Restoration Checklists

[Guest]

I was just inspired by reading a short version of the story of Keith Krause's loving restoration of his GS1000E, and I want to start planning for restoring my GS850GX. I know there will come a time when I have to take it off the road for a while to do this right, but it's a daily commuter now - that's why the planning's key for me.

I'm already started on my own list of what I think is important, but I get the impression that the guys with lots of experience have a pretty standard list of things they'd plan or assess for a total restore. My task will be to put them in this order...

I want to...

1. Halt any potential damage from PO neglect or things that normally break on these bikes. A stitch in time, you know?
2. Keep me safe
3. Keep me running and not breaking down during the work week
4. Maximize stock performance/ride/reliability
5. Make her pretty

Edit - I should clarify, that I don't mean anything too specific by "restoration". I don't need bone stock showroom clean, I just want to ride and enjoy this bike for another 200k miles.

Cheers

[spyug]

In my mind, a restoration is taking the bike all apart and replacing everything worn or damaged from frame up with oem parts and to a factory finish.

You are talking about, what I would term, a refurb. Not necessarily factory box stock original but freshened up and improved where necessary for safety, utility and or performance.

I pretty much do this with any bike I get and have done 3 in a row over the last 4 years. The second one (XS 650) was more of a custom build and was torn down to a bare frame with engine out and then modified and built back up to its present form as a Street Tracker ( with numerous upgrades and new parts).

If the engine is good and its running right , I concentrate on tires, wheel bearing, steering bearings, swingarm bushes/bearings forks and shocks, chain and sprockets and brakes.

To give an example with my 83 GS which I picked up this year after it had sat for 7 years I did the following:

1. Put in a new battery, cleaned carbs, checked valves and got it running.
2. Changed oil and filter, changed plugs.
3. Pulled brakes from front and back, cleaned and rebuilt calipers, cleaned and rebuilt master cylinders, fresh fluid.
4. Checked wheel bearings front and back all check o.k..
5. Checked steering head bearings, checked o.k. Checked swingarm...o.k.
6. Lubed cables.
7. Checked chain. Found to be rusted and kinked. Replaced. Checked sprockets...found to be o.k
8. Replaced tires.
9. Checked charging system and fuse block, lights and turn signals. Cleaned sockets and replaced all bulbs and fuses.

After getting this all done I had the bike certified, plated and insured. I have been riding since summer and have fiddled with it since then most recently sealing the tank and painting the body work. I have also changed carbs to a better set than fitted and have been checking and cleaning all electrical connections.

Most of the aforementioned work can be done in one good long weekend or if your like me and have household duties to perform, half a day or so over three or four normal weekends.

As the bike only had 17,500 Km on it, the motor was strong so I didn't need to do any work there or to tranny or clutch. The frame looks solid and the bike hadn't been through any accidents or drops so nothing is required there.

As my daily ride, I don't want to modify it but want it to be safe and reliable. If I want more performance, I'd upgrade to something much newer or possibly change up to an 1100. For now I'm satisfied.

Winter is a great time for these refurbs and I am on the look out for another project to get me through this one.

I hope this helps to spur you on.

Good luck on the project.
Cheers,
Spyug.

[Roostabunny]

This is perfect. Agreed, restoration is the wrong word for what I want to do, and re-furb probably fits better.

1. Put in a new battery, cleaned carbs, checked valves and got it running. (Check, Check - not a rebuild though - that's soon I hope, and the PO rode it pretty regular up till recently so it was already running)
2. Changed oil and filter, changed plugs. (hmm, haven't changed the plugs - but that's easy and cheap. Ans, as I said, it was running when I bought it.)
3. Pulled brakes from front and back, cleaned and rebuilt calipers, cleaned and rebuilt master cylinders, fresh fluid. (On the to-do list)
4. Checked wheel bearings front and back all check o.k.. (guess I should add this to the to do list)
5. Checked steering head bearings, checked o.k. Checked swingarm...o.k. (need to check swingarm)
6. Lubed cables. (replaced throttle cable and bought clutch cable that needs installed, choke cable needs work - it's binding a little)
7. Checked chain. Found to be rusted and kinked. Replaced. Checked sprockets...found to be o.k (Chain? What Chain? Oh yeah - I checked my secondary and final drive gear oil. I'll change it this month.)
8. Replaced tires. (Check)
9. Checked charging system and fuse block, lights and turn signals. Cleaned sockets and replaced all bulbs and fuses. (good idea - I'll add that to the to-do list, too)

