Monday, April 26, 2010

The arrival of the basket case.



On last Thursday my friend Paul Holdsworth dropped off a few boxes, A motor, two wheels, a frame, forks, and a seriously dented gas tank. All adding up to one 1968 Triumph Bonneville. I thought it was Christmas. We had a few beers and discussed the possibilities of this bike. Paul's idea, and I would agree with him, is to get it on the road as soon as possible. Get it running and then customize to my hearts content.
A few days after taking delivery I decided that the best thing to do is to lay out everything and take inventory.
What I found was there is going to be some work ahead to get it on the road.
The motor is seized. Someone took off the cover and poured in some kind of liquid into the cylinder.
The frame is in pretty good shape. I am going to bead blast it and get it powered coated since there are no parts on it.
The wheels have surface rust, but I think they are sound. I will need new tires.
The hole in the gas tank is more like a gash. Looking for a new one.
Front fork rusted and needs to be rebuilt.
Seat is gone . Looking for a single seat anyway.
Pipes rusted. Found new headers on ebay.
No head light, and the speedometer and tachometer is smashed.
I am sure the breaks need to be rebuilt.
Oil tank is there but will be replaced.
Electrical looks like a birds neat.
All in all I am not surprised with the necessary repairs. I think everything is manageable.
Time to get dirty.




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