Welcome to My Sportster and Homebrewing Site

This site is about Motorcycles and Homebrewing. I'm into both.

My Bike

I've owned several motorcycles over the years. My first bike was a 1956 Aeriel 500, also known as the Red Hunter. I bought it in boxes when overseas in the navy. I had a lot of problems with that bike, and finally bought a 1969 Triumph 650, also in boxes, from a friend while still in the NAVY in Florida. (kind of developing a pattern here) I got my current bike after getting into an accident riding a bicycle. I figured it would be good therapy. A bud of mine at work who rides a Sportster,(Wazup Chuck) kept working on me for not owning a bike, and I told himm that If I ever got another one, it would have to be a Harley. A few weeks later an add showed up on the bullitin board for a 1975 Sportster. It was a "Rolling Basketcase". A good bit of this site documents the work I have done on the bike.

Brewing

The remainder of the site is dedicated to HomeBrewing. I started making wine back in 1971 or so. At the time the "Head Of Houshold" had to have a license to make wine. My dad got the license for me from the BATF. and off I went. The wine must have been pretty bad, because my father refused to drink any of it.

Around 1975 I got interested in home made beer. I bought a couple of books and started HomeBrewing. I've been making beer ever since then, except about three years after my bicylce accident when I couldnt' lift the 5 gallon carboy (45 pounds of glass and beer).

For questions or comments, Send mail to :



thegimp98@yahoo.com

Ironhead Years
The Sportsters from 1957 to 1984 are known as Ironheads. This model is the longest selling of the Harley Davidson Motorcycles. Todays Sprotsters are the Evo Sportster.

The Ironhead Brewery

I started brewing with Extracts. Extracts are exactly that, the malt sugar, starches, flavors, etc extracted from malted grain in a syrup form. To make beer, you add water to the extract, add hops in pellet or whole form, and boil. Chill the wort and pitch with yeast. It ferments for from one to three weeks and then can be bottled with enough sugar to ferment to produce the carbon dioxide to carbonate it and it is ready.

In July of 2001 I completed an "All Grain" Brewing system. The system is made of a frame of 1" angle iron which supports the burners, pump, plumbing and tanks that allow me to "mash" grain to extract the sugars and other compounds that go into beer. With this system, I can essentially make the extract I used to buy to make beer.

The Tanks were purchased from a local beer outlet that at the time would sell empty beer kegs (Half Barrrel) for 23 bucks ea. I got lucky since they have since then quit selling them. I guess the Distributors didn't appreciate the retailer selling their kegs.
Kegs can occasionally be found at metal recyclers as well.