, each time the swing lessening somewhat as the speed of the bike started to catch up with the speed of the tire.

I suppose that this might have scared me to death if it wasn't something I had done hundreds of times on the street! Suddenly all of my fear was changed to adrenaline! The rest of the trip down the strip was a pure thrill! It was over far too quickly. I came back down the return road and instead of heading back to the pits I signalled Jane that I was gong back into the staging lanes. I knew I had to get back on the track before the adrenaline rush changed back to fear!

I don't recall how many passes down the drag strip that I made that day, but it was enough that I felt pretty comfortable in front of "the crowd". Comfortable enough in fact that somewhere along the line, I glanced over to the bleachers only to find not more than a dozen people bothering to watch time trials for the street class bikes. So "the crowd" that I had been so worried about making a fool of myself in front of, turned out to be mostly a figment of my imagination.

That evening, Bobby flew into town, ready for his turn on the bike. The next morning, showers threatened to make his trip a waste of time, but soon lightened up and showed promise that the races might still go on. Once the skies dried up, there was still the problem of a wet track. Back then there was no fancy equipment to quickly dry the track. However, where there is a will, there is a way. The track management asked for volunteers to drive their cars up and down the race track to speed the drying process. Soon there were a dozen or more cars quickly making laps up and down the track.

Maybe a little behind schedule, but better late than never, we came to eliminations. As usual, Bobby ran away from the competition. As I recall his times were around 11.70 with MPH about 112. That was not enough for a record in the quarter mile though. Someone from Texas held that record at somewhere in the 11.20 to 11.40 range (I really can't remember for sure).

After winning our class, we received a rude awakening in the first round of the run off between class winners. What worked in our favor in the past (i.e. having our dial-in set to a national record that Bobby owned), was our downfall this time. Since we were running slower than the 1/4 mile record in our class, we would have a dial-in that we could not possibly run. When we got into the staging lanes, most of the racers were trying to hang back and not line up against a racer on the Shovelhead at the head of the line. I brashly sent Bobby up to the head of the line to race him, thinking he would be an easy mark since his bike was an 80 incher in the class below ours (Hot Street FL I think). Little did I know that this racer had set a new national record in his class earlier in the day. That meant that he was running with a dial-in slower than he was running, and we were running on one that was faster. Since there was no break-out, Bobby didn't have a chance.

Despite another first round loss in the run off between classes, we couldn't help but be happy with another Street Racer FL class win and trophy! But now we knew there was somebody out there who was faster (at least in the 1/4 mile). As we loaded up and headed home, Bobby and I were both faced with dilemmas. His was; how do we get the bike to go faster? Mine was; how do I get my engine finished so that I could race it myself next season? I'll get to Bobby's answer in my next post on this subject.

Love the Brethren

Proverbs 24:17 Rejoice not when thine enemy falleth, and let not thine heart be glad when he stumbleth

I had not planned, when I started this blog, to comment on current events as many bloggers concentrate on. Recently though, I came across something that I feel the need to address. It seems that a prominent creation science evangelist by the name of Dr. Kent Hovind has been sentenced for tax evasion. I don't know many of the details of the case, except that from what I gather he had a long running battle with the IRS over whether or not his "ministry" and himself were required to pay taxes. This apparently was no small misunderstanding , as he has now been sentenced to 10 years.

But the justice, or injustice of that sentence is not what I wish to speak to. Though I have seen Dr. Hovind speak on two separate occasions, and attended one of his debates vs. an evolutionist, he is not someone whose ministry I follow closely. Dr Hovind is someone who I guess would be referred to as a fundamentalist. Doctrinally he would be toward the far end of the spectrum from me in regards to Calvinism. However, he gives every appearance that he loves the Lord, and has served him for many years to best of his ability. While I may disagree with the stand he chose to make in respect to taxes, I cannot help but admire him for dedicating his life to evangelism.

