Kiwi Canuck tries his Luck with a Six Fiddy

[dorkburger]

Regarding the VHT chassis paint.. forgive my lack of proper painting terms, but how well does it cover, build or whatever the term may be? I may have a frame lined up, and it will be painted black before the swap -1150s are silver as you know. I used the VHT epoxy on my wheels and it took a lot of coats to cover the bare aluminum parts. I'm thinking its either peculiar to the epoxy or to do with painting the bare aluminum.

 

[Kiwi Canuck]

Glen, VHT is excellent in my opinion, each paint type is different, some require undercoat and others can be applied to bare metal.

I always read the instructions on each can to verify which method is recommended.

None of their paints will cover imperfections without telegraphing, so prep and using an undercoat and sanding it to smooth out any imperfections before final coats will provide a much nicer looking finish.

What I find works well is 2 light coats, (very light) to lay down a base, about 5-10 mins apart, (more time if it's cool out) then the final coat as the wet coat to make it shine and give it some depth.

About the only place I use gloss is on the frame, satin finish everywhere else as the amount of work between a good finish for gloss versus satin is quite a lot, and I love the satin finish from VHT.

BTW I have had issues with paint coverage when the surface is not clean, or there is something impregnated into the metal that makes the paint not want to stick, happened on a brake caliper on one bike, I cleaned that part 3-4 times before I got it to cover fully, I wonder if that was the issue with your rims. (I've heard that some paint strippers leave a residue that must be removed fully before painting and are really tough to eliminate 100%)

Nice to hear that you may have a new frame lined up.

What are your plans regarding the VIN number/sticker, getting a new one or re-registering the bike?

Regards,

David.

 

[dorkburger]

Thanks for the info David.
On my rims, I scrubbed them with green Scotchbrite pads, and hit the bare aluminum with 360 grit (I think) sandpaper and soap, and then rinsed, brushed, rinsed some more. The can stated that no primer is needed. Hindsight tells me that perhaps it was intended for pervoisly painted surfaces, as the can shows a car strut on it....
The only spots that I had problems with, and they were very small, were the sharp edges on the spokes. Certainly not enough in my opinion to warrant a do over.

The frame in question has a title, so I'll transfer the title to my name asap, then transfer registration when the time comes. Im curious to find out which year my 85 1150 will end up.... im hoping for an 85-86 so at least I'll get a spare 3.5" rear wheel. Its a weathered roller thats fairly complete, so im hoping to get good fairing brackets as a bonus.

 

[Kiwi Canuck]

Got a little painting started today, these things are hardly worth cleaning and painting but forgot to order them (twice) so I cleaned them up and gave them a shot of paint, (Bumper Chrome)

Also started on the brake calipers,

Used VHT Caliper paint in Satin finish.

 

[Charlie G]

I need to get some of this! Look'n nice.

 

[Kiwi Canuck]

I need to get some of this! Look'n nice.

That is nice paint for sure, here they are with the final coat.

 

[Kiwi Canuck]

Got a few more pieces done.

I've found a pretty neat way to mask calipers and any round hole, I use the packing material from a PC box, like this.

I use a utility knife to cut pieces that are about 1/2" too big and stuff it in the holes, I use a screw driver to make it fit in there nicely.

 

[Kiwi Canuck]

Got the engine prepped and painted, only had 1/2 can of VHT SP127 Universal Aluminum left over so I used VHT undercoat and a VHT caliper paint in Cast Aluminum.

They do not sell the SP127 in Canada so I will need to order some more from the USA, last time I bought a few cans about 4 years ago and they lasted until now.

Here she is starting to look better after the first coat of primer.

Now a few coats of VHT Cast Aluminum SP735 (CSP735 in Canada)

For the final coat I'll use the SP127. (or maybe not as that looks pretty nice the way it is)

 

[Kiwi Canuck]

Big Red showed up unexpectedly, last night when I arrived home he was in my garage parking spot.

Well it seems I had "offered" to look at a neighbours friends Honda a while back as it wouldn't start.

So he dropped it around yesterday while I was out and my boys had him put it in my garage.

I finally got his number and I called him tonight to find out what the issue was and how long since the bike ran.

Stopped running last Oct, Honda dealers won't touch it, has had 2 people look at it and they diagnosed as no spark, he has replaced the ignition coil, CDI unit and spark plug.

I tested the magneto coil (exciter coil) and the reading I got was way off the spec so I've ordered a new unit and a gasket kit, so hopefully that's the issue.

The exciter coil is the long one on the right side and supplies power to the ignition system, the other ones supply power for lights and battery etc.

Hopefully back to the GS650 soon, been busy lately.

