Stock paint has crooked emblem, clear coating over it, what to do?

[oldGSfan]

Scanner gave a 98 percent match. It looked pretty darn good when the guys took the lid off the can after shaker mixed it up. Laid lid on the cover under their bright light thing and it looked awesome to me. Toms gonna love it once its sprayed out and cleared. Came out to be a Honda car color called Bali Blue if i remember correctly.

Yeah, that looks like the color - as best I can tell from photos of Hondas online. I will take a pic of the tank under the same lighting & same location before and after.

My friend who is gonna help painted this '55 Corvette. I helped mask and mix. He rented a booth to do it. He had never painted a car before or restored one either. But he did a fantastic job restoring this, all work himself except the engine rebuild. It's immaculate and has quite a story, racing trophies, very interesting mods from way back. Wall Street Journal did a nice article on it but it's paywall-restricted. His dad had 2 Corvettes and did a coin toss to see which of the kids (twins) got which. Well, he got the '78 but eventually ended up with the '55. His dad became friends with Zora Arkus-Duntov after meeting at shows. Duntov said that the way this was modified, Muncie 4 speed, 283 solid lifter (from a '61 after blowing the original 260), and '57 Rochester FI is how he wanted the Vette to be from the get-go but the accounting dept disagreed.

[chuck hahn]

Just checking to see if the packages have arrived yet

[oldGSfan]

Just checking to see if the packages have arrived yet

Yes sir! UPS man just came by with the paint a couple of hours ago, and the side cover came yesterday. Check your texts, I'll be sending you $ tomorrow.

[chuck hahn]

Be sure to shake the can super good before opening it so the settled out metal flake is fully remixed into the paint. I would even use a stir stick after opening to mix it even more.

[Don R]

You could smooth it with filler and apply a vinyl rectangle from a sign shop over the bad spot and then put the decal on that. Like the sticker has a background.

[oldGSfan]

Hi Don - I know you from SOHC Honda land, hehe. I have gone whole hog and prepped 2 complete sets of bodywork for paint but got sidetracked a bit on a Norton - I need to build a paint booth. I have the right paint and decals and all the prep work done. I need to get going with the booth - a couple of hours' work and get to it! The weather is now cooperating.

[chuck hahn]

Get to painting already. Ive been waiting to see what that paint i got for you looks like.

[oldGSfan]

I know, I know. The thing is, I have taken on a project (nearly done) for a recent widow. I met her and her husband at a Norton show. He had big dreams of getting it sorted but sadly passed on. She wanted to sell the Norton for funeral expenses, but had no idea of how, or how much. It was nice but neglected. I offered to clean it up and have it looking really good. Like you did for me, I am just helping out. I got the front end spiffed up and did some polishing. I hope it makes a good price for her. I have treated and painted the rusty barrels, done up the front end with seals, rebuilt the carbs, put a bunch of new stuff on it, and done many other tasks. The tank, side covers, seat and pipes are very clean and new. The rest just dirty and rusty. It has 8K original miles and a blue CA plate with '71 registration sticker (Year of Manufacture status is obtained). Maybe a Vietnam casualty? Really odd but it is bona-fide original and never opened up.

[Rob S.]

Right side shift?

Electric start?

Tell us about it. Year? 'Compression release' lever on the handlebar? How's it run?

How about a (cold) start up video?

[oldGSfan]

f

Right side shift?

Electric start?

Tell us about it. Year? 'Compression release' lever on the handlebar? How's it run?

How about a (cold) start up video?

It's a '71. It's a right-side shift, kickstart like my N15. No electric start. No turn signals. I know second-hand that it runs. It shows 8K believable miles on the clock. The cheese head screws on the timing cover have never been turned. Many other signals show me that it's original. Look at the inside of the headlight wiring. It's 1971 in there.

In a few days, I'll fire it up, get the carbs synced and set up, and test the charging system. I have a lot of parts from other 'sources' that I acquired during my N15 build that fit this baby right up. Very satisfying.

I have done the cylinder barrels by using phosphoric acid then clean and paint with VHT brake and caliper paint. Same stuff that has stood the test of time on many of my bikes cylinders. This bike will look new except for the rims and fenders. Those are tricky and expensive so I am doing the best I can to make them look OK.

The frame had chips and rust so I hit it with my Dremel triangular sander and then painted with epoxy black. It looks good. If I can't sell it for a reasonable price, I will make an offer. I'm not in this to scam her, just trying to help.

[Rob S.]

Wow! You and your son showing up on vintage Nortons should earn the respect of any Hell's Angels types...if they had brains.

[Rob S.]

Four speeds (gears)?

[oldGSfan]

Almost done. Engine area came out great. It could use new rims, fenders, and tires. It's 4-Speed on right side, drum brakes, no signals. Simple times, '71. The only updates are the Boyer ignition and the Podtronics regulator/rectifier. I added the Podtronics, as I had one sitting in my spares that matched the single-phase alternator.

[oldGSfan]

Today I sorted out the Boyer ignition, it was way off, the rotor with the magnets was way out of whack, 30-50 degrees at a guess.. All it did was sputter. I moved it into the approximate place per the Boyer instructions, then used my phone to get a slo-mo of the timing hole at the primary drive cover vs the plug, dangling down next to it on some wire, which provided grounding too. Worked a treat, the next best thing to strobe for the at-idle timing at least.

The Boyer sensors need to operate at speed, adding complication vs points where timing can be set with a bulb or meter. I preferred to understand exactly where the spark was rather than approving of a static guess with typically loose gear throughout the engine that affects timing. I rotated the wheel while in 4th gear with ignition on, and the phone on its tripod focused on the plug and the timing opening in the primary case. I saw it spark at 40 degrees BTDC when static settings were indicating 31 (the target). I did some trial and error adjustments with the same verification method to get it closer, and fired it up. Bingo. It had been backfiring and kicking back on the leg starter - my knee and Achilles don't need that!

Once in the ballpark, I got the timing light out and set it perfectly at 31 BTDC and saw the advance was on target. The aux tank hanging from the rafters is put away, tank is on, chain, brakes, oil, etc are adjusted, and I'm riding in the morning. Very eager to see how it goes, it was a lot of work. Seems healthy, no big clouds of smoke or weird noises. We'll see.

Next I can get back to this topic and get to painting my GS stuff!

[Rob S.]

Next I can get back to this topic and get to painting my GS stuff!

No hurry. This is a lot more interesting than some GS decal.