| Moto-RESTORATIONS |
One of my favorite past times is the restoration of older motos. There are three rules that govern my decision to
start a restoration project.
1. Does the moto excite me in some form or another. This is a little hard to explain but the moto must speak to me
in such away that I can picture wanting to own the moto after I am finished with it.
2. Is it practical for me to restore in terms of the original purchase price of the moto. Other words, will the cost of
the restoration allow me to build the moto and still be able to sell the moto if I want to with little if no financial losses.
Obviously a free moto is a good start !!
3. Will the condition of the existing moto allow me to do a restoration within my abilities and my shop's ability. This
has several meanings that I have to address on each moto that I restore. Are parts available, because I do not
have the ability for machining new parts or the costs involved breaks #2, or is the moto too complicated for my skill
set.
start a restoration project.
1. Does the moto excite me in some form or another. This is a little hard to explain but the moto must speak to me
in such away that I can picture wanting to own the moto after I am finished with it.
2. Is it practical for me to restore in terms of the original purchase price of the moto. Other words, will the cost of
the restoration allow me to build the moto and still be able to sell the moto if I want to with little if no financial losses.
Obviously a free moto is a good start !!
3. Will the condition of the existing moto allow me to do a restoration within my abilities and my shop's ability. This
has several meanings that I have to address on each moto that I restore. Are parts available, because I do not
have the ability for machining new parts or the costs involved breaks #2, or is the moto too complicated for my skill
set.
After the decision to restore a moto is made the fun begins. Here are a few things to make the restoration go a little
easier.
1. Get a parts and repair manual for the moto you are restoring. Parts manuals are particularly important so you
can not only see the parts you have but the ones you may be missing. The parts manual will also show the the
original part numbers for the parts so you can make sure the part you are replacing will work for the model and
year moto you are actually restoring. Experience has taught me that parts for a Yamaha DT250 will not work for all
model years of a DT250. Just be careful !!
2. E-bay can be your friend but make sure to carefully inspect the photos and ask the seller lots of questions if
need be.
3. Make sure before you start which direction the restoration will go. Are you going to do an original concourse
restoration or a modified restoration. A concourse restoration has to be faithful in every respect in terms of how the
moto came off the showroom floor and research is the only way to pull this type of restoration off. A modified
restoration can be faithful but also add a touch you may think works better for you, like paint color schemes,
different or more modern breaks, or what ever you feel adds what you think the bike needs.
4. When taking the moto apart identify parts by photographing where the parts came from. I also use plastic
storage bags for all assembly parts marked by locations and by name. Bagging components also allows you to
easily check where you are in terms of progress at all times. When I an finished with an assembly the finished bag
is transferred to a finished box so when I run out of unfinished bags I know I am ready for final assembly.
5. Ask for help if needed. Please understand that if you are going to ride the moto at all, the moto has to be built
with yours or any one else's safety in mind.
6. Patience: I can not express this enough. Building a moto can drive you nuts at times. It is best to stop working if
you are tired or frustrated and begin another day.
easier.
1. Get a parts and repair manual for the moto you are restoring. Parts manuals are particularly important so you
can not only see the parts you have but the ones you may be missing. The parts manual will also show the the
original part numbers for the parts so you can make sure the part you are replacing will work for the model and
year moto you are actually restoring. Experience has taught me that parts for a Yamaha DT250 will not work for all
model years of a DT250. Just be careful !!
2. E-bay can be your friend but make sure to carefully inspect the photos and ask the seller lots of questions if
need be.
3. Make sure before you start which direction the restoration will go. Are you going to do an original concourse
restoration or a modified restoration. A concourse restoration has to be faithful in every respect in terms of how the
moto came off the showroom floor and research is the only way to pull this type of restoration off. A modified
restoration can be faithful but also add a touch you may think works better for you, like paint color schemes,
different or more modern breaks, or what ever you feel adds what you think the bike needs.
4. When taking the moto apart identify parts by photographing where the parts came from. I also use plastic
storage bags for all assembly parts marked by locations and by name. Bagging components also allows you to
easily check where you are in terms of progress at all times. When I an finished with an assembly the finished bag
is transferred to a finished box so when I run out of unfinished bags I know I am ready for final assembly.
5. Ask for help if needed. Please understand that if you are going to ride the moto at all, the moto has to be built
with yours or any one else's safety in mind.
6. Patience: I can not express this enough. Building a moto can drive you nuts at times. It is best to stop working if
you are tired or frustrated and begin another day.
Here are a couple of my moto restorations along with before and after pictures.
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More restorations to come !! In the
shop now...1972 BMW R75/5, 1974
Honda CB360, and a 1981 Honda
Express II.
shop now...1972 BMW R75/5, 1974
Honda CB360, and a 1981 Honda
Express II.