STANDARD issue…. a resurrection begins….

I am hesitant to use the power washer, but I think it will need it. I’ll definitely strip off the tins and battery first if I decide to go for that. I’ll wash those by hand. My powerwasher isn’t terribly powerful, but certainly stronger than my garden hose.
That bike is a Great snag!
I'm with you. Way too easy to do MORE damage with water, especially water with high pressure driving it in where it doesn't belong, perhaps creating more problems than it solves. I buy pressure washers then sell them cuz they make more prollums than they fix. My current pressure washer is a 5HP electric, bought for a song off CL. It still needs to be arranged better on it's wheeled cart, but much easier to plug N go compared to messing with gas motors.
 
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My pressure washer is a cheap Lowe's electric model. My well pressure isn't the strongest either, so I think I will be ok using it on the frame, motor and forks. I will definitely be hand washing the tins to try and preserve their integrity as much as possible.

On a side note Gary, the seller told me he had a guy from Wisconsin call him on it. My first instinct was that you were poaching down here in Indiana... LOL. But seriously, in my search for a donor i am shocked at the number of XS's that were listed in Wisconsin. It's no wonder you have a barn full of bikes.
 
Like you guess no need for us 'sconsiners to go that far afield. Though I have gone as far as NDak and Mass for an early bike ;^)
But my diet.............
Some of the worst bikes I've bought came from hose down and wash owners....................everyfricking thing corroded.
mineral spirits and rags is my goto.
 
I am with 5 Twins, I think you’ll be surprised how much you can bring back with a little old fashioned elbow grease.

I am also against power washing motorcycles at all. I’ve never used anything more than a bucket of water with car washing soap and a rag and towel. For grease removal on engine and frame , I use regular old household degreasers like 409. But that’s just me. Carry on. :D
Edit: for really gunky engine and frame grease,
Kerosene and a plastic bristle brush.
 
Spent a little time cleaning today. Nothing real serious, but a little citrus degreaser, soapy water, and a bristle brush. Took a lot of the grime off, but still could use another round. But I did get the initial cake and dirt off. There is plenty of surface rust, so it will require a good strip down, scrape and paint. This ain’t no restoration so I’m not going to go crazy with powder coating and such. As a matter of fact I miss having a dirty crusty bike that doesn’t need kept shined up. My first shovelhead was a dirty ol girl and I liked her that way. Seemed like any time I’d wash her, some part would fall off on the next ride… lol. Anyway, here she is after a bath.
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Tear it down fix any mechanical problems. Clean/polish what's there. No painting or re-chroming. It's a survivor! As much as I can appreciate a full blown restoration I think survivors are just as cool.
 
As has been said many times "they are only original once". For some reason I like original. You can restore it anytime. Once restored it can never go back to original.
 
I started tearing the seat down today too. The pan is remarkably good shape. Just a little surface rust on the bottom side. I’ve got a seat cover for a 75 that I may try to make fit. Initial inspection says it may take some work. The foam is pretty decent. Just a couple spots of wear but is absolutely usable. It all came apart pretty easily too, just a little crumbly in the worn areas.
 

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Attacking the front end a little today. Setting up my handlebars, and as I normally do I’m running the wiring internally. Can anyone tell me how to remove these connector pins?
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I know they usually have a little tab to release them but I can’t figure this one out.
 
You need a tube-shaped tool that just fits over them. They have little tabs on the sides too, just like the flat spades, but more of them (usually 2). You could probably make your own tool if you could find the right sized tubing. Maybe brass tubing from a hobby shop?
 
Bought some 1/8” aluminum tuning at the local hobby shop. It took some work but was able to get all the pins out. Wiring is all pulled through the bars. These are cb750 replica bars I had on hand. They come pre-drilled for the wiring. Still need some minor cleanup. The throttle housing is from my 75 for a double cable. I was surprised the single cable throttle tube doesn’t fit. That’s a cheap fix though. Now Into the tub they go with other parts waiting to be installed.
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I also started painting the headlight ears. They were a little rusty, and thought I’d like them better black. All I had was flat black, so I’ll use that as a base for now. I think I’ll want to go gloss or semi-gloss though.
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Also, to rewind a little… my seat attempt did not work out. I cut the foam down a little for a lower profile. Only to find that the seat cover I have does not fit! Shit the bed!!! So that got shelved. I did however clean up the rust and repaint the pan. It looks great!!! If only I had a foam and cover to fit it now. DOH :doh:
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Oh, and something I learned yesterday while working with the seat foam. I was cutting it with a large serrated bread knife. It got the job done but wasn’t real pretty. Anyway, I put a flap wheel on my 4” grinder, and that did a dream job of shooting out my rough saw marks. You just need to be very light handed. It can get away from you real quick and do irreversible damage.
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