What I find most troubling about this whole story is that I came across it while reading another blog. This blogger, who will remain nameless here, wrote about Dr. Hovind's sentencing with an all too obvious glee! Reading some of the comments and following some of the links revealed this to be a quite common attitude. Now if this had been a "secular blogger" I would not have given it a second thought. Anyone who holds the theory of evolution dear would have cause to count Dr. Hovind as an enemy. But no, this was a blog that in every way presents itself as a Christian blog (which is why I was reading it in the first place). The blog author's major quarrel with Dr. Hovind appear to be that "he is a self-taught amateur" in the field of creation science. Equally as damning in the authors view, seems to be the fact that Dr. Hovind actually defends the King James version of the Bible.

Using that criteria, the author of that particular blog would likely hold me in contempt also. After all, I have no degrees or formal training in theology, and yet I have the impudence to make a feeble attempt at declaring the Gospel. Some readers may have noticed that I too use the KJV exclusively. I have even been guilty of defending the biblical account of creation both among friends and while preaching , without any scientific training beyond high school. Does that make me an enemy to some that claim to be Christians?

The above admonition that we have from the book of Proverbs obviously would not trouble most secular evolutionists. It is however, something that should cause a Christian to take pause. Most of us here in the "west" would acknowledge one such as Saddam Hussein as an "enemy." No one that I know was grieved at his execution. In fact I would say that many that I know were closer to rejoicing than to grief. According to the passage in Proverbs that is something we should guard against, although I do believe that a hearty Amen may be the proper response to the justice of his execution.

But, if you are a Christian, of whatever persuasion, do you count Kent Hovind as an enemy? This is what I find really troubling about the glee with which this Kent Hovind story was reported. 1 John 3:14 says: "We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death." So here is the kicker. If love of the brethren is one of the proofs of salvation given in the Bible, then someone needs to be concerned. I would not be so bold or so foolish as to claim that anyone who "piles on" Kent Hovind is not saved. I do not even know them personally. Neither do I know Dr. Hovind well enough to be very sure of his salvation (If misunderstanding of a bible teaching is a proof that one is not saved, then surely none of us will enter heaven; show me a man who thinks he has never been wrong on any doctrine since salvation, and I will show you a man who the Lord will soon humble.)

My question is: if you are celebrating Dr. Hovind's fall, are you bold enough to claim that he is unsaved? If so, I suggest you re-read Proverbs 24:17 above. If not, then I suggest you consider the state of your own soul in the light of 1 John 3:14. Either way, would not the proper response be to pray for Dr. Hovind?

Look Sharp

This post has to do with some of the details that can make or break an engine. Sharp edges. Rarely, if ever, are sharp edges a good thing inside your motor. Of course the time to address this issue is during the engine build. I wouldn't tear down an engine just to look for a "potential" problem like this unless I had a pretty good idea that the problem is likely to be there.

Starting in the middle (more or less) we find the most obvious and in many ways most egregious offenders. That would be the pistons. It is common knowledge that sharp edges in the combustion chamber are a good source of pre-ignition. The piston domes are one of the areas that nearly always needs some attention. Many pistons come out of the box with sharp machined edges, particularly on the edges of the valve reliefs. A few years back one of the aftermarket Harley engine manufacturers even came out with instructions that if the engine was to be used in hot climates that these edges should be rounded to help prevent pinging. All that is really needed is a some medium grit sandpaper to solve this potential problem. I usually use either a de-burring tool (or Buck knife if the de-burring tool is on the other end of the shop) and then finish with sandcloth. So now your beautiful shiny machined pistons domes aren't quite as photogenic, but they are more functionally attractive. Even the generic cast pistons we use in our Knucks, Pans, and Shovels should be inspected. Often they will have a small raised spot at the tip of the dome that has a sharp edge.

But you are not done with the piston yet! Now look at the bottom edge of the skirt. There should be a slight bevel on that lower edge. If there isn't one, imagine that piston on its downstroke with just a little cocking of the piston on the wrist pin. Yeah, I can picture the sharp leading edge of that piston scraping all of the oil right off the cylinder wall! By the way, credit for that tip goes to Axtell Sales in Des Moines (the people who are famous for their drag racing cylinders), who have a note in one of their piston instruction sheets to that effect. While you are in the area, make sure that any reliefs in the cylinder spigot have a rounded edge for the same reasons. If you have added the reliefs for a stroker motor, be sure you don't leave them sharp. Aftermarket cylinders will likely come with sharp edges here. Stock cylinders are usually ok from the factory but what about after you bore them a few times?

