Ooops, I did it again, twice!

Not to take anything from Kens fantastic project but I bought a couple more projects to keep me busy. a RD350 that I will get around to picking up in DC in the next week or so and a VERY NICE '75 T500 Suzuki that my daughter and I raced up to Philly yesterday to get and being back home! The owner must not have realized what he had but the '75 is the final year they were built, in fact the numbers make it a "'76"(??) which make it a bit more rare.

It only has 6,000 miles and the body work is perfect, just dirty, not even a single scratch! It will take some cleanup and a carb rebuild to get running but I'll take my time and strip it down to the axels to build it right, from the ground up but I'm excited about this one since I'm planning on selling one of my GT550's to make room. I sent off the title/registration paperwork this morning and the funny thing it that some of you might remember that H1 that I did the weekend restoration to last fall....that paperwork was dated 4/23/11....exactly one year later, to the day!

The RD was bought to cleanup and sell to finance my vacation with my GF so it's not nearly as exciting to me. Some of you might have seen it on fleabay a week or two ago.....I had talked with the owner prior to bidding so I knew that he had the title but if not, I can title it within 3 weeks if I have to but of course I'd rather avoid the extra costs.

jeff

 

"but if not, I can title it within 3 weeks if I have to"......

So how does one go about titling a bike with no title? I heard you have to do a title search, where do you begin if you don't mind me asking?
Tom

 

Pics?

Sounds exciting!

 

That varies by state. In Michigan you walk into the Secretary of State just like you had a title and tell them the VIN of the vehicle you purchased. They check to see if it's been reported stolen (about 10 minutes) and then it proceeds just like you had the title. That only works if it's more than five years old and worth less than $2,500. For vehicles that don't qualify I'm sure the process is more involved.

In some states it's apparently almost impossible.

 

Thanks, I will check it out!

 

In Texas, it's about $300 to get a 'bonded title', which means you basically post a 'bail bond' of sorts to get the bike out. It's money that you put on the table to get a title that says 'if it's stolen and the original owner shows up with the real title, you've got to hand it over', or something. (Never heard of that actually happening). It's a liability to sell a vehicle with one, hurts the value.

You can trade it out for a real title in three years or something.

Super excited to hear about that bike! Can't wait to see the resto!

 

I pulled the seat and tank off the T500 last night so I could clean out the tank. There was one area of rust about 6 sq inches so in went the electrolyte and hooked up the charger. I woke up early to check on it and its' doing great, should be spotless by tomorrow afternoon! The seat is in excellent condition so all it will need is some conditioning of the cover.

My GF came over last night and her and I are going into DC this morning to pick up the RD then out to Centerville to meet a friend from a "triples" forum. I'll try to get some pics posted up to my photobucket site sometime in the next day or so but I'll have to use my old camera as my good one lives at the bottom of the Shenandoah river these days.

I also got a chance to take the turbo out Weds.....I think about selling it once in a while, then I take it for a ride and that 18 pounds of boost convinces me not to<LOL>...that thing is a blast to ride, every time!

jeff

 

I like your girl friend. hehe.

 

here's a couple of pics of the RD350...before the "magic".

All the big pieces have been renewed, polished and are ready for reinstallation such as the rear fender(front had to be replaced), chain guard, both pipes and headers. That took 7 hours to do.

The hardware is the stuff that takes huge blocks of time. The little pile of stuff in the picture took 2-3 hours to get looking new again. I was going to use a set of stock shocks I have but the Koni's that came on the bike cleaned up well enough to reinstall. I cheated with the chain adjusters and bought new ones for 30 bucks. Hopefully the carbs will be cleaned and blasted tonight.

jeff

 

Here's a "before and after" of one section;

Just takes time, lots of time. Hopefully, I'll have a running bike by Sunday and it will be ready for sale within a week from then. I have to remove the hoky decals and replace them with reproductions.....

 

Very nice!
If they don't hear a furious 2-smoke coming their way, they will most certainly see it!

I think I recognize your avatar from one of the triple boards.

 

g'day jeff, keep the pics coming,looking good, are the rd's in your country starting to attract good prices?

 

Not as high as I think they're worth Ken but we should be able to sell for something over 1200 which will about double our investment. Its really hit or miss with the RD's.....one day a bike can bring 2200 and the next, the same bike will have a hard time breaking 1200 which makes the secret "sale enhancements" much more important. I have a 74 purple RD that was only a sidecover away from being broken down and reborn but I've stolen a few parts for this one so maybe next year for it.

