Red Belly 2.0

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Easter
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Red Belly 2.0

#1

Post by Easter »

If you are among those who have followed this thread over the last year, with all its trials and tribulations, then save yourself some trouble and skip to the final page. Big changes. :shock:


Well, there is already a Red Back build so in the interest of identification I will call this build Red Belly. There is a reason and I will save that for now. :joker

I finally finished (fingers crossed) my CX500 project and will put it up for sale soon. Looks cool I think, but not my thing. Anyway it is time to move on and get some of these skeletons out of the barn. It is really hot down here in South Texas this time of year so I am moving pretty slow. Not bad till about 10 AM but the rest of the day is not suitable for working in the shop. After spending the better part of a couple mornings going through the junk piles I have decided to work on this '83. I have a title! When I picked it up a couple of years ago it looked just like this (and still does) with the engine frozen and heads off, but included. Using a cheater bar on the end of a 19mm socket wrench, along with some oil, carb cleaner, wooden block and heavy hammer, I was eventually able to persuade the pistons to move. After cleaning the cylinders and oiling them good, it now turns over freely with no significant rust pitting or damage to the pistons. I had two sets of cylinder heads and I tried to pick the best ones to clean and lap. After a good bath in gasoline they look like they will be fine.

Today, I power washed the frame and the engine (and myself) with the result that the engine is pretty clean and I am now filthy and wet.

Just a tip for new guys: I have now cleaned quite a few of these old engines. Some worse than others but all bad. I have tried several different things to clean them including gasoline and soda blasting among others. Both of these work well but have there down side, gasoline is relatively cheap as a cleaner and I still use it a lot but it is smelly and risky so if you do use it be careful. Soda blasting is dependent in large on your equipment. Down here in South Texas the humidity seldom falls below 65 percent and is often much higher. This often causes clogging and general frustration.

The thing that works best for me is a pre-spray of a citrus based grease solvent followed by careful power washing. I am using cold water with a medium tip on the wand. As the layers come off, I reapply the solvent and allow it to soak for a couple of minutes before hitting it again with the power washer. You will get wet but for the most part there is very little to clean up on the driveway. Much better than soda or gasoline. Detail cleaning can be speeded up with carb cleaner and brushes. Watch your eyes! Be careful with the power washer around the wires and tubes that are still attached to the engine.
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Last edited by Easter on Wed May 15, 2019 9:22 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Bikes at present:

83 XL 600r with a 2004 XR650L engine
And a slightly worse for the wear BMW GS adventure bike awaiting repair
83 GL in process :IDTS:
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5speed
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Re: Red Belly (!)

#2

Post by 5speed »

you have some work ahead of you on that one. :shock:

Have you ever tried easy off oven cleaner?
It used to be all the rage up here for cleaning greasy engines back in the day.
When I get to that point on my 76 and 78 I'm going to use whatever biodegradable cleaner I can find as I live in the country and have my own well.
1982 1100 standard. (sold)
1986 Yamaha FJ1200
2000 Yamaha Roadstar
1976 GoldWing. running but not on the road
1978 Goldwing. future cafe project.
2019 Can-Am ryker (boss's new ride)

2002 Shadow American Classic(sold)
1983 Shadow 500. (sold)
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Easter
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Re: Red Belly (!)

#3

Post by Easter »

I have a little bit of experience with Easy Off. I left it on overnight and ruined the surface on a set of carbs but like most of these cleaning products, caution is advised. Here are shots from today's progress with the power washer.
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Bikes at present:

83 XL 600r with a 2004 XR650L engine
And a slightly worse for the wear BMW GS adventure bike awaiting repair
83 GL in process :IDTS:
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Re: Red Belly (!)

#4

Post by duke182 »

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Re: Red Belly (!)

#5

Post by wingrider »

Quite the project! Did you just clean the engine block, or did you paint it? If just clean, the paint is in great shape!
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Easter
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Re: Red Belly (!)