I know I'm a geek, but I started an Excel spreadsheet with all the stuff that I want and need to do. I created a 1-10 rating scale for urgency and I can sort by urgency or area of the bike or system (e.g. electrical, fuel). Actually, with a nod to Rob Reiner, my 1-10 "urgency" scale goes to 11. 11 is for jobs that are already done, so I can keep them on the list.

I've got parts and tool prices on there (for budgeting) as well as my rough time estimates for how long the job will take (for negotiating with the missus over weekend time). I also added a column for related jobs, for example "progressive fork springs" is tied in with "replace fork seals". Someone might tie in "rebuild carbs" with "rebuild cam chain tensioner" knowing that you need the carbs off to get the tensioner out and you can rebuild it while the carbs are soaking. Anyway, I'm fiddling with the spreadsheet, and when I get it where I think it's really useful as a "project management" tool I'll offer it up to the group. There have to be other geeky folks in this community.

Meanwhile, these lists really help! Anyone else have similar or different methods?

BTW, new avatar?

Cheers

[Road_Clam]

I think you will find that the self-proclaimed term "restoration" will have varied levels of depth. Some claim a restoration by simply polishing up the engine cases, and replacing the fried stator. Others strip a bike down to the bare frame, and just polish up everything, and get the bike mechanically 100%, and then a few even take it one step further sourcing out perfect OEM parts and polishing a bike to concours condition. I also don't agree a bike needs to be OEM to ba called a restoration. Take my bike as a perfect example, I logged over 100 hours of labor cleaning, polishing, and repairing, but my bike is FAR from OEM. I do think my GS does deserve to be dubbed a "restoration". ..

[spyug]

Being into bikes it helps to be a bit anal:-D but spreadsheets!!! That's asking for trouble. Keep no records...especially of cash spent.....it could come back to haunt you...I shLtt you not.

A buddy of mine who is fairly well to do had a custom pro street bike built for him over the last 2 years. He finally got it finished this summer. Being a successful business man and real estae investor every cent that went into that bike ended up on a spreadsheet. The problem reared its ugly head when he split with the wife and she, being avaricous little biotch, demanded her fair share and knew exactly to the penny how much that was.


Even if you are on the best of terms with the boss she can hold this information over your head. Mine does all the time as in, " You can put x dollars into those bikes but you can't___________________ (fill in the blank).

Just a few words of advice.

Yeah I changed the avatar to me on the 6fiddy. Once I finish with the GS paint job I'll pop her up there.

Cheers,
Spyug

[Roostabunny]

Yeah I thought about that. Wise words. A bit cynical, but you've apparently seen the dark side of moto-accounting. I'm not worried about losing half of the $300 I've invested in my GS in divorce court, but I can certainly anticipate a problem during some future finance "discussion". We've already had that discussion once or twice about time to work on the bike vs time for "household duties" as you put it.

She's not bad - heck, the bike was her idea for saving money on gas and insurance so that she could get a better minivan. But she didn't figure on the bike being a hobby in addition to transport. :shock:

Either way, whether I track what I actually spent or not, the estimates for future work sure help my patience. It helps me stick with the budget the missus and I agreed to if I say, OK, gotta save this month's allotment so that next month I can by the progressives and stay in the budget. So easy to nickel and dime myself to death if I'm not careful.

[Roostabunny]

I think you will find that the self-proclaimed term "restoration" will have varied levels of depth. Some claim a restoration by simply polishing up the engine cases, and replacing the fried stator. Others strip a bike down to the bare frame, and just polish up everything, and get the bike mechanically 100%, and then a few even take it one step further sourcing out perfect OEM parts and polishing a bike to concours condition. I also don't agree a bike needs to be OEM to ba called a restoration. Take my bike as a perfect example, I logged over 100 hours of labor cleaning, polishing, and repairing, but my bike is FAR from OEM. I do think my GS does deserve to be dubbed a "restoration". ..

