Strip down, clean, polish, paint and reassembly.
We had the bike 90% stripped in one day. I made sure to take pictures as I was pull it apart and to label things and put bolts, nuts, washers etc. in marked ziplock bags.
Alan gave the engine a great steam clean and helped me polish some of the parts. I am fortunate in that the wheels are in really good condition. The chrome shone bright with a little polishing and the wheel hubs came out really well with some metal polish and a fair amount of elbow grease.
Reassemble went very smoothly, a little patience to label parts and bits went a long way. I've listed all the things that were done before reassembly below
- Powder coat frame, swing arm, both stands and the triple tree, handle bar and rear mudguard -
- Replace wheel bearings for front and rear wheels -
- Replace master cylinder -
- Attach new indicator lights and tail light -
- Replace fork seals -
- 2 new tires -
- New exhaust pipe -
- Made new side covers from fibre glass -
- Clean and polish wheels, wheel hubs, chain, exhaust headers, front forks, rear shocks -
- Replaced a bunch of seals -
- Vapour blasted 4 engine cover panels, not the engine -
I have a mate who has a 3D printer, so I designed the Honda logo in a 3D program, then sent it off to him to get printed. I think it turned out really great. Lastly just a little hint of the final tail end.
Once the bike was fully assemble the real trying part started... getting the engine running properly. I'm not saying I'm an expert in this department but I've learnt so much about tuning the engine. Pulling the carbs apart, cleaning, reassembly, and repeat. Adjusting air screws, idle screw, balancing carbs, measuring valve pressure, adjusting valve clearance. So much to learn, but it has taken me this whole process to be confident to try and do this on my own.
