If you’re anything like me then you know how difficult it can be to part with a piece of your motorcycle that’s been replaced.
Okay, maybe difficult isn't the right word. It’s a decision I don’t want to make immediately. In a way the damaged parts are just useless bits of garbage.
But then again, those replaced parts are a kind of trophy. The worn sprockets, rotors and chains are all part of the history of you and your bike. Those pieces, however small are part of the history that you and your bike have together.
Will they ever be used again? Certainly not! And knowing that there’s no future for that cracked clutch casing or that damaged lever doesn't make the decision to discard them any easier to make. Maybe I’m alone in this camp but I feel the need to hold onto my replaced parts, even if just for a little while.
And if they are so unimportant, why do the mechanics insist on sending the bits of your bike, however damaged, home with you.?
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not out of my mind when it comes to this. You won’t see me on one of those TV shows in my home with barely enough room to move around, drowning in a sea of used parts that I refuse to get rid of.
I don’t keep worn tires or old oil filters. The old air cleaner elements goes straight to the trash after replacement. The metal bits, however, the pieces that have real weight also possess an intangible weight. These things are useless but they aren’t trash.
Instead, they’re trophies to me. They remind me of miles of highway in the cold, in the heat, in the rain. And yes, eventually the useless trophies will be discarded. But for as long as they’re here, they’re special. Some of these items would look terrific in a glass case or in a coating of bronze.
While I’ll never go to the lengths of getting old parts bronzed it is something I think about from time to time. Come to think of it, a pair of worn out boots would look good in bronze.
This is all pretty ridiculous but you have to admit, a sprocket does look pretty cool hanging on the garage wall.
Leave a Reply