Into Her Birthday Suit

Alright, Had the day off work and got to work on removing the remainder of components. Really wanted to get down to the frame, I am not super good at painting, so anything thats not in the way is going to be better in the long run. Took most of the afternoon and alittle help from Ryan and his floor jack, but got the engine dropped and the front end, rear wheel, and drive-line removed.

Patchin' the Frame

So that big hole in the frame we were worried about......Got that taken care of. Alittle wire wheel action quickly revealed that all concerns about rust were entirely superficial. The pictures really dont do justice to how minor it really was. Moral of the story, Ill be dead and gone before the little bit of rust on the inside of that tube ever becomes an issue. Thank god for Arizona I guess.

So what to do about the hole? Piece of cake glob on abunch of boogery weld then grind it all flush. I am sure it wouldnt pass an X-Ray test, But I am certain it will pass the "wont make me crash and die" test. Once I get to stripping the frame and repainting, I think ill throw alittle bondo over the rougher spots. I am confident at this point that when all is said and done, it will be like nothing ever happened.

The Ground Breaking

The project kicked off today. Bike was delivered around 1230, rolled into the garage and the initial inspection began. Right away it was apparent there was virtually nothing left of value on this bike

Virtually all electronic components were showing their age pretty heavily. The plastics werent too bad, but I had no intention of keeping them anyway. It took several hours, and at least 4 Banquets, but eventually I got my present unwrapped. Underneath all those old used-up components, was a functional transmission, a clean motor, and more or less rust free frame.

Removed the radiator, found a gallon of clean, green fluid, looked like it had been put in last month, no rust, no nasty. Drained the oil, no water, no metal, just cleanish (slightly used) oil. Kinda of inspiring. The motor turned over very nicely with a turn of the wheel, and all things considered I think I scored pretty nicely here. Only downside is some apparent road rash toward the back of the frame, not that bad, but its going to need to be addressed when the frame gets chopped. I have some options, but right now im thinking ill start by cutting the bad part out, possibly just weld in a piece of plate, and grind it all flush.

All things considered, Pretty happy with the whole situation.

Braaaaaaaaaap

Time to revive the Blog, This time as a method for update on my latest project. Having quit smoking and sold my awesome truck, my cool factor is at an all time low. I have no personal vehicle, I spend far too much time cleaning, and while I love the KLR, it is probably the only motorcycle in the world that gives you negative cool points (especially with the milk crate on the back). So I am building a cafe racer. Ive always enjoyed the look of these bikes and having recently acquired a pay raise and a welder I feel alittle more up to the challenge. The donor, a 1980 Honda CX 500.

I'll admit, alitte rough around the edges, but thats why it is a project. Main goal is to learn some new skills and have something to occupy myself in the evenings. One day It might even be a good looking motorcycle. At the very least I will get another bad idea out of my system. This is kinda the end game...........

Pretty badass right? Has a shaft drive, Laterally mounted V-twin, tubeless wheels, and it is about as badass as they come. I know ive got a long way to go before I get to that point, but thats kinda the idea. Because I am often accused of wasting money on these endeavors, I am going to try to keep a pretty good track of how much I have spent on this bike, maybe not down to the dime, but by the time all is said and done, i would like to have some idea how much I have into it. So in that spirit, full disclosure, I am paying $400 and a case of beer to have a non-running motorcycle delivered to my door tomorrow. Upon completion, and pending inspection, there is sufficient documentation around the bike to allow it to qualify for a clean, non-salvage, title. So that is worth something as well. More updates to come, I am very excited.