In contrast to a series of misadventures with other bikes, my 2000 CB 750 Nighthawk has been the epitome of motorcycle reliability. Yup, save for some leaky gaskets and typical maintenance, the humble Honda has performed amazingly well for 20+ years and 80,000+ all-season miles.
Until about a month ago, that is.
The Set Up
One morning, instead of firing up instantly and settling into a nice, happy idle, the 750cc powerplant cranked over for what seemed like an eternity before begrudgingly burbling to life. There was a noticeable miss in the engine too, though I attributed that to a cold, choke-less start.
Once underway though, something was clearly awry. After sputtering around the block, I did a U-turn and pulled back into my driveway to investigate.
Repeatedly twisting the throttle led to