First Street Bike Project - with a few questions

[Sci85]

Nothing a little time, money, and elbow grease can't fix Schwartz. Time to get busy

[GateKeeper]

I was going to put a clear coat over my decals, but they came late and tins were already done, now I think it's better not to have clear over them. I can always peel them off, put on others, different colour and so on.

yes be careful of gas spillage, for sure that will ruin them other than that I have no real concern in leaving them exposed.....

just my 2 pennies worth

[Flyboy]

Damn Sci, now you are stylin' for sure, that there machine of yours looks super sweet, congratulations on a superb job so far. WooooooHooooo.
Of course, you do realise, as soon as you bolt the last piece on, it is going to be a very loooooooooooong winter after that.
If you do decide to clear over the decals, make sure the first coats of clear are light, mist coats only, with good drying time in between, until you have covered the decals completely, then you can lay down a nice wet coat.
If you lay down a wet coat directly over the decal, they are going to bubble, wrinkle and give you all manner ill things that will make you want to put a gun in your ear and pull the trigger..................................ask me how I know.

[Sci85]

Yeah GK, I think I'm going to leave them as is. I have heard doing it right is tricky and Flyboy just confirmed it. Thanks for taking one for the team hehe.

I can't believe how she just starts right up! Ive been snaeking away to the garage and just running her for a few minutes a couple times now just to hear her run. Now that I know she runs, I want to make all the necessary electrical mods outlined by Basscliff (coil relay and such). And yeah, I foresee a cold winters ride in my future. I Won't have the patience to wait it out Flyboy. Luckly, I just received a liner for my tour master jacket :-)

[Sci85]

Ok, tank is full of vinegar tonight and derusting while I head off to Chicago. New set of progressive suspension shocks are on order and will be going to pick up a relay for the coil relay mod tomorrow.

Question, where can I pick up a new gas cap gasket? Mine is crumbling but I did not see one in the the fiche.

[Flyboy]

Thick piece of rubber, a scissor and a Stanley knife.

[Missile99]

Ok, it's time to put the OEM Suzuki stickers on the tank. Any suggestions or tips before I get started?

So much for tips

Ha!!!

Sci,
The old bike is looking stunning. Your work is impressive. I'm glad to hear that it started.
I surely like the way you took the project, keeping a lot of it stock looking but adding some flair in the form of the sweet tank, fenders and frame covers. Then again, it is not all about looks but what's on the inside. Good job on all aspects.

Tank gasket? Just ride it like you would a scooter, pokey slow and upright. You won't need one then. Okay, seriously, I don't think one's available. I'm going the route that Flyboy said, eventually. Mine is old and getting brittle.

[Sci85]

Yeah, originally I was going to paint it back to the original silver but found that getting silver flake to lay down properly out of a can was very difficult. So i was looking around and found a nice black and yellow 550 kat and i really liked the look so I decided to try black with the original orange/red. I think it looks great with either color scheme quite frankly but the black was much easier to spray.

Yep, Flyboy once again comes to the rescue. Now, just to figure out where to get some rubber material!

[Missile99]

I was thinking a toilet tank flush valve gasket might work but haven't measured either that or the gas cap yet. That's the one thing I have spares of that comes to mind.

[Sci85]

I was thinking a toilet tank flush valve gasket might work but haven't measured either that or the gas cap yet. That's the one thing I have spares of that comes to mind.

Oh, good idea Eric. I will run down to the local hardware store and take some measurements when I get back in town.

[Shwartz]

I was thinking a toilet tank flush valve gasket might work but haven't measured either that or the gas cap yet. That's the one thing I have spares of that comes to mind.

Hopefully this stands up to the fuel.

[Sci85]

Ok, so I was at the auto parts store getting some hose clamps and ran across this little rubber 3M pad and thought, bingo! this is just the ticket I needed for the gas cap gasket. It's almost the exact thickness and best part is it only cost me 4 bucks! After about 45 minutes with a dremel shaping it and removing material it came out pretty good. Thanks for the ideas guys!

The pad...


The parts...worn out gasket on the left...


How lucky can you get? Almost the exact same thickness...


Almost done shaping. How did we ever get along before the mighty Dremel?


And all buttoned up and sealing!

[BigD_83]

Thanks for posting the pictures. I've heard people talk about doing this, but it is nice to have a visual before setting to it oneself. Keep us update on the shape of the gasket a year from now.

[Sci85]

Just a quick update. The Vinegar didn't work that great and left a nasty flash rust after a couple of days. So I did some searching and found a post by someone to use a certain toilet bowl cleaner that contained hydrogen chloride. So I found some stuff at home depot called The Works but it only came in quarts. Good part was it only cost $1.98 per so I bought 4 and gave it shot. All I can say is that I was amazed. In less than 5 minutes the inside of my tank looked factory new. Really. Amazing stuff. Oh, but don't get any on your skin. Burns like hell.

So I put in the new petcock, installed the sender unit and installed the tank. No leaks and she fired right up again. And the bonus is the gas gauge actually works whoo hoo!

Now just waiting on the new PS shocks to come in and I will be ready for her first test ride!!

[Bevo]

Nice work on finding some off the shelf fixes!