Working our way down the engine, the outside edges of the female connecting rod where they come into contact with the flywheel trust washers should be inspected. If you are running an early roller bearing Pan or Knuckle, then attention should be paid to the edges of the case races as well as the flywheel end play adjusting washers. In the same vein, take a close look at those case races. I have seen some new ones that were rough enough on the inner end that they would work like a grinding wheel on the end play washers. Within a couple thousand miles you will have double (or more) the end play that you set it up with!

Moving over to the gearcase, some of the aftermarket tappets (lifters) that I have seen have such sharp edges that you are in danger of cutting yourself just handling them! Obviously with the designed-in side loading on these parts in most of Harley's engine layouts, what I said about sharp edges on the lower edges of piston skirts also applies to both the top and bottom edges of the tappets.

Back up top, everything that I said about the piston domes in regards to pre-ignition also applies to the combustion chamber.

You're probably starting to get the idea by now. Just examine each part before you install it, and consider how any sharp edges you find might effect the engine. Remember, look sharp . . . but don't leave it sharp. A happy Harley engine is one that looks sharp on the outside, but isn't sharp on the inside.

Lest Any Man Should Boast

Ephesians 2:8-9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Lest any man should boast! If any man is a saved, born again believer in Christ, he should understand that he has no reason to boast. He should understand that it is nothing that he has done that has earned him his salvation. In fact there is nothing he could have done to gain God's favor. This verse is one (of many) of the reasons that the system of theology that I hold to makes me what may be called a "Sovereign Grace Baptist" as opposed to a "Free Will Baptist". Sovereign Grace Baptists, of course, are those who agree with the "Doctrines of Grace", more commonly called Calvinism.

Calvinism! That name is certainly one that will get a reaction from nearly anyone who calls himself a Christian! Often the reaction may go something like this: "those Calvinists are so arrogant that they think God chose them and no one else; what makes them think they are so special?" In truth, I am sure that there are some who call themselves Calvinists who probably do have such an attitude to some extent. Some of those may just misunderstand the doctrine, some may just misunderstand the Bible, and I fear some of them are just not even really Christians. But that is fair, because I am sure that there are as many that would say that they believe in "Free Will" occupying those same boats.

No Calvinist that properly understands the doctrines of Grace would argue that God chose to save him because of any good he saw in him. Just the opposite, in fact. They would argue that God chose them despite what he saw in him! This passage in Ephesians clearly states that no man has any reason to boast of salvation. If this is true (and it is, because the Bible says it) then whichever of these two doctrines allows room for boasting must have a problem.

When I was saved I fully believed that I had "made a decision" to "accept Christ". As I came to understand the Doctrines of Grace, I saw that if that had been true, then the only difference between myself and someone else who heard the same gospel yet did not get saved, was that I "made a decision". Would that not give me something to boast of? Even if I were just as vile and wretched a sinner (or worse) than the other, could not I boast that at least I could see my need of a savior? Would that not set me apart as in some measure better than the other?

I realize that this can be hard to get your mind around. If God chooses to save one and does not chose another, it is tough for us to grasp that it has nothing to do with him seeing something good, or lovely, or desirable in the one he "elects" to salvation. Perhaps that is because we, by nature, use such criteria when we chose who we will love.

Romans 9:11-14 reads thus: "(For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;) It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger. As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated. What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid." For the most part, I think most who believe in free will (in regards to salvation) would explain that in election (choosing), God looks forward in time and "elects" to salvation those who of their own free will, chose to accept Christ. If this be true, doesn't Jacob have somewhat to boast of? After all, by that reasoning, he had enough good in him to "make a decision for Christ," when his brother Esau was so rotten that he didn't. Is not "accepting Christ" a good work? I cannot think of anything that one could do that would be better. Yet this portion of scripture states that election is not of works.

So why does God choose to save one and not the other if its not based on "accepting Christ". Romans 9:15 says: "For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion." Simply put, it is God's will that determines the matter. He will do whatever pleases him. That's not fair, you say? Do you really want fair? Do you really want justice? Justice would demand that each and every one of us go to hell, because we are all guilty.

