Got some time to take a much closer look at my "barn find" 2004 Harley Sportster 1200 and found more good and more bad. What do you guys think? The real work starts today as I've finally got some free time.
Only thing I would take issue with; to me “dropped” means the bike went down while in motion; scratches up, bends or breaks stuff majorly.
That bike looks like it had a parking lot tipover or two is all, a common event, especially among new riders.
"...if the gentlemen of Virginia shall send us a dozen of their sons, we would take great care in their education, instruct them in all we know, and make men of them." Canasatego 1744
The front fork legs are clear-coated. That coating will have to be removed to be able to address the corrosion on the aluminum. Afterwards they can be polished & buffed out occasionally with Mothers. I've done 'em on the bike. Just a bunch of elbow grease.
The front fork legs are clear-coated. That coating will have to be removed to be able to address the corrosion on the aluminum. Afterwards they can be polished & buffed out occasionally with Mothers. I've done 'em on the bike. Just a bunch of elbow grease.
How would I go about getting the clear coat off gunzo? Thanks.
Lay off the steel wool on chrome. I would take the headers off and take them to a metal polisher. As far as rust in the tank, I did a nasty rusted dirt bike tank with Metal Rescue with amazing results. You can also take any rusty painted pieces you want clean and dip them in Metal Rescue since it doesn't hurt paint. As far as your gas line, it might be rotted on the inside. I had that happen on a bike that sat for 6 months. It was due to the ethanol in the gas. It sent gooey rubber into the carb. This was one of only 2 bikes I could not get to run out of 23-24 I owned. I ended up taking the carb to a good shop that has a tank that had the good stuff for cleaning the carb. On an old bike, the worn gear type clamps look correct but I would stay with the oetiker clamps. You definitely want to open it up and check the clutch plates. They can stick together even though it feels like it disengages. I was surprised by this one time and one time only. Yeah, fire it up, warm it up, click 'er in gear and YIKES!!! I don't know jack schidt about Harleys but I think that would be a fun project. I have gotten lots of old dirt bikes running and riding.
Fight fire, save lives, laugh in the face of danger.
Lay off the steel wool on chrome. I would take the headers off and take them to a metal polisher. As far as rust in the tank, I did a nasty rusted dirt bike tank with Metal Rescue with amazing results. You can also take any rusty painted pieces you want clean and dip them in Metal Rescue since it doesn't hurt paint. As far as your gas line, it might be rotted on the inside. I had that happen on a bike that sat for 6 months. It was due to the ethanol in the gas. It sent gooey rubber into the carb. This was one of only 2 bikes I could not get to run out of 23-24 I owned. I ended up taking the carb to a good shop that has a tank that had the good stuff for cleaning the carb. On an old bike, the worn gear type clamps look correct but I would stay with the oetiker clamps. You definitely want to open it up and check the clutch plates. They can stick together even though it feels like it disengages. I was surprised by this one time and one time only. Yeah, fire it up, warm it up, click 'er in gear and YIKES!!! I don't know jack schidt about Harleys but I think that would be a fun project. I have gotten lots of old dirt bikes running and riding.
Why lay off the steel wool? I've used 0000 grade steel wool on chrome surface rust for years. Works like magic and the wool is fine enough that it won't scratch a thing.
The front fork legs are clear-coated. That coating will have to be removed to be able to address the corrosion on the aluminum. Afterwards they can be polished & buffed out occasionally with Mothers. I've done 'em on the bike. Just a bunch of elbow grease.
How would I go about getting the clear coat off gunzo? Thanks.
I've taken it off with emery cloth & stepping down in grit sizes. Probably some chem stripper that might cut way down on the work, but haven't used any myself.
The petcock, fuel hose & even the o-rings in the carb are probably OK, as H/D used the right materials to combat ethanol base gas. What will be the problem is the small holes/passages in the carb will be plugged with dried gas. An oxy/fuel torch tip cleaner will be a handy tool for this task, along with the metal wire out of a bread bag tie.
If the inside of the carb shows a lot of corrosion, don't waste your time. Get a new one.
Hardly qualifies as a "barn find". Looks like it just needs a little clean up and a new battery. Any used vehicle should have all the fluids changed just so you know when it was done. Most people would consider that a "steal" for $1k.