Agreed, and a very nice example of a "restoration", too. My compliments. It's a bike that begs to ridden fast and often, and looks great, too. And it's still obviously a GS. That's what I'm looking to do.

[spyug]

Sorry to come across as cynical. I don't really mean to be but I have had a couple of friends go the divorce route this year. My closest buddy ( more like a brother...known him 42 years) after 25 years. It all comes down to the same thing, they drive each other crazy, split and drive themselves crazier fighting over money and possessions. In my bud's case one item they are fighting over is a $10k sailboat. His pride and joy and something she always hated and wouldn't set foot on but she'll force him to sell or make him buck up half the value just to put the screws to him. Not that she not doing a good job of that already with half the house ( which he paid for in full) half of his pension and half of his income for alimony. Poor bugger is turning into a very bitter and soon to be poor man.

It just seems that,in these scenarios, we can end up losing those things we really enjoy. Take my my money, take my house, take my kids but leave my bikes, dammit.

I better take my Xanax :-D

Actually I do like the idea of record keeping. I don't do spreadsheets but I keep all the bills. I find they are good to show the next buyer that you really did what you said. The downside is when you tally them up and see how much you sunk in. On the XS forum, the guys always say don't keep a total....it will drive you nuts. My used parts guy and pro wrench says the same, however there is another way of looking at it. Add up the cost and divide by the months of ownership. It'll likely only come out to a C note or so ( mine's like 2 c notes:-D) a month....cheap entertainment.
There is also the sense of accomplishment if you come in on or under budget. I gave up budgets when I quite the banking business but is still nice to make it work for less than you think.

Let us know how it all turns out.

Cheers,
Spyug

[Roostabunny]

No worries – people are crazy. Then they marry other crazy people. Then they breed! It’s a vicious cycle (no pun intended). I feel for your bud – sounds like getting gutted. A wiser person than me said that bitterness is like drinking poison and hoping it will kill the other person. I believe it!

With $300 spent since August ($140 of which was a great deal on new Dunlops) I think I’m doing great, but we’re working hard to pay off debt right now (Dave Ramsey style) and I’ll have to make due with well under a c-note per month on the bike for at least a little while. Just gotta plan well and bide my time, but it’s tough thinking it’ll be 2-3 years before I’ve got the bike where I want it. On the other hand, thanks to cheap stuff like Robert Barr’s carb o-ring kits, I can still make major progress without spending a whole heap! If I can only find a good set of used Progressive fork springs (but who sells them once they’re on?), I’ll keep busy till February! More likely I’ll just bite the bullet, change the seal, and save the spring upgrade for another season. Meanwhile, I’m riding 5-6 days a week and getting 40+mpg to boot. Can’t complain.

[spyug]

Its all good. Taking your time can have benefits in that you don't feel pressured and the time will allow you to do a very thorough job. You will also become creative when the cash is tighter.

I am, by nature, quite frugal (Scottish birth)but I find when I have surplus cash I'm not afraid to fling it around and that can cause projects to go way over budget. That results in me getting annoyed with myself and being resentful of the finished project. Case in point my XS project. I had it budgetted for a $1k project. The bike cost $500 and as the engine and rubber were good I figured I could easily bring it in on target. Having joined the XS board and seeing all the wild and wonderful upgrades and performance improvements I got caught right up and it became $100 here, $50 there and so on until now it sits with better than $3k invested not including the many many hours of labour.



With the GS, I limited myself to only the necessities to get it going and road worthy as I wanted to ride more and wrench less. I had a few more issues with the carbs than I anticipated so it didn't quite work out. That's sorted now so next year will be good. I'm doing a budget paint job now ($6 for rattle can paint and some leftover auto clearcoat) and for a change I'm taking my time and doing it right ( sanding between coats and hand bufing the final coat). I set myself a $1.5k budget with this bike and so far I'm under by about $250\\/

Keep us informed of how you go. If I can find any cheapo Progressives I'll let you know.

Cheers mate,
Spyug.