IT'S ALIVE!!!

[cmonSTART]

The story of the past couple days....

So I got my dirty cheapy carb kits installed (will upgrade to better parts later), dealt with plugged jets and passages, and really battled some pretty gunky carbs. All in all it's not too bad a job considering where I started. Today I reassembled the bank and reinstalled them on the bike. While I was at it I hooked up a battery and I figured, "why not?" I hooked up a little test tank and turned on the fuel. (Oh ya, I put some oil in the crank case first!) No gas leaks anywhere. Great! I gave it some choke, a touch of the starter and a flick of the throttle and it pretty much started right up. I eased it to life on all four cylinders and there was a heck of a lot of (oil) smoke. The smoke subsided after a bit and now there is just a trace, which I assume will go away after a bit of riding. I let it warm up a bit. All the gauges work, lights work. Coolant temp came up and I drove it into the barn. No leaks, no funny noises. Lights work, battery charges. Idle is OK at best but I can't really complain right now. Pretty good for a bike which probably hasn't been on the road in at least a decade (judging by the old plate).

So this changes everything. She starts and runs so it's time to do some serious work. I have a gas tank on its way so I'll have to pull the rear end apart. The rear brakes need to be gone through. I should do tires while it's apart. It needs a lot of clean up and a lot of little things. I need to flush the engine.

Oh, and I need to fix the radio.

 

[joedrum]

boy ...now that the easy stuff done your realy in for it.... :hihihi: :hihihi: :smilie_happy: :mrgreen: congrats on getting it running :mrgreen:

 

[dan filipi]

Oh, and I need to fix the radio.

This should have been listed first :smilie_happy:

Good going there, another Oldwing saved from the ruins of a PO!

 

[slabghost]

Radio is always dead last on my list. :mrgreen:

 

[AApple]

:Egyptian: YaHOOOO!!! :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo:
Congrats on firing it up! Yer gonna have to change yer screen name now! :smilie_happy: :smilie_happy: :smilie_happy:

 

[danf]

I know that feeling, ain't it great... :Egyptian:

 

[Omega Man]

Good job man!

~O~

 

[jdegase]

I must have smiled for 3 days when mine fired up the first time....
the second time it started it caught on fire....
NOTE: dont run these without exhaust pipes... especially if you have old fuel lines!
LOL..
even after the fire I was still grinning.. since I got it quick and didnt burn it down.

congrats Bro

 

[joedrum]

its amazing what were capable of jim :smilie_happy: :mrgreen: ive done some pretty dumb things myself :smilie_happy: working towards desaster :builder: :smilie_happy: :mrgreen:

 

[dan filipi]

Yeah the day I test rode mine I was grinning ear to ear!

Then after putting an external alternator on and seeing the charge rate and voltage, more grins.

Now running 1200 cams and installing a 1200 fuel pump even more grins.

I love these bikes!

 

[cmonSTART]

I started taking the rear end apart today. I only spent about 45 minutes working on it before I got cold, and I have other stuff I have to do. The bags and fender came off pretty easy. I was planning on painting the frame, but honestly it's in pretty good shape, so I think I will try to clean it up really well and see how it works. The luggage rack and bag mounting brackets are another story...

 

[zcarron]

Ihad all my bag racks and trunk rack sand blasted and powder coated when I had my 83 apart.Looks good so far and holding up well.

 

[cmonSTART]

Business is getting in the way of play again.. No bike for the next day or so probably..

I hate that!

 

[cmonSTART]

Well, lets see. I installed a battery and the new gas tank came in. It has just a touch of rust inside but should do nicely after a bit of cleanup. Oh, and i pulled the rear brake parts and put them up on the bench for a a rebuild. Not much progress as I've suddenly been very busy again.

 

[dan filipi]

If that rust is just surface rust I might just run with it after a good rinsing with gas.

 

[cmonSTART]

I could probably get away with that, though I'll probably hit it with a pressure washer before I install it.

I cleaned up and painted the rear caliper. The rear master needs a rebuild kit. I'll also need a new set of rear pads.

 

[cmonSTART]

So the new tank looks good so far. There was some light surface rust inside, but I've been able to blow most of it out with compressed air. I think a good flush will take care of the rest. I hit the outside with a quick coat of spray paint and that should wrap that up.

The rear caliper just needed a bit of cleanup, but the rear master will need to be rebuilt. Other than that, not much progress lately due to time.

 

[cmonSTART]

Painted the tank and battery box with the finest black Rustoleum I had. Disassembled the rear end of the bike in preparation for tank removal (which looks like a pain). Removed exhaust and engine guards for cleaning/paint. Yee ha!

 

[dan filipi]

I'm not looking forward to ever having to pull a tank, good luck!

 

[mcgovern61]

Actually the tank comes out pretty easy! It is harder to get the rear fender off than pull the tank! Ya gotta have a rubber mallet to tap the tank out of socket, but they pop right out. (Pulled two so far)