Next up was the frame. Honda used Chrome Moly Steel to construct these frames so I used
Aluminum Oxide (AO) as my blast media. AO does a good job of stripping paint and rust and
Chrome Moly would not be adversly affected by the more aggresive media.
After stripping the frame to bare metal. I NDIed all the welds, checked the bottom of the cradle
rails for damage and inspected all the drain holes for signs of rust due to clogging. The footpeg
perches had the usual "spread" damage caused by overweight baby boomers and big jumps.
This was easily repaired with some Chrome Moly plate welded in and ground down to the
original shape and size. The other common problem area concerns the steering stop. The
stop on these bikes consist of a single steel tab that protrudes from the front of the steering
tube. Over the years, this tab gets beat on and wears down until the fork tubes can actually
wack the fuel tank putting a nice dent in the alloy. This bike had such dents on both sides.
I used the same fix from the peg perches on the tab.
After all the weld repairs, I etched the frame and powder coated it with 90% gloss Tahitian Red.
Here it is fresh out of the oven.
I chased all the threaded holes and installed a pair of NOS Honda steering bearing shells.
While I was working the frame, I also stripped and inspected the swingarm. I managed to find
a NOS chain buffer and replaced the bearings and seals with new. The swingarm pivot bolt was
NLA so I restored the original. This process would get a lot of action on this build because Honda
used a lot of Gold Cadmium plating during these years. I stripped what was left of the original
plating using a strong alkaline bath, then polished the bolt to a mirror like finish before sending it
to my plater for a fresh coat of Gold Cad.
I also found an original NOS steel chain guide roller for the chain guide. These are practically
non existant and most restorations will sport White or Silver painted plastic rollers.
Next up were the rear shocks. The OE shocks were widely regarded as crap on these bikes and
most owners removed them and the OE tires as soon as possible. The shocks on this bike were
original, but the Nitrogen charge had leaked out and there was no dampning. I dis-assembled
them, removed the shock bushings and eyelets and tossed the cartridges. I purchased half a
dozen OE cartridges from all over the world until I found two that still had their charge. Both
were NOS but suffered from shelf damage and needed cosmetic restoration. You can't powder
coat a pressurized chamber, so I painted the shock bodies with custom color matched PPG
paint. I checked the OE springs for spec and they were good, so I powder coated them the
original gloss Black. The perches and eyelets were stripped, polished and plated and I installed
NOS bushings and sleeves.
Here are some of the shock perches after stripping and polishing before being sent for plating
Freshly painted NOS shock cartridges
Pair of restored OE shocks
Restored shocks installed along with restored rear axle, pair of NOS chain adjusters and
footpegs.
The forks were in pretty sad shape mechanically and cosmetically. I took them apart and
cleaned everything up. Pretty much all the internals were junk, so I replaced everything
with NOS. The cases were dented and scratched so I spent quite a bit of time rehabbing
them and finished them off with a nice OE satin finish using a Grey Scotchbrite pad and a
lathe. I replaced the aftermarket fork boots with NOS Honda boots and clamps and I had
the upper fork tubes re-chromed. Unfortunately, I can't seem to find any pictures of the
fork build process to post.
I finished the suspension portion by restoring the OE triple clamps. Media blast with glass
beads, fill weld scratches and dents, etch and powder coat with Satin Black. NOS hardware
and NOS Honda bearings.
Last item I'll cover in this post was the fuel tank resto. The tank had numerous small dents
and one big (baseball size dent). I soda blasted the tank to strip the rattle can paint then
popped the dents using one of my "secret" processes.
I dis-assembled the pet**** then
cleaned it in a hot solvent tank. I put the parts in a vibratory tumbler filled with dry-shine
for 24 hours.
Restored pet****
I coated the tank with a high build primer and blocked and sanded until it was as smooth as I
could get it. I painted it with the same PPG paint I used on the shocks before applying NOS
Honda wing and warning decals and a NOS fuel cap and vent hose.
Tank with fresh paint next to color match panel
Finished tank with NOS fuel cap, mounting grommets and sleeves
NOS warning labels
Tank and triples installed.
Next up will be the wheels, airbox and initial assembly.
dogger