Lay off the steel wool on chrome. I would take the headers off and take them to a metal polisher. As far as rust in the tank, I did a nasty rusted dirt bike tank with Metal Rescue with amazing results. You can also take any rusty painted pieces you want clean and dip them in Metal Rescue since it doesn't hurt paint. As far as your gas line, it might be rotted on the inside. I had that happen on a bike that sat for 6 months. It was due to the ethanol in the gas. It sent gooey rubber into the carb. This was one of only 2 bikes I could not get to run out of 23-24 I owned. I ended up taking the carb to a good shop that has a tank that had the good stuff for cleaning the carb. On an old bike, the worn gear type clamps look correct but I would stay with the oetiker clamps. You definitely want to open it up and check the clutch plates. They can stick together even though it feels like it disengages. I was surprised by this one time and one time only. Yeah, fire it up, warm it up, click 'er in gear and YIKES!!! I don't know jack schidt about Harleys but I think that would be a fun project. I have gotten lots of old dirt bikes running and riding.
Why lay off the steel wool? I've used 0000 grade steel wool on chrome surface rust for years. Works like magic and the wool is fine enough that it won't scratch a thing.
You have a lighter touch than I do. I'll try Flitz but don't like to mess with steel wool.
Fight fire, save lives, laugh in the face of danger.
Lotta time the lower fork legs are actually cast aluminum (as mentioned above) with a polished clearcoated surface. Like aluminum car wheels of the same era. You can clear coat again after you get them cleaned up.
It looks pretty good. That vintage you may want to replace any rubber brake lines w/ steel braided covered lines. On some bikes the rubber would degrade on the inside and result in small pieces of rubber getting into the caliper cylinders.
Toothpaste works great for polishing chrome upper fork legs. If you get a scratch from a sand grain near a seal it will smooth out the sharp edge so the seal stops leaking. Great for fogged headlight plastic too. Add a bit of baking soda to mother's it toothpaste if you want to give them a bit more aggressive cut.
AGM batteries don't seem to come back if you let them get below 6v.
-OMotS
"If memory serves fails me..." Quote: ( unnamed) "been prtty deep in the cooler todaay "
Television and radio are most effective when people question little and think even less.
Just read something else on barrel gap that reminded me of something I failed to mention... For worn grips you can slip (w/spit or soap) a section of old mountain bike inner tube over the worn grips. This is great for heated grips where the rubber is not replaceable. Then change them 1-2x a season depending on how much UV the grips see. 1 tube will last 5+ years and is plenty grippy.
-OMotS
"If memory serves fails me..." Quote: ( unnamed) "been prtty deep in the cooler todaay "
Television and radio are most effective when people question little and think even less.
When you put on your new grips, spray the insides of them with hair spray, they will slide on super easy and the hair spray will dry within minutes. I've done this several times on my snowmachines and it works great.
I wouldn't put clearcoat back on the fork sliders. After you get it off, you can polish up the aluminum in a few minutes with Mother's Mag Wheel polish and they will look much better than clear coated aluminum.
To the OP I have rehabbed Land Cruisers as a hobby, for the gas tanks I pull them down and put a length of chain inside. I set the tank on a rocker I made and don headphones and rock away, flip every now and again. Does a great job of knocking out any corrosion. Then I use the POR 15 products, but there are many others like it. As small as that tank is a shorter piece of chain, headphones, work it on your lap.
Osky
A woman's heart is the hardest rock the Almighty has put on this earth and I can find no sign on it.
The front fork legs are clear-coated. That coating will have to be removed to be able to address the corrosion on the aluminum. Afterwards they can be polished & buffed out occasionally with Mothers. I've done 'em on the bike. Just a bunch of elbow grease.
How would I go about getting the clear coat off gunzo? Thanks.
Try Acetone. Available in any hardware store. Keep it off painted surfaces and use in well-ventilated space … also it's highly flammable.
Dave Sticks and stones may break my bones ... but hollow-points expand on impact.
When you put on your new grips, spray the insides of them with hair spray, they will slide on super easy and the hair spray will dry within minutes. I've done this several times on my snowmachines and it works great.
What brand of hair spray? I was told to use hairspray to re-glue the handles on my exercise machines by a guy that owns a bike repair shop. It made the handles slip worse like I had oiled them. When I was a kid we used friction tape and gasoline.
