Well it's begun. 14 months after buying the bike, building and fitting out a resto shed, and chosing a suitable bike lift, I turned my first wrench on Sat Oct 25th.
Job no.1, get the hulking great thing up onto what looks like quite a dainty lift - the Original Red - chosen because, with only an 8' x 8' area to play with, I needed something compact with maximum access. I roped in local 73 Guru Steve Thomas and she went up without a struggle. The main lift is via the footrest mounts - the stock pivoting items were replaced by 'solid' alternatives which worked out just fine.
I would recommend this lift without reservation, but I'd suggest that any big torque work is done BEFORE you lift - Front sprocket being a good example!
I'll let the pics do the talking but I'm pleased to say she's now stripped and ready for engine removal and, as yet, I haven't had to scrap with any fasteners - nothing's stripped snapped or sheared. Guess that's one advantage of buying a bike imported from a salt free state with 13K on the clock!
Next step will be full engine strip. Dogz will inspect internals for me, casings will go to Doug Cox for blasting and 2 pack finishing giving as near an original finish as possible.
Frame and ancilliaries will be blasted then I'll spray with epoxy paint from Frosts. I've tried it and it comes out looking very like the original cellulose finish - providing you don't spoon it on! Also benefits from using a black undercoat - so it even looks like the original when it gets chipped!
More photos as I go along....
A few pics just to give an idea of condition. Basically it all there, it just a bit tired:
The engine cam apart nicely and the internals look good. Just hoping Dogz agrees with me! Only serious damage I've come across is the butchered starter motor casing near the oil pressure switch (final pic). No idea why this was done - can only think some lazy git needed access. The damage is clearly hacksaw cuts, not fractures. Anyhow, it'll weld up just fine. The Oil pressure switch lead held on by a cable tie did make me chuckle!