We are all guilty, all made from the same sinful flesh. There is nothing in us that recommends us to God, not even the recognition of our guilt. Romans 9:21-23 says: "Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour? What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory"

Now if you happen to be reading this and you have not been born again, you may find this doctrine revolting and "mean spirited" or perhaps even depressing, but keep in mind that you can never know till the day you die that you are not of God's elect. Remember that God did not save the thief on the cross until he was dieing along side Jesus.

As for me, I certainly have nothing to boast of. Well, that's not really true. I can boast of the wonderful mercy of God!

When Shovelheads Ruled the World, Part 3

So there we were in the foothills outside of Colorado Springs, a little concerned with how the bike would run at this higher elevation, but totally excited to find Bobby's name on the list of National Records. Having spent a year working in a Dealership in Pueblo, one might think that tuning the bike for that elevation would be a piece of cake for me, but that was not really the case. Believe it or not, the S&S carb was not found on half the Harleys on the road back then as they are now, hence I had limited experience with tuning them. We didn't even get to the staging lanes before we realized we needed to start leaning it out. Each pass showed the need for more jetting work, but the bike was running a little better with each jet change. When I put in the smallest main jet we had, the motor was still noticeably rich as it came onto the main. So there we had a bit of a dilemma. We were told that "the Dragonman" had an adjustable main jet at his shop that we could buy, but that would mean only having one or two passes to try to tune the adjustable main. We hadn't noticed any bikes in our classes running as quick as Bobby yet, so I made the call to leave well enough alone.

Of course once it was too late to get the adjustable main, the fast bikes showed up! My first job as a Harley mechanic was working for Conger's Harley Davidson in Pueblo, Colorado. I learned a lot in the two years of motorcycle mechanics school that I had attended, but it was nothing compared to what I learned in a year working for Dick Conger. So who do you think showed up Sunday morning, but Dick with an Evolution powered bike, along with a friend on an 88 inch Shovel (that Dick built) which was known for being among the fastest Harleys in Pueblo. Both bikes were "teched" into the same "Street Racer FL" class with Bobby. I don't think I ever got a straight answer as to the engine size of Dick's Evo, but I kind of always assumed it was an 80". I knew that if anyone could make a stock cubic inch Evo run with the stroker Shovelheads, Dick could!

Dick, on the Evo, his friend on the 88" Shovel, and Bobby all worked their way through eliminations without too much trouble. Time has taken its toll on the details, so I really don't remember whether it was Dick or Bobby who beat Dick's friend in the semi finals, but either way the finals were looking like a big showdown, at least in my eyes.

As Bobby staged the bike against Dick in the finals, I couldn't help but wonder if I had blown our chances of winning by not trying the adjustable main jet. That little 93" Shovel came through with flying colors though, despite a momentary "blubbering" in each gear! I felt just as elated as if I had been the one on the bike beating my old boss.

The "shoot out" between the winners of each of the street classes was truly anticlimactic, though it did provide a few moments of frenzied activity. We brought the bike into the staging lanes for the first round not suspecting any problems, but when it was time for us to go I couldn't get the bike started. I kicked until I was blue in the face, then Bobby kicked until he was. Finally I pulled a plug wire to check for spark; None! There were only a couple pairs of bikes still waiting their turn as I made a mad dash to where we were pitted to get tools. By the time I got back there were only two bikes left to run. The racer in the other lane was kind enough to wait for us, but all hope quickly left us when I inadvertently sliced a plug wire in half with my buck knife. I no longer recall what I even had the knife out for, but I suspect I was attempting to cut a tie wrap.



Didn't matter much though, both Bobby and I were still grinning about winning our class again. Afterwards, as we were chatting with Dick Conger, Bobby graciously mentioned to him that he must be pretty happy with the race results, since he had built two out of the three fastest bikes and taught the one who built the other.

Bobby and I had never heard the expression "quit while you're ahead", so much of the talk on the long drive back to Minnesota had to do with getting to the next race on the schedule, St Louis! That story will have to wait for another day though...