Mailmans , 77D getting a makeover

Mailman said:
.....and I drained the gas tank and removed the gas cap and petcocks and prepped the tank for storage and put it away.
Click to expand...
Not sure how you preserved the inside, but here's a trick I learned a long time ago....
Put a golf ball size gob of axle grease in a container. Mix in a fast evaporating solvent (acetone, lacquer thinner... etc) until it's like water. Slosh it around in the tank. 15min later the acetone is evaporated and a thin layer of grease has coated the inside. It'll last for years.
 
Jim said:
Not sure how you preserved the inside, but here's a trick I learned a long time ago....
Put a golf ball size gob of axle grease in a container. Mix in a fast evaporating solvent (acetone, lacquer thinner... etc) until it's like water. Slosh it around in the tank. 15min later the acetone is evaporated and a thin layer of grease has coated the inside. It'll last for years.
Click to expand...

Now that’s an interesting trick! All I did was spray some WD40 in there and stuff a rag in the neck.

mrtwowheel said:
I like the change to black and gold very much too. Could you consider not using the decals? Maybe just a mild pinstripe on the side covers? Just a preference of mine, but may be different for you.

Scott
Click to expand...

I’ll have to think about that. I already bought the decals. But I’ll look at them both ways.
 
Yes, I'd do something else to the inside of that tank. WD40 isn't much of a protector. It's mostly kerosene and once the carrier evaporates, there's not much left behind in the way of lube or protection from rust.
 
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Whoa..I'm late to your party Mailman. Been busy.
I am flattered you want to 'copy' my '77 I've been working on for a long time. It's finally going to be finished in a week or so.
 

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MrBultaco said:
Whoa..I'm late to your party Mailman. Been busy.
I am flattered you want to 'copy' my '77 I've been working on for a long time. It's finally going to be finished in a week or so.
Click to expand...

Well hey now! I had no idea! So.....ok now I need to paint my fenders and get some shocks like yours and a rectangular tail light and oooh some commando mufflers.....what else do you have planned? :laugh:
 
Mr Bultaco,
I remember reading about that bike, in bits and pieces, fitting your exhaust and head fin repair. Did you ever have a build thread on it? I don’t remember seeing it with that tank.
C2A70A15-25E5-4DB4-91B9-258333CDD68D.jpeg
 
Well, my side covers soaked overnight and the vinegar solution worked unbelievably well. I think I might have just found the worlds cheapest non toxic paint stripper. About $2.50 per gallon and I used two of them. Have a look,
I just went to check on them this morning to see if it was doing anything and I applied a plastic scraper to it, and it just started peeling off. If you let it dry, it starts to harden up again, but as long as it’s wet, the paint starts feeling stretchy and pliable like vinyl.
I peeled a whole bunch of it off just using my fingers.

Now let’s talk about the condition of the tins.

The left side has some rust damage to the top edge of it. Probably from battery acid. I’m just going to file it down , maybe sand it with my Dremel a bit and leave it ( a small portion of the edge will be missing but it really won’t show ) that edge needs a little straightening also.

Both panels need some bodywork.
So I had been considering different options regarding painting or powder coating, but I think I have hit on the best option yet. We have right here on our forum, a man who does beautiful work, our very own Jim. I’ve been talking to him today and have decided to send them to him to be painted. They are all boxed up and will be shipped to him in the morning. In case you missed it, you can read about Jim’s painting here,

http://www.xs650.com/threads/painting-tins.54484/

I am really looking forward to having some of Jim’s work on my bike ( that’ll be two for two ) and it surely will be better quality than I could’ve done myself. ;)
 
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Nope, no build thread. I don't want to bore anyone including myself. I bought this pos of a '77 June '17. When it got to my house, Took it off the trailer and looked it over. The po was more than correct when he said it 'has cosmetic damage'! I put it in my shed until last June when I decided to start my resto-mod. I saw a black tank and side covers on CL and went and bought them. After of parts from forum members (3 tanks, a few fenders and side covers + parts from Mikes, Boats,com and others) I started disassembly. I bought the Mike's tank from a forum member and decided since it was near new, I'd use it instead of the CL one. The 1st thing I wanted to do was steering head bearins...of course the fork lock was broken! Replaced steering bearing, wheel bearings and swing-arm bushings. Took 3-4 days just to get the SA pivot bolt out because of rust. The inside left frame was rusted as was the top of the SA from the battery overflow tube not on. On and on and one. It's almost done a year later. It 'did' run before I started, so I have hope that it will run again. I used High Heat JB Weld on that broken fin, so it will be interesting if it sticks with the vibration and heat.
 
MrBultaco said:
Nope, no build thread. I don't want to bore anyone including myself. I bought this pos of a '77 June '17. When it got to my house, Took it off the trailer and looked it over. The po was more than correct when he said it 'has cosmetic damage'! I put it in my shed until last June when I decided to start my resto-mod. I saw a black tank and side covers on CL and went and bought them. After of parts from forum members (3 tanks, a few fenders and side covers + parts from Mikes, Boats,com and others) I started disassembly. I bought the Mike's tank from a forum member and decided since it was near new, I'd use it instead of the CL one. The 1st thing I wanted to do was steering head bearins...of course the fork lock was broken! Replaced steering bearing, wheel bearings and swing-arm bushings. Took 3-4 days just to get the SA pivot bolt out because of rust. The inside left frame was rusted as was the top of the SA from the battery overflow tube not on. On and on and one. It's almost done a year later. It 'did' run before I started, so I have hope that it will run again. I used High Heat JB Weld on that broken fin, so it will be interesting if it sticks with the vibration and heat.
Click to expand...

Very nice! You’re doing a great job with it. I look forward to seeing some nice photos when you’re all done with it! :)
 
Bob - there is something wrong with the photo posting in your message #33 above.....
 
MaxPete said:
Bob - there is something wrong with the photo posting in your message #33 above.....
Click to expand...

Well, thanks for letting me know Pete. I know what I did now. When I was talking to Jim yesterday about the paint job, I sent him a bunch of photos. Which I then tried to copy / paste into this thread. Well the text worked but not the photos, my bad.

Here was the part that I thought was interesting. How easy the paint peeled off of the tins after soaking in that vinegar solution.
FE55D4D8-5F08-4B65-82C7-77FE1E2E4BBE.jpeg
F8C39F25-33F9-4E94-878E-03FC691CA8E6.jpeg
4B7C6E21-8439-40D7-830D-233D906BDA32.jpeg
AF502EDC-C487-4EF7-99A6-33CC5C066331.jpeg



This morning however, I have changed my mind about these old tins. After stripping them, I began to realize they were worse than I had originally hoped. The left side had significant rust and corrosion damage and both panels needed bodywork. Since the white tins that were already on the bike were in perfect condition, I sent those to Jim instead, to be painted. Shipped this morning. :thumbsup:
 

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