My buddy Andy and I found this bike on the side of the road with a sign that read "Free Cycle". One jumper box, a can of ether, and five minutes of work had it running before we even got it out of the back of the truck. We've been riding it around my dad's farm for the last year or two and I decided to do a poor man's restoration and get it back on the road.
Here's where I started. This picture doesn't do a justice to how shitty the bike was. Everything was painted with a rattlecan (poorly) and there was a fair amount of rust and corrosion. The tires were dryrotted and flat. The sissy bar/luggage rack was about to fall off. Some idiot had installed one of the floats upside down and used a junk needle in one of the carbs. You'll have to forgive my drunken toolbag buddy, this is the only picture I have of it the way I got it :lol:.
Here's where I am now. This picture was taken with a camera phone and really doesn't show how far the bike has come. Every single part has been stripped, sanded, primed and repainted or beadblasted. The battery and tires are new, and the frame has been swapped to a '78 that came with a clean title. I need a front brake caliper and master cylinder to finish it (anybody got anything that will work??). I have cut the seat down so that it stops at the upper shock mounts and am going to cut the rear fender down so that it stops just before the center of the wheel. I am also going to cut the rear frame horns off just after the upper shock mounts and weld in a piece of pipe to strengthen the upper shock mount area.
Here's my total investment so far:
1) $155.41 for frame with title
2) $50 for new Yuasa battery
3) $90 for a set of new tires
4) Approximately $40 in paint and primer
5) $9.42 for throttle tube (my dad stepped on the original :lol
6) $5.00 for new grips
Let me know what you think about it. I think it looks pretty good. Any suggestions for mods that would improve the look? I'm planning on making a 2 into 1 exhaust using one of the stock cans and wrapping the headers. I was going to do dragbars but the cables are way too long and I don't have the tools to shorten them. Let's hear some commentary, good bad or indifferent :thumbup:
Here's where I started. This picture doesn't do a justice to how shitty the bike was. Everything was painted with a rattlecan (poorly) and there was a fair amount of rust and corrosion. The tires were dryrotted and flat. The sissy bar/luggage rack was about to fall off. Some idiot had installed one of the floats upside down and used a junk needle in one of the carbs. You'll have to forgive my drunken toolbag buddy, this is the only picture I have of it the way I got it :lol:.
Here's where I am now. This picture was taken with a camera phone and really doesn't show how far the bike has come. Every single part has been stripped, sanded, primed and repainted or beadblasted. The battery and tires are new, and the frame has been swapped to a '78 that came with a clean title. I need a front brake caliper and master cylinder to finish it (anybody got anything that will work??). I have cut the seat down so that it stops at the upper shock mounts and am going to cut the rear fender down so that it stops just before the center of the wheel. I am also going to cut the rear frame horns off just after the upper shock mounts and weld in a piece of pipe to strengthen the upper shock mount area.
Here's my total investment so far:
1) $155.41 for frame with title
2) $50 for new Yuasa battery
3) $90 for a set of new tires
4) Approximately $40 in paint and primer
5) $9.42 for throttle tube (my dad stepped on the original :lol
6) $5.00 for new grips
Let me know what you think about it. I think it looks pretty good. Any suggestions for mods that would improve the look? I'm planning on making a 2 into 1 exhaust using one of the stock cans and wrapping the headers. I was going to do dragbars but the cables are way too long and I don't have the tools to shorten them. Let's hear some commentary, good bad or indifferent :thumbup: