Bike restorers beware!

[mr blackstock]

I found this locally, and thought it was very funny!


I love being a bike restorer!

I have been doing it for awhile now, what can I say!  When you get the bug it takes full hold!  I'm a different restorer though, not one of these tight buggers that refuses to buy parts.  Who wants to spend hours up to their elbows in grease and oil trying to fix a part when they can just buy it!  Better buy it now before all those NOS parts disappear!  My most recent love affair started with a nice little Kawasaki GT750 I saw on Ebay, the description portrayed a sorrowful package.  The bike was complete, but had been exposed to the elements for years, from the pictures almost everything was in need of restoration, perfect!

Although the bike was in another state I convinced myself I just had to have it!  After all I had so much liquid cash hanging around after being retrenched and buying several dog grooming franchises, thank god for the GFC.  Anyway, back to the bike, well of course I could not actually inspect the bike but that did not deter me at all and a bidding I went!  Now, I know the old GT750 ain't worth much in this sort of condition, but with the rose coloured glasses effect running full steam, all of a sudden this bike seemed to exemplify all the best parts of my misspent youth! ( I think my brother had one..?)

Anyway, the bidding was at around $500 with a day left, I was not fazed, and admittedly the price was appropriate, so I put my highest limit at $1200, that should scare off most people.  Seems it didn't, the bidding went to $1150!  Must have been another bored cashed up baby boomer.  But I was happy, the bike was mine!  I then organised an exorbitantly priced specialist courier to collect the bike.

Now, from the photos off ebay I had worked out already most of  the parts I would need to restore the bike.  I hopped onto the computer and looked up an online parts supplier in the U.K and went shopping!  Now, I could tell from the photo that most parts I would be needing would be the little things, cables, rubber mounts, indicator lenses, et all, so I bought what I could NOS, and although the bill was huge, damn near the cost of the bike, I wanted NOS as cheaper after market items I believe are a false economy, they will either not fit, be the wrong colour, or wrong model and just need replacing anyway. 

I even found a company in the U.K that can reprint original stickers and decals, you the ones, telling you to "preserve nature and wear a helmet", where to put fuel, and the under seat ones, the sort of stickers you peel off as a kid because they make you look like a complete idiot?  Well, I wanted them now!

Once the bike arrived I went busily to work dismantling, taking photos of wiring locations, anything I might need to later indicate where to put the new parts.  The engine was packed up onto a small crate to go to an engineering company in Tweed Heads, for a dismantle, inspection and work as needed.  Next, all the bodywork I sent to a guy I know in Canberra, great painter and also re-chromes.  Considering the rust in the guards, a fair amount of welding also needed there.  The frame I dropped off at a local custom paint shop to be plastic coated.  The forks looked awful, rusted and I think they were slightly bent.  I sent them off to be re-chromed, and the alloy lowers to be stripped and re clear coated, best place I could find for the job was in Perth so off they went.  The exhaust pipes were very bad, although the rust had not eaten any holes, re-chroming them was the only way, and I wanted to use the originals, after market exhaust systems are for cheap skate tight buggers anyway.

The fiddliest parts of the bike took the longest and where most likely going to cost the most, undaunted I pushed on.  The fasteners I kept, not for re-use but more as a reference in case the full stainless set I ordered from the U.K was short one or two, that cost a bob or two!  The wiring I solved in one step, found a NOS one for a few hundred, but I figure it would save me lots of time chasing electrical faults later, better to just spend money at this point!

The gauges were a mess!  Faded with broken needles and a cracked face.  I sent them off to be refurbished and re-calibrated in L.A, the shop guarantees "as good as new".  The price was going to be high, but I wanted the gauges to be accurate and look as good as the bike would.  The handlebar controls were also a complete mess, scratched paint, worn off lettering for the switches, totally un useable!  Luckily there were some NOS ones in Canada so I bought them too.  The brakes were another matter.  Normally I would go braided, but that would look out of place.  I turned to a company in Melbourne I had used before that specialised in making up braided lines that had a plastic coating on the outside so they still looked like original items, a little more expensive but they looked great and would stop like a modern bike!

The carbs were going to be difficult, lots of work needed there.  I already had them off the engine so I removed the diaphragms and was surprised by the good condition they were in.  Even though they were good, I decided to buy new ones as pin prick sized holes in your diaphragms can cause absolute nightmares getting your 25 year old bike to idle like a swiss watch, which is what all restorers should aim for.  Although there are reputable companies selling diaphragms alone without the slides, I worry about the slight difference in materials, and again it comes down to false economy, you buy the cheaper version and later regret it, better to spend up large now and buy the part just once.  For these I had to go with NOS, ex pensive but they will last at least 15 years.  The carb bodies I sent off to be sonic cleaned and polished, ordered more NOS parts off the web, from little "O" rings to floats to needles.

The seat I sent to a local guy only to discover he could not do the Kawasaki lettering on the back.  For this I shopped around for a seat cover that I could use.  However, the more I looked the more I thought of just buying the whole seat NOS.  This was, the seat would look perfect, and I would not have to stress about trying to fit a seat cover onto old rubber.  Who does that annoying stuff anyway?  Also, as I had not even looked at the condition of the seat foam I surmised total replacement was best.  I must say USPS in pretty expensive!


The hardest part about this restoration so far was waiting for all the packages to start arriving.  Bit by bit they came in, from all corners of the globe.  I had to be very careful with the box cutter, many injuries can be had opening parcels, not to mention the potential damage to a part by cutting too deep.  It really is a great feeling when you can stand back and look in satisfaction at the results of all your labour.  Months of trolling websites, winning auctions, chasing up lost parcels with that rarer than hens teeth NOS indicator stalk, hours of packaging parts to be sent away, hiding the credit card statement from the wife.  The hours of arguing that when finished you will have the most sought after Kawasaki GT750 ever, of course you will sell it for $14000, if not, what a great investment.  She usually believes that.  She still thinks I sold that Honda CB200 I restored a few years back for $4500.



It has occurred to me a few times that I have single handedly exploded the value of a horrid piece of old bike way beyond what was reasonable.  And, thanks to my over eager purchasing of parts from around the world, each and every seller I used now thinks their prices are reasonable.  They are not to know I am simply bored with my life and cashed up.  I feel sorry for the young bloke getting into biking with an old bike, and yet cannot afford even second hand parts because of people like me elevating prices.  But then again, if you are a restorer like me you have to pay top dollar to do the bike justice, lord knows I cannot sell the bike for the dollars I have put into it, but it will look good in the corner of the shed under a cover for the next ten years while I do other projects.

People have to understand the idea of false economy, why spend hours recovering a part that will not look like new when you can save your energy and just buy NOS, it always fits, looks great and it will always be period accurate.  I know a kid a block or so down the road, bought himself an old bike and spent a few months getting it running before getting it on the road.  I had a look when it was parked at the local shops and he had not even restored it properly, no re-chroming, it still had the original paint, no polished covers, it even had the original cracked seat cover!  He said he still has to maintain it a bit, fix things he has not gotten to yet, but apparently he loves ridding it regardless.  This kid does not know what it is to truly appreciate the motorcycle experience, I told him how I restore bikes, he just laughed and rode off, on non period tires, I noted.  Poor bugger was just putting on a brave face I think.

"Dave" the bitter bugger....


Disclaimer:  This diatribe is not targeted at any person or event, it comes from years of reading articles about people spending more money than necessary on bikes not really worth it instead of simply recovering a part, spending the time to learn how, and doing it yourself.


cashedupbikerestorer@gmail.com

[Flynt]

I found this locally, and thought it was very funny!

Can't say I see the issue with this...  

I love the smell of cardboard in the morning!

Frank

[fintip]

 

[yamaha fj rider]

This is about what you are in to. My father in law tells me all the time how I spend too much money on motorcycles, still trying to fix up that old FJ. "It will never be as good as a new bike". He is right from his perspective. But I don't want a new FJR. I want my twenty year old FJ. People can't believe me when tell them it's age. Still looks great and getting better all the time. I have not spent as much on that old FJ as the down payment for that new FJR. This excluding the cost of the FJ since I bought it new nineteen years ago this month. My father in law spends money on fishing, boats (I think he has three right now), boat house to store them, hunting and horse shoe throwing tournaments. Who knows how much money he has spent. That is ok because it's his thing. We have our thing. So maybe you spent too much on an old motorcycle, so what, if not you would have spent it somewhere else or left it to your kids for them to spend. JMO

Keep the wheels turning.
Kurt

[Alf]

TMy father in law tells me all the time how I spend too much money on motorcycles, still trying to fix up that old FJ. "It will never be as good as a new bike".

Well, NOT, no anyway. I´ve spent 2.500 EUR restoring my CBX 750 F2 and I have a fantastic bike, much better and faster than a 8.000 EUR Hornet 600 or with better suspension that the new 9.000 EUR CBR 600 F i.e... and everybody look to my bike and ask me about what bike it is when I arrive at the local bar (my model is the only one in Spain)

And my FJ is much better that most part of new hardware... and cheaper to maintain

[ddlewis]

...he just laughed and rode off, on non period tires, I noted.  Poor bugger was just putting on a brave face I think....

stupid kid, pretending to have fun riding an old POS on non period tires..    lmao.