 

[Kiwi Canuck]

Big Red got fixed, it was the exciter coil that was faulty and the new one resolved the issue.

Those things are fast , and pretty dangerous for a motorcycle rider to try out, as you don't lean like a bike you basically do the opposite and lean outwards when turning, almost bailed into some bushes on my first ride.

It was nice to give it back to the owner who was very appreciative as he had almost given up on getting it running after the dealer declined and 2 other people failed to figure out the issue.

More lucky than good, but happy I had a little experience with the Honda CT110's and the info on this forum has helped for sure.

The guy who owns Big red is a farmer and runs about 3500 free range chickens, so they dropped off a flat of very large eggs (half of which were double yokes) which was a nice treat and said anytime you want eggs feel free to drop by.

OK back to the six fiddy thread.

David.

 

[Kiwi Canuck]

Unfortunately I had a mishap last night, I was totally gutted and I sure didn't want to even admit I had screwed up and damaged the engine.

Well I was cleaning the engine getting ready for paint, I had already painted the jugs and head etc, but the lower half was nasty and needed a lot of work before it was ready for paint.

I was standing over it with my tools debating weather to split the cases so I could have the halves cleaned up properly or try cleaning it while together without filling the crankcase with debris.

I chose to give it a go as it was and pulled out some new stainless mini brushes, (made by Miller so good quality) and a new fibre wheel for my cordless drill.

After cleaning the front of the engine and masking everything below the paint line and the side covers, I was finally ready to apply primer.

I installed the jugs rather than mask around the studs and the place where the base gasket goes, as I can just paint the whole lot in one go.

I needed to move my DR650 out of the way to avoid any over spray on it.

As I turned around to move the bike I heard a very loud thud followed by bang, bounce, crunch, metal on concrete sounds.

That was the worst moment I can remember in quite a while, I was just standing there in shock, it was like the hand of God himself, reached down and swatted that motor right off the "borrowed" milk create.

So 2 broken fins and a bit of road rash on other parts, not happy.

I have used JB Weld on the fins and it looks like a drunk man tried fixing it, but hopefully it will hold and I can cleanup the JB Weld a little.

The only saving grace is the head fins actually cover the broken fins so other than them not being aligned perfectly it should not be something that everyone sees right away.

I may even post some pictures just to remind myself of the pain I suffer to do good deeds by restoring these old bikes that would otherwise just be sent to the junk yard and not get the love they deserve.

David.

 

[Nessism]

Bummer man. Sh*t happens though.

 

[dorkburger]

That hurts... most of us have been there though.

 

[Kiwi Canuck]

Bummer man. Sh*t happens though.

Ed, thanks for following along and yes it does happen, I'm almost over it now so time to get back to the build.

That hurts... most of us have been there though.

Thanks Glen, I remember when I was putting the jugs on that I'll need to make sure I rebalance the engine on the milk crate just to be safe, but cannot remember if I did or not, pretty sure I did but obviously not well enough.

David.

 

[Kiwi Canuck]

Here's a couple of pictures of the damaged fins that I reattached with JB Weld, certainly not my best work but I'm going to see how it looks after I clean it up and put the head on.

Ouch, still hurts seeing this, not sure if it's the damage or my poor attempt at fixing it.

 

[Kiwi Canuck]

Well I did get lucky with the engine after all.

I was cleaning up the new alternator cover and switching over the stator and realized that the old cover I used had a big crack in it from the fall, I would have been very upset if I'd had my new one on there.

I cleaned up the stator in the ultrasonic cleaner, looks like the previous owners didn't change the oil very frequently as everything was very black including the oil and the stator.

Looking better.

 

[Kiwi Canuck]

Got a start on the weekend work tonight, engine in and a few pieces installed.

from the other side.

Feels good to make some progress.

David.

 

[dorkburger]

Dang, I wish it had popped into my head earlier, but those rubber dampers Suzuki put between the cooling fins would probably have worked great to hold the fins in place during reattachment.
Still, I think that once it's finished only those who look really close will notice.

 

[chuck hahn]

Sorry about the drop David. I did that on my Nighthawk engine installing the alternator. Knew full well I should have it strapped down but thought "what the heck...this wont hurt anything". Broke the top right engine mount off and had to have a local shop weld it back on. I know the sinking heart and lump in your throat feeling all too well.

As for the rotor taping. I dont tape them. I just shoot the black and use acetone and a rag to wipe the contact patch clean again.

 

[Kiwi Canuck]

Dang, I wish it had popped into my head earlier, but those rubber dampers Suzuki put between the cooling fins would probably have worked great to hold the fins in place during reattachment.
Still, I think that once it's finished only those who look really close will notice.

Me too, I even bought a few new ones and they definitely would have been better than what I used.

David