#6

Post by Easter »

Just cleaned. Have to do the heads and pull the back cover to check the clutch etc. before painting.
Bikes at present:

83 XL 600r with a 2004 XR650L engine
And a slightly worse for the wear BMW GS adventure bike awaiting repair
83 GL in process :IDTS:
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Easter
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Re: Red Belly (!)

#7

Post by Easter »

The valves have been lapped and a couple hundred dollars worth of o-rings and gaskets are on order. I should be able to start reassembling the motor mid-week. Still a very long list of things to do, decisions to make and parts to buy: tires, battery etc.
Bikes at present:

83 XL 600r with a 2004 XR650L engine
And a slightly worse for the wear BMW GS adventure bike awaiting repair
83 GL in process :IDTS:
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Easter
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Re: Red Belly (!)

#8

Post by Easter »

Progress has been slow with travel (Black Hills among other trips) hot weather, etc. But some progress has occurred. The heads are back on with valves lapped. Some additional cleaning of engine parts also. The main activity has been the building of a seat pan/rear cowl/fender. My first attempt was a dismal failure that we will talk no more about but I am slowly, slowly, slowly molding up a tail using a stock nylon seat pan as the base. First step was to shorten the base about 3 inches by cutting just behind the metal mounting plates and overlapping the two parts. Pop rivets make a secure joint.

Next the general shape was achieved by gluing rigid foam (pink board) in layers to line up with the hump from the original seat base. Using an air disk sander, sand to the general shape. Follow that with four or five layers of fiber glass cloth and mat. Then "simply" smooth to the final contour and touch up with glaze. Apply sanding primer to fill and smooth imperfections.

Repeat, repeat, repeat. The final stage has been going on now for about a week while I work toward a smooth and level surface. I am sure someone who does this professionally could do it in two or three stages but I will get it done sooner or later.

Next comes removal of the tank and final disassembly. The tank is pretty grim inside so I am not looking forward to that. As is my style, this project will evolve depending on how I feel on any given day and what parts I can scrounge up. I do have a plan for the paint but I am a little nervous about that too so I will hold it close to the vest for now.

I am trying to post some photos but for some reason I can't get them to "send" This is odd as I have been doing it now for several years the same way each time. Will post them soon.
Last edited by Easter on Thu Sep 06, 2018 9:27 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Bikes at present:

83 XL 600r with a 2004 XR650L engine
And a slightly worse for the wear BMW GS adventure bike awaiting repair
83 GL in process :IDTS:
User avatar
Easter
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Re: Red Belly (!)

#9

Post by Easter »

Photos
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Bikes at present:

83 XL 600r with a 2004 XR650L engine
And a slightly worse for the wear BMW GS adventure bike awaiting repair
83 GL in process :IDTS:
User avatar
Easter
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Re: Red Belly (!)

#10

Post by Easter »

More photos
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Bikes at present:

83 XL 600r with a 2004 XR650L engine
And a slightly worse for the wear BMW GS adventure bike awaiting repair
83 GL in process :IDTS:
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desertrefugee
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Re: Red Belly (!)

#11

Post by desertrefugee »

:popcornx2
- Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass. It's about learning to ride in the rain.
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Re: Red Belly (!)

#12

Post by digschopper »

Nice. Anxious to see the results!
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Re: Red Belly (!)

#13

Post by Hanslehoff »

Really liking the shape of that rear cowl, will look fantastic with the tank
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Re: Red Belly (!)

#14

Post by Track T 2411 »

Looks great, and great idea!
"I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious." - Albert Einstein

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Easter
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Re: Red Belly (!)

#15

Post by Easter »

Thanks guy's, smeared on and sanded off another couple layers of bondo. While they were drying, I started working on a set of carbs. But as I posted in "tech discussions", I don't know if I want to use them on this build. I am thinking about using a set of 1200 carbs I have on the shelf. Not sure how that will work out, haven't tried putting the 1200 carbs on 1100 engine before. Any thoughts or info would be appreciated. :orange

Photos of before and after a couple of hours in the ultrasonic cleaner.
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Bikes at present:

83 XL 600r with a 2004 XR650L engine
And a slightly worse for the wear BMW GS adventure bike awaiting repair
83 GL in process :IDTS:
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