Jeff

 

A pic of the 500 please!

In the UK they were badged GT500 in 1976 and I think you could buy one in 1977 - but I was a schoolboy then so cant be sure!!
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/SUZUKI-GT500- ... 3375c00e08

 

Hi Markie,

I have only removed the tank for cleaning on the T500 so it's still the way I received it. Originally, I was going to try to do a "dual-reborn" and do both bikes at the same time since I like to challenge myself but in the end, I decided that the risk of intermingling parts, nuts and bolts was too great, besides the fact that it would have been a huge undertaking to do by myself and with it being springtime, there are just too many things that need to be done aorund the house like mowing, fertilizing much less getting the boat ready for the season....so, until I get the title for the Zuk, I'll hold off on it.

here's the only pics I have of it, the ones that the PO posted on Craigslist.....

BTW- from 76 on, it was the GT500 here too....

jeff

 

I got home last night and with my GF on her way over, I went into the garage. I needed to remove the footpeg bar to install the mufflers. They are made a little more difficult since they have a front support too to get lined up but a little while later, both pipes were mounted.

After she arrived, I connected my "temp tank" to the carbs, and filled the float bowls. I had disassembled both carbs, cleaned everything really well and reassembled them but didn't replace any parts. So, of course the left hand carb's float valve leaked like a sieve so after filling the bowls, I turned off the fuel and wiped up the spill.

Now it was time....I hit the choke and gave three kicks and turned on the battery charger which I had connected to the battery leads for power. I turned on the key, checked that the kill switch was in the run position and kicked.....immediately it fired right up on both cylinders nice and evenly.....I only let it run for a couple of moments and shut it off as soon as it began to lean out but that is one of te best feelings in the world, to have a bike run that you have brought back from the brink. She left me her camera so I'll take some pics tonight and post them. It's not quite done but it's getting close....and it ran last night for the first time since '04!

jeff

 

Well, the RD is almost complete. I need to install the chain, speedometer cable and bodywork decals.....and to try to pop out that little dent on the side of the tank. The seat hasn't rebounded from the strap he was using to hold it on the bike but there are no tears in the cover so it was probably be sold with that seat in place. My biggest concern is the bottom has dropped out of the RD market. I have seen several over the past month not even getting a single bid on fleabay even when they open at $500 with no reserve!

Here's the "before" & "afters" they are a bit out of order but you'll get the idea. It took a lot longer having my baby work with my on this but it was worth it to see the pride in her eyes as she took junk and transformed it into something that looks great. As time goes on, I'm sure she will become a huge help as she learns how to take different things upon herself to complete. I was rather shocked at how fast she learned the different aspects of doing this kind of work and also was amazed at how many things that I never really think about when I'm working but had to relate to her as she embarked on a new task. There are a zillion things that we learn without ever realizing how long it takes to teach that knowledge to someone else, but if they don't know it, they won't be able to do a task.

jeff

 

Look's great. Did Wiz sneak over and give you a hand?

 

HEY --- nice work!!! That is sweet

 

Oh come on O&B, I didn't need TWO lead weights holding me back....took enough extra time letting my GF help.....

of course I'm only teasing....we all know wiz does very nice work!

This was just a "make it look good" so it can be sold, not a complete restoration. I have an H2 going through that down in the basement shop which isw why I had to do this one in the garage. Thankfully, I've got a window shaker to keep it cool out there on the hot days.

jeff

 

Great job. Did you make her do all the dirty stuff? :lol:

 

Trust me O&B, everyone should have a GF so loving and so sweet. While it might have taken more time working with someone who had never so much as lifted a wrench to a motorcycle previously, it was an absolute pleasure being able to work side by side with someone that I love so deeply and have her be genuinely interested in what we were doing. She learned, as I did many years ago, the satisfaction of transforming ugly into beautiful....and for me, it was pretty cool being able to watch that.

jeff

 

It's always good to have something to do together and someone that will make the effort.

 

gday jeff, tell me exactly what you did to get the rear mudgaurd to shine like that, i know pictures can hide alot but it does look good, well done,ken

 

JeffK the wife like to help but it does get tense at times! Shes from south Africa and at times there is a bit of a language barrier. So don't understand mechanical terms like "Put the motorcycle jack under the motor while I keep the bike from falling over!!!!". But it is fun to have her out there TRYING to help. Shes real good at fetching things like a cold beer!
Oh yeah nice build JeffK.

 

How do you clean it up so well?! Great job!

Please hint at products used on rusty drum,etc.