.png "Powered by vBulletin")
Hi all. My name is Joe - I'm 27 and living in Glasgow, Scotland (I was born near London).
Attached is a 35mm photograph of my 1981 GS550T as I purchased it in 2019. This bike has been neglected by its previous owner; for safety's sake I am engaging in a full strip, recondition and rebuild.
I have been delayed in starting on account of poor health and a lack of space to work - however, recently a family member kindly let me use their garage and I have started work in earnest this week. So far I have removed everything with the exception of the steering head, swingarm and rear wheel.
While I am competent in using tools, I have no experience with working on motorcycles. I am following the Haynes manual, but as you can imagine it makes no provisions for dealing with rusted or seized parts which are plentiful on this bike. I also have a very limited budget and would prefer to use high-quality replacements for critical parts (bearings etc.) which may slow the whole process down, but I will post updates when I have them. In time I will also be grateful for any leads on reputable UK-accessible sources for said parts.
The plan is to build the bike much as it appears in this photograph; it came with a 4-into-1 and I will be using the stock airbox. It'll be finished in a paint scheme similar to the Yamaha Midnight Special. I became interested in motorcycling on account of my late grandfather, who rode and maintained a series of original BSA bikes; my decision to build this bike as a 'cafe racer' was inspired by bikes like the BSA Gold Star Clubman, rather than modern interpretations thereof. Eventually I would like to carry out the 650 top end swap and install high comp pistons.
I'd like to extend my thanks at this time to everyone who keeps the forum running - I am a newcomer to the website, but the information here is nigh impossible to find elsewhere.
Kind regards!
Attached is a 35mm photograph of my 1981 GS550T as I purchased it in 2019. This bike has been neglected by its previous owner; for safety's sake I am engaging in a full strip, recondition and rebuild.
I have been delayed in starting on account of poor health and a lack of space to work - however, recently a family member kindly let me use their garage and I have started work in earnest this week. So far I have removed everything with the exception of the steering head, swingarm and rear wheel.
While I am competent in using tools, I have no experience with working on motorcycles. I am following the Haynes manual, but as you can imagine it makes no provisions for dealing with rusted or seized parts which are plentiful on this bike. I also have a very limited budget and would prefer to use high-quality replacements for critical parts (bearings etc.) which may slow the whole process down, but I will post updates when I have them. In time I will also be grateful for any leads on reputable UK-accessible sources for said parts.
The plan is to build the bike much as it appears in this photograph; it came with a 4-into-1 and I will be using the stock airbox. It'll be finished in a paint scheme similar to the Yamaha Midnight Special. I became interested in motorcycling on account of my late grandfather, who rode and maintained a series of original BSA bikes; my decision to build this bike as a 'cafe racer' was inspired by bikes like the BSA Gold Star Clubman, rather than modern interpretations thereof. Eventually I would like to carry out the 650 top end swap and install high comp pistons.
I'd like to extend my thanks at this time to everyone who keeps the forum running - I am a newcomer to the website, but the information here is nigh impossible to find elsewhere.
Kind regards!
Comment